Exam 1 Flashcards
1
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Descriptive Research Methods
A
descriptions based on repeated observations (case studies, naturalistic observation, survey)
2
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Naturalistic Observation Research Method
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observing behavior in a certain environment; ECOLOGICAL VALIDITY
3
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Demand Characteristics
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aspects of an observational setting that cause people to behave as they think they should
4
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Hawthorne Effect
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Behavior of subject impacted because they know they are being observed
5
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Observer Bias
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expectations influence interpretations of observations and influence perception of reality
6
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Implicit Association Test
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test to see hidden bias based on association and reaction time; exposes biases people don’t know they have.
7
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Sampling Bias
A
biases about sample group that may impact how observations are interpreted
8
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Expectancy Bias
A
the subconscious influence that a researcher can have on the subjects of a research study.
9
Q
How to minimize sampling bias?
A
-random sampling (randomly assign to experimental conditions)
-large, diverse sample representative of the population.
10
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Survey Sampling: pros and cons?
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Pros: anonymous, quick, quantifiable
Cons: limited answer choices, relies on self report
11
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Placebo Effect
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When a person’s expectations/beliefs about the experiment determine their experience (controlling for expectancy bias)
12
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Maximum Validity Experimental Conditions
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double blind experiment (both experimental and research groups blind)
13
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Correlation Method
A
how 2 variables influence each other; r value from -1 to 1
14
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Deductive Reasoning
A
a logical approach where you progress from general ideas to specific conclusions
15
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Inductive Reasoning
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a method of drawing conclusions by going from the specific to the general
16
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Hypothesis
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educated guess based on a theory; must be falsifiable!!!
17
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Experimental Design Elements (6)
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- controlled extraneous variables
- independent variable
- dependent variable
-control group - experimental group
-falsifiable hypothesis
18
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Reliabilty
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ability to consistently produce the same result
19
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Validity
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the extent to which the given instrument/ tool accurately measures.
20
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IRB (ethics)
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Instructional Review Board: ethics for human studies
21
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IACUC (ethics)
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Institutional Animal Core and Use Committee: ethics for Animal studies
22
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Internal Validity vs External Validity
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Internal validity examines whether the study design, conduct, and analysis answer the research questions without bias. External validity examines whether the study findings can be generalized to other contexts.
23
Q
External Validity
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the property of an experiment in which the variables have been operationally defined (able to measure) in a normal, typical realist way
24
Q
Mindfulness Research
A
Hypothesis: meditation can change brain plasticity and functioning and can rewire pathways
-right PFC neg emotions and left PFC positive emotions
25
Mindfulness Research; Dr. Davidson
Emotions and mood are trainable mental skills
-neuroplasticity, epigenetics, bidirectional pathways connecting mind and body, concept of innate basic goodness
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Mindfulness Research; Buddha Brain
Study looked at brains of long term Buddhist pro meditators, intermediate mediators and people who have never meditated
-IV: focuses attention vs rest vs emotional state
-DV: amygdala activation (emotion center)
Findings: less amygdala activity/emotional reactivity in expert meditators.
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Epigenetics
study of how genotypes can be expressed in different ways/ result in different phenotypes
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Neuron
communicative cells in the nervous system that communicate through electrical impulses and chemical signals.
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Dendrites
part of neuron where information is collected
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Soma
neuron cell body where information is integrated
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Axon
transfer information from cell body to axon terminal
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Synapse
small space between neurons where communication occurs
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Sensory Neuron
neurons that receive info from external world; convey to brain through spinal cord
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Motor Neuron
neurons that carry signals from spinal cord to muscle to provide movement
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Interneurons
neurons that connect sensory neurons, motor neurons, or other interneurons.
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Glial Cells
nervous system white matter cells (neurons are grey matter); help supply nutrients and support to neurons
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Myelin Sheath
insulated coding on axon that speeds up neural transmission and adds a protective layer; made of glial cells.
38
Multiple Sclerosis
demyelinating diseases where the myelin sheath breaks down; slows neural sensory communication leading to lower motor and cognitive function.
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Action Potential
nerve impulse flowing down axon that causes neural communication
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Resting Membrane Potential
resting state of readiness
electrical difference between inside and outside of neuron cell; onside neuron slightly more negative
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Action Potential/ Depolarization
gates of neuron open and let Na+ in making the inside of the cell more positive; causes action potential (neuron is active and firing)
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Agonist
drug that enhances the effect of neurotransmitter
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Antagonist
drug that blocks/ diminishes the effect of neurotransmitter
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Reuptake
when neurotransmitter in synapse is pumped back into the neuron that released it
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SSRI
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors; common anti depressant (serotonin agonist) that block reuptake of serotonin so it stays in synapse longer.
