Psych 1101 Chapter 1 & 2

The study of how people change physically, mentally, and socially throughout the life span is called:

developmental psychology

how many lobes does the cerebral cortex have

four: the occipital lobe, temporal lobe, parietal lobe, and frontal lobe

Where is the parietal lobe located?

top of head

Someone working from a psychodynamic perspective might

view an outburst as an outlet for unconscious hostility.

As scientists, psychologists

are willing to ask questions and to reject claims that cannot be verified by research.

Hormones are secreted into the blood by the _____ system.

endocrine system

Someone working from a social-cultural perspective might

explore how expressions of anger vary across cultural contexts.

what are the three issuse in developemental psychology

nature-nurture, continuity and stages, and stability and change

what is puberty

the period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing.

endorphines

"morphine within"— natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure.

Who was the first woman allowed into a graduate psychology course

Mary Whiton Calkins

Where is the temporal lobe?

above ears

where is the frontal lobe

behind forehead

what is the medulla

the base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing

accommodate

(1) in developmental psychology, adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information. (2) in sensation and perception, the process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina.

refactory period

(1) in neural processing, a brief resting pause that occurs after a neuron has fired; subsequent action potentials cannot occur until the axon returns to its resting state. (2) in human sexuality, a resting period that occurs after orgasm, during which a person cannot achieve another orgasm

what is a teratogen

(literally, "monster makers") agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm.

A single act of intercourse is half as likely to produce a pregnancy for a woman between the ages of ______as it is in women aged 19 to 26.

35-39

What degree did Mary Whiton Calkins recieve

She was not given a degree from harvard from her school, but instead a degree from a "sister school" that held lesser value to her accomplishments so she denied the unequal treatment.

How can critical thinking help you evaluate claims in the media, even if you're not a scientific expert on the issue?

Critical thinking is smart thinking. When evaluating media claims (even about topics you might not know much about), look for empirical evidence. Ask the following questions in your analysis: Are the claims based on scientific findings? Have several studies replicated the findings and confirmed them? Are any experts cited? If so, are they affiliated with a credible institution? Have they conducted or written about scientific research? What agenda might they have? What alternative explanations are possible?

When was psychology born?

December 1879

Which of the following is true regarding gender differences and similarities?

Despite some gender differences, the underlying processes of human behavior are the same.

what is egocentric

In Piaget's theory, the preoperational child's difficulty taking another's point of view.

In the early twentieth century, redefined psychology as "the science of observable behavior."

John B. Watson

"Nurture works on what nature provides." Describe what this means, using your own words.

The environment (nurture) has an influence on us, but that influence is constrained by our biology (nature). Nature and nurture interact. People predisposed to be very tall (nature), for example, are unlikely to become Olympic gymnasts, no matter how hard they work (nurture).

In 1879, in psychology's first experiment, and his students measured the time lag between hearing a ball hit a platform and pressing a key.

Wilhelm Wundt.

Anatoli and Andrei are 11-month-old identical twins. Anatoli took his first steps yesterday. How soon will Andrei take his first steps?

Within a day. Identical twins generally begin walking on nearly the same day.

synapse

[SIN-aps] 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 called the synaptic gap or synaptic cleft

MEG (magnetoencephalography)

a brain-imaging technique that measures magnetic fields from the brain's natural electrical activity

what is psychiatry

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

what is 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.

what is community psychology

a branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups.

what is developemental psychology

a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span.

What is clinical psychology?

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

what is a schema

a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information.

what are split brains

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

what is Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

a disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by significant deficiencies in communication and social interaction, and by rigidly fixated interests and repetitive behaviors

myelin sheath

a fatty tissue layer segmentally encasing the axons of some neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed as neural impulses hop from one node to the next

what is a scaffold

a framework that offers children temporary support as they develop higher levels of thinking.

What is humanistic psychology?

a historically significant perspective that emphasized human growth potential.

agonsit

a molecule that increases a neurotransmitter's action.

antagonist

a molecule that inhibits or blocks a neurotransmitter's action.

neuron

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

reticular formation

a nerve network that travels through the brainstem into the thalamus and plays an important role in controlling arousal.

what is the hippocampus

a neural center located in the limbic system; helps process explicit (conscious) memories—of facts and events—for storage. sea horse shaped.

action potential

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

What is the hypothalamus?

a neural structure lying below ( hypo ) the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion and reward

dendrite

a neuron's often bushy, branching extensions that receive and integrate messages, conducting impulses toward the cell body

all-or-none response

a neuron's reaction of either firing (with a full-strength response) or not firing.

reuptake

a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the sending neuron

adrenal glands

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.

