Intro & Research

Which of the following neurotransmitters plays an excitatory role in stimulating the neurons involved in learning new information?

Acetylcholine

Which of the following are factors that increase the effectiveness of punishment?

All of the above.

Difficulty producing the sounds required for speech due to damage in the frontal lobe is referred to as:

Broca's aphasia.

Which of the following imaging techniques uses X-ray photography to produce visual representations of the brain?

CT scan

The purpose of _______is to provide a detailed description of some behavior or disorder, generally in a single individual.

Case study

Which of the following is NOT a structure of the cerebrum?

Cerebellum

Factors or conditions other than the independent variable that are not equivalent across groups and can cause differences among groups with respect to the dependent variable are called__________.

Cofounding variables

Which method would be used to measure the degree of relationship between two variables like alcohol consumption and grades?

Correlation method

What method is used to measure the strength of a relationship between two variables like cigarette smoking and lung cancer?

Correlational Method.

Psychologists are required to debrief subjects thoroughly after a research study when the study__________.

Deceives subjects about the true purpose of the research.

Research methods that yield descriptions of behavior rather than causal explanations are called________ methods.

Descriptive

In an experiment, the control group____________.

Does not receive the experimental treatment

A researcher conducting a study testing the effects of caffeine on attention is concerned that both her expectations and subjects expectations will effect the findings of this study. So neither the researcher nor the subjects knew who was in the control and experimental groups. What technique was being used in this study?

Double-blind

A group of rats was run through a maze for twelve days. On days 1 through 10, there was no food reward at the end of the maze, and the rats made many errors as they slowly moved through the maze. On day 11, a food reward was placed at the end of the maze. After the food reward was introduced, the rats ran the maze very quickly and with few errors. According to psychologist _____, this experiment demonstrated a phenomenon called _____.

Edward C. Tolman; latent learning

_______ psychology focuses on how humans have adapted the behaviors required for survival in the face of environmental challenges over time.

Evolutionary

The participants exposed to the independent variable are called_____________.

Experimental group

Which part of the brain is the largest of the brain's lobes, contains the motor cortex, and Broca's area?

Frontal lobes.

Laura has been involved in a serious accident, and as a result she cannot form new memories about people or concepts. Which of the following areas of her brain was most likely damaged?

Hippocampus

The placebo effect occurs when a subject responds according to__________.

His or her expectations

This is the variable that the researcher manipulates in order to determine its effects on other variables. It is called the_______________.

Independent variable

Correlations are useful in ______________.

Making predictions about variables.

The manager of a large shopping mall was upset about the groups of rowdy teenagers who were hanging out by the mall entrance and scaring off his older customers. He discovered that if he played classical music over the loudspeakers by the door, the teenagers no longer gathered at the entrance. The mall manager's use of classical music is an example of the use of _____ to modify the teenagers' behavior.

NOT negative reinforcement MAYBE: Negative punishment

When the cell membrane of a neuron changes its permeability, allowing more positively charged neurons to flow into the cell and other ions flow out, the neuron has reached its:

NOT resting potential

The procedure which guarantees that all participants in an experiment have an equal chance of being assigned to any of the groups is referred to as:

NOT unbiased sampling. MAYBE random assignment

In Pavlov's experiment the dogs salivated when meat powder was placed in their mouths. In this example, salivating to meat powder is a(n):

NOT unconditioned stimulus.

Dr. Ginsburg wants to study possible gender differences in the willingness of young children to engage in risky behaviors. To gather data, Ginsburg and a co-researcher carefully observe the willingness of boys and girls to try risky behaviors at a local zoo, such as petting a burro or feeding different animals. Dr. Ginsburg is using _____ to gather data.

Naturalistic observation

When researchers want to record spontaneuous behaviors that occur as they ordinarily would in the real world, then they use___________.

Naturalistic observation

Mary learned to apply her make-up by watching her mother apply her own make-up prior to going out in the evening. Which learning theory did Mary use to learn to apply her make-up?

Observational Learning.

A psychology instructor studying the effects of the order of test items on test scores gave half the class a test in which the item order reflected the order in the textbook. The other half received the same questions in random order. What was the INDEPENDENT variable in this experiment?

Order of text items

Which of the following are some of the guidelines used by psychologists when conducting research?

Participation must be voluntary.

A ________ mirrors the population of interest to be studied when using the survey method.

Representative sample

A psychology instructor studying the effects of the order of test items on test scores gave half the class a test in which the item order reflected the order in the textbook. The other half received the same questions in random order. What was the DEPENDENT variable in this experiment?

Scores on the test

A psychology instructor studying the effects of the order of test items on test scores gave half the class a test in which the item order reflected the order in the textbook. The other half received the same questions in random order. What was the DEPENDENT variable in this experiment?

