unit 6 ap psych fall final exam

Even after Sam quit smoking - he still needs something in his mouth to help with the oral fixation that he experiences. This is an example of

psychological dependence

who theorized that each of us is a unique individual?

psychologist roger sperry

Alpha waves are associated with

relaxed but awake state.

Replication

repeating a study which different candidates to confirm that the results stay the same

Reflex

an action or movement of the body that happens automatically as a reaction to something.

What is the biopsychosocial approach?

an approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural influences to analyze the interaction of heredity & environment when it comes to unique traits & behaviors in people & patterns of traits & behaviors in populations

To determine whether a cause-effect relationship exists between two variables a researcher must use

an experimental approach

Double-Blind Procedure

an experimental procedure where the participants & the experimenter don't know if they've taken medication or a placebo

Hypothesis

an idea that which testing & examining can be proven.

__________are drugs that depress the activity of the central nervous system - reducing anxiety but impairing memory and judgment

barbituates

what is evolutionary psychology based on

based on the idea that all humans are more alike than are different

Where is the pons located?

between midbrain and medulla

The place in the retina where the optic nerve exits to the brain is called the

blind spot

Antagonists are psychoactive drugs that

block the neurotransmitter receptor site

what is fMRI useful for learning information about?

brain function

what is CT useful for learning information about?

brain structures

what is MRI useful for learning information about?

brain structures

Nerves

bundled axons that form neural "cables" connecting the central nervous system to the rest of the body.

A split in consciousness which allows some thoughts and behaviors to occur simultaneously with others.

dissociation

One plausible theory suggests that hypnosis relieves pain by

distracting attention.

Sympathetic Nervous System

division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body. mobilizes its energy in stressful situations.

Parasympathetic Nervous System

division of the autonomic nervous that calms the body. conserves its energy.

Somatic/Skeletal Nervous System

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

Cocaine blocks the reuptake of which neurotransmitter?

dopamine

Sigmund Freud believed that dream analysis was a useful device for

gaining insight into unconscious motives

medulla oblongata important information

responsible for controlling vital body functions: breathing, heart rate, & blood pressure

What technology measures electrical activity and is used to determine the location of an epileptic seizure?

EEG

A machine that allows scientists to record the brain-wave activity as a person passes through the various stages of sleep and to determine what type of sleep the person has entered.

Electroencephalography (EEG)

What is the function of the cerebellum?

Enables nonverbal learning, memory, judge time, modulates emotions, discriminates sounds and textures, and coordinates voluntary movement

Which neurotransmitter is affected by opiates?

Endorphins

how does fMRI work?

Measures the increased oxygen rich blood flow to the brain. Reveals blood flow to specific brain areas as a person is performing different mental tasks.

The Gestalt principle that refers to an individual's tendency to perceive an incomplete figure as a whole is called

closure

Which of the following psychoactive drugs increases nervous system activity?

cocaine

The coiled tube in the inner ear that contains the auditory receptors is called the

cochlea

what does CT stand for?

computed tomography

our awareness of ourselves and our environment.

consciousness

midbrain important information

contains the reticular activating system, which controls consciousness

In adult humans - which of the following is typically true of REM sleep?

it is correlated with dreaming.

Why is the thalamus considered a critical structure for proper brain function?

it is the communication system between higher brain regions and the Medulla + cerebellum

Which external stimuli is the suprachiasmatic nucleus sensitive to?

light

what does MRI stand for?

magnetic resonance imaging

Adrenal Glands

pair of endocrine glands that are above the kidneys & secrete hormones (epinephrine & norepinephrine) that help arouse the body in times of stress.

where does the brain stem begin?

where the spinal cord swells slightly after entering the skull

Clark has been going through extreme temperature swings - nausea - and vomiting since stopping using the psychoactive substance that he was taking. This can best be described as:

withdrawal

The painful experience associated with termination of the use of an addictive substance is known as

withdrawals

Is the corpus callosum in the limbic system?

yes

Operational Definition

carefully worded statements. usually more eloquent. we need these so we know exactly what is being talked about.

