Psychology 101 (Study.com)

REM (rapid eye movement)

Deep sleep where your eyes are closed but move back and forth; features increased heart rate and breathing; this is when you dream; length increases from 10-20 minutes throughout the night

Punishment

A facet of operant conditioning that uses a negative consequence to decrease the frequency of a certain response or behavior

Gestalt psychology

A psychological approach focused on studying visual perception that gained popularity in the early 20th century; its name derives from the German word for 'form'

The scientific method

A science-based research and study technique that formulates a hypothesis, or a scientific theory, and tests that hypothesis with experimentation and evidence

Psychology

A scientific discipline that concerns itself with the study of human thought, behavior and emotion.

Hallucinogen

A type of psychoactive drug that affects your brain the same way serotonin or epinephrine would; examples include LSD and ecstasy

Narcotic

A type of psychoactive drug that stimulates endorphins, which can decrease pain; examples include codeine and heroine.

Theorist who believed the central conflict of your mind was between your unconscious desires and your conscious actions

Sigmund Freud

Biopsychology

This branch of psychology tries to determine how biology affects our feelings and actions. It involves the study of the endocrine system.

Social psychology

A branch of psychology that explores the way society and mass culture can influence the way people behave as individuals

Jean Piaget

A cognitive psychologist who believed that internal factors such as emotions and past experiences influence the way people act

Sigmund Freud

A famous early psychologist and supporter of the psychodynamic approach, whose theories about sex (pleasure, satisfaction) and human motivation have caused controversy

Biological psychology

A field of psychology that studies the physical aspects of the nervous system, such as the brain and the nerves, and their on impact moods and behavior

Depressant

A psychoactive drug that increases GABA, causing a slow down in reactions in the brain; examples include alcohol or benzodiazepines.

Behavioral approach

A psychological approach used to describe human behavior as strongly influenced by external factors and to question the existence of free will

Psychoanalysis

A psychological interview and exploration technique that originated in the early 20th century thanks to the work of Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung and others

Scientific study of psychology

A research-based way of thinking about human behavior that seeks to conduct deep analysis on what really motivates the way people think, act and feel

Negative reinforcement

A type of reinforcement that focuses on removing an unwanted outcome; this differs from punishment because it focuses on increasing a desirable behavior rather than decreasing an undesirable one

Observational learning

A type of social behavioral modeling in which a person repeats behaviors they observe others doing; also known as 'monkey see, monkey do'

Opponent Process Theory

A vision theory that states that we process colors as 3 sets of opponent colors. This theory is supported by after-images.

Conscious deliberate behaviors

Actions you take that you are aware of and control - like making a phone call

Aerial Perspective

Aerial perspective occurs when things that are in the distance seem to be foggy.

Cilia

Cilia are small fibers that pick up vibrations and create nerve impulses that go to the auditory nerve to help transmit sound information to the brain.

Ethical standards

Rules that focus on the concepts of informed consent and minimized harm as a way of guiding psychological experiments with human participants

Endocrine System

This body system includes the glands that produce hormones and is involved in converting the food you eat into energy.

Cornea

This is the outermost part of the human eyeball and the first part of the eye that light passes through.

Dopamine

This neurotransmitter is tied to concentration, memory, and movement.

Symptoms of Low Levels of Thyroid Hormones

Fatigue and Weight gain

Pupil

A small opening that allows light to reach the lens of the eye. This is the black part in the middle of your eye.

Neurons

A specific kind of nerve cell that relays signals throughout the nervous system.

Developmental psychology

A subfield of psychology that explores the way humans change and grow in different stages of life, from birth to death

Neuroplasticity

A term used to describe how the brain adapts to new circumstances and injury.

Peripheral Nervous System

Made up of your sensory and motor neurons, this body system provides sensory information to your brain and delivers motor information to your glands and muscles.

Erickson and hypnosis

Psychiatrist Milton Erickson thought that it was possible for hypnotists to communicate with a person's unconscious mind when they were under the influence of hypnosis

Rods and Cones

Photoreceptor neurons (part of Eye's Retina) that process black, white, and color.

Proprioception

The sense of your body's motion and position in space.

Lens (of the Eye)

This part of the eye focuses light. The lens is located directly behind the pupil.

Two senses that are closely related:

Taste and smell. Our sense of taste is greatly influence by our ability to smell.

temporal lobe of cerebrum

The section of your brain that processes what you hear. It can grow when you practice a musical instrument.

Behavior biology

The study of what animals do when interacting with their environment

Wilhelm Wundt

A 19th-century psychology pioneer who founded the first known scientific lab focused on psychology

Ivan Pavlov

A behaviorist who used classical conditioning to trigger salivation in laboratory dogs through the combination of the sound of a ringing bell and the presentation of food

Cognitive psychology

A branch of psychology that embraces the concept of free will and focuses on the way people can learn to change their behavior and solve problems in a rational way

Broca's Aphasia

A form of brain damage caused by damage to the frontal lobe. Individuals with this condition have difficulty speaking.

Insight learning

A form of problem-solving in which a person or animal experiences a sudden sense of clarity that had previously escaped them; this can also be called an 'aha moment'

Law of proximity

A gestalt psychology concept explains that multiple closely arranged objects or shapes tend to be seen as a singular group

Serotonin

A neurotransmitter that deals with moods, the sleep cycle, sex drive, and appetite. Depression or anxiety can result from low levels of this neurotransmitter.

