Unit 0: Introduction to Psych Flashcards
define psychology
systematic and scientific study of mental processes, experiences, and behaviors – both overt and covert.
what 3 things does psychology study?
1) study of experiences: human experiences which are personal or private in nature
2) study of mental processes: the way we frame
certain situations
3) study of behavior: how organisms react/behave in certain situations
nature vs. nuture
nature
- traits are inherited, some ideas are inborn
- ENDOWS (gives) us w/ capacities
nuture
- traits develop throughout experiences and
external world experiences
- shapes HOW these capacities develop
what does ‘positive’ symptoms mean in psychology?
it means added
- key-terms are also pleasurable/desirable
what does ‘negative’ symptoms mean in psychology?
it means removed (also aversive)
what are some influences/examples of biological in biopsychosocial?
- natural selection of adaptive traits
- brain mechanisms
- genetic predispositions
- hormonal influences
what are some influences/examples of psychological in biopsychosocial?
- learned fears
- emotional responses
- cognitive processing
break depression down through the bio-psycho-social approach.
biological: the failure of some neurotransmitters from doing what they need to do
psychological: the way we frame certain situations
socio-cultural: the way culture and society look at mental disorders and how they might contribute
What’s the behavioral approach in psychology?
behaviors or triggering responses from external stimuli
What’s the biological approach in psychology?
brain circuits, heredity, and experience influencing temperament
What’s the cognitive approach in psychology?
how situations are interpreted and how this affects thinking
What’s the evolutionary approach in psychology?
how behaviors aided survival of ancestors’ genes
What’s the humanistic approach in psychology?
how feelings affect personal growth
What’s the psychodynamic approach in psychology?
unconscious motivations and how they influence behaviors
What’s the social-cultural approach in psychology?
how behavior and thinking vary across cultures
What is the focus of Biological Psychology?
Links between brain and mind.
What is the focus of Developmental Psychology?
Changing abilities from womb to tomb.
What is the focus of Cognitive Psychology?
Perception, thinking, and problem-solving.
What is the focus of Educational Psychology?
Influences on teaching and learning.
What is the focus of Social Psychology?
How we view and affect one another.
What is the focus of Psychometrics?
Measurement of abilities, attitudes, and traits.
What is the focus of Industrial-Organizational Psychology?
Application of psychology’s methods in the workplace.
What is the focus of Human Factors Psychology?
Interaction of people, machines, and environments.
What is the focus of Positive Psychology?
Study of positive emotions, traits, and institutions.
What is the focus of Community Psychology?
Creating social and physical environments healthy for all.
counseling psychologist (lowest on pyramid)
- has no degree in psych
- helps in sudden crises (familial or academic
counselling)
clinical psychologist (also called therapist)
- can be called doctors but they can’t administer
medications - can only administer psychotherapy (cognitive
behavior therapy, talk therapy, art therapy, etc)
psychiatrist
- has medical degree
- can administer medication + psychotherapy
- can do job of both clinical + counseling
psychologist
what is structuralism, focus, method, and founders/key figures?
- focus: structure of the mind
- method: introspection
- Edward Titchener
what is functionalism, focus, method, and founders/key figures?
- focus: function of the mind
- method: application
- William James
what is behavioralism, focus, method, and founders/key figures?
- focus: behavior in reaction to stimuli
- method: conditioning
- John B. Watson, B.F Skinner, Ivan Pavlov
what is gestalt psychology, focus, method, and founders/key figures?
- focus: perception in simplest form
- method: observation
- Wolfgang Köhler, Kurt Koffka
what is psychoanalysis, focus, method, and founders/key figures?
- focus: unconscious motivations
- method: projection
- Sigmund Freud
What is critical thinking?
The process of:
- examining assumptions (how do they know this?)
- appraising sources (where did they get this
information from?) - discerning hidden biases (what’s this person’s
agenda?) - evaluating evidence
- and assessing conclusions (what other
explanations are there?)
How can you evaluate evidence in critical thinking?
By assessing whether the evidence is data-driven or anecdotal and if it justifies a cause-and-effect conclusion.
what does an Operational Definition
defining variables in practical, measurable terms
what is the point of an Operational Definition?
the purpose is when we want to replicate – or repeat a study – we know exactly how to go about it.
reliability
the study provides consistent results every time
what are the 4 types of reliability?
1) test-retest reliability: consistency of scores when the same test is administered on 2 occasions
2) inter-rater reliability: consistency of scores when different score raters score the same behavior
3) split-half reliability: consistency of scores when a test is split into 2 halves
4) internal consistency reliability: consistency of scores across items within a single test
validity
the study tests what its supposed to do
content validity
the extent to which a test measures the entire range of behavior/skills it’s supposed to measure
criterion validity
check IF a test’s results match well w/ other imp. measures related to what the test is supposed to measure, including concurrent + predictive validity
construct validity
extent to which a test measures the theoretical construct/trait it claims to measure
predictive validity
extent to which scores on a test predict future behavior/performance
a hypothesis can be tested in several ways, including?