Scores on the test.

Which of the following is a potential problem associated with punishment?

Severe punishement may result in fear, anger, and hostility toward the punisher

Which system is a series of ductless glands located throughout the body and manufactures and secretes hormones?

The endocrine system.

The research method that is used to explore cause-and-effect relationships between variables is__________.

The experimental method

What is the definition of psychology?

The scientific study of behavior and mental processes

Which of the following describes a negative correlation?

When the value of one variable goes up, the value of the other goes down.

In psychology, the formal definition of "learning" is_____________.

a relatively enduring change in behavior or knowledge as a result of past experience.

A program that motivates desirable behavior by reinforcing it with poker chips, stickers, coupons, that can be exchanged for desired items or privileges is referred to as ____________.

a token economy.

Messages from other neurons and sensory receptors____________.

are received by the dendrites.

The __________ operates without any conscious control and transmits messages between the central nervous system and the glands, cardia muscle, and smmoth muscles which are normally not under voluntary control.

autonomic nervous system

The systematic use of learning principles to change behavior is called_________

behavior modification.

A perspective that emphasizes the role of environment as a determinent of behavior is called:

behaviorism.

The use of sensitive equipment to give people feedback about internal physiological processes so that they can learn with practice to control them is called________________.

biofeedback

An electroencephalogram (EEG) records the _____ of the brain.

brain wave activity

The _____ is the most primitive part of the human brain and includes structures that are responsible for regulating heartbeat and respiration, screening sensory information, and regulating sleep and wake cycles.

brainstem

The purpose of _______is to provide a detailed description of some behavior or disorder, generally in a single individual.

case study

The ________ is comprised of the brain and spinal cord.

central nervous system

Which of the following is the brain structure that is responsible for coordinating our body movements?

cerebellum

The ________ is the area of the brain that is responsible for thought, memory, language, and perception.

cerebral cortex

A neurotransmitter is _____.

chemical that influences the firing of neurons.

In order to extinguish a classically conditioned response, you must repeatedly present the _________ WITHOUT the _______ .

conditioned stimulus; unconditioned stimulus.

In order to extinguish a classically conditioned response, you must repeatedly present the _________ without the _______.

conditioned stimulus; unconditioned stimulus.

The endocrine system______________.

contains glands that secrete hormones throughout the body.

In operant conditioning terms, punishment:

decreases the likelihood of a response.

Research methods that yield descriptions of behavior rather than causal explanations are called________ methods.

descriptive

In a series of conditioning experiments, a psychologist discovered that a rat readily made an association between the taste of flavored water and illness, but did not make an association between the taste of flavored water and a painful shock. The phenomenon called _____ best explains this example.

discrimination

If we drive through a red traffic light, we might receive a ticket. If the light is green, we will not receive a ticket. In operant conditioning terms, the red and green lights are considered a(n):

discriminative stimulus.

An________ reveals the electrical activity of the brain by producing a record of brain waves. A _________ reveals activity in various parts of the brain based on patterns of blow flow, oxygen use, and glucose consumption.

electroencephalograph; PET

Elaine loves to exercise. Sometimes, in the middle of vigorous aerobics program she begins to feel a pleasurable sensation or a high. Elaines fitness high is caused by her brains release of_____________.

endorphins

Learning is any relatively permanent change in behavior, knowledge, capability, or attitude that is acquired through:

experience.

Withholding of reinforcement in operant conditioning is called________________.

extinction

The _____ lobe is involved in a person's ability to plan, initiate, and carry out voluntary movements and actions.

frontal

The motor cortex is located in the ________ lobes.

frontal

The tendency to make a conditioned response to a stimulus that is similar to the original conditioned stimulus is called:

generalization

The placebo effect occurs when a subject responds according to__________.

his or her expectations.

The school of psychology that focuses on the uniqueness of human beings and their capacity for choice, growth, and psychological health is called:

humanistic psychology.

Which of the following brain structures is involved in the control of body temperature, hunger, and thirst?

hypothalamus

Christi is conducting an experiment on the effects of background music on studying. Christi believes that music will decrease what a person learns. This statement is likely her:

hypothesis.

A synapse is the _____.

junction where neurons communicate with one another.

Which part of the brains controls movement on the right side of the body?

left hemisphere

What structure is responsible for emotional expression, memory, and motivation?

limbic system.

Correlations are useful in ______________.

making predictions about variables.

