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Psych Exam 1
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Hindsight Bias | the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it (also known as the I-knew-it-all-along phenomenon) |
| Overconfidence | the tendency to think one knows more than one does, people have a tendency to be more confident than correct. Leads us to overestimate our intuition |
| Hypothesis | a testable prediction, often implied by a theory |
| Operational Definition | a statement of the procedures (operations) used to define research variables; moves question from theoretical to experimental |
| Random Sampling | a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion |
| Naturalistic Observation | observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation; produces only correlational data |
| Correlation | a measure of the extent to which two factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other |
| Correlation does not imply Causation | it doesn’t take into account which factor (if either are) is causing the relationship or the possibility of a third factor. |
| Characteristics of an Experiment | random assignment, control group, independent variable, dependent variable |
| Experiments establish causation | by manipulating the factors of interest and holding constant (controlling) the other factors |
| Independent Variable | the experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied |
| Dependent Variable | the outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable |
| Control Group | the group that is not exposed to the treatment, contrasts with the experimental group and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment |
| Placebo Effect | experimental results caused by expectations alone; any effect on behavior caused by the administration |
| Attribution | our explanation of someone’s behavior by crediting either the situation or the person’s disposition |
| Situational attribution | (external) a reaction to something that happened |
| Dispositional attribution | (internal) an element of the person’s personality |
| fundamental attribution error | the tendency for observers, when analyzing another’s behavior, to underestimate the impact of the situation and to overestimate the impact of personal disposition |
| sensory neurons | neurons that carry incoming information from the sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord |
| motor neurons | neurons that carry outgoing information from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands |
| interneurons | neurons within the brain and spinal cord that communicate internally and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs |
| parts of a neuron | cell body, dendrite fibers, axon, myelin sheath, terminal branches of axon |
| cell body | the cell’s life support center |
| dendrite | receive messages from other cells |
| axon | passes messages away from the cell body to other neurons, muscles, or glands |
| myelin sheath | covers the axon of some neurons and helps speed neural impulses |
| terminal branches of axon | form junctions with other cells |
| myelineated neuron | a neuron whose fibers are encased by fatty tissue, increases speed of transmission |
| path of transmission of information in neuron | Dendrites, Axon, Terminal branches |
| action potential | a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon |
| refractory period of a neuron | a resting pause during the neuron’s travel down the axon |
| intensity of a stimulus | conveyed by number of neurons triggered by action |
| synapse | the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron |
| synaptic cleft | the tiny gap at the junction between axon tip and dendrite |
| neurotransmitter | chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by the sending neuron, they travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse |
| excitatory neurotransmitter | makes the neuron more likely to fire |
| inhibitory neurotransmitter | makes the neuron less likely to fire |
| neuromodulator | modifies behavior of neurotransmitter |
| antagonist neurotransmitter | decrease the effect of the neurotransmitter |
| agonist neurotransmitter | increase the effect of the neurotransmitter |
| endorphins | "morphine within” – natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure |
| reuptake | a neurotransmitter’s reabsorption by the sending neuron |
| serotonin | Affects mood, hunger, sleep and arousal; undersupply linked to depression |
| norephinephrine | Helps control alertness and arousal; undersupply can depress mood |
| dopamine | Influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion; excess linked to schizophrenia |
| central nervous system | the brain and spinal cord |
| peripheral nervous system | sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body |
| autonomic nervous system | the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart) |
| skeletal nervous system | division of peripheral nervous system that controls the body’s skeletal muscles |
| sympathetic | arouses autonomic system, mobilizes energy in stressful situations |
| parasympathetic | calms autonomic system |
| neural network | clusters of work groups of the brain’s neurons |
| spinal reflex | a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus |
| hypothalamus | a neural structure lying below the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and I linked to emotion and reward |
| reticular formation | a nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal |
| thalamus | the brain’s sensory switchboard, located on top of the brainstem; directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla |
| cerebellum | the “little brain” at the rear of the brainstem; functions include processing sensory input and coordinating movement output and balance |
| hippocampus | processes memory |
| parietal lobe | receives sensory input for touch and body position |
| frontal lobe | speaking and muscle movements, making plans and judgment |
| temporal lobe | auditory areas |
| occipital lobe | receive information from visual fields |
| right hemisphere | process emotion, perception of non-verbal patterns, music, spatial relationships, complex paterns, part-to-whole relationships |
| left hemisphere | process speech and language, reading, perception of time relationships, control of complex movement sequences, analytic thinking |
| behavior genetics study | the study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior |
| identical and fraternal twins | identical twins are much more similar in extraversion and neuroticism than fraternal |
| fraternal twins and non-twin siblings | no more similar one way than the other |
| parents and children | adopted children are more like their biological parents |
