Intro to Psychology CLEP – Flashcards

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Wilhelm Wundt
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german physiologist who founded psychology as a formal science; opened first psychology research laboratory in 1879
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Structuralists
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Believed that consciousness was made up of basic elements that were combined to produce diffferent perceptions
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Introspection
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a method of self-observation in which participants report their thoughts and feelings
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Edward Titchener
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Student of Wilhelm Wundt; founder of Structuralist school of psychology; set up first psychology lab in U.S.
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Functionalists
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studied the function of consciousness
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William James
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1842-1910; Field: functionalism; Contributions: studied how humans use perception to function in our environment; Studies: Pragmatism, The Meaning of Truth
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Biological Approach
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A psychological perspective that examines behavior and mental processes through a focus on the body, especially the brain and nervous system.
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Psychodynamic Approach
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Approach that states that behavior reflects unconscious internal conflict between inherited instincts and society's behavioral rules. **Sigmund Freud
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Behaviorist Approach
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A theoretical perspective that focuses only on objective, observable reactions. Behaviorism emphasizes the environmental stimuli that determines behavior.
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Classical Conditioning
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a learning procedure in which associations are made between a natural stimulus and a learned, neutral stimulus
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Operant Conditioning
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a type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher
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Cognitive Approach
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According to this approach, behavior is a result of information processing, such as perception, memory, thought, judgment, and decision making
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Humanistic Approach
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approach to psychology that sees humans as basically good and striving to reach their ideal self
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Self-actualization
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self fulfillment the realization of all ones potential and desire to become creative in the full sense if the world.
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Experiments
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a means for researchers to assess cause-and-effect relationships between at least two variables.
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Independent Variable
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The experimental factor, "cause", that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied.
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Experimental Group
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Exposed to presumed "cause"
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Control Group
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the group that does not receive the experimental treatment.
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Dependent Variable
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the "effect" of an experiment; will usually involve measuring how subjects behave.
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Random Subject assignment
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Is done to ensure that the average behavior of the two groups would be the same PRIOR to manipulation.
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Placebo Effect
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experimental results caused by expectations alone; any effect on behavior caused by the administration of an inert substance or condition, which the recipient assumes is an active agent
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Blind Study
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participants are not told whether they're in the control or experiment group
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Double-blind study
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Research method in which both the subjects and the experimenter are unaware to the anticipated results.
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Correlational Studies
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research method that examines relationships between variables in order to analyze trends in data, test predictions, etc. (they do NOT discern cause and effect relationships)
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Positive Relationship
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A relationship in which the values of one variable increase (or decrease) as the values of another variable increase (or decrease)
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Negative Relationship
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when an increase in one variable is associated with a decrease in the other variable
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Correlation Coefficient
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A numerical index of the degree of relationship between two variables, a positive number near 1.0 indicates two variables are positively related; a negative number indicates a negative relationship; zero indicates no relationship
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Surveys
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Questionnaires and interviews that ask people directly about their experiences, attitudes, or opinions.
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Case Study
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In-depth study analysis of only one person
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Naturalistic Observation
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observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation
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inter-rater reliability
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the degree of agreement between co-observers watching the same set of events
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Behavioral Neuroscience
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an approach to psychology that links psychological processes to activities in the nervous system and other bodily processes
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Nervous System
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The body system of nervous tissues--organized into the brain,spinal courd, and nerves--that send and receive messages and integreate the body's activities.
