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Psychology
Scientific study of behavior and mental processes
Behavioral neuroscience
How biological body processes influence behavior
Experimental psychology
Studies the processes of sensing, perceiving, learning, and thinking about the world
Developmental psychology
How people grow and change through development
Social psychology
How people's thoughts, feelings, and actions are affected by others
Health psychology
Relationship between psychological factors and physical ailments/disease
Counseling psychology
Focuses on educational, social, and career adjustment problems
Clinical psychology
Study, diagnosis, and treatment of psychological disorders
Where do psychologists work?
Schools, institutions, private practice, businesses, government organizations Social services
PhD vs. PsyD
PhD - emphasis is on researching PsyD - emphasis is on applying research
Significance of 1879
Beginning of psychology Wundt opened first psychology research lab
Structuralism
Focuses on uncovering the fundamental mental components of consciousness, thinking, and other kinds of mental states and activities Wundt
Wilhelm Wundt
Developed first laboratory in 1879 Founder of psychology Structuralism Instrospection
Introspection
Procedure used to study the structure of the mind in which subjects are asked to describe in detail what they are experiencing when they are exposed to a stimulus
Functionalism
Early approach to psych that concentrated on what the mind does and the role of behavior in allowing people to adapt to their environments What the mind does and how behavior functions Prominent in 1900s James, Dewey, Ebbinghaus, Wertheimer
Neuroscience/biological perspectives
Views behavior from the perspective of biological functioning
Psychodynamic perspectives
Behavior is motivated by inner, unconscious forces over which a person has little control
Behavioral perspectives
Focuses on observable behavior
Cognitive perspectives
Examines how people think about the world
Humanistic perspectives
People can control their behavior and that they naturally try to reach their full potential
Sociocultural perspectives
Stresses the importance of social norms and culture
Nature vs nurture
How much of behavior is due to heredity vs environment
Conscious vs unconscious
How much of behavior is aware vs unaware
Observable vs inner processes
How much of behavior can be seen and documented vs unseen thinking processes
Determinism vs free will
How much of behavior is based on factors beyond person's control vs choices made by the person
Individual differences vs universal principles
How much of behavior is based on unique and special qualities of a person vs culture and society in which we live
Scientific method
Approach through which psychologists systematically acquire knowledge and understanding about behavior and other phenomena of interest 1. Identify question 2. Formulate hypothesis 3. Carry out research 4. Communicate findings
Theory
Broad explanation concerning phenomena of interest
Hypothesis
A prediction, stemming from a theory, stated in a way that allows it to be tested
Operational definition
Translation of a hypothesis into specific, testable procedures that can be measured and observed
Archival research
Existing data are examined to test a hypothesis
Case study
In-depth, intensive investigation of an individual or small group of people
Naturalistic observation (ethnography)
Research in which an investigator simply observes some naturally occurring behavior and does not make a change in the situation
Survey research
People chosen to represent a larger population are asked a series of questions about their behavior, thoughts, or attitudes
Correlational research
Relationship between two sets of variables is examined to determine if they are associated
Experimental research
Investigation of the relationship between two or more variables by deliberately producing a change in one variable in a situation and observing the effects of that change on other aspects of the situation
Experimental manipulation
Change that an experimenter deliberately produces in a situation
Treatment
Manipulation implemented by the experimenter
Experimental group
Receives treatment
Control group
Receives no treatment
Independent variable
Manipulated
Dependent variable
Measured and changes based on the independent variable
Random selection and random assignment
Participants are assigned to different experimental groups on the basis of chance and chance alone
Significant outcome and replication
Meaningful results that make it possible for researchers to feel confident that they have confirmed their hypothesis Experiment is able to be repeated
Ethical research
Protection from physical and psychological harm Right to privacy Participation is voluntary Informed consent
Experimental bias
Factors that distort how the independent variable affects the dependent variable in an experiment
Double-blind procedure
Neither the staff nor the participants know whether participants received treatment or placebo
Placebo
False treatment
Blind procedure
Participants do not know whether they are receiving treatment or placebo
Valid research
What was the purpose? What type of research method was used? What claims are made based on the results?