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MAO inhibitor
Monoamine oxidase inhibitor; inhibits the enzyme that cleans serotonin out of the synapse (anti depressant)
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Acetylcholine (ach)
-neurotransmitter involved in learning and memory
-causes muscle contractions
-regulates attention, memory and sleep
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Acetylcholine Imbalance
Excess: muscle spasms
Shortage: memory loss (Alzheimer's if the ach neurons are damaged)
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Acetylcholine Antagonist
Scopolamine; prevents neural communication and can impact memory
50
Monoamines
emotionally bases neurotransmitters (arousal and motivation)
-serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine
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Chemical Imbalance Theory
depression is caused by an imbalance of monoamines
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Norepinephrine
neurotransmitter involved in increased arousal and fight or flight
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Norepinephrine Imbalance
excess: mania
shortage: depression
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Norepinephrine Agonist and Antagonist
Agonist: Tricyclic antidepressants (too much can cause mania)
Antagonist: Lithium (mania treatment)
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Serotonin
neurotransmitter that is involved in sleep-wake regulation and positive mood
-can cause dreamlike state
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Serotonin Imbalance
shortage: depression
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Serotonin Agonist
agonist: SSRI and MAO inhibitors
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Dopamine
Neurotransmitter influencing motivation, reward, movement and pleasure
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Dopamine Imbalance
excess: schizophrenia, psychosis
shortage: depression and parkinson's (dopamine neurons degenerate/ break down)
60
Dopamine Agonist and Antagonist
agonist: cocaine, amphetamines
antagonist: antipsychotic meds
61
Endorphins
-natural pain relievers, self soothing properties, mood elevation
-"runners high"
-adaptation "survival of the fittest"
-binds to same sites as heroin and morphine
62
Endorphin Imbalance
shortage: chronic pain
63
GABA
Inhibitory neurotransmitter that relaxes (similar to depressant drugs like alcohol and drugs for anxiety and insomnia)
64
GABA Imbalance
shortage: epilepsi, anxiety, huntington's disease
excess: lack of motivation and energy
65
Glutamate
excitatory neurotransmitter; helps in learning/memory and increasing speed of synaptic connections
66
Psilocybin Mushrooms/ LSD
drug with a similar structure to seritionin that induces a dream like/euphoric state and increases dendritic fields, increasing connectivity between neurons
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Ketamine
drug that acts on glutamate receptors and helps increase speed of neural communication (quickly can help treat depression/ horse tranquilizer)
68
Amphetamines/ Cocaine
-blocks reuptake and increases release of norepinephrine and dopamine (alertness and pleasure);
-activates sympathetic NS (increased heart rate and blood pressure)
-can lead to psychotic episode
69
Nicotine
Acts on same sites as acetylcholine (learning and memory) and increases GABA response (relaxing)
very addictive and can cause anxiety and hard time thinking (cloudy)
70
Opiates
pain reliever drugs like morphine, heroin and codeine that activate receptors that activate endorphins
71
Marijuana
-bind to cannabinoid receptors in hippocampus (concerns about memory loss due to use)
-relaxed mental state
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Molly/Ecstasy
-Serotonin agonist (intense seriotin levels)
-found to damage serotonin receptors
73
Central Nervous System (CNS)
brain and spinal cord
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Peripheral Nervous System
contains the somatic and autonomic nervous systems
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Somatic Nervous System
allows you to move and control muscles throughout your body
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Autonomic Nervous System
-sympathetic NS: activation; fight or flight
-parasympathetic NS: deactivation; rest and digest
panic attacks: unnecessary activation of the sympathetic NS
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Brainstem
connects brain to spinal cord; our life support
78
Medulla
controls vital, involuntary functions (breathing, heartbeat, etc)
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Pons
controls movement; connecting to cerebellum
80
Reticular Formation
controls sleep, arousal, attention
81
Cerebellum
controls balance, movement, motor control, motor learning; called the "little brain"
82
Forebrain
highest level of the brain underneath cerebral cortex; controls complex emotional, cognitive, sensory and motor functions
83
CTE
degenerative neurological disorder; damaged cerebral cortex that cases changed in personality (antisocial and aggressive behavior)
case study: phineas gage
84
Limbic System
subcortical structures (under cerebral cortex) critical to motivation, emotion and memory
85
Thalamus
sensory relay station ; senses and inputs pass through thalamus-> go to respective parts of the brain
86
Amagdala
emotion, fear, disgust, aggression
87
Hippocampus
memory and memory formation
88
Hypothalamus
regulates temperature, hunger, automatic NS, manage hormones; keep body at homeostasis
89
Basal Ganglia
movement, motor control, motor learning
