Intro to Psych Flashcards
Psychology
The science of mental processes
Wundt
Founder of modern day psychology, research methods used introspection, psychophysical measurements, reaction time
E.B Titchener
Founded structuralism; to explain consciousness by analyzing its structural elements
Structuralism
An early school of psychology that used introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human mind
William James
Published the first psych book; founded functionalism
Functionalism
A school of psychology that focused on how mental and behavioral processes function- how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish
J.B. Watson
Leader of behaviorism
Behaviorism
the view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes.
Biological Approach
behavior understood by describing underlying biochemical and neurological causes
Cognitive Approach
deals with perception, language, and thought. (Piaget and Chomsky)
Psychoanalytic
behavior is motivated by unconscious processes. Importance on childhood, sex and aggression. (Freud, Jung, Adler, Horney)
Humanist
emphasized on helping everyone and opposed behaviorism and psychoanalysis. Free will. (Maslow and Rogers)
Experiment
the only research method that shows cause and effect. Includes a hypothesis and must be testable, verifiable, and refutable.
Independent Variable
variable manipulated by the experiment
Dependent Variable
measured variable influenced by the independent variable
Experimental Group
the group that receives the treatment
Control Group
the group that doesn’t receive the treatment (placebo)
Placebo Effect
a beneficial effect produced by a placebo drug or treatment, which cannot be attributed to the properties of the placebo itself, and must therefore be due to the patient’s belief in that treatment.
Single Blind
controls subject awareness of group assignment
Double-Blind
controls subject and experimenter awareness of group assignment
Randomization
selection for groups random or by chance procedure
Experimenter Bias
any systematic errors in the research process or the interpretation of its results that are attributable to a researcher’s behavior, preconceived beliefs, expectancies, or desires about results. For example, a researcher may inadvertently cue participants to behave or respond in a particular way
Population
the larger group of people from which samples are drawn
Sample
set of subjects drawn from a particular population
Naturalistic Observation (Pros and Cons)
Pro: behavior observed in a natural setting, much info obtained, the hypothesis is formed
Con: no control, observer bias, may need to wait for event to occur
Correlation
describes the relationships between two variables
Causation
the empirical relation between two events, states, or variables such that change in one (the cause) brings about change in the other (the effect).
Survey Method
methods used to measure attitudes, motives, opinions, etc.
Sampling Error
the predictable margin of error that occurs in studies of samples of cases or observations from a larger population: It indicates the possible variance between the true value of a parameter in the population and the estimate of that value made from the sample data. For example, a sampling error of 3% in a large national survey finding that 65% of citizens prefer a particular policy means that the true figure could be anywhere between 62% and 68%.
