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Questions and Answers
Questions and Answers
Which of the following best describes an operational definition in research?
Which of the following best describes an operational definition in research?
- A general idea about the topic of study.
- A clear, precise, and quantifiable definition of variables allowing for replication. (correct)
- A set of ethical guidelines for conducting research.
- A descriptive summary of qualitative data.
Correlation proves causation between two variables.
Correlation proves causation between two variables.
False (B)
Which of the following is a disadvantage of experiments?
Which of the following is a disadvantage of experiments?
- Experiments lack real-world validity.
- Experiments can be unethical or too artificial. (correct)
- Experiments are always unethical.
- Experiments cannot establish cause and effect.
In an experiment, the variable that is purposefully altered by the researcher is known as the __________ variable.
In an experiment, the variable that is purposefully altered by the researcher is known as the __________ variable.
Match the following statistical measures with their descriptions:
Match the following statistical measures with their descriptions:
What does statistical significance (p < 0.05) imply about the results of a study?
What does statistical significance (p < 0.05) imply about the results of a study?
In research, confidentiality requires that names of participants always be published with the study results.
In research, confidentiality requires that names of participants always be published with the study results.
What is the primary distinction between a random sample and random assignment in the context of research?
What is the primary distinction between a random sample and random assignment in the context of research?
Errors due to participants' tendency to give socially acceptable answers in surveys are known as ___________ bias.
Errors due to participants' tendency to give socially acceptable answers in surveys are known as ___________ bias.
Which part of the neuron is responsible for receiving incoming signals from other neurons?
Which part of the neuron is responsible for receiving incoming signals from other neurons?
The all-or-nothing principle states that the intensity of a stimulus affects the speed of an action potential.
The all-or-nothing principle states that the intensity of a stimulus affects the speed of an action potential.
Which neurotransmitter is primarily associated with reward and fine movement?
Which neurotransmitter is primarily associated with reward and fine movement?
Describe the role of the myelin sheath in neural transmission.
Describe the role of the myelin sheath in neural transmission.
__________ are drugs that mimic the effects of a neurotransmitter.
__________ are drugs that mimic the effects of a neurotransmitter.
Match the following brain structures with their functions:
Match the following brain structures with their functions:
Damage to Broca's area in the brain typically results in:
Damage to Broca's area in the brain typically results in:
Sensory adaptation refers to the blending of different senses.
Sensory adaptation refers to the blending of different senses.
According to the Gestalt psychology principles, which principle describes the tendency to group things together that appear near each other?
According to the Gestalt psychology principles, which principle describes the tendency to group things together that appear near each other?
What is the difference between an algorithm and a heuristic when solving problems?
What is the difference between an algorithm and a heuristic when solving problems?
______ amnesia involves the inability to remember events from one's past, whereas _______ amnesia involves the inability to form new memories after the onset of amnesia.
______ amnesia involves the inability to remember events from one's past, whereas _______ amnesia involves the inability to form new memories after the onset of amnesia.
Questions and Answers
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Flashcards
Flashcards
Hypothesis
Hypothesis
A tentative explanation that must be falsifiable.
Operational Definition
Operational Definition
Clear, precise, quantifiable definitions of variables for replicable, reliable data collection.
Qualitative Data vs. Quantitative Data
Qualitative Data vs. Quantitative Data
Describes data, while numerical data is ideal and necessary for statistics.
Population
Population
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Sample
Sample
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Correlation
Correlation
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Positive Correlation
Positive Correlation
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Negative Correlation
Negative Correlation
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Experiment
Experiment
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Independent Variable (IV)
Independent Variable (IV)
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Experimental Group
Experimental Group
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Dependent Variable (DV)
Dependent Variable (DV)
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Placebo Effect
Placebo Effect
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Random Assignment
Random Assignment
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Naturalistic Observation
Naturalistic Observation
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Case Study
Case Study
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Meta-Analysis
Meta-Analysis
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Mean
Mean
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Median
Median
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Confidentiality
Confidentiality
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Study Notes
Study Notes
Unit Zero – Research Design: Basic Vocabulary
- Hypothesis: A testable explanation that can be either supported or rejected.
- Operational Definition: A clear, precise, and quantifiable definition of variables, allowing for replication and reliable data collection.
- Qualitative Data: Descriptive data like eye color.
