Chapter 1 Terms

Question 1

Psychology

Answer 1

The scientific study of mind and behavior.

Question 2

Mind

Answer 2

The private inner experience of perceptions, thoughts, memories, and feelings.

Question 3

Behavior

Answer 3

Observable actions of Human beings and nonhuman animals.

Question 4

Nativism

Answer 4

The philosophical view that certain kinds of knowledge are innate or inborn.

Question 5

Philosophical epiricism

Answer 5

The view that all knowledge is acquired through experience.

Question 6

Physiology

Answer 6

The study of biological processes, especially in the human body.

Question 7

Stimulus

Answer 7

Sensory input from the environment.

Question 8

Reaction Time

Answer 8

The amount of time taken to respond to a specific stimulus.

Question 9

Consciousness

Answer 9

A person’s subjective experience of the world and the mind.

Question 10

Structuralism

Answer 10

The analysis of the basic elements that constitute the mind.

Question 11

Introspection

Answer 11

The subjective observation of one’s own experience.

Question 12

Functionalism

Answer 12

The study of how mental processes enable people to adapt to their environments.

Question 13

Natural Selection

Answer 13

Charles Darwin’s theory that the features of an organism that help it survive and reproduce are more likely than other features t be passed on to subsequent generations.

Question 14

Hysteria

Answer 14

A temporary loss of cognitive or motor functions, usually as a result of emotionally upsetting experiences.

Question 15

Unconscious

Answer 15

The part of the mind that operates outside of conscious awareness but influences conscious thoughts, feelings, and actions.

Question 16

Psychoanalytic Theory

Answer 16

An approach that emphasizes the importance of unconscious mental processes in shaping feelings, thoughts, and behaviors.

Question 17

Psychoaalysis

Answer 17

A therapeutic approach that focuses on brining unconscious material into conscious awareness to better understand psychological disorders.

Question 18

Humanistic Psychology

Answer 18

An approach to understanding human nature and emphasizes the positive potential of human beings.

Question 19

Behaviorism

Answer 19

An approach that advocates that psychologists restrict themselves to the scientific study of objectively observable behavior.

Question 20

Response

Answer 20

An action or physiological change elicited by a stimulus.

Question 21

Reinforcement

Answer 21

The consequences of a behavior determined whether it will be more or less likely to occur again.

Question 22

Illusions

Answer 22

Errors of perception, memory, or judgment in which subjective experience differs from objective reality.

Question 23

Gestalt Psychology

Answer 23

A psychological approach that emphasizes that we often perceive the whole rather than the sum of the parts.

Question 24

Cognitive Psychology

Answer 24

The scientific study of mental processes, including perception, thought, memory, and reasoning.

Question 25

Behavioral Neurosciene

Answer 25

An approach to psychology that links psychological processes to activities in the nervous system and other bodily processes.

Question 26

Cognitive Neurosciene

Answer 26

The field of study that attempts to understand the links between cognitive processes and brain activity.

Question 27

Evolutionary Psychology

Answer 27

A psychological approach that explains mind and behavior in terms of the adaptive value of abilities that are preserved over time by natural selection.

Question 28

Social Psychology

Answer 28

The study of the causes and consequences of sociality.

Question 29

Cultural Psychology

Answer 29

The study of how cultures reflect and shape the psychological processes ad their members.