Glossary Flashcards
Ablation
a surgically induced brain lesion
Absolute refractory period
the period that follows the onset of an action potential. During this period, a nerve impulse cannot be initiated
absolute threshold
the minimum of stimulus energy needed to activate a sensory system
accommodation
a principle of Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. it occurs when cognitive structures are modified because new information or new experience do not fit into existing cognitive structures
acetylcholine
a neurotransmitter found in both central and peripheral nervous systems linked to Alzheimer’s disease and used to transmit nerve impulses to muscles.
acrophobia
an irrational fear of heights
ACT model (adaptive control of thought)
a model that describes memory in terms of procedural and declarative memory
actor-observer effect
the tendency of actors to see observer behavior as due to external factors (situation factors) and the tendency of observers to attribute actors behaviors to internal characteristics (dispositional characteristics)
adrenaline
a hormone that increases energy available for “fight or flight” reactions (also known as epinephrine)
afterimage
a visual sensation that appears after prolonged or intense exposure to a stimulus
agnosia
impairment in perceptual recognition
agoraphobia
an irrational fear of being in open places or situations where escape might be difficult
all-or-nothing law
a law about nerve impulses stating that when depolarization reaches the critical threshold (-50 millivolts) the neuron is going to fire, each time, every time
alternate-form method
in psychometrics, it is the method of using two or more different forms of a test to determine the reliability of a particular test
altruism
a form of helping behavior where the animals intent is to benefit other animals at some cost to itself
amnesia
a dissociative disorder where individuals are unable to recall past experience, but this inability is not due to a neurological disorder
analogy of inoculation
McGuires analogy that people can be psychologically inoculated against the “attack” of persuasive communications by first exposing them to weakened attack
analysis of variance (ANOVA)
a statistical method to compare the means of more than two groups by comparing the between-group variance to the within-group variance
anima (animus)
an archetype from Jung’s theory referring to the female behaviors in males, and the masculine behavior in females
anorexia nervosa
an eating disorder characterized by a refusal to maintain a minimal normal body weight
anterograde amnesia
memory loss for new information following a brain injury
antisocial personality disorder
a personality disorder characterized by a pattern of disregard for, and violation of, the rights of others
aphagia
an impairment in the ability to eat
aphasias
language disorders, which are associated with Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas in the brain
apparent motion
an illusion that occurs when two dots flash in different locations on a screen seconds apart and a perceived as one moving dot
apraxia
an impairment in the organization of voluntary action
archetypes
the building blocks for the collective unconscious referred to in Jung’s theory of personality
Assimilation
a principle of Piaget’s theory of cognitive development. It is the process of understanding new information in relation to prior knowledge, or existing schemata
association area
areas in the brain that integrate information from different cortical regions
Atkinson-Shiffrin model
a model of memory that involves three memory structures (sensory, short-term, and long term), and the processes that operate these memory structures
attachment bond
evidence of a preference for the primary caregiver and a wariness of strangers
attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD)
a disorder characterized by developmental atypical inattention and/or impulsivity-hyperactivity
attribution theory
Fritz Heider’s theory that people tend to infer the causes of other people’s behavior as either dispositional (related to the individual) or situation (related to the environment)
Authoritarian parenting style
a parenting style tending to use punitive control methods and lacking emotional warmth
Authoritative parent style
a parenting style tending to have reasonably high demands for child compliance coupled with emotional warmth
autism
a disorder whose essential features are lack of responsiveness to other people, gross impairment in communication skills, and behaviors and interests that are repetitive, inflexibly routined, and stereotyped
autokinetic effect
an illusion that occurs when a spot of light appears to move erratically in a dark room, simple because there is no frame of reference
availability heuristic
a decision-making shortcut that people tend to use when trying to decide how likely something is based upon how easily similar instances can be imagined
aversion therapy
a behavioral therapy of pairing unpleasant stimuli with undesirable behavior
balance theory
Fritz Heider’s consistency theory that is concerned with balance and imbalance in the ways which three elements are related
behavioral contracts
a therapeutic technique that is a negotiated agreement between two parties that explicitly stipulated the behavioral change that is desired and indicates consequences of certain acts
behavioral stimulants
a class of drugs that increase behavioral activity by increasing motor activity or by counteracting fatigue, and which are thought to stimulate receptors for dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin
Bekesy’s traveling wave theory
proposed by Von Bekesy, the theory holds that high-frequent sounds maximally vibrate the basilar membrane near the beginning of the cochlea close to the oval window and low frequencies maximal vibrate near the apex, or tip, of the cochlea
between-subjects design
an experimental design whereby each subject is exposed to only one level of each independent variable
binocular disparity (stereopsis)
a cue for depth perception that depends on the fact that the distance between the eyes provides two slightly dispart views of the worth that, when combined, give us a perception of depth
bipolar disorder
a mood disorder characterized by both depression and mania
boomerang effect
in theories of attitude persuasion, it is an attitude change in the opposite direction of the persuaders message
borderline personality disorder
a personality disorder characterized by an instability in interpersonal behavior, mood, and self-image that borders on psychosis
bottom-up processing (data-driven processing)
information processing that occurs when objects are recognized by the summations of the components of incoming stimulus to arrive at the whole pattern
brightness
the subjective impression of the intensity of a light stimulus
brightness contrast
in brightness perception, it refers to when a particular luminance appears bridges when surrounded by a darker stimulus than when surrounded by a lighter stimulus
Broca’s aphasia
impairments in producing spoken language associated with lesions to Broca’s area
