AP Psychology Exam
zajonc/ledoux
-cognition may not precede emotion -instant, before cognitive appraisal -ex: we automatically react to a sound in the forest before appraising it
big five
-consciousness -agreeableness -neuroticism -openness -extroversion
transduction
-conversion of one form of energy into another -in sensation, the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sight, sounds, and smells, into neural impulses our brain can interpret
sexual response cycle
-the four stages of sexual responding described by Masters and Johnson -excitement, plateau, orgasm, and resolution
ego
-the largely conscious "executive" part of personality that, according to freud, mediates among the demands of the id, superego, and reality -operates on the reality principle
difference threshold
-the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50% of the time -we experience this as a just noticeable difference
Intrinsic Motivation (Sternberg)
Being driven more by interest, satisfaction, and challenge than by external pressures; creative focus less on meeting deadlines, impressing people, making money, than on pleasure/stimulation of work itself (Ex: Newton answered solved problem by thinking about it all the time)
Smart Use Less Energy To Solve Problems . .
Better functioning, more efficient
Benefits of Emotional Intelligence
Better job performance, can delay gratification, emotionally in tune with others, succeed more in career/marriage
Memory of Young
Better than memory of the older, and can multitask better
Genes
Biochemical units of heredity that make up chromosomes; segment of DNA capable of synthesizing a protein
Circadian Rhythm
Biological clock; regular bodily rhythms (such as temperature and wakefulness) that occur on a 24-hour cycle
Purpose of Conditioning
Biologically adaptive; allows animals to prepare for good/bad events (Ex: find food, avoid dangers, locate mates, reproduce)
Intelligence test performance of today's better-fed, better-educated, and more test-prepared population exceeds that of the 1930s population--by a greater margin than the intelligence test score of the average White today exceeds that of the average Black
Blacks' average IQ as high as British's in 1948
Who is the Greatest of ALL TIME?
Blair Horning
Endocrine System
Body's "slow" chemical communication system; set of glands that secrete hormones into bloodstream
Nervous System
Body's speedy electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of peripheral and central nervous systems
Central Nervous System (CNS)
Brain and spinal cord
Lewis Terman
Adapted Binet's IQ test and added some items; established new age norms; teens with scores on higher end "superior adults"; believed in eugenics
Overlearning
Additional rehearsal of verbal information which increases retention, esp. when practice is distributed over time
When Should I Workout?
Afternoon workouts don't disrupt sleep and there is less risk of injury; evening workouts keep you awake
General Aptitude Tests Most Effective . . .
Ages 6 to 12, where correlation is +.6; correlates even more with achievement tests at +.81
Alcohol Dependence (Alcoholism)
Alcohol use marked by tolerance, withdrawal if suspended, and drive to continue use
Universal Grammar
All languages have nouns, verbs, adjectives, and grammar learned naturally as child
Noam Chomscky
All languages share universal grammar and children have innate predisposition to acquire and produce language (language acquisition device)
Can Anyone Experience Hypnosis?(Questions of Hypnosis)
All people are open to suggesting, but some are more hypnotizable than other (20% carry out suggestion w/ total focus)
Cerebellum
Allows certain conditioned reflexes, such as associating a tone with an impending puff of air
Near-Death Experience
Altered state of consciousness reported after close brush with death (such as through cardiac arrest); often like drug-induced hallucinations; caused by brain under stress
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
Amplified recording of waves of electrical activity that sweep across brain's surface; waves measured by electrodes placed on scalp
Biopsychosocial Approach
Analysis considering influences of biological, psychological, and social-cultural factors
Two-word Stage
Beginning about age 2, is stage in speech development during which a child speaks mostly in two-word statements
Babbling Stage
Beginning at about 4 months, is stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds at first unrelated to the household language
Respondent Behavior
Behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus
Operant Behavior
Behavior that operates on the environment, producing (rewarding or punishing) consequences (controllable by individual)
B.F. Skinner
Behaviorist that developed the theory of operant conditioning by training pigeons and rats
Hypnagogic Sensation
Experience of the transitional state from wakefulness to sleep (Ex: Those reporting being abducted by aliens after getting into bed recall being floated off of or pinned down on their bed)
Cognitive Psychologists
Experiment with how we perceive, think, and problem-solve
Independent Variable
Experimental factor that's manipulated; variable whose effect is being studied
Double-Blind Procedure
Experimental procedure in which both research participants and research staff are ignorant about whether research participants have received treatment or placebo
Placebo Effect
Experimental results caused by expectation alone; any effect caused by administration of inert substance/condition, which recipient assumes is active agent (higher cost, more believable)
Theory
Explanation using integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors/events
Amnesia Causes Loss of . . .
Explicit memories but NOT implicit memories
Biological Psychologists
Explore links between brain/mind
Reliability
Extent to which a test yields consistent results, as assessed by consistency of scores on two halves of the test, or on retesting
Validity
Extent to which test measures or predicts what it is supposed to (includes content validity and predictive validity)
Content Validity
Extent to which test samples behavior that is of interest
Confounding Variable
Factor other than independent variable that might produce an effect in experiment
Change Blindness
Failing to notice changes in the environment (Ex: Magician put on dramatic act with left hand so audience doesn't notice what they are doing with their right hand)
Inattentional Blindness
Failing to see visible objects when attention is directed elsewhere
Hallucinations
False sensory experiences, such as seeing something in the absence of an external visual stimulus
Myelin Sheath
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
Binet's Fear
Feared his IQ test would label kids and limit opportunities (happened)
Exposure to Testosterone
Fetus develops to be more aggressive and have more masculine-appearing genitalia; also improves athletic success and encourages male-play
John Watson
Focused on behaviorism; famous for Little Albert study
Selective Attention
Focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus
Neurogenesis
Formation of new neurons by reorganizing existing tissues
Evolution of Brain
Formative nurture conspires with nature at conception, then continues outside; in enriched environment, brain cortexes grow bigger; better environment means better brain development; stimulation by touch and massage helps brain development
Morphemes
In language, are smallest unit that carries meaning; may be a word or part of a word (such as a prefix, like pre- in "preview")
Associative Learning
Learning that certain events occur together; the events may be two stimuli (as in classical conditioning) or a response and its consequences (as in operant conditioning)
Latent Learning
Learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it
Left vs. Right Frontal Lobe
Left frontal lobe recalls password and holding it in memory while right frontal lobe recalls visual party scene
Left vs. Right Hippocampus
Left-hippocampal damage leads to not recalling verbal information; right-hippocampal damage leads to not recalling visual designs/locations
Threshold
Level of stimulation needed to trigger neural impulse (all-or-none response)
Biological/Social Influences Affect . . .
Life priorities, (women greater interest in people while men in money/things) risk-taking, (men more reckless) and in math reasoning and spatial abilities
Working-Memory vs. IQ
More one can remember in working-memory, the higher their IQ and ability to focus tends to be
Frontal Lobe
Most active on left for verbal questions and both sides for spatial questions; frontal lobe global workspace for organizing and coordinating info
Mode
Most frequently occurring score(s) in distribution
Opiates
Opium and its derivatives, such as morphine and heroin; depress neural activity, temporarily lessening pain and anxiety; Methadone (synthetic opiate) is substitute for heroin but can create tolerance too
Chunking (Definition)
Organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically (enables us to recall it more easily)
Paradoxical Sleep
Other name for REM sleep, because muscles are relaxed (except for minor twitches) but other body systems are active
Fluid Intelligence
Our ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood
Crystallized Intelligence
Our accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age
Consciousness
Our awareness of ourselves and our environment; helps to see long-term
Thurstone's Primary Mental Abilities
Our intelligence can be broken down into seven factors: word fluency, verbal comprehension, spatial ability, perceptual speed, numerical ability, inductive reasoning, and memory
Gender Identity
Our sense of being male or female
Language
Our spoken, written, or signed words and the way we combine them to communicate meaning (allows human connection)
Dependent Variable
Outcome factor; variable that may change in response to manipulations of independent variable
23rd Chromosome
Pair of chromosomes that affects biological sex
Adrenal Glands
Pair of endocrine glands just above kidneys that secrete hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine) that arous body in times of stress (Ex: Increase heart rate)
Processing Method
Parallel processing; pruning process
Sympathetic Division
Part of autonomic nervous system that arouses body (Ex: Increase heartbeat)
Parasympathetic Division
Part of autonomic nervous system that calms body, conserving its energy (Ex: Decreases heartbeat and blood sugar)
Autonomic Nervous System
Part of peripheral nervous system that controls glands/muscles of internal organs
Reinforcement Schedules
Patterns that define how often a desired response will be reinforced
Passwords
People tend to duplicate passwords or use retrieval cues like name/date in birthday; best to rehearse password w/ mix of letters of numbers to encode it into long-term memory
Woah, Evolutionary Science is Scary
People worry evolutionary science would destroy sense of beauty, mystery, and spiritual significance of human creature
Role
Set of expectations (norms) about social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave
Gender Role
Set of expected behaviors for males or for females (Ex: Men pay and drive, women care for children and select wedding gifts); smooth social relations (less argument)
How Many Items Can We Remember in Short-Term Memory?
Seven Items
X Chromosome
Sex chromosome found in both men and women; females have two X chromosomes while men have one; An X chromosome from each parent produces female child
Y Chromosome
Sex chromosome found only in men; When paired with an X chromosome from the mother, it produces a male child
Electroconvulsive Therapy
Shock that leads to no memories of events just before knockout
Haber Experiment
Showed 2500 slides with faces and places for 10 seconds each; shown side by side with never before seen picture; recognized which was shown most of the time (90%) and with 3 seconds each recognized 82% of the time
Humanistic Psychologists
Showed ways current environmental influences can nurture/limit our growth potential, and importance of having needs for love satisfied
When Blacks and Whites have or receive the same pertinent knowledge, they exhibit similar info-processing skill
Shown IQ differences, self-fulfilling
Heuristics
Simple thinking strategies that often allow us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently; usually speedier but also more error-prone than algorithms
Reflex
Simple, automatic responses to sensory stimulus (Ex: Touch flame and flinch)
Bilingual Advantage
Skilled at inhibiting one language while using another; also better at inhibiting attention to irrelevant info
Natural Aids to Memory
Sleep and effective study techniques
Hypersomnia
Sleep disorder characterized by excessive sleepiness; irresistible drowsiness, daytime napping, difficult to wake
Night Terrors
Sleep disorder characterized by high arousal and appearance of being terrified; unlike nightmares, these occur during NREM-3 sleep, within two/three hours of falling sleep, and are seldom remembered, but when awakened may be dazed/groggy
REM Behavior Disorder
Sleep disorder characterized by loss of paralysis during REM sleep; "act" out dream activity; can endanger self
Sleep Apnea
Sleep disorder characterized by temporary cessations of breathing during sleep and repeated momentary awakenings (affects 1/20); associated with obesity, loud snoring, daytime sleepiness, irritability, high blood pressure; unaware of condition; unaware of condition; mask-like device helps
Narcolepsy
Sleep disorder characterized by uncontrollable sleep attacks; sufferer may lapse directly into REM sleep, often at unfortunate times (affects 1/2000); involves sudden loss of muscle control; triggered by intense emotions
Restless Leg Syndrome (PLMS)
Sleep disorder of the part of the nervous system that causes an urge to move the legs
Sleep Helps Us Recuperate (Sleep Theories)
Sleep helps restore and repair brain tissue; neurons repair themselves
Sleep Protects (Sleep Theories)
Sleep pattern tends to follow ecological niche (those who need to graze and not hide for as long sleep less)
State-Dependent Memory
Sober may learn something, but when drunk might not remember it
Hypnosis
Social interaction in which one person suggests to another that certain perceptions, feelings, thoughts, or behaviors will spontaneously occur
Creative Environment (Sternberg)
Sparks, supports, refines creative ideas; emotional intelligence needed to network effectively with peers; such environments support innovation, team-building, communication, contemplation (Ex: Work without interruption, but allow communication among peers if needed)
Specific Language
Specific grammar and vocabulary by language
Quick-wittedness
Speed of perception and speed of neural processing
Girls Better At . . .
