Exam 1 Flashcards
(264 cards)
1
Q
What does Psychology require?
A
critical thinking, skepticism, objectivity, curiosity (e.g., understanding the emotional impact of social media)
2
Q
What are the steps of the scientific method?
A
Observe, hypothesize (derived from theory), test, conclusions, evaluate
3
Q
What is the goal of descriptive research?
A
To describe a phenomenon
4
Q
What was John Gottman’s observation in his study?
A
He watched couples interact in his “Love Lab”
5
Q
What do surveys and interviews ask?
A
They ask people about their feelings, opinions, or attitudes
6
Q
What are surveys and interviews used for?
A
They collect data from hundreds or even thousands of people
7
Q
What is a limitation of surveys and interviews?
A
People do not always have insight into themselves
8
Q
What do case studies do?
A
Study a single individual in great depth
9
Q
What can case studies accomplish?
A
Can gather a great amount of information about a person’s experiences, his/her feelings, family, etc.
10
Q
What are the limitations of a case study?
A
May not be generalizable to other individuals
11
Q
What does descriptive research not do?
A
Answer questions about why things are the way they are
12
Q
What can descriptive research do?
A
Identify important information about people’s behaviors and attitudes
13
Q
What is the goal of correlational research?
A
Identify relationships
14
Q
What is the strength of a correlational relatonship?
A
magnitude
15
Q
What are the correlational coefficients from very strong to none?
A
1.00, 0.75, 0.50, 0.25, 0
16
Q
What does correlation not equal?
A
Causation
17
Q
What is the goal of Experimental research?
A
determine causation
18
Q
What is an independent variable?
A
What the experiment is testing (eg. asprin/placebo)
19
Q
What is a dependent variable?
A
The outcome of the test (eg. rate of heart attacks)
20
Q
What are confounding variables?
A
Things other than the independent variable that affect the dependent variable
21
Q
What are questions asked for internal validity?
A
Are dependent variable changes the result of independent variable manipulation? Confounding variables? Can we confidently draw cause-and-effect conclusions?
22
Q
What are questions asked for external validity?
A
Representative of real world issues? Do results generalize to the real world?
23
Q
What are two types of research settings?
A
“artificial” world (Lab/controlled setting) and “real” world (natural setting)
24
Q
What are issues related to experimental research?
A
internal validity, external validity, research settings, experimenter bias, demand characteristics, research participant bias, placebo effect
25
What is experimenter bias?
expectations influence the outcome of the research
26
What are demand characteristics ?
some aspect of the research study communicates to the subjects how experimenter wants them to behave
27
What is research participant bias?
participants' behavior is influenced by how they think the researcher expects them to behave
28
What is placebo effect?
participants' expectations rather than the experimental treatment produce an outcome
29
What is the solution to bias and expectations?
double-blind experiment
30
What is a population?
Entire group about whom conclusion is to be drawn
31
What is a representative sample?
characteristics similar to population
32
What is a random sample?
each individual in the population has an equal chance of being selected
33
What is a sample?
portion of population actually observed
34
What do descriptive statistic do?
Describe/summarize
35
What do inferential statistics do?
draw conclusions
36
What are measures of central tendencies?
mean, median, mode
37
How do you get mean?
total/pop
38
How do you get median?
middle
39
How do you get mode?
most frequent
40
What are measures of dispersion?
range, standard deviation
41
How do you get range?
highest -> lowest
42
How do you get standard deviation?
square root of average squared deviation
43
What do APA guidelines cover?
confidentiality, debriefing, deception
44
What does the reticular formation do?
helps control arousal/awakeness
45
What does the medulla do?
controls heartbeat and breathing
46
What does the pons do?
coordinating movement and sends signals to the brain during dreams
47
What is the organization of the brain?
brainstem, thalamus, cerebellum, limbic system, and cerebral cortex
48
What does the Thalamus do?
relays messages between lower brain centers and the cerebral cortex; sensory switchboard coming in and going out except for smell
49
Where is the cerebellum located?
"little brain" attached to the rear of the brainstem
50
What does the cerebellum do?
coordinates voluntary movement, balance; enables some types of nonverbal memory (incl. motor skills) and learning; active at self-inflict with somatosensory cortex- if it is not self inflict then only SSO
51
What is a part of the brainstem?
Pons, medulla
52
What does the hippocampus do?
memory related and kind of repeated to emotion
53
What are the parts of the limbic system?
hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus
54
What does the amygdala do?