bulimia nervosa
an eating disorder that involves binge eating and excessive attempts to compensate for it by purging, fasting, or excessive exercising
bystander effect
the reluctance of people to intervene to help others in emergency situations when other people also witness the situation
Cannon-Bard theory
a theory of emotions stating that awareness of emotions reflects our physiological arousal and our cognitive experience of emotion
case study
an experimental method used in developmental psychology to take a ver detailed look at development by studying a small number of individuals. Also called the clinical method
centration
a term from Piaget’s theory, it is the tendency for pre operational children to be able to focus on only one aspect of a phenomenon
Chi-square test
a statistical method of testing for an association between two categorical variables. specifically, it tests for the equality of two frequencies or proportions
chlorpromazine
an antipsychotic drug thought to block receptor sites for dopamine, making it effective in treating the delusional thinking, hallucinations, and agitation commonly associated with schizophrenia
circadian rhythms
internally generated rhythms that regulate our daily cycle of waking and sleeping, approximating a 24hr cycle
classical conditioning
also known as respondent conditioning, it is a result of learning connections between different items
claustrophobia
an irrational fear of closed spaces
client-centered therapy, person-centered therapy, non-directive therapy
Carl Rogers’ therapeutic technique that is based on the idea that clients have the freedom to control their own behavior, and that the client is abel to reflect upon his or her problems, make choices, and take positive action
clustering
a technique to enhance memory by organizing items into conceptually-related categories
cognitive dissonance theory
Leon Festinger’s consistency theory that people are motivated to reduce dissonant elements or add consonant elements to reduce tension
cognitive map
a mental representation of a physical space
collective unconscious
from Carl Jung’s personality theory, it is the idea that all humans share an unconscious, a residual of the experiences of our early ancestors
color constancy
refers to the fact that the perceived color of an object does not change when we change the wavelength of the light we see
compensation
a defense mechanism whereby something is done to make up for something that is lacking
conception
takes place in the fallopian tubes where the ovum or egg cell is fertilized by the male sperm cell
conditioned response
in classical conditioning, it is the learned response to a conditioned stimulus
conditioned stimulus
in classical conditioning, it is a neutral stimulus that has been paired with an unconditioned stimulus to elicit a conditioned response
confounding variable
unintended independent variables
connectionism
also called parallel distribution processing, it is a theory of information processing that is analogous to a complex neural network
consistency theories
theoretical perspective from social psychology that hold that people prefer consistency between attitudes and behaviors, and that people will change or resist changing attitude based upon this preference
construct validity
a type of validity that refers to how well a test measures the intended theoretical construct
content validity
a type of validity that refers to how well the content items of a test measure the particular skill or knowledge area that its supposed to measure
control group design
a technique of treating experimental and control groups equally in all respects, except that one group is exposed to the treatment in the experiment, and the other group is not exposed to the treatment
conversion disorders
disorders characterized by unexplained symptoms affecting voluntary motor or sensory functions. Conversion disorder used to be feared to as hysteria
correlation coefficient
a type of descriptive statistic that measures to what extent, if any, two variable are related.
counterbalancing
a method of controlling for potential unintended order effects by administering variables (eg treatments, measures) in all possible sequences
countertransference
in psychoanalysis, it occurs when the therapist experiences emotions in response to the patients transference
criterion validity
how well the test can predict an individual’s performance on an established test of the same skill or knowledge area
cross-sectional studies
an experimental method used in developmental psychology to compare different groups of individuals
crystallized intelligence
proposed by Raymond Cattle, it is a type of intelligence that uses knowledge acquired as a result of schooling or other life experiences
cynophobia
an irrational fear of dogs
decay theory
a theory that holds that if the information in long-term memory is not used or rehearsed, it will eventually be forgotten
declarative memory
sometimes called fact memory, it is memory of explicit information
defense mechanisms
In Freud’s structural dynamic model of personality, they are unconscious mechanisms that deny, falsify, or distort reality
delusions
false beliefs, discordant with reality, that are maintained in spite of strong evidence to the contrary
demand characteristics
cues that suggest to subjects what the researcher expects from research participants
dementia praecox
literally means “split mind” and was used to refer to what is now know as schizophrenia
dependent variable
a measurement of the response that is expected to vary with differences in the independent variable
depolarization
the second stage in the firing cycle; occurs when the membranes electrical charge decrease - anytime the membranes voltage moves toward a neutral charge of 0 millivolts
descriptive statistics
statistics concerned with organizing, describing, quantifying, and summarizing a collection of actual observations
deviation quotients
a deviations IQ score that tells us how far away a persons score is from the average score for that persons particular age group
diathesis-stress model
a framework explaining the causes of mental disorders as an interactions between biological causes (a predisposition) and psychological causal factors (excessive stress)
difference threshold
the amount of difference that there must be between two stimuli before they are perceived to be different
diploid cells
cells that contain 23 pairs of chromosomes
discriminative stimulus
in operant conditioning, it is a stimulus condition that indicates that the organisms behavior will have consequences
displacement
a defense mechanism that refers to the pent-up feelings (often hostility) discharged on objects and people less dangerous than those or people causing the feelings
dissociative disorders
disorders characterized by an avoidance of stress by escaping from personality identity
dissociative fugue
a dissociative disorder that involves amnesia plus a sudden, unexpected move away from one’s home or location of usual daily activities
dissociative identity disorder
a dissociative disorder characterized by two or more personalities that recurrently take control of a person’s behavior (formerly multiple personality disorder)
