Psych Test 1 Review

Which of the following would indicate the weakest relationship and thus be close to complete randomness?

+0.01

The lowest level of stimulation that a person can consciously detect 50 percent of the time the stimulation is present is called

Absolute threshold

A common and very dangerous misconception often seen on the Internet is the idea that a childhood immunization, the MMR vaccine, causes autism. This is completely false, but began when a man published a falsified and now discredited paper making that claim. He was later found to have received money from lawyers representing parents of children with autism who wanted to sue the vaccine companies. Which criterion of critical thinking is most clearly being violated by those who accept the false claim?

All evidence is not equal in quality.

Cindy stares at a fixed spot in her bedroom using only one eye. After a while, what might happen to her vision?

Any small object that crosses her visual field very slowly may at one point briefly disappear.

A famous golfer advertises a new golf bracelet that helps minimize fatigue while playing. If Bethany decides to order the bracelet because she believes that such a well-known personality should know if it works or not, she has made an error in which of the following?

Authority or expertise does not make the claims of the authority or expert true.

Which of the following is an ethical consideration when using nonhuman animals in research?

Avoiding exposing them to unnecessary pain.

The famous study of Phineas Gage, who survived when a metal rod pierced his skull, is an example of a

Case study

Nicole and Camille are synchronized swimmers for their college swim team. They often work long hours to ensure the movements in their routine are perfectly timed. What part of their brains must Camille and Nicole rely most upon?

Cerebellum

Which of the following is largely determined by the length of a light wave?

Color

Aside from the lens, damage to the ________ can affect the eye's ability to focus light.

Cornea

Dr. Calvin needs just one more participant to complete her experiment. Lisa, a student of Dr. Calvin, has almost completed the experiment when she announces she wants to quit because the experiment is boring. What options does Dr. Calvin have?

Dr. Calvin must let Lisa go and find another participant.

If you were suffering from neurological problems and your neurologist wanted to have a study done of your brain and its electrical functioning, which of the following techniques would be most appropriate?

EEG

Sigmund Freud's psychoanalysis focused on

Early childhood experiences

Who is considered to be the father of Black American psychology?

Francis Cecil Sumner

Which theory cannot adequately account for pitches above 1,000 Hz?

Frequency

Which psychologist dared to ignore the whole consciousness issue and return to a study of scientific inquiry by focusing on observable behavior?

John Watson

Sumit's grandfather recently suffered a stroke and has had difficulty with language production ever since. Most likely, he has experienced damage to the __________ area of his brain.

Left frontal

Who was the first woman to complete the coursework for a doctorate at Harvard University?

Mary Whiton Calkins

Which technique of studying the brain involves injecting the patient with radioactive glucose?

PET

_________ refers to an individual's capacity to effectively cope with and quickly recover from the adverse physiological, psychological, and social outcomes of stress.

Resilience

________ involves the detection of physical stimuli from our environment and is made possible by the activation of specific receptor cells.

Sensation

If Dr. Byers uses an eclectic approach in her clinical treatment of children, what is it that she is doing?

She is using a combination of perspectives to treat different clients.

In a __________ study, the participants do not know if they are part of the control group or the experimental group. Only the experimenter knows who is in each group.

Single-blind

What happens when the results of a study create an undesirable outcome for the participant?

The researcher must find some way of helping the participant deal with the negative impact.

What is the first guideline for doing research with people?

The rights and well-being of the participants must come first.

If Dr. LeMay is like most psychologists, where does she probably work?

University/ College

Tracy suffered a severe blow to the back of her head when she was thrown from her horse. Subsequently, her occipital lobe has been injured. Which of her senses has the highest chance of being affected?

Vision

What is the biggest reason we use nonhuman animals in research?

We can do things to nonhuman animals that we can't do to people.

You have a dream in which you wake up to find that people around you are using words that make no sense. What's more, your friends don't seem to understand you when you speak. At one point in your dream, your mom tells you that you almost forgot your tree limb today. When you give her a puzzled look, she holds up your lunchbox and repeats, "You know, your tree limb." Your predicament in your dream is most like which of the following disorders?