Research Method - Experimental Research

cause & effect of a scenario. changing independent variables to affect the dependent variable to see how it affects or it even affects at all. in the experiment one variable is changed & the others are affected as well. the researchers can have control over the variables & the research. can be combined with other research methods. the personal bias of a researcher could play a part & affect the research. there can be human error while performing this kind of research. the groups might be incapable to compare. the results could possibly only apply to one scenario.

who inspired the principle that evolutionary is based on?

charles darwin

The biological clock that operates in human beings to adjust their functioning to night-and-day periodicity is referred to as

circadian rhythm

It can be assumed that an individual described as a supertaster

is very sensitive to hot peppers

Which of the following statements best describes the effect of alcohol on human functioning?

it depresses the central nervous system.

Balance is influenced by the

semicircular canals

what are lower level brain structures often referred to as?

"primitive brain" , "reptile brain"

Research Method - Descriptive Research - Observational

(Naturalistic & laboratory) help collect data in real-time & be able to watch. (naturalistic) researchers view who they are studying in their natural habitats/environments (laboratory) more controlled in a laboratory. less time consuming. the researcher has to be very focused. if an observer doesn't know what they're doing/ are distracted/ have a bias/ etc. the data could be unreliable or untrue.

how is psychology a part of the biopsychosocial approach?

- effect of early life experiences on brain development & function, responses to the environment, indiviso beliefs, feelings, expectations

what are some criticisms of evolutionary psychology?

1. starts with an effect & works backwards to develop an explanation (hindsight) 2. gives unethical or immoral men a rationale for aggressive behavior towards women 3. the effects of cultural expectations & socialization are not taken into account

Which of the following is a circadian rhythm?

A cycle of biological functioning that lasts about 25 hours

statistical significance

A statement of How likely it is that a result happened by chance

Which dream theory explains dreams as the forebrain's attempt to interpret neural activity ?

Activation synthesis

What substance affects the cerebellum?

Alcohol affects the cerebellum, Which makes you lack coordination

A double-blind control is essential for which of the following?

Assessment of a treatment designed to reduce schizophrenic symptoms

What is the brain stem responsible for?

Automatic survival functions

What drug most commonly inhibits arousal centers?

Barbiturates

What will most likely be influenced by staying up especially late on weekends?

Circadian rhythm

What is the medulla responsible for?

Controls heartbeat and breathing

what is the pons responsible for?

Coordinating movement

normal curve

Data is normally distributed. Most scores are towards the mean while there's less towards the extremes. It's shaped like a bell. There is symmetry.

In an experiment which of the following variables refers to the outcome that is measured by the experimenter?

Dependent

Drugs that decrease the functioning of the nervous system. Barbiturates - Benzodiazepines - Alcohol -Opium - Morphine -Heroin. -

Depressants

Latisha noticed that in the early evening she begins to have difficulty seeing the vibrant colors in her artwork. Which of the following best explains her difficulty?

Her cones cannot detect color well in dim light.

Whereas Han only used to drink one beer after work each day - he now drinks two or three. Clearly what has changed?

His tolerance for beer

Which of the following statements concerning sleep is valid?

Individuals do not typically act out their dreams.

Which of the following statements best describes the placebo effect?

It can be brought about by the individual's expectations.

In a normal distribution which of the following statements is true about the area that falls between one standard deviation above and one standard deviation below the mean?

It contains the middle 68% of the distribution.

What is the cerebellum's location?

It extends from the rear of the brain stem

What is the function of the hypothalamus?

It helps keep the body's internal environment in a steady state. It can influence hunger, regulate thirst, body temperature, and sexual behavior. It is also linked to emotion and reward/pleasure

Which of the following is true about the study of consciousness in psychology?

It is an important way of studying our two-track minds

Where is the thalamus located?

It is attached to the brain stem

What is the function of the thalamus?

