Psychology: Chapter 1 Flashcards
What did Lin Xie do?
Tested vulnerability to distraction
What was the relationship between Plato and Aristotle?
Plato argued in favour of nativism, while Aristotle argued that a child’s mind is a blank slate.
(Nature vs. Nurture)
What was the relationship between Descartes and Hobbes?
Descartes argued that the mind and body are two different things.
Hobbes argued that the mind and body are NOT different entities.
What is dualism and how did Descartes argue that the mind and body communicated?
Dualism: How the mind and body communicate with each other.
Pineal Gland
What is philosophical realism and who was behind it?
The idea that ones perception of the real world is produced entirely by their sensory organs. - John Locke.
What is philosophical idealism and who was behind it?
The idea that ones perception of the physical world was based on their brains interpretation of information from the sensory organs. - Immanuel Kant.
What is Phrenology?
The idea that specific mental abilities are localized in specific areas of the brain.
What did Franz Joseph Gall think?
That brains and minds were linked by size.
What did Herman von Helmholtz do?
Studied human reaction time and estimated the length of nerve impulses.
What did Willhelm Wunt believe?
That the soul was irrelevant and we must focus on physical observable information.
What is structuralism?
The analysis of basic elements that make up the human mind.
What is introspection?
The subjective observation of ones experiences.
What did William James think?
That structuralism distorted the true nature of consciousness.
What is functionalism?
And who was it inspired by?
The study of the mental processes that serve in enabling people to adapt to the environment.
Charles Darwin.
What questions would a structuralist vs. a functionalist ask?
Structuralist: How can we describe the experience of fear?
Functionalist: What purpose does fear serve?
What is hysteria?
The temporary loss of motor functions because of an emotionally upsetting experience.
What was Freud’s theory?
That hysteria comes from painful childhood experiences.
Ex. If a child experienced sexual frustration during development, anxiety would be developed in adulthood as neurosis.
What is the Psychoanalytic Theory?
The importance of unconscious mental processes in shaping feelings, thoughts, and behaviours.
What is psychoanalysis?
Bringing unconscious material into conscious awareness.
What is humanistic psychology?
The emphasis on a positive potential of human beings.
What is behaviourism?
It focuses on underlying human and animal behaviour. (Must be objective)
Challenged the idea that psychology should focus on mental life.
What did John B Watson believe?
That psychology should be used to predict and control behaviour in a way that benefits society.
Influenced by Pavlov.
What is Gestalt Psychology?
People see the parts of an image rather than the whole thing. (Patterns)
What is social psychology?
The study of causes consequences of interpersonal behaviour.
What is social psychology?
The study of causes consequences of interpersonal behaviour.
What conclusion did Glucksberg come to after his “Candle Problem”
- If a task called for mechanical skill, monetary incentive worked.
- If a task called for “even rudimentary skill”, a larger reward led to poorer performance.
What is cognitive psychology?
The study of how people think, speak, remember, perceive, and solve problems.
What is evolutionary psychology?
The adaptive value of our abilities which are developed over time via natural selection.
What is Broca’s Area?
The left side of the brain, which controls an individual’s ability to produce speech/language.
What is Broca’s Area?
The left side of the brain, which controls an individual’s ability to produce speech/language.
What is behavioural neuroscience?
The study of where the brain meets the mind.
What is cognitive neuroscience?
How the brain functions while performing different skills, such as speaking, listening, seeing, and generating words.
What is cultural psychology?
The study of how cultures reflect and shape the psychological process of their members.
What is relativism?
The idea that psychological phenomena are likely to vary considerably across cultures.
What is relativism?
The idea that psychological phenomena are likely to vary considerably across cultures.