Spelling, more verbally fluent, better at locating objects, better at detecting emotions, more sensitive to touch, taste, color
Dissociation
Split in consciousness, which allows some thoughts and behaviors to occur simultaneously with others; hypnosis affects selective attention by making brain focus on certain things (Ex: When in pain, don't focus on pain)
One-word Stage
Stage in speech development, from about age 1 to 2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words (usually brief, one syllable)
Reinforcing Own Behavior
State your goal in measurable terms and announce it, Monitor how often you engage in your desired behavior, Reinforce the desired behavior, Reduce the rewards gradually
Operational Definitions
Statements of procedures used to define research variables (Ex: human intelligence is "what IQ test measures)
Correlation Coefficient
Statistical index of relationship between two things (from -1 to +1)
Factor Analysis
Statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items (called factors) on a test; used to identify different dimensions of performance that underlie a person's total score
Statistical Significance
Statistical statement of how likely it is obtained result occurred by chance
Nicotine
Stimulating and highly addictive psychoactive drug in tobacco; releases dopamine, opioids, epinephrine, norepinephrine; most people want to quit
Neutral Stimulus (NS)
Stimulus in classical conditioning that elicits no response before conditioning
Conditioned Reinforcer
Stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer; also known as a secondary reinforcer
Sleep Helps Restore and Rebuild Our Fading Memories of Day's Experiences (Sleep Theories)
Strengthens and stabilizes neural memory traces; more sleep, better memory recall
Amygdala
Stress hormones provoke amygdala to initiate memory trace in frontal lobes/basal ganglia to boost activity in memory-forming areas
Psychodynamic (Analysis)
Studies how behavior springs from unconscious drives/conflicts
Social-Cultural (Analysis)
Studies how behavior/thinking vary across situations/cultures
Neuroscience (Analysis)
Studies how body/brain enable emotions, memories, and sensory experiences
Behavior Genetics (Analysis)
Studies how genes/environment influence individual differences
Evolutionary (Analysis)
Studies how natural selection of traits has promoted survival of genes
Cognitive (Analysis)
Studies how we encode, process, store, retrieve information
Behavioral (Analysis)
Studies how we learn from observable responses
Applied Research
Study aiming to solve practical problems
LIttle Albert Study
Study by John Watson and Reyner (1920), in which a little boy (11 months) became afraid of white fuzzy objects, especially white rats because he associated them with a loud clang after seeing a bunny and hearing a loud clang at the same time
Developmental Psychologists
Study changing abilities from life to death
Social Psychologists
Study how we view/affect each other
Cross-Sectional Study
Study in which people of different ages are compared with one another
Cognitive Neuroscience
Study of brain activity linked with cognition (perception, thinking, memory, language)
Evolutionary Psychology
Study of evolution of behavior and mind, using principles of natural selection
Community Psychology
Study of how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals/groups, and creates environments healthy for all
Positive Psychology
Study of human functioning to discover/promote strengths/virtues to help individuals/communities to thrive
Epigenetics
Study of influences on gene expression that occur without DNA change; epigenetic mark is methyl molecule on DNA that tells cell to ignore gene present on DNA stretch; diet, drugs, stress affect gene expression
Behavior Genetics
Study of relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior
Personality Psychologists
Study persistent traits
Sleep for Memory
Studying SECONDS before sleep won't remember, but studying HOUR before sleep helps you to remember more
Molecular Genetics
Subfield of biology that studies molecular structure and function of genes; Genes predict risk
Predictive Validity
Success with which test predicts behavior it is designed to predict; it is assessed by computing the correlation between test scores and criterion behavior (Also called criterion-related validity)
Insight
Sudden realization of a problem's solution; contrasts with strategy-based solutions
Posthypnotic Suggestions
Suggestions made during hypnosis session to be carried out after subject is no longer hypnotized, used by some clinicians to help control undesired symptoms/behaviors; helps recovery and pain tolerance
Normal Curve
Symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes distribution of many types of data; most scores fall near mean
Normal Curve
Symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many physical and psychological attributes; most scores fall near the average, and fewer and fewer scores lie near the extremes
habituates
with repeated exposure, the emotional response to any erotic stimulus often lessens
engaged employees
working with passion and feeling a profound connection to their company or organization
exhaustion (phase three)
you become more vulnerable to illness or collapse and death
360 degree feedback
you will rate yourself, your other colleagues, and you will be rated by your manager, other colleagues, and customers
Binet's Goals
• Enable schools to recognize who might need early intervention to prosper • Remain alert that intelligence test scores may be seen as literal measures of person's worth and potential • Remember competence that general intelligence tests sample is important; helps enable success in some life paths, but only reflects one aspect of competence o Practical intelligence and emotional intelligence matter too, as do other forms of creativity, talent, character; many ways to be successful Differences variations of human adaptability • COMPETENCE + DILIGENCE --> ACCOMPLISHMENT o "Can do" abilities and "will do" motivation
Intuition's Uses
• Intuition is huge: deliberate, conscious thought is part of smart thinking, but those who processed info subconsciously made smarter decision; best option is to gather all info and then "sleep on it" while unconscious mind works • Intuition is usually adaptive: enables quick reactions and understanding; can even predict future decisions before consciously making up mind • Intuition is recognition born of experience: implicit knowledge; ability to size up situation in moment (ex: chess masters playing "blitz chess")
Information Processing Model
Theoretical perspective that focuses on how learners mentally think about (process) new information and events and how such processes change with development.
Empathy
Theory of mind; brain activity underlies our social nature; when someone feels pain, yawns, etc. brain region literally feels that pain and wants to yawn too
Social Learning Theory
Theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating and by being rewarded or punished
Critical Thinking
Thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions; instead examines assumptions/assesses conclusions
Law of Effect
Thorndike's principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely, and that behaviors followed by unfavorable consequences become less likely
Behaviorists
Those who study observable aspects of behavior and exclude subjective phenomena, like emotions/motives
Chromosomes
Threadlike structures made of DNA molecules that contain the genes
Critical Period
Time period for mastering language; later in life, harder to learn language
Lesion
Tissue destruction; brain lesion is naturally or experimentally caused destruction of brain tissue
Language Development (10 months)
Trained ear can identify household language; discrimination between certain sounds in other language gone
Gender Based on Culture or Genes?
Traits cannot be attributed to only genes or culture
Fraternal Twins
Twins who develop from separate (dizygotic) fertilized eggs; genetically no closer than brothers/sisters, but share fetal environment; share genetic risk though
Identifical Twins
Twins who develop from single (monozygotic) fertilized egg that splits in two, creating two genetically identical organisms; don't always have same number of copies of genes (1/3 don't share placenta)
Amygdala
Two lima-bean sized neural clusters in limbic system, linked to emotion and perception of emotional events and processing emotional memories
Convergent Thinking
Type of critical thinking in which one evaluates existing possible solutions to a problem to choose the best one
Operant Conditioning
Type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher
Classical Conditioning
Type of learning in which one learns to link two or more stimuli and anticipate events
Transgender (Transexual)
Umbrella term describing people whose gender identity or expression differs from that associated with their birth sex; live like other gender, sometimes get surgery
Automatic Processing (Definition)
Unconscious encoding of incidental info, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learning info, such as word meanings
Norms
Understood rules for accepted and expected behavior; "proper" behavior
Overimitation
Unnecessarily imitating another person, like using stick to press button, when could easily use hand
Pruning Process
Used neural connections are strengthened while unused ones are weakened; puberty involves massive loss of unused connections; "Use it or lose it"
Behaviorism
View that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes; most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not (2)
Functional Fixedness
Viewing / Using an object only in the way it's traditionally used
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Scan
Visual display of brain activity that detects where radioactive form of glucose goes while brain performs task
Framing
Way an issue is posed; how an issue is framed can significantly affect decisions and judgments
Expertise (Sternberg)
Well-developed base of knowledge that furnishes ideas, images, phrases we use as mental building blocks; more blocks, more we can use
Web of Memories
When encode something into memory, it becomes stored in "web" of associations (associate it with surroundings, mood, seating position, etc.)
White vs. Black vs. Hispanic IQ
White: 100; Black: 85; Hispanics: 85-100
Linguistic Determinism
Whorf's hypothesis that language determines the way we think
Language Development (18 months)
Word learning explodes from word learned per week to word learned per day
Preservation of Innovation
Write down knowledge, we have it for later
Do Other Animals Have Cognitive Skills?
Yes -- sheep can recognize and remember faces; chimps can read intent; dolphins show self-awareness; elephants can learn, remember, discriminate smells, empathize, cooperate, teach, and use tools
Can Hypnosis Help People Heal or Relieve Their Pain? (Questions of Hypnosis)
Yes, it can help patients harness their own healing powers
autonomy
a sense of personal control
oxytocin
a stress moderating hormone associated with pair bonding in animals and released by cuddling, massage, and breast feeding (in humans)
cross sectional study
a study in which people of different ages are compared with one another
organizational psychology
a subfield of I/O psychology that examines organizational influences on worker satisfaction and productivity and facilitates organizational change
human factors psychology
a subfield of I/O psychology that explores how people and machines interact and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use
personnel psychology
a subfield of I/O psychology that focuses on employee recruitment, selection, placement, training, appraisal, and development
health psyschology
a subfield of psychology that provides psychology's contribution to behavior medicine
biofeedback
a system of recording, amplifying, and feeding back information about subtle physiological responses, many controlled by the autonomic nervous system
empirically derived test
a test (such as the MMPI) developed by testing a pool of items and then selecting those that discriminate between groups
signal detection theory
a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus (signal) amid backgrounds stimulation (noise)
eardrum
a tight membrane
structured interviews
interview process that asks the same job-relevant questions of all applicants, each of whom is rated on established scales
interviewer illusion
interviewers overrating their discernment
secure self esteem
less fragile, it is less contingent on external evaluations
gender and expressiveness
male and female film viewers did not differ dramatically in self reported emotions or physiological responses but the womens faces showed much more emotion
self transcendence
meaning, purpose, and communication beyond self
fraternal birth order effect
men who have older brothers are more likely to be gay (1/3 more likely with each additional brother
biofeedback instuments
mirror the result of a persons own efforts, enabling the person to learn which techniques do (or do not) control a particular physiological response
transformational leadership
motivates others to identify with and commit themselves to the groups mission
secondary sex characteristics
non-reproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair
cyber ostracism
not being put in a group chat or having a text go unanswered
Chunking (Example)
o DON'T TAKE ANY WOODEN NICKELS FOUR SCORE AND SEVEN YEARS AGO o Much easier to remember if you remember it line by line instead of at once
cornea
protects the eye and bends light to provide focus
neutral levels
points at which sounds seem neither loud nor soft, temperatures neither hot nor cold, events neither pleasant nor unpleasant
unstructured interviews
provide a sense of someones personality, their expressiveness, warmth, and verbal ability
natural killer cells
pursue diseased cells (such as those infected by viruses or cancer)
not engaged employees
putting in the time but investing little passion or energy into their work
leniency and severity errors
reflect evaluations tendencies to be either to easy or too harsh on everyone
denial
refusing to believe or even perceive painful realities
faith factor
religiously active people tend to live longer than those who are not religiously active
longitudinal study
research in which the same people are restudied ad retested over a long period
male or female?
researchers manipulated a gender neutral face and people were more likely to see it as a male when it wore and angry expression and as a female when it wore a smile
regression
retreating to a more infantile psychosexual stage, where some psychic energy remains fixated
tinnitus
ringing in the ears (phantom sounds)
two dimensions of emotion
russell, watson, tellegen, and others have described emotions as variations on two dimensions: arousal (high/low) and valence (pleasant/unpleasant feeling)
reality principle
satisfying the ids desire in ways that will realistically bring pleasure rather than pain
general adaption system
selye's concept of the bodys adaptive response to stress in three phases: alarm, resistance, exhaustion
auditory nerve
sends neural messages to the auditory cortex
nociceptors
sensory receptors that detect harmful temperatures, pressure, or chemicals
light and shadow
shading produces a sense of depth consistent with our assumption that light comes from above
displacement
shifting sexual or aggressive impulses toward a more acceptable or less threatening object or person
ostracism
social exclusion
permissive parents
submit to their children's desires
reaction formation
switching unacceptable impulses into their opposites
social identity
the "we" aspect of our self concept
personnel psychology
the I/O subfield that focuses on employee selection, placement, appraisal, and development
organizational psychology
the I/O subfield that focuses on worker satisfaction and productivity, and organizational change
self control
the ability to control impulses and delay short term gratification for greater long term rewards
intimacy
the ability to form close, loving relationships
relative luminance
the amount of light an object reflects relative to its surroundings
industrial organizational psychology
the application of psychological concepts and methods to optimize human behavior in workplaces
object permanence
the awareness that things continue to exist when not perceived
resolution phase
the body gradually returns to its unaroused state as the engorged genital blood vessels release their accumulated blood-relatively quickly if orgasm has occurred, relatively slowly otherwise
primary sex characteristics
the body of structures that make sexual reproduction possible
basal metabolic rate
the body's resting rate of energy expenditure
stroboscopic movement
the brains perceiving continuous movement in a rapid series slightly varying images
fovea
the central focal point in the retina around which the eyes cones cluster
middle ear
the chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones (hammer, anvil, and stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea's oval window
psychosexual
the childhood stages of development (oral, anal, phallic, latency, genital) during which, according to freud, the id's pleasure seeking energies focus on distinct erogenous zones
social clock
the culturally preferred timing of social events such as marriage, parenthood, and retirement
fetus
the developing human organism from 9 weeks after conception to birth
embryo
the developing human organism from about 2 weeks after fertilization through the second month
hue
the dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light (blue, green...)