It is the brain sensory switchboard, it directs messages to sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum & the medulla

Ana injured her eye in an accident and has to wear a patch over the eye while it heals. Which of the following cues would she best be able to use to make judgments about the distance objects are from her?

Linear perspective

Professor González is interested in evaluating the ability of a new method of note-taking to improve student grades. Group A is trained in the new method and group B uses the traditional outline method of taking notes. What is Professor González' independent variable?

Method of note-taking

During what stage do night terrors occur?

NREM-3

Large & slow brain waves called delta waves are most associated with which stage of sleep?

NREM-3

Which of the following best describes the graph above?

Negatively skewed distribution

Feature detectors are neurons that are turned on or off by specific features of visual stimuli like edges and movement. Where in the visual system are these feature detectors located?

Occipital cortex

What technology requires an injection of a radioactive substance?

PET

What technologies are used to examine brain function?

PET & fMRI scans

What is the function of the amygdala?

Perception of emotion and processing of emotional memories, linked to emotion

The tendency for REM sleep to increase following REM sleep deprivation

REM rebound

During which stage of sleep are EEG recordings most similar to those during alert & awake periods - giving this stage its nickname - "paradoxical sleep?"

REM sleep

What is the purpose of the pituitary gland?

Releases hormones that influence of growth and controls other endocrine glands

List three conditions necessary for data to be useful and drawing conclusions about human behavior

Reliable. without bias. if the experiment is repeated you will get similar / same answers. There is a large amount of data. there is low variability in data. the data was collected from a representative sample of individuals. not a biased sample.

Which part of the brain is important in keeping the forebrain alert and producing a state of wakefulness?

Reticular formation

A researcher surveyed social adjustment in the same group of 20 people from early childhood through adulthood. In this example the group of 20 people surveyed was the study's

Sample

Standard deviation is a measure of how much

Scores in a group differ from the mean of that group

When Rosa has a cold - she cannot taste the flavor of her pizza. Which of the following psychological terms describes Rosa's inability to taste?

Sensory interaction

A type of snoring in which the person stops breathing for 10 seconds or more.

Sleep Apnea

What does statistically significant mean? How is it measured?

Statistically significant - it is highly likely that your observed difference in scores was not due to chance. a statistically significant difference (a difference that would show up by chance 5% of the time or less) is expressed as a P-value. The probability of concluding that a difference exists when it does not. The smaller the p-value the more meaningful and reliable results. The p-value can never be zero because a researcher can never be 100% sure the results did not occur by chance.

The major ingredient of marajuana.

THC

This is the main active chemical in marijuana.

THC

Which of the following studies demonstrates a cross-sectional research design?

Testing first, third, and fifth graders at the beginning of the school year

mean

The average from a set of data. you get the mean by adding all the numbers and then dividing by the number of scores.

Which of the following is an explanation of why travelers suffer from jet lag?

There is a disruption in their circadian rhythm.

An instructor conducted an experiment to determine the effects of two different methods of study on the amount students learned in introductory physics. The results showed that the average amount learned by the group using one method was greater than the average amount learned by the group using the other. However the difference was not statistically significant. Which of the following is the most appropriate conclusion to be drawn?

There is a possibility that the difference between the two groups occurred by chance.

Which of the following is true of "hypnotically refreshed" memories?

They combine fact and fiction.

Operational definitions are used for which of the following reasons?

They enable researchers to replicate studies by precisely describing the variables and how they are used.

how does CT work?

Uses x-ray photographs to reveal damaged or abnormal brain structures

Which of the following statements about the typical pattern of sleep cycles is false?

We most often naturally awaken during NREM-3 sleep.

Is the amygdala in the limbic system?

Yes

Is the hypothalamus part of the limbic system?

Yes

Is the pituitary gland in the limbic system?

Yes

What would happen if you were to damage the cerebellum?

