Test 1 Flashcards
1
Q
active reading
A
paying attention while you read and understanding the material
2
Q
what technique is used to read actively?
A
S.Q.3R
3
Q
SQ3R stands for
A
Survey
Question
Read
Recite
Review
4
Q
psychology
A
the scientific study of behaviour and mental processes
5
Q
science of psychology
A
uses systematic methods to observe human and other animal behaviour
6
Q
behaviour
A
everything we do that can be directly observed (baby crying)
7
Q
mental processes
A
thoughts, feelings and motives that each of us experience (thinking about kissing somebody)
8
Q
scientific approach
A
tests assumptions and relies on that research to provide the bases for their conclusions
9
Q
critical thinking
A
the process of reflecting deeply and actively (asking questions and evaluating evidence)
10
Q
skepticism
A
challenging whether a supposed fact is really true
11
Q
pseudoscience
A
information which is couched in scientific terminology but not supported by sound scientific research
12
Q
objective
A
being open to the evidence is thinking objectively
13
Q
clinical psychologist
A
specialise in studying and treating psychological disorders
14
Q
positive psychology
A
branch of psychology that emphasises human strengths
15
Q
philosophy
A
rational investigation of the underlying principles of being and knowledge
16
Q
Rene Descartes
A
philosopher who argued that the mind and body are separate
17
Q
Wilhelm Wundt
A
german philosopher-physician who integrated philosophy and natural sciences to create psychology
18
Q
structuralism
A
focuses on identifying the structures of the human mind
19
Q
introspection
A
looking inside our own minds by focusing on our own thoughts
20
Q
functionalism
A
functions and purposes of the mind and behaviour in the individuals adaptation to the environment
21
Q
natural selection
A
evolutionary process in which organisms that are better adapted to their environment will survive and produce more offspring
22
Q
four components of natural selection
A
- variation
- competition
- selective advantage
- inheritance
23
Q
variation
A
the fact that characteristics of a species differ
24
Q
competition
A
arises because a species can produce more offspring that can survive
25
selective advantage
some variations of characteristics gives individuals better chances of survival
26
inheritance
tendency for offspring to possess traits of its parents
27
biological approach
a focus on the body especially the brain and nervous system
28
neuroscience
scientific study of the structure, function, development, genetics and biochemistry of the nervous system
29
what causes us to think, feel and behave?
electrical impulses that go throughout brain cells and release chemical substances
30
behavioural approach
emphasises the scientific study of observable behavioural responses and their environmental determinants
31
BF Skinner
believed psychology should be about what people do and rewards and punishments
32
behaviourists
say that we do what we do because of environmental conditions we have and continue to experience
33
psychodynamic approach
emphasises unconscious thoughts, conflict between biological drives, society’s demand and early childhood family experiences
34
psychoanalysis
analyst unlocking a persons unconscious by talking about their childhood memories, dreams, thoughts and feelings
35
humanistic approach
emphasises a persons positive qualities, the capacity for growth and the freedom to choose one’s destiny
36
cognitive approach
emphasises the mental processes involved in knowing
37
information processing
the ways that the human mind interprets incoming information
38
evolutionary approach
emphasises the use of evolutionary ideas as the basis for explaining specific human behaviours
39
sociocultural approach
examines the ways in which social and cultural environments influence behaviour
40
practitioners
those who are primarily engaged in helping others
41
psychologist
have doctoral degree in psychology
42
psychiatrist
physician with medical degree (can prescribe drugs)
43
physiological psychology
study of physical processes that underlie mental operations
44
behavioural neuroscience
focuses on biological processes especially the brains role in behaviour
45
what is learning?
process which behaviour changes in response to changing circumstances
46
cognitive psychology
field which examines attention, consciousness, information processing and memory
47
developmental psychology
focuses on how people become who they are
48
motivation
how people persist to attain a difficult goal
49
emotion
looks into topics including the physiological and brain processes that underly emotional experience
50
biopsychosocial
model that espouses the idea that mind and body are inseparable
51
what are the five steps of scientific method?
