Psych/Soc Flashcards
What is Fundamental Attribution Error?
It is someone’s tendency to attribute another’s actions to their character or personality but attributing their behavior to external situational factors.
What is dispositional attribution error?
It is when someone assumes the cause of behavior to some internal characteristic of a person, rather than to outside forces.
What is the difference between Binocular and Monocular depth Cues?
Binocular involves visual information from both eyes. Monocular depth cues are only from one eye.
What is motion parallax?
Motion parallax is the fact that objects moving at constant speed across the frame will appear to move a greater amount if they are closer to the observer than if they were at a greater distance.
What is convergence? In regards to sight
Convergence is the extent that two eyes are turned inward to perceive a single object.
What is alogia?
Pretty interesting concept. Some people are shy and don’t enjoy talking. Alogia takes this to an extreme. It is also known as poverty of speech. It is a difficulty with speaking or the tendency to speak little due to brain impairment.
Drive Reduction Theory is…
…meant to help motivate humans to perform certain actions to avoid uncomfortable state.
Primary Drives include basic needs for life (food, water, etc.)
Secondary Drives (typically stem from learning, like wanting social acceptance or money)
Expectancy Value Theory is…
… the amount of motivation for a task is based on chance of success (expectancy) and the amount the success is valued (value)
Opponent Process Theory best explained by this example…
Motivation behind Drug Use: The more drug use increases, the more the body counteracts its affects.
Self-Determination Theory says…
We have 3 universal needs: Autonomy (control of your own actions), Competence (excel and complete tasks), and Relatedness (desire to be wanted and accepted by others)
Push Factor
A negative factor that leads people to leaving a nation.
How can I tell the independent variable from the dependent variable?
The independent variable is what you change and the dependent variable is what changes because of that.
What does Ego-syntonic mean?
All personality disorders are ego-syntonic. THis means they perceive their behavior as correct and in harmony with their goals. They often do not believe they have a problem.
What is the function of the cerebellum?
The cerebellum is involved with motor control.
What is the function of the cerebral cortex?
This is otherwise known as the cerebrum. It works with high-order cognitive processes.
What are the high-level cognitive functions?
These are the executive processes like attention, planning, problem-solving, and decision-making.
Zero-sum game
A situation where if one party loses, the other wins so the net change in wealth is zero
Comparative Pessimism
A person thinks they have a higher risk than others or are worse off. For example, someone seeing everyone around them would cause comparative pessimism.
Somatic Symptom disorder
Presence of a symptom that may or may not be linked to underlying condition and then a person devotes a bunch of time and anxiety to it
What is the SCN? Where is it? What does it do?
SCN is the suprachiasmatic nucleus and it is located within the hypothalamus to control sleep. When light is received by the eyes, the SCN will downregulate melatonin production from the pineal gland while if there is not much light received, it will upregulate melatonin production.
What are the parvo and magno pathways of the brain?
The parvo pathway detects color and form and it travels from the retina to the ventral layers of the LGN. The magno pathway detects depth and motion and it travels from the retina to the dorsal layers of the LGN.
Longitudinal Study
Data gathered at multiple time points to detect risk factors or outcomes
Cross-sectional Study
Data gathered at one point in time and it can determine prevalence of an outcome in a population
What are the otolith organs and what is their function?
They are utricle and saccule and they sense gravity and linear acceleration. This allows us to sense ddirection of the linear acceleration and the tilt of the head.
What is a stupid synonym for retinal disparity?
Stereopsis, the distance between the two eyes causes slightly different images to be projected onto the retinas.
How long is each sleep cycle?
About 90 minutes with the last one being where dreaming most frequently occurs
What does the monoamine hypothesis say?
it says that the depletion of monoamine neurotransmitters (serotonin, dopamine) in the CNS directly causes depression symptoms
Anhedonia means…
…loss of pleasure. Stimulation of the body’s reward pathway (nucleus accumbens) would be expected to alleviate this feeling
Where are tropic hormones released from?
Anterior Pituitary
Bowlby’s Attachment Theory
- Pre-attachment: birth to 6 weeks, no preference
- Attachment-in-the-making: 6 weeks to 7 months, preference for caregiver
- Clear-cut attachment: 7 to 10 months, attachment to one specific caregiver
- Reciprocal Attachment: after 10 months, separation anxiety occurs
Parts of the Forebrain
Cerebrum, thalamus, hypothalamus, pituitary gland, limbic system, olfactory bulb
Parts of the Midbrain
The colliculi, tegmentum and cerebral peduncles
Parts of the hindbrain
Upper part of spinal cord, brainstem, cerebellum
Cerebrum
Largest part of the brain, composed of right and left hemispheres
Performs higher functions like interpreting touch, vision and hearing, as well as speech, reasoning, emotions, learning, and fine control of movement.
Cerebellum
Under the cerebrum and it coordinates muscle movement, maintains posture and balance
Brainstem
Relay center between the cerebrum/cerebellum and the spinal cord.
Breathing, HR, body temp, wake and sleep cycles, digestion, sneezing, coughing, vomiting, swallowing
Thalamus
Relay center
pain sensation, attention, alertness, memory
Hypothalamus
4 F’s: Fornication (sexual response), Fight, Fight, Feed
Also, sleep
Pituitary Gland
Controls other endocrine glands and secretes hormones that control sexual development, promote bone and muscle growth, and respond to stress
Olfactory Bulb
receive information about smells from the nose and send it to the brain by way of the olfactory tracts
Colliculi
Orient the head and eyes toward something seen and heard
Superior gets auditory info from the inferior
Auditory info is meshed with visual info present to make ventriloquism effect
Medulla oblongata
Bottom part of brain, conduit for nerve signals to and from body, helps control vital processes as well
Pon
Part of brainstem, handles unconscious processes and jobs, such as your sleep-wake cycle and breathing
Cerebellum
Helps coordinate and regulate a wide range of functions and processes in both your brain and body