You'd have difficulty walking, keeping balance, or shaking hands

Cofounding Variable

a factor that isn't the independent variable that could cause an effect on the experiment

_______ is a compulsive drug craving and use.

addiction

REM sleep is most likely to be interrupted by _______________.

alcohol

Which structure in the limbic system controls fear and rage emotions?

amygdala

One-year-old Marcus turns away in disgust if a bitter substance is placed on his tongue. The reason for such a reaction is most likely

an inborn distaste for bitterness that protects us from potential poisons in the environment

Critical Thinking

analyzing facts to come up with an opinion. this comes from logic. being open to new perspectives. & questioning instead of judging.

Correlation

association or connection between two variables. a positive correlation. negative correlation. & no correlation are the possible outcomes.

Positively skewed distribution

data that contains a large number of low scores result in a positively-skewed distribution. The mean is higher than the median. In this case the median is a better measure of the central tendency. If the peak of the curve is leaning towards the left it is a positively skewed distribution.

Which of the following is an altered state of consciousness

daydreaming

what is the limbos system responsible for?

emotions, forming working & long term memories, processing odors, controlling basic survival drives, communication with the endocrine system, relaying information, controlling & coordinating complex motor activity

A researcher randomly assigned boys and girls to each of the two groups. One group watched a violent television program while the other group watched a nonviolent program. The children were then observed during a period of free play and the incidence of aggressive behavior was recorded for each group. This research method is best characterized as

experimental

The reversible figure above illustrates the Gestalt organizing principle of

figure-ground

what is evolutionary psychology focused on

focused on universal human behaviors

Random Assignment

giving participants experimental/control groups randomly

If Carmelita stares at a red spot for one minute and then shifts her gaze to a white piece of paper - she is likely to experience an afterimage that is

green

Which of the following does not belong in the stimulant category?

heroin

When people consume large amounts of alcohol - they are often unable to recall what they did and said while they were drinking. This occurs because alcohol interferes with the brain's ability to form new memories in the

hippocampus

Advocates of the social influence theory of hypnosis are likely to argue that

hypnotized people are simply enacting the role of good hypnotic subjects.

Random Sample

individuals randomly selected to represent an entire group

Receptors that are especially important for helping a person maintain balance are located in the

inner ear

Characterized by reoccurring problems in falling or staying asleep

insomnia

According to Freud - the remembered storyline of a dream.

manifest content

pons important information

means "bridge". transfers messages from the spine & cerebellum up to higher structures in the brain

how does EEG work?

measures waves of electrical current across brain surface that result from billions of neurons firing at once

what is the brain stem made up of?

medulla + pons (+ reticular formation)

the brainstem strcutures are:

medulla oblongata, pons, midbrain

The hormone most closely related to one's sleep pattern is:

melatonin

agonists are psychoactive drugs that

mimic and produce the same effect as a neurotransmitter

A_______________is an altered sate of concoiusness reported after a close run in with death

near-death experience

Unpleasant withdrawal symptoms are indicative of

physical dependence

What does the hypothalamus control?

pituitary gland

What does PET stand for?

positron emission tomography

A suggestion made during hypnosis session - to be carried out after the subject is no longer hypnotized.

posthypnotic suggestion

While Bev was hypnotized - her therapist suggested that during the next several days she would have a strong desire to eat well-balanced meals. The therapist was apparently making use of

posthypnotic suggestions.

A chemical substance that alters perceptions and mood.

psychoactive drug

____________are usually used for recreational rather than medical purposes - though some have legitimate medical uses. These drugs change sensory experience - perception - mood - thinking - and behavior.

psychoactive drugs

where is creativity, artistic ability processed?

right frontal lobe

where is emotional empathy, intuition processed?

right frontal lobe

On his first day of work at the bakery - Brad was nearly overwhelmed by the sweet odor of the baked goods. However - by lunchtime - he did not even notice the smell. This is an example of

sensory adaptation

where is sensory interpretation processed?

sensory cortex, right parietal lobe

What is the right hemisphere is primarily responsible for

sensory interpretation - visual, perceptual, spatial information, creativity, artistic ability, emotional empathy, intuition, sense of self

