Questions and Answers
What is the absolute threshold?
What does signal detection theory predict?
Overlapping error bars indicate a significant difference between two values.
False
What is the dependency ratio?
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What role does the cerebellum serve?
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What does sick role theory describe?
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What is social constructionism?
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What is confirmation bias?
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What function does the central executive in working memory serve?
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What is the purpose of the visuospatial sketchpad?
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What does the phonological loop do?
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What is the episodic buffer responsible for?
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Define working memory.
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What is social facilitation?
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What is social impairment?
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What is somatic symptom disorder?
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What is illness anxiety disorder?
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What does the factitious disorder involve?
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What is the monoamine hypothesis related to?
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What does fluid intelligence refer to?
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Define crystallized intelligence.
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What is selective attention?
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What does divided attention involve?
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What is retroactive interference?
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Define proactive interference.
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What is context-dependent memory?
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What is avoidance learning?
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What is escape learning?
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What are monocular depth cues?
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Define stereopsis.
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What is sensory adaptation?
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What is the serial position effect?
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What are subjective contours?
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The vestibular senses are concerned with ______.
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What do otolith organs detect?
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What do semicircular canals detect?
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What is cultural evolution?
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What does the correlation coefficient indicate?
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What is the affective component of attitude?
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What is the function of interneurons?
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What are adrenal cortex hormones?
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What are adrenal medulla hormones?
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What are sensory ganglia?
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What is long-term potentiation?
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What is a shadowing task?
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What functions does the left hemisphere of the brain serve?
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What is a negative correlation?
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Study Notes
Key Concepts in Psychology
-
Absolute Threshold
- Minimum stimulation required to detect a stimulus 50% of the time.
-
Signal Detection Theory
- Predicts how and when we detect faint stimuli amid background noise.
- Detection depends on personal experience, expectations, motivation, and alertness.
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Overlapping Error Bars
- Indicates no significant difference between two values in statistical data.
-
Dependency Ratio
- Ratio of people too young (under 15) or too old (over 65) to work compared to those in productive years.
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Cerebellum
- Part of the hindbrain controlling fine motor skills, posture, coordination, and procedural memory.
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Sick Role Theory
- Describes behaviors adopted by sick individuals to minimize illness's impact on others.
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Social Constructionism
- Theory that reality is created through social interactions, leading to shared meanings of concepts like money or behaviors.
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Confirmation Bias
- Tendency to seek information that confirms preconceptions while ignoring contradictory evidence.
Components of Working Memory
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Central Executive
- Directs attention and processing in working memory; controls other components.
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Visuospatial Sketchpad
- Manages visual and spatial information; facilitates tasks like reading maps.
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Phonological Loop
- Processes verbal and auditory information; used in activities like reading aloud.
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Episodic Buffer
- Connects working memory with long-term memory; aids in understanding timelines of events.
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Working Memory
- Active processing of auditory and visual-spatial information; differs from short-term memory by emphasizing manipulation of data.
Social Psychology Concepts
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Social Facilitation
- Performance improves in the presence of others, especially if the task is easy and well-practiced.
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Social Impairment
- Performance worsens on difficult tasks when others are present.
Psychological Disorders
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Somatic Symptom Disorder
- Symptoms manifest in the body without a physical cause.
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Illness Anxiety Disorder
- Misinterpretation of normal sensations as signs of disease.
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Factitious Disorder
- Individuals simulate illness despite being healthy.
Neurotransmitter and Intelligence
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Monoamine Hypothesis
- Depression linked to a deficiency of monoamines (serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine).
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Fluid Intelligence
- Ability to identify abstract relationships; usually decreases with age.
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Crystallized Intelligence
- Accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age.
Memory Concepts
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Selective Attention
- Focused awareness on a specific stimulus.
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Divided Attention
- Simultaneously concentrating on multiple activities.
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Retroactive Interference
- New learning disrupts recall of old information.
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Proactive Interference
- Old learning disrupts recall of new information.
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Context Dependent Memory
- Information learned in a specific context is better recalled in that same context.
Learning Theories
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Avoidance Learning
- Learning to avoid negative stimuli through specific responses.
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Escape Learning
- Acquiring a response that terminates or reduces aversive conditions.
Visual and Sensory Perception
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Stereopsis
- Integration of different images from each eye to perceive depth.
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Sensory Adaptation
- Neurons decrease activity in response to constant stimuli over time.
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Subjective Contours
- Perception of non-existent contours; brain fills gaps in visual information.
Physiological Components
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Adrenal Cortex Hormones
- Includes aldosterone, cortisol, androgens.
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Adrenal Medulla Hormones
- Consists of catecholamines, such as epinephrine and norepinephrine.
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Neurulation Steps
- Development process in forming the nervous system.
Miscellaneous Concepts
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Correlation Coefficient
- Indicates the direction of relationships between variables; does not imply causation.
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Interneurons
- Function as connectors between sensory and motor neurons within the central nervous system.
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Test your understanding of key concepts in psychology with these MCAT flashcards. This set focuses on important terms like 'absolute threshold' and 'signal detection theory' essential for grasping psychological principles.