Psychology Exam 1 Study Guides

Looking forward: you will cover learning behavior more thoroughly in the study of Learning, specifically Classical Conditioning.

Pavlov studied a form of learning behavior called a conditioned reflex

This field focuses on behaviors and thought patterns that are unique to each individual. Studies in this field include conscious and unconscious thinking and personality traits.

Personality psychology

What brain imaging technology is helpful for showing activity in different parts of the brain?

Positron emission tomography (PET) scans create pictures of the living, activebrain

If psychology is mainly about the mind, why do psychologists study genetics?

Psychological researchers study genetics in order to better understand the biologicalfactors that contribute to certain behaviors.

After reading this chapter, you should be able to describe contemporary psychology. What are the major subfields?

Psychology is a diverse discipline that is made up of several major subdivisions with unique perspectives.

What is Psychology?

Psychology is defined as the scientific study of mind and behavior. Students of psychology develop critical thinking skills, become familiar with the scientific method, and recognize the complexity of behavior.

Note: Part of the reason we study the nervous system is because it is deeply related to our psychology and especially related to treatments.

Psychotropic medications are drugs that treat psychiatric symptoms by restoring neurotransmitter balance.

Describe range of reaction.

Range of reaction asserts that our genes set the boundaries within which we can operate,

What is reuptake?

Reuptake involves the neurotransmitter being pumped back into the neuron that released it, in order to clear the synapse

Why did Weisstein criticize male psychologists for not living up to their own scientific standards?

She also specifically criticized male psychologists for constructing the psychology of women entirely out of their own cultural biases and without careful experimental tests to verify any of their characterizations of women.

You will focus on positive and negative reinforcement of learned behaviors more deeply during the study of learning, specifically operant conditioning.

Skinner's focus on positive and negative reinforcement of learned behaviors had a lasting influence in psychology

When does sleep rebound occur?

Sleep rebound refers to the fact that a sleep-deprived individual will fall asleep morequickly during subsequent opportunities for sleep.

How does sleep regulation affect people who called themselves "night owls"? What about "morning people?"

Sleep regulation refers to the brain's control of switching between sleep andwakefulness as well as coordinating this cycle with the outside world.

How individuals interact and relate with others and how such interactions can affect behavior.

Social psychology

History of Psychology

Structuralism: This theory holds that if you can describe the structure or characteristics of something you can understand it. Functionalism: This theory holds that if one can identify the function of something, one can understand it. Much like the function of a car would be transportation, status, entertainment and the like.

Consider the effects of sleep debt and sleep deprivation, especially when driving or operating any equipment or machines.

That is why individuals suffering from sleep deprivation can also put themselves andothers at risk when they put themselves behind the wheel of a car or work withdangerous machinery.

Can you describe the difference between the experimental and control groups? For example, in a study on the effects of sweetener in food, what would be the difference in the food provided to the experimental versus the control group?

The experimental group gets the experimental manipulation—that is, the treatmentor variable being tested (in this case, the use of technology)—and the control group does not.

What does each lobe of the brain control?

The frontal lobe is located in the forward part of the brain, extending back to afissure known as the central sulcus. The frontal lobe is involved in reasoning, motor control, emotion, and language. It contains the motor cortex, which is involved in planning and coordinating movement; the prefrontal cortex , which is responsible for higher-level cognitive functioning; and Broca's area , which is essential for language production.

You will learn more about the hippocampus in chapter 8.

The hippocampus is an essential structure for learning and memory.

What is the somatic nervous system?

The somatic nervous system is associated with activities traditionally thought of asconscious or voluntary.

What is the autonamic nervous system?

The autonomic nervous system controls our internal organs and glands

As you learn about different aspects of psychology, and later about disorders, you should consider the parts of the brain affected. An ability to reason or an issue with reasoning may be related to functions of the cerebral cortex.

The cerebral cortex, which is the outer surface of the brain, is associated with higher level processes such as consciousness, thought, emotion, reasoning, language, and memory.

