Psychology Chapters 1-14

evolutionary psychology

A branch of psychology that applies the Darwinian theory of natural selection to human and animal behavior.

action potential

A change in electrical charge that occurs in a neuron when a nerve impulse is transmitted.

falsifiable

A characteristic of a theory or research hypothesis in which the variables of interest can be adequately measured and the predicted relationships among the variables can be shown through research to be incorrect.

neurotransmitter

A chemical that relays signals across the synapses between neurons.

nervous system

A collection of hundreds of billions of specialized cells that transmit information between different parts of the body.

institutional review board

A committee of at least five members whose goal is to determine cost-benefit ratio of research conducted within an institution.

culture

A common set of social norms, including religious and family values and other moral beliefs, shared by the people who live in a geographical region.

normal distribution

A data distribution that is shaped like a bell.

case studies

A descriptive record of one or more individual's experiences and behavior.

myelin sheath

A layer of fatty tissue surrounding the axon of a neuron that acts as an insulator and allows faster transmission of the electrical signal.

survey

A measure administered through either interviews or written questionnaires to get a picture of the beliefs or behaviors of a sample of people of interest.

introspection

A method of learning about psychological processes in which research participants are asked to describe exactly what they experience as they work on mental tasks.

operational definition

A precise statement of how a conceptual variable is turned into a measured variable.

debriefing

A procedure designed to fully explain the purposes and procedures of the research and remove any harmful aftereffects of participation.

random assignment

A procedure used in experimental research designs in which the condition that each participant is assigned to is determined through a random process.

informed consent

A procedure, conducted before a participant begins a research session, designed to explain the research procedures and inform the participant of his or her rights during the investigation.

spurious relationship

A relationship between two variables in which a common-causal variable produces and "explains away" the relationship.

experimenter bias

A situation in which the experimenter subtly treats the research participants in the various experimental conditions differently, resulting in an invalid confirmation of the research hypothesis.

deception

A situation that occurs whenever research participants are not completely and fully informed about the nature of the research project before participating in it.

research hypothesis

A specific and falsifiable prediction about the relationship between or among two or more variables.

resting potential

A state in which the interior of the neuron contains a greater number of negatively charged ions than does the area outside the cell.

meta analysis

A statistical technique that uses the results of existing studies to integrate and draw conclusions about those studies.

multiple regression

A statistical technique, based on correlation coefficients among variables, that allows predicting a single outcome variable from more than one predictor variable.

confounding variable

A variable other than the independent variable on which the participants in one experimental condition differ systematically from those in other conditions.

common-casual variable

A variable that is not part of the research hypothesis but that causes both the predictor and the outcome variable and thus produces the observed correlation between them.

scatter plot

A visual image of the relationship between two variables.

conceptual variables

Abstract ideas that form the basis of research hypotheses.

psychodynamic psychology

An approach to understanding human behavior that focuses on the role of unconscious thoughts, feelings, and memories.

research design

An approach used to collect, analyze, and interpret data.

double blind experiment

An experimental design in which both the researcher and the research participants are blind to condition.

theory

An integrated set of principles that explains and predicts many, but not all, observed relationships within a given domain of inquiry.

variable

Any attribute that can assume different values among different people or across different times or places.

data

Any information collected through formal observation or measurement.

industrial- organizational and environmental psychology

Applies psychology to the workplace with the goal of improving the performance and well-being of employees.

forensic psychology

Apply psychological principles to understand the behavior of judges, attorneys, courtroom juries, and others in the criminal justice system.

nature vs nurture

Are genes or environment most influential in determining the behavior of individuals and in accounting for differences among people?

functionalism

Attempts to understand why animals and humans have developed the particular psychological aspects that they currently possess

empirical

Based on systematic collection and analysis of data.

behaviorism

Based on the premise that it is not possible to objectively study the mind, and therefore that psychologists should limit their attention to the study of behavior itself

health psychology

Concerned with understanding how biology, behavior, and the social situation influence health and illness.

plato and aristotle

Earliest psychologists that we know about. One believed that knowledge was innate, and the other believed that each human is born as an empty slate.

psychodyamic

Focuses on the role of our unconscious thoughts, feelings, and memories and our early childhood experiences in determining behavior

objective

Free from the personal bias or emotions of the scientist

population

In a descriptive research design, the people that the researcher wishes to know about.

dependent variable

In an experiment, the measured variable that is expected to be influenced by the experimental manipulation.

independent variable

In and experiment, the causing variable that is created (manipulated) by the experimenter.

descriptive statistics

Numbers that summarize the distribution of scores on a measured variable.

neuron

One of the more than 100 billion cells in the nervous system.

laws

Principles that are so general as to apply to all situations in a given domain of inquiry.

naturalistic observation

Research based on the observation of everyday events.

