psychology

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes

science

systematic method to observe human behavior and draw conclusions to describe, predict, and explain behavior

behavior

everything we do that can be directly observed

mental processes

the thoughts, feelings, and motives that each of us experience privately but that cannot be observed directly; thinking, feeling, memory

positive psychology movement

push for a stronger emphasis on research involving the experiences that people value

structuralism

Wundt's approach of focusing on identifying the structures of the human mind

introspection

"looking inside"; method used in the study of mental structures

functionalism

James' idea that was concerned with the functions and purposes of the mind and behavior in individuals' adaptation to the environment

pragmatism

philosophy that states: to find out the meaning of an idea, you must determine its consequences

stream of consciousness

natural flow of thought, that kept the mind flexible and fluid; constant change and adaptation

natural selection

evolutionary process that favors organisms' traits or characteristics that are best adapted to reproduce and survive

biological approach

focus on the body, especially the brain and nervous system

neuroscience

the scientific study of the structure, function, development, genetics, and biochemistry of the nervous system

behavior approach

emphasizes the scientific study of observable behavior and responses and their environmental determinants; focuses on interactions with the environment that can be seen and measured

psychodynamic approach

emphasizes unconscious thought, the conflict between biological instincts and society's demands, and early family experiences

humanistic approach

emphasizes a person's positive qualities, the capacity for positive growth, and the freedom to choose any destiny

cognitive approach

emphasizes the mental processes involved in knowing: how we direct our attention, how we perceive, how we remember, and how we think and solve problems

evolutionary approach

uses evolutionary ideas such as adaptation, reproduction, and "survival of the fittest" as the basis for explaining specific human behaviors

sociocultural approach

examines the ways in which the social and cultural environments influence behavior

physiological psychology

physical process that underlie mental processes, such as vision and memory

developmental psychology

concerned with how people become who they are, from conception to death

sensation and perception psychology

focus  on the physical systems and psychological processes that allow us to experience the world

cognitive psychology

examines attention, consciousness, information processing, and memory; involves skills like problem solving, decison making, expertise, and intelligence

learning

 the complex process by which behavior changes to adapt to changing circumstances

motivational  psychology

how individuals persist to attain a difficult goal and how rewards affect the experience of motivation

emotional psychology

physiological and brain processes that underlie emotional experience, the role of emotional expression in helath, and the possibility that emotions are universal

personality psychology

focuses on the relatively enduring characteristics of individuals; traits, goals, motives, genetics, personality development, and well-being

social psychology

social interactions, relationships, social perceptions, social cognition, and attitudes.

industrial/ organizational psychology

clinical and counseling psychology

diagnose and treat people with psychological problems

health psychology

multidemensional approach to health that emphasizes psychological factors, lifestyle, and the nature of the healthcare delivery system

community psychology

concerned with providing accessible care to people with psychological problems; adaptation to resources and  specific situations

school and educational psychology

concerned with children's learning and adjustment in school

environmental psychology

interaction between people and the physical environment

psychology of women

studies psychological, social and cultural influences on women's development and behavior

forensic psychology

applies psychological concepts to the legal system

sport psychology

improve sport performance and enjoying sport participation

cross-cultural psychology

study of culture's role in understanding behavior, thought, and emotion

skeptical

question facts that other people take for granted

objective

see things as they really are, not just as we would like them to be

critical thinking

thinking reflectively, thinking productively, and evaluating the evidence

theory

broad ideas or set of closely related ideas that attempts to explain certain observations

variable

anything that can change

operational definition

an objective description of how a research variable is going to be measured and observed

hypothesis

an idea that is arrived at logically from a theory, that can be tested

population

the entire group about which the investigator wants to draw conclusions 

sample

the subset of the population chosen by the investigator for study

random sample

sample that gives every member of the population an equal chance of being selected

naturalistic observation

is observing behavior in real-world settings.

standardized test

requires people to answer a series of written or oral questions or sometimes both

case study

an in-depth look at a single individual; also known as a case history

correlation research

a research strategy that identifies the relationships between two or more variables in order to describe how these variables change together

third variable problem

the situation where an extraneous variable that has not been measured accounts for the relationship between two others

longitudinal design

a special kind of systematic ovservation that involves obtaining measures of the variable of interest in multiple waves over time

experiment

a carefully regulated procedure in which one or more variables believed to influence the bahavior being studied are manipulated while all other variables are held constant

random assignment

the assignment of participants to research groups by chance

independent variable

the manipulated experimental factor in an experiment

dependent variable

a factor that can change in an experiment in response to changes in the independent variable

experimental group

a group in the research study whose experience is manipulated

control group

a comparison group that is as much like the experimental group as psosbile and is treated in every way like the experimental group except for the manipulated factor

validity

the soundness of the conclusions we draw from an experiment

ecological validity

the extent to which an experimental design is representative of the real-world issues it is supposed to address

internal validity

the extent to which changes in the dependent variable are due to the manipulation of the independent variable

experimenter bias

the influence of the experiment's own expectations on the outcome of the research

research participant bias

the influence of research participant's expectations on their behavior within an experiment

