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Neuron
the basic cell that makes up the nervous system and which receives and sends messages with that system.
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Dendrites
branch-like structures that receive messages from other neurons.
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Soma
the cell body of the neuron, responsible for maintaining the life of the cell.
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Axon
long tube-like structure that carries the neural message to other cells.
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Axon Terminals
branches at the end of the axon
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Synaptic Knob
rounded areas on the end of axon terminals
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Synaptic Vesicles
sack-like structures found inside the synaptic knob containing chemicals
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Neurotransmitter
chemical found in the synaptic vesicles which, when released, has an effect on the next cell.
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Synapse
microscopic fluid like space between the rounded areas on the end of the axon terminals of one cell and the dendrites or surface of the next cell.
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Receptor Sites
"keys fitting locks"
holes in the surface of the dendrites or certain cells of the muscles and glands, which are shaped to fit only certain neurotransmitters.
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Action Potential
the release of the neural impulse consisting of a reversal of the electrical charge within the axon
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Resting Potential
the state of the neuron when not firing a neural impulse
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Excitatory synapse
neurotransmitter that causes the receiving cell to fire.
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Inhibitory synapse
neurotransmitter that causes the receiving cell to stop firing.
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Agonists
mimic or enhance the effects of a neurotransmitter on the receptor sites of the next cell, increasing or decreasing the activity of that cell.
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Antagonist
block or reduce a cell’s response to the action of other chemicals or neurotransmitters.
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Central Nervous System (CNS)
part of the nervous system consisting of the brain and spinal cord.
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Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)
all nerves and neurons that are not contained in the brain and spinal cord.
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The Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) is divided into what two systems?
Somatic Nervous System and the Autonomic Nervous System.
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Somatic Nervous System
(Soma=body)
division of the PNS consisting of nerves that carry information from the senses to the CNS and from the CNS to the voluntary muscles of the body
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Autonomic Nervous System
division of the PNS consisting of nerves that control all of the involuntary muscles, organs, and glands sensory pathway nerves coming from the sensory organs to the CNS consisting of sensory neurons.
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The Autonomic Nervous System has two divisions, what are they called?
Sympathetic and Parasympathetic divisions.
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Sympathetic Division
(fight-or-flight system)
part of the ANS that is responsible for reacting to stressful events and bodily arousal.
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Parasympathetic Division
(rest & digest)
part of the ANS that restores the body to normal functioning after arousal and is responsible for the day-to-day functioning of the organs and glands.
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Afferent Neurons
sensory neurons; a neuron that carries information from the senses to the central nervous system.
“it’s hot”
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Efferent Neurons
motor neurons; a neuron that carries messages from the central nervous system to the muscles of your body.
“get your hand off!”
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Sensory Pathway
nerves coming from the sensory organs to the CNS consisting of sensory neurons
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Motor Pathway
nerves coming from the CNS to the voluntary muscles, consisting of motor neurons.
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Electroencephalograph (EEG)
machine designed to record the brain wave patterns produced by electrical activity of the surface of the brain.
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Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
brain imaging method using radio-waves and magnetic fields of the body to produce detailed images of the brain.
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Computed Tomography (CT scans)
brain-imagine methof using computer controlled X-Rays of the brain.
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Positron Emission Tomography (PET)
brain-imaging method in which a radioactive sugar is injected into the subject and a computer comples a color-coded image of the activity of the brain with lighter colors indicating more activities
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Pons
- means "bridge"
- the larger swelling above the medulla that connects the top of the brain to the bottom and that plays a part in sleep, dreaming, left-right body coordination, and arousal.
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Cerebellum
part of the lower brain located behind the pons that controls and coordinates involuntary, rapid, fine motor movement.
"miniature brain"
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Medulla
the first large swelling at the top of the spinal cord, forming the lowest part of the brain, which is responsible for life-sustaining functions such as breathing, swallowing, and heart rate.
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Reticular formation (RF)
an area of neurons running through the middle of the medulla and the pons and slightly beyond that is responsible for selective attention.
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Cortex
outermost covering of the brain consisting of densely packed neurons, responsible for higher thought processes and interpretation of sensory input.
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Cerebrum
the upper part of the brain consisting of the two hemispheres and the structures that connect them.
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Limbic system
a group of several brain structures located under the cortex and involved in learning, emotion, memory and motivation.
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Thalamus
"Relay Center" gets information from senses.
part of the limbic system located in the center of the brain, this structure relays sensory information from the lower part of the brain to the proper areas of the cortex and processes some sensory information before sending it to its proper area.
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Hypothalamus
small structure in the brain located below the thalamus and directly above the pituitary gland, responsible for motivational behavior such as sleep, hunger, thirst, and sex.
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Hippocampus
curved structure located within each temporal lobe, responsible for the formation of long-term memories and the storage of memory for location of objects.
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Amygdala
brain structure located near the hippocampus, responsible for fear responses and memory of fear.
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Occipital Lobe
"Old Perfume Factory"
section of the brain located at the rear and bottom of each cerebral hemisphere containing the visual centers of the brain.