1. observing a phenomenon
2. formulating hypotheses and predictions
3. testing through empirical research
4. drawing conclusions
5. evaluating the theory
52
theory
broad idea or set of closely related ideas that attempts to explain observations
53
hypothesis
an educated guess that derives logically from a theory and previous research findings
54
empirical method
gaining knowledge by collecting objective evidence
55
variable
anything that can change
56
operational definition
provides an objective description of how a variable is going to be measured and observed in a particular study
57
data analysis
crunching the numbers mathematically to see if they support predictions
58
self determination theory
people are likely to feel fulfilled when their lives meet three important needs
59
what are the three needs of self determination theory
relatedness, autonomy, competence
60
meta analysis
statistical procedure that summarises a large body of evidence from the research literature on a particular topic
61
descriptive methods
learning about the basic dimensions of some variable and the strength and direction of the relationship between variables
62
experimental research
establishing casual relationships between variables
63
descriptive research
describing some phenomenon (basic dimensions, what it is)
64
naturalistic observation
viewing behaviour in a real world setting
65
archival research
uses the records produced by people, governments and corporations
66
physical trace evidence
the study of physical changes in the environment following some activity
67
case study
in depth investigation of a small group of individuals or single person
68
correlational research
the relation between two variables
69
correlation
summarises the relationship between two variables with a number of
70
correlational coefficient
talks about the strength and direction between two variables
71
experience sampling method (ESM)
assess people in their natural setting
72
event-contingent responding
participants complete a report each time they engage in a particular behaviour
73
cross sectional design
type of correlational study in which variables are measured at a single point in time
74
longitudinal designs
obtaining measures of the variables of interest in multiple waves over time
75
experiment
carefully regulated procedure in which the researcher manipulates one or more variables
76
random assignment
assigning participants to groups by chance
77
independent variable
a manipulated experimental factor
78
dependent variable
the variable that may change as a result of manipulations
79
confederate
person who is given a role to play in a study so that the social context can be manipulated
80
experimental group
participants in an experiment who are exposed to change
81
control group
get treated like the experimental group but don’t experience the change
82
Quasi-experimental
examine participants in varying groups but their group is not randomly determined
83
when is an experiment reliable?
when a finding is replicated
84
validity
the soundness of conclusions that a researcher draws from an experiment
85
external validity
the degree to which an experimental design reflects real world issues it is supposed to address
86
internal validity
the degree to which changes in the dependent variable are due to the manipulation of the independent variable
87
experimenter bias
when the experimenters expectations influence the outcome of the research
88
demand characteristic
any aspect of a study that communicates to participants how the experimenter wants them to behave
89
double blind procedure
when neither the participants nor the researcher know which treatment participants receive until after the study
90
what is an effective way to minimize experimenter bias?
double blind procedure
91
research participant bias
when the behaviour of participants during the experiment is influenced by how they think they are supposed to behave
92
how do we select participants?
- population
- sample
- random sample
93
population
the larger group that the investigator wants to draw conclusions about
94
sample
the subset of the population chosen by the investigator for study
95
random sample
sample that gives everyone an equal chance of being selected
96
descriptive statistics
used to describe and summarize data
97
inferential statistics
are used to draw conclusions about data
98
what are descriptive statistics?
mathematical procedures researchers use to describe and summarise sets of data in a meaningful way
99
what are used in descriptive statistics?
- measures of dispersion
- standard deviation
100
measures of dispersion
describe how much the scores in a sample differ from one another
101
standard deviation
measures how much scores vary from the mean of the sample
102
what are inferential statistics?
mathematical methods used to indicate whether the data sufficiently support a research hypothesis
103
informed consent
participants must know what their participation will involve and risks that exist
104
confidentiality
keeping all data collected confidential and anonymous
105
debriefing
after a study researchers should inform participants of its purpose and methods used
106
what is the nervous system?
includes cellular circuits that allow for electrical and chemical communication in the body
107
what is the central component of the nervous system?
brain
108
neuroscience
study of communication
109
neurons
cells in the body that receive, process and communicate information throughout the nervous system
110
glial cells
supporting, non-neuronal cells
111
what do glial cells do?