depersonalization disorder
a dissociative disorder that involves a sense of detachment from the self despite an intact sense of reality
dissonance theory
the tendency to chance thoughts or behavior in response to perceived inconsistencies
distal stimulus
in perception, it is the actual object or event out there in the world, as opposed to its perceived image
domain-referenced testing
sometimes called criterion referenced testing, it is concerned with the question of what the test taker knows about a specified content domain
dopamine hypothesis
a biochemical explanation for schizophrenia suggesting that the delusions, hallucinations, and agitations associated with schizophrenia arise from an excess of dopamine activity at certain sites in the brain
double-bind hypothesis
a psychosocial theory of schizophrenia holding that people with schizophrenia received contradictory messages from primary caregivers during childhood and these contradictory messages led them to see their perceptions of reality as unreliable
double blinding
a research design that controls for influence of the researcher and research participants since neither group knows which participants are in the control group and which are in the experimental group
downs syndrome
a set of physiological conditions, indulging severe intellectual disability resulting from an extra 21st chromosome
duplexity or duplicity theory of vision
the theory holding that the retina contains two kinds of photo receptors
echoic memory
auditory memory
ego psychology
a branch of psychoanalytic theory that emphasizes the role of the ego as autonomous
eidetic memory
memory for images
elaborative rehearsal
the process of organizing information and associating it with what you already know to get information into long-term memory
electroencephalograph (EEG)
records gross average of electrical activity in different parts of the brain
embryonic stage
third stage during prenatal development, it refers to the period during which the embryo increases in size dramatically, develop human like appearances with limb motions, produces androgen in testes, and levels nerve cells in spine
Emmert’s Law
describes the relationship between size constancy and apparent distance - farther away an object appears to be, the more the scaling device in the brain will compensate for it retinal size by enlarging our perception of the object
empathy
the ability to vicariously experience the emotions of another. thought to be a strong influence in helping behavior
ending
the processing of putting new information into memory
encoding specificity theory
recall is best if the context at recall approximates the context during the original encoding
endorphins
peptides that are natural painkillers produced in the brain
episodic memory
a type of declarative memory, refers to memories for particular events, or episodes, from personal experience
equity theory
individuals strive for fairness and feel uncomfortable whether is a perception of a lack of fairness
eros
in Freud’s structural dynamic model of personality, it refers to the life instincts that serve the purpose of individual survival (hunger, thirst, sex)
ethology
ethology
the study of animals in their natural environment
exchange theory
the tendency to evaluate interactions and relationships in therms of relative costs and benefits
external validity
refers to how generalizable the results of an experiment are
extinction
in operant conditioning, it is when a conditioned stimulus is repeatedly no reinforced and as a result, the conditioned response is no longer produced consistently
extirpation
removing various parts of the brain and then observing the behavioral consequences
extrinsic motivation
behavior that motivated by some external reward
face validity
refers to whether test items APPEAR to measure what they are supposed to measure
factor analysis
stats technique using correlation coefficients to reduce a large number of variables to few factors
Fechner’s Law
expresses the relationship between the intensity of the sensation and the intensity of the stimulus, and states that sensation increase more slowly as intensity increases
Fetal period
the last stage of prenatal development, its onset is marked by the beginning of measurable brain electrical activity
fictional finalism
Alfred Adler’s theory of personality, the notion that an individual is motivated more by their expectations of the future based on a subjective or fictional estimate of life’s values, than by past experiences
field independence-field dependence
a cognitive style characterized by an ability/inability to distinguish experience from its context
fight or flight responses
emotional experience associated with the sympathetic nervous system and managed by the hypothalamus during high arousal
figure
visual perception referring to the integrated visual experience that stands out at the center if attention
fixation
psychoanalytic theory, in ability to successfully proceed though a stage in development because of an overindulgence or frustrations
fixed action pattern
a behavior that is relatively stereotyped and appears to be species typical
fixed interval (FI)
operant conditioning, when behavior is reinforced after a fixed period of time has elapsed since the last reinforcement
fixed ration (FR)
operant conditioning, when behavior is reinforced after a fixed number of responses
flooding
behavioral modification technique used to treat anxiety disorders by exposed the client to the anxiety producing stimulus
fluid intelligence
Raymond Cattell, type of intelligence that has the ability to quickly grasp relationships in novel situations and make deductions from them (solving analogies)
follicle stimulating hormone
secreted by the pituitary gland to stimulate the growth of an ovarian follicle, which is a small protective sphere surrounding the egg or ovum
free association
psychoanalytic technique, client says whatever comes to mind regardless of how personal, painful, etc. Analyst and patient can reconstruct the nature of the clients original conflict
frequency
sound perception, the number of times a sound wave cycles per second
frequency theory
the basilar membrane of the ear vibrates as a whole, the rate of the vibration equal the frequency of the stimulus, vibration rate is direction translated into the appropriate number of neural impulses per second
functional autonomy
a given activity or form of behavior may become an end or a goal in itself, regardless of it original reason for existence
functional fixedness
an impediment to effective problem solving because of an inability to use familiar object in an unfamiliar way
functionalism
system of thought that was concerned with studying how mental processes help individuals adapt to their environments
fundamental attribution error
tendency to attribute individual characteristics as causes of others behaviors and situational characteristics to ones own behavior
g
Charles Spearman, an individual difference in intelligence that refers to general, unitary fact or intelligence
GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)
