Exam 1 Flashcards
psychology
scientific study of behaviour, thought, experience, and how they are affected by physical, mental, social, and environmental factors
Measuring smoke – fire is not directly measurable; highly variable
biopsychosocial model
individual as the product of many influences
Biological – genes, brain anatomy and function
- some psych and behviour disorders, drug effects, brain behaviour relationships
Psychological – behaviour, perception, thought, experience
- language, memory, decision
Sociocultural – interpersonal relationships, families, groups, societies, ethnicities; can’t live isolated
-Attraction, attitudes and stereotypes, conformity
scientific method
a way of learning about the world through collecting observations, developing theories to explain them, and using the theories to make predictions
Process
- Observation -> develop theory -> develop hypothesis to test theory
- Confirm -> strengthens original theory; develop secondary hypothesis; developing credibility
- Deny -> must revise theory or discard/modify original hypothesis
theory
explanation of a phenomenon; generates and is tested through hypotheses (not opinion/belief)
hypothesis
testable prediction; can be observed and measured; cannot be technically proven
- Will confirm or deny theory
- Falsifiable – hypothesis can be disproven (ex. all swans are white)
building scientific literacy
smart and critical consumers of psychological information; all sectors intertwine together
o Knowledge gathering – what do we already know
o Scientific explanation
o Critical thinking – evaluating the evidence; are sources credible
o Application – why is this research relevant; how does it apply to society and people
why is psych a science
o Empiricism – knowledge gained by careful observation; through theories, hypothesis, research experiments
o Determinism – events governed by lawful, cause and effect relationships; nothing happens for no reason
Ex. gravity
o Psych combines determinism and empiricism – not conflicting; understand behaviour by making observations and testing hypotheses; cause and effect occurs at different levels
Calls free will into question – is everything the result of the biopsychosocial model
circa 1500 BCE
Ancient Egyptian doctors describing behavioural changes following damage to head
circa 430 BCE - 215 AD
Greek (philosopher Hippocrates) and roman (Galen of Pergamon) physicians developed the 4 humours/temperaments theories of personality (ratio of liquids determined personality)
4 humours: o Sanguine (blood) – impulsive, pleasure seeking, charismatic o Choleric (yellow bile) – ambitious, energetic, aggressive o Melancholic (black bile) – independent, perfectionist, introverted o Phlegmatic (phlegm) – quiet, relaxed, content
circa 1600
materialism vs dualism
adoption of scientific method
Growth in physics, astronomy, physiology, biology, and chemistry (not much psych)
Materialism – belief that humans and other living things are composed of exclusively physical matter
- Popular at this time
Dualism – matter and mind are dual properties; there are properties of humans that are not material (mind and soul); immeasurable
- Popular today
- We have not been able to localize consciousness further than “I think therefore I am”
influence from physics
Gustav Fechner (1801-1887) – how energy produces motion:
- Psychophysics – study of the relationship between physical world and mental representation (how things are vs how they are perceived)
- Weight experiment – Weber’s Law; added weight was perceived as less when added to 5lb relative to 1lb weight
- Integrated light and sound
- Created equation to calculate perceived changes of stimulus – at what point does perception change
influences from evolutionary theory
Charles Darwin (1809-1882) – evolution of species; studied adaption to environment
- Natural selection – genetically inherited traits that contribute to survival and reproductive success are more likely to be passed onto next generation
(Applies to behaviours)
- Traits differ across environments
influences from medicine
- year (what field of psych)
- brain function from injury
- leading influences
1800s
Clinical psych – concentrates on the diagnosis and treatment of psych disorders
Localization of brain function – certain parts of brain control specific mental abilities and personality characteristics:
Phrenology – mental traits and disproportions could be determined by examining surface of skull (27 “organs”)
- Franz Gall (1758-1828) and Johann Spurzheim (1776-1832)
Brain injuries
- Paul Broca – left frontal lobe damage (Broca’s area); speaking and word production; Could formulate words and ideas; could not communicate them
- Karl Wernicke – left hemisphere damage (Wernicke’s area); language comprehension
- Phineas Gage – frontal lobe damage; impulsiveness and childlike behaviour
Names:
Franz Mesmer (1734-1815) – believed exposure to magnets could redirect the flow of metallic fluid in the body to cure disease and insanity
- Some patients reported being cured – likely placebo effect
- Now known as hypnosis
Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) – intrigued by hypnosis; theorized unconscious mind fuelled our behaviours & tried to use hypnosis to access this
- Used a medical model and evolutionary influences to determine what motivates and the importance of early life experiences
- Psychoanalysis – access unconscious mind; attempts to explain how unconscious processes influence behaviour and personality
- Believed the unconscious mind contained:
Forgotten memories
Sexual and aggressive urges (Edapis theory – young men were attracted to their mothers)
- Radical and exciting – much was unfounded and untrue
- psychoanalysis is still used today
influences from social science
Sir Francis Galton (1822-1911) – measured perception, used statistical analysis to study behaviour:
Individual differences in people – nature vs nurture; how they influence mental processes
- Nature – heredity (genetic material)
- Nurture – environment
