Psych Test 1 (Ch. 1 and 10)
Margaret Floy Washburn (1871-1939)
The first woman to receive a psychology Ph.D; synthesized animal behavior research in The Animal Mind (1908). Second APA female president; experimental psychologist.
Empiricism
The idea that knowledge comes from experience, and that observation and experimentation enable scientific knowledge.
Cognitive neuroscience
The interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language).
Ego
The largely conscious, executive part of personality that, according to Freud, mediates among the demands of the id, superego, and reality; operates on the reality principle, satisfying the id's desires in ways that will realistically bring longterm pleasure rather than pain. Contains our conscious thoughts, judgements, memories, perceptions.
Nature-nurture issue
The longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors. Today's science sees traits and behaviors arising from the interaction of nature and nurture.
Superego
The part of personality that, according to Freud, represents internalized ideals/moral compass and provides standards for judgement (the conscience) and for future aspirations). Forces the ego not only to consider reality, but to make it ideal.
Natural selection
The principle that inherited traits that better enable an organism to survive and reproduce in a particular environment will (in competition with other trait varieties) most likely be passed on to succeeding generations.
Identification
The process by which, according to Freud, children incorporate their parents' values into their developing superegos.
Introspection
The process of looking inward in an attempt to directly observe one's own psychological processes.
How did behaviorism, Freudian psychology, and humanistic psychology further the development of psychological science?
- Early researchers defined psychology as "the science of mental life." In the 1920a, under the influence of John B. Watson and the behaviorists, the field's focus changed to the "scientific study of observable behavior." Behaviorism became one of psychology's two major forces well into the 1960s. The second major force of Freudian psychology, along with the influence of humanistic psychology, revived interest in the study of mental processes.
What do psychologists working in various subfields do, and where do they work?
- Psychology's subfields include the basic research fields (cognitive, developmental, educational, experimental, psychometric and quantitative, and social psychology), the applied research fields (forensic, health, industrial-organizational, neuropsychology, rehabilitation, school, and sport psychology), and the helping professions (clinical, community, and counseling). - Work settings for psychologists include a wide range of government agencies, industrial and business settings, clinics, and counseling centers, health care institutions, schools, universities, and research organizations.
What are the three key elements of the scientific attitude, and how do they support scientific inquiry?
The scientific attitude equips us to become curious, skeptical, and humble in scrutinizing competing ideas or our own observations.
Social psychology
The scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another; interactions between humans; attitudes, leadership, prejudice, group interactions, aggression, and interpersonal attraction.
Positive psychology
The scientific study of human flourishing, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive.
Behavioral psychology
The scientific study of observable behavior, and its explanation by principles of learning; how we learn observable responses.
Biological psychology
The scientific study of the links between biological (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological processes (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.
Psychometrics
The scientific study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits.
Psychology (Ψ)
The study of behavior and mental processes.
Educational psychology
The study of how psychological processes affect and can enhance teaching and learning; the relationships between learning and the physical/social environments.
Social-cultural psychology
The study of how situations and cultures affect our behavior and thinking.
How did psychology develop from early understandings of mind and body to the beginnings of modern science?
- The ancient Greeks — Plato and Aristotle — pondered whether mind and body are connected or distinct, and whether human ideas are innate or result from experience. - Descartes and Locke reengaged those ancient debates, with Locke offering his famous description of the mind as a "blank slate" on which experience writes. The ideas of Bacon and Locke contributed to the development of modern empiricism.
What is the biopsychosocial approach, and what are psychology's main theoretical perspectives?
- The biopsychosocial approach integrates information from three differing but complementary viewpoints: biological, psychological, and social-cultural. - This approach offers a more complete understanding than could usually be reached by relying on only one of psychology's theoretical perspectives (behavioral, biological, cognitive, evolutionary, humanistic, psychodynamic, and social-cultural).
Cognitive psychology
The study of human thinking and mental processes that occur when we perceive, learn, remember, think, communicate, and problem solve; how thinking and emotion interact in anxiety, depression, and other disorders; how we encode, process, store, and retrieve information.
Personality psychology
The study of individuals; characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting.
Psychometric and quantitative psychology
The study of math using related methods to acquire psychological knowledge; running data into tests.
Neuropsychology
The study of relationships between neurological processes and behavior.
Evolutionary psychology
The study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection.
B. F. Skinner (1904-1990)
A leading behavioralist who rejected introspection and studied how consequences shape behavior. He came up with the model of learning and the idea of the operant conditioning-choice: when people do something and get bad consequences, they don't repeat the action, and that when people do something and get good consequences, they'll do it again.
Id
A reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that, according to Freud, strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives; operates on the pleasure principle, demanding immediate gratification and satisfaction of sexual drives.
SQ3R
A study method incorporating five steps: survey, question, read, retrieve, review.
Behavior genetics
The study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior.
Ology
The study of.
Behaviorism
The view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most psychologists today agree with (1) but not (2).