Periodic natural loss of consciousness -as distinct from unconsciousness resulting from a coma or hibernation...

sleep

Obesity is a risk factor for developing which of the following sleep disorders?

sleep apnea

a patient reports constant sleepiness. A series of tests reveal that the patient's sleep is frequently disrupted by periods of interrupted breathing and brief awakenings. Which of the following diagnoses would account for such symptoms?

sleep apnea

what is molecular genetics focused on?

specific genes & groups of genes that result in specific personality & behavioral traits. studies heritability of specific traits (how much the variability of traits in a population is due to genes vs environment)

Sleep spindles show up during which sleep stage?

stage 2 nrem

the central structures of the limbic system are:

thalamus, hypothalamus, hippocampus, corpus collosum, the first layer of the cerebrum (the cingulate gyrus).

what else does the limbic system include?

the amygdala, the pituitary gland, & the cerebellum.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

the sensory & motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body.

Naturalistic Observation

the subject is studied in their natural habitat with no alterations by the researcher

what is the limbic system primarily made up of?

the thalamus, hypothalamus, hippocampus, corpus collosum, & the first layer of the cerebrum (the cingulate gyrus).

what do behavior genetics, molecular genetics, & evolutionary psychology have in common?

they all seem to explain human behavior

what could happen if an individual is born with a random mutation in a gene?

they could have a trait that results in successful competition & have a higher likelihood of surviving & reproducing

Which of the following is a description of someone who suffers from sleep apnea?

they tend to stop breathing periodically at night

Which Neurotransmitter is associated with the reward or pleasure system in the limbic system?

Dopamine

Population

total people from where a study is focusing on

what does fMRI stand for?

functional magnetic resonance imaging

how is biology a part of the biopsychosocial approach?

- individual genetic variations, the prenatal environment, hormones, physiology

how are social-cultural influences a part of the biopsychosocial approach?

- influence of parents & peers, attitudes & norms peculiar to the culture the individual grows up in

standard deviation

A measure of how many scores in a set of data vary around the mean. To get the standard deviation you Add up the deviations from the mean and then you square it. After that you divide that number over the number of scores. finally the score you get you square it & that is the standard deviation.

Which of the following will NOT increase behavioral and mental activity?

Barbiturates

Where is the hypothalamus located?

Below the thalamus

what is PET useful for learning information about?

Brain function

where is speech production processed?

Broca's Area , left frontal lobe

what technology uses X-rays to create an image of the brain?

CT

Which of the following research approaches would be best for testing the hypothesis that the presence of certain odors causes people to gamble more?

Experimental

Research Method - Descriptive Research - Case-Study

Focus on one singular person in depth to get an idea of an entire group/ species/ etc. help to be able to study rare phenomena in certain people. biases can interfere with the information studied. one person cannot truly generalize an entire group of people.

What is the purpose of the hippocampus?

It is the neural center in the temporal lobe, it processes memory for storage

_______________ is a powerful drug also known as d-lysergic acid diethylamide.

LSD

What technologies are used to examine brain structure?

MRI and CT scans

Which structure in the limbic system is the link between the nervous and and endocrine systems?

The hypothalamus connects the nervous and endocrine systems

Ernst Weber's and Gustav Fechner's psychophysical laws concern the relation between which of the following?

The intensity of a stimulus and its corresponding psychological sensation

what is a common name that the pituitary gland is often referred to as?

The master endocrine gland

What is the function of the reticular formation in the brain stem?

The nerve network that helps control arousal

where is language comprehension processed?

Wernicke's Area , left temporal lobe

When is it permissible for a psychologist to share a client's test scores with another person?

When the client provides written permission to share results

Nervous System

a complex network of nerves & cells that carry messages to & from the brain and spinal cord to various parts of the body. consists of all the nerve cells of the peripheral & central nervous systems.