What are the social and equality implications of the below statement?

The dominant influence of Western, white, and male academics in the early history of psychology meant that psychology developed with the biases inherent in those individuals, which often had negative consequences for members of society who were not white or male.

What aspects of the world do psychologists seek to understand?

The goal of all scientists is to better understand the world around them. Psychologists focus their attention on understanding behavior, as well as the cognitive (mental) and physiological (body) processes that underlie behavior.

What is the greatest benefit of naturalistic observation? Also, what do you think could be the greatest detriment of naturalistic observation?

The greatest benefit of naturalistic observation is the validity , or accuracy, of information collected unobtrusively in a natural setting.

The placebo effect is a common term. What does it refer to?

The placebo effect is commonly described in terms of testing the effectiveness of anew medication.

Describe the benefits of case studies.

The richness of information that is collected in clinical or case studies is unmatched by any other single research method. This allows the researcher to have a very deep understanding of the individuals and the particular phenomenon being studied.

Note the distinctions here and understand that "cord" is something of an oversimplification.

The top of the spinal cord is a bundle of nerves that merges with the brain stem,where the basic processes of life are controlled, such as breathing and digestion. Inthe opposite direction, the spinal cord ends just below the ribs—contrary to what wemight expect, it does not extend all the way to the base of the spine.

Another translation of Gestalt is "configuration" and you can consider how all the different sensory perceptions are interpreted via this configuration.

The word Gestalt roughly translates to "whole;"

Who was Beverly Prosser? Why is she important?

Thirteen years later, Inez Beverly Prosser (1895-1934) became the first African American woman to receive a PhD in psychology.

The study of Psychology can lead you to a wide array of successful careers.

Top Occupations Employing Graduates with a BA in Psychology (Fogg, Harrington, Harrington, & Shatkin, 2012) Ranking Occupation 1 Mid- and top-level management (executive, administrator) 2 Sales 3 Social work 4 Other management positions 5 Human resources (personnel, training) 6 Other administrative positions 7 Insurance, real estate, business 8 Marketing and sales 9 Healthcare (nurse, pharmacist, therapist) 10 Finance (accountant, auditor)

What does being an informed consumer mean to you?

We should be informed consumers of the information made available to us because decisions based on this information have significant consequences.

While the time between the American Psychological Association's founding and its first female president was relatively brief for this time period, note that Calkins was forced to wait 20 years to be awarded the PhD she deserved.

When the American Psychological Association (APA) was first founded in 1892, all ofthe members were white males (Women and Minorities in Psychology, n.d.). However,by 1905, Mary Whiton Calkins was elected as the first female president of the APA,and by 1946, nearly one-quarter of American psychologists were female.

Does the description below meet the IRB requirement that human subjects research do no harm? Why or why not?

While there was no treatment for syphilis when the study began, by 1947 penicillinwas recognized as an effective treatment for the disease. Despite this, no penicillinwas administered to the participants in this study, and the participants were notallowed to seek treatment at any other facilities if they continued in the study.

What are the characteristics of random assignment? Can you explain why the combination of random samples and random assignment can lead to more representative and sound experiments?

With random assignment , all participants have an equal chance of being assignedto either group.

Why is it helpful for psychologists to be able to compare brain images belonging to two different people?

With their high level of detail, MRI and fMRI are often used to compare the brains ofhealthy individuals to the brains of individuals diagnosed with psychologicaldisorders.

Why is this considered a "perspective?"

biological perspective view that psychological disorders like depression and schizophrenia areassociated with imbalances in one or more neurotransmitter systems

This field primarily focuses on the bodily functions regarding the nervous, sensory, and motor systems and any possible psychological disorders that may relate to them.

biopsychology

What Is Consciousness? What structure in the brain the body controls this rhythm?

circadian rhythm

Branch of psychology that focuses on cognition and thoughts.

cognitive psychology

While this textbook describes confirmation bias as related to formal research, we often see it in ourselves in work and even in relationships.

confirmation bias tendency to ignore evidence that disproves ideas or beliefs

Psychology is a study based on science. So why is a healthy skepticism endorsed?

critical thinking involves maintaining an attitude of skepticism, recognizing internal biases, making use of logical thinking, asking appropriate questions, and making observations.

