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Psych > Midterm Vocab Review > Flashcards

Midterm Vocab Review Flashcards

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1
Q

Case study

A

An in depth investigation of an individual subject

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2
Q

Cross sectional study

A

Researchers compare the differences and similarities among people in different age groups at a given time

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3
Q

Halo effect

A

Phenomenon that occurs in self reports when someone’s overall evaluation of a person, object, or institution spills over to influence more specific ratings

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4
Q

Meta-Analysis

A

A research technique that combines the statistical results of many studies of the same question, yielding an estimate of the size and consistency of a variables effects

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5
Q

Reactivity

A

Alteration of a subjects behavior due to the presence of an observer

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6
Q

Control group

A

Subjects in a study who don’t receive the special treatment given to the experimental group

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7
Q

Experiment

A

A research method in which the investigator manipulates a variable under carefully controlled conditions

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8
Q

Independent Variable

A

In an experiment, a condition / event that a researcher varies in order to see its impact on another variable

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9
Q

Operational Definitions

A

In empirical research a definition that describes the actions or operations that will be used to measure / control a variable

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10
Q

Sample

A

The collection of subjects selected for observation in an empirical study

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11
Q

Correlation

A

2 variables are related

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12
Q

Experimenter Bias

A

Phenomenon that occurs when a researchers expectations or preferences about the outcome of a study influence the results

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13
Q

Journal

A

A periodical that publishes technical and scholarly material, usually in a narrowly defined area of inquiry

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14
Q

Placebo effect

A

Subjects expectations lead them to experience some change even though they didn’t receive treatment

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15
Q

Social Desirability Bias

A

A tendency to give socially approved answers to questions about oneself when responding to surveys

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16
Q

Correlation Coefficient

A

A numerical index of the degree of relationship between 2 variables

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17
Q

Extraneous variables

A

Any variables other than the independent variable that seem likely to influence the dependent variable in a specific experiment

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18
Q

Longitudinal study

A

A group of subjects are observed at intervals over an extended period of time

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19
Q

Random assignment

A

A procedure in which all subjects in a study have an equal chance of being assigned to any group / condition

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20
Q

Theory

A

A system of interrelated ideas that is used to explain a set of observations

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21
Q

Adaptation

A

An inherited characteristic that increases in a population because it helped solve a problem of survival / reproduction during the time it emerged

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22
Q

Corpus Callosum 🧠

A

The major structure that connects the 2 cerebral hemispheres

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23
Q

Fitness

A

The reproductive success of an individual organism relative to the average reproductive success of the population

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24
Q

Lesioning

A

Destroying a piece of the brain

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25
Q

Neurotransmitters

A

Chemicals that transmit information from one neuron to another

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26
Q

Afferent Nerve Fivers

A

Axons that carry information inward to the central nervous system from the periphery of the body

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27
Q

Critical period

A

A limited time span in the development of an organism when it’s optimal for certain capacities to emerge because the organism is especially responsive to certain experiences

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28
Q

Forebrain 🧠

A

The largest and most complicated region of the brain, encompassing a variety of structures, including the thalamus, hypothalamus, limbic system, and cerebrum

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29
Q

Limbic System 🧠

A

A loosely connected network of structures roughly located along the border between the cerebral cortex and deeper subcortical areas

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30
Q

Pituitary gland 🧠

A

The master gland of the endocrine system. It releases a great variety of hormones that can put through the body, stimulating actions in the other endocrine glands

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31
Q

Cerebral cortex 🧠

A

The convoluted outer layer of the cerebrum

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32
Q

Efferent nerve fibers 🧠

A

Axons that carry information outward from the central nervous system to the periphery of the body

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33
Q

Hormones

A

The chemical substances released by the endocrine glands

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34
Q

Neurons 🧠

A

Individual cells in the nervous system that receive, integrate, and transmit information

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35
Q

Reuptake

A

A process in which neurotransmitters are sponged up from the synaptic cleft by the pre synaptic membrane

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36
Q

Epigenetics

A

The study of heritable changes in gene expression that don’t involve modifications to the DNA sequence

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37
Q

Hypothalamus 🧠

A

A structure found near the base of the forebrain that’s involved in the regulation of basic biological needs

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38
Q

Neurogenesis

A

The formation of new neurons

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39
Q

Synapses 🧠

A

A junction where information is transmitted from one neuron to the next

40
Q

Olfactory system 🧠

A

The primary structures and processes involved in an organisms detection of and responses to odorants (SMELL)

41
Q

Sensation

A

The stimulation of sense organs

42
Q

Auditory localization

A

The ability to identify the position of sound sources based on acoustic information

43
Q

Cones 🧠

A

Type of photoreceptor cell in the retina. Color vision and fine details. Concentrated in the center of the retina (macula)

44
Q

Lens 🧠

A

The transparent elastic structure behind the iris which light is focused on to the retina of the eye

45
Q

Perceptual set

A

Predisposition to perceive things in a certain way

46
Q

Sensory adaptation

A

A reduction in sensitivity to a stimulus after constant exposure to it

47
Q

Bottom-up processing

A

An explanation for perceptions that start with an incoming stimulus and working upwards until a representation of the object is formed in the mind

