AP Psychology: Midterm Vocabulary

Operational Definition

A carefully worded statement of the exact procedures used in a research study

Replication

Repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic finding can be reproduced

Population

All those in a group being studied, from which samples may be drawn

Random Sample

A sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion

Scatterplot

A graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables

Slope suggests the direction of the relationship between the two variables

The amount of scatter suggests the strength of the correlation

Random Assignment

Assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance, thus minimizing the preexisting differences between the different groups

Double-Blind Prodecure

An experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo

Commonly done during drug-evaluation studies

Biological Approach

Searches for the causes of behavior in the functioning of genes, the brain, nervous system, and endocrine system

Emphasizes how our physical makeup and the operation of our brains influence our personality, preference, behavior patterns, and abilities

Cognitive Approach

Emphasizes our mental processes (such as learning, memory, and perception) as forms of information processing

Suggests that our thoughts and actions arise from the way we interpret our experiences

Psychodynamic Approach

Emphasizes the understanding of thoughts and behaviors in terms of unconscious needs, desires, memories, and conflict

Looks at how someone’s personality traits and disorders can be explained in terms of sexual and aggressive drives or as the disguised effects of unfulfilled wishes and childhood traumas

Humanistic Approach

Emphasizes human ability, growth, potential, and free will

Our actions are largely influenced by our self-concept and by our need for personal growth and fulfillment

Behavioral Approach

Finds the source of our actions in environmental stimuli, rather than inner mental processes

Calls attention to the ways reward and punishment shape how we act

Sociocultural Approach

Emphasizes the importance of social interactions, social learning, and a cultural perspective

Looks at the profound influence culture has on all of us

Evolutionary Approach

Sees behavioral and mental processes in terms of their genetic adaptation for survival and reproduction

Biopsychosocial Approach

Incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural viewpoints

Psychometrics

Studies the measurement of our abilities, attitudes and traits

Basic Research

Builds psychology’s knowledge base

Applied Research

Tackles practical problems

Industrial-Organizational

Psychologists who use psychology’s concepts and methods in the workplace to help organizations

Counseling Psychologists

Help people to cope with challenges and crises, and to improve their personal & social functioning

Clinical Psychologists

Assesses and treats mental, emotional, behavioral & psychological disorders

Psychiatrists

Medical doctors licensed to prescribe drugs and otherwise treat physical causes of psychological disorders

Sensory Neurons

Neurons that carry incoming information from the body’s tissues and 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; they communicate internally and process information between the sensory inputs and motor outputs

Reuptake

A neurotransmitter’s reabsorption by the sending neuron

Nervous System

The body’s speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems

Endocrine System

The body’s “slow” chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream

Hormones

Chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues

Broca’s Area

Helps control language expression - an area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech

Wernicke’s Area

A brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe

Plasticity

The brain’s ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience

Neurogenesis

The formation of new neurons

Chromosomes

Threadlike structures made of DNA molecules that contain the genes

DNA

A complex molecule containing the genetic information that makes up the chromosomes

Genes

The biochemical units of heredity that make up the chromosomes; segments of DNA capable of synthesizing proteins

Heritability

The proportion of variation among individuals in a group that we can attribute to genes

Circadian Rhythm

Our biological clock; regular bodily rhythms that occur on a 24-hour cycle

REM Bound

The tendency for REM sleep to increase following REM sleep deprevation

Psychoactive Drug

A chemical substance that alters perceptions and moods

Addiction

A compulsive craving for a substance despite adverse consequences and often with physical symptoms such as aches, nausea, and distress following sudden withdrawal

Agonist

A molecule that increases a neurotransmitter’s action

Antagonist

A molecule that inhibits or block’s a neurotransmitter’s action

Tolerance

The diminishing effect with regular use of the same dose of a drug, requiring the user to take larger and larger dose before experiencing the drug’s effect

Withdrawal

The discomfort and distress that follow discontinuing and use of an addictive drug or substance