The empirical method is part of what classifies psychology as a science.

empirical method: method for acquiring knowledge based on observation, including experimentation, rather than a method based only on forms of logical argument or previous authorities

This is an evolving field that has often been described as genes "carrying memory." Note: It's important to realize that such "memory" is different from the one we carry in our minds.

epigenetics

A properly constructed hypothesis must be able to be disproven.

falsifiable able to be disproven by experimental results

A series of physiological changes that allows the body to fight off a threat or run away to safety is called what?

fight or flight response

hypothalamus

forebrain structure that regulates sexual motivation and behavior and a numberof homeostatic processes; serves as an interface between the nervous systemand the endocrine system

You will learn more about hypothalamus while discussing sleep, emotion, and stress.

hypothalamus regulates a number of homeostatic processes,

Why is observation of behavior in its natural context different from asking people what they do? Beyond their level of comfort, some people are truly unaware of their behaviors. In this example, some people may honestly forget whether or not they washed their hands.

imagine that your professor asks everyone in your class to raise their hand if they always wash their hands after using the restroom. Chances are that almost everyone in the classroom will raise their hand, but do you think hand washing after every trip to the restroom is really that universal?

This figure describes how the brain processes light information and synchronizes the brain with the outside world.

look at Chapter 4 study guide

Which hormones are secreted during sleep?

melatonin, follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), and growthhormone

Who are the peers in peer-reviewed studies?

peer-reviewed journal articles

The pituitary controls many of the body's activities and development; any disorders have significant consequences.

pituitary gland secretes a number of key hormones, which regulate fluid levels in the body, anda number of messenger hormones, which direct the activity of other glands inthe endocrine system

Replication is a major issue in psychology. Note that the same standard applied to other sciences -- for example, physicists must be able to perform the same experiment and receive the same results to replicate a study.

replicate repeating an experiment using different samples to determine the research'sreliability

The sample size in relation to the population is an important consideration in survey accuracy.

sample is a subset of individuals selected from a population

What is a clinical or case study?

scientists are conducting a clinical or case study when they focus on one person or just a few individuals.

Keep this term in mind as you learn about sensation and perception.

somatosensory cortex , which is essential for processing sensory information from across the body, such as touch, temperature, and pain.

hippocampus

structure in the temporal lobe associated with learning and memory

Beyond the social and equality implications, consider how experiments may have been flawed because only one gender was represented.

the experimental subjects of psychology were mostly men, which resulted from underlying assumptions that gender had no influence on psychology and that women were not of sufficient interest to study.

This passage describes what reaching consensus looks like. Assumptions, predictions, and even conclusions change. When this happens, it can be a matter of completing our knowledge, not contradicting it.

the explosion in our use of technology has led researchers to question whether this ultimately helps or hinders us. The use and implementation of technology in educational settings has become widespread over the last few decades. Researchers are coming to different conclusions regarding the use of technology.

After reading this chapter, can you describe the skills you should expect to gain in the study of psychology?

the skills acquired as a function of an undergraduate education in psychology are useful in a variety of work contexts.

Many studies that have been the basis of psychological understanding have been proven to be unsound and unverified. This issue is a very real problem facing psychologists today, and is referred to as what?

"replication crisis"

What is a hypothesis? How does it differ from a theory?

A hypothesis is a testable prediction about how the world will behave if our idea is correct,

What are the characteristics of a random sample?

A random sample is a subset of a larger population in which every member of thepopulation has an equal chance of being selected.

What is a theory? How does it differ from a hypothesis?