What is emerging adulthood?

a period from about age 18 to the mid-twenties, when many in Western cultures are no longer adolescents but have not yet achieved full independence as adults.

what is temperment

a person's characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity

what is applied research

a scientific study that aims to solve practical problems.

what is basic trust

a sense that the world is predictable and reliable.

reflexes

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

fMRI (functional MRI)

a technique for revealing blood flow and, therefore, brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans. fMRI scans show brain function as well as structure.

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)

a technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated images of soft tissue. MRI scans show brain anatomy

PET (positron emission tomography) scan

a visual display of brain activity that detects where a radioactive form of glucose goes while the brain performs a given task

When we adapt our current understandings to incorporate information, we have engaged in:

accomidation

What happened when Mary Whiton Calkins joined the graduate class at harvard

all other students, whom were all men, dropped out of the class.

what is cognition

all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.

EEG (electroencephalogram)

an amplified recording of the waves of electrical activity sweeping across the brain's surface. These waves are measured by electrodes placed on the scalp.

What is the somatosensory cortex?

an area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations.

what is the motor cortex

an area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements

what is 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

What is structuralism

an early school of thought promoted by Wundt and Titchener; used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind.

what is attachment

an emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to their caregiver and showing distress on separation.

What is the Empirical Approach

an evidence-based method that draws on observation and experimentation

what is the biopsychosocial approach

an integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis.

what is a critical period

an optimal period early in the life of an organism when exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces normal development.

Someone working from an evolutionary perspective might

analyze how anger facilitated the survival of our ancestors' genes

what are association areas

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, and speaking

Someone working from a behavioral perspective might

attempt to determine what triggers aggressive acts.

what are the four main parenting styles

authoritarian, permissive, authoritative, neglectful

What is Humility

awareness of our own vulnerability to error and openness to surprises and new perspectives.

Where is the occipital lobe?

back of head

What is maturation?

biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience.

Nature is to nurture as

biology is to experience.

Someone working from a neuroscience perspective might study

brain circuits that cause us to be red in the face and "hot under the collar."

nerves

bundled axons that form neural cables connecting the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sense organs

glial cells

cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons; they may also play a role in learning, thinking, and memory.

what is the hind brain

cerebellum

hormones

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

neurotransmitters

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

A psychologist treating emotionally troubled adolescents at a local mental health agency is most likely to be a(n)

clinical psychologists

Those in this stage of Lawrence Kohlberg's theory of moral thinking believe that laws are needed to maintain social order.

conventional morality

what is the scientific attitude

curiosity + skepticism + humility

Which part of the cerebral cortex deals with abstract thinking, planning, executive control, and judgment—the qualities that make us most human?

frontal lobe

William James would be considered a(n) . Wilhelm Wundt and Edward Titchener would be considered .

functionalist; structuralists

nervous system

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

what is intimacy

in Erikson's theory, the ability to form close, loving relationships; a primary developmental task in young adulthood

What is the preoperational stage?

in Piaget's theory, the stage (from about 2 to 6 or 7 years of age) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic.

sensorimotor stage

in Piaget's theory, the stage (from birth to nearly 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities.

What is the concrete operational stage?

in Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 7 to 11 years of age) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events.

What is the formal operational stage?

in Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts.

Where was psychology born?

in a small, third-floor room at Germany's University of Leipzig

People differ the most in their learning and memory abilities during:

late adulthood

Candace Pert and Solomon Snyder (1973)

made an exciting discovery about neurotransmitters when they attached a harmless radioactive tracer to morphine, an opiate drug that elevates mood and eases pain.

What is the limbic system?

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

sensory neurons

neurons that carry incoming information from the body's tissues and sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord.

motor neurons

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

interneurons

neurons within the brain and spinal cord; they communicate internally and process information between the sensory inputs and motor outputs.

A psychologist conducting basic research to expand psychology's knowledge base may

observe 3- and 6-year-olds solving puzzles and analyze differences in their abilities

what is identity

our sense of self; according to Erikson, the adolescent's task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles.

Estrogen and progesterone are simultaneously produced by which glands?

ovaries

Which hormone is commonly referred to as the "cuddle" hormone?

oxytocin

what is authoritarian parenting

parents are coercive. They impose rules and expect obedience: "Don't interrupt." "Keep your room clean." "Don't stay out late or you'll be grounded." "Why? Because I said so."

What is authoritative parenting?

parents are confrontive. They are both demanding and responsive. They exert control by setting rules, but, especially with older children, they encourage open discussion and allow exceptions.

what is negligent parenting

parents are uninvolved. They are neither demanding nor responsive. They are careless, inattentive, and do not seek a close relationship with their children.

what is permissive parenting

parents are unrestraining. They make few demands, set few limits, and use little punishment.

what is the theory of mind

people's ideas about their own and others' mental states—about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict.