Experimental Group

a group of participants exposed to the independent variable. the medication or what is being tested

Placebo

a harmless medication used to test the effectiveness of the real medication

What is the corpus callosum?

a large band of neural fibers that connects the two brain hemispheres

The perceived pitch of a tone is largely determined by its

frequency

Theory

a model that describes a behavior & to understand human thoughts. an explanation to excuse future behaviors.

Survey

a questionnaire to collect data & examine a group of people

Endocrine System

a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.

What does central tendency mean?

a single number that represents an entire group of numbers

Hindsight Bias

a term used when someone is overconfident in predicting a scenario playing out. Also known as "I knew it!". It causes distortion of memories & it makes us more confident to believe that we will predict something next time.

Scatterplot

a visual representation of the relationships or values of 2 variables

reuptake of a neurotransmitter refers to

absorption of the neurotransmitter into the terminal buttons of the sending neuron

The change in the curvature of the lens that enables the eye to focus on objects at various distances is called

accommodation

An individual who drinks alcohol daily finds it necessary to drink increasing amounts to achieve the state of well-being attained in the past. This individual is showing

alcohol tolerance

what creatures do humans share lower level brain structures with?

all creatures that have a brain and nervous system

What is the function of the corpus callosum?

allow the two hemispheres of the brain to communicate with each other & it carries messages between them.

who prop sed the idea of natural selection as a driving force of evolution?

charles darwin

Hormones

chemical messengers that are made by the endocrine glands. travels through the bloodstream & affects other tissues.

The tendency of most people to identify a three-sided figure as a triangle- even when one of its sides is incomplete- is the result of a perceptual process known as

closure

Caffeine and nicotine are in the same class as which of the following drugs?

cocaine

Negatively skewed distribution

data that has a large number of high scores result in a negatively skewed distribution. The mean is lower than the median. In this case the mean is a better measure of the central tendency. If the peak of the curve is leaning towards the right it is a negatively skewed distribution.

What type of brain waves happens during NREM-3 sleep?

delta waves

The large - slow brain waves associated with deep sleep are called

delta waves.

In an experiment to test the effects of hunger on aggressive behavior aggressive behavior would be the

dependent variable

In terms of the effect on the central nervous system - alcohol is most accurately classified as which of the following types of drug?

depressant

In experimental psychology a significant difference refers to a

difference not likely due to chance

Drawing a random sample of people from a town for an interview study of social attitudes ensures that

each person in the town has the same probability of being chosen for the study

what is EEG useful for learning information about?

electrical activity in the brain

what does EEG stand for?

electroencephalogram

Visual acuity is best in the

fovea

A survey shows that children who have encyclopedias in their homes earn better grades in school than children whose homes lack encyclopedias. The researcher concludes that having encyclopedias at home improves grades. This conclusion is erroneous primarily because the researcher has incorrectly

inferred causation from correlation

According to Freud - the underlying meaning of a dream

latent contenet

where is logical, analytical, mathematical, rational thinking processed?

left frontal lobe

The emotional tone of our dreams is especially likely to be influenced by the activation of the ________ during REM sleep.

limbic system

what do organisms compete for?

limited resources (food, water, shelter, mates)

what is The left hemisphere is primarily responsible for?

logical, analytical, mathematical, rational thinking, language comprehension, speech production

REM sleep - generally an "active" state of sleep - is accompanied by which of the following paradoxical characteristics?

lowered muscle tone

In order to yield information that is generalizable to the population from which it was drawn a sample

must be normally distributed

Rafael has a sleep disorder for which he takes medically prescribed amphetamines. For which of the following sleep disorders is Rafael most likely being treated?

narcolepsy

Dopamine - norepinephrine - and acetylcholine are all

neurotransmitters that excite or inhibit a neural signal across a synapse

Autonomic Nervous System

part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands & the muscles of the internal organs (heart).

