Chapter 2

Question 1

Craniotomy

Answer 1

Early physical therapy in which a section of patient’s skull was removed in attempt to restore balance to the four humors, leading to recovery from mental illness

Question 2

Experiment

Answer 2

Research technique in which Variables are purposively manipulated in a systematic way to test or establish a hypothesis

Question 3

Ventricles

Answer 3

Internal capsules in the medial part of the brain that contain cerebrospinal fluid

Question 4

Reflex

Answer 4

Most basic form of behavior that involves an automatic response to an environmental event or stimulus like sucking or blinking

Question 5

Mind-body problem

Answer 5

Philosophical question posed to determine the nature, either mental or physical of the mind

Question 6

Dualism

Answer 6

Philosophical position taken on the mind-body problem suggesting that the mind and body/brain are separate entities: Descartes proposed interaction in in which the two entities interacted in the physical brain specifically in the pineal gland

Question 7

Localization of function

Answer 7

Notion that specific functions are localized in specific brain areas as suggested by the eighteenth-century theory of phrenology

Question 8

Cerebral cortex

Answer 8

Most recently evolved part of the brain that envelops the midbrain; also associated with complex cognitive functions

Question 9

Correlation

Answer 9

Statistical technique used to determine how strongly two variables are related; two variables may change in a similar pattern (positive correlation) or a different pattern (negative correlation)

Question 10

Phrenology

Answer 10

Term popularized to describe gall’s theory of localization of function. In this theory, bumps on the surface of the skull were deemed to predict certain mental capabilities

Question 11

Histology

Answer 11

Systematic preparation of brain or other physiological tissue for microscopic study to be used for experimental and diagnostic purposes

Question 12

Nerve net theory

Answer 12

Early theory of the nature of the nervous system implying that the nervous system is made up of continuous extensions of nervous tissue

Question 13

Neuron

Answer 13

fundamental unit, or cell, of the nervous system

Question 14

Neuron doctrine

Answer 14

Theory that separate units, or neurons, as opposed to continuous units, make up the nervous system

Question 15

Synapse

Answer 15

Tiny gap that separates two neurons and is the location of communication between the two cells

Question 16

Neurotransmitter

Answer 16

Chemical, such as dopamine or serotonin, in the brain that is essential for communication between two neurons

Question 17

Nerve impulse (action potential)

Answer 17

Physiological basis of communication in the nervous system triggered by the exchange of certain ions across the nerve cell membrane

Question 18

All-or-none law

Answer 18

Observation that, once the threshold is reached, all action potentials are the same size regardless of the intensity of the original stimulation

Question 19

Transduction

Answer 19

Conversion of physical energy, such as light, to energy that can be used in the nervous system

Question 20

Dementia

Answer 20

Progressive loss of mental functioning atypical of normal aging process

Question 21

Schizophrenia

Answer 21

Mental illness characterized by hallucinations, delusions, social withdrawal, and cognitive deterioration. Certain brain modifications such as a smaller hippocampus and dissarrayed neurons have been observed to accompany this condition

Question 22

Hysteria

Answer 22

Early characterization of mental disturbance described in women who had no known accompanying brain damage. Charcot thought that only hysterical women could be hypnotized

Question 23

Psychoanalysis

Answer 23

Therapeutic approach to mental illness developed by Freud. In this subjective theory unconscious motives were thought to direct behavior and thoughts

Question 24

Coma therapy

Answer 24

Physical therapy in which an insulin coma was induced to treat mental illness in a patient. After 1960s, the use of this therapy decreased because of rising popularity of electroconvulsive therapy and psychoactive drugs

Question 25

ECT

Answer 25

Physical therapy used for mental illnesses such as major depression and schizophrenia; involves the delivery of electrical current to an anesthetize patient in an attempt to reconfigure neural functions for normal mental functioning

Question 26

Barbiturates

Answer 26

Group of highly addictive depressive drugs used as anticonvulsants and tranquilizers

Question 27

Psychopharmacology

Answer 27

Discipline that explores the relationship between certain psychoactive drugs and behavior and/or mental processes

Question 28

Trepanning

Answer 28

Medical process of drilling a hole in the skull in an attempt to correct a problem associated with the brain

Question 29

Lobotomy

Answer 29

Faddish operation to treat mental illness used in the 1930s and 1940s. The procedure involves separating sections of the frontal lobe from the rest of the brain

Question 30

Placebo effect

Answer 30

Term used to describe a therapeutic effect resulting from the consumption of the physiologically inactive substance (ex. A sugar pill or some other un-related treatment); used as evidence for mind-body communications

Question 31

Classical conditioning

Answer 31

Basic form of associative learning originally studied by Ivan Pavlov; involves pairing a neural stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus known to automatically evoke a response so that eventually the neutral stimulus will lead to the behavior originally produced by the unconditioned stimulus

Question 32

Behaviorism

Answer 32

Theory advocated by j.b. Watson calling for a shift of emphasis in the field of psychology from unconscious processes to the empirical manipulation of environmental stimuli and observable responses

Question 33

Social learning theory

Answer 33

Theory proposed by Albert bandura emphasizing the importance of observations of models in a social situations and how observations can lead to learning without direct exposure to reinforcer

Question 34

Self-efficacy

Answer 34

Term proposed by Albert bandura to describe a person’s assessment of his or her competence in dealing with life’s problems

Question 35

Internal/external locus of control

Answer 35

Components of the theory proposed by Julian rotter that emphasized the importance of one’s perception of his or her source of control in life- either within the individual or in the environment