What is habituation?

physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman's heavy drinking. In severe cases, signs include a small, out-of-proportion head and abnormal facial features.

what is fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)

physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman's heavy drinking. In severe cases, signs include a small, out-of-proportion head and abnormal facial features.

2. Which structure is the conductor, or "master gland," of the hormone-producing system?

pituitary gland

Which gland is commonly referred to as the "master gland"?

pituitary gland

Martin Seligman and other researchers who explore various aspects of human flourishing refer to their field of study as .

positive psychology

Those in this stage of Kohlberg's theory of moral thinking would be likely to say something like, "People have a right to live."

post-conventional moraltiy

A mental health professional with a medical degree who can prescribe medication is a .

psychiatrist.

what is basic research

pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base.

Although physical decline begins in early adulthood, it is not until later in life that the declines become really noticeable. Which of the following show the greatest decline in later life?

reaction time

cross-sectional study

research that compares people of different ages at the same point in time.

longitudinal study

research that follows and retests the same people over time

Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky believed that cognitive development is strongly influenced by:

social and cultural factors.

_____ is the "we" aspect of our self-concept that comes from our group memberships.

social identity

Our reflexes such as pulling your hand away from a flame, are governed by the ____, while basic functions of motor skills and respiration are governed by the _____.

spinal cord; hindbrain

Someone working from a behavior genetics perspective might

study how heredity and experience influence our individual differences in temperament.

Someone working from a cognitive perspective might

study how our interpretation of a situation affects our anger and how our anger affects our thinking.

Clarrisa, who has suffered from epilepsy all her life, takes Trileptal to control her seizures. Recently she became pregnant with her first child. She then checked on her medication and found that no adequate studies have been performed on the effect of the medication on pregnant women. She asked her doctor whether Trileptal was a(n):

teratogen

What is the cerebellum?

the "little brain" at the rear of the brainstem; functions include processing sensory input, coordinating movement output and balance, and enabling nonverbal learning and memory

social identity

the "we" aspect of our self-concept; the part of our answer to "Who am I?" that comes from our group memberships.

object permanence

the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived

endocrine system

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

Central nervous system (CNS)

the brain and the spinal cord

what is the thalamus

the brain's sensory control center, located on top of the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla.

social clock

the culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement.

what is a fetus

the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth.

what is the embryo

the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month.

What is the level of analysis

the differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon.

sympathetic nervous system

the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy

parasympathetic nervous system

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

somantic nervous system

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

pituitary gland

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

what is culture

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

what is stranger anxiety

the fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of age.

What are zygotes?

the fertilized egg; it enters a 2-week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo.

What is neurogenesis?

the formation of new neurons.

what is cognitive neuroscience?

the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language).

what is the cerebral cortex

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

What is the corpus callosum?

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

threshold

the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.

What is the 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.

axon

the neuron extension that passes messages through its branches to other neurons or to muscles or glands.

what is the brainstem

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

cell body

the part of a neuron that contains the nucleus; the cell's life-support center

autonomic nervous system

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

Which of the following refers to what began as a zygote's outer cells and screens out many harmful substances that might be dangerous to the developing embryo and fetus?

the placenta

what is the occipital lobe

the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; includes areas that receive information from the visual fields

what is the parietal lobe

the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; receives sensory input for touch and body position.

what is the frontal lobe

the portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead; involved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans and judgments

what s the temporal lobe

the portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; includes the auditory areas, each receiving information primarily from the opposite ear.

what is 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 variations) most likely be passed on to succeeding generations.

conservation

the principle that quantity remains the same despite changes in shape

what is imprinting

the process by which certain animals form strong attachments during early life.

What is psychology

the science of behavior and mental processes.

what is 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.

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

peripheral nervous system (PNS)

the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body

What is cognitive psychology?

the study of mental processes, such as occur when we perceive, learn, remember, think, communicate, and solve problems.

what is evolutionary psychology

the study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection.

what are behavior genetics

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

what is menopause

the time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines.

what is 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 with (2).

What is adolescence?

the years spent morphing from child to adult

What is critical thining

thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions. Rather, it examines assumptions, appraises the source, discerns hidden biases, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions.

what is leison

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

assimilate

to absorb fully; to adopt as one's own; to adapt fully

Which of the following refers to an individual whose assigned sex at birth does not correspond with their gender identity?

transgender

What is the amygdala?

two lima-bean-sized neural clusters in the limbic system; linked to emotion