Chapters 1-3 Flashcards
The view that psychology should be an objective science that studies behavior without reference to mental processes
Behaviorism
historically important perspective that emphasized human growth potential
Humanistic Psychology
the study of mental processes, such as occur when we perceive, learn, remember, thing, communicate, and solve problems
Cognitive psychology
The science of behavior and mental processes
Psychology
relative influence of genes and experience in the development of psychological traits and behaviors.
Nature-Nurture
the tendency to believe after learning an outcome, that we could have predicted it. ( I knew it all along)
hindsight bias
enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading information.
testing effect
a nerve cell; the basic building blocks of the nervous system
Neuron
neuron extensions that receive messages and conduct them toward the cell body
dendrites
the neuron extension that receive messages to other neurons or to muscles and glands.
axon
the junction between the axon tip of a sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of a receiving neuron.
synapse
cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons;they also play a role in learning, thinking, and memory
glial cells (glia)
the level of stimulation required to trigger a neutral impulse.
threshold
in a neural processing a brief resting pause that occurs after a neuron has fired
Refractory period
a neurons reaction of either firing or not firing
All-or-none response
neuron-produced chemicals that cross the synaptic gap to carry messages to other neurons
neurotransmitters
a neurotransmitter’s reabsorption by the sending neuron
Reuptake
The brains sensory control center
thalamus
the little brain
cerebellum
linked to emotion
amygdala
linked with emotion and reward
hypothalamus
linked with memories of facts and events
hippocampus
information- processing center
cerebral
the portion of the cerebral just behind forehead. Involved with speaking, making plans and judgements
frontal lobes
included areas that receive information from the ears
temporal lobes
controls voluntary movements
motor cortex
a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change
developmental psychology
a period early in life when exposure to certain stimuli or experiences is needed for proper development
critical period
the preoperational child’s difficulty taking another’s point of view
egocentrism
people’s ideas about their own and other’s mental states
Theory of mind
the transition period from childhood to adulthood
adolescence
research in which people of different ages are compared with one another
cross- sectional study
research in which the same people are restided and retested over a long period
longitudinal study