Human participant issues
Participants tend to be white and middle-class College students: Younger, better educated, less well-formed attitudes, influenced by peers/authority
Non-human participant issues
Controversial Shorter lifespan
Neurons
Nerve cells, basic elements of the nervous system As many as 1 trillion
Dendrite
Cluster of fibers at one end of a neuron that receives messages
Cell body
Contains nucleous, RER, and dendrites
Axon
Carries messages destined for other neurons
Myelin sheath
Protective coat of fat and protein around the axon
Terminal buttons
Small bulges at the end of axons that send messages
All-or-none law
Neurons either fire or they don't
Resting state
State in which there is a negative electrical charge of about -70 millivolts within a neuron Stimulus causes depolarization Must go over threshold to fire
Action potential
An electric nerve impulse that travels through a neuron's axon when it is set off by a "trigger" changing the neuron's charge from negative to positive Anything above the threshold
Mirror neurons
Specialized neurons that fire not only when a person enacts a particular behavior but also when a person simply observes another individual carrying out the same behavior
Synapse
Space between two neurons where the axon of a sending neuron communicates with the dendrites of a receiving neuron
Neurotransmitter
Chemicals that carry messages across the synapse to a receiver neuron
Excitatory message
Chemical message that makes it more likely that a receiving neuron will fire
Inhibitory message
Chemical message that prevents or decreases the likelihood that a receiving neuron will fire
Reuptake
Reabsorption of neurotransmitters by a terminal button Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
Acetylcholine
Involved in motor control, memory, and cognition Alzheimer's Muscle paralysis Released by nicotine
Glutamate
Jittery, alert Opposite of GABA
Gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA)
Opposite of glutamate Inhibitory Eating, aggression, sleeping Released when drinking Anxiety disorders Huntington's
Dopamine (DA)
Motor control, attention, reward, emotions Parkinson's (too little) Schizo (too much) ADHD Reward causes dopamine to be released
Serotonin
Regulation of mood, wake/sleep cycles, attention Depression SSRIs
Endorphins
Endogenous morphine
Role of neurotransmitters in behavior and illness
Maintain vital brain & body functions
Central nervous system
Brain and spinal cord
Sensory neurons (afferent)
Carries message to the CNS
Motor neurons (efferent)
Carries messages from CNS to muscles and glands
Interneurons
Mediate connections between neurons Bridges
Peripheral nervous system
Somatic division - voluntary Autonomic division - involuntary (smooth muscles and glands)
Somatic division
Voluntary movement
Autonomic division
Involuntary movement
Sympathetic division
Involuntary Fight or flight
Parasympathetic division
Involuntary Calms body after emergency
Biofeedback
Controls blood pressure, heart and respiration, skin temperature, sweating
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
Sleep research Brain waves involved in sleep
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
Records both function and structure of the brain by taking images in rapid succession
Positron emission tomography (PET)
Records location of radioactive substances injected into bloodstream
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
Strong magnetic field directed at a very small region of the brain Studies function of brain
Hindbrain
Medulla Pons Cerebellum
Medulla
Control breathing and heartbeat
Pons
Transmitter of motor information
Cerebellum
Controls balance
Reticular formation
Passes through midbrain into forebrain Activates other parts of the brain to produce bodily arousal Responsible for responding to stimuli
Thalamus
Relays information from senses
Hypothalamus
Controls hunger, thirst, sexual activity, temperature control
Limbic system
Amygdala and hippocampus
Amygdala
Emotion and aggression
Hippocampus
Forming memories and learning
Cerebral cortex
Gives ability to think, evaluate, and make complex judgments
Frontal lobes
Planning Memory search Motor processing Reasoning
Parietal lobes
Attention Spatial location Somatosensory processing
Temporal lobes
Language Sound processing
Temporal lobes
Visual processing
Motor area
Responsible for body's voluntary movement Frontal lobe
Somatosensory area
Corresponds to body sensations
Broca's aphasia
Problems speaking
Wernicke's aphasia
Problems understanding speech
Neuroplasticity
Brain continually reorganizes itself Ability of neurons to change in structure and function
Neurogenesis
Creation of new neurons throughout life
Left hemisphere specialization
Language processing
Right hemisphere specialization
Spatial relationships Recognition of patterns and drawings
Split-brain operation
Cut corpus callosum so sides can't communicate

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