Core Ideas Flashcards
*Independent Variable
> factor being manipulated
ex. Breastfeeding experiment
(IV is breast feeding)
*Dependent Variable
> factor being measured (outcome)
usually behavior/mental process
ex. Breastfeeding experiment
(DV is intelligence)
*Random Assignment
> randomly assign participants to experimental & control conditions
balances groups w/respect to uncontrollable variables
*Replication
> if repeat experiment, get same pattern of results
confidence in experiment results
ex. Safety/effectiveness of drug treatments (check for side effects)
*Non-Experimental Methods
> have no cause/effect, result is a correlation
correlation (r) - strength of relationship between two variables
ex. Linear scatterplot of husband & wife ages
*Correlation of Height/Weight
> scatterplot shows strength of relationship
positive correlation- points up/right
negative correlation- points down/left (inverse relationship between x & y)
no correlation- points all over
*Correlation Coefficient (number of Correlation)
> ranges from -1 to 1
if abs value is close, then its strong relationship
correlation does not prove causation, since no experiment done
NOT CAUSATION
*Why use correlation?
> for prediction & decision making
if unable to conduct experiment
ex. Zajonc tested family size vs. IQ
Family Resource Model- number of resources down with increase of kids
*Placebo Effect
> people actually get fake drug and feel better
treatment doesn’t do anything in reality
used in drug tests
ex. Patients even “Morphine”
(70% felt better after placebo drug)
*Transduction
> converting environmental stimulus into nerve impulses
>sensory receptors convert environmental energy into nerve impulses (then to brain)
*Doctrine of Specific Nerve Energies
> quality of experience determined by sensory receptor stimulated and where info goes
*Feature Detection
> cells in visual cortex respond to specific features
>plant electrobe in cortex to test activity in animals
*Feature Detectors
> edge detectors
complex cells
hyper complex cells
*Top Down Process
> stuff stored in head from previous experiences
knowledge, beliefs, expectations, memories
ex. LSU game outcome changed judge’s sentences
*Bottom Up Process
> sensory input from sensors go to brain
>info from feature detectors
*Capacity Theory
> attention is limited resource
individual controls distribution
difficult tasks require more
causes breakdown into serial processing
*Classical Conditioning
> teach something to respond/remember
every animal can be
ex. Pavlov & his dog digestion experiment
ex. Vietnam vets w/sounds
*Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)
Classical Conditioning Terminology
> something person/animal already knows
>perhaps innate (food)
*Unconditioned Response (UCR)
Classical Conditioning Terminology
> reflexive/innate biological response
>ex. dog salivates to food
*Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
Classical Conditioning Terminology
> learned stimulus
*Conditioned Response (CR)
Classical Conditioning Terminology
> actual learned response
*Classical Conditioning Chart
Dog Example
> UCS: food
UCR: salivation
CS: bell rings/show food
CR: salivation from hearing bell
*Shaping (by Successive Approximation)
> low achievable goal to harder goal
give/withhold reward to tell what to do
used to train animals
ex. dogs play piano, prisons, psych-wards
*Reinforcement
> something increases strength or likelihood of getting response
key to operant condition
based on if-then contingency
*Reinforcement Overview
> positive: give
negative: take away
continuous: happens every time
partial:
*Decay Theory
> over time memory trace broken down = lost
>ex. newspaper in sun
*Interference Theory
> memory doesn’t decay
info jumbled with other memories (can’t locate)
actual cause of forgetting
ex. lost keys exist, but don’t know where to find
*Encoding Specificity Principle
> learn in a context
retrieval cues can be external environment or internal state of person
memory is optimal when retrieval conditions duplicate conditions present when memory formed
*State Dependent Retrieval Eich’s Experiment
>tested frame of mind (1970's) >Ranks of Study/Test Results: Non-drug/non-drug Drug/drug Non-drug/drug Drug/non-drug
*Depth of Processing
> perspective on memory, changes how long it lasts
more neurons required for deep processing
quality of processing, not quantity of time spent
*Depth of Processing Example
> remember BEAR (shallow, rhyme, deep task)
Results:
shallow- 42%
rhyme- 65%
deep- 90%
results were same even if knew test was coming
*Memory is Reconstructive Process
> based on facts and bias
periodically updated (thus, prone to errors)
ex. video camera vs. website