48
Q

Cornea 🧠

A

The transparent part of the eye that covers the iris and the pupils and allows light to enter the inside

49
Q

Light

A

The natural agent that stimulates sight and makes things visible

50
Q

Pupil 🧠

A

The round opening in the center of the iris

51
Q

Visual agnosia

A

A condition in which a person can see but can’t recognize/ interpret visual information due to a disorder in the pariental lobes

52
Q

Cochlea 🧠

A

The bony fluid-filled part of the inner ear that’s concerned with hearing

53
Q

Feature Detectors 🧠

A

Individual neurons - groups of neurons in the brain which code for perceptually significant stimuli

54
Q

Light adaptation

A

The process by which the eye adjusts to conditions of high illumination

55
Q

Retinal Disparity

A

The slight difference between the right and left retinal image

56
Q

Ventral stream 🧠

A

A pathway that carries visual information from the primary visual cortex to the temporal lobe

57
Q

Dorsal stream 🧠

A

A pathway that carries visual information from the primary visual cortex to the parietal lobe

58
Q

Avoidance learning

A

Learning that has occurred when an organism engages in a response that prevents aversive stimulation from occurring

59
Q

Extinction

A

The gradual weakening and disappearance of a conditioned response tendency

60
Q

Learning

A

A relatively durable change in behavior or knowledge that’s due to experience

61
Q

Preparedness

A

Species specific predisposition to be conditioned in certain ways and not others

62
Q

Schedule of Reinforcement

A

A specific pattern of presentations of reinforcers over time

63
Q

Variable ratio schedule

A

A reinforcement schedule in which the reinforcer is given for the first response after a variable time interval has elapsed

64
Q

Classical conditioning

A

A type of learning in which a neutral stimulus acquires the ability to evoke a response that was originally evoked by another stimulus

65
Q

Fixed interval schedule

A

A reinforcement schedule in which the reinforcer is given for the first response that occurs after a fixed time interval has elapsed

66
Q

Negative reinforcement

A

The strengthening of a response because it’s followed by the removal of an aversive stimulus

67
Q

Primary reinforcers

A

Events that are inherently reinforcing because they satisfy biological needs

68
Q

Shaping

A

The reinforcement of closer and closer approximations of a desired responses

69
Q

Conditioned responses

A

A learned reaction to a conditioned stimulus that occurs because of previous conditioning

70
Q

Intermittent reinforcement

A

A reinforcement schedule in which a designated response is reinforced only some of the time

71
Q

Observational learning

A

A type of learning that occurs when an organism’s responding is influenced by the observation of others

72
Q

Reinforcement

A

An event following a response that strengthens the tendency to make that response

73
Q

Stimulus discrimination

A

The phenomenon that occurs when and organism that has learned a response to a specific stimulus doesn’t respond in the same way to stimuli that are similar to the original stimulus

74
Q

Evaluative conditioning

A

Changes in the liking of a stimulus that results from pairing that stimulus with other positive or negative stimuli

75
Q

Operant conditioning

A

A form of learning In which voluntary responses come to be controlled by their consequences

76
Q

Renewal effect

A

The phenomenon that occurs of a response is extinguished in a different environment than it was originally acquired, the extinguished response will reappear if the animal is returned to the original environment

77
Q

Unconditioned response

A

An unlearned reaction to an unconditioned stimulus that occurs without previous conditioning

78
Q

Encoding

A

Forming a memory code

79
Q

Language acquisition device

A

According to Chomsky an innate mechanism or process that facilities the learning of language

80
Q

Misinformation effect

A

Phenomenon that occurs when participants recall of an event they witnessed is altered by introducing misleading post-event information

81
Q

Schema

A

An organized cluster of knowledge about a particular object / sequence of events

82
Q

Short-term memory

A

a limited capacity memory store that can maintain unrehearsed information for up to 20 seconds

83
Q

Conceptual Hierarchy

A

A multi level classification system based on common properties among items

84
Q

Flashbulb memories

A

Usually vivid and detailed recollections of momentous events

85
Q

Parallel Processing

A

The processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously

86
Q

Semantic memory system

A

General knowledge that’s not tied to the time when the information was learned

87
Q

Cognition

A

The mental processes involved in acquiring knowledge

88
Q

Functional fixedness

A

The tendency to perceive an item only in terms of its most common use

89
Q

Long-term memory

A

An unlimited capacity store that can hold information over lengthy periods of time

90
Q

Semantic network

A

Concepts joined together by links that show how the concepts are related

91
Q

Conjunction fallacy

A

An error that occurs when people estimate that the odds of 2 uncertain events happening together are greater than the odds of either events happening alone

92
Q

Heuristics

A

A strategy guiding principle or rule of thumb used in solving problems or making decisions

93
Q

Method of Loci

A

Mnemonic device that involves taking an imagined walk along a familiar path where images of items to be remembered are associated with certain locations

94
Q

Retrograde amnesia

A

Loss of memories for events that occurred prior to a head injury

95
Q

Sensory memory

A

The preservation of information in its original sensory form for a brief time, usually only a fraction of a second

Psych (4 decks)

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