Test 1 Flashcards
active reading
paying attention while you read and understanding the material
what technique is used to read actively?
S.Q.3R
SQ3R stands for
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psychology
the scientific study of behaviour and mental processes
science of psychology
uses systematic methods to observe human and other animal behaviour
behaviour
everything we do that can be directly observed (baby crying)
mental processes
thoughts, feelings and motives that each of us experience (thinking about kissing somebody)
scientific approach
tests assumptions and relies on that research to provide the bases for their conclusions
critical thinking
the process of reflecting deeply and actively (asking questions and evaluating evidence)
skepticism
challenging whether a supposed fact is really true
pseudoscience
information which is couched in scientific terminology but not supported by sound scientific research
objective
being open to the evidence is thinking objectively
clinical psychologist
specialise in studying and treating psychological disorders
positive psychology
branch of psychology that emphasises human strengths
philosophy
rational investigation of the underlying principles of being and knowledge
Rene Descartes
philosopher who argued that the mind and body are separate
Wilhelm Wundt
german philosopher-physician who integrated philosophy and natural sciences to create psychology
structuralism
focuses on identifying the structures of the human mind
introspection
looking inside our own minds by focusing on our own thoughts
functionalism
functions and purposes of the mind and behaviour in the individuals adaptation to the environment
natural selection
evolutionary process in which organisms that are better adapted to their environment will survive and produce more offspring
four components of natural selection
- variation
- competition
- selective advantage
- inheritance
variation
the fact that characteristics of a species differ
competition
arises because a species can produce more offspring that can survive
selective advantage
some variations of characteristics gives individuals better chances of survival
inheritance
tendency for offspring to possess traits of its parents
biological approach
a focus on the body especially the brain and nervous system
neuroscience
scientific study of the structure, function, development, genetics and biochemistry of the nervous system
what causes us to think, feel and behave?
electrical impulses that go throughout brain cells and release chemical substances
behavioural approach
emphasises the scientific study of observable behavioural responses and their environmental determinants
BF Skinner
believed psychology should be about what people do and rewards and punishments
behaviourists
say that we do what we do because of environmental conditions we have and continue to experience
psychodynamic approach
emphasises unconscious thoughts, conflict between biological drives, society’s demand and early childhood family experiences
psychoanalysis
analyst unlocking a persons unconscious by talking about their childhood memories, dreams, thoughts and feelings
humanistic approach
emphasises a persons positive qualities, the capacity for growth and the freedom to choose one’s destiny
cognitive approach
emphasises the mental processes involved in knowing
information processing
the ways that the human mind interprets incoming information
evolutionary approach
emphasises the use of evolutionary ideas as the basis for explaining specific human behaviours
sociocultural approach
examines the ways in which social and cultural environments influence behaviour
practitioners
those who are primarily engaged in helping others
psychologist
have doctoral degree in psychology
psychiatrist
physician with medical degree (can prescribe drugs)
physiological psychology
study of physical processes that underlie mental operations
behavioural neuroscience
focuses on biological processes especially the brains role in behaviour
what is learning?
process which behaviour changes in response to changing circumstances
cognitive psychology
field which examines attention, consciousness, information processing and memory
developmental psychology
focuses on how people become who they are
motivation
how people persist to attain a difficult goal
emotion
looks into topics including the physiological and brain processes that underly emotional experience
biopsychosocial
model that espouses the idea that mind and body are inseparable
what are the five steps of scientific method?
- observing a phenomenon
- formulating hypotheses and predictions
- testing through empirical research
- drawing conclusions
- evaluating the theory
theory
broad idea or set of closely related ideas that attempts to explain observations
hypothesis
an educated guess that derives logically from a theory and previous research findings
empirical method
gaining knowledge by collecting objective evidence
variable
anything that can change
operational definition
provides an objective description of how a variable is going to be measured and observed in a particular study
data analysis
crunching the numbers mathematically to see if they support predictions
self determination theory
people are likely to feel fulfilled when their lives meet three important needs
what are the three needs of self determination theory
relatedness, autonomy, competence
meta analysis
statistical procedure that summarises a large body of evidence from the research literature on a particular topic
descriptive methods
learning about the basic dimensions of some variable and the strength and direction of the relationship between variables
experimental research
establishing casual relationships between variables
descriptive research
describing some phenomenon (basic dimensions, what it is)
naturalistic observation
viewing behaviour in a real world setting
archival research
uses the records produced by people, governments and corporations
physical trace evidence
the study of physical changes in the environment following some activity
case study
in depth investigation of a small group of individuals or single person
correlational research
the relation between two variables
correlation
summarises the relationship between two variables with a number of
correlational coefficient
talks about the strength and direction between two variables
experience sampling method (ESM)
assess people in their natural setting
event-contingent responding
participants complete a report each time they engage in a particular behaviour
cross sectional design
type of correlational study in which variables are measured at a single point in time
longitudinal designs
obtaining measures of the variables of interest in multiple waves over time
experiment
carefully regulated procedure in which the researcher manipulates one or more variables
random assignment
assigning participants to groups by chance
independent variable
a manipulated experimental factor
dependent variable
the variable that may change as a result of manipulations
confederate
person who is given a role to play in a study so that the social context can be manipulated
experimental group
participants in an experiment who are exposed to change
control group
get treated like the experimental group but don’t experience the change
Quasi-experimental
examine participants in varying groups but their group is not randomly determined
when is an experiment reliable?
when a finding is replicated
validity
the soundness of conclusions that a researcher draws from an experiment
external validity
the degree to which an experimental design reflects real world issues it is supposed to address
internal validity
the degree to which changes in the dependent variable are due to the manipulation of the independent variable
experimenter bias
when the experimenters expectations influence the outcome of the research
demand characteristic
any aspect of a study that communicates to participants how the experimenter wants them to behave
double blind procedure
when neither the participants nor the researcher know which treatment participants receive until after the study
what is an effective way to minimize experimenter bias?
double blind procedure
research participant bias
when the behaviour of participants during the experiment is influenced by how they think they are supposed to behave
how do we select participants?