(2 almond shaped neutral clusters) linked with distress, fear, aggression, and express/percieve other emotions; size is positively correlated of social network; when stimulated (in certain places) distress can happen when removed being (less complex) is docile
55
What does the hypothalamus do?
directs eating, drinking, body temp, sexual behavior; controls the pituitary gland, which influences hormone levels; is linked to emotion; reward centers-linked with addiction esp with reward deficiency syndrome
56
Where is the cerebral cortex?
Outer 1/5" - 1/8 surface layer of the brain
57
Where is the hypothalamus?
Below the thalamus
58
How many nerve cells does the cerebral cortex?
21-25 billion, each connect up to 10,000 other nerouns
59
How many synaptic connections are in the cerebral cortex?
300 trillion (physical memory, but unlimited learning)
60
What do the wrinkles in the brain do?
Increase area
61
How are men's brains different from women's?
they have bigger ones (negative) while the other has more wrinkles (positive)
62
What does the cerebral cortex do?
sensory, motor functions/speech, reading, reasoning, math skills
63
What does the frontal lobe do?
(motor cortex) directs body's motor functions
64
What does the parietal lobe do?
(somatosensory cortex) receives sensory input from body
65
What does the occipital lobe do?
(visual cortex) receives, process visual information
66
What does the temporal lobe do?
(temporal lobe) receives, processes auditory info
67
What are association areas?
more intelligent animals have increased "uncommitted" areas of the cortex. These re higher level processing (reasoning, language, music, math, spatial)
68
What was the year Phineas gage got injured?
1848 (25 years old)
69
Where did Phineas Gage get injured?
the left frontal lobe and its connections to limbic system
70
What was Phineas Gage like before the injury?
responsible, likeable, reliable
71
What was Phineas Gage like after the injury?
Unreliable, impulsive, profane
72
How long were behavior problems present?
not known
73
How long did Phineas Gage live after the injury?
11.5 years
74
What did Phineas Gage do after the injury?
worked as a stage coach driver in Chile
75
What is aphasia?
impairment of language use?
76
What is Broca's Aphasia?
person struggles to form words; caused by damage to a specific area in the frontal lobe (non fluent)
77
What is Wernicke's Aphasia?
person can speak only and is unable to comprehend language; caused by damage to a specific area of the temporal lobe (fluent)
78
What is global aphasia?
Both of Broca's and Wernicke's
79
What are the parts of a neuron?
Cell body (nucleus), axon, axon hillock, dendrites, myelin sheath, and terminal branches of axon
80
What is the cell body of the neuron?
life support center
81
What does the nucleus of the neuron do?
contains DNA and only one exists per neuron
82
What does the axon hillock of the neuron do?
sends signal when given enough input
83
What do the dendrite branches of the neuron do?
receive messages from other cells
84
What does the axon of the neuron do?
passes messages away from the cell body other neurons, muscles, or glands
85
What does a neural impulse do?
(action potential) electrical signal traveling down the axon
86
What does the myelin sheath of the neuron do?
covers the axon of some neurons and helps speed neural impulses (insulation; made of fat; added after birth)
87
What do the terminal branches of axon of a neuron do?
form junctions with other cells
88
What is action potential?
electrochemical process; message is sent down the axon; generated by the movement of positively charged atoms in and out of axon; like a line of dominoes falling; "all-or-none" not a matter of degree
89
What is a synapse?
junction between neurons (axon terminal-dendrite); tiny gap betw. neurons is called the synaptic gap or synaptic cleft (only 20nm, or 20 * 10^-6 m, across)
90
What is a neurotransmitter?
chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gap between neurons
91
What does acetylcholine do?
enables muscle action, learning, and memory
92
What is an example of acetylcholine malfunction?
With alzheimer's disease neurons that produce this deteriorate
93
What does dopamine do?
influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion
94
What is an example of dopamine malfunction?
too much of this can lead to schizophrenia. too little can lead to tremors and decreased mobility of Parkinson's disease
95
What does serotonin do?
affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal
96
What is an example of a serotonin malfunction?
undersupply linked to depression. Prozac and some other antidepressant drugs raise this
97
What does norepinephrine do?
helps control alertness and arousal
98
What is an example of a norepinephrine malfunction?
undersupply can depress mood
99
What does GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) do?
a major inhibitory neurotransmitter
100
What is an example of GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) malfunction?
undersupply linked to seizures, tremors, and insomnia
101
What does glutamate do?
a major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory
102
What is an example of glutamate malfunction?
oversupply can overstimulate brain, producing migraines or seizures (which is why some people avoid MSG, monosodium glutamate, in food)
103
What does curare (anesthesia) do?
blocks acetylcholine receptors; muscle relaxant
104
What does botulinum bacteria do?
blocks acetylcholine and causes botulism
105
What do nerve gases, black widow venom, and bug spray do?