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Sense Receptors
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Detect heat, light, or touch and then pass information about those stimuli on to the brain, thereby triggering thoughts about those things and/or causing behavioral responses to occur
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Neurons
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individual cells that are the smallest units of the nervous system; the long, thin cells of nerve tissue along which messages travel to and from the brain
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Sensory (or afferent) Neurons
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neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the central nervous system
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Motor (or efferent) Neurons
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neurons that carry outgoing information from the central nervous system to the muscles and glands
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Interneurons (or association Neurons)
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Central nervous system neurons that internally communicate and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs
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Cell Body
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contains the nucleus, where most of the molecules the neuron needs to survive and function is manufactured
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Dendrites
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short fibers that branch out from the cell body and pick up incoming messages
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Axons
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a part of a neuron that carries impulses away from the cell body
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Myelin Sheath
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a layer of fatty tissue encasing a neuron's axon that speeds transmission
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Action Potential
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a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon
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Ions
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positively and negatively charged atoms
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Resting potential
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when a neuron is in polarization; more negative ions are inside the neuron cell membrane with a positive ions on the outside, causing a small electrical charge; release of this charge generates a neuron's impulse (signal/message)
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Refractory Period
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resting time; occurs in both neuron firing and in human sexual response
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Synapse
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the junction between two neurons (axon-to-dendrite) or between a neuron and a muscle
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Synaptic Gap
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The tiny gap at the junction between the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron
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Neurotransmitters
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chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps between neurons
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Vesicles
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small membrane sacs that specialize in moving products into, out of, and within a cell
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Axon Terminal
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the endpoint of a neuron where neurotransmitters are stored
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Serotonin
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a neurotransmitter that affects hunger,sleep,arousal,and mood. appears in lower than normal levels in depressed persons
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Agonists
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drugs which mimic or increase the activity of neurotransmitters
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Antagonists
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drugs that block the function of a neurotransmitter
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Central Nervous System
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consists of the brain and spinal cord
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Peripheral Nervous System
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the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body
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Somatic Nervous System
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the division of the peripheral nervous system that connects the central nervous system with sensory receptors, muscles, and the skin
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Autonomic Nervous System
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The part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart). Its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms.
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Sympathetic Nervous System
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the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations
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Parasympathetic Nervous System
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the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy
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Neural Networks
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interconnected neural cells. With experience, networks can learn, as feedback strengthens or inhibits connections that produce certain results. Computer simulations of neural networks show analogous learning.
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Brainstem
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The oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; the brainstem is responsible for automatic survival functions
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Thalamus
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the brain's sensory switchboard, located on top of the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla
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Reticular Formation
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a nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal
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Cerebellum
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the "little brain" attached to the rear of the brainstem; it helps coordinate voluntary movement and balance
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Limbic System
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a doughnut-shaped system of neural structures at the border of the brainstem and cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions such as fear and aggression and drives such as those for food and sex. Includes the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus.
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Hippocamus
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a brain structure in the limbic system that is involved in forming and indexing memories
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Amygdala
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limbic system component associated with emotion, particularly fear and anger
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Hypothalamus
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limbic system component that regulates hunger, body temperature and other functions
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Pituitary Gland
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gland in the base of the skull that secretes nine hormones that directly regulate many body functions and control the actions of several other endocrine glands
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Hormones
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chemical messengers, mostly those manufactured by the endocrine glands, that are produced in one tissue and affect another
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Endoctrine System
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system in the body that sends messages to the bodily organs via hormones
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Cerebral Cortex
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the intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebral hemispheres; the body's ultimate control and information-processing center
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Frontal Lobes
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the portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead; involved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans and judgments
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Broca's area
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controls language expression-an aread of the frontal, usually in the left hemisphere, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech
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Wernicke's area
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controls language reception-a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression;usually in the left temporal lobe
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Parietal Lobes
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the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; receives sensory input for touch and body position
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Temporal Lobes
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the portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; includes the auditory areas, each of which receives auditory information primarily from the opposite ear
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Occipital Lobes
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the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; includes the visual areas, which receive visual information from the opposite visual field
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Psychophysics
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the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them
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Signal Detection Theory
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a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus ("signal") amid background stimulation ("noise"). Assumes there is no single absolute threshold and detection depends partly on a person's experience, expectations, motivation, and level of fatigue. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 199)
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Absolute Threshold
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the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time
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Difference Threshold
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also called the jnd; smallest distinction between two stimuli that can consistently be detected
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Weber's Law
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the principle that for any change in a stimulus to be detected, a constant proportion of that stimulus must be added or subtracted
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Sensory Adaptation
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Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation.