a neurotransmitter that produces inhibitory postsynaptic potentials and is thought to play an important role in stabilizing neural activity in the brain
Garcia effect
John Garcia, food aversion that occurs when people attribute illness to a particular food
gate theory of pain
there are special “gating” mechanisms located in the spice that can turn pain signals on or off, thus affecting whether we perceive pain
Generation-recognition model
recall tasks tap the same basic process of accessing information in memory as recognition tasks, but also require an additional processing step
genes
located on chromosomes, basic units of hereditary transmission
germinal period
rapid cell division during prenatal development that last about 2 weeks and ends with the implantation of the cellular mass into the uterine wall
gonadotropic hormones
produced by the pituitary gland during puberty that activate a dramatic increase in the production of hormones by the testes or ovaries
ground
visual perception, the background against which the figure appears
group polarization
tendency for group discussion to enhance the groups initial tendencies towards riskiness or caution
groupthink
tendency of decision making groups to strive for consensus at the expense of not considering discordant information
Hallucinations
perceptions that are not due to external stimuli but have a compelling sense or reality
halo effect
in social psychology is is the tendency to generalize from one attribute or characteristic to a person’s entire personality
Haloperidol (Haldol)
an antipsychotic drug thought to block receptor sites for dopamine, making it effective in treating the delusional thinking, hallucinations, and agitations commonly associated with schizophrenia
haploid cells
cells that contain 23 single chromosomes. the gametes (sperm and egg) are haploid
Hawthorne effect
the tendency of people to behave differently if they know they are being observed
Homeostasis
a term referring to those self-regulatory processes that maintain a stable equilibrium
Humanism
a system of thought that arose in opposition to both psychoanalysis and behaviorism and is characterized by a belief in the notion of free will and the idea that people should be considered as wholes rather than in terms of stimuli and responses (behaviorism) or instincts (psychoanalysis)
hyperpolarization
an increase in membrane potential that decrease the possibility of generating a nerve impulse
hypothesis
a tentative and testable explanation of the relationship between two or more variables
iconic memory
visual sensory memory that fades quickly
Id
In Freud’s structural dynamic model of personality, it is the source and the reservoir of all psychic energy
idographic
an approach to studying personality that focus on individual case studies
illness anxiety disorder
a disorder that causes an individual to be preoccupied with fears that he or she has a serious disease, based on a misinterpretation of one or bodily signs or symptoms
illumination
a physical, objective measurement that is simply the amount of light falling on a surface
illusory correlation
an apparent correlation that is perceived, but does not really exist
imprinting
an attachment bond between an organism and an object in the environment
independent variable
the variable whose effect is being studied
induced motion
an illusion of movement occurring when everything around the spot of light is moved
inferential statistics
stats concerned with making an inference from the sample involved in the research to the population of interest in order to provide an estimate of popular characteristics
innate releasing mechanism (IRM)
a mechanism in the animals nervous system that serves to connect the stimulus with the right response
insomnia
disturbance affecting the ability to fall asleep or stay asleep
instincts
in Freud’s structural dynamic model of personality, these are inner representations of a psychological excitation or wish and are the propelling aspects of Freud’s dynamic theory of personality.
intensity
in sound perception, it is the amplitude or height of the air pressure wave and its related loudness
interneurons
neurons located in the spinal cord that connect sensory neurons with motor neurons to form the reflex arc
interposition
also called overlap, refers to the cue for depth perception when one object (A) covers or overlaps another object (B) and we see object A as being in front
interval scale
a scale of measurement using actual numbers (not ranks)
intrinsic motivation
motivation by some reward that is inherent to the task
IQ
well known measure of intelligence aptitude using an equation comparing mental age to chronological age
isomorphism
theory that suggests that there is a one to one correspondence between the pattern of stimulation in the brain
James-Lange theory of emotions
people become aware of their emotions after they notice their physiological reactions to some external event
just world hypothesis
tendency to believe that the world is fair that is that people who are good are rewarded and people who are bad are punished
Klinefelter’s syndrome
possession of an extra X chromosome in males that leads to sterility and often to intellectual disability
language acquisition device (LAD)
proposed by Noam Chomsky, an innate biologically based mechanism that helps us understand rule structures in language
lateral inhibition
visual perception, it is the process of inhibiting the response of adjacent retinal cells resulting in the sharpening and highlighting of the borders between dark and light areas
law of closure
Gestalt psychology, it is the tendency for people to perceive complete figures even when the figures are not complete
law of good continuation
Gestalt psychology, th tendency for elements appearing to follow in the same direction (such as a straight line or simple curve) to be grouped together
Law of Pragnanz
Gestalt psychology, the tendency for perceptual organization to be as “good” - regular, simple, symmetric - as possible
law of proximity
Gestalt psychology, the tendency for elements close to each other to be perceived as one unit
law of similarity
Gestalt psych, the tendency for similar objects to be grouped together
law of specific nerve energies
Johannes Muller, each sensory nerve is excited by only one kind of energy (eg light, air vibrations) and that the brain interprets any stimulations of that nerve as being that kind of energy
L-dopa
synthetic substance that increases dopamine levels in the brain and is used to treat motor disturbances in Parkinsons disease. when l-dopa leads to an oversupply of dopamine in the brain it can produce psychotic symptoms in Parkinson’s patients
levels of processing theory (depth of processing theory)
Craik and Lockhart, there is only one memory system and that items entering the memory are analyzed in one of three stages: physical (visual), acoustical (sound), or semantic (meaning)
libido
psychoanalytic theory, refers to the life drive present at birth
lightness constancy
despite changes in the amount of light falling on an object (illumination) the apparent lightness of the object remains unchanged.