placebo

placebo effect

the situation where participants' expectations, rather than the experimental treatment, produce an experimental outcome

double-blind experiment

descriptive statistics

mathematical procedures that are used to describe and summarize sets of data in a meaningful way

mean

a statistical measure of central tendency that is calculated by adding all the scores in a set and then dividing by the number of scores

median

mode

a statistical measure of central tendency; the score that occurs most often in a set of data

range

a statistical measure of variability that is the distance between the highest and lowest scores

standard deviation

a statistical measure of variability that involves how much the scores vary, on the average, around the mean of the sample

inferential statistics

mathematical methods that are used to indicate whether data sufficiently support or confirm a research hypotheseis

learning

a relatively permanent change in behavior that occurs through experience

behaviorism

associative learning

learning in which a connection, or an association, is made between two events

observational learning

learning that occurs when a person observes and imitates another's behavior; also called imitation or modeling

classical conditioning

learning by which a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a meaningful stimulus and acquires the capacity to elicit a similar response

unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

a stimulus that produces a response without prior learning

unconditioned response (UCR)

unlearned response that is automatically elicited by an unconditioned stimulus

conditioned stimulus (CS)

a previously neutral stimulus that eventually elicits the conditioned response after being associated with the unconditioned stimulus

conditioned response (CR)

the learned response to the conditioned stimulus that occurs after the pairing of a conditioned stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus

acquisition (classical conditioning)

generalization (classical conditioning)

discrimination (classical conditioning)

the process of learning to respond to certain stimuli and not to others

extinction (classical condtioning)

the weakening of the conditioned response in the absence of the unconditioned stimulus

spontaneous recovery

the process in classical conditioning by which a conditioned response can recur after a time delay without further conditioning

counterconditioning

a classical conditioning procedure for weakening a conditioned response by associating the fear-provoking stimulus with a new response that is incompatible with the fear

operant conditioning

also called instrumental conditioning; a form of associative learning in which the consequences of a behavior change the probability of the behavior's occurrence

law of effect

Thorndike's principle that behaviors follewed by positive outcomes are strengthened, whereas behaviors followed by negative outcomes are weakened

shaping

rewarding approximations of a desired behavior

reinforcement

the process by which a stimulus or an event strengthens or increases the probablity of a behavior or an event that it follows

positive reinforcement

following a behavior with a rewarding stimulus to increase the frequency of the behavior

negative reinforcement

following a behavior with the removal of an aversive (unpleasant) stimulus to increase the frequency of the behavior

primary reinforcement

the use of reinforcers that are innately satisfying

secondary reinforcement

the use of reinforcers that are learned or conditioned

schedules of reinforcement

timetables that determine when a behavior will be reinforced

generalization (operant condtioning)

the tendency to give the same response to similar stimuli

discrimination (operant conditioning)

the tendency to respond to stimuli that signal that a behavior will or will not be reinforced

extinction (operant conditioning)

the situation where, because a previously reinforced behavior is no longer reinforced, there is a decreased tendency to perform the behavior

punishment

a consequence that decreases the likelihood a behavior will occur

positive punishment

a behavior decreases when it is followed by an unpleasant stimulus

negative punishment

a behavior decreases when a positive stimulus is removed from it

latent learning (implicit learning)

unreinforced learning that is not immediatley reflected in behavior

insight learning

a form of problem solving in which the organism develops a sudden insight into or understanding of the problem's solution

instictive drift

the tendency of animals to revert to instinctive behavior that interferes with learning

preparedness

the species-specific biological predisposition to learn in certain ways but not others

learned helplessness

the phenomenon of learning through experience that outcomes are not controllable

applied behavior analysis (behavior modification)

the application of operant conditioning principles to change human behavior

memory

the retention of information over time through the processes of encoding, storage, and retrieval

encoding

the process by which information gets into memory storage

levels of processing

the idea that encoding occurs on a continuum from shallow to deep, with deeper processing producing better memory

elaboratoin

extensiveness of processing at any given level of memory

storage

retention of information over time and the representation of information in memory

Atkinson-Shiffrin theory

the view that memory storage involves three separate systems: sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory.

sensory memory

information from the world that is held in its original form only for an instant, not much longer than the brief time it is exposed to the visual, auditory, and other senses

short-term memory

a limited-capacity memory system in which information is retained for only as long as 30 seconds unless strategies are used to retain it longer

working memory

long-term memory

a relatively permanent type of memory that stores huge amounts of information for a long time

explicit memory (declarative memory)

the conscious recollection of information, such as specific facts or events and, at least in humans, information that can be verbally communicated

episodic memory

the retention of information about the where, when, and what of life's happenings

semantic memory

a person's knowledge about the world

implicit memory (nondeclarative memory)

memory in which behavior is affected by prior experience without that experience being consciously recollected

procedural memory

memory for skills

priming

a type of implicit memory process involving the activation of information that people already have in sotrage to help them remember new information better and faster

schema

a preexisting mental concept or framework that helps people to organize and interpret information

script

a schema for an event

connectionism (parallel distributed processing [PDP])

the theory that memory is stored throughout the brain in connections among neurons, several of which may work together to process a single memory

