PSYC 100 0915 Validity scientific acceptability Testimonials worthless as evidence for evaluating psychological theories and treatments Common in media psych opens the door for pseudo science multi million dollar industries that take advantage of public lack of awareness that assertions about human behavior can be empirically tested Many already tested and found false Examples astrological prediction subliminal weight loss biorhythms administration of laetrile psychic surgery James Randi S pp 65 67 Founding member of CSICOP Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal In order to conclude that a phenomenon is Psychic CSICOP requires that presently known natural physical or psychological explanations cane be ruled out A congressional sub comitee estimated that 10 biliion is spent annually on medical quackery this amount dwarfs the amount spent on legit medical research Placebo Effects pg 81 Rollenfeld Behavior changes not bc of treatment but bc of expectation that treatment will work Stanovich pg 54 the tendency for people to report tgat aby treatment has helped them Regardless of whether it has any therapeutic element Exmaple Wizard of OZZ Greenwald et al 1991 see s pg 55 Two tapes IV 1 one designed to improve subjects memory one designed to improve one s self esteem This called the tapes content Each through subliminal messages that cant be heard IV 2 Memory Tapes Half labeled self esteem and half labeled memory Self esteem Same Therefore four conditions based on content and labeling Then received post test of both memory and self esteem Two Hypos 1 The content of the tape matters i e tape programs unconscious mind 2 the label on the tape matters i e there is placebo effect Results Both groups who got tape labeled memory socred higher on the post test of memory even though one had heard the tape with self esteem content Both groups who the tape labeled self esteem scored higher on the self esteem test even though one had hear memory content Conclusion the expectancy explains the results better than the power of the subliminal programming of the unconscious Stanovich pg 55 controlled studies indicate that subliminal self help tapes habe absolutely no effect on memory and self esteem Nervous System NS Central Nervous System CNS brain and spinal cord Peripheral Nervous System PNS everything else including the cranial nerves In humans twelve pairs of cranial nerves CSF brain and spinal cord cushioned by cerebrospinal fluid for protection PNS Autonomic Regulates the body s internal environment via smooth muscles and Somatic NS innervates voluntary i e skeletal and sinvoluntary i e smooth muscles glands o Sympathetic division activates mobilizes the body s resources for emergencies e g inhibits digestion in times of threats o Parasympathetic division deactivates performs routine house keeping e g promotes digestion Neurons Two types of communication electrical within the neuron itself impulse travels along axon and chemical between neuro transmitters in the synapse Glial Cells provide structure remove waste remove foreign substances male myelin Soma cell body contains organelles mitochondria golgi apparatus lysosomes Dendrites area that receives information the receptive surface Axon transmits information the connecting cable Synapse the space btwn neurons the only connection small fluid filled space into which the chemicals are released by the neurons Terminal button enlargement at the end of the axon presynaptic membrane contains synaptic vesicles Postsynaptic membrane the dedritic region of the next neuron contains receptors Exact number of neuerons is unknown estimates 20 to 100 billion we assume that each neuron has 10 thousand synapses A nueural impulse affects the next neuron at the synapse The neurotransmitter may excite or inhibit the next neuron Whether the next neuron generates and impulse depends on the algebraic summation of all the excitatory or inhibitory effects A neuron generates and impulse based on an all or none law either fires or it doesn t the impulse is always the same Electrical communication electrical properties of a neuron arise from the distribution of ions on both sides of the cell membrane driving forces of these ions 1 Osmotic Gradient high concentration to low concentration 2 Electrical Gradient like charges repel and opposites attract Membrane permeability the eas with witch a substance can pass throught the cell membrane determined by ion channels which open and close Resting potential the inside of the cell membrane is negative w respect to the outside due to more sodium on outside of cell membrane Action potential the neuron fires a neural impulse stimulation of the neuron causes the channels to open inside of the membrane becomes more positive
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