linear perspective
a cue for depth perception that refers to the perception of parallel lines converging in a distance
linguistic relativity hypothesis
our perception of reality is determined by the content of language. Whorfian hypothesis
Lithium
a drug used to treat bipolar disorder
long term memory
system that holds a permanent store of information
longitudinal studies
experimental method used in developmental psych to compare the same group of individuals repeatedly over time
loudness
subjective experience of the magnitude or intensity of sound
Luteinizing hormone
hormone associated with ovulation
maintenance rehearsal
rehearsing info so that items remains in short term memory for a longer duration than usual
major depressive disorder
mood disorder characterized by at least a 2 wk period during which there is a prominent and relatively persistent depressed mood, or loss of interest in all or almost all activities
mania
symptom of bipolar disorder, characterized by abnormally elevated mood, accompanied by speeding up of thought processes and activities and an abnormally decreased need for sleep
MAO inhibitors
behavioral stimulants that reduce depression by inhibiting the action of an enzyme called MAO (monoamine oxidase) which normally breaks down or deactivates norepinephrine or serotonin
mean
the numerical halfway point between the highest score and the lowest score, the arithmetic average
median
the middle values when observations are ordered from least to most or from most to least
mental chronometry
cognitive psych research method of measuring the time elapsed between a stimulus presentation and the subjects response to it (reaction time)
mere exposure hypothesis
tendency for ppl to prefer things with which they are familar
meta analysis
stats procedure used to make conclusions on the basis of data from different studies
metacognition
the ability to think about and monitor cognition
metamemory
ability to think about and monitor a memory
method of loci
mnemonic device associating info with some sequence of familiar places
method of savings
technique for studying memory by measuring the amount o f time it takes to learn material and comparing it to the amount of time it takes to relearn the same material later. the decrease in time represents an indication of original learning
methylphenidate
behavioral stimulant that increases alertness and decreases motor activity and is used to treat hyperactive children who suffer from attention deficit disorder. also known as Ritalin
Mnemonic devices
techniques used to improve the likelihood that we will remember something
mode
that value of the most frequent observation in a set of scores
modeling
therapeutic technique in which the client learns appropriate behavior through imitation of someone else
monoamine theory of depression
a theory that holds that too much norepinephrine and serotonin leads to mania while too little leads to depression. it also sometimes called the catecholamine theory of depression
morphemes
smallest unit of meaning in a language
motion aftereffect
illusion that occurs when you first view a moving pattern, such as stripes moving off to the right (or a waterfall) and then you view a spot of light - the spot of light will appear to move in the opposite direction
motion parallax
cue for depth perception that occurs during movement when objects that are closer appear to move
motor neurons
neurons transmitting motor commands from the brain to the muscles along efferent fibers
Narcissistic personality disorder
- grandiose sense of self importance or uniqueness
- preoccupation with fantasies of success
- exhibitionistic ned for constant admiration and attention
- disturbances in interpersonal relationships such as feelings of entitlement
negative reinforcement
probability that the desired response will be performed is increased by removing something undesirable whenever desired response is made
neologisms
newly invented words
neurocognitive disorder
neurological disorder characterized by a loss in intellectual functioning
neurotransmitters
chemical substances that allow neurons to communicate with one another
nominal scale
scale of measurement that labels observations rather than quantifying observations (also called categorical scale)
nomothetic
approach to personality that focuses on groups of individuals and tries to find the commonalities between individuals
nonequivalent group design
experimental design whereby the researcher doesnt use random assignment so the control group is not necessarily equivalent to the experimental group
norepinephrine
involved in controlling alertness and wakefulness and is implicated in mood disorders such as depression and mania (noradrenaline)
normal distribution
symmetrical distribution and has it greatest frequency in the middle
norm referenced testing
comparing the test takers performance to that tests norms that are derived from standardized samples
object permanence
Piagets theory, the capacity for representation thought
obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)
-repeated obsessions (persistent irrational thoughts) and/or compulsions (irrational and repetitive impulses to perform certain acts) thaat cause sig impairment in persons life
operant conditions
instrumental conditioning, or reward learning, based on learning the relationship between ones actions and their consequences
operational definitions
measurable definitions of variables in research
opiate receptors
receptors that respond to the bodys own naturally produced painkillers (endorphins) as well as narcotics such as heroin and morphine
opponent process theory of color vision
Ewald Herings theory that there are four primary colors in additive color mixing (red, blue, green, yellow) and that the primary colors are arranged in opposing pairs
order effects
problem in research design when the results of the study are attributed to the sequence of tasks in the experiment rather than the independent variable
ordinal scale
scale of measurement using ranks rather than actual numbers
osmoreceptors
receptors in the hypothalamus that control the maintenance of water balance in the body
outliers
scores falling outside main cluster of scores
over justification effect
tendency to stop liking something that they previously enjoyed because of receiving reward for behavior
Paivio’s dual code hypothesis
information can be stored (or encoded) in two ways: visually or verbally. abstract information tends to be encoded verbally whereas concrete information tends to be encoded visually (ie as an image) and verbally
paradoxical intervention
therapeutic technique that appears to contradict the therapeutic needs
parallel distributed process (PDP)
information processing is distributed across the brain (across nodes in a network) and is done in a parallel fashion
perceptual sets
expectations we have about perception due to past experiences
permissive parenting style
tendency to score very low on control/demand measures
persona
an archetype from Jung’s theory referring to a mask that is adopted by the person in response to the demands of social convention
personality disorders
pattern of behavior that is inflexible and maladaptive causing distress and/or impaired functioning in at least two of the following: cognition, emotions, interpersonal functioning, impulse control
phenothiazine
antipsychotic drug thought to block receptor sites for dopamine make the drug effective in treating delusional thinking, hallucinations, and agitation commonly associated with schizophrenia
phenylketonuria (PKU)
degenerative disease of the nervous system occurring when a child lacks the enzyme needed to digest phenylalanine, an amino acid found in milk and other foods
Phi phenomenon
an illusion of movement that occurs when two dots flashed in different locations on a screen seconds apart are perceived as one moving dot
