midterm 1 Flashcards
Wilhelm Wundt
German scientist that is generally credited with the founding of psychology as an experimental science
- built the worlds first scientific laboratory dedicated to the study of psychology
introspection
inward focusing on mental experiences, such as sensations or feelings
- method used by Wilhelm Wundt
- would give people a stimulus (an object) and asked them to describe their experience
structuralism (associated with introspection)
the school of psychology that attempts to understand the structure of the mind by breaking it down into its component parts
- this approach became identified with Edward Titchener (1867 - 1927) and Wilhelm Wundt
William James (1842 - 1910) & functionalism
functionalism: the school of psychology the focused on how behavior helps individuals adapt to demands placed upon them in the environment
- functions of the mental processes
- came after structuralism
John Watson & behaviorism (early 1900s) + B.F. Skinner
behaviorism: psychology should limit itself to the study of overt behavior that observers could record and measure
- Watson believed environment was only at play and even boasted that he could raise a dozen infant children into good humans with a good environment
- most psychologists obviously rejected this because the mind is a lot more complex than that
remained main school of psychology in the US and was backed by B.F. Skinner
B.F. Skinner: studied how behavior is shaped by rewards & punishments, could train animals to perform certain behaviors using reinforcers
Gestalt psychology
- guy was traveling in a train and thought of this; Max Wertheimer (1880-1943) - illusions of the objects captured his eye
Gestalt psychology: school of psychology that studies ways in which the brain organizes and structures our perceptions of the world
whole is greater than the sum of the parts
psychodynamic perspective & sigmund frued (1856 - 1939)
psychodyanmic perspective: the view that behavior is influenced by the struggle between unconscious sexual or aggressive impulses and opposing forces that try to keep this threatening material out of consciousness
- believed in the unconscious mind
psychoanalysis (Sigmund Freud)
Freud was a therapist unlike the others so his main aim was to help people overcome psychological problems
psychoanalysis: type of mental detective work- incorporates methods like analysis of dreams, slips of the tongue, etc.
6 major perspectives of contemporary psychology now & definitions
- behavioral: focus is on observable behavior, belief that environment influences behavior
- psychodynamic: behavior is motivated by inner forces (the unconscious), over which the person has very little control
- humanistic: emphasis on free will, focus on conscious experiences, emphasize value of self awareness and of being true to oneself
- physiological: focuses on relationship between biological processes and behavior (heredity, hormones, and nervous system)
- cognitive: emphasis on how people think, interested in the thought processes
- sociocultural: examines how behavior and attitudes are shaped by social/cutlural influences (age, ethnicity, gender, lifestyle, income, disability status)
social-cognitive theory (1960s)
behavior is shaped not only by environmental factors, such as rewards and punishments, but also by cognitive factors such as value places on different objects or goals
evolutionary psychology
branch of psychology that focuses on the role of evolutionary processes in shaping behavior
- applies principles of Charles Darwin
- believe behavioral tendencies such as aggressive tendencies might be rooted in our genes, having passed down generations for survival
positive psychology
believes we should focus on the positive attributes of human nature like love and hope instead of the weaknesses and deficiencies
- founded by Martin Seligman
basic research vs applied research
basic research: research focused on acquiring knowledge even if such knowledge has no direct practical application
ex. typically in universities or government agencies
applied research: research that attempts to find solutions to specific problems
ex. typically in clinical, counseling, school services
experimental, comparative, physiological, clinical, counseling psychologists & psychiatrists
experimental psychologists: apply experimental methods to study behavior and mental processes
comparative psychologists: study behavioral similarities and differences among animal species
physiological psychologists: focus on the biological basis of behavior
clinical psychologists: use psychological techniques to evaluate and treat individuals with mental or psychological disorders
counseling psychologists: help people clarify their goals and make life decisions or find ways of overcoming problems in various areas of their lives (for people who have adjustment problems that are usually not as severe as the kinds of problems that clinical psychologists treat)
psychiatrist: medical doctors who specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of mental or psychological disorders
empirical approach vs scientific method
empirical approach: method of developing knowledge based on evaluating evidence gathered from experiments and careful observation
scientific method: method of inquiry involving careful observation and use of experimental methods
4 general steps in the scientific method
- developing a research question
- forming a hypothesis
- gathering evidence
- drawing conclusions
naturalistic observation
method of research based on careful observation of behavior in natural settings
- researcher is passive and simply records what he sees
correlational research + correlation coefficient
research method used to examine relationships between variables, which are expressed in the form of a statistical measurement called a correlation coefficient
correlation coefficient: a statistical measure of association b/w variables that can vary from -1.00 to +1.00, positive # means positive correlation and neg. # means neg. correlation
- the increase in magnitude means how strong the correlation is
- causation does not equal correlation!!
experimental research + independent variable, dependent variable, operational definition, control group, random assignment
- only method that can establish a cause and effect relationship!