A theory is a well-developed set of ideas that propose an explanation for observed phenomena.

The concept of falsifiability is often a difficult concept to understand. Why does the desired outcome need to be proven wrong? But falsifiability is largely concerned with creating hypotheses that CAN be proven wrong. For example, if a physics hypothesis involved a temperature increasing under certain conditions, it would be falsifiable if the temperature went down. In psychology just like other sciences, these hypotheses are the correct type to create.

A scientific hypothesis is also falsifiable, or capable of being shown to be incorrect.

What is informed consent? Consider: how does informed consent pair with naturalistic observation?

An informed consent form provides a written description of what participants canexpect during the experiment, including potential risks and implications of theresearch.

What Is Psychology?

An empirical method for acquiring knowledge is one based on observation, including experimentation, rather than a method based only on forms of logical argument or previous authorities.

Later in this section, we will relate the requirement described below to the description of the Tuskegee experiment.

Any experiment involving the participation of human subjects is governed byextensive, strict guidelines designed to ensure that the experiment does not result inharm.

Important to understand behaviorism's overall role in establishing psychology, summarized here.

Behaviorism is largely responsible for establishing psychology as a scientific discipline through its objective methods and especially experimentation.

Focuses on diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders and problematic patterns of behavior. Study involves clinical therapy and counseling.

Clinical psychology

This passage describes issues with using college students as study participants. Have you ever been asked to be part of a study? Do you consider yourself representative of the total population?

College students tend to be younger, more educated, more liberal, and less diversethan the general population. Although using students as test subjects is an acceptedpractice, relying on such a limited pool of research participants can be problematicbecause it is difficult to generalize findings to the larger population.

Make sure you can describe correlation. Note that correlation doesn't mean that the change in one variable changes the other -- it is not necessarily cause-and-effect.

Correlation means that there is a relationship between two or more variables (suchas ice cream consumption and crime), but this relationship does not necessarily imply cause and effect.

How might you mask the true intent of a study about attire? Could you indicate that the study is about something else?

Deception involves purposely misleading experiment participants in order tomaintain the integrity of the experiment, but not to the point where the deceptioncould be considered harmful.

This is the scientific study of the physical and mental attributes of aging and maturation. This can include how cognitive, social and psychological skills are acquired throughout growth.

Developmental psychology

Consider the different roles of each gland and hormone described in the table. What would a disorder involving them would lead to in terms of health?

Endocrine Gland Associated Hormones Function Hypothalamus Releasing and inhibiting hormones ,such as oxytocin Regulate hormone release from pituitary gland Pituitary Growth hormone, releasing and inhibiting hormones (such as thyroid stimulating hormone) Regulate growth, regulate hormone release Thyroid Thyroxine, triiodothyronine Regulate metabolism and appetite Pineal Melatonin Regulate some biological rhythms such as sleep cycles Adrenal Epinephrine, norepinephrine Stress response increase metabolic activities Pancreas Insulin, glucagon Regulate blood sugar levels Ovaries Estrogen, progesterone Mediate sexual motivation and behavior, reproduction Testes Androgens, such as testosterone Mediate sexual motivation and behavior, reproduction

As an extreme example, if you did well on a test after getting no sleep, you could believe that good performance was caused by lack of sleep. Most of us would not draw that conclusion. Apply that logic to other correlations and see if they hold up.

Even when we cannot point to clear confounding variables, we should not assume that a correlation between two variables implies that one variable causes changes in another.

Make sure you understand the concept of experimenter bias. One important aspect of experimenter bias: Often, the researcher will not deliberately or significantly manipulate the data, but if they are faced with a choice, or need to "break a tie," they may lean in the direction supporting their hypothesis.

Experimenter bias refers to the possibility that a researcher's expectations mightskew the results of the study. Remember, conducting an experiment requires a lot ofplanning, and the people involved in the research project have a vested interest insupporting their hypotheses.