Phobia
irrational fear of something that results in a compelling desire to avoid that thing
phonemes
the smallest sound units of language
phrenology
the study of psychological functions of areas of the brain
physiological zero
the temperature of the skin
phylogeny
evolutionary development in humans
pitch
subjective experience of the frequency of the sound
place theory
proposed by Helmholtz and Young, each different pitch causes a different place on the basilar member of the ear to vibrate
placebo effect
therapeutic effect resulting from an inactive substance, such as a sugar pill
pleasure principle
Freud’s structural dynamic model of personality, the Id’s operating principal, which is to immediately discharge any energy buildup
positive reinforcement
increasing the probability that a desired response will be performed by reinforcing (rewarding) that response when it does occur
predictive validity
use of some criterion scores obtained in advance and validating them against scores obtained later
Premack principle
a more preferred activity can be used to reinforce a less preferred activity
preparedness
inborn tendency to associate certain stimuli with certain consequences
primacy effect
social psych, refers to those occasions when first impressions are more important than subsequent impressions (not to be confused with the primacy effect associated with memory research)
primary circular reactions
Piaget’s theory, reflex activities characteristic of behavior during the sensorimotor phase
primary prevention
efforts to correct the conditions that foster mental illness and establish the conditions that foster mental health
primary process
Freud’s structural dynamic model of personality, it is the Id’s response to frustration - “obtain satisfaction now, not later”
prisoners dilemma
investigating peoples choices to compete or cooperate using a hypothetical case where two men have been taken into custody, separated, and can choose either to confess or not to confess.
proactive inhibition
what you learned earlier interferes with what you want to learn later
procedural memory
memory for how things are done
prodromal phase
phase before schizophrenia is actually diagnosed, characterized by poor adjustment
progesterone
hormone produced and secreted by the ovary to prepare the uterus for implantation of the fertilized egg
projection
defense mechanism that frees to when a person attributes his forbidden urges to others
projection area
areas in the brain receiving incoming sensory info or sending out motor impulse commands
proprioception
general term for our sense of bodily position, including aspects of both the vestibular and kinesthetic senses
protection motivation theory
a social psychology theory proposing that an appeal to fear produces attitude change under particular conditions
proxemics
study of how individuals space themselves in relation to others
proximal stimulus
in perception it is the information our sensory receptors receive about the object
psychoanalysis
an intensive long term treatment for uncovering repressed memories motives and conflicts stemming from problems in psychosexual development - the goal of therapy is to gain insight into repressed material
psychodynamic or psychoanalytic theory
a system of thought that postulates the existence of unconscious internal sates that motivate the overt actions of individuals and determine personality
psychopharmacology
the science of how drugs affect behavior
psychophysics
measures the relationship between physical stimuli and psychological responses to the stimuli
punishment
the probability that a response will be made is decreased by giving the organism something undesirable whenever the response is made
range
a descriptive stat that measures variability by subtracting the lowest value in a data set from the highest value
ratio scale
uses actual numbers where there is a true zero point that indicates the total absence of the quantity being measured
rational emotive behavioral therapy
a therapeutic approach that focuses on changing irrational belief systems
rationalization
defense mechanism that refers to the process of developing social acceptable explanations for inappropriate behavior or thoughts
reactance
when social pressure to behave in a particular way becomes so blatant that the persons sense of freedom is threatened and the person will tend to act in a way to reassert that sense of freedom
reaction formation
defense mechanism that refers to when a repressed wish is warded off by its diametrical opposite
reality principle
Freud’s structural dynamic model of personality, it is the Ego’s response to frustration that takes into account objective reality as it guides or inhibits the activity of the Id and the Id’s pleasure principle
recency effect
social psych, those occasions when the most recent information we have about an individual is most important forming our impressions. in cognitive psych, it is the tendency for items that are presented last to be remembered the best
reception
the first step in all sensory information processing; each sensory system has receptors to react to the physical external energy
reciprocity hypothesis
we tend to like those who seem to like us and dislike those who dislike us
refractory period
period following the firing of a neuron just before the neuron is able to fire again
regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF)
noninvasive prodedure that detects broad patterns of neural activity based on increased blood flow to different parts of the brain
regression
a defense mechanism that refers to a person who reverts to an earlier mode of satisfaction
relative refractory period
the period following the absolute refractory period. during this time, the neuron will fire in response to a strong stimulus
relative size
a cue for depth perception that occurs as an object gets farther away and its image on the retina gets smaller. People can tell how far away something is relative to another object by comparing the size of the images on the retina with what is know about actual sizes
reliability
the consistency and stability of a test measure
REM
Rapid Eye Movement sleep characterized by the presence of theta waves and the absence of delta waves. Dreams occurs during REM sleep
representativeness heuristic
a decision making short cut that people tend to use when trying to decide how likely something is by categorizing on the basis of whether it fits the prototypical stereotypical or representative image of the category
repression
defense mechanism that refers to the unconscious forgetting of anxiety producing memories
reproductive isolating mechanisms
behaviors that prevent animals of one species from attempting to mate with animals of a closely related species
resistance
an unwillingness or inability to relate to certain thoughts, motives, or experiences , it is a major part of psychoanalysis
response bias
the tendency for research participants to respond to sensory perception in a particular way, due to non sensory factors
resting potential
a slight electrical charge (-70mV) stored inside the neurons cell membrane - a charge just waiting to be transformed into a nerve impulse
retrieval
process of recovering stored material in memory
retroactive inhibition
learning something that interferes with what was learned earlier
retrograde amnesia
memory loss for events that occurred before brain injury
rhodopsin
the only photopigment in the rods, it is made up of a vitamin A derivative, called retinene, and a protein, called opsin
risky shift
group decisions are risker than the average of the individual choices (and this average riskiness of the individual choices can be considered to be an estimate of the groupon original riskiness).