supporting functions for the neurons (providing protection, nutrients, maintenance and repair)
112
integration
pulling sensory information together to understand
113
adaptability
ability to adapt to new conditions
114
plasticity
brains special physical capacity for change
115
afferent nerves or sensory nerves
carry information from the sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord
116
efferent nerves or motor nerves
carry information out of the brain and spinal cord
117
central nervous system (CNS)
made up of brain and spinal cord
118
peripheral nervous system (PNS)
network of nerves that connect the brain and spinal cord to other parts of body
119
two major divisions of peripheral nervous system
somatic nervous system and autonomic nervous system
120
somatic nervous system
consists of sensory and motor nerves
121
sensory nerves
convey information from the skin and muscles to the CNS about conditions like pain and temperature
122
motor nerves
tell the muscles what to do
123
function of the autonomic nervous system
take messages to and from the body’s internal organs, monitoring such processes as breathing, heart rate, digestion
124
two parts of autonomic nervous system
sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system
125
sympathetic nervous system
arouses the body to mobilize it for action (fight or flight)
126
parasympathetic nervous system
calms the body
127
mirror neurons
activated when we perform an action and when we watch someone else perform same activity (humans and nonhuman primates)
128
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
129
dendrites
branchlike fibres projecting from a neurons cell body that receive input from other cells
130
axon
single projection from the cell body that carries information away from cell body towards ends of the cells
131
axon terminals
chemicals manufactured in the call body are stored here and then released to affect other neurons
132
action potential
describes the brief wave of positive electrical charge that sweeps down the axon
133
three steps of electrical activity of neurons
- resting potential
- action potential
- refractory period
134
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
135
acetylcholine
stimulates the firing of neurons and is involved in muscle action, learning and memory
136
GABA
key function in the brain by inhibiting many neurons from firing
137
glutamate
key role in exciting many neurons to fire especially involved in learning and memory
138
norepinephrine
inhibits firing of neurons in central nervous system and excites the heart muscle, intestines and urogenital tract
139
dopamine
controls voluntary movements and affects sleep, mood, attention, learning, motivation and ability to recognize opportunities for rewarding experiences
140
serotonin
involved in regulation of sleep, mood, attention and learning
141
endorphins (natural opiates)
depress nervous system activity and eliminate pain
142
oxytocin
hormone and neurotransmitter that plays role in experience of love and social bonding
143
neural networks
interconnected pathways of nerve cells that integrate sensory input and motor output
144
brain lesioning
damaging brain tissue sometimes to alleviate symptoms and sometimes to mimic an injury or disease
145
hindbrain
lowest portion of the brain located at the skulls rear
146
three main parts of the hindbrain
- medulla
- cerebellum
- pons
147
cerebral cortex
governs higher brain functions (thinking, learning, consciousness)
148
thalamus
relays information between lower and higher brain centres
149
hypothalamus
governs eating, drinking and sex and plays role in emotion and stress
150
reticular formation
diffuse collection of neurons involved in arousal and stereotyped patterns
151
medulla
governs breathing and reflexes
152
cerebellum
structure involved in motor coordination
153
pons
governs sleep and arousal
154
hippocampus
involved in memory
155
amygdala
involved in fear and the discrimination of objects necessary for survival
156
limbic system
loosely connected network of structures under the cerebral cortex
157
what is the limbic system important for?
memory and emotion
158
two principal structures in the limbic system
amygdala and hippocampus
159
basal ganglia
clusters of neurons that work with the cerebellum and cerebral cortex to control and coordinate voluntary movements
160
Broca’s area
associated with speech production at front of brain
161
Wernicke’s area
associated with language comprehension at back of brain
162
corpus callosum
bundle of axons that connect brains two hemispheres
163
endocrine system
consists of glands that regulate the activities of certain organs by releasing chemical products in the blood stream
164
glands
organs or tissues in the body that produce chemicals that control bodily functions
165
hormones
chemical messengers produced by glands
166
pituitary gland
controls growth and regulates other glands
