| A | B |
|---|
| empiricism | the philosophical view that all knowledge is obtained through the senses |
| structuralsim | Wundt's system of experimental psychology; it emphasized introspective analysis of sensation and perception |
| introspection | Literally, "looking within," in an attempt to describe one's own memories, perceptions, cognitive processes, or motivations |
| variable error | an error caused by random differences in experimental conditions, such as the subject's mood or changes in the environment |
| functionalism | the strategy of understanding a species' structural or behavioral features by attempting to establish their usefulness with respect to survival and reproductive success (William James) |
| behaviorism | a movement in psychology that asserts that the only proper subject matter for scientific study in psychology is observable behavior (Pavlov, Skinner) |
| Gestalt psychology | a movement in psychology that emphasized that cognitive processes could be understood by studying their organization, not their elements |
| humanistic psychology | An approach to the study of human behavior that emphasizes human experience, choice and creativity, self-realization, and positive growth |
| information processing | An approach used by cognitive psychologists to explain the workings of the brain; information received through the senses is processed by systems of neurons in the brain |
| naturalistic observation | the observation of the behavior of people or other animals in their natural environments |
| correlational study | the observation of two or more variables in the behavior or other characteristics of people or other animals |
| scientific method | a set of roles that govern the collection and analysis of data gained through observational studies or experiments |
| variable | a measure capable of assuming any of several values |
| manipulation | setting the value of an idependent variable in an experiment to see whether the value of the dependent variable is affected |
| independent variable | the variable that is manipulated in an experiment as a means of determining cause-and-effect relations. Manipulation of an idependent variable demonstrates whether it affects the value of the dependent variable |
| dependent variable | the event whose value is measured in an experiment. Manipulation of an independent variable demonstrates whether they affects the value of dependent variables |
| operational definition | the definition of a variable in terms of the operations the experimenter performs to measure or manipulate it |
| physiological psychology | the branch of psychology that studies the physiological basis of behavior |
| psychophysiology | the measurement of physiological responses, such as blood pressure and heart rate, to infer changes in internal states, such as emotions |
| comparative psychology | the branch of psychology that studies the behaviors of a variety of organisms in an attempt to understand the adaptive and fucntional significance of the behaviors and their relation to evolution |
| behavior analysis | the branch of psychology that studies the effect of the environment on behavior |
| behavior genetics | studies the role of genetics in behavior |
| cognitive psychology | studies complex behaviors and mental processes such as perception, attention, learning and memory, verbal behavior, concept formation, prob solving |
| experimental neuropsychology | attempts to understand human brain functions by studying patients whose brains have been damaged by accident or disease |
| developmental psychology | studies changes in behavioral, perceptual, and cognitive capacities of organisms as a function of age and experience |
| social psychology | study of the effects people have on each other's behavior |
| personality psychology | categorize and understand the causes of ind. diff. in patterns of behavior |
| cross-cultural pysch | studies the effects of culture on behavior |
| clinical psych | investigation and treatment of abnormal behavior and mental disorders |
| clinical neuropsychologist | identification/ treatment of the behavior consequences of nerv. sys. disorders and injuries |
| health psychologist | works to promote behaviors/ lifestyles that improve/ maintain health and prevent illness |
| school psych | deals w/ behavioral probs of students at school |
| consumer psych | helps orgs. that manfacture products or that buy products or services |
| community psych | works for the welfare of inds. in social sys., attempt to improve the sys. rather than treating ppl as probs |
| organizational psych | works for increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of orgs. |
| engineering psych | studies the ways ppl/ machines work together, helps design machines safe/ easy |
| dualism | reality consists of mind and matter (Descartes) |
| nominal fallacy | false belief that one has explained cause of phenomenon by ident./ naming it |
| biological evolution | changes that take place in the genetic/ phys. characteristics of a pop/ group of organisms over time |