Altered states of consciousness

A non-permanent change to mental state while still conscious; examples include daydreaming, hypnosis, or meditation

Variable ratio schedule

A partial reinforcement schedule where reinforcement is granted randomly and unpredictably, such as a teacher occasionally giving stickers for good grades on tests when the mood strikes

Stimulant

A psychoactive drug that blocks the reabsorption of substances like seratonin or dopamine, leading to an increase in energy; examples include caffeine and cocaine.

Frequency Theory of Hearing

A theory of hearing that asserts that the neurons of cilia will go off to match the frequency of the sound that enters the ear.

Classical conditioning

A type of behavioral training that uses two simultaneous stimuli, such as the sound of a bell and the smell of food, to produce an involuntary reaction, such as salivating

Fixed ratio schedule

A type of partial reinforcement schedule that uses reinforcement only when a certain threshold of behavior repetition is reached, such as giving a dog a treat after it sits on command 3 times

Taste aversion

Also known as the Garcia Effect, this is a biological response to a food or flavor that was formerly desirable but suddenly became undesirable after an illness or other unpleasant experience

Humanistic psychology

An approach to psychology that looks at that concept of self actualization and the ways people have potential to be their best

Behaviorism

An early 20th century psychological movement led by psychologists Watson and Skinner focused on the way people and other animals can be conditioned to behave in certain ways

Stanley Milgram

An early psychologist who conducted a famously unethical study on obedience that saw human participants administer electric shocks to each other

Independent variable

An element of a scientific experiment that causes or brings about the phenomenon or problem being studied

Observation

An element of the science of psychology that involves examining tangible and provable causes and effects

Hypnosis

Being put into an altered state of consciousness by another person, in which you are more easily influenced by that person

Five major modern approaches to psychology

Biological, psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive, humanistic

Five main specializations in psychology

Cognitive, humanistic, social, developmental, clinical

Symptoms of High Levels of Thyroid Hormones

Difficulties sleeping, Increased heart rate, Feeling anxious

Stage 3 and 4 sleep

Each of these lasts about 30 minutes; deep sleep with very slow delta waves in your brain - more in stage 4 than 3

Stage 1 sleep

First 5 minutes; brainwaves move from beta waves to alpha waves, then theta waves as you move from being awake to being drowsy to falling asleep

Cochlea

Fluid filled structures inside the ear that contain cilia.

Meditation

Focusing your attention to increase both your physical and mental awareness; can lead to an increase in alpha and theta brainwaves; one way to achieve an altered state of consciousness

Psychoanalytic theory

Freud's theory that our repressed sexual desires are realized in our dreams; describes the what happens in dreams as manifest content, while repressed desires are latent content

Stage 2 sleep

Lasts about 20 minutes; falling into deeper sleep; slower heart rate and breathing, lowering of body temp; includes small bursts of brain activity known as sleep spindles

Steps in Vision

Light is focused through the lens and moves to the retina. In the retina, rods and cones convert light to electrical signals that can be read by the brain.

Endorphins

Neurotransmitters are released during exercise.

Newborn Senses

Newborns typically have developed senses of smell, hearing, taste and touch. However, their sense of vision is typically poor, usually only 20/120 to 20/400.

Eardrum

Part of the ear that sits directly against the ossicles.

Perception

Perception deals with your recognition and interpretation of sensory information.

Path of Hearing

Sound moves through the ear in this order: Pinna, eardrum, ossicles, cochlea and cilia.

Sensation

The ability to receive sensory information.

Behavioral

The actions that you take. Your behavior can be affected by biological factors.

Central Nervous System

The bodily system that receives and works with sensory signals. This system includes your brain and your spinal cord.

Pinna

The cartilage in the outside of the ear. This is the first structure that sound passes through when entering the ear.

Self-awareness

The concept that a person is able to recognize themselves as separate or different from others

Terminal behavior

The desired end result of the shaping process; this result is reached through a series of small steps that are rewarded when done properly

Biological Systems

The different physical systems of your body. This includes the nervous and endocrine systems.

Retinal Disparity

The effect of having two slightly different images sent to the brain by our eyes. The brain blends this images to craft a 3-dimensional image.

Dependent variable

The outcome or effect of a cause being studied during a scientific experiment

Motion Parallax

The perception that things that are closer to you are moving more quickly.

Clinical psychology

The psychological discipline concerned with direct interaction with patients in a healthcare setting, including both counseling and psychiatric treatment

Retina

The retina lines the inside of the eye and is involved with turning light into an image. It contains rods and cones.

Iris

The term for the colored section of the eyeball. It can contract or expand based on the amount of light around you.

Activation-synthesis theory

Theory that dreams are a result of brain activation during REM sleep; says dreams are our way of regulating internal activity

Psychotherapeutic theory

Theory that suggests dreams are a person's way to deal with and process emotions in a safe environment

Biopsychologists

These doctors focus on the connections between biology and psychology, including how your brain, muscles, and glands interact with one another.

Unconscious automatic behaviors

Things a person does without thinking or trying, like worrying

Parietal Lobe

This area of your brain is involved in understanding language.

Frontal Lobe

This portion of your brain is used while speaking, planning, and effectively coordinating movement.

Autonomic Nervous System

This portion of your nervous system controls automatic bodily responses, like breathing or the rate of your heartbeat. It deals with unconscious, bodily actions.

Interposition

This term refers to a monocular depth cue that allows you to determine the relative closeness of two items based on how they overlap.

Ossicles

Tiny bones inside the human ear.

Binocular Depth Cue

Used to help our brain effectively create 3-d images.

function of lobes of cerebrum

frontal=memory, parietal=pain/tickle, temporal=hearing, occipital=sight