employee engagement
the extent of workers involvement, enthusiasm, and identification with their organisms
personal control
the extent to which we perceive control over our environment
stranger anxiety
the fear of strangers that infants commonly display, beginning by about 8 months of age
menarche
the first menstrual period
learned helplessness
the hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events
inner ear
the innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs
reciprocal determinism
the interacting influences of behavior, internal cognition, and environment
retina
the light sensitive inner surface of the eye that contains the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information
absolute threshold
the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time
optic nerve
the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain
figure-ground
the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground)
superego
the part of personality that, according to freud, represents internalized ideals and provides standards for judgment (the conscience) and for future aspirations
external locus of control
the perception that chance or outside forces beyond our personal control determine out fate
relative deprivation
the perception that one is worse off relative to those with whom one compares oneself
internal locus of control
the perception that you control your own fate
grouping
the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups
puberty
the period of sexual maturation during which a person becomes capable of reproducing
blind spot
the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye creating a "blind" spot because no receptor cells are located there
ego-centrism
the preoperational child's difficulty taking another's point of view
conservation
the principle (which piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects
sensory interactions
the principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste
weber's law
the principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage rather than a constant amount
imprinting
the process by which certain animals form attachments during a critical period very early in life
sensation
the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment
accommodation (vision)
the process by which the eyes lends changes shape to focus hear or far objects on the retina
stress
the process by which we perceive and respond to certain events, called stressors, that we appraise as threatening or challenging
identification
the process by which, according to freud, children incorporate their parents values into their developing superegos
perception
the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events
manifest content
the remembered content if dreams
two factor theory
the schachter/singer theory that to experience emotion one must be physically aroused and cognitively label the arousal
vestibular sense
the sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance
psychological contract
the sense of mutual obligations between workers and employees
audition
the sense or act of hearing
pupil
the small adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters
preoperational stage
the stage (from about 2 to about 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
the stage (from birth to about 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities
concrete operational stage
the stage of cognitive development (from about 6 or 7 to 11 years of age) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events
formal operational stage
the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts
factor analysis
the statistical procedure described to identify clusters of test items that tap basic components of intelligence (such as spatial ability or verbal skills)
psychoneuroimmunology
the study of how psychological, neural, and endocrine processes together affect the immune system and resulting health
parapsychology
the study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis
psychophysics
the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them
kinesthesis
the system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts
facial feedback effect
the tendency of facial muscle states to trigger corresponding feelings such as fear, anger, or happiness
false consensus effect
the tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share our beliefs and behaviors
opponent-process theory
the theory that opposing retinal processes enable color vision
helmholtz trichromatic (three color) theory
the theory that the retina contains 3 different color receptors, one most sensitive to red, one to green, one to blue, which when stimulated in combination, can produce the perception of any color
gate control theory
the theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological "gate" that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain. the "gate" is opened by the activity of pain signals traveling up small nerve fibers and is closed by activity in larger fibers or by information coming from the brain.
adolescence
the transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence
lens
the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina
lymphocytes
the two types of white blood cells that are part of the bodys immune system: B lymphocytes and T lymphocytes
sensation seekers
those who are most likely to seek out intense music, novel foods, and risky behaviors
what determines our perceptual set
through experience we form concepts that organize ans interpret unfamiliar information
orexin
triggers hunger
individualism
trusting and acting on ones feelings, being true to oneself, fulfilling oneself
adaptation and comparison
two psychological principles that explain why, for those who are not poor, more money buys little more than a temporary surge of happiness and why our emotions seem attached to elastic bands that pull us back from highs or lows
tend and befriend
under stress, people (especially women) often provide support to others (tend) and bond with an seek support from others (befriend)
actively disengaged employees
unhappy workers undermining what their colleagues accomplish
catastrophes
unpredictable large scale events
humanistic theories
view personality with a focus on the potential for healthy personal growth
pschodynamic theories
view personality with a focus on the unconscious and the importance of childhood experiences
experience influences how we perceive emotions
viewing the morphed middle face, evenly mixing fear with anger, physically abused children were more likely than non-abused children to perceive the face as angry
social cognitive perspective
views behavior as influenced by the interaction between peoples traits (including their thinking) and their social context
closure
we fill in the gaps to create a complete, whole object
proximity
we group nearby figures together
assumptions of trait theory
we have certain stable and enduring characteristics, influenced by genetic predispositions (big five)
person situation controversy
we look for genuine personality traits that persist over time and across situations
brightness constancy/lightness constancy
we perceive an object as having a constant brightness even while its illumination varies
relative height
we perceive objects higher in our field of vision as farther away
continuity
we perceive smooth, continuous patterns rather than discontinuous ones
shape constancy
we perceive the form of familiar objects as constant even while our retinas receive changing images of them
phantom limb sensations
when it misinterprets the spontaneous central nervous system activity that occurs in the absence of normal sensory input
acceptance
when people are accepting they offer unconditional positive regard
empathy
when people are empathetic, they share and mirror others feelings and reflect their meanings
genuineness
when people are genuine, they are open with their own feelings, drop their facades, and are transparent and self disclosing
empathy
when you identify with others and imagine what it must be like to walk in their shoes
curse of knowledge
when you know a thing, its hard to mentally simulate what its like not to know
Cerebellum
"Little brain" at rear of brainstem; functions are processing sensory input and coordinating movement output and balance
Endorphins
"Morphine within" - natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and pleasure
Somatic Nervous System
"Skeletal nervous system" - part of peripheral nervous system that enables voluntary control of skeletal muscles
Peg-Word System
"one is bun, two is shoe, three is tree . . ." will be able to count using new word system
Manifest Content
(According to Freud) is remembered story line of a dream
Latent Content
(According to Freud) is underlying meaning of a dream
Different Kinds of Psychologists
(Biological Psychologists - Explore links between brain/mind Developmental Psychologists - Study changing abilities from life to death Cognitive Psychologists - Experiment with how we perceive, think, and problem-solve Personality Psychologists - Study persistent traits Social Psychologists - Study how we view/affect each other)
Humans Are Best At . . . (Thinking)
(From worst to best) decision making, problem solving, quick heuristics, learning/using language
IQ Score and Speed of Taking in Perceptual Info Correlation . . .
+.3 to +.5
Brain Size vs. IQ
+.33 correlation between brain size and IQ
Problems with Evolutionary Theory
- Could affect gender equality movement - Does not explain same-sex attraction and suicide - Favors people who share genes or who can return favors
Influences of Twins
- Divorce highest among twins (esp. identical twins) - Tend to have same voice inflections, intelligence, heart rate, brain waves - Treated alike in general
Influences of Adopted
- Environment shared by family's children has virtually no discernable impact on personalities of children - Parents influence attitudes, manners, faith, politics - Adopted kids are overall abused less, have less psychological disorders, are more altruistic and intelligent
Alcohol Symptoms
- In low doses is depressant; equal opportunity drug (increases helpful and unhelpful tendencies) - In high doses, slows reactions, slurs speech, lowers skilled performance skills, can kill - In all doses, can disrupt memory formation, through killing nerve cells, and can reduce self-awareness ("myopia")
Influences of Drug Use
- Marijuana use fell, rose, then tapered off - Adopted more susceptible to alcohol dependence if parents have history of it - Having identical twin with it increases risk - 6 yr-old impulsive boys have increased risk - Certain genes contribute to addiction; deficiencies in brain's natural dopamine reward system - Users of drugs have experienced failure, stress, depression, or loss of identity - Marriage decreases drug use -Western Europe higher drug use; religious and African-Americans use less drugs - Parental monitoring and rural areas help lower risk - Peer influence affects teens; parties have alcohol because overestimate desire for it
Woah, Evolutionary Science is NOT Scary
- New understanding usually brings more questions - Theories are just things that make sense; simply for organization - Religion can be incorporated into scientific discovery
Environmental Effects on Gender Roles
- Nomadic societies have minimal gender roles while agricultural societies have them - Australia/Scandinavian countries have high gender equity while North African/Middle Eastern countries have low gender equity - Growing jobs are ones women gravitated towards (ones needing IQ, open communication, and ability to sit still)
Sperling Experiment
- People viewed three rows of three letters for 1/20 of second; could only remember half of them - However, people could see and recall all of them, as shown by them hardly missing a letter with tone indicating to read top, middle, or bottom row
Peer Influence
- Preschoolers eat food they don't like if people at table like it - Children will use accent of language used by peers over one used by parents - Teens smoke if peers smoke - Parents choose neighborhood/school, so influence peer group
Consequences of Punishment
- Teaches discrimination among situations - Teaches fear - Increases aggression by modeling aggression as a way to cope with problems
Trends in Culture
- Western culture focuses on independence now, used to be focused on obedience - Asian families encourage "family self" - what shames child shames family, and what honors family honors child - Upper-class Brits put children in daycare to succeed while African Gusii society nurses babies on backs and give child to eldest child when rear new one - Stereotypes hold truth: Canadians agreeable, Australians outgoing
Positive Punishment
Punishment involving administration of aversive stimulus
Negative Punishment
Punishment involving withdrawal of rewarding stimulus
latent content
-censored expression of the dreamers unconscious wishes -why you had a dream and the meaning behind it
performance appraisal methods
-checklists -graphic rating scales -behavior rating scales
agreeableness
-low score: ruthless, suspicious, uncooperative -high score: soft hearted, trusting, helpful
zygote
-the fertilized egg -it enters a 2 week period of rapid cell division and develops into an embryo
glucose
-the form of sugar that circulates in the blood and provides the major source of energy for body tissues -When level is low, we feel hunger
2 big questions regarding emotion
-chicken and egg debate: does your bodily arousal come before or after your emotional feelings -how do thinking and feeling interact
lazarus
-cognition may not precede emotion -appraisal sometimes without our awareness defines our emotion -ex: the sound is "just the wind"
Differences Between Men and Women
- Women are more relational while men are more recreational; women must pair smartly and men must spread widely - Men attracted to younger, fertile women in 20's while women are attracted to mature, dominant, bold, affluent stick-around men - Men are more sexual beings than women - Men feel better about appearance, women feel better about behavior/ethics - Women enter puberty sooner, live longer, have more fat, less muscle, are shorter, are re-aroused after orgasm, express emotions freely, smell faint odors, offer more help, more vulnerable to depression/anxiety, and have greater risk of eating disorder - Men more likely to commit suicide, suffer alcoholism, be diagnosed with autism, color-blindness, ADHD, and have an antisocial personality - Men commit more physical aggression while women commit more relational aggression - Men place emphasis on power and achievement while women are more democratic and welcome subordinate's input - Men's power hunger is accepted - Females more interdependent than males - Females talk as much as men, but text and call longer - Men like things, women like people - Women are more emotionally understanding than men - Women tend and befriend, so have stronger bonds with people and seek intimacy throughout their lives - Men value freedom/self-reliance - Men are less religious - Teenage girls are less assertive and more flirtatious while teenage boys are more domineering and less expressive - By 50, men are less domineering and more empathetic while women become more assertive and self-confident - Both genders value honesty, kindness, IQ - Males have bigger parietal cortex; females have bigger frontal lobes
macrophage
-"big eater" -identifies, pursues, and ingests harmful invaders and worn out cells
cochlea
-a coiled, bony, fluid filled tube in the inner ear -sound waves travel through the cochlear fluid triggers nerve impulses
achievement motivation
-a desire for significant accomplishment, for mastery of skills or ideas -for rapidly attaining a high standard
perceptual set
-a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another -can influence what we hear, taste, feel, and see
motivations
-a need or desire that energizes and directs behavior -arise from the interplay between nature (the bodily "push") and nature ( the "pulls" from out thought process and culture)
sexual disorder
-a problem that consistently impairs sexual arousal or functioning -erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, pain, orgasmic dysfunction
personality inventory
-a questionnaire (often with true/false or agree/disagree items) on which people respond to items designed to gauge a wide range of feelings and behaviors -used to assess selected personality traits
self serving bias