What is the difference between a fact and an opinions? The difference between fact and opinion can be critical in civil engagement and personal decision making.

Facts are observable realities, and opinions are personal judgments, conclusions, or attitudes that may or may not be accurate.

Something to note: the "fight or flight" response does not imply humans always either fight or run away. A similar response can be seen in stressful situations such as a verbal argument (especially a surprise one), presentation, etc.

For example, think about how you feel when you have to stand up and give apresentation in front of a roomful of people, or right before taking a big test. You arein no real physical danger in those situations, and yet you have evolved to respond toa perceived threat with the fight or flight response.

Branch of psychology dealing with justice system. Tasks of Forensic Psychologists include assessment of individuals' mental competency to stand in trial, sentencing and treatment suggestions, and advisement regarding eyewitness testimonies. This field of psychology requires a strong understanding of the legal system.

Forensic psychology

Who was Francis Sumner? Why is he important?

Francis Sumner (1895-1954) was the first African American to receive a PhD in psychology in 1920.

What are some important subfields of psychology?

Freud's ideas were influential, and you will learn more about them when you study lifespan development, personality, and therapy.

Does lack of sleep affect you? How do you manage it?

Given that college students are notorious for suffering from significant sleep debt(Hicks, Fernandez, & Pelligrini, 2001; Hicks, Johnson, & Pelligrini, 1992; Miller,Shattuck, & Matsangas, 2010), chances are you and your classmates deal with sleepdebt-related issues on a regular basis.

What is homeostasis?

Homeostasis is the tendency to maintain a balance, or optimal level, within a biological system.

Make sure you can explain the major limitation of case studies.

If scientists ultimately want to explain all behavior, focusing attention on such a special group of people can make it difficult to generalize any observations to the larger population as a whole.

How does natural selection lead to evolution? What happens to the surviving organisms over time?

In simple terms, the theory states that organisms that are better suited for theirenvironment will survive and reproduce, while those that are poorly suited for theirenvironment will die off.

Describe deductive reasoning. Can you give an example of deductive reasoning?

In the scientific context, deductive reasoning begins with a generalization—onehypothesis—that is then used to reach logical conclusions about the real world.

How does inductive reasoning differ from deductive reasoning? Make sure you can describe the core differences.

Inductive reasoning uses empirical observations to construct broad generalizations.

This psychologist studied impacts of educational segregation and isolation based on race.

Inez Beverly Prosser;

What is longitudinal research? Consider: How could longitudinal research be used to study the effectiveness of education?

Longitudinal research is a research design in which data-gathering is administered repeatedly over an extended period of time.

What are the health consequences of sleep deprivation? How can they be overcome?

Look at chapter 4 study guide

Two famous African American researchers and psychologists known for studies that were instrumental in Brown v Board of Education. Looking forward, their work is likely to drive discussion and some surprise.

Mamie Phipps Clark and her husband, Kenneth Clark.

Who was Margaret Floy? Why is she important?

Margaret Floy Washburn (1871-1939) was the first woman to earn a PhD in psychology.

This psychologist demonstrated the benefit of intervention to overcome conduct disorders.

Martha Bernal

This psychologist made significant strides in the field, and later became the president of the American Psychological Association.

Mary Whiton Calkins

Hormone that regulates biological rhythms and the immune system

Melatonin

- Genes are made up of DNA and are inherited. - But we see many differences between parents and offspring due to alleles, phenotypes, and those traits controlled by multiple genes.

Most traits are controlled by multiple genes, but some traits are controlled by onegene.

Consider Naomi Weinstein's overall impact on the field of psychology.

Naomi Weisstein, first published in 1968 (Weisstein, 1993), stimulated a feminist revolution in psychology by presenting a critique of psychology as a science.

Neurons and the nervous system contain a number of structures and engage in detailed processes. You may want to look up videos on neurons and nervous system communication to get more information.

Neurons , on the other hand, serve as interconnected information processors that areessential for all of the tasks of the nervous system.