retrieval

the memory process of taking information out of storage

serial position effect

the tendency for items at the beginning and at the end of a list to be recalled more readily than those in the middle

autobiographical memory

a special form of episodic memory consisting of a person's recollections of his or her life experiences

flashbulb memory

the memory of emotionally significant events that people often recall more accurately and vividly than everyday events

motivated forgetting

an act of forgetting something because it is so painful or anxiety-laden that remembering it is intolerable

interference theory

theory stating that people forget not because memories are lost from storage but because other information gets in the way of what they want to remember

proactive interference

situation in which material that was learned earlier disrupts the recall of material learned later

retroactive interference

situation in which material learned later disrupts the retrieval of information learned earlier

decay theory

theory stating that when something new is learned, a neurochemical "memory trace" is formed, but over time this trace tends to disintegrate

tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon (TOT state)

the "effortful retrieval" that occurs when people are confident that they know something but cannot pull it out of memory

retrospective memory

remembering the past

prospective memory

remembering information about doing something in the future, including memory for intentions

amnesia

the loss of memory

anterograde amnesia

a memory disorder that affects the retention of new information and events

retrograde amnesia

a memory disorder that involves memory loss for a segment of the past but not for new events

mnemonics

specific visual and/or verbal memory aids

artificial intelligence (AI)

the science of creating machines capable of performing activities that require intelligence when they are done by people

cognition

the way in which information is processed and manipulated in remembering, thinking, and knowing

thinking

manipulating information mentally, as when we form concepts, solve problems, make decisions, and reflect in a creative or critical manner

concepts

mental categories that are used to group objects, events, and characteristics

classical model

model stating that all instances of a concept share defining properties

protoype model

problem solving

an attempt to find an appropriate way of attaining a goal when the goal is not readily available

subgoaling

setting intermediate goals or defining intermediate problems in order to be in a better position to reach the final goal or solution

algorithms

strategies that guarantee a solution to a problem

heuristics

shortcut strategies or guidelines that suggest, but do not guarantee, a solution to a problem

fixation

using a prior problem-solving strategy and failing to look at a problem from a fresh, new perspective

functional fixedness

a type of fixation in which individuals fail to solve a problem because they are fixated on a thing's usual functions

reasoning

the mental activity of transforming information to reach conclusions

inductive reasoning

reasoning from the specific to the general or from the bottom-up

deductive reasoning

reasoning from the general to the specific

decision making

evaluating alternatives and making choices among them

confirmation bias

the tendency to search for and use information that supports, rather than refutes, our ideas

hindsight bias

the tendency to report falsely, after the facts, that we accurately predicted an outcome

availability heuristic

a prediction about the probability of an event based on the ease of recalling or imagining similar events

mindfulness

being alert and mentally present for one's everyday activities

open-mindedness

being receptive to the possibility of other ways of looking at things

creativity

the ability to think about something in novel and ususual ways and come up with unconventional solutions to problems

divergent thinking

thinking that produces many answers to the same question; characteristic of creativity

convergent thinking

thinking that produces one correct answer; characteristic of the type of thinking required on tradional intelligence tests

expertise

the quality of having a particular talent- that "something special"- for the things that one does in a particular domain

intelligence

problem-solving skills and the ability to adapt to and learn from life's everyday experiences

reliability

the extent to which a test yields a consistent, reproducible measure of performance

standardization

developing uniform procedures for administering and scoring a test, as well as creating norms for the test

mental age (MA)

an individual's level of mental development relative to that of others

intelligence quotient (IQ)

an individuals' mental age divided by chronological age multiplied by 100

normal distribution

a symmetrical, bell-shaped curve with a majority of the scores falling in the middle of the possible range and few scores appearing toward the extremes of the range

culture-fair tests

intelligence test that are intended to be culturally unbiased

heritability

the proportion of the IQ differences in a population that is attributed to genetic difference

gifted

descriptive of indivduals who have an IQ of 130 or higer and/or superior talent in a particular area

mental retardation

triarchic theory of intelligence

Sternberg's theory that there are three main types of intelligence : analytical, creative, and practical

language

a form of communication, whether spoken, written, or signed, that is based on a system of symbols

infinite generativity

the ability to produce an infinite number of sentences using a relatively limited set of rules

phonology

a language's sound system

morphology

a language's rules for word formation

syntax

a language's rules for the way words are combined to form acceptable phrases and sentences

semantics

the meaning of words and sentences in a particular language

whole-language approach

an approach to learning to read that stresses that reading instruction should parallel a child's natural language learning; so reading materials should be whole and meaningful

cognitive appraisal

individual's interpretation of the events in their lives as harmful, threatening, or challenging and their determination of whether they have the resources to cope effectively with the events

coping

managing taxing circumstances, expending effort to solve life's problems, and seeking to master or reduce stress

problem-focused coping

the cognitive strategy of squarely facing one's troubles and trying to solve them

emotion-focused coping

responding to the emotional aspects of stress rather than focusing on the problem causing the stress

approach coping

directly confronting a problem with active attempts to solve it

avoidant coping

coping with a problem by trying to ignore it