correlational research

Research designed to discover relationships among variables and to allow the prediction of future events from present knowledge. Can assess relationships in everyday life events, but cannot be used to draw inferences based on relationships between variables.

descriptive research

Research designed to provide a snapshot of the current state of affairs. Complete picture, but does not assess relationships among variables.

experimental research

Research in which initial equivalence among research participants in more than one group is created, followed by a manipulation of a given experience for these groups and a measurement of the influence of the manipulation. Allows conclusions to be drawn, can't manipulate variables, is also very expensive.

basic research

Research that answers fundamental questions about behavior.

applied research

Research that investigates issues that have implications for everyday life and provides solutions to everyday problems.

person correlation coefficient

Symbolized by the letter r, a statistic indicating the strength and direction of a linear relationship. The value of the correlation coefficient ranges from r = -1.00 to r = +1.00.

standard deviation

Symbolized by the letter s, the most commonly used measure of the dispersion of a variable's distribution.

central nervous system

The brain and the spinal cord.

node of ranvier

The break in the myelin sheath of a nerve fiber.

endocrine system

The chemical regulator of the body, composed of the glands that secrete hormones.

statistical significance

The confidence with which we can conclude that data are not due to chance or random error.

reliability

The consistency of a measured variable.

fitness

The extent to which having a given genetic characteristic helps an individual organism survive and reproduce at a higher rate than do other members of the species who do not have the characteristic.

construct validity

The extent to which the measured variables used in the research adequately assess the conceptual variables they were designed to measure.

external validity

The extent to which the results of a research design can be generalized beyond the specific way the original experiment was conducted.

conclusion validity

The extent to which we can be certain that the researcher has drawn accurate conclusions about the statistical significance of the research.

internal validity

The extent to which we can trust the conclusions that have been drawn about the causal relationship between the independent and dependent variables.

mean

The most commonly used measure of central tendency.

peripheral nervous system

The nerves that link the CNS to the skin, muscles, and glands.

dendrite

The part of the neuron that collects information from other cells and sends the information to the soma.

soma

The part of the neuron that contains the nucleus of the cell and that keeps the cell alive.

axon

The part of the neuron that transmits information away from the cell body toward other neurons.

sample

The people chosen to participate in a research project.

levels of explanation

The perspectives that are used to understand behavior.

replication

The process of repeating previous research.

heritability

The proportion of the observed differences on characteristics among people (e.g., in terms of their height, intelligence, or optimism) that is due to genetics.

psychology

The scientific study of mind and behavior.

median

The score in the center of the distribution.

scientific method

The set of assumptions, rules, and procedures that scientists use to conduct empirical research.

synapses

The small gap between neurons across which nerve impulses are transmitted.

social-cultural

The study of how the social situations and the cultures in which people find themselves influence thinking and behavior

cognitive

The study of mental processes, including perception, thinking, memory, and judgments

generalization

The tendency to respond to stimuli that resemble the original conditioned stimulus.

hindsight bias

The tendency to think that we could have predicted something that has already occurred that we probably would not have been able to predict.

mode

The value or values that occur most frequently in a variable's distribution.

individual differences

The variations among people on physical or psychological dimensions.

social norms

The ways of thinking, feeling, or behaving that are shared by group members and are perceived by them as appropriate.

clinical and counseling psychology

These are the largest fields of psychology. The focus is on the assessment, diagnosis, causes, and treatment of mental disorders.

developmental psychology

These psychologists conduct research on the cognitive, emotional, and social changes that occur across the lifespan.

personality psychology

These psychologists study people and the differences among them. The goal is to develop theories that explain the psychological processes of individuals, and to focus on individual differences.

social and cross-cultural psychology

This field examines people's interactions with other people. Topics of study include conformity, group behavior, leadership, attitudes, and person perception

biopsychology and neuroscience

This field examines the physiological bases of behavior in animals and humans by studying the functioning of different brain areas and the effects of hormones and neurotransmitters on behavior.

school and educational psychology

This field studies how people learn in school, the effectiveness of school programs, and the psychology of teaching.

sports psychology

This field studies the psychological aspects of sports behavior. The goal is to understand the psychological factors that influence performance in sports, including the role of exercise and team interactions.

free will vs determinism

This question concerns the extent to which people have control over their own actions. Are we the products of our environment, guided by forces out of our control, or are we able to choose the behaviors we engage in?

accuracy vs inaccuracy

To what extent are humans good information processors?

differences vs similarities

To what extent are we all similar, and to what extent are we different?

conscious vs unconscious

To what extent are we conscious of our own actions and the causes of them, and to what extent are our behaviors caused by influences that we are not aware of?

structuralism

Uses the method of introspection to identify the basic elements or "structures" of psychological experience

measured variables

Variables consisting of numbers that represent the conceptual variables.