| adaptive significance | the effectiveness of behavior in aiding organisms to adjust to changing environmental conditions |
| ultimate causes | evolutionary conditions that have slowly shaped the behavior of a species over generations |
| proximate causes | immediate environmental events and conditions that affect behavior |
| artificial selection | animals are deliberately mated to produce offspring that possess desirable characteristics |
| genotype | an organism's genetic make-up |
| phenotype | outward expression of genotype, phys. appearance/ behavior |
| bipedalism | the ability to move about on two feet |
| encephalization | increases in brain size |
| genetics | study of genetic make-up and how influence phys/ behavioral characteristics |
| heredity | the sum of traits/ tendencies inherited from a parents/ ancestors |
| genes | small units of chromosomes that direct the synthesis of proteins and enzymes |
| DNA | resembles twisted ladder, strands of molecules of sugars, etc. |
| enzymes | proteins that regulate the structure of bodily cells and the processes occuring within those cells |
| chromosomes | rodlike structures in the nuclei of living cells, contain genes |
| sex chromosomes | contain the instructional code for the development of male/ female sex characteristics |
| alleles | alternative forms of same gene |
| dominant allele | form of the gene that controls the expression of a trait. When gene pair contains two dom/ 1 dom, 1 rec, trait regulated by dom. gene will be expressed |
| recessive allele | form of gene that does not influence the expression of a trait unless it is paired with another recessive allele |
| monogamy | mating of one female/ one male |
| polygymy | mating of one male/ mult. females |
| polyandry | mating of one female/ mult. males |
| polygynandry | mating of mult females/ mult. males |
| sexual selection | selection of traits specific to sex, such as body size or particular patterns of behavior |
| incest | mating of close relatives who share many of the same genes |
| altruism | unselfish concern of one ind. for the welfare of another |
| inclusive fitness | the reproductive success of those who share common genes |
| kin selection | favors altruistic acts aimed at ind. who share genes: parents, siblings, etc. |
| ethnocentrism | idea that one's cultural, national, racial, religious group is superior to or more deserving than others |
| peripheral nervous system | cranial and spinal nerves, that part of the nerv. sys. peripheral to the brain and spinal cord |
| cerebral hemisphere | largest part of brain; covered by cerebral cortex containing parts of the brain evolved most recently |
| cerebellum | a pair of hemispheres resembling the cerebral hemispheres but musch smaller, lying beneath and in back of them; controls posture and movements, rapid ones |
| soma | cell body, largest part of neuron |
| dendrite | treelike part of neuron on which the terminal buttons of other neurons form synapses |
| axon | long, thin part of a neuron attached to the soma, divides into branches, ending in terminal buttons |
| terminal button | rounded swelling at the end of axon of neuron; releases transmitter substance |
| transmitter substance | a chem. released by the term. buttons that causes the postsynaptic neuron to be excited or inhibited |
| myelin sheath | the insulating material that encases most large axons |
| action potential | a brief electrochemical event that is carried by an axon from the soma to its term. buttons, causes the release of trans. substance |
| ion | a postively or negatively charged particle produced when many substances dissolve in water |
| ion channel | protein molecule located in the membrane of a cell, controls entry/ exit of particular ions |
| reuptake | term. button retrieves the molecules of transmitter substance that has just been released, terminates the effect |
| primary motor cortex | region of cerebral cortex that directly controls the movements of the body; located in the back part of frontal lobes |
| frontal lobe | front portion of cerebral cortex, including to Broca's speech aread and the motor cortex, damage impairs movement, planning, flexibility in behavioral strategies |
| parietal lobe | region of cerebral cortex behind frontal lobe and above temporal lobe; involved in spatial perception and memory |
| temporal lobe | portion of cerebral cortex below frontal and parietal lobes and containing auditory cortex |
| occipital lobe | rearmost portion of cerebral cortex, contains the primary visual cortex |
| hypothalamus | region of brain located above pituitary gland, controls autonomic nerv. sys. and behaviors related to regulation/ survival: eating, drinking, fighting, shivering, sweating |
| autonomic nerv. system | portion of peripheral nerv. sys. that controls func. of glands, internal organs |
| sympathetic branch | fight or flight |
| parasympathetic branch | relax, slow down after sympathetic |