independent variable: factors that are manipulated
dependent variable: measured factors, the effects or outcomes of an experiment
operational definition: define variables, establish objective basis for determining what the variables of interest mean, ex. operationalizing physical attractiveness on the basis of scores on an attractiveness rating scale
control groups: ensure the effects of an independent variable are not due to other factors, what’s kept constant
random assignment: method of randomly assigning subjects to experimental or control groups to prevent bias
single blind vs double blind studies
single-blind: subjects are kept uninformed about whether they are receiving treatment or placebo
double-blind: both participants and experimenters are kept uninformed about whose receiving placebo and whose receiving treatment
prime
a stimulus or cue that affects a person’s subsequent behavior without the person being aware of its impact
survey research
measuring opinions and attitudes, small group is chosen to represent larger population
issue: people can give inaccurate information
two types of threats to experiments
experimental expectations: threat that occurs when experimenter unintentionally transmits cues to subjects about the way they are expected to behave in an experiment
subject expectations: threat that arises when subject thinks they have figured out what your experiment is all about, and instead of giving you their true responses, they tell you what they think you want to hear
neurons
specialized cells whose function is to carry messages
nerve cells
- about 100 to 200 billion of them
soma
cell body of the neuron that contains the nucleus
function: performs metabolic, or life-sustaining, functions of the cell
axon
the longest cable like part of the neuron
function: carries neural impulses to the terminal buttons (away from the cell body and towards other neurons)
terminal buttons
the swellings at the end of the neuron
function: release chemicals called neurotransmitters that carry messages to adjacent cells (into the synapse)
synapse
tiny gap that separates one neuron from another and serves as a connection point between neurons (where neurotransmitters carry neural impulses)
dendrites
tree-like structures that project from the soma (cell body)
function: receive neural impulses from neighboring neurons
sensory neurons, motor neurons, & interneurons (also what are the other names for sensory and motor neurons?)
sensory neurons (afferent neurons): neurons that transmit information from sensory organs, muscles, and inner organs to the spinal cord and brain think AWAY from outside
motor neurons (efferent neurons): neurons that convey nerve impulses from the central nervous systems to muscles and glands TOWARDS outside
interneurons (associate neurons): most common type, within the central nervous system, process information connect neurons to neurons
glands
body organs or structures that produce hormones
nerve
bundle of axons from different neurons that transmit nerve impulses
glial cells
small but numerous cells in the nervous suite, that support neurons and that form the myelin sheath found on many axons
g for glue that holds neurons together
myelin sheath
- formed by the glial cells
layer of protective insulation that covers the axons of certain neurons and helps speed transmission of nerve impulses
kinda like a shield
nodes of Ranvier
the gaps in the myelin sheath that create non insulated areas along the axon
multiple sclerosis (MS)
chronic, often crippling disease of the central nervous system where the myelin sheath is destroyed
- slowed transmission of neural impulses, leading to range of symptoms:
- person loses ability to speak, walk, write, or even breathe
resting potential
electrical potential across the cell membrane of a neuron in its resting state
- gates that control the passage of sodium ions are closed = greater concentration of Na+ atoms stays outside the cell
- causes cell to have a slightly negative charge, relative to the surrounding fluid
- holds potential energy that is ready to “fire” a neural impulse
depolarization
positive shift in the electrical charge in the neuron’s resting potential, making it less negatively charged
- neurotransmitters released = cell is stimulated = gate open = Na+ from surrounding fluid rush in = area inside cell membrane becomes less negatively charged
action potential
sudden reversal of charge from negative to positive of a nerve cell, called neural impulse
- typically beings at juncture between soma and axon called the axon hillock and then shoots down entire length of the axon
- this is called the “firing” of the neuron, or a spike
all-or-none principle
either neuron fires completely (action potential) or it does not have enough stimulation to fire, no halfway point
refractory period
temporary state in which a neuron is unable to fire after an action potential
- cell is restoring the electrochemical balance by pumping out sodium ions and drawing in potassium ions
absolute & relative refractory period
absolute: no matter how strong of a stimulus, neuron cannot fire again
relative: more difficult than usual but possible to fire with a strong enough stimulus
entrance of which ion makes it more positive and which one makes it more negative?
Na+ (usually outside) come in and makes it more positive, K+ (usually inside) makes it more negative
receptor site
a site on the receiving neuron in which neurotransmitters dock
- each neurotransmitter can only fit into one kind of receptor site
excitatory effect and inhibitory effect + summation process
excitatory message: chemical message that makes it more likely that a neuron will fire, makes an action potential more likely
inhibitory message: does the opposite- makes action potential less likely
summation process: neuron counts up the excitatory and inhibitory messages to determine which type of message has the highest number, and whichever message type has more, win
reuptake
process by which neurotransmitters are reabsorbed by the transmitting neuron
recycling
enzymes can also break down neurotransmitters to be released from the body as urine
neuromodulators
chemicals that either increase or decrease the sensitivity of the receiving neuron to neurotransmitters
- what medicine does to reduce pain
antagonists & agonists
antagonists: drugs that block the actions of neurotransmitters by occupying the receptor sites in which the neurotransmitters dock
agonists: drugs that enhance the activity of neurotransmitters by either increasing availability or effectiveness of neurotransmitters, or mimicking their actions
- used in medicines too
Parkinson’s disease
degenerative brain disease that leads to progressive loss of motor functioning or physical movements
result of the destruction of dopamine-producing cells
amphetamines
agonists that increase availability of dopamine in the brain by blocking its reuptake
- class of synthetically derived stimulant drugs, such as meth
endorphins
natural chemicals released in the brain that have pain-killing and pleasure-inducing effects
inhibitory because they block signals from occurring
antidepressants
drugs that combat depression by affecting the levels or activity of neurotransmitters
- serve as agonists that increase availability of neurotransmitters norepinephrine and serotonin
