PSYCH 101: CHAP. ONE

neurons

are among the billions of cells in the human brain that process information resulting in cognitive processes and behaviors

demand characteristic ex:

Mark acts more polite than normal while on a date

________ were the first to demonstrate that the mind is grounded in a material substance namely the brain. Their work jump-started the scientific investigation of mental processes

Paul Broca & Marie Jean Pierre Flourens

the time following an action potential during which a new action potential cannot be initiated is called the:

REFRACTORY period

Helmholtz

developed a method for measuring the speed of nerve impulses

phrenology

developed by Franz Gall, psychological theory that was one of the first attempts to link physiological traits to behavioral traits

the flow of information within a neuron is:

electrical

memory =

electrical and chemical activity

when Frank looks at a picture of his wife, he gets an overwhelming feeling of warmth. This mental process arises from:

electrical and chemical activity in the brain

when a cell is at rest:

enough positively charged sodium ions are kept OUTSIDE of the cell to maintain a slightly NEGATIVE charge inside

AMYGDALA

fear

PROBLEM with perception

features are linked together so that we see united objects rather than disjointed or miscombined ones

Titchener

focused on identifying the basic elements of consciousness

synaptic gap

space between the terminal button of a sending neuron and dendrite of receiving neuron

phrenology

specific mental abilities are localized in specific regions of the brain

occasional mental malfunctions occur when the human mind trades accuracy for:

speed and versatility

our reflexes are governed by the:

spinal cord

Purkinje cells

type of interneuron that carries info from cerebellum to the rest of the brain and spinal cord

nativism

(Plato) holds that certain kinds of knowledge are innate

perception

(at level of brain) the organization, identification, and interpretation of a sensation in order to form a mental representation

terminal buttons

-contain neurotransmitters -form junctions with dendrites of other neurons

ANIMALS

-must be supervised by psychologists who are responsible for ensuring appropriate consideration of the animals comfort, health, and human treatment -make reasonable efforts to minimize illness and pain -

Wilhelm Wundt (Helmholtz research assistant)

-opened first laboratory devoted to psychological studies -focused on analyzing consciousness

Paul Broca

Broca's Area: Mr. Leborgne, unable to speak except for the syllable "tan" -determined that damage to a specific part of the brain impaired a specific mental function

which part of the cerebral cortex deals with abstract thinking, planning, executive control, and judgment--the qualities that make us most human?

FRONTAL lobe

psychologist who established the first laboratory in North America at Johns Hopkins University in 1881

G. Stanley Hall

movie example =

Gestalt phenomenon

believed that "the mind is what the brain does"

Thomas Hobbes

Wundt vs. Titchener

Wundt emphasized how the elements of consciousness were related (introspection); Titchener focused on identifying the basic elements of consciousness themselves

DIFFERENCE threshold

a decrease in volume of stereo, she didn't hear it, asked son to turn it down again

self-selection

a problem that occurs when anything about a person determines whether he or she will be included in the experimental or control group

bipolar cells

a type of sensory neuron found in the retinas of the eye--have a single axon and single dendrite

which neurotransmitter plays a key role in our ability to produce voluntary movement by signaling our muscles to contract (also helps regulate attention and plays an important role in memory)

acetylcholine

Marie Jean Pierre Flourens

actions and movements of animals with removed parts of the brain---differed from animals with intact brains

inferential statistics

allow researchers to determine if random assignment has failed

INTERNAL validity

an attribute of an experiment that ALLOWS it to establish causal relationships

myelin sheath

an insulating layer of fatty material, covers the axon

structuralism

analysis of basic elements that constitute the mind

empirical approach ex:

arrest records & ER admissions to see if more aggressive on full moon

sometimes mind functions ineffectively:

because it trades accuracy for speed and versatility

which situation would activate the AMYGDALA to the greatest extent

being dumped by your first boyfriend

dualism

belief that mind (or soul) and body are separate entities

Wilhelm Wundt (beliefs)

believed that consciousness had *different parts

William James (beliefs)

believed that consciousness was more of a flowing stream that could not be broken down into parts

View-Master toy 3-D movies

binocular disparity

axon

carries information to other neurons, muscles, or glands

motor neurons

carry signals from the spinal cord to the muscles to produce movement

neuron

cells in the nervous system that communicate with one another to perform information-processing tasks

-struck in back of head -difficulty with balance and coordinated mvmts

cerebellum most likely damaged

the flow of information between neurons is:

chemical

neurotransmitters

chemicals that transmit information across the synaptic gap

flock of birds flying ---> perceive as a single moving object

common fate principle (Gestalt)

glial cells

compose myelin sheath, support cells found in the nervous system

axon of sending neuron

conducts action potentials to the terminal button

interneurons

connect sensory neurons, motor neurons, or other interneurons

When Dion was younger and he got in trouble for doing something wrong, his mother would ask him how he felt after getting in trouble--psychological concept:

consciousness

vesicles

contain neurotransmitters and release them into the synaptic gap

cell body (soma)

coordinates the information-processing tasks and keeps the cell alive -protein synthesis, energy production, metabolism take place here -contains a nucleus

trauma to the head: -poor decisions on a regular basis -trouble planning ahead

damage to frontal lobe

sequence for information traveling within a single neuron

dendrites -- cell body -- axon

humans adapt after prolonged exposure to a constant stimulus to:

detect potentially important changes in what is going on

pyramidal cells

found in cerebral cortex, have a triangular cell body and a single long dendrite among many smaller dendrites

terms for signal detection

hit: correctly responds yes miss: false alarm correct rejection:

perceptual sensitivity

how effectively the perceptual system represents sensory events

cognitive neuroscience

how perceptions, beliefs, and memories activate different regions in the brain

William James (interest)

