Exam 1 Flashcards
Why is operational definition important?
It defines and shows how the independent variables are implemented.
Falsifiability
Confirms a scientific theory by finding ways to prove it to be false
Case study
A single person is studied in an in depth way - background facts are collected: interviewing others involved in the case, viewing legal and medical documents, personality and clinical tests and interviewing the subject
Limitations of the case study
The case study is specific to one person an cannot be representative people at large.
Naturalistic Observation
In depth study of a phenomenon in it’s natural setting.
Limits of Naturalistic Observtion
Correlation does not prove causation
Survey
Subjects are given a questionnaire in large numbers to asses attitudes and behaviors
Limitations of the Survey
Not good at identifying causes of people’s behavior
People are less than honest in surveys
Random assignment
Technique for assigning participants to experimental groups so that results are not biased.
Independent variable
The controlled variable of an experiment
Defendant variable
The measured variable in an experiment
Afferent nerves
Carry messages to the brain
Efferent nerves
Carry messages away from the brain
Dendrites
A short extension of a nerve cell, along which impulses received from other cells at synapses are transmitted to the cell body
Cell body
The factory of the neuron. It produces all the proteins for the dendrites, axons, and synaptic terminals
A on
Conducts electrical impulses away from the neurons cell body
Dopamine
controls the brains reward and pleasure centers
Serotonin
Depression, sleep and memory
Norepinephrine
Contracting blood vessels, raising blood vessels
Acetylcholine
Causes muscle action
GABA
Inhibits excitatory responses
fMRI
Functional Magnetic Resonance imaging - detects brain activity with associated changes in blood flow
Brainstem
Controls heartbeat and breathing
Cerebellum
Coordinating voluntary movement and balance and tells brain want to expect from body’s movements
Limbic System
Hippocampus
Amygdaloid
Hypothalamus
Cerebral cortex
Frontal lobe
Parietal lobe
Occipital lobe
Temporal lobe
Hippocampus
Essential to forming new memories
Amygdala
influencing aversion and fear
Hypothalamus
Regulates thirst, hunger, sexual behavior, pleasure
Frontal lobe
Plans judgements, “moral compass”
Parietal lobe
Includes sensory cortex
Occipital lobe
Visual processing
Temporal lobe
Auditory processing
Absolute threshold
Smallest amount of stimulus to be detected
Subliminal stimuli
Any sensory stimuli below conscious perception
Sensory adaptation
Changes in sensitivity of receptors in relation to stimulus.
Bottom up processing
Building from sensations
Top down processing
Using expectations and knowledge to fill in the blanks
Figure ground perception
Perceptual grouping which is vital for recognizing objects through vision
Perceptual adaptation
Unique function of the brain that accounts for the differences viewed in the world, as it relates to the senses.
Contexts effects
Describes the influence of environmental factors on ones perception
Operational Definition
A description of an experimental procedure for the translation of a variable into measurement or numeric value.
