Unit One: Scientific Foundations of Psychology

research based on observing and experimenting

the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgment.

early school of thought promoted by Titchener; used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind

early school of thought promoted by James and influenced by Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral processes function- how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish

the science of behavior that focuses on observable behavior only, by John B Watson and B. F Skinner

the study of mental processes, focused on ways that current environments nurture or limit growth potential

how info is perceived, processed, and remembered

A field that attempts to understand the links between cognitive processes and brain activity.

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes

the long-standing controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors

A natural process resulting in the evolution of organisms best adapted to the environment

focuses on how humans are alike because of common biology and evolutionary history

focuses on differences related to differing genes/environments

Beliefs, customs, and traditions of a specific group of people.

the scientific study of human functioning, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive

the differing complementary views for analyzing any given phenomenon

an approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis

pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base

scientific study that aims to solve practical problems

a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being

a branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical (for example, drug) treatments as well as psychological therapy

a branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information

a study method incorporating five steps: Survey, Question, Read, Retrieve, Review

A Greek Philosopher who used observation and questioning to understand the body-psyche relationship- 'content of the mind comes through senses'

'character and intelligence inherited.'

greek philopsher who believed knowledge was innate

British researcher who emphasized observation and experimentation

French philosopher; some ideas are intuitive

English natural scientist who formulated a theory of evolution by natural selection

Created the first school of psychology in Germany (1879)

Student of Wilhelm Wundt; founder of Structuralist school of psychology.

american psychologist who established the first psychology research laboratory in the United States and founded the American Psychological Association

American psychologist who conducted research on memory, personality, and dreams; first woman president of the American Psychological Association

First female to be awarded a PhD in psychology; 2nd president of the APA

Austrian physician whose work focused on the unconscious causes of behavior and personality formation; founded psychoanalysis.

founder of functionalism; studied how humans use perception to function in our environment

discovered classical conditioning; trained dogs to salivate at the ringing of a bell

'mind is a blank slate'

Behaviorist that developed the theory of operant conditioning by training pigeons and rats

Humanistic psychologist known for his "Hierarchy of Needs" and the concept of "self-actualization"

Field: humanistic; Contributions: founded person-centered therapy, theory that emphasizes the unique quality of humans especially their freedom and potential for personal growth, unconditional positive regard, fully functioning person

professional organization representing psychologists in the United States

the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it- 'i knew it all along'

explains behaviors/events by offering ideas that organize observations, and summarizes/simplifies

A testable prediction, often implied by a theory

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

repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic finding extends to other participants and circumstances

a descriptive technique in which one individual or group is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles

observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation

a technique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of the group

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

all those in a group being studied from which results may be drawn

a mutual relationship or connection between two or more things

a statistical index of the relationship between two things (from -1 to +1)

anything that can vary and is feasible and ethical to measure

a graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables, the slope of the points suggests the direction of the relationship between the two variables

perception of a relationship where none exists, or perception of a stronger relationship than actually exists

the tendency for extremes of unusual scores to fall back (regress) toward their average

In an experiment, the group that is exposed to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent variable.

the group that does not receive the experimental treatment.

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

A research strategy in which neither subjects nor experimenters know which subjects are in the experimental or control groups.

something which has a positive mental effect, but no physical effect

variable that is manipulated

the outcome that is measured; the variable that may change when the independent variable is manipulated

a factor other than the independent variable that might produce an effect in an experiment

cues in an experiment that tell the participant what behavior is expected

research design in which participants don't know whether they are in the experimental or control group

An ethical principle requiring that research participants be told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate.

the post-experimental explanation of a study, including its purpose and any deceptions, to its participants

suggested rules for acting responsibly and morally when conducting research or in clinical practice

the right of research participants to be protected from physical or psychological harm

the act of holding information in confidence, not to be released to unauthorized individuals

brief informational coefficients that summarize a given data set

procedures used to draw conclusions about larger populations from small samples of data

The value that occurs most frequently in a given data set.

the arithmetic average of a distribution, obtained by adding the scores and then dividing by the number of scores

the middle score in a distribution; half the scores are above it and half are below it

the difference between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution

a computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean score

a symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data; most scores fall near the mean (about 68 percent fall within one standard deviation of it) and fewer and fewer near the extremes.

how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chance

an arrangement of data that indicates how often a particular score or observation occurs