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Temporal Lobes
areas of the cortex located just behind the temples containing the neurons responsible for the sense of hearing and meaningful speech.
located right above the ear
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Frontal lobes
areas of the cortex located in the front and top of the brain, responsible for higher mental processes and decision making as well as the production of fluent speech.
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Corpus callosum
thick band of neurons that connects the right and left cerebral hemispheres.
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Cerebral hemispheres
the two sections of the cortex on the left and right sides of the brain.
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Somatosensory cortex
areas of neurons running down the front of the parietal lobes responsible for processing information from the skin and internal body receptors for touch, temperature, body position, and possibly taste.
"what can I feel?"
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Motor cortex
section of the frontal lobe located at the back, responsible for sending motor commands to the muscles of the somatic nervous system.
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Association areas
areas within each lobe of the cortex responsible for the coordination and interpretation of information, as well as higher mental processing.
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Split Brain Research (Information)
the study of patients with severed corpus callosum
Involves sending messages to only one side of the brain
demonstrates right and left brain socialization
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Split Brain Research (Results)
Left Brain: Seems to control language, writing, logical thought, analysis, and mathematical ideas; Processes information sequentially; Can speak
- Right Brain: Controls emotional expression, spatial perception, recognition of faces, patterns, melodies, and emotions;
- Processes information globally; cannot speak
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Adrenal glands
endocrine glands located on top of each kidney that secrete over 30 different hormones to deal with stress, regulate salt intake, and provide a secondary source of sex hormones affecting the sexual changes that occur during adolescence.
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Pineal glands
endocrine gland located near the base of the cerebrum that secretes melatonin.
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Thyroid glands
found in the neck that regulates metabolism
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Pancreas
controls the level of sugar in the blood
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Gonads
the sex glands that secrete hormones that regulate sexual development and behavior as well as reproduction.
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What are the gonads in females and males called?
Ovaries and testes.
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Pituitary gland
gland located in the brain that secretes human growth hormone and influences all other hormone-secreting glands (also known as the master gland)
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All-or-none
refers to the fact that a neuron either fires completely or does not fire at all.
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Broca’s aphasia
condition resulting from damage to Broca’s area (usually in the left frontal lobe), causing the affected person to be unable to speak fluently, to mispronounce words, and to speak haltingly.
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Deep Lesioning
insertion of a thin, insulated wire into the brain through which an electrical current is sent that destroys the brain cells at the tip of the wire.
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endocrine glands
glands that secrete chemicals called hormones directly into the bloodstream
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Glial Cells
gray fatty cells that: provide support for the neurons to grow on and around, deliver nutrients to neurons, produce myelin to coat axons, and clean up waste products and dead neurons
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Hormones
chemicals released into the bloodstream by endocrine glands.
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Interneuron
a neuron found in the center of the spinal cord that receives information from the sensory neurons and sends commands to the muscles through the motor neurons.
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Mirror Neurons
neurons that fire when an animal or person performs an action and also when an animal or person observes that same action being performed by another.
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Myelin
fatty substance produced by certain glial cells that coat the axons of neurons to insulate, protect, and speed up the neural impulse.
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Nerves
bundles of axons in the body that travel together through the body.
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Nervous System
an extensive network of specialized cells that carry information to and from all parts of the body.
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Neuroplasticity
the ability to constantly change both the structure and function of cell incolved in trauma.
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Neuroscience
deals with the structure and function of neurons, nerves, and nervous tissue
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Reflex Arc
the connection of the afferent neurons to the interneurons to the efferent neurons, resulting in a reflex action.
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Reuptake
process by which neurotransmitters are taken back into the synaptic vesicles
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Spatial Neglect
condition produced by damage to the association areas of the right hemisphere resulting in an inability to recognize objects or body parts in the left visual field.
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Spinal Cord
a long bundle of neurons that carries messages to and from the body to the brain that is responsible for very fast, lifesaving reflexes.
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Stem Cells
special cells found in all tissues of the body that are capable of manufacturing other cell types when those cells need to be replaced due to damage or wear and tear.
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Wernicke’s aphasia
condition resulting from damage to Wernicke’s area (usually in left temporal lobe), causing the affected person to be unable to understand or produce meaningful language.
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Psychology
the scientific study of behavior and mental processes.
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Behavior
outward of overt actions and reactions
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Structuralism
focused on structure or basic elements of the mind.
Developed the technique of objective introspection –process of objectively examining and measuring one’s thoughts and mental activities.
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Functionalism
how the mind allows people to adapt, live, work, and play
Influenced the modern fields of educational psychology, evolutionary psychology, industrial/organizational psychology.
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Psychodynamic Perspective
focus on the unconscious and early development.
modern version of psychoanalysis.
More focused on the development of self and the discovery of other motivations behind a person’s behavior than sexual motivations.
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Behavioral Perspective
focus on operant conditions, punishment, and reinforcement.
Pavlov and Watson: behaviors and feelings are involuntary
- Skinner: behaviors are voluntary
- Ex: feelings about classes; rewards/allowance, “hooray” on games
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Humanistic Perspective
held the view that people have free will, the freedom to choose their own destiny.
