exam2psych101.txt

Unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, frequency

Encoding that requires attention and conscious effort

Encoding of picture images

Encoding of sound, especially the sound of words

Encoding of meaning, including the meaning of word

The synaptic enhancement after learning. An increase in neurotransmitter release or receptors on the receiving neuron indicates strengthen of synapses. The neuro works are stronger the more you know about something and the more you want to go to the synaptic

A clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

memory loss

Refers to facts and experiences that one can consciously know and declare

involves learning an action while the individual does not know or declare what she knows

retrieve information learned earlier

identify previously learned items

• Relearning:
• the amount of time saved when learning material for a second time

the wakening of associations

• Deja vu:
• a feeling of already have experienced a present situation

the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one�s current mood.

Three stages: a)Sensory memory b) Short Term c) Long term

sense organs have a limited memory

visual memory - less than a second

auditory memory - 3 -4 seconds

a change in an organism�s behavior due to experience

learning that

the view that psychology should be an objective science that studies behavior without reference to mental processes

a type of learning in which one learns to link two or more stimuli and anticipate events

a stimulus that unconditionally-naturally and automatically-triggers a response

the unlearned, naturally occurring response to the unconditioned stimulus (ex: salivation when food is in the mouth)

an originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to trigger a conditioned response

the learned response to a previously neutral stimulus

the initial learning stage in classical conditioning in which an association between a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus take place

a new neutral stimulus can become a conditioned stimulus new

the diminishing of a CR, occurs in classical conditioning when an US does not follow a CS; occurs in operant conditioning when a response is no longer reinforced

the reappearance, after a pause, of an extinguished CR

the tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses

the learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and stimuli that do not signal an US

a type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher

behavior that occurs as a automatic response to some stimulus

behavior that operates on the environment, producing consequences

Thorndike�s principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely, and that behaviors followed by unfavorable consequences become less likely

memory that lasts long enough to use the info - 30 -sec - 3 min max if rehearsed//Limited Storage Capacity -magic number - 7+ / -2 bits of information

�blocks� of information that can be stored in short term memory- chunking stimuli into a meaningful group becomes one unit of information - Short term memory can be increased using this method

Declarative: Factual Information, Procedural: Memory for skills and habits

The study of the relative power and limits of genetics and environmental influences on behavior

Every non-genetic influence, from prenatal nutrition to the people and things around us

Thread like structures made of DNA molecules that contain the genes

A complex molecule containing the genetic information that makes up the chromosomes

The biochemical units of heredity that make up the chromosomes; segment of DNA capable of synthesizing a protein.

The complete instructions for making an organism, consisting of all the genetic material in that organism�s chromosomes

Twins who develop from a singled fertilized egg that splits in two, creating two genetically identical organism

Twins who develop from separate fertilized eggs. They are no closer genetically than brothers and sister, they just share fetal environment

A person�s characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity

a proportion of variation among individuals that we can attribute to genes. The heritability of trait may very, depending on the range of populations and environment studied

The interplay that occurs when the effect of one factor (such as environment) depends on another factor (such as heredity)

The sub-field of biology that studies the molecular structure and functions of genes

The study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles

The principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those contributing to reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations.

A random error in gene replication that leads to a change.

In psychology, the biologically and socially influence characteristics by which people define male and female

The enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next

The buffer zone we like to maintain around our bodies

Giving priority to one�s own goals over group goals and defining one�s identity in terms of personal attributes rather than groups identifications.

Giving priority to goals of one�s group and defining one�s identity accordingly.

Physical or verbal behavior intended to hurt someone

The sex chromosome found in both men and women. Females have two; males have one. female = XX

The sex chromosome found only in males. male =XY

Most important male sex hormone. Both females and male have it, but the additional testosterone in males stimulates the growth of male sex organs in the fetus and the development of the male sex characteristics during puberty

A set of expectations (norms) about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave

Set of expected behavior for males or for females.

Our sense of being male or females

The acquisition of a traditional masculine or feminine role

The theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating and by being rewarded or punished.

Branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span.

fertilized egg (from conception to two weeks)

2 weeks through 8 weeks; the developing human organism

from 9 weeks to birth

agents, such as chemicals and viruses that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm

the physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman�s use of alcohol

decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation

the biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience

all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating

A concept or framework that organize and interprets information

Interpreting our new experience in term or our existing schemas

Adapting out current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information

The stage (birth to 2 yrs old) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activites

the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceive

The stage ( 2-7 yrs old) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic

The principle that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects

The pre-operational child�s difficulty taking another�s point of view

Peoples ideas about their own and others mental states- about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict

Disorder marked by communication deficiencies and repetitive behaviors

The stage of cognitive development (7-11 yrs old) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events

Stage of cognitive development (beginning at 12 yrs old) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts

The fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning about 8 months of age

Biologically based bond between infant and caregiver that maintain proximity between them.

An optimal period shortly after birth when an organism�s exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development.

The process in which certain animals form attachments during a critical period very early in life

Sense that the world is trustworthy, formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers

All thoughts and feelings about ourselves, in the answer to the question �Who am I?�

Transition from childhood to adulthood, extending puberty to independence

Sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing.

The body structures (ovaries, testes and external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible.

Non-reproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breast and hip, male voice quality, and body hair.

First menstrual period

Our sense of self; The adolescents task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles.

The �we� aspect of our self-concept; Comes from group membership.

The ability to form close, loving relationships; a primary development task in late adolescence and early adulthood

Period of late teens and early twenties; bridging gap between adolescent dependence and full independence and responsible adulthood

The time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes a women experiences as her ability to reproduce declines

A study in which people of different ages are skills; tends to increase with age??

Research in which the same people are restudied and retested over a long period

Our accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age

Our ability to reason speedily and abstractly--decreases during early adulthood

Culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement

A neural system in the hindbrain that process implicit memories

Through brain stimulation, memories that were etched in the brain on a handful of patients reported seeing flashbacks

After removing part of rat�s brains they were still able to remember parts of a maze

showed that Serotonin release from neurons increased after conditioning

Process of pulling specific memory of long term storage How we store information has significant impact on how or whether we are able to retrieve it when we need it.

Says that our memory consists of representation of cluster of interconnected information

The closer the environment you are in is to the environment that you learned something in, the more likely you are to remember it.

Environment is similar

the internal state or environment is similar.

Any process that leads to failure of memory

Did not encode the memory, we cannot remember what we fail to encode.

Memory lost due to non-use of it. Memory trace fades then disappears

Some information in memory interferes or blocks the recall of other information in memory.

old information blocking the recall of new information

New information blocks the old

previous experiences

all mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.

mental groupings of similar objects, events, ideas, and people.

a mental image, or best example that incorporates all the features we associate with a category.

step by step procedures that guarantee a solution.

a simple thinking strategy that often allows us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently; usually speedier - but also more error-prone than algorithms.

a sudden and often novel realization of the solution to a problem. It contrasts with strategy-based solutions.

a tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence.

the inability to see a problem from a new perspective, by employing a different mental set.

a tendency to approach a problem in one particular way, often a way that has been successful in the past.

the tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual functions; an impediment to problem solving.

judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes; may lead us to ignore other relevant information.

estimating that likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind; we presume such events are common.

the tendency to be more confident than correct - to over-estimate the accuracy of our beliefs and judgments.

clinging to one�s initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited.

an effortless, immediate, automatic feeling or thought, as contrasted with explicit, conscious reasoning.

our spoken written, or signed words and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning.

the smallest distinctive sound unit

the smallest unit that carries meaning; may be part of a word.

a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others

the set of rules by which we derive meaning from morphemes, words, and sentences in a given language; also, the study of meaning.

the rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences in a given language.

beginning at about 4 months, the stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds at first unrelated to the household language.

the stage in speech development, from about age 1 to 2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words.

beginning about age 2, the stage in speech development during which a child speaks mostly two-word statements.

early speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram. �Go car� - using mostly nouns and verbs.

impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca�s area, or to Wernicke�s area.

controls language expression - an area, usually in the left frontal lobe, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech

controls language reception- a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe.

Whorf�s hypothesis that language determines the way we think.