| temperament | a person’s characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity |
| heritability | the proportion of variation among individuals that we can attribute to genes. The heritability of a trait may vary, depending on the range of populations and environments studied |
| gene-environment interaction | the interplay that occurs when the effect of one factor depends on the other |
| molecular behavior genetics | the subfield of biology that studies the molecular structure and function of behavior genes |
| evolutionary psychology | the study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection |
| natural selection | the principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those that lead to increased reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations |
| effect of environmental stimulation | enriched environment leads to a heavier and thicker brain cortex |
| pruning | neural connections are strengthened by experience, unused neural pathways weaken and degenerate – unemployed connections are lost |
| attributions for ourselves vs others | we are more sensitive to the situation that affects our own behavior, except when it comes to our admirable behavior which we attribute to our own good qualities |
| foot-in-the-door phenomenon | the tendency for people who have first agreed to a small request to comply later with a larger request |
| cognitive dissonance | the discomfort we feel when two of our thoughts are inconsistent (when our awareness of our attitudes and of our actions clash) |
| factors that increase that increase cognitive dissonance | when we feel less coerced and more responsible for the action |
| factors that decrease cognitive dissonance | if the person has a credible explanation for the conflict |
| conformity | adjusting one’s behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard |
| factors that increase conformity | to be right, in ambiguous situations, with more difficult tasks, when there is a crisis, when others are experts, to be liked, in more cohesive groups, with people who strongly identify with group norms, less powerful group members |
| factors that decrease conformity | social support for not conforming |
| normative social influence | conformity to be correct |
| informational social influence | conformity to be liked |
| Asch study | more than 1/3 of the time, intelligent and well-meaning college student participants were willing to “call white black” by going along with the group |
| Milgram's study on obedience | 65% of people go to max shock |
| group polarization | the enhancement of a group’s prevailing inclinations through discussion within the group |
| factors that increase group polarization | when group is isolated |
| groupthink | the mode of thinking that occurs when the desire for harmony in a decision-making group overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives |
| factors that increase groupthink | close groups |
| effects of physical attractiveness | date more, more popular, people find they have better personalities, perceived as healthier, happier, more sensitive, ore successful, more socially skilled, more likely to make a favorable impression on potential employers |
| 2-factor theory of emotions | to experience emotion one must be physically aroused and cognitively label the arousal; explains the passion component of love because it is the aroused state of intense positive absorption in another – identifiable with the source, the other person |
| factors that contribute to a successful marriage | reciprocal high levels of self-disclosure, perception that the relationship is equitable, complementary personal styles, genuine mutual liking, handling of anger, good sex life |
| major schools of thought | behaviorism, cognition, psychodynamic, evolutionary |
| confounding variable | a variable that changes besides the independent variable |
| theoretical question | abstract question the person wants to ask |
| empirical question | question actually being studied |
| social cognition | the process by which people make sense of themselves, others, social interactions and friendships |
| schema | memory structure that defines a concept - the lens you see the person through |
| stereotype | saves cognitive energy/time |
| out-groups | people tend to see as too homogeneous |
| actor-observer effect | overemphasis on the situation |
| self-serving bias | attributing one's own failures to external causes and one's successes to internal causes |
| just world attribution | people get what they deserve |
| people like others with similar | tastes, values and attitudes |
| liking | affection, respect, approval; intimacy |
| love | attachment, intimacy, mutual concern |
| passionate love | lasts 6-18 months, sexual attraction, desire for mutual love and closeness, arousal, fear of end of relationship |
| companionate love | very close friendship, liking, respect, attraction; commitment and intimacy |
| Sternberg's triangular model of love | intimacy, passion, commitment |
| intimacy | affection, sharing, communication, support |
| passion | physiological arousal |
| commitment | a decision to love the other person and to remain with them |
| romantic love | intimacy and passion |
| fatuous love | commitment and passion |
| infatuation | passion (strong crush) |
| empty love | commitment |
| consummate love | intimacy, passion, commitment |
| common qualities of groups | regular interaction among members, some type of emotional connection, a common frame of reference, some type of interdependence, feelings, thoughts and behaviors may be motivated by group perspective |
| norms in groups | shared beliefs that are enforced through a group's use of penalties |
| low ball technique | getting someone to make an agreement then increasing the cost |
| door-in-the-face technique | start with a very large request that is denied (as expected) making compliance with a 2nd smaller request (the desired one) more likely |
| social validation | flattered the favor would be asked of the person |
| social loafing | the tendency to work less hard when responsibility for an outcome is spread across a group |
| decreasing social loafing | instilling a sense of personal responsibility, making the task attractive, evaluating individual performance |
| social compensation | someone sees the task as important and picks up the slack |
| social facilitation | the increased performance that can occur as a result of being a part of a group or in the presence of others |
| spinal interneurons | sends the message onwards, initiate the spain reflex - a command for body, release of endorphins |
| cerebral cortex | part of brain where most neural processes occur (2 mm) |
Created by:
Kellameister623
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