-a readiness to perceive oneself favorably -people accept more responsibility for good deeds than for bad, and for successes than for failures -most people see themselves as better than average
id
-a reservoir of unconscious psychic energy that, according to freud, strives to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive drives -operates on the pleasure principle
iris
-a ring of muscle tissue that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening -each is unique -a colored muscle that dilates or constricts in response to light intensity and even to inner emotion
basic trust
-a sense that the world is predictable and trustworthy -said to be formed during infancy by appropriate experiences with responsive caregivers
homeostasis
-a tendency to maintain a balanced or constant internal state -the regulation of any aspect of body chemistry, such as blood glucose, around a particular level
terror management theory
-a theory of death related anxiety -explores peoples emotional and behavioral responses to reminders of their impending death
pitch
-a tones experienced highness or lowness -depends on frequency
Oedipus complex
-according to freud, a boys sexual desires toward his mother and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the rival father -parallel in females: electra complex
self actualization
-according to maslow, one of the ultimate psychological needs that arise after basic physical and psychological needs are met and self esteem is achieved -the motivation to fufill ones potential
key proponents of psychodynamic theory
-adler -hornet -jung
key proponents of trait theory
-allport -eysenck -mccrae -costa
5 domains of complementary and alternative medicine
-alternative medical system -mind-body interventions -biologically based therapies -manipulative and body based methods -energy therapies
cannon bard theory
-arousal and emotion occur simultaneously -the theory that an emotion arousing stimulus simultaneously triggers physiological responses and the subjective experience of emotion -pounding heart does not cause fear and fear does not cause a pounding heart
james lange theory
-arousal comes before emotion -the theory that our experience of emotion is our awareness of our physiological responses to emotion arousing stimuli -ex: we feel sad because we cry
sympathetic division
-arousing -division of your autonomic nervous system that mobilizes your body stress hormones epinephrine and non-epinephrine
maturation
-biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior -relatively uninfluenced by experience
hans and sybil eysenck
-british psychologists -believed that we can reduce many of our normal individual variations to two or three dimensions including extroversion-introversion and emotional stability-instability
parasympathetic division
-calming -part of your autonomic nervous system that gradually calms your body, as stress hormones slowly leave your bloodstream
3 main types of stressors
-catastrophes -significant life changes -daily hassles
two basic ways to study the effect of personal control
-correlate peoples feelings of control with their behaviors and achievements -experiment by raising or lowering peoples sense of control and noting the effects
habituation
-decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation -as infants gain familiarity with repeated exposure to a visual stimulus, their interest waned and they look away sooner
six defense mechanisms
-defense mechanism -regression -reaction formation -projection -rationalization -displacement -denial
clinical obesity
-defined by WHO as a body mass index of 30 or more -linked to depression
three specific ways in which individuals and environment interact
-different people choose different environments -our personalities shape how we interpret and react to events -our personalities help create situations to which we react
sensory adaptation
-diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation -going "noes blind"
emotional arousal
-elated excitement and panicky fear involve similar physiological arousal which allows us to flip rapidly between the two emotions
catharsis
-emotional release -in psychology, the catharsis hypothesis maintains that releasing aggressive energy (through action or fantasy) relieves aggressive urges
3 types of employees
-engaged -not engaged -actively disengaged
optimists
-expect the best outcome -have more control and can better cope with stressful events and to enjoy better health
sympathetic vs parasympathetic division
-eyes: pupils dilate vs pupils contract -salivation: decreases vs increases -skin: perspires vs dries -respiration: increases vs decreases -heart: accelerates vs slows -digestion: inhibits vs activates -adrenal glands: secrete stress hormones vs decrease secretion of stress hormones -immune system functioning: reduces vs enhanced
diminishing returns phenomenon
-familiar to economists as diminishing marginal utility -experiencing luxury diminishes our savoring of lifes simpler pleasures -more money does allow us to enjoy more things and feel more control over our lives but it does less to increase our feelings of happiness
drive-reduction theory
-focuses on how our inner pushes and external pulls interact -the idea that a physiological need creates an aroused tension state (or drive) that motivates an organism to satisfy the need
personality assessment methods of psychoanalytic theory
-free association -projective tests -tests -dream analysis
rogers believed that a growth promoting climate required what three conditions
-genuineness -acceptance -empathy
sori neural hearing loss
-hearing loss caused by damage to the cochleas receptor cells or to the auditory nerves -AKA nerve deafness
predictors of sexual restraint
-high intelligence -religious engagement -father presence -participation in service learning programs
big five research has explored these various questions
-how stable are these traits -music preferences -dorm rooms and offices -personal websites -email
three interacting systems in personality structure proposed by freud
-id -ego -superego
path to organizational success
-identify strengths -match to work -positive managing -engaged employees -loyal customers, growth, and profits
repression
-in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness -underlies all the other defense mechanisms
defense mechanism
-in psychoanalytic theory, the egos protective methods of reducing anxiety by unconsciously distorting reality -all function indirectly and unconsciously -unconscious process employed to avoid anxiety arousing thoughts or feelings
insulin
-increases in this hormone diminishes blood glucose, partly by converting stored fat -secreted by the pancreas
four perspectives for viewing motivated behaviors
-instinct theory -drive reduction theory -arousal theory
4 factors explaining the gap between interviewers overconfidence
-interviewers disclose the interviewees good intentions, which are less revealing than habitual behaviors -interviewers more often follow the successful careers of those they have hired than the successful careers of those they have rejected and lost track of -interviewers presume that people are what they seem to be in the interview situation -interviewers preconceptions and moods color how they perceive interviewees responses
carroll izard
-isolated 10 basic emotions: joy, interest/excitement, surprise, sadness, anger, disgust ,contempt, fear, shame, and guilt -other emotions are combinations of those 10
polygraph
-lie detector -a machine, commonly used in attempts to detect lies -measures several of the physiological responses (such as perspiration and cardiovascular and breathing changes) accompanying emotion
psychophysiology illness
-literally, "mind body" illness -any stress related physical illness, such as hypertension and some headaches
neuroticism
-low score: calm, secure, self satisfied -high score: anxious, insecure, self pitying
consciousness
-low score: disorganized, careless, impulsive -high score: organized, careful, disciplined
openness
-low score: practical, prefers routine conforming -high score: imaginative, prefers variety independent
extroversion
-low score: retiring sober reserved -high score: sociable, fun loving, affectionate
hierarchy of needs (definition)
-maslow -describes how some of our needs take priority over others -maslow's pyramid of human needs, beginning at the base with physiological needs that must first be satisfied before higher level safety needs and then psychological needs become active
teratogens
-monster maker -agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm
unstable + introverted
-moody -rigid -sober -pessimistic -reserved -unsociable -quiet
transformational leaders
-natural extroverts -articulate high standards -inspire people to share their vision -offer personal attention
three major issues of developmental psychology
-nature and nurture -continuity and stages -stability and change
feature detectors
-nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus such as shape, angle, or movement -pass information to other cortical areas, where teams of sells (supercell clusters) respond to more complex patterns
instinct theory
-now replaced by the evolutionary perspective -focuses on genetically predisposed behaviors
frequency
-or length -determines the pitch -the number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time
identity
-our sense of self -the adolescent's task is to solidify a sense of self by testing and integrating various roles
stable + introverted
-passive -careful -thoughtful -peaceful -controlled -reliable -even tempered -calm
assumptions of psychoanalytic theory
-personality consists of pleasure seeking impulses (the id), a reality oriented executive (the ego), and an internalized set of ideals (the superego) -emotional disorders spring from unconscious dynamics -defense mechanisms fend off anxiety
fetal alcohol syndrome
-physical and cognitive abnormalities in children caused by a pregnant woman's heavy drinking -in severe cases symptoms include noticeable facial misproportions
hierarchy of needs (diagram)
-physiological needs (need to satisfy hunger and thirst) -safety needs (need to feel that the world is organized and predictable; the need to feel safe) -belongingness and love needs (need to love and be loved, to belong and be accepted; need to avoid loneliness and separation) -esteem needs (need for self esteem, achievement, competence, an independence; need for recognition and respect from others) -self actualization needs (need to live up to our fullest and unique potential) -self transcendence (need to find meaning and identity beyond the self)
telomeres
-pieces of DNA at the end of chromosomes -shortened in women who suffered enduring stress as caregivers for children with serious disorders
personality assessment methods of psychodynamic theory
-projective tests -therapy sessions
personality assessment methods of humanistic theory
-questionnaires -therapy sessions
assumptions of humanistic theory
-rather than examining the struggles of sick people, it is better to focus on the ways healthy people strive for self realization -if all our needs are met we will strive toward self actualization
rods
-retina receptors that detect black, white, and grey -necessary for peripheral and twilight vision when cones dont respond
cones
-retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well lit conditions -detect fine detail and give rise to color sensations
key proponents of humanistic theory
-rogers -maslow
subjective well being
-self perceived happiness or satisfaction with life -used along with measures of well being (physical and economic indicators) to evaluate peoples quality of life
estrogen
-sex hormones, such as estradiol, secreted in greater amounts by females than by males and contributing to female sex characteristics -in nonhuman female mammals, estrogen levels peak during ovulation, promoting sexual receptivity
stable + extroverted
-sociable -outgoing -talkative -responsive -easygoing -lively -carefree -leadership
effective managers...
-start by helping people identify and measure their talents -match tasks to talents and then give people freedom to do what they do best -care how people feel about their work -reinforce positive behaviors through recognition and reward
aerobic exercise
-sustained exercise that increases heart and lung fitness -may also alleviate depression and anxiety
depth perception
-the ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two dimensional -allows us to judge distance
priming
-the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing ones perception, memory, or response -an unnoticed image or word can reach you visual cortex and briefly prime you response to a later question
intensity
-the amount of energy in a light or sound wave (brightness/loudness) -determined by amplitude
coronary heart disease
-the clogging of the vessels that nourish the heart muscle -the leading cause of death in many developed countries
extrasensory perception (ESP)
-the controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input -includes telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition
wave length
-the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next -electromagnetic wavelengths vary from the short blips of cosmic rays to the long pulses of radio transmission
stress appraisal
-the events of our lives flow through a psychological filter -how we appraise an event influences how much stress we experience and how effectively we respond
testosterone
-the most important of the male sex hormones -both males and females have it, but the additional testosterone in males stimulates the growth of the male sex organs in the fetus and the development of the male sex characteristics during puberty
minnesota multiphasic personality inventory (MMPI)
-the most widely researched and clinically used of all personality tests -originally developed to identify emotional disorder (still considered its most appropriate use) -now used for many other screening purposes
Rorschach inkblot test
-the most widely used projective test, a set of 10 inkblots, designed by hermann rorschach -seeks to identify peoples inner feelings by analyzing their interpretations of the blots
set point
-the point at which an individuals "weight thermostat" is supposedly set -when the body falls below this weight, an increase in hunger and a lowered metabolic rate may act to restore the lost weight
parallel processing
-the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously -the brains natural mode of information processing for many functions
positive psychology
-the scientific study of optimal human functioning -aims to discover and promote strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive
monopause
-the time of natural cessation of menstruation -also refers to the biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines
assumptions of psychodynamic theory
-the unconscious and conscious minds interact -childhood experiences and defense mechanisms are important -the dynamic interplay of conscious motives and conflicts shape our personality
spine injuries effect on emotion
-those with lower spine injuries who had lost sensation only in their legs reported little change in their emotions intensity -high spinal cord injury and could feel nothing below the neck, DID report changes
unstable + extroverted
-touchy -restless -aggressive -excitable -changeable -impulsive -optimistic -active
outer ear
-visible -channels the waves through the auditory canal to the eardrum causing it to vibrate
alarm reaction (phase one)
-your sympathetic nervous system is suddenly activated -your heart rate zooms -blood is diverted to your skeletal muscles -you feel the faintness of shock
resistance (phase two)
-your temperature, blood pressure, and respiration remain high -your adrenal glands pump hormones into your bloodstream -you are fully engaged
Words Influence Our Thinking . . .
. . . But do not determine it
Thinking Affects Language, which . . .
. . . then affects our thoughts
Language Features
1) Semanticity - sounds convey meaning (doesn't mean all sounds have meaning) 2) Arbitrariness - no connection between symbols and objects (ex: symbol "dog" has no literal connection to the animal) 3) Flexibility of Symbols - changeable / inventable (ex: automobile vs. car) 4) Naming - assigned to everything 5) Displacement - past / present 6) Productivity / Generativity - infinite possibilities for words
Why Intelligent Live Longer . . .
