Procedure to gather and analyze information to test and idea or hypothesis.
5 Steps of the Scientific Method.
1)find the issue
2)form a testable hypothesis
3)chose an appropriate strategy
4)conduct the study
5)analyze to support or reject the hypothesis
Psychoanalytic Theory
segmund theory that people like animals share the sexual and aggressive primitive urge but unlike animals humans think and reason to be approved by other people.
Behaviorism
study based on observable responses and behavior
Humanism
study that people posses inner resources for growth and development and to make healthier choices.
Cognative Psychology
study of the mental process such as reasoning and problem solving
Humanistic Perspective
behavior comming from free will and ones choices based on self concept and self esteem.
Eelectic Approach
integrates or combines several perspectives to provide a more complete or complex picture of the behavior.
Basic Research
focuses on uncovering the specifics about a behavior (chemicals involved in memory)
Applied Research
solves a problem (uses the findings in basic research). how to treat something better (depression)
Naturalistic Observation
conducting research in the environment which the behavior typically occurs.
Correlation
studies test the relationship between two or more variables (tv & violent behavior)
Positive + correlation
one variable increases and the second tends to increase and vice versa
Negative - correlation
one variable increases the other decreases or the inverse relationship. (opposite directions)
Experiment
research method used to test casual hypothesis where variables are controlled or manipulated and participants are randomly assigned.
Independent Variable
variable that the experimenter manipulates (the cause in the experiment)
Dependent Variable
measures any result of manipulating the independent variable (the Effect)
Confounding Variables
variables that can be problematic and have to be controlled anything effecting the outcome of the experiment that shouldnt.
Institutional Review Board
The board insures that research is ethical and follows guidelines.
Debriefing
Full disclosure by the researcher to inform participants of the true nature of the researcher.
Transduction
conversion of environmental stimuli into a form your nervous system can process (light bouncing off a page being able to read it)
Absolute Threshold
the minimum intensity of a stimulus that can be detected 50% of the time
Subliminal
intensity of a stimulus below the absolute threshold and the participant isn't conciously aware of the stimulus.
Visible Spectrum
spectrum of light visible to the human eye 360nm to 750nm
Pupil
behind the cornea the black opening is a hole in the iris where light passes through the eye.
Lens
behind the iris and the pupil is the lens a clear and attached to the eye by strong ciliary muscles.
Retina
surface that lines the inside back of the eyeball that transduces light into neural signals.
Rods
light sensitive cells of the retina that pick up any level of light energy and convert it to neuro signals.
Cones
sensitive to specific color lights and send signals to the brain about specific colors being seen.
Optic Nerve
composed of the axons of the ganglion cell conveys visual signals from the retina to the brain.
Pitch
the frequency a sound heard...the higher the frequency the higher the pitch.
Frequency
measured in Hz is the number of cycles that occur during a given amount of time
Loudness
sound as the amount of pressure the compressed waves of air exert on the eardrum.
Decibles
measure unit for the loudness of a sound.
Cochlea
Curled fluid filled tube that looks like a snail that holds the basilar membrane. transduction of neural impulses happens here.
Basilar Membrane
lined with hair cells which transduce sound waves into action potentials.
Hair Cells
Neurons grown out of the basilar membrane transduce sound waves into action potentials.
Auditory Nerve
carries information from the inner ear to the brain.
Gustation
sense of taste; foods must be broken down by our saliva.
Pheromones
airborne chemicals released form glands and detected by vomeronasal organs.
Retinal Disparity
our eyes are slightly apart and get two different images and inform the brain the distance of the stimuli (depth perception)
Gestait Approach
the whole of perception is better understood than trying to piece the parts in perception together.
Figure Ground 1
we pull the stimuli forward and push everything else into the background (ground) (most important principle)
Clsoure
we tend to finish shapes even when they arent closed (shapes)
Proximity
we group close objects together during perception.
