Psychology Basics Flashcards
Psychology
The study of human behavior and the mental processes of the brain.
Mental Processes
Critical thinking, memory, and cognitive processes
Behavior
actions depending on genes and environment
Psychodynamics Perspective
How the unconscious mind influences the actions and behavior of the conscious mind.
Behavioral Perspective
How the experiences and learning of an individual influences their behavior.
Humanistic Perspective
Ones own ability to direct ones life and behavior.
Cognitive Perspective
How people think, store information, and remember the stored information.
Sociocultural Perspective
How other people and its social structure affects the person.
Biopsychological Perspective
How the brain functions and the other biological events that occur during cognition.
Evolutionary Perspective
The universal characteristics that all people exhibit.
Naturalistic Observations
Observations made on a subject outside a lab in the normal unbiased environment.
Laboratory Observations
Observations made in a lab environment with controlled surroundings and interactions.
Case Study
A study of a single individual for a prolonged period of time.
Survey
A series of questions given to a large group of people to gain patterns for a demographic.
Control Group
The group without the unknown variable, that will produce a known result.
Test Group
The group containing the manipulated variable, where the result will is unknown.
Independent Variable
The manipulated variable that is under scrutiny by the experiment.
Randomization
The jumbling and mixing of subjects that have met the criteria.
(Cuts down on errors and unnoticed patterns)
Blind Studies
When the test subjects do not know which group they are placed in.
Double Bind Studies
When neither the experimenter or the subjects know which group they are place in.
Placebo Effect
When an individual is told they are given the drug/cure, even though they aren’t; they mentally cause themselves to feel better which causes errors in the results.
Experimenter Effect
When the body language and tone of the experimenter alters the responses of the subject.