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Feature Detectors
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nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement
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Gestalt
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an organized whole. Gestalt psychologists emphasized our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes
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Binocular Cues
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depth cues, such as retinal disparity and convergence, that depend on the use of two eyes
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Retinal Disparity
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a binocular cue for perceiving depth; by comparing images from the two eyeballs, the brain computes distance - the greater the disparity (difference) between the two images, the close the object
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Convergence
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a binocular cue for perceiving depth; the extent to which the eyes converge inward when looking at an object
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Monocular Cues
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depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone
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Linear Perspective
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a monocular cue for perceiving depth; the more parallel lines converge, the greater their perceived distance
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Motion Parallax
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cue to depth that involves images of objects at different distances moving across the retina at different rates
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Interposition
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monocular visual cue in which two objects are in the same line of vision and one patially conceals the other, indicating that the first object concealed is further away
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Texture Gradients
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The gradual diminishing of detail that occurs in surfaces as they recede into the distance, compared with objects in the visual field that are close and seen in fine detail
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Sensory Restriction
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includes loss of a sense such as sight, resulting in increase perception in other senses
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Critical Period
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an optimal period shortly after birth when an organism's exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development
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Perceptual Sets
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Demonstrates our readiness to percieve in a particular manner; Based on experience and expectation
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Bottom-up
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refers to visual processing in which experience does not influence perception
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Top-down
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refers to processing in which our experience and expectations influence our perceptions
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Circadian Rhythm
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the biological clock; regular bodily rhythms that occur on a 24-hour cycle
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Brain Waves
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patterns of neural activity detected by EEG
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Alpha Waves
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the relatively slow brain waves of a relaxed, awake state
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Stage 1
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Disappearance of alpha waves, appearance of theta waves
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Hypnogogic
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the state of intermediate consciousness preceding sleep (during first 5 minutes of stage 1)
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Stage 2
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Lasts about 20 minutes and involves deeper relaxation and occasional bursts of rhythmic brainwaves called sleep spindles and K-complexes
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Stage 3
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Delta Waves appear. Heart rate, breathing, blood pressure and temperature continue to lower. Very difficult to wake.
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Stage 4
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stage of sleep in which Delta waves predominate
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Slow-wave sleep
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consists of sleep stages 3 and 4, during which high amplitude, low frequency delta waves become prominent in EEG recordings
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REM
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describes sleep in which vivid dreams typically occur; this type of sleep increases as the night progresses while stage 4 sleep decreases
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Paradoxical Sleep
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REM when muscles are deeply relaxed but there are high levels of brain activity
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Manifest content
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according to Freud, the remembered story line of a dream
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Latent Content
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according to Freud, the underlying meaning of a dream
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Activation-synthesis theory
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the theory that dreams result from the brain's attempt to make sense of random neural signals that fire during sleep
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Psychoactive Drugs
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Chemicals that affect the nervous system and result in altered consciousness
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Barbiturates
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drugs that depress the activity of the central nervous system, reducing anxiety but impairing memory and judgment
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Behaviorist
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a psychologist who analyzes how organisms learn or modify their behavior based on their response to events in the environment
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Cognitive factors
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what we think which influences how we behave and our environment
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non-associative Learning
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occurs when the repeated presentation of a single stimulus produces an enduring change in behavior.
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Habituation
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decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation
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Sensitization
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the process of becoming highly sensitive to specific events or situations (especially emotional events or situations)
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Associative Learning
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learning that certain events occur together. The events may be two stimuli (as in classical conditioning) or a response and its consequences (as in operant conditioning).
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Instrumental conditioning
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A form of learning in which the participant receives a reinforcer only after performing the desired response, and thereby learns a relationship between the response and the reinforcer. Also called operant conditioning.
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Reinforcement
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a stimulus that strengthens or weakens the behavior that produced it
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Positive reinforcement
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increasing behaviors by presenting positive stimuli, such as food. A positive reinforcer is any stimulus that, when presented after a response, strengthens the response.
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Negative Reinforcement
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increasing the strength of a given response by removing or preventing a painful stimulus when the response occurs
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