Psychology Flashcards
Define psychology.
The study of human behaviour and mental processes.
What are the two fields of psychology?
Experimental and clinical
What do experimental psychologists do? [3]
- Conduct experiments on behaviour
- Monitor human reactions in different situations
- Test drugs (painkillers, anti-depressants) for side effects and effectiveness
What is the goal of experimental psychologists?
To better see how the mind works.
What do clinical psychologists do?
Develop programs for those suffering from mental illnesses and behavioural disorders.
What makes a clinical psychologist’s job difficult? [2]
Mental illnesses are hard to treat because they are the result of an interplay of different stressors and the psychologist has to take into account individual differences.
What does the cognitive theories school of thought focus on? [3]
- The act of thinking and acting (how we learn)
- Sensation and perception, memory, emotion, problem solving, mental processes
- Physical working of the brain and its behaviour
What is the basis of psychoanalysis?
The human mind is divided between conscious mental processes and unconscious desires, which are the prime motivators of behaviour.
What are the three parts of the mind according to psychoanalysis and what are they responsible for?
Id (primal), Ego (long term planning), and Superego (balance of the two).
What does behaviourism attempt to do?
Identify motivators of human behaviour.
What are three core beliefs in the behaviourism school of thought?
- There is no unconscious mind
- All behaviour is the result of previous experiences.
- Childhood plays a significant role in development
According to behaviourism, behavioural responses are the result of…
environmental stimuli
Who are two key figures in behaviourism?
John Watson and Ivan Pavlov
Learning theory has its roots in the works of…
Jean Piaget and Erik Erikson
What does Learning Theory believe?
Most, if not all, behaviour is learned and that we can control what we learn.
How is much of our behaviour learned according to Learning Theory? What does this mean?
Much of our behaviour is learned through social interaction, which means that society has a big impact on behaviour.
Name a key figure in Humanism.
Abraham Maslow (hierarchy of human needs).
What is Humanism? [3]
The belief that we all strive for self-actualization, which is based on how we perceive the world.
- Perceived needs are huge drivers of motivation.
- Individuals are driven to achieve growth and self-fulfillment.
What is evolutionary psychology?
The belief that our behaviour can be explained using evolutionary principles, and as our behaviour is similar to animals, there is a biological root for the behaviour.
What are some examples in evolutionary psychology? [4]
Men who have the v-shape are found more attractive because that’s what showed someone was healthy and could provide to our ancestors. Women have hourglass figures (which emphasizes fertility). Symmetrical faces, golden ratio (1:1.15).
What is personality? [2]
The unique way of behaving, thinking, and reacting that everyone possesses.
- Used to be developed into nature vs. nurture, but it is now viewed as a mixture of both.
Who created psychoanalysis?
Sigmund Freud
How did the time Freud lived in influence his views on psychology?
He practiced psychiatry in Vienna in Victorian times, where people learned very early that their natural instincts and emotions are improper and should be repressed. Thus, Freud theorized some messed up things were being repressed.
What are Freud’s Psychosexual Stages of Development linked two?
Sexual gratification or frustration.
Name the five stages of psychosexual development.
Oral stage, anal stage, phallic stage, latency stage, and genital stage.
What happens in the oral stage? [6]
- 0-18 months
- Called oral stage because children are exploring the world with their mouths
- Characterized by conflict over expectation and fulfillment.
- Primarily linked to Id (pleasure seeking principle)
- If you feed a child every time it cries it becomes clingy and needy, if you don’t feed it every time it cries it becomes withdrawn and isolated.
- Causes oral fixations (chewing gum, nails, and pencils, smoking, etc.).
What happens in the anal stage? [6]
- ~18 months-3 years
- Characterized between battle between compliance and defiance.
- Kids begin to show independence which comes into conflict with parental expectations.
- Linked with potty training
- If parents are strict and stick to a schedule, child will be neat and on time, if parents aren’t strict, it can lead to someone who’s always late and messy.
- Anal-retentive = obsessively perfect
What happens in the phallic stage? [5]
- 3-6/7 years
- Children become aware of differences between gender, which leads to them understanding relationships.
- Begin to identify with the opposite sex as a potential mate (Oedipus Complex), and idealize them as the ideal mate.
- If father is not present, girls are more likely to date older men who don’t respect her
- Characterized by competition between the child and same sex parent for opposite sex parent.