The brain structure that controls heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure is the:

medulla

The brain structure that controls heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure is the________.

medulla

The person who is imitated when using observational learning is called_________.

model

Dr. Ginsburg wants to study possible gender differences in the willingness of young children to engage in risky behaviors. To gather data, Ginsburg and a co-researcher carefully observe the willingness of boys and girls to try risky behaviors at a local zoo, such as petting a burro or feeding different animals. Dr. Ginsburg is using _____ to gather data.

naturalistic observation

In order to examine the parenting behavior of pandas, two psychologists spent three years observing the panda in the mountainous regions of Western China. The method most likely used by these investigators was most likely:

naturalistic observation

The manager of a large shopping mall was upset about the groups of rowdy teenagers who were hanging out by the mall entrance and scaring off his older customers. He discovered that if he played classical music over the loudspeakers by the door, the teenagers no longer gathered at the entrance. The mall manager's use of classical music is an example of the use of _____ to modify the teenagers' behavior.

negative reinforcement

The chemicals in neurons that excite or inhibit other neurons are called:

neurotransmitters.

Pavlov taught a dog to salivate at the sound of a musical tone by repeatedly pairing the tone with food. In this example, the musical tone is the _____ before conditioning and the _____ after conditioning.

neutral stimulus; conditioned stimulus

In studying the effects of hunger on competition, a researcher has subjects skip one, two, or three meals and then play a competitive game. She notes the number of points scored by the subjects in the three hunger groups. In this example, the DEPENDENT variable is:

number of points scored.

According to the _____ conditioning model developed by _____, behavior is shaped and maintained by its environmental consequences.

operant; B. F. Skinner

The nerves connecting the central nervous system to the rest of the body is called the:

peripheral nervous system

Endorphins are most directly involved in the perception of:

physical pain.

The brain's capacity to adapt to changes such as brain damage is referred to as:

plasticity

When Mark was three years old he had a traumatic head injury. After two years, he made a full recovery with no apparent disability. His amazing recovery is likely due to _____.

plasticity.

Mary gets paid every week for working forty hours. In this situation, money is considered a_____________.

positive reinforcement.

An event that increases the probability that the response will be repeated is called ________and __________.

positive reinforcement; negative reinforcement.

Which of the following techniques produces an image of the brain's activity by tracking the brain's use of glucose or oxygen?

positron emission tomography

When Bobby is hungry, tired, and thirsty, he respoves this by getting food, water, and sleep. These are examples of:

primary reinforcers

A(n) ________ is anything that strengthens or increases the probability of the response it follows.

reinforcer

Anything that strengthens a response or increases the probability that it will occur is called____________.

reinforcer

A ______ includes all the subgroups within a given population in numbers that proportionally equal to those found in that population.

representative sample

Subjects selected for a survey from a population make up a group referred to as a:

sample.

Money, praise, good grades, and applause are examples of:

secondary reinforcers.

The neurotransmitter ______ plays a role in regulating mood, sleep, aggression, and appetite.

serotonin

When you reward gradual and successive approximations of a desired behavior, you are using:

shaping.

During the action potential_____________.

sodium ions rush into the interior of the axon.

When Anna was 3 years old, her aunt's pet parakeet landed on her head and pecked at her scalp, hurting her. Following this incident, Anna was afraid of the parakeet. But over time, Anna has become afraid of anything that flies, including butterflies, large flying insects, and wild birds. This example illustrates the phenomenon of _____ in _____ conditioning.

stimulus generalization; classical

In operant conditioning, a series of gradual steps each of which is more like the final desired response is referred to as____________.

successive approximations.

The two main subdivisions of the autonomic nervous system are the________________.

sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system.

When the proctor was handing out this test, you noticed that your respiration rate and heartbeat increased, your palms got sweaty, and your hand shook a little. Your pre-test behaviors were triggered by the:

sympathetic nervous system.

The junction where the axon of a sending neuron communicates with a receiving neuron across the synaptic cleft is called the:

synapse

Juan ate dinner at his favorite restaurant. While eating his meal, he found a fly in his food. Now, whenever he thinks about that meal, he becomes nauseous. Juan has developed a __________.

taste aversions.

The survey method is most useful when we wish to learn about:

the behaviors, beliefs, and attitudes of a large group of people.

The group of participants exposed to the independent variable is called:

the experimental group.

The research method that is used to explore cause-and-effect relationships between variables is__________.

the experimental method.

When using items such as stickers or points to motivate socially acceptable behaviors, we are using a___________.

token economy

Neurons _____.

transmit neural impulses.

When Pavlov presented began his experiment, he presented the dog with and tone and food. The dog responeded by salivating. In his experiment, the FOOD was the :

unconditioned stimulus.

Pavlov taught a dog to salivate at the sound of a musical tone by repeatedly pairing food with a musical tone. In this example, the food is the _____ and the dog salivating to the food is the _____.

unconditioned stimulus; unconditioned response

The resting potential is_____________.

when a neuron is not firing.

Extinction in operant conditioning involves:

withholding reinforcement.