Wernicke's aphasia

Robbie is recovering from a brain injury. He is able to speak fluently but often uses incorrect words in a sentence. In one instance at a friend's birthday party, he said, "I would like something to drink. Can I have some battery?" Robbie's problem may be a symptom of

Wernicke's aphasia.

Which early psychologist was the first to try to bring objectivity and measurement to the concept of psychology?

Wilhelm Wundt

Which of the following early psychologists would have been most likely to agree with the statement, "The study of the mind should focus on how it functions in everyday life"?

William James

Which of the following is an example of observer bias?

You develop an opinion of what you expect to see in an experiment.

Saju has suffered minor damage to the bones in his left middle ear. What treatment, if any, might help restore his hearing?

a hearing aid

Which neurotransmitter stimulates skeletal muscle cells to contract but slows contractions of the heart?

acetylcholine (ACh)

The neurons of the sensory pathway contain

afferent neurons

Heroin mimics the actions of endorphins, inhibiting pain signals. Heroin is an _______ for endorphins.

agonist

The venom of a black widow spider acts as a(n) __________ by mimicking the effects of acetylcholine.

agonist

Which stage of the general adaptation syndrome is accompanied by activation of the sympathetic nervous system?

alarm

If you were to develop a rare condition in which you were not able to remember to be afraid of certain situations, animals, or events, which part of the brain would most likely be damaged?

amygdala

Involuntary muscles are controlled by the __________ nervous system.

autonomic

Which part of the neuron carries information from the cell body to axon terminals?

axon

Kamal has learned that if he cries with his mother in public, she will often get him a new toy or a piece of candy so as to quiet him. Which of the following perspectives explains Kamal's behavior?

behavioral

Which early perspective tried to return to a focus on scientific inquiry by ignoring the study of consciousness?

behaviorism

Which perspective offers the best explanation for schizophrenia?

biopsychological

Dr. Colton identifies himself with the largest subfield of psychology. What kind of psychologist is he?

clinical

Of the following, which is NOT one of the stages of the general adaptation syndrome?

compensation

What part of the brain can sometimes be referred to as the "rind" or outer covering?

cortex

In the structure of the neuron, the __________ receives messages from other cells.

dentrite

Dr. White noticed something odd happening to the behavior of his students as midterm exams neared. He decided to take notes about this behavior to find out exactly what was happening and the circumstances surrounding the behavior. His goal is clearly

description

Dr. Carr is conducting a research study. She wants to measure the physical connectivity in the research participants' brains by imaging their white matter. Which of the following methods will she use?

diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)

A researcher asks an assistant to conduct a study on her behalf. She specifically tells her assistant only to share the results anonymously and not include the names of the students along with their scores. Such an experiment would be considered a

double-blind experiment

Which of the following techniques involves passing a mild current through the brain to activate certain structures without damaging them?

electrical stimulation of the brain (ESB)

Which of the following is associated with pain relief?

endorphins

Which of the following perspectives focuses on the biological bases of universal mental characteristics?

evolutionary

A psychologist is interested in finding out why married couples seemingly begin to look like each other after several years of marriage. This psychologist is most interested in the goal of

explanation

Which of the following techniques analyzes blood oxygen levels to look at the functioning of the brain?

fMRI

Which one of the following is NOT a function of glial cells?

generating action potentials

After being in class for a while, ____________ is a likely explanation for not hearing the sound of the fan in the LCD projector above you until someone says something about it.

habituation

Which part of the brain is involved in the creation of long-term, declarative memories and is often linked to Alzheimer's disease?

hippocampus

Which perspective is often referred to as the "third force" in psychology and focuses on a person's freedom of choice in determining their behavior?

humanism

In farsightedness, also known as _______________, the focal point is _____________ the retina.

hyperopia; beyond

When a neuron is in the resting potential state, the neuron is negatively charged on the _________ and positively charged on the _________.

inside; outside

In the definition of psychology, mental processes means

internal, covert processes.

