Introduction to Psychology Flashcards
What is psychology?
The science of mind, brain and behaviour
What are the two types of scientific research?
Basic research
Applied research
What is basic research?
This reflects the quest for knowledge purely for its own sake
It is carried out in labs or in real-world settings, either with human participants or other species
What is applied research?
This is designed to solve specific practical problems
It makes use of knowledge gained from basic research to design, implement and assess intervention programmes
What are the five goals of psychology?
To describe how humans and other species behave
To understand the causes of these behaviours
To predict how humans and animals will behave under certain conditions
To influence behaviour through the control of causes
To apply psychological knowledge for the enhancement of human welfare
What are the three different levels of explanations?
Biological
Cognitive / psychological
Environmental
What are mind-body interactions?
Relations between mental processes in the brain and the functioning of other bodily systems
What is biological endowment?
The idea that behaviour is primarily shaped by nature
What is nurture?
The idea that behaviour is primarily shaped by their environment and learning history
What is the problem with the nature vs nurture debate?
It is the wrong question - we should be more focused on how the two interact and how these interactions change over time