rods
located in the periphery of the retina, these are sensory receptors for vision that work best in reduced illumination and only allow perception of achromatic colors, have low sensitivity to detail and are not involved in color vision
role theory
social psych, people are aware of the social roles they are expected to fill, and behavior can be understood and attributed to the adoption of these social roles
sample
in research design it is the subset of the population
scatterplot
a graphical representation of correlation data
schema (schemata)
conceptual frameworks used to organize knowledge
schizoid personality disorder
a personality disorder characterized by pervasive pattern of detachment form social relationships and a restricted range of emotional expression
schizophrenia
disorder characterized by an or all of the following: delusions hallucinations, disorganized thought, inappropriate affect, catatonic behavior
secondary process
Freud’s structural dynamic model of personality, its the Ego’s mode of functioning which is to postpone the discharge of energy until the actual object that will satisfy the need (and Id) has been discovered or produced
secondary sex characteristics
physical sex, characteristics that do not appear until puberty; enlarged breast, widened hips, facial hair deeper voices
sedative hypnotic drugs
a class of drugs that slow down the functioning of the central nervous system by facilitating in the action of GABA
selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
behaviors stimulants that reduce depression by blocking the reuptake of serotonin and increasing serotonin in the synapse
self actualization
Abraham Maslow’s theory, the need to realize one’s fullest potential
self awareness theory
our behavior is influenced by an awareness of the self and that there are certain situations that trigger a focus on ourselves (mirrors, cameras, etc)
self disclosure theory
conditions that prohibit or facilitate the process of revealing personal or intimate aspect of oneself
self perception theory
Daryl Bem’s theory that when attitudes about something are weak or ambiguous, people observe their own behavior and then attribute attitudes to themselves
semantic feature comparison model
Smith, Shoben, Rips, suggests that concepts are represented by sets of features some of which are required for that concept and some of which are typical of that concept
semantic memory
a type of declarative memory, semantic memory has to do with remembering general knowledge especially the meaning of words and concepts
semantics
meaning of words and sentences
sensory memory
part of stage theory of memory that contains the fleeting impressions of sensory stimuli
sensory neurons
neurons that transmits sensory information to the spinal cord and then to the brain through afferent fibers
sequential cohort studies
exp method used in dev psych to study groups of subjects at different ages, repeatedly over time
serotonin
NT loosely classified as a monoamine or biogenic amine transmitter generally thought to play roles in regulating mood, eating, sleeping, arousal, oversupply of serotonin is thought to produces manic states, undersupply is thought to produce depression
shadow
archetype from Jung’s theory, referring to the animal instincts which humans inherited in their evolution from lower forms of life
shaping
in operant condioning it is reinforcing successive approximations of desired behavior
short term memory
a memory system that has a limited capacity (7 -+2 items) and a relatively short duration (~30sec)
sign stimulus
feature of stimulus that is sufficient to bring about a particular fixed action patter
signal detection theory
non sensory factors influence sensory perception
significance test
inferential stats to test the prob of an observed difference
single blind experiment
controls from the influence of the research participants expectations by not revealing whether participants are in the control group or in the experimental group
single cell recording
sensory perception, records the response cell by placing a micro electrode in the cortex
size constancy
object appears to retain its size despite the fact that its image on the retina has change in size
sleep apnea
inability to breathe during sleep
social comparison theory
Leon Festinger’s theory that tendency to evaluate the self in comparison toothed people drives affiliation
social exchange theory
we are motivated to affiliated with others based upon the rewards and costs of affiliations - the more rewards outweigh the costs, the greater the attraction to the other person
social facilitation
being in a group enhances performance
social influence
presences of other people affects an individuals judgment of an event
social learning theory
behavior is learned through modeling (direct observations) or through reinforcement
social loafing
group phenomenon referring to the tendency for people to put forth less effort when part of a group than when by themselves
somatoform disorders
characterized by the presence of physical symptoms not fully explained by a medical condition
split half consistency
dividing a test into equal halves and correlating scores on one half with the scores of the other half
stand deviation
measure of typical distance of scores from the mean
standard error of measurement (SEM)
an index of how much on average we expect a persons observed score to vary from the score the person is capable of receiving based on actual ability
state dependent learning
when recall is better if the psychological or physical state at the time of recall is the same as the state when learning occurred
Steven’s power law
related the intensity of the stimulus to the intensity of the sensation
storage
process of retaining the information in memory over time
strange situation
measure the quality of the caregiver-child attachment relationship
structuralism
system of thought that refers to breaking consciousness down to its elements
sublimation
defense mechanism that refers to the process of transforming unacceptable urges into socially acceptable behaviors
subtractive color mixture
occurs when we mix pigments; yellow, blue, and red, are the primary colors
Superego
in Freud’s structural dynamic model of personality, it strives for the idea rather than the real and its not directly in touch with reality
supernormal stimulus