1. Intelligence facilitates more education, better jobs, healthier environment 2. Intelligence favors healthy living: less smoking, better diet, more exercise 3. Prenatal events/early childhood illnesses might have influences both IQ/health 4. Well-wired body as shown by fast reaction speeds might foster IQ/longevity
Why We Fear Things
1. We fear what our ancestral history has prepared us to fear (ex: fear confinement / heights) 2. We fear what we cannot control (ex: cannot control flying) 3. We fear what's immediate (ex: w/ planes, focus on takeoff/landing; w/ cars, danger spread out) 4. Thanks to the availability, we fear what is most readily available in memory (ex: powerful, vivid image of planes crashing into Twin Towers, although rare event and few deaths)
Atkinson's and Shiffrin's Information Processing Model
1. We first record to-be-remembered info as sensory memory, or immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system 2. We process info into short-term memory (activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as 7 digits of a phone number while dialing, before the info is stored or forgotten) where we encode it through rehearsal 3. Info moves into long-term memory (relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system; includes knowledge, skills, and experiences) for later retrieval
10-year Rule
10 years of intense, daily practice yields peak expertise in skill
Priming ("Memory-Less Memory")
Activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory (Ex: smells, tastes, sights)
Short-Term Memory
Activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as 7 digits of a phone number while dialing, before the info is stored or forgotten; encoded through rehearsal
Cocktail Party Effect
Ability to attend to only one voice among many, effectively ignoring all other voices
Emotional Intelligence
Ability to perceive, understand, manage, and use emotions
Creativity
Ability to produce novel and valuable ideas
Productive Language
Ability to produce words (matures after receptive language) (7 months)
Replication
Ability to repeat original observations with different participants, materials, situations
Fitness
Ability to survive and reproduce
Receptive Language
Ability to understand what is said to and about them (4 months)
Pons
Above medulla; coordinates movement
Cognitive Learning
Acquisition of mental information, whether by observing events, by watching others, or through language
Gender Typing
Acquisition of traditional masculine or feminine role; As child, form gender schema for organizing characteristics through hearing different voices (grouping by gender); also in English you use "he" and "she" to identify gender; 3 yr-old seeks out gender while 5/6 yr-old adapts to gender's expected behavior
Major Conditioning Processes
Acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, generalization, discrimination
Punisher
Any consequence(s) that decreases the frequency of a preceding behavior
Ape's Language
Ape vocabulary and sentences simple, and have difficulty learning them; might be nothing more than aping trainers' signs and learning certain arm movements produce rewards; perceptual set of trainers; lack human syntax; however, used word-combos that were creative and were able to teach sign language to kids
Sensory Cortex
Area at front of parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations
Motor Cortex
Area at rear of frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements; cognitive neural prosthetics allows paralyzed to operate devices (Ex: Turn on TV)
Association Areas
Areas of cerebral cortex that aren't involved in primary motor/sensory functions; rather, they're involved in higher mental functions like learning, remembering, thinking, speaking (not observable)
Mean
Arithmetic average of distribution
Clinical Psychologists
Assess/treat mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders
Analytical (Academic Problem-Solving) Intelligence (Triarchic Theory)
Assessed by IQ tests, which present defined right answer; predict school grades/vocational success
Random Assignment
Assignment of participants to experimental/control groups by chance, minimizing differences between those assigned to different groups
Source Amnesia
Attributing to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined (also called source misattribution); source amnesia, along with misinformation effect, is at the heart of many false memories
Social Influence Theory
Authoritative person in legitimate context can induce people--hypnotized or not--to perform some unlikely acts
Genetics research reveals that under the skin, the races are remarkably alike
Average genetic difference between two Icelanders exceeds group differences between Icelander and Kenyan
Predictability/Expectation
Awareness of how likely an unconditioned stimulus will occur
Medulla
Base of brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing
REM Sleep (Details)
Brain waves become rapid like NREM-1 (heart rate rises, breathing rapid and irregular, eyes dart every half minute); Genitals become aroused; Motor cortex active, but brainstem blocks messages so body relaxed
Plasticity
Brain's ability to change, especially during childhood by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience (tissue reorganizes); constraint-induced therapy rewires brain by using damaged limb, having brain adjust to allow limb to recover skills
Thalamus
Brain's sensory switchboard, located on top of brainstem; directs messages to sensory receiving areas in cortex and transmits replies to cerebellum and medulla; deals with seeing, hearing, tasting, touching
Nerves
Bundled axons that form neural "cables" connecting central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sense organs
Sleep Spindles
Bursts of rapid, rhythmic brain-wave activity associated with NREM-2 sleep
Language Development (7 months)
Can learn simple sentence structure and recognize which syllables most often go together; built in readiness for grammatical rules
Emotional Arousal Effect
Can sear certain events in brain while disrupting memory for neutral events around the same time; stronger the emotion, the stronger the memory
Deafness Disadvantages
Can't hear . . . but also may be socially excluded and/or fall behind in school; low self-confidence unless grow up with deaf people; older deaf lower capacity to remember words; end up sadder, less socially engaged, and experiencing others' irritation
Observational Learning
Learning by observing others
Limitations of Heritability
Cannot know how much trait comes from genes, just variation; hard to measure, varies from studies, need to exclude other factors; as environments differ more, heritability increases; genes not always cause
Antisocial Effects
Caused by observational learning (Ex: Abusive parents breed aggressive children)
Sleep Deprivation
Causes difficulty studying, lower productivity, tendency to make mistakes, irritability, fatigue, increased risk of depression, production of ghrelin (which increases fat), suppresses immune cells that fight infections/cancer, slows reactions/increases errors in visual attention
Neurotransmitter
Chemical messenger that crosses synaptic gaps between neurons; when released by sending neuron, travel across synapse and bind to receptor sites on receiving neuron, influencing whether that neuron will generate neural impulse
Hormones
Chemical messengers that are manufactured by endocrine glands; travel through bloodstream; affect other tissues
Psychoactive Drugs
Chemical substances that alter perceptions and moods; effect depends on biological effect and psychological expectation
B.F. Skinner
Children learn language based on behaviorist reinforcement principles, modeling and imitation; correct utterances are positively reinforced
Language Development (Elementary School Age)
Children understand complex sentences and enjoy double meanings (if learning delayed, learn faster)
WISC
Children version of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale
Violence-Viewing Effect (What is it)
Children watch many murders on TV, many not showing victim's pain or bad consequence; perpetrator usually attractive and violence usually "justified"
Washoe
Chimp taught 132 signs by 4 years, 245 by end
Flashbulb Memories
Clear memories of an emotionally significant moment or event (clearer if experienced it rather than heard about it) Ex: Knowing exactly where you were when 9/11 happened
Belief Perseverance
Clinging to one's initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited
Genome
Complete instructions for making an organism, consisting of all the genetic material in that organism's chromosomes
DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid)
Complex molecule containing genetic information that makes up chromosomes
Hierarchies
Composed of few broad concept divided into narrower concepts; organizing concepts helps to remember
Addiction
Compulsive drug craving and use, despite adverse consequences
Standard Deviation
Computed measure of how much scores vary around mean score
Biological Perspective
Concerned with links between biology and behavior, including neuroscience, behavior genetics, and evolutionary psychology
Blindsight
Condition in which a person can respond to a visual stimulus without consciously experiencing it
Savant Syndrome
Condition in which a person otherwise limited in mental ability has an exceptional specific skill, such as in computation or drawing
Intellectual Disability
Condition of limited mental ability, indicated by an intelligence score of 70 or below and difficulty in adapting to the demands of life; varies from mild to profound (formerly referred to as mental retardation) o American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities defines it as two standard deviations below average • Special education, Social Security, & less death penalty for intellectually disabled
Down Syndrome
Condition of mild to severe intellectual disability and associated physical disorders caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21
Split Brain
Condition resulting from surgery isolating brain's two hemispheres by cutting fibers (mainly those of corpus callosum) connecting them (HE'ART Experiment)
Infantile Amnesia Cause
Conscious memory of first years blank, because hippocampus one of last brain structures to mature and index much of explicit memory using words that nonspeaking children have not learned; but still remember implicit skills
Nature-Nurture Issue
Controversy over relative contributions that genes/experience make to development of psychological traits/behaviors
Division of Labor
Coordination and commitment of team of people to create something
Eugenics
Criticized 19th century movement that proposed measuring human traits and using results to encourage only smart and fit people to reproduce
In different eras, different ethic groups have experienced golden ages--periods of remarkable achievement
Cultures rise and fall; Greeks/Egyptians had their time, now it's Jews (2% of population, 21% of Ivy League students)
Practical Skills
Daily personal care, occupational skill, and travel and health care
Natural Selection
Darwin stated among range of inherited trait variations, those contributing to reproduction/survival will be passed on to succeeding generations
Standardization
Defining meaningful scores by comparison with the performance of a pretested group (basis for comparison of scores)
Creative Intelligence (Triarchic Theory)
Demonstrated in reacting adaptively to novel situations/generating novel ideas
Intrinsic Motivation
Desire to perform a behavior effectively for its own sake
Extrinsic Motivation
Desire to perform a behavior to receive promised rewards or avoid threatened punishment
Excessive Rewards
Destroys intrinsic motivation; interest becomes solely the reward given
Range
Difference between highest and lowest scores in distribution
Human Genome
Differences between 2 people in Kenya and 2 people in Iceland are less than differences between 1 Kenyan and 1 Icelandic
Level of Analysis
Differing complementary views from biological to psychological to social-cultural (Ex: Psychoanalysis, Neuroscience, etc.)
Tolerance
Diminishing effect with regular use of same dose of drug, requiring user to take larger and larger doses before experiencing drug's effect (Neuroadaptation, or brain adjusting chemistry, results)
Extinction
Diminishing of conditioned response; occurs in classical conditioning when unconditioned stimulus (US) does not follow a conditioned stimulus (CS); occurs in operant conditioning when a response is no longer reinforced
To Increase Skill . . .
Disciplined effort, sustained practice, and believing in oneself
Withdrawal
Discomfort and distress following discontinuation of use of an addictive drug
Retroactive (backward-acting) Interference
Disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information (Ex: Sing new lyrics to tune of old song, harder to remember old song's words)
Proactive (forward-acting) Interference
Disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new information (Ex: remember combo of new lock w/ memory of old one)
To Reflect Cognitive Development (Why We Dream)
Dreams are part of brain maturation and cognitive development; early age, stimulate reality by drawing on concepts and knowledge; does not address neuroscience of the dream
To Make Sense of Neural Static (Why We Dream)
Dreams erupt from neural activation spreading upward from brainstem; make sense of neural activity
Sleep Feeds Creative Thinking (Sleep Theories)
Dreams inspire noteworthy artistic and scientific achievement; gives boost to thinking and learning; easier to make connections too
To File Away Memories (Why We Dream)
Dreams may help sort or fix day's experiences in memory; sleep more, remember more; does not explain why we dream about things we haven't experienced
To Develop and Preserve Neural Pathways (Why We Dream)
Dreams provide brain with periodic stimulation, developing, expanding neural pathways; does not explain why we have meaningful dreams
To Satisfy Our Own Wishes (Why We Dream)
Dreams provide safety valve that discharges unacceptable feelings (Freud theory; critics say no scientific evidence)
Cocaine
Drug that causes euphoria then quick aggressive depression; leads to emotional disturbances, suspiciousness, convulsions, cardiac arrest, or respiratory failure; crack is higher euphoria and crash
Stimulants
Drugs (such as caffeine, nicotine, amphetamines, cocaine, ecstasy, methamphetamine) that excite neural activity and speed up body functions
Depressants
Drugs such as alcohol, barbiturates (tranquilizers), and opiates that reduce neural activity and slow body functions
Barbiturates
Drugs that depress central nervous system activity, reducing anxiety but impairing memory and judgement
Amphetamines
Drugs that stimulate neural activity, causing sped-up body functions and associated energy and mood changes
Divided Consciousness Theory
During hypnosis, our consciousness splits, so that one aspect of consciousness is not aware of the role other parts are playing.
Temporary Storage
During sleep, hippocampus transfers day's memories to cortex for long-term storage; Learn location of treasure, have hippocampus removed 3 hours later will forget; removed 48 hours later will remember
Functionalism
Early school of psychology that focused on how our mental/behavioral processes function - how they enable us to adapt, survive, and flourish
Structuralism
Early school of psychology that used introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human mind
Telegraphic Speech
Early speech stage in which child speaks like a telegram--"go car"--using mostly nouns and verbs
Early Childhood
Easiest time to master grammar/language; lack of vision during this time causes vision to never be normal
What Affects Conditioning's Effectiveness?
