Exam 1 Review Flashcards
Values
personal opinions, positions, beliefs (subjective)
Facts
tested and proven information (objective)
Science
Search for true info, backed by evidence, facts
Importance of Science
science is an approach to learning true info
Goals of Science
- describe
- predict
- determine cause
Properties of Science
- empiricism: testable, observable
- critical thinking: skepticism (careful consideration of info)
Basic principles of critical thinking
- Extraordinary claims need extraordinary evidence
- Falsifiability
- Occam’s razor: the simplest solutions are usually the best
-Replicability - Rule out rival hypotheses
- correlation does not equal causation
Pseudoscience
- a claim that seems scientific but isn’t
- a claim that’s designed to sound true, but lacks evidence and facts
- usually meant to persuade, rather than be accurate
Pseudoscience warning signs
- overuse of loopholes/ excuses to avoid falsification
- lack of self-correction
- exaggerated claims
- over-reliance on anecdotes
- evasion of peer review
- absence of connectivity
- psychobabble
Variable
- any attribute which can vary (have 2+ levels)
- conceptual variable: thing you want to measure (romance, intelligence, anxiety)
- Measured variable: variable that represents the conceptual variable (IQ test)
Population
group you hope to learn something about
Sample
subgroup of population to be tested
Experimental Group
group that receives manipulation
Control group
group does not receive manipulation
Placebo
a fake testing condition, people think they’re getting treatment but are not
placebo effect
change in behavior due to the subject’s expectation
Blind
participant is unaware of the group they’re in
Double-blind
the administering researcher is also blind to the condition/group
Blind/ D-Blind controls
expectancy effect: unintentional bias from knowledge
Independent variable
the thing that is manipulated
dependent variable
the thing that is measured
Confound
anything other than independent variable that causes a difference between the groups
Random assignment
randomly sorting participants into groups; makes sure the groups do not have pre-existing differences that could cause an effect
Reliability
the consistency of measurement
validity
the extent to which what’s measures is what was supposed to be measured
Internal Validity
Does your experiment show what you think it does? (done correctly?)
External validity
How well can you generalize your findings beyond your sample/ experiment?
Observational S.D
watching behavior, often in a real-world setting
- no manipulation
- records naturally occurring behavior
- includes naturalistic observations
Correlational S.D
examines the extent two which variables are associated
- no manipulation
- observe how two variables are related in the world
- correlation doesn’t equal causation
Experimental S.D
randomly assigns participants to different groups and manipulates an independent variable
- can make conclusions about the cause of the result
Case Study S.D
involving studying just one individual many times
e.g. Genie Wiley
Longitudinal S.D
testing the same group of people repeatedly over a long period of time
e.g. effects of smoking on 18 yr olds and testing them again when they’re 25
Behaviorism
- early field of psychology
- focused on observables (changes in behavior)
- treated mind as “black box”
Learning
Change in thought or behavior resulting from experience
Stimulus
anything in the environment to which an organism might react to
Response
any behavior resulting from a stimulus
Habituation
decrease in reaction to a repeated stimulus (simplest form of learning)
Classical Conditioning
a new stimulus begins to elicit the same response as another stimulus when they occur together
Ivan Pavlov
UCS: food
CS: bell
UCR: dog salivating to food
CR: dog salivating to bell
UCS, UCR, CS, CR
UCS: causes a reflex (unlearnt)
UCR: the reflex (unlearnt)
CS: new thing that predicts UCS (learned)
CR: reflex to new thing (learned)
Pairing
learning occurs when the CS is paired reliably w the UCS
- The CS must predict the UCS for learning to occur
What happens when pairing stops?
Extinction: the disappearance of the CR, when CS is no longer paired with UCS
- is not same as forgetting
Spontaneous recovery
the return of the CR after a delay
What happens when the stimulus (CS) is modified?
- stimulus generalization: when stimuli to the CS elicit a CR (e.g. Little Albert Exp)
- stimulus discrimination: when stimuli similar to the CS do not elicit a CR
Advertising and higher-order conditioning (why do I care?)
advertising conditions consumers to associate a product w positive feelings
Operant Conditioning
acquiring behaviors as a result of the outcome or consequence of those behaviors (behaviors result from reinforcement and punishment)
OC vs CC
OC:
- learning involves voluntary behavior (not reflexes)
- rewards are dependent on the organism’s response
- organism chooses to perform a behavior
Thorndike’s Law of Effect
If a response, in the presence of a stimulus, is followed by a satisfying state of affairs, the bond between stimulus and response will be strengthened
B.F. Skinner
Famous behaviorist, developed a highly efficient conditioning chamber called the “skinner box”
Positive reinforcement
pleasant stimulus is given to increase a behavior
Negative reinforcement
unpleasant stimulus is removed to increase a behavior
Positive punishment
unpleasant stimulus is given to decrease a behavior
Negative punishment
pleasant stimulus is removed to decrease a behavior
Partial reinforcement
reinforcing behaviors occasionally, rather than always (harder to extinguish)
Fixed ratio
reinforcement after a fixed number of responses
Fixed interval
reinforcement after a fixed amount of time
Variable ratio
reinforcement after a varying number of responses
Variable interval
reinforcement after a varying amount of time
Shaping (OC)
rewarding behaviors that come closer and closer to a target behavior
Limitations of OC
- what’s reinforcing depends on the individual (SOR psychology)
- learning often occurs without R or P (latent, insight, observational learning)
Observational Learning
Learning by watching others (e.g. Bobo Doll; children even invented new ways to attack Bobo)
Biological Influences/ Taste aversion
conditioned disgust reflex to certain foods after sickness
Taste aversion vs CC
- needs only one pairing of CS and UCS
- CS and UCS can be widely separated in time
- Can be extremely specific, resistant to generalization
- Evolutionarily adaptive
Taste Aversion in Cancer Treatment
- chemotherapy induces nausea and vomiting
- many patients develop food aversions
- treatment involves eating a “scapegoat” food before treatment to avoid aversion to favorite foods
Neurons
- Nerve cells specialized for communication
- 85 billion neurons that form 160 trillion connections
Parts of neurons
- cell body: central region
- dendrites: receive outside signals
- axon: delivers signals to other cells (underneath myelin sheath)
- axon terminals: end of axon where signal is released
Collectively, neurons
- monitor our internal and external environments
- control our behavior
- create our mental experiences
Communication between neurons
- electrical signal within the neuron
(Action Potential: all-or-none electrical impulse that neurons use to communicate [travels down axon].
