Tex Psych 101 midterm

Descartes

The science of behavior and mental processes.

German scientist who established the first psych lab. Trained people to describe mental experiences (inner sensations, images, and feelings) through introspection. However, introspection is flawed because it is too subjective, relying on reports of personal perspective

Reaction time measures time between perception and reaction

Two opposing theories- Nature theory implies that we are born as the people we will become and environment/experience doesn't alter that or has very little affect. Nurture theory implies that we are born blank slates, shaped by the environment in which we are raised.

Basic research, applied research, counseling, clinical, psychiatry, social, behaviorists, genetic, cognitive, biological, developmental, industrial-organizational, evolutionary

"I knew it all along" phenomenon. Theory states that when one knows the outcome of any situation, they believe they would have predicted same outcome when really no one could have known.

When we look to answer our assumptions.

the perception of a relationship where none exists.

• i.e. People act crazier when there's a full moon. Correlations do not equal causation.
• Full moon=more light to commit crimes by at night. The moon does not cause the action.

belief that the bumps on the head could provide insight towards intelligence and personality.

belief that certain areas of the brain correlate to certain functions

idea that brain functions are distributed around the brain (no localization).

heart beat and breathing; is the base of the brainstem

arousal and filter of information (cocktail effect)

functions as a sensory switchboard, sorting and directing sensory information to the corresponding portion of the brain

memory formation, STM transformation to LTM

fight, flight, or fear response. Emotion, fear, aggression. Also adds element of emotion to memory.

regulates bodily homeostasis, thirst, hunger, body temperature, and sexual desire.

the endocrine system's most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands (Master Gland).

the "little brain" at the rear of the brainstem; functions include some non verbal learning, processing sensory input, and coordinating voluntary movement and balance

• Frontal Lobe- language, thinking, personality, reasoning
• Temporal Lobe- recognition, auditory processing, STM
• Occipital Lobe- visual processing
• Parietal Lobe- spatial organization
• Sensory Cortex- sensory processing
• Motor Cortex- voluntary movement

neural pathway, reflexes

An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis which offers a more complete picture of any given behavior or mental process.

(Some biological psychologists call themselves behavioral neuroscientists, neuropsychologists, behavior geneticists, physiological psychologists, or biopsychologists)

How the body and brain enable emotions, memories, and sensory experiences.

i.e. How are messages transmitted within the body? How is blood chemistry linked with moods and motives?

How the natural selection of traits promoted the survival of genes.

i.e. How does evolution influence behavior tendencies?

How we learn observable responses.

i.e. How do we learn to fear particular objects or situations? What is the most effective way to alter our behavior, say, to lose weight or stop smoking?

How much our genes and our environment influence our individual differences.

i.e. To what extent are psychological traits such as intelligence, personality, sexual orientation, and vulnerability to depression attributable to our genes? To our environment?

How behavior springs from unconscious drives and conflicts

i.e. How can someone's personality traits and disorders be explained in terms of sexual and aggressive drives or as the disguised effects of unfulfilled wishes and childhood traumas?

How we encode, process, store, and retrieve, information.

i.e. How do we use information in remembering? Reasoning? Solving problems?

How behavior and thinking vary across situations and cultures.

i.e. How are we humans alike as members of one human family As products of different environmental contexts, how do we differ?

an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events.

a testable prediction, often implied by a theory

a statement of the procedures (operations) used to define research variables. For examples, human intelligence may be operationally defined as "what an intelligence test measures."

repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic finding extends to other participants and circumstances.

an observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles.

a technique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of the group.

all the cases in a group being studied, from which samples may be drawn. (Note: except for national studies, this does not refer to a country's whole population.)

a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion.

observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation.

the extent to which two factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other. The correlational coefficient is the mathematical expression of the relationship, ranging from -1 to +1.

a research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors (independent variables) to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process (the dependent variable). By random assignment of participants, the experimenter aims to control other relevant factors.

assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance, thus minimizing preexisting differences between those assigned to the different groups.

in an experiment, the group that is exposed to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent variable.

in an experiment, the group that is not exposed to the treatment; contrasts with the experimental group and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment

an experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant (blind) about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo. Commonly used in drug-evaluation studies.

experimental results caused by expectations alone; any effect on behavior caused by the administration of an inert substance or condition, which the recipient assumes is an active agent.

the experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied.

the outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulation of the independent variable.

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

the scientific study of the links between biological (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological processes.

a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system

the neuron's bushy, branching extensions that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.

the neuron's extension that passes messages through its branching terminal fibers that form junctions with other neurons, muscles, or glands.

a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon

the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.

the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at this junction is call the synaptic gap or synaptic cleft.

chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by the sending neuron, neurotransmitters travel along the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse.

