exam 3 vocab (10-13)

Question 1

natural selection

Answer 1

because more members of a species are born than environmental resources can support, nature selects those with characteristics most conducive to survival under the circumstances, which allows them to reproduce

Question 2

pragmatism

Answer 2

the belief that usefulness is the best criterion for determining the validity of an idea; the ultimate criterion for judging an idea should be the idea’s usefulness or “cash-value”

Question 3

subvocal speech

Answer 3

Watson claimed that thinking was internal and consisted of subvocal speech
major behaviorist belief because he thought the mouth could be seen moving as someone spoke; tried disproving the existence of the mind

Question 4

law of exercise

Answer 4

two parts, we learn by doing and forget by not doing (“use it or lose it”)
law of use: the more often an association (neural connection) is practiced, the stronger it becomes; essentially a reinstatement of Aristotle’s law of frequency
law of disuse: the longer an association remains unused, the weaker it becomes

Question 5

law of effect

Answer 5

reinforcement strengthens behavior whereas punishment weakens it
if an association is followed by a satisfying state of affairs, it will be strengthened, and if it is followed by an annoying state of affairs, it will be weakened

Question 6

psychic secretion

Answer 6

dogs salivate before the appearance of food; measurement of salivary response

Question 7

extinction

Answer 7

the elimination or reduction of a conditioned response that results when a conditioned stimulus is presented but is not followed by the unconditioned stimulus

Question 8

positivism

Answer 8

the belief that science should study only those objects or events that can experienced directly; all speculation about abstract entities should be avoided

Question 9

logical positivism

Answer 9

the philosophy of science according to which theoretical concepts are admissible if they are tied to the observable world through operational definitions

Question 10

operationalism

Answer 10

the position that the meaning of a scientific concept depends upon the procedures used to establish it, so that each concept can be defined by a single observable and measurable operation
ex. defining an emotional disorder as a particular score in a diagnostic test

Question 11

purposive behavior

Answer 11

behavior that is directed toward some goal and that terminates when the goal is attained

Question 12

latent learning

Answer 12

according to Tolman, learning that has occurred but is it translated into behavior

Question 13

cognitive maps

Answer 13

according to Tolman, the mental representation of the environment

Question 14

physical monism

Answer 14

rejects the existence of mental events (consciousness) altogether; also called materialism

Question 15

intervening variables

Answer 15

variables that intervene between environmental events and behavior.
following logical positivism, Tolman painstakingly tied all his intervening variables to observable behavior

Question 16

operant behavior

Answer 16

behavior that is emitted by an organism rather than elicited by a known stimulus

Question 17

classical conditioning

Answer 17

involves associating an involuntary response and a stimulus; UCS, CS, UCR, CR
reflex: UCS (food) -> UCR (saliva)
association: UCS (food) -> CS (bell/novel stimulation)
CS (bell) -> CR (saliva)

Question 18

operant conditioning

Answer 18

associating a voluntary behavior and a consequence

Question 19

clockwork universe

Answer 19

the belief that god created everything that exists now
the concept of the universe as a system that behaves in a manner as patterned and dependable as a mechanical clock; both conceptualized by a divine artificer and made by a divine craftsman

Question 20

ideo-motor theory of behavior

Answer 20

ideas of actions are automatically expressed as behavior unless we consciously intervene
inhibition: think of whether we should do a certain action
attention and control: what holds attention determines action; direct thought processes to different behaviors

Question 21

misattribution of arousal theory

Answer 21

emotion = physio-arousal + cognitive label
ex. thinking fear is love

Question 22

the empirical self (me)

Answer 22

observable; object
material self: our physical body, how we choose to present ourself
social self: how we’re perceived/known by others
spiritual self: our core self, personality, core beliefs and values

Question 23

the self as knower (I)

Answer 23

the part that is aware of the empirical (observable) self; subject

Question 24

stream of consciousness

Answer 24

consciousness is like a stream; the things in our mind are not consciousness
personal: unique to each individual
selective: we can focus attention
functional: states of consciousness are adaptive

Question 25

eugenics

Answer 25

humans should take intentional control over our genetic future; selective breeding, primarily through sterilization

Question 26

polygenic origins of race

Answer 26

the idea that at some point in our past, there were separate races with different evolutionary history

Question 27

unconditioned stimulus

Answer 27

a stimulus that elicits an unconditioned response

Question 28

conditioned stimulus

Answer 28

a previously biological neutral stimulus that, through experience, comes to elicit a certain response

Question 29

unconditioned response

Answer 29

an innate response elicited by the unconditioned stimulus that is naturally associated with it

Question 30

conditioned response

Answer 30

response elicited by a conditioned stimulus