Psychology Key Definitions

Key Definitions in Psychology

• Wundt opened one of the first psychological laboratories in Leipzig, Germany.
• Individual differences refer to the variations among people on physical or psychological dimensions.
• Metacognition refers to our ability to adequately assess our own knowledge.
• Hindsight bias is the inclination to believe, after an event has occurred, that one would have predicted it.
• Facts are objective statements that are accurate; values are personal statements.
• The spacing effect is a fundamental principle where learning is greater when studying is spread out over time, rather than done in a single session.
• The scientific method involves the set of assumptions, rules, and procedures scientists use to conduct research.
• Health psychology explores how biology, behavior, and the social situation influence health and illness.
• The behavioral perspective focuses on observable behavior; for instance, rewarding students with stickers for completing homework.
• Psychology is defined as the scientific study of mind and behavior.

Brain Function and Imaging

• The motor cortex is the area responsible for voluntary muscle movement.
• Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) uses a magnetic field to create images of brain activity in each brain area.
• The temporal lobe is important for hearing, smell, and facial recognition.
• Reflexes are involuntary and nearly instantaneous movements in response to a stimulus.

Neurotransmission and the Placebo Effect

• Reuptake is the process where neurotransmitters in the synapse are carried by transporters back into transmitting axon terminals; serotonin reabsorption is an example.
• The placebo effect is when expectations of receiving treatment lead to feeling better or experiencing side effects, even if the treatment is inactive.

Neuron Structure and Communication

• Dendrites are parts of a neuron that collect information from other cells and send it to the cell body.
• Neurotransmitters are chemical messengers that allow neurons to communicate with each other.

Perception and Sensation

• The Gestalt principle of proximity involves grouping nearby figures together, like the three faces in the Girl Scout logo.
• Electromagnetic energy consists of pulses of energy waves carrying information from place to place.
• The McGurk effect is an error in perception when mismatched audio and visual speech lead to misperceived sounds.
• Retinal image disparity refers to the difference in what each retina sees due to the eyes being a few inches apart.
• The retina is the layer of tissue at the back of the eye containing photoreceptor cells.
• A decibel is the unit of relative loudness.
• Weber’s law refers to the idea that the just noticeable difference of a stimulus is a constant proportion of the original intensity of the stimulus.
• The cochlea is a snail-shaped, liquid-filled tube in the inner ear that contains cilia.

Psychoactive Substances and Sleep

• Stimulants are psychoactive drugs blocking the reuptake of dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin in the synapses of the central nervous system; examples include caffeine, nicotine, cocaine, and amphetamines.
• Circadian rhythms are the biological cycles guiding the daily sleep and wakefulness cycle in many animals.
• Sleep terrors involve episodes of abrupt awakening from NREM sleep accompanied by disorientation, panic, and anxiety.
• Meditation involves techniques to focus on something specific to ignore external distractions and achieve relaxation and well-being.
• Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder with pauses in breathing lasting at least 10 seconds during sleep.
• Withdrawals are negative experiences accompanying reducing or stopping drug use.
• The latent content of a dream is its hidden psychological meaning.

Development and Learning

• Dependence is the need to use a drug or other substance regularly.
• A zygote is the product of an egg and sperm merging together during conception.
• Cisgender describes a person whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth while Transgender describes a person whose gender identity differs from the sex they were assigned at birth.
• A teratogen is any harmful material bypassing the filter in the placenta and passing from the mother to the fetus.
• Alzheimer’s disease is a form of neurocognitive disorder leading to loss of emotions, cognitions, and physical functioning that is ultimately fatal.
• A longitudinal research design studies individuals over an extended period, like studying children's reading skills from age 5 to 15.
• Habituation is decreased responsiveness toward a stimulus after repeated presentations.

Parenting Styles and Research Designs

• Authoritarian parenting is bossy and strict (no flexibility), while authoritative parenting is firm but kind (rules with understanding).
• A cross-sectional research design makes comparisons between samples of different people at different ages, for instance, surveying different age groups to assess smartphone use and sleep quality.
• A phobia is a specific fear of an object, situation, or activity.

Reinforcement Schedules and Classical Conditioning

• A variable-ratio schedule provides reinforcers after a specific but average number of responses, like gambling.
• A conditioned stimulus is a neutral stimulus that, after repeated pairing with an unconditioned stimulus, evokes a similar involuntary response, exemplified by Pavlov's dogs salivating at the sight of a black square paired with a sound.
• Second-order conditioning occurs when a new neutral stimulus predicts an established conditioned stimulus, causing an involuntary response.
• Latent learning is learning that is not reinforced and not demonstrated until there is motivation to do so.

Social Dilemmas and Reinforcers

• A social dilemma is a situation where behavior that creates the most rewards for the individual may lead to negative consequences for the group, like the Prisoner’s Dilemma.
• Primary reinforcers are naturally preferred or enjoyed stimuli, like food, water, and relief from pain.
• Edward L. Thorndike (1898) studied operant conditioning using cats in puzzle boxes, leading to the law of effect where behaviors with pleasant outcomes are repeated, and those with unpleasant outcomes fade.
• A conditioned stimulus (CS) starts as a neutral stimulus but, after being paired with an unconditioned stimulus (US), triggers a learned response.