Inborn Universal Grammar: Chomsky suggested that the rate of language acquisition is so fast that it cannot be explained through learning principles, & thus most of it is inborn (genetically predisposed); hypothesized that we have a specialized area of the brain called Language Acquisition Device or LAD that allows us to learn language quickly

a method for assessing an individuals mental aptitudes and comparing them with those of others, using numerical scores.

mental quality consisting of the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations.

general intelligence factor that, according to Spearman and others, underlies specific mental abilities and is therefore measured by every task on an intelligence test.

a statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items (called factors) on a test; used to identify different dimensions of performance that underlie a person�s total score.

a condition in which a person otherwise limited in mental ability has an exceptional specific skill, such as in computation or drawing.

the ability to produce novel and valuable ideas.

the ability to perceive, understand, manage, and use emotions.

a measure of intelligence test performance devised by Binet; the chronological age that most typically corresponds to a given level of performance. Thus, a child who does well as the average 8 year old is said to have a mental age of 8.

The widely used American revision of Binet�s original intelligence test.

a test designed to assess what a person has learned.

a test designed to predict a person�s future performance; aptitude is the capacity to learn

The WAIS is the most widely used intelligence test; contains verbal and performance (nonverbal) subtests.

defining meaningful scores by comparison with the performance of a pretested group.

the symmetrical bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many physical and psychological attributes. Most scores fall near the average, and fewer scores lie near the extremes.

the extent to which a test yields consistent results, as assessed by the consistency of scores on two halves of the test, or on retesting.

the extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to.

the extent to which a test samples the behavior that is of interest.

the success with which a test predicts the behavior it is designed to predict; it is assessed by computing the correlation between test scores and the criterion behavior.

(formerly referred to as mental retardation) a condition of limited mental ability, indicated by an intelligence score of 70 or below and difficulty in adaption to the demands of life, varies from mild to profound.

a condition of intellectual disability and associated physical disorders caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21.

the proportion of variation among individuals that we can attribute to genes. The heritability of a traits may vary, depending on the range of populations and environments studied.

a self-confirming concern that one will be evaluated based on a negative stereotype.

B.F. Skinner

increasing behaviors by presenting positive stimuli such as food--strengthens the response Add desirable stimuli

increasing behaviors by stopping or reducing negative stimuli, such as shock. When negative reinforcement is removed after a response, it strengthens the response. (not a punishment) Removes adverse stimuli

an innately reinforcing stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need (Food, warmth, shock)

a stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with primary reinforcer; also known as secondary reinforcer.

reinforcing desired response every time it occurs

reinforcing response only part of the time. It has greater resistance to extinction later on

a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses. ex: piece work pay, coffee shop rewards with free drink after 10 purchases

provides reinforcers after an unpredicitable number of responses. ex: gambling, lottery

reinforces the first response after a fixed time period. ex: checking frequently for mail as delivery approaches. Tuesday discount prices.

reinforces first response after varying time interval (random). ex: checking email

used to decrease behaviors; positive = bad things happen in response to the behavior; negative = good things are taken away in response to the behavior

mental representation of environment

learning that becomes apparent only when there is some incentive to demonstrate it. ex: child learns from watching parent but demonstrates learned behavior later as needed (or when it feels necessary)

desire to perform a behavior effectively for its own sake

desire to perform a behavior due to promised rewards or threats/punishment.

learning by observing others

the process of observing and imitating a specific behavior

when you observe other persons experiencing something. frontal lobe neurons fire and make you feel the same. ( imitation/empathy)

positive constructive helpful behavior

The persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval information

• a computer�s information-processing system is similar to human memory.
• Encoding --> Storage --> Retrieval
• Keyboard --> Disk --> Monitor

process by which we get information into our brains

thinking about meaning vs just definition - tying it to things that are already known

Distributed study or practice tend to yield better long-term retention

Our tendency to recall the last and first items in a list

After a delay, shift from recalling the last items, being able to recall the first items with more ease.

Being able to recall the most recent (last) things more quickly a

a newer understanding of short-term memory that involves conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual - spacial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory -

While reading a book, you automatically encode the place of a pic on a page.

Intentionally note events that took place in a day

Effortless keep track of thing that happen to you.

• Declarative: Factual Information
• Procedural: Memory for skills and habits

• Episodic: Memory for biological of our lives (experiences and specific events)
• Semantic: Memory for general knowledge about word meanings and fact about the world, as well as memory for rules of logic that allow us to deduce other facts.

• Explicit: Intentional or conscious recollection of information
• Implicit: Memory we are not aware of. Example skill that happen automatically.

A neural center in the limbic system that processes explicit memories

defined originally as the ratio of mental age (ma) to chronological age (ca) multiplied by 100 (Thus, IQ = ma/ca x 100). On contemporary intelligence tests, the average performance for a given age is assigned a score of 100.