1) descriptive methods
2) correlational methods
3) experimental methods
A theory
an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events.
What do hypotheses specify?
They specify what results (behaviors or events) would support the theory & what results would cast doubt on the theory.
descriptive methods
describe behaviors & can be the starting point of any science
what are some key considerations for case studies?
1) good representative sample
2) random sample
3) avoid sampling bias
4) bigger sample size
5) less variability
what is an advantage of random sampling?
every person in the entire group has an equal chance of participation
why should there be a bigger sample size used for case studies?
the bigger the sample size, the better
cross-sectional study
research method where data is collected from a group of ppl at a single point in time
longitudinal study
research method where data is collected from the same group of ppl repeatedly over a period of time
what are 4 kinds of cognitive bias that can influence research?
1) hindsight bias
2) overconfidence
3) illusory correlations
4) wording effects
hindsight bias
the tendency to believe that one has foreseen the outcome
illusory correlations
thinking there’s a relationship when there’s none
wording effects
the way a study is worded can greatly impact attitudes and behaviours towards it
What is the purpose of experimental methods in psychology?
They help investigate psychological phenomena by systematically manipulating variables to measure outcomes, with the goal of establishing cause-and-effect relationships.
IV (Independent Variable)
the variable that’s manipulated by the researcher
DV (Dependent Variable)
the variable that’s measured to see the effect of the IV
Control Group
doesn’t receive the experimental treatment and used for comparison. This will test for the placebo effect.
Placebo Effect (also called the Pseudo Treatment)
when people experience real changes in their health or behavior simply because they believe they’re receiving treatment, even if it has no active ingredients – power of belief making them feel better and sometimes people ‘feel’ better because they think they should
Experimental Group
the group that receives the treatment or manipulation
Cofounding Variables
uncontrolled variables that could influence the results of an experiment if not controlled
Random Assignment
assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance to minimize pre-existing differences. This controls for the Cofounding Variable.
what are the 2 types of experimental designs?
1) between subjects: diff. groups of
participants are exposed to diff. levels of
the IV
2) within-subjects: some group of
participants are exposed to all levels of
the IV
what does correlation indicate & what doesn’t it imply?
it indicates the strength of a relationship between variables
it doesn’t imply cause-and-effect relationship
3 kinds of correlation
positive correlation: as one variable increases, the other variable also increases
negative correlation: as one variable increases, the other variable decreases
zero correlation: no relationships exists: changes in 1 don’t predict changes in the other
mean & calculation
the avg. of a set of numbers
calculation: sum of all scores and no. of scores
median
the middle value in a set of numbers
central tendency
the center of a data set – mean, median and mode
mode
the most frequently occurring value in a set of numbers
range
the difference between the highest and lowest values in a set
percentile rank
the percentage of scores in a distribution that a particular score is above
inferential statistics
methods used to make inferences about the population based on sample data
t-tests & an example of it
used to determine if there’s a significant difference between the means of 2 groups
ex: compare the avg. scores of 2 diff. groups on a test or measure
chi-square tests
used to determine if there’s a significant association between 2 categorical variables
- ex: color preference changes depending on another thing like age group
what is ANOVA (Analysis of Variance) used to determine?
if there are significant differences between the means of 3 or more groups
p-value
the probability of obtaining the observed results, or more extreme results, if the null hypothesis is true
null hypothesis
refers to the assumption that there’s no effect / difference in the situation being studied
statistical significance
indicates the likelihood that the result will happen by chance
what p-value indicates statistical significance?
a p-value of the less than 0.05
on a positively skewed graph, what is the highest out of range, mode, and median?
mode
on a negatively skewed graph, what is the lowest out of range, mode, and median?
mean
what kind of tests are the TAT (Thematic Approach Test) and the Rorschach inkblot test?
Projective Tests
How should participants be protected in psychological research?
Participants must be protected from physical and emotional harm and should feel safe. They can leave if uncomfortable.
Why do people prefer a therapist whose values align with their own?
People feel more comfortable with therapists who share similar values, as it builds trust and avoids discomfort that can arise from differing beliefs.
Internal Validity
extent to which changes to the DV can be attributed to the manipulation of the IV
List an example of Internal Validity
ensuring that a drug & not other factors, causes improvement in patient symptoms
External Validity
the generalizability of the findings to other populations, settings or conditions