Psychodynamic theories
Theories that view personality with a focus on the unconscious and the importance of childhood experiences; refers to the id, ego, and superego; sex is the basis of personality.
Critical thinking
Thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions. Rather it examines assumptions, apprises the source, discerns hidden biases, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions.
Edward Bradford Titchener (1867-1927)
Used introspection to search for the mind's structural elements. British Psychologist who studied under Wundt. With Wundt, he founded structuralism, which seeks to analyze the adult mind in terms of the simplest definable components and then to connect them to form more complex experiences.
William James (1842-1910
Was a legendary teacher-writer who authored an important 1890 psychology text called "The Principles of Psychology." A Harvard philosopher and psychologist who helped develop psychology in America. Established functionalism.
Oedipus complex
According to Freud, a boy's sexual desires toward his mother and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the rival father.
Electra complex
According to Freud, a girl's sexual desires toward her father and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the rival mother.
Unconscious
According to Freud, a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories. According to contemporary psychologists, information processing of which we are unaware.
APA
American Psychological Association.
Functionalism
An early school of thought promoted by James and influenced by Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral processes function — how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish.
Structuralism
An early school of thought promoted by Wundt and Titchener; used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind.
Personality
An individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting; what makes us unique and stand out from others
Biopsychosocial approach
An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural viewpoints.
Forensic psychology
Applying psychological principles to legal issues.
What is the difference between basic and applied psychology?
Within the science of psychology, researchers may conduct basic research to increase the field's knowledge base (often in biological, developmental, cognitive, educational, personality, and social psychology) or applied research to solve practical problems (in industrial-organizational and human factors psychology, for example).
John B. Watson (1878-1958)
Worked with Rayner to champion psychology as the scientific study of behavior. In a controversial study on a baby who became famous as "Little Albert," he and Rayner showed that fear could be learned. Founded behaviorism and was president of the APA.
Rosalie Rayner (1898-1935)
Worked with Watson to champion psychology as the scientific study of behavior. In a controversial study on a baby who became famous as "Little Albert," she and Watson showed that fear could be learned.
Rehabilitation psychology
Working with people who lost optimal function after an accident, illness, or other event.
G. Stanley Hall
Wundt's American student who established the first formal US psychology laboratory at Johns Hopkins University in 1883 (and then three other labs). He founded psychological study as a formal science in America, and was the founder and first president of the APA.
Freudian slip
Your unconscious mind sneaking through.
Explain each part of the biopsychosocial approach.
Behavior has three components: 1. Biological influence: - Out of our control. - Genetics and mutations. - Genes responding to the environment. - Behaviors passed down from generations. 2. Psychological influence: - Can be controlled. - Learned fears and expectations. - Emotional responses. - Cognitive processing and interpretations. 3. Social-cultural influence: - Presence of others. - Family expectations. - Peer and other group influences. - Social media. - Childhood experiences.
Cortex
Black box of the brain.
Mental processing
Brain activity.
Collective unconscious
Carl Jung's concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species' history
Observable
Clear and obvious.
How does critical thinking feed a scientific attitude, and smarter thinking for everyday life?
Critical thinking puts ideas to the test by examining assumptions, appeasing the source, discerning hidden biases, evaluating evidence, and assessing conclusions.
Charles Darwin (1809-1882)
English evolutionary theorist and naturalist who assumed that thinking, like smelling, developed because it was adaptive — it helped our ancestors survive and reproduce; came up with the theory of natural selection.
Testing effect
Enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information; AKA the retrieval practice effect or test-enhanced learning.
Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920)
Established the first psychology laboratory at the University of Leipzig, Germany. He founded psychology as a formal science in Germany in 1879.
Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)
Famed personality theorist and therapist with controversial ideas that have influenced humanity's self-understanding. Austrian neurologist who created the theory of psychoanalysis and the id, ego, and superego. Placed an emphasis on the unconscious, childhood experience, and dream analysis. Believed that childhood sexuality and unconscious motivations influence personality.
Psychoanalysis
Freud's theory of personality that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts' the techniques used in treating psychological disorders by seeking to expose and interpret unconscious tensions.
Carl Rogers (1902-1987)
Humanistic psychologist in the 1960s who found both behaviorism and Freudian psychology too limiting; focused on our potential for personal growth. Founded humanistic psychology; came up with the idea of unconditional positive regard. Nominated for a Nobel Prize. Came up with the person-centered perspective.
Abraham Maslow (1908-1970)
Humanistic psychologist in the 1960s who found both behaviorism and Freudian psychology too limiting; focused on our potential for personal growth. Founder of humanistic psychology. Believed in the hierarchy of needs, self-actualization, and self-transcendence.
Free association
In psychoanalysis, a method of exploring the unconscious in which the person relaxes and says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing.
Fixation
In psychoanalytic theory, according to Freud, a lingering focus of pleasure-seeking energies at an earlier psychosexual stage, in which conflicts were unresolved.