Where is the reticular formation?

passes through thalamus and brainstem

In visual perception - size constancy occurs as an object comes closer to the viewer because the

perceived distance of the object becomes smaller

Illusory Correlation

perceiving a relationship between two variables when there is none

Experiment

research method to test a hypothesis

Correlation Coefficient

statistic to measure the strength of a correlation. it can range from -1.0 (perfect negative correlation) & +1.0 (perfect positive correlation)

Drugs that increase the functioning of the nervous system. Amphetamines - Cocaine - Nicotine - Caffeine.

stimulants

What is the normal curve?

symmetrical pattern of variation from the mean. Also known as a normal curve or bell curve. the calculation describing how much scores vary from the mean is the standard deviation.

the additional structures of the limbic system are:

the amygdala, the pituitary gland, and the cerebellum

Where is the medulla located?

the base of the brainstem

Central Nervous System (CNS)

the brain & spinal cord.

why did roger sperry theorize that all of us are unique?

the brain (a tangible organ) gives rise to & controls the emerging mind (an abstract entity) which in turn influences the brain in an endless cycle

A reason that one typically does not notice a blind spot in the visual field is that

the brain fills in missing information so there is no awareness that the visual field is incomplete

what is the oldest brain structure in evolutionary terms?

the brain stem

range

the difference between the highest and lowest score in a set of data

Pituitary Gland

the endocrine system's most influential gland. it is under the influence of the hypothalamus. the pituitary gland regulates growth & controls other endocrine glands.

Independent Variable

the experimental factor that is being tested

Control Group

the group of participants that is not exposed to the independent variable. they are used to compare to the experimental group

what is natural selection?

the idea that the fittest survive and pass along their ideal traits to their offspring. the ones that are weak will die off

How does natural selection work?

the individuals with successful traits will pass those onto their offspring. it will become common within their population as time goes on. the ones that process this trait will have a survival & reproduction advantage

what is behavior genetics focused on?

the interaction of genes & environment in the development of specific traits, mental health & cognitive abilities or disabilities in an individual. used twin studies & adopted children studies

list three measures of central tendency

the mean - an average of all data (add all scores, divide by # of scores). the median - middle point. the mode - most frequently occurring score

what is the brain stem made up of?

the medulla oblongata, the pons, and the midbrain

median

the middle score in a set of data

In the context of this unit - the term tolerance refers to

the need for an increased amount of the drug to achieve the same effect

mode

the number that most frequently pops up in a set of data

Negative afterimages are explained by

the opponent-process theory

Depending Variable

the outcome factor. the variable that could change due to the independent variable

The results of a correlational study involving student volunteers in a psychology laboratory might not apply to the general population because

the sample is not randomly chosen and therefore may not be a representative sample

Research Method - Descriptive Research - Survey

to collect data from various people. more responses & greater amount of "test subjects". responses could be limited in value. harder to analyze statistically if open-ended.

Research Method - Correlational Research - Positive / Negative Correlations

to predict. it shows the possibility of a connection but it cannot directly prove that there is one.

Neuroadaptation - the body's adjustment to a stimulus - is the same as

tolerance

Which of the following can result in the chronic use of drugs

tolerance - withdrawal - physical independence - All of the above

Luz - a math major - sees the drawing above as a Venn diagram. Her brother - an art major - sees it as two circles. The difference in perception is an example of

top-down processing

Tina is reading an important letter when she accidentally splashes water on the paper. The water has smudged a few words - but she is still able to understand what the letter says. This can be explained by

top-down processing

The general function of the bones in the middle ear is to

transfer sound information from the tympanic membrane to the oval window

Experimental research differs from correlational research in that experimental research

uses a dependent variable

how does PET work?

uses radioactive glucose to trace where in the brain neurons are the most active when a person performs a task. The most active neurons use the most glucose and that part of the brain shows up as a hotspot

how does MRI work?

uses strong magnetic field to align spinning atoms in brain cells - useful for identifying abnormal structures

Case Study

where one individual person is studied & examined for a period of time in hopes to find out something that resonates with all

Is the hippocampus in the limbic system?

yes