Similarity
we group like objects together during perception
Good Continuation
perceive stimuli that seem to follow one another as being part of a continuing pattern. (camo)
Suki's dentist gave her a drug that froze the sodium channels along Suki's neural axons. What is the likely effect of this drug.
A) Suki's neurons will fire more action potentials than normal.
B) Suki's neurons will fire weaker action potentials.
C) Suki's neurons will fire stronger action potentials.
D) Suki's neurons will fail to fire action potentials.
D) Suki's neurons will fail to fire action potentials.
Sabrina has contracted a disease that is destroying her myelin sheath. What effect would you expect this disease to have on the functioning of Sabrina's nervous system?
C) It will slow down the neural signals traveling through her nervous system.
A drug that causes potassium ions to leave one's neurons is likely to produce what type of effect on the neuron?
C) Inhibition
Lamont developed a disease that reduces the amount of serotonin in his brain. What symptoms would you expect Lamont to have?
C) Symptoms of depression
Jackson is a normal, healthy adult man. Jackson's brain likely contains more ___ than any other neurotransmitter.
D) Glutamate
Sasha has been drinking an herbal tea that she believes boosts her body's ability to manufacture acetylcholine. Why do you suppose Sasha is so interested in drinking the tea?
A) She is trying to improve her memory
Juanita was hiking in the woods when she stumbled upon a rattlesnake. Immediately after she saw the snake, which division of the nervous system was most likely in control of Juanita's internal organ functions?
A) Sympathetic
Moving your arm is a n example of a behavior that is governed by which branch of the nervous system?
A) Somatic Nervous System
The sensory neurons in your fingertips are part of the ____ nervous system?
D) Peripheral
Damage to which of the following brain structures would be most likely to cause death?
C) Medulla
Billy suffered a stroke on the left side of his brain. Most of his left frontal lobe was destroyed. What symptoms would you most expect to see in Billy as a result of this damage?
C) Paralysis On The Right Side Of His Body And An Inability To Speak
Cindy is addicted to crack cocaine. Which of the following brain structures is most likely to play a role in her addiction?
B) Septum
Which of the following techniques cannot indicate brain activity in an accident victim?
C) Angiogram
Which of the following techniques would a surgeon use if she wanted to see the structures of the brain in great detail prior to operating on a patient?
D) MRI
Which of the following techniques would researchers probably be most reluctant to use on a human research subject?
D) Lesions
Kerry has an overactive thyroid gland. His condition is also known as ____?
C) Hyperthyroidism
A malfunction in which of the following endocrine glands would be most disruptive to the overall functioning of the endocrine system?
C) Pituitary
Juanita was just frightened by a snake. Which of the following endocrine glands most likely played the biggest role in her response to danger?
D) Adrenal
I have brown hair. The exact shade of my hair represents my ____ of hair color.
B) Phenotype
Genes that determine your eye color are made up of ___.
B) DNA
Dr. Jasper is a scientist who believes that our characteristics are primarily a function of the environment in which we are raised. Dr. Jasper's point of view is most closely aligned with the ___ perspective.
A) Nurture
Brain scan that can show the brain structure and function.
fMRI
The chemical messengers of the endocrine system.
Hormones
The connection between two neurons in the brain.
Synapse
A sensory relay station in the brain
Thalamus
The body's chief excitatory neurotransmitter
Glutamate
The part of the neuron that receives incoming signals
Dendrites
A process that makes a neuron more likely to fire an action potential
Excitation
A brain structure that may play a role in addiction
Septum
If you lost this part of your brain, you could no longer store long-term memories
Hippucampus
Male hormones
Androgens
The chemical messengers of the nervous system
neurotransmitters
This branch of the nervous system is most active during times of calm
parasympathetic nervous system
This part of the brain allows your to speak language
Broca's area
The threshold of excitation of a neuron
-55mv
This brain structure allows the right and left hemispheres to communicate.