Chapter 1: Introduction to Psychology

Question 1

psychology is?

Answer 1

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes

Question 2

what is behavior?

Answer 2

anything an organism does

Question 3

the mind (mental processes)?

Answer 3

internal, personal experiences that we infer from behavior
- sensations, dreams, feelings, beliefs, etc…

Question 4

what is hypothesis?

Answer 4

educated guess to explain something; needs to be tested
- evidence can support/refute a hypothesis, but can never prove a theory

Question 5

what is empirical method?

Answer 5

way of answering questions based on observation/experimentation
- not just logically thinking through it

Question 6

psych teaches critical thinking; what is it?

Answer 6

doesn’t blindly accept conclusions
- examines assumptions, considers biases, evaluates evidence, acessess conclusions

Question 7

to think critically, a scientist must have what 3 things?

Answer 7

curiosity, skepticism, humility

Question 8

curiosity

Answer 8

to have enthusiasm and willingness to question and explore the world around us

Question 9

skepticism

Answer 9

don’t take anything at face value
- needs data, has to approach the things they examine w/ a certain extent of skepticism

Question 10

humility

Answer 10

must be able to accept that the ideas we form may not always be right

Question 11

critical thinking helps us do what?

Answer 11

helps students communicate better/helps students understand themselves/others

Question 12

What/When did Wilhelm Wundt and Edward Tichener discover

Answer 12

the idea of structuralism in 1879 in Leipzig, Germany

Question 13

structuralism

Answer 13

tried to explain the stucture of thought
- Wundt looked to describe the “atoms of the mind”; believed that psych was the science of how we consciously experience the world around us

Question 14

introspection

Answer 14

trained observers described thoughts, feelings, memories, etc… when exposed to stimuli
- wundt’s views fell out of favor b/c the limitations of introspection

Question 15

functionalism

Answer 15

adaptive value of beh/men processes
- how did they contribute to survival over our genetic past

Question 16

the school of psych was formed as a reactin to what and was influenced by who?

Answer 16

the structuralism; influenced by work of william james and theory of charles darwin
- darwin wanted to learn about physical evolution

Question 17

who did william james accept into his graduate program

Answer 17

a woman: mary whiton calkins

Question 18

sigmund freud was influenced by psych and __ theory

Answer 18

psychoanalytic

Question 19

psychoanalytic theory

Answer 19

early childhood experiences are important, we don’t have access to a lot of who we are

Question 20

gestalt psychology

Answer 20

central principle summarized by Kurt koffka; “the whole is other than the sum of the parts”
-researchers: max wertheimer, kurt koffka, wolfgang kohler

Question 21

behaviorism

Answer 21

view that psych
- should be objective science
- make no reference to mental processes
– researchers (ivan pavlov, john b. watson, b.f. skinner)
— watson/skinnet thoight thats pyshc was the stduy of observing since they cpundnt oberbse internal behaviors, therefore led to behaviorism
—- watson believed he could mold any baby into anything regarldess of background/genetics

Question 22

humanism

Answer 22

humasn are basically “good”
- focused on individual growth/potential/need for love/acceptancr
- researchers (abraham maslow/carl rogers belive that its focused too hard on tragic emotions or too little on personal choice
- maslow has a hierarchy of needs
- fundamental belief is that people are good and that mental/social problems come from deviaitions from this natural tendency

Question 23

cognitive revolution

Answer 23

began in 1960s and is apart of the field of neuroscience
- important researchers (noam chomsky/ulric neisser)

Question 24

cognitive psych

Answer 24

how we perceive, process, remember
- similar to structuralism

Question 25

cognitive neuroscience

Answer 25

study of brain activity linked w/ cognition
- diff sciences work together to see how observable brain activity is linked w/ thought processes

Question 26

culture

Answer 26

distinct customs, values, beliefs, knowledge, art, and language of a society
- common way of life and language of a society
- shapes our specific attitudes and behaviors

Question 27

W.E.I.R.D. cultures

Answer 27

Western Educated Industrialized Rich Democratic
- over-represented in research, not giving us a true picture of humanity

Question 28

biopsych

Answer 28

bio basis of beh/thoughts/emotions and reciprocal relations b/w bio and psych processes
- topics like beh-changing brain lesions chemical responses in brain/brain-related genetics
- focuses on relationship between biological makeup and our beh/experiences

Question 29

evolutionary psych

Answer 29

attempts to explain useful mental/psych traits (memory, perception, language, as adaptations: functional products of natural selection

Question 30

natural selection

Answer 30

individuals w/ specific adaptations survive and out-breed those who don’t

Question 31

developmental psych

Answer 31

the study of how/why humans change over the course of their life
- these psychs. are interested in what changes about people as a function of development

Question 32

personality psych

Answer 32

how personality develops/influences way we think/behave

Question 33

personality traits

Answer 33

mostly consistent patterns of thoughts/behs

Question 34

social psych

Answer 34

how thought, feelings, and behs. of individuals are influenced by actual, imagined, implied prescence of others + stereotyping

Question 35

imagined/implied prescences

Answer 35

internalized social norms are influenced even when they are alone
- ex: stereotyping

Question 36

Industrial-organizational psychology

Answer 36

study of human beh in organizations and work place

Question 37

principles of individual, group, and organizational beh

Answer 37

applying this info to solution of problems at work

Question 38

health psychology

Answer 38

factors that allow people to be healthy, recover, from an illness or cope w/ a chronic condition

Question 39

biological influences

Answer 39

includes areas like genetic predispositions/influence of hormones/neurotransmitters on thoughts/beh

Question 40

psychological influences

Answer 40

areas like our emotional responses, and how our perceptions of the world influences thoughts/beh

Question 41

social-cultural influences

Answer 41

being in companies of others changes our beh
- how culture/social structures influences how we think/beh

Question 42

biopsychosocial model

Answer 42

looking at all three areas of influences (biological/psychological/social-cultural) when trying to explain cognition/behavior

Question 43

sport/exercise psychology

Answer 43

psych/mental factors that influences participation in sport, exercise and physical activity

Question 44

clinical psychology

Answer 44

asessment/treatment of mental illness/disability

Question 45

counseling psych

Answer 45

same, but usually treat less serious problems

Question 46

forensic psychologist

Answer 46

application of psych to legal settings