Exam 1 Flashcards
Modern psychology is most accurately defined as the science of:
behavior and mental processes
Efforts to discover whether the intelligence of children is more heavily influenced by their genetics or by their home environments are most directly relevant to the debate regarding:
nature and nurture
Professor Crisman believes that most women prefer tall and physically strong partners because this preference promoted the survival of our ancestors’ genes. This viewpoint best illustrates the __________ perspective
evolutionary
Psychological differences between the genders are:
far outweighed by gender similarities
Any factor, such as life satisfaction, that can vary in its quality or quantity is called a:
variable
Which research method asses how well one variable predicts another without specifying a cause and effect relationship between the variables?
the correlational method
In a psychological experiment, the experimental factor that is manipulated by the investigator is called the ________ variable
independent
Research participants are randomly assigned to different groups in an experiment in order to:
reduce the likelihood of any preexisting differences between groups of participants
In which type of research would an investigator manipulate one factor to observe its effect on some behavior on mental process?
experimentation
Which of the following correlation coefficients represents the strongest relationship between the two variables?
-0.8
The function of dendrites is to:
receive incoming signals from other neurons
The speed at which a nerual impulse travels is increased when the axon is encased by a(n):
myelin sheath
Endorphins are:
neurotransmitters
The central nervous system consists of:
the brain and the spinal cord
You come home one night to find a burglar in your house. Your heart starts racing and you begin to perspire. These physical reactions are triggered by the:
sympathetic nervous system
An accelerated heartbeat is to a slowed heartbeat as the _____ nervous system is to the _____ nervous system
sympathetic; parasympathetic
The part of the brain stem that controls heartbeat and breathing is called the:
medulla
Which of the following sub-cortial structures plays an essential role in the processing of new memories?
hippocampus
Which lobes of the brain receive the input that enables you to feel someone scratching your back?
parietal
The surgical removal of a large tumor from Dane’s occipital lobe resulted in extensive loss of brain tissue. Dane is most likely to suffer from some loss of:
visual perception
Every non-genetic influence, from prenatal nutrition to the people and things around us, is an aspect of our:
environment
Identical twins originate from the fertilization of:
a single cell by a single sperm cell
According to adoptive studies, the home environment has a greater influence on a children’s _____ than on their _____
religious beliefs, personality traits
By what age do most children pass false belief tasks, suggesting that they have an understanding of “Theory of Mind”?
5 years old
Which psychologist was most influential in shaping our understanding of cognitive development?
Jean Piaget
According to Piaget, accommodation refers too
changing current schemas to make sense of new experiences
Many researchers believe that adult styles of romantic love correspond with childhood patterns of
attachment
According to Piaget, a child can represent things with words and images but cannot reason with logic during the _____ stage
preoperational stage
Four-year-old Jennifer mistakenly believes that her mother would like to receive a toy doll as a Christmas present. This best illustrates Piaget’s concept of
ethnocentrism
In Erikson’s stages the primary task during adolescence is:
forging an identity
Even though smoking marijuana would reduce the pain associated with her chronic medical condition, Juanita believes it would be morally wrong because it is prohibited by the laws of her state. Kohlberg would suggest that Juanita demonstrates a(n) _____ morality
conventional
Parents who are demanding yet sensitively responsive to their children are said to be
permissive