Repression
In psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories. Enables other defense mechanisms to go into effect.
Defense mechanisms
In psychoanalytic theory, the ego's protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality.
Mary Whiton Calkins (1863-1930)
James's wife; became a pioneering memory researcher and the first woman to be president of the American Psychological Association. Had a PhD and research memory, personality, and dreams. Established one of the first psychology labs. Tutored by James.
Dorothea Dix (1802-1887)
Led the way to humane treatment of those with psychological disorders. American activist on behalf of indigent poor and mentally ill. Helped to create mental institutions.
Scientific study
Making hypothesis and responding to them; being skeptical and then testing to find answers.
Psyche
Mind and soul; Greek origin.
Measurable
Not always easy to see; something internal (like a pulse).
Chunking
Process of taking large amount of items and making them into fewer units, like breaking down a word.
Health psychology
Promoting health and preventing disease.
How is psychology a science, and why is it the "rat is always right"?
Psychology's findings are the result of carful observation and testing, and the so-called "rat" (as in a psychologist's maze, for example) is always right, because the facts are facts even when we find them surprising.
Basic research
Pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base.
Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936)
Russian physiologist and behaviorist who pioneered the study of learning through the discovery of the principles of classical conditioning.
Applied research
Scientific study that aims to solve practical problems.
Environmental psychology
Studying the interaction of individuals with their natural and built environments.
Sports psychology
Studying the psychological factors that influence/are influenced by participation in sports and other physical activity
Jean Piaget (1896-1980)
Swiss biologist and psychologist who was last century's most influential observer of children. Developed the theory of cognitive development in children.
Industrial-organizational (I/O) psychology
The application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces; the interaction of people and their work environments.
School psychology
The assessment of and intervention for children in an educational setting.
Psychosexual stages
The childhood stages of development (oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital) during which, according to Freud, the id's pleasure-seeking energies focus on distill erogenous zones.
Culture
The enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next.
How has contemporary psychology focused on cognition, biology and experience, culture and gender, and human flourishing?
- The cognitive revolution in the 1960s led psychology back to its early interest in the mind, and its current definition as the science of behavior and mental processes. - Our growing understanding of biology and experience has fed psychology's most enduring debate. The nature-nurture issue centers on the relative contributions of genes and experience, and their interaction in specific environments. - Charles Darwin's view that natural selection shapes behaviors as well as bodies led to evolutionary psychology's study of our similarities because of our common biology and evolutionary history, and behavior genetics' focus on the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior. - Cross-cultural and gender studies have diversified psychology's assumptions while also reminding us of our similarities. Attitudes and behaviors may vary somewhat by gender or across culture, but because of our shared human kinship, the underlying processes and principles are more similar than different. - Psychology's traditional focus on understanding and treating troubles has expanded with positive psychology's call for more research on human flourishing and its attempt to discover and promote traits that help people to thrive.
How can psychological principles help you to learn, remember, and thrive, and do better on the AP exam?
- The testing effect shows that learning and memory are enhanced by actively retrieving, rather than simply rereading, previously studied material. - The SQ3R study method — survey, question, read, retrieve, and review — applies principles derived from memory research and can help you learn and remember material. - Four additional study tips are (1) distribute your study time, (2) learn to think critically, (3), process class information actively, and (4) overlearn. - Psychological research has shown that people who live happy, thriving lives (1) manage their time to get a full night's sleep, (2) make space for exercise, (3) have a growth mindset, and (4) prioritize relationships.
What were some important milestones in psychology's early development?
- Wilhelm Wundt established the first psychological laboratory in 1879 in Germany. - Two early schools of though in psychology were structuralism and functionalism. - Structuralism, promoted by Wundt and Titchener, used self-reflection to learn about the mind's structure. - Functionalism, promoted by James, explored how behavior and thinking function.
List psychology's theoretical perspectives:
1. Behavioral 2. Biological 3. Cognitive 4. Evolutionary 5. Humanistic 6. Psychodynamic 7. Social-cultural
Psychiatry
A branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who are licensed to provide medical (for example, drug) treatments as well as psychological therapy; provided psychotherapy but is a medical doctor licensed to prescribe drugs and otherwise treat physical causes of psychological disorders.
Counseling psychology
A branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being; helped people adjust to life transitions or make lifestyle changes; life coach.
Experimental psychology
A branch of psychology that investigates basic behavioral processes in humans and other animals.
Community psychology
A branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups; deals with the broad problems of mental health in community settings; federal, state, and local departments (not private settings).
Psychodynamic psychology
A branch of psychology that studies how unconscious drives and conflicts influence behavior and uses that information to treat people with psychological disorders.
Development psychology
A branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the lifespan.
Clinical psychology
A branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders; promotes health in individuals, groups, and organizations.
Human factors psychology
A field of psychology allied with I/O psychology that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use.
Humanistic psychology
A historically significant perspective that emphasized human growth potential and self-fulfillment.
