Psychology Exam 1

Which of the following is not a potential problem associated with relying on college students as participants in psychological research?

They have higher attrition rates than other populations.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

somatic nervous system and autonomic nervous system

Sleepwalking is also referred to as ________.

somnambulism

The central nervous system consists of the brain and the ________.

spinal cord

________ can be used to assess ________.

statistical analyses; reliability

Select the correctly ordered list of psychological perspectives, with the earliest perspective listed first.

structuralism, functionalism, behaviorism, humanism

In Maslow's hierarchy of needs, the ________ include food, water, and shelter.

basic survival needs

dependent variable

behavior or mental process being measured

________ is a neurotransmitter with roles in pleasure and pain modulation.

beta-endorphin

Curare

blocks of ACh by binding at ACh receptor sites

Botulin

blocks release of ACh

Why can't all chemicals get into the brain?

blood-brain barrier

Central Nervous System (CNS)

brain and spinal cord

Which of the following higher level processes is not a function of the cerebral cortex?

breathing

parasympathetic nervous system

calms

Dr. Mattar is interested in knowing more about brain injury to the occipital cortex, and he studies patients individually in order to gain in-depth knowledge about their behaviors. These studies would best be described as ________.

case studies

Human eggs and sperm each contain 23 ________, which are composed of long strands of ________.

chromosomes; DNA

The scientific process is ________, involving both inductive and deductive reasoning.

circular

Parasites

common type of symbiosis

A ________ scan involves taking a number of x-rays of a particular section of a person's body or brain.

computerized tomography (CT) scan

Sandra strongly believes that attending daycare is detrimental to children's development so she decides to write her psychology term paper on this topic. She does a literature search and finds several sources supporting her opinion, but she finds that the majority of research indicates that children attending daycare experience healthy development. She writes a paper using the sources that find negative associations with daycare attendance. This is an example of ________.

confirmation bias

________ is the tendency to ignore evidence that disproves ideas or beliefs.

confirmation bias

What does the corpus callosum do?

connects the two hemispheres

Naghemeh wants to focus on the emotional, social, vocational, and health-related outcomes of individuals who are considered psychologically healthy. Which area of psychology should she work in?

counseling psychology

Order of neural communication

dendrite-cell body-axon-terminal buttons-synapse

The ________ variable measures effects of the independent variable.

dependent

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are drugs commonly prescribed for ________.

depression

A major advantage of case studies is ________.

detailed information

Which kind of psychological area does the work of Jean Piaget exemplify?

developmental psychology

Which two neurotransmitters have roles in appetite suppression?

dopamine; norepinephrine

In a ________ study, both the researchers and the participants are unaware of the group assignments.

double-blind

Researchers are conducting a study where they have concerns that the participant's beliefs and/or the experimenter's beliefs may skew the results. Therefore, they chose to conduct a ________ study.

double-blind

________ is a technique often used in studies investigating sleep patterns. Researchers place electrodes at various locations on a person's head in order to record brainwaves.

electroencephalography (EEG)

Humanism

emphasizes the potential for good that is innate to all humans

Sleep apnea is defined by ________.

episodes during which a sleeper's breathing stops

The theory of ________ states that organisms that are better suited for their environment will survive and reproduce, while those that are poorly suited for their environment will die off.

evolution by natural selection

Which psychological perspective might advance the argument that our sleep patterns evolved as an adaptive response to predatory risks, which are higher during periods of darkness?

evolutionary

Samek was driving to work when he suddenly felt paralyzed and couldn't resist falling asleep. Samek may have ________.

narcolepsy

If you show an adult a toy, and then hide it behind a curtain, the adult knows that the toy still exists. However, infants act as if a hidden object no longer exists. What does this exemplify?

object permanence

A negative correlation means ________.

one variable decreases as the other increases

Which theorist described dreams as having manifest and latent content?

sigmund freud

Which state is marked by relatively low levels of physical activity and reduced sensory awareness that is distinct from periods of rest while awake?

sleep

Dopamine

movement, learning, and emotion

Acetycholine (ACh)

muscle control, learning, and memory

Cataplexy is a symptom associated with ________.

narcolepsy

Cerebellum

voluntary movement and balance

somatic nervous system

voluntary muscles

The D.A.R.E. program is an example of ________.

why empirical research is needed

People often report that they have not been asleep if they are awoken during stage ________ sleep.

1

When was psychology accepted as an academic discipline?

1800s

Which of the following exemplifies the empirical method?

A graduate student observes and records how watching cartoons influences heart rates.

Which of the following statements is not a hypothesis?

Aggressive behaviors in female rats will be increased by testosterone administration, compared to a control group.

Which of the following is not a disadvantage of PET scanning?

An alternative diagnostic tool is fMRI.

Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when ________.

An individual's airway becomes blocked during sleep.

A series of dots arranged in the shape of a face will be perceived as a face, not a series of dots. A psychologist studying this phenomenon is applying the principals of ________.