intense interest in the characteristics of human nature; how mental processes adapted to the environment

by asking people to pay attention to and record their feelings and perceptions of an event, Wilhelm Wundt used the method of _______ to analyze the basic elements of the mind

introspection

the method of introspection was a problematic approach because:

it was difficult for psychologists to agree on the basic elements of consciousness and the method was too subjective

terminal button

knoblike structure that branches out from the axon; filled with vesicles containing neurotransmitters

philosophical empiricism

knowledge is acquired thru experience

nativism

knowledge is innate or inborn

A and B may not be causally related bc both may be causally dependent on C:

known as third variable problem

Paul Broca worked with a brain damaged patient, "Monsieur Leborgne" who could understand language but could only say the word "tan." When this patient died Broca examined his brain and found that his LANGUAGE problems were caused by damage to the _______ of the brain

left side

risk/benefit analysis

may not be asked to accept large risks or any risk greater than one in their everyday life

freedom from coercion

may not coerce participation thru physical, psychological, or monetary

deception

may only use deception when justified by the study's value and when alternative procedures are not feasible

heritability

measure of the variability of behavioral traits among individuals that can be accounted for by genetic factors

HIPPOCAMPUS

memory

Gustav Fechner's psychophysics

methods that measure the STRENGTH of a stimulus and the observer's SENSITIVITY to that stimulus

just noticeable difference (JND)

minimal change in a stimulus that can just barely be detected

LIBERAL criterion

minimizes the chances of missing a true cancer, leads to many false alarms

distributed representation

multiple brain regions contribute to the perception of objects, such as human faces

protection from harm

must take every precaution to protect participants from physical/psychological harm

who is responsible for ensuring the ethical analysis and reporting of research results:

no one

neurotransmitter correlated with alertness and vigilance for signs of danger:

norepinephrine

conscious experiences:

noticing, feeling, contemplating

confidentiality

obligated to keep private/personal info obtained during a study confidential

with respect to the electrical charge present in a neuron, when a neuron is at rest the inside:

of the cell has a negative charge relative to the outside

philosophical empiricist

only way you can know something is through experience

receptor site

part of the dendrites cell membrane; receives neurotransmitters and initiates new action potentials

selective attention

perceiving only what's currently relevant to you

which structure is the conductor, or "master gland" of the hormone producing system

pituitary gland

damage to hippocampus

problems remembering a conversation that they had an hour ago

perception

process of organization, identification, interpretation of a sensation in order to form a mental representation

chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE)

progressive brain damage that has been linked to repeated concussions

Wilhelm Wundt

psychologist who studied under Hermann von Helmholtz and was interested in the scientific study of CONSCIOUSNESS

dendrites

receive information from other neurons and relay it to the cell body

sensory neurons

receive information from the external world and convey this info to the brain via the spinal cord

dendrite of receiving neuron

receives signals from other neurons across synaptic gap

three steps for information processing:

receiving, coordinating, and transmitting

EXTERNAL validity

refers to whether variables have been operationally defined in a normal, typical, or realistic way

thalamus

relays and filters information from the senses and transmits the information to the cerebral cortex

signal detection theory

response to a stimulus depends both on a person's sensitivity to the stimulus in the presence of noise and on a person's decision criterion

the difference in electrical charge between the inside and outside of a neuron's cell membrane is the:

resting potential

Multiple Sclerosis: -patient cannot easily transmit information from neuron to neuron, which leads to difficulties with mvmt

result of deteriorating myelin sheath

structuralism

school of thought that tries to analyze the mind by breaking it down into its basic components

sensory adaptation

sensitivity to prolonged stimulation tends to decline over time as an organism adapts to current conditions

sensation

simple stimulation of a sense organ -stimulation, registration, detection associated with the information processing

studies indicate that students who procrastinate in doing their school work will experience more _______ at the end of the semester compared to nonprocrastinators

stress & health problems

Case Method

studying a SINGLE INDIVIDUAL

introspection

subjective observation of one's own experience

which branch of your nervous system most directly triggers your fear/arousal response:

sympathetic

William James

taught the first course at an American University about psychology -studied mental FUNCTION -argued that consciousness was like a flowing stream, serving to adapt people to their environments -disagreed that consciousness could be broken down into separate elements

William James

taught the first course on the new experimental psychology in an American university

INFERENTIAL statistics

tell researchers what kind of conclusions they can draw from observed differences between experimental and control groups

functionalism

the 1920s major approach to psychology in North America. Involved breaking down consciousness into elemental sensations & feelings

synapse

the junction of region between the axon of one neuron and the dendrites or cell body of another

nodes of ranvier

the junctions between segments of myelin sheath

Weber's law

the just noticeable difference of a stimulus is a constant proportion despite variations in intensity

researchers who study people's private inner emotions are studying:

the mind

absolute threshold

the minimal intensity needed to just barely detect a stimulus in 50% of trials -threshold = boundary

functionalism

the purpose of mental processes in enabling people to adapt to their environment

EXAMPLE of a focus of study in the field of PHYSIOLOGY

the study of the hormones that are released when men and women interact

random assignment is important in an experiment bc:

the two groups will be the same on average for all variables

nativist

theory that certain kinds of knowledge are innate or inborn

correlation coefficient of two variables is 0:

variables are UNRELATED

debriefing

verbal description of the true nature and purpose of a study

transduction

when sensors in the body convert physical signals from the environment ----> into encoded neural signals sent to the CNS

omission

when someone lies by failing to include a piece of data

informed consent

written agreement to participate in a study made by an adult who has been informed of all risks that participation may entail

if you find a correlational relationship between two variables:

you know NOTHING about the causal relationship between the two variables