- population
- sample
- random sample
population
the larger group that the investigator wants to draw conclusions about
sample
the subset of the population chosen by the investigator for study
random sample
sample that gives everyone an equal chance of being selected
descriptive statistics
used to describe and summarize data
inferential statistics
are used to draw conclusions about data
what are descriptive statistics?
mathematical procedures researchers use to describe and summarise sets of data in a meaningful way
what are used in descriptive statistics?
- measures of dispersion
- standard deviation
measures of dispersion
describe how much the scores in a sample differ from one another
standard deviation
measures how much scores vary from the mean of the sample
what are inferential statistics?
mathematical methods used to indicate whether the data sufficiently support a research hypothesis
informed consent
participants must know what their participation will involve and risks that exist
confidentiality
keeping all data collected confidential and anonymous
debriefing
after a study researchers should inform participants of its purpose and methods used
what is the nervous system?
includes cellular circuits that allow for electrical and chemical communication in the body
what is the central component of the nervous system?
brain
neuroscience
study of communication
neurons
cells in the body that receive, process and communicate information throughout the nervous system
glial cells
supporting, non-neuronal cells
what do glial cells do?
supporting functions for the neurons (providing protection, nutrients, maintenance and repair)
integration
pulling sensory information together to understand
adaptability
ability to adapt to new conditions
plasticity
brains special physical capacity for change
afferent nerves or sensory nerves
carry information from the sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord
efferent nerves or motor nerves
carry information out of the brain and spinal cord
central nervous system (CNS)
made up of brain and spinal cord
peripheral nervous system (PNS)
network of nerves that connect the brain and spinal cord to other parts of body
two major divisions of peripheral nervous system
somatic nervous system and autonomic nervous system
somatic nervous system
consists of sensory and motor nerves
sensory nerves
convey information from the skin and muscles to the CNS about conditions like pain and temperature
motor nerves
tell the muscles what to do
function of the autonomic nervous system
take messages to and from the body’s internal organs, monitoring such processes as breathing, heart rate, digestion
two parts of autonomic nervous system
sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system
sympathetic nervous system
arouses the body to mobilize it for action (fight or flight)
parasympathetic nervous system
calms the body
mirror neurons
activated when we perform an action and when we watch someone else perform same activity (humans and nonhuman primates)
two important functions in cell body
- blocks of proteins and neurotransmitters are assembled
- input from other cells is organized to determine how the cells respond to
dendrites
branchlike fibres projecting from a neurons cell body that receive input from other cells
axon
single projection from the cell body that carries information away from cell body towards ends of the cells
axon terminals
chemicals manufactured in the call body are stored here and then released to affect other neurons
action potential
describes the brief wave of positive electrical charge that sweeps down the axon
three steps of electrical activity of neurons
- resting potential
- action potential
- refractory period
all or nothing principle
meaning once the electrical impulse reaches a certain level of intensity (threshold) fires and moves all the way down the axon without losing any intensity
acetylcholine
stimulates the firing of neurons and is involved in muscle action, learning and memory
GABA
key function in the brain by inhibiting many neurons from firing
glutamate
key role in exciting many neurons to fire especially involved in learning and memory
norepinephrine
inhibits firing of neurons in central nervous system and excites the heart muscle, intestines and urogenital tract
dopamine
controls voluntary movements and affects sleep, mood, attention, learning, motivation and ability to recognize opportunities for rewarding experiences
serotonin
involved in regulation of sleep, mood, attention and learning
endorphins (natural opiates)
depress nervous system activity and eliminate pain
oxytocin
hormone and neurotransmitter that plays role in experience of love and social bonding
neural networks
interconnected pathways of nerve cells that integrate sensory input and motor output
brain lesioning
damaging brain tissue sometimes to alleviate symptoms and sometimes to mimic an injury or disease
hindbrain
lowest portion of the brain located at the skulls rear
three main parts of the hindbrain
- medulla
- cerebellum
- pons
cerebral cortex
governs higher brain functions (thinking, learning, consciousness)
thalamus
relays information between lower and higher brain centres
hypothalamus
governs eating, drinking and sex and plays role in emotion and stress
reticular formation
diffuse collection of neurons involved in arousal and stereotyped patterns
medulla
governs breathing and reflexes
cerebellum
structure involved in motor coordination
pons
governs sleep and arousal
hippocampus
involved in memory
amygdala
involved in fear and the discrimination of objects necessary for survival
limbic system
loosely connected network of structures under the cerebral cortex
what is the limbic system important for?
memory and emotion
two principal structures in the limbic system
amygdala and hippocampus
basal ganglia
clusters of neurons that work with the cerebellum and cerebral cortex to control and coordinate voluntary movements
Broca’s area
associated with speech production at front of brain
Wernicke’s area
associated with language comprehension at back of brain
corpus callosum
bundle of axons that connect brains two hemispheres
endocrine system
consists of glands that regulate the activities of certain organs by releasing chemical products in the blood stream
glands
organs or tissues in the body that produce chemicals that control bodily functions
hormones
chemical messengers produced by glands
pituitary gland
controls growth and regulates other glands