"morphine within"--natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure

the body's speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems.

the brain and spinal cord

the sensory and motor neurons that connect the CNS to the rest of the body

bundled axons that form neural "cables" connecting the CNS with muscles, glands, and sense organs.

neurons that carry incoming information from the sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord

neurons that carry outgoing information from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands.

neurons within the brain and spinal cord that communicate internally and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs.

the division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body's skeletal muscles. Also called the skeletal nervous system.

the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart). It's sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms.

the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy.

a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus, such as a knee-jerk response.

the body's "slow" chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.

chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues.

a pair of endocrine glands that sit just above the kidneys and secrete hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine) that help arouse the body in times of stress.

tissue destruction. A brain lesion is a naturally or experimentally caused destruction of brain tissue

the oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; the brainstem is responsible for automatic survival functions.

Includes: Medulla, Reticular Formation, Pons, Cerebellum, and Thalamus (aka Reptile Brain)

neural system (including the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus) located below the cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions and drives. (AKA Mammalian Brain)

the intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells covering the cerebral hemispheres; the body's ultimate control and information processing center

areas of the cerebral cortex that are not involved in primary motor or sensory functions; rather, they are involved in higher mental functions such as learning, remembering, thinking, speaking, and integrating information

impairment of language, usually caused by left-hemisphere damage either to Broca's area (impairing speaking) or to Wernicke's area (impairing understanding)

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

controls language reception; a brain area, usually in the left temporal lobe, that is involved in language comprehension and expression

the brain's ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience

the formation of new neurons

the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them.

a condition resulting from surgery that isolates the brain's two hemispheres by cutting the fibers (mainly those of the corpus callosum) connecting them

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

the study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior

threadlike 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; a segment of DNA capable of synthesizing a protein

twins who develop from a single fertilized egg that splits in two, creating two genetically identical organisms

twins who develop from separate fertilized eggs. They are genetically no closer than brothers and sisters, but they share a fetal environment

a person's characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity

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

the study of the roots of behavior and mental processes, using the principles of natural selection

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

a random error in genes replication that leads to a change

in psychology, the biologically and socially influenced characteristics by which people define male and female

an understood rule for accepted and expected behavior. Norms prescribe "proper" behavior

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 group identifications

giving priority to group goals (often those of the extended family or work 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 X chromosomes; males have one. An X chromosome from each parent produces a female child.

the sex chromosome found only in males. When paired with an X chromosome from the mother, it produces a male child

the most important of the male sex hormones. Both males and females have it, but the additional testosterone in male stimulates the growth of the 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

a set of expected behaviors for males or for females

our sense of being male or female

the acquisition of traditional masculine or feminine role

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

the most frequently occurring score(s) in a distribution

the arithmetic average of a distribution, obtained by adding the scores and then dividing by the number of scores

the middle score in a distribution; half the scores are above it and half are below it

the difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution

a computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean score

a symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data; most scores fall near the mean (68% fall within one standard deviation of it) and fewer and fewer near the extremes

a statistical measure of the extent to which two factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other. Scores with a positive correlation coefficient move up and down together (as with high school and college GPA's). A negative correlation coefficient indicates that one score falls as the other rises (as in the relationship between self-esteem and depression)

a graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables. The slope of the points suggest the direction of the relationship between the two variables. The amount of scatter suggests the strength of the correlation (little scatter indicates high correlation)

the tendency for extreme or unusual scores or events to fall back (regress) towards the average

a study in which people of different ages are compared with one another

research in which the same people are restudied and retested over a long period of time

a statistical statement of how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chance

Doubt big, round, undocumented numbers. Think smarter by applying simple statistical reasoning.

Three measures of central tendency are the mode (the most frequently occurring score), the mean (the arithmetic average), and the median (the middle score in a group of data). Measures of variation tell us how similar or diverse data are. A range describes the gap between the highest and lowest scores. The more useful measure, the standard deviation, states how much scores vary around the mean, or average, score. The normal curve is a bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data

A correlation coefficient is a statistical measure that tells us the extent to which to things relate. In scatterplots, the amount of scatter suggests the correlation's strength, and the slope of the points suggests the direction of the relationship. Correlation coefficients cannot tell cause and effect, but they do tell us how well one variable predicts the other, and they also restrain us from seeing nonexistent relationships

Regression toward the mean is the tendency of extreme scores to return to normal

Three principles are worth remembering: (1) Representative samples are better than biased samples. (2) Less-variable observations are more than those that are more variable. (3) More cases are better than fewer. We can assume that a result is statistically significant- that it did not occur by chance alone- when averages from two samples are each reliable measures of their own populations, and the difference between them is relatively large.