- Quantitative Data: Numerical data ideal for statistical analysis.
- Population: The entire group to which the research could apply.
- Sample: The specific people chosen for the study.
Research Designs
- Correlation: Identifies relationships between two variables but does NOT equal causation.
- Directionality Problem: Unclear direction of the correlation.
- Third Variable Problem: A different variable may be responsible for the relationship.
- Positive Correlation: Variables increase or decrease together.
- Negative Correlation: As one variable increases, the other decreases.
- Correlation Strength: Determined by the absolute value, not the sign. Stronger relationships have tighter clusters on a graph.
- Experiments: Manipulate variables to determine cause/effect relationships.
- Independent Variable: Purposely altered by the researcher.
- Experimental Group: Receives the treatment, can have multiple groups.
- Control Group: Receives a placebo or baseline treatment, can only have one group.
- Dependent Variable: Measured variable dependent on the independent variable.
- Independent Variable: Purposely altered by the researcher.
Vocab Unique to Experiments
- Placebo Effect: An effect caused by the placebo itself, addressed using blinded studies.
- Double-Blind Study: Neither participant nor experimenter knows the condition assignments.
- Single-Blind Study: Only the participant is blinded.
- Confound: An error/flaw accidentally introduced into the study.
- Random Assignment: Assigning participants randomly to control or experimental groups boosts equal representation among groups.
Other Study Types
- Naturalistic Observation: Observe subjects in their natural settings for real-world validity, but cause and effect cannot be determined.
- Case Study: Studies one person in great detail.
- Meta-Analysis: Combines multiple studies to increase sample size and examine effect sizes.
Statistics
- Descriptive Stats: Used to show the shape of the data.
- Measures of Central Tendency:
- Mean: Average, used in normal distribution.
- Median: Middle number, used in skewed distribution.
- Mode: Most frequent number. Bimodal distributions show two modes.
- Skews: Created by outliers.
- Negative Skew: Mean is to the left, mode to the right.
- Positive Skew: Mean is to the right.
- Measure of Variation:
- Range: Distance between smallest and largest numbers.
- Standard Deviation: Average spread of scores from the mean.
- Measures of Central Tendency:
Inferential Statistics
- Inferential Statistics: Establishes significance.
- Statistical Significance: Results not due to chance. "p < .05" indicates statistical significance; lower values are better.
- Effect Size: Data has practical significance or magnitude, data impact is bigger and better.
- Random Stats to Know:
- Regression Towards the Mean: As sample size increases, results get closer to the true average.
- Percentile Rank: Percentage of scores below a given score.
Ethical Guidelines (IRB Approval Needed for People)
- Confidentiality: Names are kept secret.
- Informed Consent: Participants must agree to be part of the study.
- Informed Assent: Required for minors and their parents.
- Debriefing: Must be told the study's true purpose after deception.
- Deception: Only if warranted.
- No harm: Mental/Physical.
Additional Vocabulary
- Surveys can be turned into correlations but are subject to self-report bias.
- Social Desirability: People lie to look good.
- Wording Effects: Question phrasing impacts answers.
- Random Sample (Selection): Participants are chosen so everyone can participate, increases generalizability.
- Representative Sample: Mimics the general population.
- Convenience Sample: Participants selected on availability, less generalizable.
- Sampling Bias: Sample is not representative due to convenience sampling.
- Cultural Norms: Behaviors influence research results.
- Experimenter Bias / Participant Bias: Experimenter/participant expectations influence the outcome.
- Cognitive Bias: Bias in thinking/judgment.
- Confirmation Bias: Seeking information supporting preexisting beliefs.
- Hindsight Bias: "I knew it all along."
- Overconfidence: Overestimating knowledge/abilities.
- Hawthorne Effect: People change behavior when observed.
- Research Needs: Peer review and adequate sample sizes.
Biological Basis Pillar
- NT = neurotransmitter, AP = action potential, NS = nervous system.
- Heredity vs Environment
- Evolutionary psychology studies how natural selection influences behavior.
- Heredity (nature): how genes influence behavior.
- Environment (nurture): how situations influence behavior.
Nervous System
- Central NS: Brain and spinal cord.
- Peripheral NS: Relays to Central NS.
- Somatic NS: Voluntary movement, sensory and motor neurons.
- Autonomic NS: Involuntary organs.
