Test #1 Flashcards
Def of Psychology
Scientific study of behavior and mental processes
Who found Structuralism
Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920)
Structuralism
How the mind is structured
Beginning of psychology as a scientific discipline
First experimental lab devoted to psychology
Introspection
Technique used to uncover the structure of the mind
Functionalism
The minds “stream of consciousness”
What the mind does and how it effects behavior
The thoughts that are going through your mind right now
Who found Functionalism
William James (1842-1910)
Gestalt Psychology
To understand consciousness
Must study the whole, not just the parts
Biological/Neuro perspective
Views behavior from the perspective of the brain, nervous system, and other biological functions
Behaviorism
Behavior, Learning, Conditioning
Watson and Skinner
Psychodynamic
Behavior is influenced by the unconscious
Aggression and sexual impulses
Sigmund Freud
Humanistic
Free will and self-actual action
Maslow and Rogers
Cognitive Psychology
Thinking, Memory, and Intelligence
Evolutionary
Survival, Natural Selection, Adaptation, Reproduction
Sociocultural
Culture
Differences:
between ethnic and cultural groups
Within and across countries
Scientific Method
Observation
Formulate a question
Generate a testable prediction
Data
Conclusions
Biological/Neuro involves
Nervous system, neurons, and neurotransmitters
Central Nervous System involves
Brain and spinal cord
Peripheral nervous system
Somatic nervous system
Autonomic nervous system
Sympathetic nervous system
Parasympathetic nervous system
Sympathetic nervous system
Helps prepare for stressful situations
Parasympathetic nervous system
Helps calm you down after stressful situations
Function of Neurons
Have the ability to communicate with other cells
Transmits info across long distances
Structure of Neurons
Dendrites
Axon
Axon terminals
Synapse
Dendrites
Receives messages from other neurons
Have tree like fibers
Axon
Transmits information
Axon terminals
Send the message to other neurons
Synapse
Small gap between neurons
What does Dopamine do?
Pleasure, motivation, arousal, reward, and cognition
Cocaine stimulates dopamine and gives people a high
Dopamine
Voluntary movement
Reward anticipation
Stimulant drugs; activate dopamine receptors
Parkinson’s meds: lower dopamine levels
Schizophrenia meds: higher dopamine levels
Serotonin
Contributes to feelings of well being and happiness
Regulates sleep
What if there isn’t enough serotonin in your system
It can lead to anxiety and depression
Def of Development
Pattern of movement or change
Begins at conception and continues through the human life span
Prenatal Development
Conception : union of egg and sperm
Embryo
Fetus
Who found the different parenting styles
Baumrinds?
Authoritative parenting
Rules are explained, Friar limits, parents encourage independence
Positive
Authoritarian Parenting
Strict rules with little discussion of reason why
Punitive
Controlling
Negative
Permissive parenting
Parents are involves, few limits
No rules or structure
Negative
Uninvolved parenting
Parents are not around
Neglectful
Negative
Who found moral development
Kohlberg
Moral development
Presented moral dilemmas and responses
Preconventional
Behavior guided by punishments and rewards
Conventional
Standards learned from parents and society
Postconventional
Internal understanding
Cognitive Development
Children develop schemas
concepts that organize info
Assimilation
Incorporate new info existing schemas
Accommodation
Adjust schemas to new info
Who founded cognitive development
Jean Piaget
Perception
Organizing and interpreting signals
Sensation
Receive signals from the environment
Absolute Threshold
Minimum amount of energy an organism can detect %50 of the time
Difference threshold
How much stimulus change is necessary for detection
Webers Law
To be perceived as different
2 stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage
Top down process
Initiated by cognitive processing
Internal/mental worlds influence on perception
prior understanding
Bottom up process
Outside world influence on perception
Subliminal perception
Influence of info below the level of conscious awareness
