Psychology Exam! Flashcards
What is psychology?
the scientific study of behavior and mental processes
What does the definition of psychology mean?
psychology encompasses what we study and how we study
example: trying to understand bullimia
Common misconceptions in psych:
-only about Freud
-synonymous with therapy
How is psychology different from psychiatry?
-psychiatrists can prescribe medication and psychologists cannot
-psychology: MD
-psychiatry: PhD
Psych’s Big Questions
-nature vs. nurture
-change or stability
-universal or unique
Nature or Nurture
nature is your genetics (we were born like this) vs. nurture is your environment
Change or Stability
is change steady and progressive or staggard and discreet
Universal or Unique
can certain psychological principles and phenomena be applied universally (everyone) or uniquely (specific culture)
What is the APA?
American Psychological Association
What are the TWO specializations?
basic and applied
What is basic specialization?
when psychologists conduct research to enhance the understanding of behavior and mental processes
What is physiological psychology?
how the brain influences disorders, how the brain communicates, neuropsychology, etc
What is developmental psychology?
how people change throughout their lifespan and just how we develop
What is personality psychology?
focuses on personality traits, what influences them, and how culture influences them
What is social psychology?
understanding how people think, how their influenced, and how they relate to others
What is applied specialization?
psychologists apply their expertise to real-world problems and use knowledge of the mind and behavior to enhance their client’s lives
What is clinical psychology?
focus on psychological disorders while applying it due to research done by BASIC researchers
What is counseling psychology?
focus on improving the functioning of people having a difficult time and work with those experiencing a major life change
What is industrial/organizational psychology?
focus on what takes places in the work place or consultants with businesses
What is community psychology?
focus on the wellbeing of the entire community
What is forensic psychology?
focus on legal and criminal justice issues, typically they can be consultants to lawyers
What is educational psychology?
focus on how people learn and help to improve their performance
What makes up psychology?
philosophy and physiology
Diversity within Psych
-geographic
-Kenneth and Mammie Clark
Who are Kenneth and Mammie Clark?
the first African-Americans to earn a PhD in psychology and responsible for the doll experiments
What is pseudo-psychology?
psychological info that is not supported by science, but may appear phrenology, physiognomy, and spiritualism
What will psychologists always use?
critical thinking to avoid confirmation bias
What is confirmation bias?
interpreting new evidence as confirmation of one’s existing beliefs
3 Aims of Psychological Studies
descriptive, correlational, and experimental
Descriptive Research
describes a characteristic of a population and is reported as measures of central variation
Correlational Research
describes the relationship between 2 variables and reported as a correlation coefficient
Experimental Research
determine cause and effect relationships between variables (independent/dependent)
What constitutes a culture?
a group of people who share similar beliefs, values, and patterns of behavior
How do we ensure our cultural understanding doesn’t morph into prejudice?
dynamic sizing which is the ability to simultaneously know the norms of a group
In what ways does diversity surround you?
intersectionality
Intersectionality
a persons unique combination of social and cultural categories intersect/overlap
Cultural Intelligence
ability to live and interact effectively in a multicultural society which allows us to interact/get along
Acculturation
managing a life that involves the coexistence of more than one culture
Assimilation
adopt new culture, reject old
Separation
retains old cultures, rejects new
Marginalization
rejects old and new culture
Integration
adopts new and old culture
Acculturative Stress
pressure from old or new culture
Hofstede’s Cultural Values
individualism vs. collectivism and large vs. small (power distance)
Individualism vs. Collectivism
wellbeing of oneself over a group vs. wellbeing of group over oneself
Large vs. Small (power distance)
when a culture has an hierarchy and there’s a gap between who holds power and who doesn’t
Who is Phineas Gage?
experienced a horrible injury which changed his personality
Neurons
-building blocks of the brain, cells that facilitate communication within the nervous system
-receives input and sends output
Sensory Neurons (input)
carry info to the brain, comes from our senses
Motor Neurons (output)
carry info from the brain to the muscles
Interneurons
connects neurons to others, this is the plentiful type in the brain
Cell Body (soma)
in the center of a neuron and responsible for the functionality and basic activities of a neuron
-“post office”
Axon
carries information from one neuron to the next
-“mail truck”
Axon Terminals
form connections with the next neuron
-“mailman”
Dendrites
receives messages from the axon terminals
-“mailbox”
Synapse
the gap between two connecting neurons
Neurotransmitters
chemical messengers which send information throughout a neuron
-“mail”
Receptor Sites
a vessel that receives a specific neurotransmitter, it is located in the dendrites
Reuptake Process
when a neurotransmitter is trying to be sent, but can’t find a receptor site so it is sent back to the neuron that was trying to send it
What TWO drugs can effect the impact of a neurotransmitter?
agonists and antagonists
Agonists
help enhance the impact of an neurotransmitter
Antagonists
interfere with the impact of an neurotransmitter
Action Potentials
the release (firing) of an electrical impulse that travels through the axon
What is the all or none response?
either a signal is sent or not at all