- Sympathetic NS: Fight/flight.
- Parasympathetic NS: Rest/digest.
Neuron and Neural Firing
- Neuron: Basic cell of the NS.
- Dendrites: Receive incoming NTs.
- Axon: AP travels down this.
- Myelin Sheath: Speeds up AP down the axon, protects axon.
- Synapse: Gap between neurons.
- Sensory Neurons: Receive sense signals, send to brain.
- Motor Neurons: Send signals to move.
- Interneurons: Cells in spinal cord/brain responsible for reflex arc.
- Reflex Arc: Skips the brain, goes through the spinal cord.
- Glia: Support cells, clean up around neurons.
- Neurons Fire w/an Action Potential: Ions move and send electrical charge down the axon.
- Resting Potential: Neuron maintains a -70mv charge.
- Depolarization: Charge briefly switches, triggers the AP.
- Threshold of Depolarization: Stimulus strength must reach this point to start the AP.
- All or Nothing Principle: Stimulus must trigger the AP past its threshold.
- Refractory Period: Time when neuron must rest/reset before it can send another AP.
Neurotransmitters (NT)
- Chemicals released in synaptic gap, received by neurons.
- Classified as excitatory (increase APs) or inhibitory (decrease APs).
- GABA: Major inhibitory NT.
- Glutamate: Major excitatory NT.
- Dopamine: Reward & fine movement, Assoc. w/ addiction.
- Serotonin: Moods and emotion -in amygdala, too little assoc. w/ depression.
- Acetylcholine (ACh): Memory and movement -in hippocampus, assoc. w/ Alzheimer's
- Norepinephrine: Sympathetic too little assoc. w/ depression.
- Endorphins Decrease pain.
- Hormones: If not in the nervous system, it's a hormone.
- Oxytocin: Love, bonding, childbirth, lactation.
- Adrenaline: Fight/flight.
- Leptin: Makes you full.
- Ghrelin: Makes you hungry.
- Melatonin: Sleep.
- Agonist: Drug that mimics a NT.
- Antagonist: Drug that blocks a NT.
- Reuptake: Unused NTs are taken back up - antidepressants cause reuptake inhibition.
Psychoactive Drugs
- Depressants: Decrease NS activity (alcohol).
- Stimulants: Increase NS activity (caffeine & cocaine).
- Hallucinogens: Hallucinations, altered perceptions (Marijuana)
- Opioids: Relieve pain (heroin)
- Tolerance: Needing more of a drug to achieve the same effects.
- Addiction: Must have it to avoid withdrawal symptoms.
- Withdrawal: Symptoms associated with sudden stoppage.
The Brain
- Cerebellum: Movement, balance, coordination, procedural memory.
- Brainstem / Medulla: Vital organs.
- Reticular Activating System: Alertness, arousal, sleep, eye movement.
- Cerebral Cortex: Higher order thought processes, includes limbic system, lobes, corpus callosum.
- Limbic System
- Amygdala: Emotions, fear.
- Hippocampus: Episodic and semantic memory.
- Hypothalamus: Reward/pleasure center, eating behaviors, homeostasis.
- Thalamus: Relay center for all but smell.
- Pituitary Gland: Talks w/ endocrine system and hypothalamus.
- Frontal Lobe: Decision making, planning, judgment, movement, personality, language, executive function includes the:
- Prefrontal Cortex: Front of frontal lobe - executive function.
- Motor Cortex: Back of frontal lobe - controls skeletal movement.
- Parietal Lobe: Sensations and touch. Somatosensory Cortex maps touch receptors.
- Temporal Lobe: Hearing and face recognition, language.
- Occipital Lobe: Vision.
Sleep
- Sleep: Consciousness awareness of cognitive processes (asleep or awake?)
- Circadian Rhythms: 24ish hour biological clock.
- Beta Waves: Awake.
- Alpha Waves: High amplitude, drowsy.
- NREM Stages:-
- NREM 1: Light sleep, hypnagogic sensations.
- NREM 2: Bursts of sleep spindles.
- NREM 3: Delta waves, Deep sleep.
- Rapid Eye Movement (REM): dreaming, cognitive processing
- REM Rebound: Extra REM due to lack of REM sleep
- Dream Theories:
- Activation Synthesis: Brain produces bursts of energy, dreams start random then develop meaning.