Parkinson's disease: impairment or death of nerve cells in basal ganglia
90
Frontal Lobe
personality, moral decision making, thought
91
Parietal Lobe
spatial relations, touch
92
Occipital Lobe
vision
93
Temporal Lobe
hearing and memory
94
Motor Cortex
generate signals to direct the movement of the body; in the frontal lobe
95
Somatosensory Cortex
receives tactile information from the body, including sensations such as touch, pressure, temperature, and pain; parital lobe
96
Brocas Area
producing language; frontal lobe
97
Wernicke's Area
understanding language; frontal lobe
98
Auditory Cortex
simple detection of sound and for the discrimination of frequency; temporal lobe
99
Visual Cortex
to receive, segment, and integrate visual information; occipital lobe
100
Mirror Neurons
class of neurons that activate when individual executes motor movement while observing the same movement
101
Brain Plasticity and Phantom Limb
Somatosensory cortex; still feel sensation in phantom limb
-rubber hand illusion: brain plasticity allows brain to recognise rubber hand as own
102
Corpus collosum
bundle of fibers (no neurons) that connect left and right brain
103
Split Brain
often done to treat severe epilepsy to minimize damage to both sides of brain; contralateral processing
104
Right Brain
spatial and perceptual task; face recognition region
105
Left Brain
most language regions, speech articulation of visual sensory input
106
Damage to parietal cortex
Hemineglect; loss of spatial awareness on opposite side that is damaged
draw clock example
107
hemispheric balance
the idea that both brain hemispheres are functionally different and that specific mental processes and behaviors are mainly controlled by one hemisphere rather than the other
108
Brain Plasticity/ Neuroplasticity
the ability of the brain to form and reorganize synaptic connections, especially in response to learning or experience or following injury.
109
Plasticity and environment
more neural connections from interacting with enhanced environment
110
plasticity critical period
the time window when each sensory brain region is more sensitive to changes and adaptations
ex. babies born with cataracts with no source to fix -> fix automatically by placidity
111
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
activate different regions of the brain; can be used to treat depression
112
Sensation
sensory information detected by sensory receptors from environment via accessory structures (eyes, ears, etc)
113
transduction
converting energy into neural activity; occurs at sensory receptors (rods and cones)
114
encoding
representation of sensory input in visual corex
115
perception
constructive process of organizing, identifying and interpreting sensory information to form a mental representation
116
perception pathway
sensory info sent to thalamus which is sent to auditory/visual context (depending on type of input)
117
Eye system pathway
light passes through cornea-> pupil-> lens (accommodation) -> retina (phototransduction)
118
lens
curved transparent structure; provides additional focus.
119
pupil
small opening in which light passes (changes in size according to light and arousal)
120
retina
light sensitive lining
121
cornea
covering of the eye (barrier) involved in focusing incoming light waves
122
photoreceptor cells
neuron cells containing light sensitive pigments that turns light to neural impulses. (rods and cones)
123
cones
photoreceptor cells that detect color, work in normal day light conditions, and focus on fine detail
124
fovea
area of retina containing only cones (no rods); clearest vision
125
rods
photoreceptor cells that work under low light conditions, active during low light/ dark conditions, black and white, peripheral
126
blind spots
location in visual field that produces no sensation on retina; no photoreceptor cells so no mechanism to sense light
127
transduction structures
Photoreceptor layer of rods and cones on retina that receive light signals
128
encoding structure
output from bipolar cells and ganglion cells that further refine info and come together to form optic nerve.
129
visual persistance
gap in neuron firing; brain fills in gaps
130
change blindness
a perceptual phenomenon that occurs when a change in a visual stimulus is introduced and the observer does not notice it.
ex. gorilla experiment
131
Perception Construction
selection, organization and interpretation of sensory input ; influenced by attitudes, expectations, context, preferences, etc
132
McGurk effect
Conflicting senses; When what we see overrides what we hear (ex. Ba vs Fa video)
133
Mr P case
Visual Agnosia (visual cortex damage); failure to recognize faces, distinguish faces from objects, name objects
ex. described rose as convoluted red with linear green; vision working fine but couldn't say it was a rose.
134
synesthesia
crossing sensory signals; ex. color or smell associated with visual sense such as a letter of the alphabet
135
propioception
understanding where one is in space; sensory neuron loss -> no sensory feedback regarding spatial awareness (could be caused by cerebellum problem)
136
sleep
altered state of conciousness
137
sleep stages
1-4 and REM sleep
138
REM sleep
body immobilized but brain very active (EEG); dream stage; rapid eye moviement measured by EOG
139
Sleep Deprivation
Loss of mostly REM sleep (most of it in last 4 hours of sleep); leads to memory deprivation and less cognitive function.
140
beta waves
awake
141
alpha waves
relaxed/ drowsy; meditative state
142
theta waves
sleep stage 1
143
delta waves
sleep stages 3 and 4; deepest sleep
144
REM Sleep Waves
high brain activity; almost looks alike beta waves (awake)
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