more effective at triggering the fixed action pattern than the actual stimulus found in nature
suppression
defense mechanism that refers to a deliberate, conscious form of forgetting
synapse
tiny gap between neurons
syntax
the grammatical arrangement of words in sentences
systematic desensitization
used to treat phobias by pairing the object of fear with relaxation
tabula rasa
all knowledge is gained through experience; blank slate
tardive dyskinesia
resting tremors and jerky motor movements caused by disruptions of dopamine transmission
temperament
individual differences thought to have a genetic basis and thought to form the foundation of personality
test retest method
to estimate the inter individual stability of test scores over time, the same test is administered to the same group of people twice
texture gradients
a cue for depth perception that refers to the variations in perceived surface texture as a function of the distance from the observer - the more distant parts of the scene appear to have smaller, more densely packed elements and sudden changes in texture generally signal either a change in distance or a change in direction
Thanatos
in Freud’s structural dynamic model of personality it refers to the death instincts that represent an unconscious wish for the ultimate absolute state of quiescence
theory of multiple intelligences
Howard Gardner’s, seven intelligence factors: linguistic ability, logical - mathematical, spatial, musical, bodily kinesthetic, interpersonal, interpersonal
Thorazine
an antipsychotic drug thought to block receptor sites for dopamine, making it effective in treating delusional thinking, hallucinations, and agitation commonly associated with schizophrenia
timbre
sound perception, the quality of tone - the aspect that distinguishes the sound of one instrument from another
tip of the tongue phenomenon
a problem with memory retrieval where some parts of the information are available to memory, but not enough for complete recall
token economies
behavior therapies, to reinforce behavior by giving tokens (that can be cashed information something desirable ) for appropriate behavior
top down processing (conceptually driven processing)
object recognition theory, when people recognized objects by using conceptual processes such as memories and expectations about the whole object
Tourettes disorder
multiple motor tics (eye blinking, skipping) and one or more vocal tics (grunts, sniffs, snorts)
transduction
the second step in sensory information processing where physical energy is translated into neural impulses or action potential
transference
the carrying over and applying to the therapist attitudes and feelings that developed in the patients relations with significant others in the past
transformational grammar
rules that govern the ways in which changes in word order change meaning
triarchic theory
Robert Sternberg’s theory of intelligence that suggests that there are three aspects to intelligence: componential (performance on tests), experiential (creativity) and contextual (street smarts)
tricyclic antidepressants
behavioral stimulates thought to reduce depression by facilitating the transmission of norepinephrine or serotonin at the synapse
true experiments
use random assignment to manipulate the independent variable
T-scores
a score converted to a normal distribution that has a mean of 50 and a standard deviation of 10
t-test
significance test used to compare the means of two groups
Turner’s syndrome
caused by the lack of one X chromosome in females, results in a failure to develop secondary sex characteristics and cognitive impairment
two factor theory of emotion
subjective experience of emotion is based on the interaction between chances in physiological arousal and cognitive interpretation of that arousal. in the absence of any clear emotion provoking stimulus, interpretation of physiological arousal depends on what is happening in the environment
type I errors
an error of mistakenly rejecting the null hypothesis. the likelihood of making a type I error is the criterion of significance
two point thresholds
the minimum distance necessary between two points of stimulation of the skin such that the points will be felt as two distinct stimuli
type II errors
error of mistakenly failing to reject the null hypothesis
unconditioned response
in classical conditioning, it is a response that occurs without any behavioral conditioning - like a reflex
unconditioned stimulus
in classical conditioning, it is the stimuli that elects an unconditioned response, without and behavioral conditioning
validity
the extent to which a test actually measures what it purports to measure
value hypothesis
suggests that the risky shift occurs in situations in which riskiness is culturally valued
variable
property that varies in amount or kind and can be measured (height, weight etc)
variable interval (VI)
in operant conditioning, it is when behavior is reinforced at the the first response made after a variable amount of time has elapsed since the last reinforcement
variable ratio (VR)
in operant conditioning, when a behavior is reinforced after a varying number of responses
variance
the square of the standard deviation, it is a description of how much each scores varies from the mean
vestibular sense
sense of balance of our bodily position relative to gravity
visual agnosia
impairment in visual recognition whereby the person can see an object but is unable to recognize what it is
Weber’s law
change in stimulus intensity needed to produce a just noticeable difference, divided by the stimulus intensity of the standard stimulus, is constant
Wernicke’s aphasia
impairment in understanding spoken language associated with damage to the Wernickes area
Yerkes-Dodson law
performance is worst at extremely low or extremely high levels of arousal, and optional at some intermediate level
Young-Helmholz theory (trichromatic theory)
color vision, reina contains three different types of color receptors (cones), which are differently sensitive to blue red, or green and all colors are produced by combined stimulation of these receptors
Zone of proximal development
refers to the those skills and abilities that have not fully developed but are in the process of development
Z-score
represents how many standard deviations above or below the mean a score is
Zygote
a single, fertilized cell cerated during conception when the egg and sperm cells combine
