prologue and ch1 – Flashcards
Unlock all answers in this set
Unlock answersquestion
Psychological science is the study of
answer
the mind the brain and behavior
question
The difference between using critical thinking explanations and everyday explanations for psychological phenomena is that
answer
critical thinking relies on evidence and scientific support for making conclusions
question
The nature in the nature/nurture debate refers to
answer
biological factors affecting the brain, the mind, and behavior
question
Which of the following psychologists is most closely associated with the concept of the unconscious?
answer
Sigmund Freud
question
The unconscious mind influences human behavior, according to
answer
psychoanalysis
question
This area of psychology studies how the mind processes, stores, and retrieves information
answer
cognitive
question
The area of science that focuses on studying the working brain is called
answer
neuroscience
question
Which of the following is an example of a question scientists might ask regarding evolutionary adaptations in humans
answer
Why do people like sweets and foods high in fat? Why do young children develop a fear of heights, as shown in visual cliff studies? How has walking upright increased human survival?
question
This area of psychology studies how shared ideas and behaviors are passed from one generation to the next:
answer
cultural
question
Which of the following subfields of psychology is matched with its description?
answer
neuroscience—examines the relationship between the nervous system and behavior experimental—examines the processes of sensing, perceiving, learning, and thinking clinical—deals with the study, diagnosis, and treatment of psychological disorders
question
A(n) _____ provides an explanation of how an observable phenomenon works.
answer
theory
question
A(n) _____ is a specific, testable prediction about the result that, if the theory is correct, will support the theory.
answer
hypothesis
question
Scientists conduct _____, which involves the careful and systematic collection of data.
answer
research
question
The precise way a researcher measures and defines a variable is known as the
answer
operational definition
question
In which of the following types of descriptive studies does a researcher remain separated from the situation and makes no attempt to change it?
answer
naturalistic observation
question
Relative to cross-sectional research studies, longitudinal studies are:
answer
more expensive and take more time
question
Which of the following is likely to be associated with observer bias?
answer
experimenter expenctanc
question
Researchers are likely to choose a correlational design when
answer
it is impossible to control the variables being studied
question
In correlational studies, it is always possible that an unmeasured variable is responsible for the relation of interest. This complication is known as:
answer
the third variable problem
question
When a researcher manipulates a variable to see what effect the manipulation has on a study participant's behavior, the research design involves
answer
an experiment
question
The variable that a researcher manipulates in an experiment is called the:
answer
independent variable
question
The variable that a researcher measures in an experiment to see if it has changed after a treatment is called the
answer
dependent variable
question
Which of the following types of studies allows the researcher to establish causality between an independent variable and a dependent variable?
answer
experiment
question
Wilhelm randomly assigns participants to two groups and compares the group that receives a treatment with the group that receives no treatment. The group that gets the treatment is the
answer
experimental group
question
Paloma randomly assigns participants to two groups and compares the group that receives a treatment with the group that receives no treatment. The group that gets no treatment is the
answer
control group
question
If a researcher wants to be able to generalize about a population using data pulled from a sample, it is best to use
answer
a random sample
question
One criticism that is made of many experimental studies in psychology is that
answer
experimental studies are conducted in artificial, laboratory settings
question
When people are aware of being observed, they might change their behaviors. This phenomenon illustrates
answer
reactivity
question
An extensive study of a single person or a few people is characteristic of
answer
case studies
question
The statistic that involves the basic arithmetic average of a set of scores is known as the
answer
mean