The oval window is found in what part of the ear?

middle ear

Yvette's ability to reach for and pick up her book is largely due to the functions of the _________ pathway of the _____________ nervous system.

motor; somatic

Oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells generate a fatty substance known as

myelin

Which of the following helps electrical impulses speed along down the length of the axon?

myelin sheath

Stress can depress the release of _________ cells, whose primary function is to suppress viruses and destroy tumor cells.

natural killer (NK)

A researcher finds that as her subjects increased the number of hours they spent exercising, the overall weight of her subjects decreased. This would be an example of a _________ correlation.

negative

When a neuron's resting potential is occurring, the neuron is __________ charged on the inside.

negatively

What is the process whereby the structure and function of brain cells change in response to trauma, damage, or even learning?

neuroplasticity

Sandy is a subject in a study on memory and problem solving. The researcher is applying magnetic pulses to her brain through copper wire coils positioned directly above her scalp. Sandy's study would best be described as a(n) _______ technique.

noninvasive stimulation

In which of the following lobes of the cortex would you find the primary visual cortex?

occipital

Which of the following best explains afterimages?

opponent-process theory

In the definition of psychology, the term behavior means

overt actions and reactions.

Your friend Dana has suffered from diabetes for her entire life. She regularly tests her blood to make sure her sugar levels are not too high or low. Which gland in her endocrine system is responsible for regulating her blood sugar?

pancreas

As you take notes, your heart beats at a normal rate. Your breathing is normal and your stomach slowly digests your earlier meal. What part of the peripheral nervous system is currently in action?

parasympathetic

Which step in the scientific approach is derived from the goal of description?

perceiving a question

The part of the ear that can be seen is also called the

pinna

Micah has recently been diagnosed with a psychological disorder that is best addressed initially with medication. He would likely benefit the most by first seeing a

psychiatrist

Which perspective would a researcher be taking if she were studying a client's early childhood experiences and his resulting development of self?

psychodynamic

Which of the following professionals in psychology has a doctoral degree but it is not in medicine?

psychologist

What are the three primary colors as proposed by the trichromatic theory?

red, green, blue

Selena often sleeps soundly and rarely awakens to any outside noise. However, the cries of her baby can awaken her immediately. What part of the brain is responsible for this reaction?

reticular formation

Although the brain works largely as a whole, which of the following is not a correct pairing of hemisphere and function?

right; control of right-handed motor functions

You are drinking a strong cup of coffee that is particularly bitter. After a while, the coffee doesn't taste as strong as it did when you first tasted it. What has happened?

sensory adaptation

Which perspective best explains the bystander effect, whereby individuals will be less likely to help someone in need because of the presence of others close by?

sociocultural

Which of the following would be active if you have just narrowly missed having an automobile accident?

sympathetic division

Neurotransmitters must pass from the axon terminal of one cell to receptor sites on an adjacent cell's dendrite or soma by crossing a fluid-filled space called the

synapse

Brianne wants to find an explanation for the behavior of her lab rats in her study. Which step in the scientific approach is she currently focusing on?

testing a hypothesis

A researcher wants to study the effects of texting on driving. Students in Group A drive a car in a computer game and see how many virtual accidents they have. Students in Group B are asked to drive the same virtual car, but they must respond to and send at least three texts. The number of virtual accidents is measured for each group. What is the independent variable?

texting

Which brain structure relays incoming sensory information?

thalamus

Your psychology professor refers to this as the primary relay station for sensory information. What structure are they referring to?

thalamus

In an experiment to examine the effects of sleep deprivation on completion of a puzzle, one group is allowed to sleep 8 hours while another group is made to stay awake. In this experiment, the control group is

the group that gets to sleep.

Although oxytocin has been tied to a variety of prosocial behaviors such as "love" and "trust," some researchers believe that in humans, it may actually work to increase

the importance of some social stimuli

Double-blind studies control for

the placebo effect and the experimenter effect.

If you touch a hot stove, your spinal cord can prompt you to withdraw your hand without having to send the message all the way to the brain. This is due to what scientists call

the reflex arc

In the stereotypes-and-athletes study, who was the control group?

those students who completed the survey after the intelligence test

Buck has always been thin. In fact, he often seems to be able to eat whatever he wants without gaining weight. The doctor told his parents that Buck's __________ gland is the cause of his fast metabolism.

thyroid