Cross-sectional studies compare people of different ages at the same time; longitudinal studies retest the same people over time. The two methods give different perspectives. Cross-sectional studies show the effects of time and environment on many different individuals; longitudinal studies show those effects on the same people

pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base

scientific study that aims to solve practical problems

a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being

a branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders

a branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical (for example, drug) treatments as well as psychological therapy

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

the processing of information into the memory system- for example, by extracting meaning

the retention of encoded information over time

the process of getting information out of memory storage

the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system

activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as the seven digits of a phone number while dialing, before the information is stored or forgotten

the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences

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

unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned information, such as word meanings

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort

the conscious repetition of information, either to maintain it in consciousness or to encode it for storage

the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice

our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list

mental pictures; a powerful aid to effortful processing, especially when combined with encoding

memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices

organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically

a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second

a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3-4 seconds

an increase in a synapse's firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory

a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

the loss of memory

retention independent of conscious recollection (also called non-declarative memory)

memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and "declare" (also called declarative memory). Explicit memories are processed and for storage by the hippocampus

a measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test

a measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test

a measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material for a second time

the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory

that eerie sense that "I've experienced this before." Cues from current situation may subconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience

the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one's current good or bad mood

the disruptive effect of prior learning on the the recall of new information

the disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information

in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories

incorporating misleading information into one's memory of an event

attributing to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined. (Also called source misattribution) Source amnesia, along with the misinformation effect, is at the heart of many false memories

Memory is the persistence of learning over time. The Atkinson-Shiffrin classic three-stage memory model (encoding, storage, and retrieval ) suggests that we (1) register fleeting sensory memories, some of which are (2) processed into on-screen short-term memories, a tiny fraction of which are (3) encoded for long-term memory and later retrieval. Two new concepts update the classic model: (a) We register some information automatically, directly into long-term memory. And (b) the term working memory (rather than short-term memory) emphasizes the active processing that occurs in the second stage

In automatic processing, we unconsciously absorb information about space, time, frequency, and well-learned material. Effortful processing (of meaning, imagery, organization) requires conscious attention and deliberate effort. We retain information more easily if we practice it repeatedly (the spacing effect) than if we practice it in one long cram session. The serial position effect is the tendency to recall best the first and last items in a list

We process information by encoding its meaning and by encoding imagery, as when using some mnemonic devices. We also mentally organize information through chunking and hierarchies, for easier retrieval

As information enters the memory system through our senses, we briefly register and store visual images via iconic memory, in which images last no more than a few tenths of a second. We register and store sounds via echoic memory, where sound echoes may linger as long as 3 or 4 seconds

Without rehearsal, a short-term memory is limited in duration (a few seconds) and in capacity (about seven items of information, either new or retrieved from our memory store). Our capacity for storing information permanently in long-term memory is essentially unlimited

Long-term potentiation appears to be the neural basis for learning and memory. Stress triggers hormonal changes that arouse brain areas and can produce indelible memories. We are particularly likely to remember emotionally significant events that form flashbulb memories. We have a dual-track memory system. Explicit (declarative) memories of general knowledge, facts and experiences are processed by the hippocampus. Implicit (non-declarative) memories of skills and conditioned responses are processed by other parts of the brain, including the cerebellum

Recall is the ability to retrieve information not in conscious awareness; a fill-in-the-blank question tests recall. Recognition is the ability to identify items previously learned; a multiple-choice question tests recognition. Relearning is the ability to master previously stored information more quickly than you originally learned it. Retrieval cues catch our attention and tweak our web of associations, helping to more target information into conscious awareness. Priming is the process of activating associations (often unconsciously)

The context in which we originally experienced an event or encoded a thought can flood our memory with retrieval cues. Cues triggered by a different but similar context can trick us into believing we have had the experience before, a feeling known as deja-vu. Specific emotions can prime us to retrieve memories consistent with that state, a phenomenon known as mood-congruent memory

We may fail to encode information for entry into our memory system. Memories may fade after storage- rapidly at first, and then leveling off, a trend known as the forgetting curve. We may experience retrieval failures, when old and new material compete, when we don't have adequate retrieval cues, or possibly, in rare instances, because of motivated forgetting, or repression. In proactive interference, something learned in the past interferes with our ability to recall something recently learned. In retroactive interference, something recently learned interferes with something learned in the past

If we are exposed to misinformation after an event, or if we repeatedly imagine and rehearse an event that never occurred, we may construct a false memory of what actually happened. We experience source amnesia when we attribute a memory to the wrong source

Memory researchers and some well-meaning therapists have debated whether people repress memories of early childhood abuse and can recover them by means of leading questions and/or hypnosis during therapy. Psychologists now tend to agree that: (1) Sexual abuse happens, and can leave lasting scars. (2) Some innocent people have been falsely convicted of abuse that never happened, and some true abuses have used the controversy over recovered memories to avoid punishment. (3) Forgetting isolated past events, good or bad, is an ordinary part of life. (4) Recovering good and bad memories, triggered by some memory cue, is commonplace. (5) Infantile amnesia- the inability to recall memories from the first three years of life- makes recovery of very early childhood memories unlikely. (6) Memories obtained under the influence of hypnosis or drugs or therapy are unreliable. (7) Both real and false memories cause stress and suffering

Memory research-based strategies include studying repeatedly, making material personally meaningful, activating retrieval cues, using mnemonic devices, minimizing interference, getting adequate sleep, and self-testing