Gestalt Psychology

Why is psychology considered a social science?

Behavior is biological, and our behavior is influenced by our interactions with others.

Marta is pursuing a graduate degree in psychology. As part of her program she must write a long research paper based on the data she spent the last year gathering. What is the long research paper called?

Dissertation

Which of these brain imaging techniques involve wearing electrodes?

EEG

William James was the ________.

First American psychologist

Planning decision making and judgement are carried out in the ______?

Frontal Lobe

This lobe is important for movement?

Frontal Lobe

Which of the following does not influence perception?

Gestalt

Twin boys both have a gene associated with aggressive tendencies. What is the most likely outcome to be observed in their behavior as they grow up?

It is not possible to determine the twins' behaviors based on having this single gene.

________, an anthropologist, contributed to our understanding of chimpanzee behavior in the wild, using naturalistic observation.

Jane Goodall

Which of the following statements about sleep-wake cycles is false?

Melatonin initiates the waking cycle.

This lobe is important for vision?

Occipital Lobe

Amplex

Parasitoid Wasp

This lobe is important for touch?

Parietal Lobe

What happens if you have too little dopamine?

Parkinson's

Ahmet is sleeping. His eyelids are quivering because his eyes are darting around. Ahmet is probably experiencing ________ sleep.

REM

Thalamus

Relay station for sensory information

Which researcher believed that dreams simply reflect life events that are important to the dreamer?

Rosalind Cartwright

In what stage of sleep do sleep spindles appear?

Stage 2

This lobe is important for hearing?

Temporal Lobe

Which of the following is a criticism of structuralism?

The process was highly subjective.

Which of the following is a reason that Gestalt psychology did not become more popular in the United States?

The rise of behaviorism overshadowed Gestalt psychology.

American researchers studying the effects of physical attractiveness on compliance wish to expand the cross-cultural generalizability of their findings to a Lebanese population. They travel to Lebanon and recruit local residents, whom the American researchers rate as attractive or unattractive, to act as experimental confederates. However, they are unable to replicate their research findings. What is a potential problem with this research?

The study may not be valid due to differences in standards of attractiveness between cultures.

What should be changed to make the following statement true? Jean Piaget is famous for his theories regarding changes in emotional ability that occur as we move from infancy to adulthood.

The word "emotional" should be changed to the word "cognitive."

What should be changed to make the following sentence true? Sigmund Freud believed that understanding the unconscious mind was critical to understand subconscious behavior.

The word "subconscious" should be changed to the word "conscious."

Rosemary had a stroke about a year ago and now she cannot understand what people are saying to her. This is embarrassing for her, so she responds using vague language and tries to make it appear as though she understands. Which area of Rosemary's brain was likely damaged by the stroke?

Wernicke's area

Forensic Psychology

a branch of psychology that deals questions of psychology as they arise in the context of the justice system

Cordyceps

a fungus that attacks ants

Toxoplasma gondii

a parasite protozep

Industrial-Organizational psychology

a subfield of psychology that applies psychological theories, principles, and research findings in industrial and organizational settings

synapse

a very small space between two neurons and is an important site where communication between neurons occurs

During the fight or flight response, which of the following endocrine glands is most likely to increase activity?

adrenal

clinical psychology

area of psychology that focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders and other problematic patterns of behavior

sympathetic nervous system

arouses (stressed)

Shyla experiences a long delay between the time that she goes to bed and the time that she actually falls asleep. In addition, she wakes up several times during the night and has difficulty getting back to sleep. To diagnose Shyla with insomnia, it is necessary that she experiences these symptoms________.

at least three nights a week for one month

limbic system

important for emotion, memory, motivation

Hippocampus

important for memory

Which of the following is not part of feminist psychology?

favoring women over men

Amygdala

fear and aggression

counseling psychology

focuses on emotional, social, vocational, and healthrelated outcomes in individuals who are considered psychologically healthy

health psychology

focuses on how health is affected by the interaction of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors

Social Psychology

focuses on how we interact with and relate to others

personality psychology

focuses on patterns of thoughts and behaviors that make each individual unique

psychoanalytic theory

focuses on the role of a person's unconscious, as well as early childhood experiences

Which kind of psychologist would be consulted in jury selection and witness preparation?

forensic

How many of the five stages of sleep are considered NREM sleep?

four

Broca's area is located in which lobe of the brain?

frontal

Where is the motor cortex located?

frontal lobe

Parsons et al. are doing a study comparing differences in brain activity levels between patients with schizophrenia and controls with no psychological disorders. Their hypothesis requires a high level of detail and good detection of differences over time. Which of the following is the best brain imaging technique to use?

functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

Entomophthora

fungus that attacks house flies

Wendy's mother has blue eyes and her father has brown eyes. The allele for brown eye color is dominant (B) to the allele for blue eye color (b), but Wendy has blue eyes. Therefore, Wendy's ________ must be ________ and her father's must be Bb.

