psych 100 chapter 1,2,3
the limbic system
"middle section" associated with functions that are generally within conscious awareness and sometimes under voluntary control
nucleus accumbens
"pleasure center" and cravings
contralateral control
A pattern in which the left half of the brain controls the right half of the body, and the right half of the brain controls the left half of the body.
confounding variables aka extraneous variables
Any other variable that could have affected the dependent variable during the study, thereby "polluting" the results of the study.
incongruent trials
In Stroop tests, trials where the color named by the word differs from the color of the text are called
congruent trials
In Stroop tests, trials where the color named by the word is the same as the color of the text used for the word are called
levels of significance
STAT formula that looks at the strength of correlation and sample size to determine the likelihood that results were due to coincidence
double-blind experiment
Subjects AND researchers are unaware of group assignments. Double blind studies help to prevent "experimenter bias"
blind experiment
Subjects are unaware of which group they are assigned to. Blind studies help to prevent "subject bias"
experimenter bias
The tendency (probably unconscious) of a researcher to treat experimental and control subjects differently so as to favor the study's hypothesis.
Subject Bias (AKA Hawthorne Effect)
The tendency of a study participant to behave differently than they would in everyday life because they are in a study . Or subjects may have their thoughts or feelings altered by the self-knowledge that they are part of an experiment
stroop interference
a conflict between the color label and the written word on an incongruent trial
population
all people to whom the results apply, even if they are not in the experiment
operational definition
all variable must be measured in precise numeric increments
reticular formation
associated with awareness of your surroundings, arousal, and focusing/redirecting of attention
brainstem (core)
associated with functions that are generally beneath the level of conscious awareness and not under voluntary control
frontal lobe
associated with reasoning, planning, parts of speech, movement, emotions, and problem solving
Hypothalamus
basic instincts (sex, aggression, feeding behaviors)
amiable skepticism
being open to new ideas but carefully considering the evidence
medulla
controls "automatic" function such as consciousness, heart rate, blood pressure
behavior
describes the totality of human (or animal) actions
left hemisphere
does the majority of language processing
informed consent (volunteers only, must minimize deception)
ethical treatment of research subjects rule #1
no undo harm (no physical or psychological stress beyond everyday life)
ethical treatment of research subjects rule #2
confidentiality (no names)
ethical treatment of research subjects rule #3
may withdraw at anytime without penalty
ethical treatment of research subjects rule #4
debriefing (After the experiment researchers have to explain to the subjects what the hypothesis is, any deception that what used, and why the subject was deceived, they have to offer counseling, and the results)
ethical treatment of research subjects rule #5
coefficient of correlation
exact mathematical measurement of how often x and y appear together
thalamus
filter for sensory stimuli except smell
temporal lobe
hearing and processing language
occipital lobe
interprets vision
hypothesis
logical prediction about the relationship between two variables
population sample
members of the population who are in the study
hippocampus
memory- filing and retrieving of factual memories
assignments of participants
method that the experimenter uses to split the volunteers into experimental and control groups- it must be random
cerebral cortex
most complex, associating with functions that are within conscious awareness and under voluntary control
cerebellum
muscle coordination of "complex" movement (ex walking)
independent variable
new treatment that the variable researcher manipulates to see if it affects the other variable
mind
refers to mental activity
mental activity
results from biochemical processes within the brain
parietal lobe
sense of touch, spatial awareness
amygdala
stores emotionally charged memories, triggers emotionally charged behaviors
critical thinking
systematically questioning and evaluating information using well-supported evidence
experimental group
the 1/2 that gets the "new treatment"
control group
the 1/2 that gets the placebo/does not get the new treatment
lateralization
the concept where some functions in the brain do occur more on one side than the other
psychology
the study of thoughts, feelings, and behavior
psychological science
the study, through research, of mind, brain, and behavior
dependent variable
the variable that the researcher suspects will be affected by changes in the independent variable
meta-analysis
to mathematically combine results of many small studies