Depressants

Reduce neural activity and slow body functions

Stimulants

Excite neural activity and speed up body functions

Hallucinogens

Distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input

Night Terrors

Appearing terrified, talking nonsense, sitting up, or walking around during NREM-3 sleep

Insomnia

Recurring problems in falling of staying asleep

Narcolepsy

Sudden attacks of overwheming sleepiness

Sleep Apnea

Stopping breathing repeatedly while sleeping

Medulla

The base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing

Pons

Helps coordinate movement and controls sleep

Reticular Formation System

Helps control arousal

Thalamus

Relays messages between lower brain centers and cerebral cortex

Sensory control center

Hypothalamus

Directs several maintenance activities (like body temperature)

Helps govern the endocrine system (hormones) via the pituitary gland

Hippocampus

Linked to conscious memory

Helps store explicit memories of facts and events

Amygdala

Linked to emotion

Pituitary Gland

The master endocrine gland

Frontal Lobe

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead

Involved in speaking, muscle movement, in making plans and judgements, and personality

Temporal Lobe

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; includes the auditory areas, each receiving information primarily from the opposite ear

Parietal Lobe

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the back

Receives sensory input for touch and body position

Occipital Lobe

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying a the back of the head

Includes areas that receive information from the visual fields

Cerebellum

Coordinates voluntary movement and balance, and supports learning and memories

Sensory Cortex

Area at the front of the parietal lobe that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations

Motor Cortex

Area at the rear of the frontal lobe that controls voluntary movements

Brainstem

Oldest part and central core of the brain

Responsible for basic survival functions

Limbic system

Second oldest part of the brain

Located below the cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions and drives

Cerebral Cortex

Newest part of the brain

Ultimate control and information-processing center

EEG

Electrodes placed on the scalp measure electrical activity in neurons

CT Scan (CAT Scan)

X-rays of the head generate images that may locate brain damage

PET Scan

A visual display of brain activity that detects where a radioactive form of glucose goes while the brain performs a given task

MRI

People sit or lie down in a chamber where magnetic fields and radio waves to provide a map of brain structure

fMRI

Measures blood flow to brain regions by comparing continuous MRI scans - shows brain function as well as structure

Selective Attention

The focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus

Inattentional Blindness

Failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

Change Blindness

Failing to notice changes in the environment

Absolute Threshold

The minimum stimulus energy needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time

Signal Detection Theory

Predicts how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus (signal) amid background stimulation

Difference Threshold

The minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50% of the time

We experience this as just a noticeable difference

Sensory Adaptation

Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation

Hue

The dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light

Intensity

The amount of energy in a light wave or sound wave, which influences what we perceive as brightness or loudness

Determined by the waves amplitude

Frequency

The number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time

Kinethesis

Our movement sense - our system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts

Gate-Control Theory

The theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological “gate” that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain

The “gate” is opened by the activity in larger fibers or by information coming from the brain

Figure-Ground

The organization of the visual field into objects (figure) that stand out from their surroundings (ground)

Perceptual Adaptation

The ability to adjust to changed sensory input, including an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field

Perceptual Set

A mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

Bottom-Up Processing

Analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory information

Top-Down Processing

Information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations

Trichromatic (three-color) Theory

The theory that the retina contains three different types of color receptors - one most sensitive to red, one to green, and one to blue - which, when stimulated in combination, can produce the perception of any color

Opponent-Process Theory

The theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, blue-yellow, & white-black) enable color vision

Some cells are stimulated by green and inhibited by red; others are stimulated by red and inhibited by green

Extinction

The diminishing of a conditioned response; occurs in classical conditioning when a response is no longer reinforced

Spontaneous Recovery

The reappearance, after a pause, of an extinguished conditioned response

Taste Aversion

The learned avoidance of something through taste

Generalization

The tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses

Discrimination

The learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and similar stimuli that do not signal an unconditioned stimulus

Learned Helplessness

The hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or person learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events