- Consolidation dream theory: Brain is combining and processing memories for storage.
- Why is Sleep Necessary
- Consolidation: Storage of memories.
- Restoration: Helps regenerate the immune system and restore energy.
- Sleep Disorders
- Insomnia: Inability to fall/stay asleep.
- Somnambulism (sleep walking): Happens during stage 3
- Narcolepsy: Fall into REM.
- Sleep Apnea: Stop breathing while asleep.
- REM behavior disorder: malfunctions of mechanism that paralyze you during REM.
Sensation
- Sensation - Receive stimulus energy from environment.
- Transduction - Convert that info into APs.
- Perception - Brain interprets the information.
- Absolute Threshold: Detection of signal 50% of time.
- Just Noticeable Difference (JND): Can tell the difference b/w a stronger and weaker stimulus.
- Weber's Law: Two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum proportion.
- Synesthesia: "Disorder" where your senses blend (see sounds, etc).
- Sensory Adaptation: Diminished sensitivity as a result of constant stimulation.
Visual System
- Lens: Focuses light on retina.
- Retina: Contains photoreceptors (rods/cones/ganglion cells).
- Fovea: Area of best vision.
- Rods: Black/white, dark adaptation.
- Cones: Color, bright light.
- Ganglion Cells: Create optic nerve.
- Blind Spot: Point on retina where the optic nerve leaves the eye.
Theories of Color Vision
- Trichromatic - Three cones for receiving color.
- Opponent Process - Complementary colors are processed in ganglion cells.
Memory
- Encoding: Getting information into memory.
- Automatic Encoding: Requires no effort.
- Effortful Encoding: Requires work.
- Levels (Depth) of Processing: The more emphasis on MEANING the better.
- Elaborative Rehearsal Strategies to enhance encoding like imagery, dual encoding, chunking, mnemonics.
- Context Dependent Memory: You best remember the information where you learn.
- State Dependent Memory: The physical state you were in when learning affects memory.
- Mood Congruent Memory: You easier remember happy when happy, sad when sad
- Forgetting Curve Recall decreases rapidly at first, then reaches a plateau. Distributed practice is better then massed practice review
Storage
- Multi store model of Memory: Sensory Memory, Short Term memory, Long Term Memory
- Sensory Memory: Stores all incoming stimuli that you receive.
- Iconic Memory: Visual memory, ~0.3 seconds.
- Echoic Memory: Auditory memory, ~2-3 seconds.
- Short Term Memory: Information passes from sensory memory to STM. 30 secs, can remember 7 ± 2 items
- Long Term memory - lasts a life time
- requires effort explicit and and implicit
- Working memory Model-Splits STM w visual spatial and a phonological loop
Memory Organization
- Hierarchies: Memory is stored according to clusters of related info.
- Semantic Networks: Webs of semi-related info.
Memory Retrieval
- Serial Position Effect: Tendency to remember the beginning (primacy effect) and end (recency effect) of a list best.
Intelligence
- Single form (g factor) underlies all mental abilities.
- Use for education, diagnostics
- Standarization needs to be valid and relaiable given using normal curve
- Nature VS Nurture and influences due to test bias, stereotyping impact IQ scores
Development
- Cross section and Longtitudinal types of testing
- Prenantal Development affected by teratogens
- Physical development includes reflexes
Piaget's Cognitive Development
- focuses on exploring and accommodation
- sensorimotor Stage- Object permanent gains
- Pre Opertional- Pretend w symbolism not conservation
Socia/ Emotional Skills
- Easy difficult babies
- Attachment Monkey and Strange situation paradigms
- Parenting and peer relationships depend on the time
Erickson Theory
- Trust VS Mistrust and stages through love and family relationships
Stress/ General Adaption Syndrome
- Problems and emotion focus coping models
- Post Traumatic models after traumatic stress
Behavior
- Classical condionting, Law of effective response
- Operant Conditioning with Punishment and Reinforcements
Psychopath
- Socially we link and determine with personalities
- Social comparisons and influences affect individuals more with relationships
Disorders
- Biological - Changes to Nts,
- Behavioral - learning to be associated emotions
- Sociolcultural, Environmental Depressivness affecting lifestyle
Therapy
- Ethics of therapy, - Don't be bias
- Meds / Drugs - Focus and understand and support
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