Ecological relevance (related to natural selection)
Treating Drug Use
Educate young about long-term costs, help them find other ways to boost self-esteem, attempt to modify peer associations or "inoculate" youths against peer pressures
Déjà vu
Eerie sense that "I've experienced this before"; cues from current situation may subconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience
Intuition
Effortless, immediate, automatic feeling or thought, as contrasted with explicit, conscious reasoning
Gardner's Multiple Intelligences
Eight Intelligences: Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Bodily-Kinesthetic, Spatial, Musical, Logical-Mathematical, Linguistic, Naturalist
Cerebrum
Enables perception, thinking, speaking with cerebral cortex around
Visual Perception Track
Enables recognition of things and planning actions
Shallow Processing
Encoding on a basic level based on the structure or appearance of words
Deep Processing
Encoding semantically, based on the meaning of words; tends to yield the best retention o Ex: CHAIR (capital letters) (shallowest), brain (rhymes with train) (shallower), doll (the girl plays with the ____ (meaning)) (deepest)
Effortful Processing
Encoding that requires attention and conscious effort
Pituitary Gland
Endocrine system's most influential gland; under influence of hypothalamus, regulates growth and controls endocrine glands
Culture
Enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next
Culture
Enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by group of people and transmitted from one generation to next
Testing Effect
Enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply reading, information
Testing Effect
Enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply reading, information; also sometimes referred to as a retrieval practice effect or test-enhancing learning
Deafness Advantages
Enhances vision and touch
Differences in Behavior and Cognition in Males and Females
Environment, sex-related genes, physiology results in such differences
Availability Heuristic
Estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind (perhaps because of their vividness), we presume such events are common
Informed Consent
Ethical principle that research participants participants be told enough enable them to choose whether they wish to participate
Flynn Effect
Even though scores going down for aptitude test, it's because it's re-standardized; someone from 1920 would probably get a 76 on average
Stimulus
Event or situation that evokes response
Punishment
Event that tends to decrease the behavior that it follows
Environment
Every nongenetic influence, from prenatal nutrition to the people and things around us
Broca's Area
Found after damage to left frontal lobe of patient by Paul Broca, controls language expression--an area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech
Wernicke's Area
Found after damage to left temporal lobe of victim by Carl Wernicke, controls language reception--brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe
Ivan Pavlov
Founder of classical conditioning
Mirror Neurons
Frontal lobe neurons that some scientists believe fire when performing certain actions or when observing another doing so; brain's mirroring of another's action may enable imitations and empathy
Social Expectations and Divergent Opportunities Shape Interests and Abilities
Gender-equal cultures like Sweden exhibit little of gender math gap found in gender-unequal cultures, like Korea
General Intelligence (g)
General intelligence factor that, according to Spearman and others, underlies specific mental abilities and is therefore measured by every task on an intelligence test
Formation of Gender
Genes and hormones predispose traits, but culture magnifies gender difference through norms; expectations form behaviors; in male role, one becomes masculine, in female role, one becomes feminine; as gender roles change, we change with them
Punishment Strongest When . . .
Given swiftly, independent of severity
Collectivism
Giving priority to goals of one's group (often one's extended family or work group) and defining one's identity accordingly
Individualism
Giving priority to one's own goals over group goals and defining one's identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group identifications
Study Motivation/Skills Better Predictor of Academic Achievement than . . .
Grades / Aptitude
Scatterplots
Graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents values of two variables; slope suggests direction of relationship; amount of scatter suggests strength of correlation
Lost Your Penis? Raised as a Girl?
Grew up to determine he felt more like a male, and acted as such
Population
Group being studied, from which samples can be drawn
Experimental Group
Group in experiment that's exposed to treatment, that is, to one version of independent variable
Cohort
Group of people from given time period
Control Group
Group that's exposed to no or neutral treatment; contrasts with experimental group for evaluating effects
Visual Action Track
Guides moment-to-moment movements
Right Hemisphere
Half of brain adept at making inferences, helping us to modulate our speech, and orchestrate our sense of self
Left Hemisphere
Half of brain adept at making quick, literal interpretations of language
Colors (Linguistic Determinism)
Having words for different shades of blue allows one to remember differences between them better
Longitudinal Study Weakness
Healthier live longer, usually more intelligent
Counseling Psychologists
Help people to cope with challenges and to improve their personal/social functioning
Cochlear Implants
Helps proficiency in oral communication if not delayed until children's age of consent (controversial concept)
Test Bias
If questions require cultural knowledge, not a valid test
Social Influence of Gender
If treated like a gender, will act more like that gender over time
Outcome Simulation vs. Process Simulation
Imagining the outcome of an action rather than the process of getting there; process simulation has greater effect
Violence-Viewing Effect (Cause)
Imitation of acts on TV and desensitization from prolonged exposure to violence; more indifferent to violence & express less sympathy for victims
Sensory Memory
Immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system
Aphasia
Impairment of language, usually caused by left-hemisphere damage either to Broca's area (impairing speaking) or to Wernicke's area (impairing understanding)
Blacks score worse in high school, but . . .
Improve in college, since in high school given differing education quality, but in college comparable quality
Unconditioned Stimulus (US)
In classical conditioning, a stimulus that unconditionally--naturally and automatically--triggers a response (UR)
Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
In classical conditioning, an originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus (US), comes to trigger a conditioned response (CR)
Unconditioned Response (UR)
In classical conditioning, an unlearned, naturally occurring response (Ex: Salivation in presence of tasty food)
Acquisition
In classical conditioning, is initial stage, when one links a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus begins triggering the conditioned response; in operant conditioning, the strengthening of a reinforced response
Conditioned Response (CR)
In classical conditioning, is learned response to a previously neutral (but now conditioned) stimulus (CS)
Phonemes
In language, are smallest distinctive sound units (ex: ch, a, t in the word "chat")
Grammar
In language, is system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others; in given language, semantics is the set of rules for deriving meaning from sounds, and syntax is the set of rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences
Reinforcement
In operant conditioning is any event that strengthens the behavior it follows
Variable-Ratio Schedule
In operant conditioning is reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after an unpredictable number of responses
Variable-Interval Schedule
In operant conditioning is reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals
Fixed-Ratio Schedule
In operant conditioning is reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses
Fixed-Interval Schedule
In operant conditioning is reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed
Operant Chamber
In operant conditioning research is chamber (also known as a Skinner box) containing a bar or key that an animal can manipulate to obtain a food or water reinforcer; attached devices record the animal's rate of bar pressing or key pecking
Anterograde Amnesia
Inability to form new memories
Retrograde Amnesia
Inability to retrieve information from one's past
Fixation
Inability to see a problem from a fresh perspective
Misinformation Effect
Incorporating misleading information into one's memory of an event; can influence later attitudes and behaviors (Ex: Tell students got sick eating salad as child -> less likely to eat salad now)
Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)
Increase in a cell's firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation; believe to be neural basis for learning and memory
Positive Reinforcement
Increasing behaviors by presenting positive reinforcers; a positive reinforcer is any stimulus that, when presented after a response, strengthens the response
Negative Reinforcement
Increasing behaviors by stopping or reducing negative stimuli; a negative reinforcer is any stimulus that, when removed after a response, strengthens the response (Note: this is not punishment)
Individualism vs. Collectivism
Individualism: Self: Independent (identity from individual traits) Life Task: Discover and express one's uniqueness What Matters: Personal achievement/fulfillment; rights/liberties; self-esteem Coping Method: Change reality Morality: Defined by individuals (self-based) Relationships: Many, often temporary or casual; confrontation acceptable Attributing Behavior: Behavior reflects one's personality and attitudes Collectivism: Self: Interdependent (identity from belonging) Life Task: Maintain connections, fit in, perform role What Matters: Group goals/solidarity; social responsibilities/relationships/family Coping Method: Accommodate to reality Morality: Defined by social networks (duty-based) Relationships: Few, close and enduring; harmony valued Attributing Behavior: Behavior reflects social norms and roles
Course of Forgetting
Initially rapid, then levels off with time
Primary Reinforcer
Innately reinforcing stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need
Cognitive Neuroscience
Interdisciplinary study of brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language)
Interaction
Interplay that occurs when effect of one factor (ex: environment) depends on another factor (ex: heredity); environment triggers genes, which evokes responses
Cerebral Cortex
Intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells covering cerebral hemispheres, body's ultimate control and info-processing center; the larger it is, the higher capacity the animal has for learning/thinking
Basal Ganglia
Involved in motor movement; facilitates formation of procedural memories (like riding bike)
Representative Heuristic
Judging likelihood of an event based on how well they (represent) match particular prototypes (*may ignore other relevant info)
Synapse
Junction between axon tip of sending neuron and dendrite/cell body of receiving neuron; tiny gap at junction called synaptic gap/cleft
Mental Training
Just watching activity will activate internal simulation of it
Social Intelligence
Know-how involved in successfully comprehending social situations (Thorndike)
Conceptual Skills
Language, literacy, and concepts of money, time, and numbers
Corpus Callosum
Large band of neural fibers connecting two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them
Delta Waves
Large, slow brain waves associated with deep sleep
Biological Constraints of Conditioning
Learn associations that are naturally adaptive (i.e. for pigeon, cannot reinforce flying behavior with food reward; not usually associated, so won't work)
Discrimination (Classical Conditioning)
Learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and stimuli that do not signal an unconditioned stimulus
With Age . . .
Lose recall memory and processing speed, gain vocab/knowledge, decisions less distorted by negative emotions, increased social reasoning (like taking multiple perspectives, valuing knowledge limits, offering helpful wisdom w/ social conflict)
THC
Major active ingredient in marijuana, that triggers variety of effects, including mild hallucinations; causes euphoria, impairs motor/perceptual/reactionary skills, stays in body for week, amplifies current emotions; can be used in medicine to relieve pain
orgasm `
Masters and Johnson observed muscle contractions all over the body accompanied by further increases in breathing, pulse, and blood pressure rates
Schooling Helps Intelligence . . .
Meanwhile, malnutrition, social isolation, sensory deprivation hurt cognitive development
Correlation
Measure of extent to which two factors vary together, and how well either factor predicts the other (Positive, Negative)
Mental Age
Measure of intelligence test performance devised by Binet; chronological age that most typically
Recall
Measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test
Recognition
Measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test
Relearning
Measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material again
Psychiatrists
Medical doctors licensed to prescribe drugs/treat physical causes of psychological disorders
Explicit Memories
Memories of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and "declare" (Also called declarative memory)
Mnemonics
Memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices
excitement phase
Men's and Woman's genital areas become engorged and secretes lubricant, and her breasts and nipples may enlarge
Cognition
Mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
Concepts
Mental groupings of similar objects, events, ideas, or people
Prototypes
Mental images or best examples of a category; matching new items to a prototype provides a quick and easy method for sorting items into categories (as when comparing feathered creatures to a prototypical bird, such as a robin)
Nondeclarative (Procedural) Memory
Mental picture of how you do it (ex: Liu Chi Kung practiced piano in prison by practicing with images in his mind)
Intelligence
Mental quality consisting of the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations
Cognitive Map
Mental representation of the layout of one's environment; for example, after exploring a maze, rats act as if they have learned a cognitive map of it
Intelligence Test
Method for assessing an individual's mental aptitudes and comparing them with those of others, suing numerical scores
SQ3R Study Method
Method incorporating five steps: Survey, Question, Read, Retrieve, Review
Algorithms
Methodical, logical rules or procedures that guarantees solving a particular problem; contrasts with the usually speedier--but also more error-prone--use of heuristics
Median
Middle score in distribution
Acronyms
Mnemonics that use letters to represent words (Ex: ROY G BIV)
Echoic Memory
Momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds/words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds
Iconic Memory
Momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second
Cause of False Information
Mood, circumstances, and wording affect memory; remember first impressions of girlfriend/boyfriend as "love at first sight" if happily married and "wasn't meant to be" if divorced
Cruel Cycle of Mood
Moods persist; happiness breeds happy memory, which breeds good mood
Testosterone
Most important male sex hormone; both males and females have it, but additional testosterone in males stimulates the growth of male sex organs in the fetus and development of the male sex characteristics during puberty
Reality of Repression
Most likely, victims don't repress abuse, but rather stop devoting thought and emotion to it
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)
Most widely used intelligence test; contains verbal and performance (nonverbal) subtests; yields separate scores for verbal comprehension, perceptual organization, working memory, processing speed; striking differences can show problems
Punished Behavior Gone?
NO! Punished Behavior is suppressed, NOT forgotten. When punished, don't think "I shouldn't do this," but rather "I shouldn't do this around this person."
How Does Sleep Help?