Eminence – combination of ability, morality, and achievement that run in families; belief that there is a hereditary basis for success; nature
- Eugenics – superior race/bloodline; used to justify genocide (ex. holocaust)
- Darwin believed this as well
- Phrenology backed this – superior brains
names of beginning of contemporary psych
Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920) – first laboratory dedicated to human behaviour (1979)
- Introspection – to look within
- Participant studies
Sensation and perception
Reaction times
- Measured how experimental manipulations affected mental events
- Mental activity is not instantaneous
Ex. reaction times – processes occurring
Experiments showed cause and effect relationships
Edward Titchener (1867-1927) – student of Wundt - Structuralism – analysis of conscious experience by breaking it down into basic elements; understanding how the elements work together; Mental experiences were made up of a limited number of sensations Combined sensations/structural components create conscious experience and mental life
William James (1842-1910) – wrote first psych textbook (Principles of Psych, 1890)
- Studied behaviour in context (instead of structural)
How thoughts and action help us adapt to environment (Darwin)
- Functionalism – study of purpose and function of behaviour and conscious experience
Behaviour is understood by the purpose it served in evolution
behaviourism in contemporary psych (and names)
singular focus on studying only observable behaviour; little to no reference to mental events/instincts ; removed cognition and psychoanalysis
Edwin Twitmyer (1873-1934) – laid groundwork for behaviourism
- Classic conditioning – training behaviour and response (still used today); begs the question why we need thought and experience
- Patellar reflex was associated with sound; reflex could then be produced with sound
- Pavlov’s dogs
Edward Thorndike (1874-1949) – behavioural changes were based on consequence
- Pos – person will do it more
- Neg – do it less
- Parental – learned early on in childhood
John Watson (1878-1958) – only observable changes in environment and behaviour are appropriate for scientific study
- “give me a child” – thought you could train a child to be anything; learning was consequence of behaviour
- Conditioning
B.F Skinner (1904-1990)
- Radical behaviourism – foundation of behaviour is the response to reward and punishment
social and cultural influences (historically)
Norman Triplett (1861-1931) – published first Social Psychological research (1898)
- influence of social situation on behaviour
- holocaust occurring at this time – how could people on mass commit acts of violence
- bike riders – will bike faster in group setting
1940s
- Social psychology – study of influence from other people on behaviour
- Personality psychology – study of how different personality characteristics; influenced by social situation (people by themselves vs in a group setting)
Kurt Lewin (1890-1947) – founder of modern social psychology
- Behaviour is a function of the individual and the environment (nature and nurture)
- social and personality are intertwined domains
cognitive revolution
mainly in Europe; difficulty penetrating through behaviourism; called into question things behaviourism couldn’t explain
Hermann Ebbinghaus (1850-1909) – studied memory
Fredrick Bartlett (1886-1969) – cultural knowledge and previous experience influence our memory
Noam Chomsky – aspects of language (grammar and vocabulary)
Gestalt psychology
- Focuses on the whole of perception and experience, rather than its parts
- Thinking and experiencing occur at higher, more organized levels
Cognitive psych: Ulrich Neisser (1928-2012) – named it
- Modern psych – focused on processing memory, thinking and language
- More than just observable phenomenon – create theories and translate them into behaviour
- Computer/brain analogy – many connections; only see what’s on the “screen”
- Imperfect – computers were created by humans; we understand computers, we don’t understand brains
- Learning more about computers from and using computers to measure brain activity (circular)
humanistic psych
Unique aspects of individuals o Freedom to act o Rational thought o Fundamental differences between humans and animals o Meaning of personal experience
Carl Rogers (1902-1987)
Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) – Maslow’s hierarchy of needs:
o Self actualization – most they can be
o Esteem – respect and recongnition
o Love and belonging
o Safety – social psych went into
o Physiological needs – basic psych went into
brain and behaviour psychologists
Donald Hebb (1904-1985)
o Hebb’s Law – cells that fire together wire together; studied neuronal connections and cellular synapses
- More “talking” = stronger connections (instincts, reflexes, habits)
Wilder Penfield (1891-1976) – mapping sensory and motor brain regions
o Initially used to remove centers of brain in epilepsy patient – shocked areas of brain under local anesthesia to identify parts of brain
- Progressed into brain mapping
o Subjective experience in brain – can be represented in brain in different regions (?)
emerging themes in psych
Psych of women – underrepresented historically
Behaviour in different cultures
o Psych students are WEIRD (white, educated, industrialized, rich, democratic)
Brain imaging
Positive psych – outlook influences wellbeing
Psych in “real world” vs psych in “digital world”
o Digital world is becoming more prominent
o Are studies in lab applicable to real world
research method general goals (3)
Critical thinking
Objectivity – facts about the world can be agreed on by independent observers
- Subjectivity – beliefs, opinions, experiences, expectations
Participation and consumption of research
variable
object/concept being being controlled, manipulated, or measured
o Independent – controlled
o Dependant – outcome; measures effectiveness and manipulation of independent
operational definition
statements that describe the procedures/operations and specific measurements that are used to record observations (detailed explanations of how/what)