Psychology Final Study Guide o Eliminates bias o Disproves assumptions o Shows importance of critical objective inquiry to the study of the human Chapter 1 Introduction Scientific Method Steps o Identify problem o Conduct background research o Formulate hypothesis o Test hypothesis o Analyze results o Report results Effects mind Important People Socrates Plato Dualists Aristotle Descartes The heart is the center of the mind and the soul Defended dualism Problem with dualism how can a mind not made of material influence the brain Accepted idea of flowing spirits Proposed the mind and brain interact at the pineal gland smallest unpaired structure center of the soul Locke Wundt Tabula Rasa blank slate Father of Psychology Mind should be examined scientifically objectively Studied structure of human mind First to attempt to incorporate objectivity and measurement Freud Psychodynamic Theory Believed human beings are motivated by primitve sexual drives forbidden desires and traumatic childhood memories unavailable to the conscious mind Unconscious expressed by dreams slips of the tongue symptoms of psychological disorders Watson Behaviorism Wanted to make scientific inquiry a primary focus in psychology Developed behavioral approach Work carried on by Skinner Skinner Supported Watson s behaviorism Helped it gain momentum through the 1900 s Maslow Rogers Humanistic Darwin Evolutionary approach explores how patterns of behavior may be beneficial to our survival Nature VS Nurture Debate Is knowledge learned nurture or innate nature Today psychologists believe we become who we are through a unique combination of heredity and environmental factors o Question amount of influence each has Hitting the bullseye accurate The degree to which a measurement measures what it is intended to measure Chapter 2 Research Methods Validity Chapter 3 The Human Brain Neuron Firing Neurons only fire when stimulated by a source o Other neuron or sensory receptor o Intensity of stimulus determines whether it will fire or not Some cells instruct neuron to fire others instruct it not to fire inhibition o Goes with majority Every neuron has a specific threshold it needs to reach in order to fire o All or None Principle If threshold is crossed it will fire Creates action potential o Electrochemical ripple that works its way through the neuron and ends with the release of neurotransmitters that will stimulate the next neuron When neuron is stimulated potassium channels close and sodium channels open o Amount of positively charged sodium ions increases Saltatory conduction occurs as the action potential jumps node to node o Nodes of Ranvier along the axon o Sodium ions in potassium ions out Plasticity Brain constantly changing within limits Important helpful because life is unpredictable and our brains have evolved the ability to remodel themselves in response to our lives Happens rapidly in early development and continues throughout life more slowly 2 Step Process o Keeps connections that work best o Discards others that don t work as well Brain keeps only successful connections Form new neurons in the hippocampus throughout life Sugar Water and Immunosuppressant Study Immunosuppressant causes sickness Person unknowingly given cup of sugar water with immunosuppressant After a while sugar water alone makes the person sick Sickness conditioned response to unconditioned stimulus Bandura s Study Kids observed violent and affectionate behavior by an adult to a doll Kids copied the behavior they observed every time Chapter 4 Genetics and Evolution Darwin On the Origin of Species 1859 o Theory of Natural Selection Frequency of characteristics or genes in a gene pool Mating Patterns Polygyny One male with multiple females Polyandry One female with multiple males Monogamy One female one male both needed to raise offspring Polygynandry Multiple females with multiple males live in communities Genes and Environment Events and conditions in an individual s environment activate the genes that create proteins which affect the individual s traits and behaviors External environment outside and chemical environment inside Learning involves activation of genes Universality of Facial Expressions People across different cultures share the same facial expressions 6 Surprise fear disgust sadness anger happiness In group advantage Chapter 5 Sensation and Perception Sensation VS Perception Sensation process through which we detect physical energy from the environment and code that energy as neural signals Perception the way a person sleets organizes and interprets sensory information Other Info Stimulus for vision light Thalamus relay station Olfaction smell only sense that does not send signals to the thalamus Chapter 7 Learning Classical Conditioning Two stimuli are associated creates a reflex response Discovered by Pavlov s experiment Components o Unconditioned Stimulus unlearned stimulus that elicits a reflex action o Unconditioned Response A reflex action elicited by an unconditioned stimulus stimulus o Conditioned Stimulus An event that is repeatedly paired with a particular unconditioned stimulus o Conditioned Response A learned reaction triggered bya conditioned o Neutral Stimulus A stimulus which initially produces no specific response other than focusing attention Operant Conditioning Type of learning in which organisms associate their actions with consequences Reinforcement an act that causes the response to be more likely to recur Punishment Penalty given in an attempt to decrease the occurrence of a certain behavior Chapter 10 Human Development I Walking 11 15 months of age Language Theories Nativist Theory Nature Language is innate humans born with anatomy for advanced speaking Environmental Theory Nurture Language is learned through social interaction Psychologists agree language has an environmental basis Disagree over how much input from parents and caregivers matters Overgeneralization in Grammar I goed to school Piaget s Stages of Cognitive Development Stage Sensorimotor Preoperational Concrete Operations Formal Operations Strange Situation Study When Birth 2 years 2 7 years 7 11 years 11 years Term Object Permanence Egocentrism Conservation Mom and infant go to unfamiliar playroom with interesting toys a stranger Mom leaves infant with toys and stranger Mom returns infant s behavior observed Procedure repeated 8 times with variations Types of Infants o Securely Attached 60 majority Mom secure base good parenting did