NREM-2 and REM strengthen connections that build muscle memory while NREM-1 produces human growth hormone
Sleepwalking/Sleeptalking
NREM-3 disorder (20% of people have one incident; 5% have more than one); young sleep in NREM-3 longest, so most at risk
Neurons
Nerve cells; basic building block of nervous system
Reticular Formation
Nerve network that travels through brainstem and plays important role in controlling arousal; enables arousal, filters incoming stimuli
Interneurons
Nerves within brain and spinal cord that communicate internally and mediate between sensory inputs and motor outputs
Glial Cells
Nervous system that supports, nourishes, protects neurons; may also play role in learning/thinking
Hippocampus
Neural center located in limbic system; helps process explicit memories for storage (brain's "save" button for explicit memories)
Action Potential
Neural impulse; brief electrical charge that travels down axon; can be excitatory (go) or inhibitory (stop); if excitatory minus inhibitory signals exceeds threshold, action potential triggers
Reconsolidation
Neural processes involved when memories are recalled and then stored again for later retrieval; each time recalled, replace original with modified version
Hypothalamus
Neural structure lying below thalamus; directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temp.); helps govern endocrine system via pituitary gland, and linked to emotion/reward; stimulating it can allow one to control animals' actions
Limbic System
Neural system (including hippocampus, amygdala, hypothalamus) located below cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions and drives
Axon
Neuron extension that passes messages through branches to other neurons or to muscles/glands (speaks)
Dendrite
Neuron's bushy, branching extensions that receive messages and conduct impulses toward cell body (listens)
Sensory Neurons
Neurons that carry incoming info from sensory receptors to brain and spinal cord
Motor Neurons
Neurons that carry outgoing info from brain and spinal cord to muscles and glands
Reuptake
Neurotransmitter's reabsorption
Working Memory
Newer understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory
One Part of Brain For Memory?
No - Despite brain's vast storage capacity, we do not store information as libraries store their books, ink discrete, precise locations; instead, many parts of brain interact as we encode, store, and retrieve info that forms our memories o Ex: Rats that remember how to go through maze will still partially remember even if any small section of brain is removed
Does Damage to Language Part of Brain Stop All Language?
No -- brain divides its mental functions --speaking, perceiving, thinking, remembering -- into subfunctions; localized trauma might prevent one form of processing, but not all
Can Animals Form Complex Sentences
No -- they can exhibit insight, family loyalty, communication, care, and cultural patterns though
Can Hypnosis Force People to Act Against Their Will? (Questions of Hypnosis)
No, as shown by unhypnotized (control) group doing dangerous acts because other group pretending they were hypnotized were doing them
Can Hypnosis Enhance Recall of Forgotten Events? (Questions of Hypnosis)
No, but hypnosis can create pseudomemories
Emotionally Intelligent High Self-Esteem?
Not necessarily; socially and self-aware, but not always optimistic and have high self-esteem; know how to comfort others though
So Are White People Just Better?
Not whatsoever -- environment affects IQ to a huge extent, so cannot make claims about whole group (race) without evidence
Case Study
Observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in hope of revealing universal principle
Naturalistic Observation
Observing/Recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate the situation
Brainstem
Oldest part and central core of brain, beginning where spinal cord swells as it enters skull; responsible for automatic survival functions
Different Parts of Hippocampus
One associates names with faces, one engages in spatial mnemonics; one processes spatial memory
Shaping
Operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior
Gender
Psychology is the biologically and socially influenced characteristics by which people define male and female (Biological sex)
Emotional Tests Measure . . .
Perceiving emotions (recognize in faces, music, etc.) understanding emotions (predict them and how they change) managing emotions (know how to express them in varied situations) using emotions to enable adaptive / creative thinking
Sleep
Periodic, natural, reversible loss of consciousness (unlike coma, general anesthesia, and hibernation)
Memory
Persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information
Temperament
Person's characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity; "slow-to-warm-up" infants resist new situations; genes regulate serotonin that make someone fearful, and unsupportive care-giving leads to inhibited children
Culture Shock
Personal disorientation when experiencing an unfamiliar way of life
Physical Dependence
Physiological need for a drug, marked by unpleasant withdrawal symptoms when the drug is discontinued
Albert Bandura
Pioneer in observational learning; Conducted Bobo Dolls Experiment where adults demonstrated 'appropriate' play with dolls, children mimicked play
Sleep Supports Growth (Sleep Theories)
Pituitary gland releases growth hormone; develops muscles and athletic ability
Occipital Lobes
Portion of cerebral cortex lying at back of head; includes areas that receive info from visual fields
Parietal Lobes
Portion of cerebral cortex lying at top of head and toward rear; receives sensory input for touch and body position
Frontal Lobes
Portion of cerebral cortex lying just behind forehead; involved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans/judgements
Temporal Lobes
Portion of cerebral cortex lying roughly above ears; includes auditory areas, each receiving info mainly from opposite ear
Prosocial Behavior
Positive, constructive, helpful behavior; opposite of antisocial behavior (Ex: Watching coworkers do job well)
Debriefing
Post-experimental explanation of study, including purpose and deceptions, to participitants
LSD (Acid)
Powerful hallucinogenic drug; begins with geometric forms, then images, then past emotional experiences, then feel separated from body (like near-death experience)
Methamphetamine
Powerfully addictive drug that stimulates central nervous system with sped-up body functions and associated energy and mood changes; over time, reduces baseline dopamine levels; causes irritability, insomnia, hypertension, seizures, social isolation, depression, occasional violent outbursts
Dual Processing
Principle that information is often simultaneously processed on separate conscious and unconscious tracks
Natural Selection
Principle that, among range of inherited trait variations, those that lead to increased reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations
Higher-Order Conditioning
Procedure in which conditioned stimulus in one conditioning experience is paired with a new neutral stimulus, creating a second (often weaker) conditioned stimulus; for example, an animal that has learned that a tone predicts food might then learn that a light predicts the tone and begin responding to the light alone (second-order conditioning)
Familiarity
Process in temporal lobe before hippocampus/frontal lobe so feel familiar but don't recall
Learning
Process of acquiring new and relatively enduring information or behaviors
Retrieval
Process of getting information out of memory system
Modeling
Process of observing and imitating a specific behavior
Hippocampus
Processes conscious memories; without it, cannot form new memories
Broca's Area's Processing
Processes language through series of neural computations; different networks for nouns, verbs, objects, actions, languages, etc.
Encoding
Processing of information into the memory system; for example, by extracting meaning
Appropriate Developmental Placement
Promotes equity and excellence for all
Heritability
Proportion of variation among individuals that we can attribute to genes; heritability of a trait may vary, depending on range of populations and environments studied
Heritability
Proportion of variation among individuals that we can attribute to genes; heritability of trait may vary, depending on the range of populations and environments studied
Imaginative Thinking Skills (Sternberg)
Provide ability to see things in novel ways, recognize patterns, make connections; having basic elements, redefine or explore it in new way (Ex: Earth revolves around Sun, not other way around)
Hallucinogens
Psychedelic drugs, such as LSD, that distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in absence of sensory input
Repression
Psychoanalytic theory is basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories (Ex: Remember ate less cookies from the cookie jar than actually did)
Psychological Dependence
Psychological need to use a drug, such as to relieve negative emotions
Nightmares
REM sleep disorder characterized by long, movie-like frightening dreams
Mutations
Random errors in gene replication that lead to a change
REM Sleep
Rapid eye movement sleep, a recurring sleep stage during which vivid dreams commonly occur
Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
Ratio of mental age (ma) to chronological age (ca) multiplied by 100 (thus, IQ = ma/ca x 100); on contemporary intelligence tests, the average performance for a given age is assigned a score of 100
Spontaneous Recovery
Reappearance, after a pause, of an extinguished conditioned response
Primacy Effect
Recall first items better than last items after a while
Recency Effect
Recall last items very well
Recognition vs. Recall
Recognition memory longer than recall memory
Insomnia
Recurring problems in falling or staying asleep (1/10 adults; 1/4 older adults); worrying about insomnia worsens it; Sleeping pills reduce REM sleep and lead to tolerance (instead, try relaxing before bed, exercising early, and hiding clock face); causes include diet, exercise, sleep environment, and anxiety
Choice Blindness
Refers to ways in which people are blind to their own choices and preferences (Ex: Asked to pick favorite jam and given other kind of jam with same label, say the other jam is their favorite)
Punishment tells you what NOT to do . . .
Reinforcement tells you what TO do
Partial (Intermittent) Reinforcement
Reinforcing a response only part of the time; results in slower acquisition of a response but much greater resistance to extinction than does continuous reinforcement
Continuous Reinforcement
Reinforcing desired response every time it occurs
Long-Term Memory
Relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system; includes knowledge, skills, and experiences
Alpha Waves
Relatively slow brain waves of relaxed, awake state, at the beginning of sleep when you are awake with your eyes closed
Sleep Cycle
Repeats every 90 minutes: NREM-1: 1-10 minutes NREM-2: 20 minutes NREM-3: 35-45 minutes REM: 10 minutes (20-25% of sleep) Over time, NREM-3 grows shorter and REM/NREM-2 grow longer
Practical Intelligence (Triarchic Theory)
Required for everyday tasks; multiple solutions; Sternberg and Wagner offer test of practical managerial intelligence that measures skill at writing, motivating, delegating, reading people, etc.; business executives who score high on test tend to earn high salaries/receive high performance ratings
Experiment
Research method where investigator manipulates one or more factors (independent variables) to observe effect on some behavior/mental process (dependent variable)
Implicit Memory
Retention independent of conscious recollection (nondeclarative memory)
Storage
Retention of encoded information over time
Instinctive Drift
Reverting to biologically predisposed patterns/behaviors
Triarchic Theory (Sternberg)
Robert Sternberg's theory that describes intelligence as having analytic, creative and practical dimensions
sexually transmitted infections
STIs also called STDs for sexually transmitted diseases
Random Sampling
Sample that fairly represents population because each member has equal chance of inclusion
Psychology
Science of behavior/mental processes
Basic Research
Science that aims to increase scientific knowledge base
A Venturesome Personality (Sternberg)
Seeks new experiences, tolerates ambiguity and risk, and perseveres in overcoming obstacles (Ex: trying countless substances before finding right one for light bulb filament)
Stereotype Threat
Self-confirming concern that one will be evaluated based on a negative stereotype; why women perform worse against male opponents in chess
"Gifted" Programs Controversy
Self-fulfilling prophecy (told are gifted, will act gifted); denying lower-ability kids access with widen gap in education and increase social isolation; since minorities/low-income often placed in ungifted, prejudice can occur
Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)
Sensory and motor neurons that connect central nervous system to rest of body
Dreams
Sequences of images, emotions, and thoughts passing through sleeping person's mind; notable for their hallucinatory imagery, discontinuities, and incongruities, and for dreams's delusional acceptance of the content and later difficulties remembering it; most negative
Successive Approximations
Series of behaviors that gradually become more similar to target behavior
Ecstasy (MDMA)
Synthetic stimulant and mild hallucinogen; produces euphoria and social intimacy, but with short-term health risks and longer-term harm to serotonin-producing neurons and to mood and cognition; causes overheating, increased blood pressure, death, suppresses immune system, impairs memory, slows thought, disrupts sleep
Developmental Similarities
Tastes vary, but show hunger; cross-cultural research shows cultural diversity and human likeness
Functional MRI (fMRI)
Technique for revealing blood flow and brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans; shows brain function
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
Technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to create computer-generated images of soft tissue; shows brain anatomy; atoms of brain scattered then reform to make image
Survey
Technique to ascertain self-reported attitudes/behaviors of particular group, usually by questioning representative, random sample of group
Memory Work and Guided Imagery
Techniques used to restore memory, but create false, aggressive memories
To Improve Performance of Women and Minorities . . .
Tell them they will succeed, and make them believe it
REM Rebound
Tendency for REM sleep to increase following REM sleep deprivation (created by repeating awakenings during REM sleep); occurs in mammals, not animals who don't need learning (like fish)
Spacing Effect
Tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice
Mental Set
Tendency to approach a problem in one particular way, often a way that has been successful in the past
Overconfidence
Tendency to be more confident than correct--to over-estimate the accuracy of our beliefs and judgments
Hindsight Bias
Tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it
Serial Position Effect
Tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list
Mood Congruent Memory
Tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one's current good or bad mood (Ex: Currently depressed remember parents as rejecting/punishing, but formerly depressed remember parents as normal person would)
Self-Reference Effect
Tendency to remember things better when relate to oneself (Ex: asked what words describe others, won't remember as well as words said when asked what words describe themself)
Confirmation Bias
Tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence
Generalization
Tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses
Hypotheses
Testable predictions, often implied by theory (careful: if think is true, experiment's results will be biased)
Achievement Tests
Tests designed to assess what a person has learned (reflects what you have learned)
Aptitude Tests
Tests designed to predict a person's future performance; aptitude is the capacity to learn (predict your ability to learn a new skill) (SAT test correlates +.82 with general intelligence)
Boys Better At . . .