Absolute refractory period: recovery time when another AP is not possible) - chemical communication between neurons
(synapse: junction between two communicating neurons.
Neurotransmitter: chemical signal.
Synaptic cleft: space between two neurons where neurotransmitter is released)
Glial cells
- support cells
- provide support and nutrients for neurons
- form myelin
- form blood-brain barrier (prevents harmful substances from entering the brain)
Nervous System
-cells of the nervous system
-peripheral NS, central NS
Brain
Subcortical structures, limbic system and cortex
Types of Neurons
- sensory neurons
- interneurons
- motor neurons
Nervous system
how the brain communicates with the body
Peripheral NS system
somatic NS
Autonomic NS
- (sympathetic)
- (Parasympathetic)
- consists of nerves that connect muscles, organs, and glands to the Central NS
Central NS
- Brain
- Spinal cord
Somatic NS
Carries signals between the CNS and the muscles in the body that control movement
Autonomic NS
Carries signals between the CNS and organs/glands that regulate involuntary actions and the body’s internal state
Sympathetic NS
Readies the body for actions
- increases heart rate, dilates pupils, inhibits digestion
- fight or flight
Parasympathetic NS
Active during rest
- slows heart and breathing rates, stimulates digestion
- rest and digest
Spinal cord
Carries sensory information to the brain, and sends motor control commands back to the body
- manages simple reflexes and movements
- serves to increase speed of important reflexes
Damage to the Brain
Aphasia: loss of ability to understand or express speech, caused by brain damage
Brainstem
consists of medulla, pons, and midbrain
Medulla
Helps regulate breathing and heart rates
Pons
Involved in maintaining balance and walking
Midbrain
involved in modulation of motor activity
Thalamus
Directs signals passing between the body and brain, called “relay station of the brain”
Cerebellum
important for balance, coordination, pre-planned actions, learning motor skills
Basal Ganglia
used for executing planned actions
- implicated in Parkinson’s disease
The limbic system
Hypothalamus, amygdala, hippocampus
hypothalamus
regulates the internal environment of the body by controlling the autonomic NS
Amygdala
Involved in emotion regulation, and fear
Hippocampus
Important for memory, especially forming new memories and spatial memory
The cortex
- divided into 2 hemispheres
- contralaterally organized: info from right side of body is process on left side and vice-versa
Corpus Callosum:
a band of tissues that connects the two hemispheres and allows them to communicate
Primary sensory areas
primary visual cortex, primary auditory cortex, somatosensory cortex (touch; processing specific sensory input)
Motor cortex
sends signals to motor neurons, controls motion
Association cortex (everything else)
integrates sensory info to perform complex functions
Topographic organization
adjacent portions of cortex control adjacent body parts
(more cortex is devoted to areas with more ability)
Cortex separated into 4 lobes
- frontal lobe
- parietal lobe
- temporal lobe
- occipital lobe
Frontal Lobe
-involved in motion and higher in cognition, such as reasoning, planning, language production
- also involved in mood, personality
- Phineas Gage (construction accident –> loss of social inhibition, and inappropriate behavior)
Frontal lobe - notable areas
- prefrontal cortex
- motor cortex
- broca’s area (vital for info on speech)
Parietal lobe
important for touch sensation, perception, object recognition, and number representation
Parietal lobe - notable areas
- somatosensory cortex
- motor cortex and somatosensory cortex are right next to each other
Temporal Lobe
important for auditory sensation, understanding language, and storing autobiographical memory
Temporal lobe - notable areas
- primary cortex
- wernicke’s area (interprets spoken and written language)
Occipital lobe
important for vision
Occipital lobe - notable areas
primary visual cortex
Damage to the brains
Aphasias (loss of ability caused by brain damage)
Broca’s aphasia
inability to produce speech
- broca’s area is important for producing speech
Wernicke’s aphasia
inability to comprehend speech
- wernicke’s area is important for comprehending speech
Split brain patients/ Lateralization
some functions are only processed by one hemisphere
Split brain patients/ left hem
right visual field, right hand, language
Split brain patients/ right hem
left visual field, left hand, face processing
Severe epilepsy prompted the severing the corpus callosum; led to…
- no communication between hemispheres
- information present in only one side of the brain
