QM-Exam 1 - Minimester - Study Guide

CNS

central nervous system; brain and spinal cord

Neurotransmitters

chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons

pseudoscience

claims presented as scientific that are not supported by evidence obtained with the scientific method

mode

most frequently occurring score

Sensory neurons

neurons that carry incoming information from the 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

blind study

participants are not told whether they're in the control or experiment group

Hippocampus

limbic system component associated with memory

weak correlation

little or no relationship -coefficient near 0

Thyroid gland

produces hormones that regulate metabolism, body heat, and bone growth

Replication

repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic finding extends to other participants and circumstances

Parts of a neuron and pathway of a signal

soma , the axon, dendrites -The impulse travels through the cell body and is carried through the axon to the end brush, a collection of fibers that extend off the axon

double blind studies

studies in which neither the participants nor the researchers administering the treatment know who has been assigned to the experimental or control group

Experimental studies

studies in which the independent variables are directly manipulated and the effects on the dependent variable are examined

Neuroplasticity

the ability within the brain to constantly change both the structure and function of many cells in response to experience or trauma

Action potential

the change in electrical potential associated with the passage of an impulse along the membrane of a muscle cell or nerve cell.

Transduction

the conversion of physical into neural information

Binocular disparity

the difference in the retinal images of the two eyes that provides information about depth

parasympathetic nervous systems

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

Weber's Law

the finding that the size of a just noticeable difference is a constant fraction of the intensity of the stimulus

Absolute threshold

the lowest intensity level of a stimulus a person can detect half of the time

median

the middle score in a distribution; half the scores are above it and half are below it

Figure-ground

the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground).

Apparent motion

the perception of movement as a result of alternating signals appearing in rapid succession in different locations

Sensory adaptation

the process by which our sensitivity diminishes when an object constantly stimulates our senses

Accommodation

the process by which the muscles control the shape of the lens to adjust to viewing objects at different distances

Psychology

the scientific study of thought and behavior

Difference threshold

the smallest amount by which two sensory stimuli can differ in order for an individual to perceive them as different.

Opponent process theory

the theory that opposing retinal processes enable color vision

Signal detection theory

the viewpoint that both stimulus intensity and decision-making processes are involved in the detection of a stimulus

population

A group of individuals that belong to the same species and live in the same area (everything)

psychoanalytic perspectives

-Early childhood conflicts have lasting effects. -Personality is largely shaped by unconscious forces

Guidelines for the ethical treatment of human subjects

-Informed consent -Respect for persons -Beneficence -privacy and confidentially -Justice

Gestalt principles

-Principles that describe the brain's organization of sensory information into meaningful units and patterns. -similarly-We usually group together figures that are similar -closure-We tend to fill in the missing pieces to create a complete picture -continuity-We tend to perceive smooth, continuous pattern -common movement-Objects that love together are seen as a group -figure-ground-We perceive objects as distinct from their backgrounds -proximity-We tend to group nearby objects together

Split brain procedure

-Surgery in which the corpus callosum is cut, isolating the two hemispheres from each other. -patients with the most extreme and uncontrollable forms of epilepsy, when frequent seizures affect both sides of the brain

the influence nurture (environment)

-the influence of external factors after conception -the product of exposure -life experiences - learning on an individual.

The influences of nature

-what we think of as pre-wiring -genetic inheritance -biological factors

Phineas Gage

1823-1860; Field: neurobiology; Contributions: 1st person to have a frontal lobotomy (by accident), his accident gave information on the brain and which parts are involved with emotional reasoning

Functionalism

19th century school of psychology that argued it was better to look at why the mind works the way it does than to describe its parts

Positive correlation

A correlation where as one variable increases, the other also increases, or as one decreases so does the other. Both variables move in the same direction.

introspection

A method of self-observation in which participants report their thoughts and feelings

survey

A study, generally in the form of an interview or questionnaire, that provides researchers with information about how people think and act.

serotonin

Affects mood, hunger, sleep and arousal. Undersupply linked to depression.

Science

An organized way of gathering and analyzing evidence about the natural world. -physical -biological -social

Brain stem

Connection to spinal cord. Filters information flow between peripheral nervous system and the rest of the brain.

strong correlation

Data that is very close to being a line - greater than .75

Acetylcholine

Enables muscle action, learning, and memory. With Alzheimer's disease, ACh-producing neurons deteriorate.

Mirror neurons

Frontal lobe neurons that fire when performing certain actions or when observing another doing so. The brain's mirroring of another's action may enable imitation, language learning, and empathy.

control group

In an experiment, the group that is not exposed to the treatment; contrasts with the experimental group and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment.

Data collection

The process of acquiring existing information or developing new information.

Reuptake

a way of removing excess neurotransmitter from the synapse, in which excess neurotransmitter is returned to the sending, or presynaptic, neuron for storage in vesicles and future use

Structuralism

a 19th century school of psychology that argued that breaking down experience into its elemental parts offered the best way to understand thought and behavior

experimental group

a group consisting of those participants who will receive the treatment or whatever is predicted to change behavior

Sensation

a physical process, the stimulation of our sense organs by features of the outer world

Perceptual set

a readiness to perceive a stimulus in a particular way

Correlational studies

a research method that examines how variables are naturally related in the real world, without any attempt by the researcher to alter them or assign causation between them

Representative sample

a research sample that accurately reflects the population of people one is studying

sympathetic nervous system

a set of nerves that prepares the body for action in challenging or threatening situations (fight or flight)

case study

a study design in which a psychologist, often a therapist, observes one person over a long period of time

naturalistic observation

a study in which the researcher unobtrusively observes and records behavior in the real world

Sample

a subset of the population

Placebo

a substance or treatment that appears identical to the actual treatment but lacks the active substance

perceptual constancies

allow us to recognize familiar stimuli under varying conditions(shape, size, color)

Somatosensory cortex

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

Negative correlation

as one variable increases, the other decreases

mean

average

Monocular cues

depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone -relative size. interposition. linear perspective. aerial perspective. light and shade. monocular movement parallax.

Confounding variables

factors that cause differences between the experimental group and the control group other than the independent variable

Four lobes of the brain

frontal-cognitive functions, movement parietal-processes information about temperature, taste, touch and movement occipital-responsible for vision temporal-sensory area are responsible for hearing

Cerebellum

hindbrain structure that controls our balance, coordination, movement, and motor skills, and it is thought to be important in processing some types of memory

evolutionary perspective

human thought and behavior have been shaped by evolutionary forces (natural and sexual selection)

dopamine

influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion depression and Parkinson's disease