Tests of spatial ability and complex math problems although in math computation and overall math performance hardly differ from girls
retinal disparity
a binocular cue for perceiving depth by comparing images from the retinas in the two eyes, the brain computes distance, the greater the disparity (difference) between the two images, the closer the object
developmental psychology
a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span
trait
a characteristic pattern of behavior or a disposition to feel and act, as assessed by self report inventories and peer reports
flow
a completely involved, focused state of consciousness, wit diminished awareness of self and time, resulting from optimal engagement of ones skill
instinct
a complex behavior that is rapidly patterned throughout a species and in unlearned
schema
a concept or framework that organizes and interprets information
cochlear implants
a device for converting sounds into electrical signals and stimulating the auditory nerve through electrodes threaded into the cochlea
autism
a disorder that appears in childhood and is marked by deficient communication, social interaction, and understanding of others states of mind
ghrelin
a hunger arousing hormone secreted by an empty stomach
visual cliff
a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals
arcuate nucleus
a neural arc that has a center that secretes appetite stimulating hormones, and another center that secretes appetite suppressing hormones
insula
a neural center deep inside the brain
emerging adulthood
a period from the late teens to mid twenties bridging the gap between adolescent dependence and full independence and responsible adulthood
projective test
a personality test, such as the rorschach, that provides ambiguous stimuli designed to trigger projection of ones inner dynamics
incentive
a positive or negative environmental stimulus that motivates behavior
unconscious according to freud
a reservoir of mostly unacceptable thoughts, wishes, feelings, and memories
emotion
a response of the whole organism, involving physiological arousal (heart pounding), expressive behaviors (quickened pace), and conscious experiences (thoughts and feelings)
refractory period
a resting period after orgasm, during which a man cannot achieve another orgasm
fixation
according to freud, a lingering focus of pleasure seeking energies at an earlier psychosexual stage, in which conflicts were unresolved
behavior feedback research
acting angry can make us feel angrier
subgoalss and implementation intentions
action plans that specify when, where, and how they will march toward achieving those goals
accommodation
adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information
manage by objectives
agree on target dates for the completion and editing of each chapter draft
great person theory of leadership
all great leaders share common traits
self concept
all of our thoughts and feelings about ourselves, in answer to the question "who am i?"
cognition
all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
coping
alleviating stress using emotional, cognitive, or behavioral methods
unconditional positive regard
an attitude of total acceptance toward another person
attachment
an emotional tie with another person, shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress on separation
sexual orientation
an enduring sexual attraction toward members of either ones own sex (homosexual orientation) or the other sex (heterosexual orientation)
phi phenomenon
an illustration of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession
personality
an individuals characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting
critical period
an optimal period early in the life of an organism when exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces normal development
gestalt
an organized whole
bottom up processing
analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brains integration of sensory information
spillover effect
arousal spills over from one event to the next
relative motion
as we move, objects that are actually stable may appear to move
complementary and alternative medicine
as yet unproven health care treatments intended to supplement or serve as alternatives to conventional medicine, and which typically are not widely taught in medical schools, used in hospitals, or reimbursed by insurance companies
emotion focused coping
attempting to alleviate stress b y avoiding or ignoring a stressor and attending to emotional needs related to one stress reaction
problem focused coping
attempting to alleviate stress directly by changing the stressor or the way we interact with that stressor
unconscious according to contemporary psychologists
information processing of which we are unaware
key proponents of social cognitive theory
bandura
subliminal
below ones absolute threshold for conscious awareness (stimuli you cannot detect 50% of the time)
authoritative parents
both demanding and responsive
sonar
bouncing echoing sound off objects
tyranny of choice
brings information overload and a greater likelihood that we will feel regret over some of the unchosen opinion
loop systems
broadcast customized sound directly through a persons own hearing aid
collective unconscious
carl jungs concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species history
assimilation
interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas
autonomic nervous system
controls physiological arousal
personality assessment methods of trait theory
personal inventories
leptin and PYY
decrease hunger
pleasure principle
demanding immediate gratification
monocular cues
depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone
binocular cues
depth cues, such as retinal disparity, that depend on the use of two eyes
psychosomatic
described psychologically caused physical symptoms
myers briggs type indicator
describes important personality differences, it sorts people according to carl jungs personality types
amplitude
determines loudness
neophobia
dislike of things unfamiliar
erogenous zone
distinct pleasure sensitive areas of the body
projection
distinguishing ones own threatening impulses by attributing them to others
place theory
in hearing, the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochleas membrane is stimulated
frequencey theory
in hearing, the theory that the rate of nerve impulses travelling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of a tone, enabling us to sense its pitch
free association
in psychoanalysis, a method of exploring the unconscious in which the person relaxes and says whatever comes to mind, no matter how trivial or embarrassing
embodied cognition
in psychological science, the influence of bodily sensations, gestures, and states on cognitive preferences and judgement
gestalt psychologists
emphasize d our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes
perceptual adaptation
in vision, the ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field
settling point
indicate the level at which a person's weight settles in response to caloric intake and expenditure
top down processing
information processing guided by higher level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experiences and expectations
narcissism
excessive self love and self absorption
plateau phase
excitement peaks as breathing, pulse, and blood pressure rates continue to increase
pessimists
expect things to go badly
social facilitation
explains why, after a celebration, we may realize we have overeaten
human factors psychology
explores the human machine interface
happiness is relative to our own experience
feelings of satisfaction and dissatisfaction, success and failure are judgments we make based on our prior experience
arousal theory
focuses on finding the right level of stimulation
repress
forcibly block from our consciousness because they would be to unsettling to acknowledge
B lymphocytes
form in the bone marrow and release antibodies that fight bacterial infections
T lymphocytes
form in the thymus and other lymphatic tissue and attack cancer cells, viruses, and foreign substances
defensive self esteem
fragile, it focuses on sustaining itself, which makes failures and criticism feel threatening
benefits of sensory adaptation
freedom to focus on informative changes in our environment without being distracted by background character
key proponents of psychoanalytic theory
freud
psychoanalysis
freuds theory of personality that attributes thoughts and actions to unconscious motives and conflicts; the techniques used in treating psychological disorders by seeking to expose and interpret unconscious tensions
type A
friedman and rosenmans term for competitive, hard driving, impatient, verbally aggressive, and anger prone people
type B
friedman and rosenmans term for easygoing, relaxed people
task leadership
goal oriented leadership that sets standards, organizes work, and focuses attention on goals
obvious emotions
graphic novel authors use facial expressions and other design elements to express emotion, reducing the need to explain how the characters are feeling
social leadership
group oriented leadership that builds teamwork, mediates conflict, and offers support
assistive listening
headphones, speakers......
conduction hearing loss
hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea
decibles
how we measure sound
Sleep Stages
http://blog.withings.com/2015/03/17/the-4-different-stages-of-sleep/
voice effect
if given a chance to voice their opinion during a decision making process, people will respond more positively to the decision
interposition
if one object partially blocks our view of another, we perceive it as closer
relative size
if we assume two objects are similar in size, most people perceive the one that casts the smaller retinal image as farther away
authoritarian parents
impose rules and experts obedience
self
in contemporary psychology, assumed to be the center of personality, the organizer of our thoughts, feelings, and actions
To Boost Creative Process
o Develop your expertise - ask yourself what care about and most enjoy o Allow time for incubation - given enough knowledge available for novel connections, period of inattention to problem allows unconscious processing to form associations o Set aside time for mind to roam freely - take time away from attention-absorbing TV, social networking, video gaming (Ex: long walk) o Experience other cultures and ways of thinking - living abroad sets creative juices flowing; multicultural experiences expose us to multiple perspectives and facilitate flexible thinking; helps find creative solution
Race is not a neatly defined biological category
o Race primarily social construction w/o well-defined physical boundaries; people w/ varying ancestry may categorize themselves as same race; mixed ancestries deny racial categorization and call themselves multiracial o However, biological components (medical conditions, genetic markers like continent, behavioral traits like running) present too
Debate over race differences in intellect divided into 3 camps
o There are genetically disposed race differences in intelligence o There are socially influenced race differences in intelligence o There are race differences in test scores, but the tests are biased
Schools and culture matter
o Wealth gaps result in differences between IQ; educational policies like kindergarten attendance predict difference in intelligence o Asians students outperform North American students; result of conscientiousness maybe not competence (spend more time in class and more time studying)
Automatic Processing (Examples)
o space - when reading page, encode place you are on page; when want info, may visualize location of that info on the page o time - might unintentionally note sequence of events; later when lost something, might "retrace your steps" by remembering sequence of events of what you did at the time o frequency - keep track of how many times things happen, like when realize, "I've run into her three times today!"
halo errors
occur when ones overall evaluation of an employee, or of a personal trait such as their friendliness, biases ratings of their specific work related behaviors, such as their reliability
recency errors
occur when raters focus only on easily remembered recent behavior
sexualization
occurs when girls... -are led to value themselves in terms of their sexual appeal -compare themselves to narrowly defined beauty standards -see themselves as sexual beings for others use
rationalization
offering self justifying explanations in place of the real, more threatening unconscious reasons for ones actions
self esteem
ones feelings of high or low self worth
personality assessment methods of social cognitive theory
our behavior in one situation is best predicted by considering our past behavior in similar situations
gender identity
our sense of being male of female
adaptation level phenomenon
our tendency to form judgments (of sound, of lights, of income) relative to a neutral level defined by our prior experience
assumptions of social cognitive theory
our traits and the social context interact to produce our behaviors
self concept
our understanding and evaluation of who we are
spotlight effect
overestimating others noticing and evaluating our appearance, performance, and blunders (as if we presume a spotlight shines on us)
linear perspective
parallel lines appear to meet in the distance
phantom sex partners
past partner of partners
culture specific or culturally universal expressions
people of all different cultures and races have the same universally known facial expressions
transpersonal
people strive for meaning, purpose, and communication that is beyond the self
interdependence
people who see anger as a threat to group harmony
theory of mind
peoples ideas about their own and others mental states-about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict
feel good, do good phenomenon
peoples tendency to be helpful when already in a good mood
size constancy
perceive objects as having a constant size, even while our distance from them varies
color constancy
perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object
perceptual consistency
perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent shapes, size, brightness, and color) even as illumination and retinal images change
arousal and performance
performance peaks at lower levels of arousal for different tasks, and at higher levels for easy or well learned tasks
signal detecting theorist
person who seeks to understand why people respond differently to the same stimuli and why the same persons reactions vary as circumstances change
Drugs on Memory
• Memory-altering drugs targeted to help Alzheimer's, mild cognitive impairment, and those wanting memory to decline slower o Could boost LTP-enhancing glutamate o Could boost production of CREB, protein that enhances LTP Help increase production of other proteins that help reshape synapses and transfer short-term memory into long-term
Using Operant Conditioning
• School: Computers that go at individual students' paces, giving immediate feedback, finding gaps in understanding, and keeping flawless records • Sports: Small increases in challenges (Ex: Putting from 1 foot away, then 3 feet, then 5 feet, etc.) - as confidence builds, they increase difficulty • Work: Reward employees for specific, achievable behaviors, not vaguely defined "merit" - and make reinforcement as immediate as possible • Home: Notice people doing something right and affirm them for it; target specific behavior, reward it, and watch it increase; explain punishment when needed, and only give time-out (no yelling/hitting)
Sexual Abuse Protocol
• Sexual Abuse Happens: no characteristic "survivor syndrome" (symptoms) • Injustice Happens: innocent people falsely convicted; some guilty people evade punishment • Forgetting Happens: Many of abused might not remember or understood meaning of experience; natural to forget • Recovered Memories are Commonplace: We all recover memories of long-forgotten events, but can therapist-aided techniques bring them back? • Memories of Thing Happening Before Age 3 are Unreliable: Infantile amnesia; doubt "recovered" memories; older the more reliable the memory • Memories "Recovered" Under Hypnosis or the Influence of Drugs are Especially Unreliable: People incorporate suggestions, even "past lives" • Memories, Whether Real or False, can be Emotionally Upsetting: Memories, even if false, can still give people stress from the memory
WAIS Consists of . . .
• Similarities - reasoning commonality of two objects or concepts • Block design - visual abstract processing (ex: using four blocks to make this) • Vocabulary - naming pictured objects, or defining words • Letter-number sequencing - on hearing series of numbers/letters, repeat the numbers in ascending order and then letters in alphabetical order
SQ3R Method Strategies
• Study repeatedly: Use distributed (spaced) practice; take advantage of life's little intervals, and space out study sessions; rehearsal and critical reflection better than simply reading without rehearsal • Make the material meaningful: Take text/class notes in own words; relate material to your experiences; restate concepts in own words • Activate retrieval cues: Mentally recreate situation and mood in which original learning occurred • Use mnemonic devices: Associate items with peg-words; make up story to incorporate vivid images of items; acronyms; rhythmic rhymes • Minimize interference: Study before sleep; don't study things together that interfere (lang.) • Sleep more: During sleep, brain reorganizes and consolidates info for long-term memory • Test your own knowledge, both to rehearse it and find out what you don't know yet: Outline notes, define terms/concepts on own before looking for actual definition; take practice tests; study with guides