- Emphasized the human potential, the ability of each person to become the best person he or she could be.
- Self-actualization: achieving one’s full potential or actual self.
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Cognitive Perspective
focuses on memory, intelligence, perception, problem solving, learning, thinking, planning.
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Sociocultural Perspective
focuses on the relationship between social behavior and culture.
- “social”= people
- “cultural” = way of life, traditions, values, Affects our thoughts about others and perspectives
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Biophysical Perspective
attributes human and animal behavior to biological events occurring in the body.
Such as: genetic influences, hormones, and the activity of the nervous system.
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Evolutionary Perspective
o focuses on the biological bases of universal mental characteristics that all humans share.
- Looks at the way the mind works and
- why it works as it does
- Behavior is seen as having an adaptive or survival value.
- Why we became this way
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Psychiatrists
medical doctor (MD) who has specialized in diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders.
Can write out prescriptions.
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Psychoanalyst
either a psychiatrist or a psychologist who has special training in the theories of Sigmund Freud and his method of psychoanalysis.
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Psychiatric social worker
a social worker with some training in therapy methods who focuses on the environmental conditions that can have an impact on mental disorders, such as poverty, overcrowding, stress, and drug abuse.
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Psychologist
a professional with an academic degree and specialized training in one or more areas of psychology.
Can do counseling, teaching, and research and may specialize in an one of a large number of areas in psychology. ·
Ares of specialization: clinical, counseling, developmental, social, and personality…
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Scientific Method
system of gathering data so that bias and error in measurement are reduced.
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What does the scientific model entail?
- 1. Perceive the question
- 2. Form a hypothesis
- 3. Test the hypothesis
- 4. Draw conclusions
- Agree/disagree with the hypothesis
- Maybe the hypothesis wasn’t tested correctly
- 5. Report, Revise, Replicate
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Population
the entire group of people or animals in which the researcher is interested.
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Representative Sample
randomly selected sample of subjects from a larger population of subjects.
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Correlation
a measure of the relationship between two or more variables.
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Positive Correlation
variables are related in the same direction.
- As one increases, the other decreases; as one decreases, the other increases.
The more you study à the better your grades ; The less you study à the lower your grades
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Negative Correlation
variables are related in the opposite direction
- As one increases, the other decreases
Ex: The older you are à the less sleep you get ; The younger you are à the more sleep you get
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How is a correlation interpreted?
by looking at the direction (positive or negative) or the strength (number) of the relationship.
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What constitutes a strong correlation relationship between variables?
the closer to 1.00 or -1.00 the relationship is
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What is the range for no correlation?
0
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What is a perfect correlation?
+1.00 or -1.00
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Experiment
a deliberate manipulation of a variable to see if corresponding changes in behavior result, allowing the determination of cause-and-effect relationships.
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Independent Variable
variable in an experiment that is manipulated by the experimenter.
The experimenter has the freedom
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Dependent Variable
variable in an experiment that represent the measurable response or behavior of the subjects in the experiment.
It depends on the independent variable.
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Control Group
subjects in an experiment who are not subjected to the independent variable and who may receive a placebo treatment.
Controls for confounding variables
The comparison group
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Experimental Group
subjects in an experimental group who are subjected to the independent variable
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Random Assignment
process of assigning subjects to the experimental or control groups randomly, so that each subject has an equal chance of being in either group.
- Controls for confounding (extraneous, interfering) variables
- Ex: gender
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Single Blind-Study
subjects do not know if they are in the experimental or the control group.
Reduces placebo effect
Gets rid of the participant effect
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Double-blind Study
neither the experimenter nor the subjects know if the subjects are in the experimental or control group.
Reduces the placebo effect and experimenter effect
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Critical Thinking
making reasoned judgments about claims.
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What are the 4 basic criteria of critical thinking?
- 1. Truths or Best knowledge at the moment
- 2. Evidence
- 3. Authorities
- 4. Open Minds
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Case Study
study of one individual in great detail
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cognitive neuroscience
study of the physical changes in the brain and nervous system during thinking
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Correlation Coefficient
a number derived from the formula for measuring a correlation and indicating the strength and direction of a correlation; a number that represents the strength and direction of a relationship existing between two variables.
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Experimenter Effect
tendency of the experimenter’s expectations for a study to unintentionally influence the results of the study
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Gestalt psychology
early perspective in psychology focusing on perception and sensation, particularly the perception of patterns and whole figures.
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naturalistic observation
watching animals or humans behave in their normal environment
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objective introspection
the process of examining and measuring one’s own thoughts and mental activities.
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Observer Bias
tendency of observers to see what they expect to see.
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Observer Effect
tendency of people or animals to behave differently from normal when they know they are being observed.
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Participant Observation
a naturalistic observation in which the observer becomes a participant in the group being observed.
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Placebo Effect
the phenomenon in which the expectations of the participants in a study can influence their behavior.
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Pseudopsychologies
systems of explaining human behavior that are not based on or consistent with scientific evidence.
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Psychoanalysis
Freud’s term for both the theory of personality and the therapy based on it.
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