genotype; Bb

autonomic nervous system

glands, involuntary muscles

The myelin sheath consists of a(n) ________.

glial cell

Medulla

heartbeat and breathing

________ is a state of equilibrium, in which biological conditions (such as body temperature) are maintained at optimal levels.

homeostasis

Functionalism

how mental activities help an organism fit in its environment

Hypothalamus

hunger, thirst, body temp, sex

Elaina has been diagnosed with a small brain tumor. She first went to see her doctor after experiencing symptoms such as feeling very cold, almost fainting, a reduced appetite, and reduced sexual desire. Which of the following structures is her tumor most likely affecting?

hypothalamus

Which of the following is not an endocrine gland?

hypothalamus

Which aspect of the scientific method occurs first?

hypothesis

The sleep debt is the result of ________.

insufficient sleep on a chronic basis

Which of the following is a symptom of REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD)?

kicking and punching while asleep

Marlowe wakes up from a dream about his teeth falling out. He looks in a dream dictionary and finds losing teeth is usually dream symbolism for anxiety. Marlowe is focused on the ________ content.

latent

The hidden meaning of a dream is called the ________ content.

latent

Behaviorists study ________.

learned behavior

Randall is walking down the street of his hometown, after being away for several years, when he smells the scent of freshly baked pie coming from a local baker. He suddenly has vivid memories of walking down this street as a child, holding both of his parents' hands, and swinging between them, feeling relaxed and happy. This is because the sense of smell projects directly to the ________, which is responsible for ________ memories.

limbic system; emotional

In a ________ dream, people become aware that they are dreaming and can control the dream's content.

lucid

Nancy is aware that she is dreaming when she has a nightmare, so she concentrates and changes her dream from bad to good. This is a good example of ________ dreaming.

lucid

What is the number one occupation employing graduates with a BA in psychology?

mid- and top-level management

agonists excite

mimics the neurotransmitter

Serotonin

mood, hunger, and sleep

A(n) ________ is a description of how the researchers will measure the variables of interest.

operational definition

NREM sleep is a period of sleep ________.

outside periods of REM sleep

________ is one of a group of sleep disorders in which unwanted, disruptive motor activity and/or experiences during sleep play a role.

parasomnia

Sleepwalking, night terrors, and restless leg syndrome are all examples of________.

parasomnias

Where is the sensory cortex located?

parietal lobe

The ________ gland is often referred to as the master gland of the endocrine system.

pituitary

The ________ connects the brain and the spinal cord.

pons

Introspection

process by which someone examines their own conscious experience as objectively as possible

Methamphetamine

produces a huge rush of dopamine in brain

Who was Phineas Gage?

railroad worker

________ asserts that our genes set the boundaries within which we can operate, and our environment interacts with our genes to determine where within those boundaries we will fall.

range of reaction

Antagonists inhibit

reduce the amount released

Endorphins

released in response to pain or exercise

________ refers to the ability to consistently produce a given result.

reliability

The ________ extends through the hindbrain, midbrain, and forebrain.

reticular formation

Green et al. used a ________ from their ________ of interest in order to make a ________.

sample; population; generalization

A ________ is a graphical view of the strength and direction of a correlation.

scatterplot

What happens if you have too much dopamine?

schizophrenia

Psychology refers to the ________.

scientific study of the mind

Behaviorism

study of observable behavior

According to William James, the purpose of psychology was to ________.

study the function of behavior

sport and exercise psychology

study the psychological aspects of sport performance, including motivation and performance anxiety

Cognitive Psychology

studying cognitions, or thoughts, and their relationship to our experiences and our actions

Jeremy has Parkinson's disease, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects motor skills. In addition to motor symptoms, Jeremy has noticed changes in his mood, and he feels the need to smoke more cigarettes than he used to. It is likely that Jeremy's ________ is producing less ________ than it needs to.

substantia nigra; dopamine

independent variable

the factor being manipulated

Studying close relatives allows behavioral geneticists to determine ________.

the relative contributions of genes and environment in a population

Experiment

the researcher manipulates a factor (independent variable) to observe the effect of some behavior (dependent variable)

Psychology

the science of behavior and mental processes

Scientific knowledge is advanced through a process known as ________.

the scientific method

developmental psychology

the study of development across the life span

According to Sigmund Freud, all of the following represent ways to access the unconscious mind except through ________.

the use of reinforcement and punishment

________ is a midbrain structure critical to movement.

the ventral tegmental area

A(n) ________ is a well-developed set of ideas that proposes an explanation for observed phenomena.

theory

Research shows that people who smoke cigarettes are more likely to get lung cancer than those who do not smoke. This research alone demonstrates that ________.

there is a relationship between smoking and lung cancer

Structuralism

understanding the structure or characteristics of the mind