Excess acetylcholine release, muscle spasms, death
106
What does botox do?
reduces muscle spasms in muscles near the eyes; reduces wrinkles; blocks acetylcholine release
107
What neurotransmitter is associated with drug use?
dopamine
108
What do antipsychotic meds do?
blocks the hallucination receptors; too much dopamine transmission
109
What is a side affect of antipsychotic meds?
Parkinson symptoms
110
What is parkinons caused by?
death of dopamine neurons
111
Is major depression acquired or genetic?
mainly acquired
112
What is needed to maintain normal mood, sleep, appetite, and sex drive
adequate serotonin
113
What is reuptake?
excess serotonin is taken back up into the sending neuron
114
What could be causing depreession?
overactive reuptake process or producing too little serotonin
115
What does prozac do?
It is an SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) so it partially blocks reuptake of serotonin in the synaptic gap
116
What does anti-anxiety medication do?
facilitates the transmission of gaba
117
What is plasticity?
the brain's capacity for modification and repair
118
At what age is plasticity common?
before 5 years old
119
What are the three processes of plasticity?
collateral sprouting, substitution of function, and neurogenesis
120
What does collateral sprouting do?
axons of healthy neurons adjacent to damaged cells grow new branches
121
What does substitution of function do?
damaged region's function is taken over by another area of the brain
122
What does neurogenesis do?
new neurons are generated
123
What is an example of plasticity?
in blind people, visual cortex helps control the finger used to read braille; hydrocephalus can destroy brain tissue, but hydrocephalic children often have normal intellectual abilities
124
What is hydrocephalus?
abnormal buildup of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brain (1-2 out of every 1000 children are born with this)
125
How many ventricles in the brain?
4
126
How many oz of cerebrospinal fluid does a person make a day?
16
127
What is sensation?
detects physical energy from the environment (light, sound, pressure, taste, odor) and encodes it as neural signals
128
What is perception?
constructs the raw information gained by senses into our experiences
129
What is bottom-up processing?
initiated by sensory input, outside world's influence on perception
130
What is top-down processing?
initiated by cognitive processing, internal/mental world's influence on perception, expectations and prior understanding
131
What is absolute threshold?
the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus (50% of the time) (different for the various senses) anything below this stimulus: subliminal (less than 50%)
132
What is difference threshold?
also called "just noticeable difference" (jnd); measures our ability to discriminate between two stimuli; the minimum difference a person can detect between any two stimuli 50% of the time
133
What is weber's law?
the jnd os not a constant fixed amount, but rather a constant proportion of the original stimuli
134
What is an example of weber's law?
humans can just barely detect the difference between 60 and 61 candles; however if we begin with 120 candles (twice as intense), then we need to increase the number to 122 candles to notice the change
135
What is signal detection theory?
theory of perception that states that people make decisions about perception of stimuli under conditions of uncertainty; predicts that absolute threshold will change with our experience, expectations, level of fatigue and urgency of the moment and our judgements about which error is worse - a "false alarm" or "miss"
136
What is sensory adaptation?
theory that states there will be a change in the responsiveness of sensory systems based on the average level of surrounding stimulation; explains diminished sensitivity to stimuli when there is constant stimulation
137
Why does sensory adaptation happen?
after constant exposure to a stimulus our nerve cells fire less frequently
138
What is an example of sensory adaptation?
cold water in a pool, a watch on your wrist, spices in the kitchen, a fan in your bedroom
139
How do our eyes avoid sensory adaptation?
they constantly move/quiver just enough so that the image our retina receives continually changes just enough so the image our retina receives changes
140
What is attention?
the process of focusing awareness on a narrow aspect of the environment
141
What is selective attention?
the act of focusing on a specific aspect of the environment while ignoring other aspects
142
What is the cocktail party affect?
ability to concentrate on one voice among many in a crowded situation
143
What is intentional blindness?
failure to detect unexpected events when our attention is engaged by a a task (eg. the invisible gorilla research study)
144
What are feature detector cells?
neurons in the visual cortex that respond to specific features (edges, lines, angles, movements); pass info on to other areas of the cerebral cortex where teams of cells respond to more complex patterns; it is possible to activate movement feature detector cells when there is no movement (rotating snake is example)
145
What are movement aftereffects?
caused by the over-stimulation and fatigue of motion-specific feature detector cells (eg you look at something thats going up the next thing you look at will appear to go down) sensory adaptation causes this
146
What is the Muller-Lyer Illusion?
a line with "wings" pointing outward looks longer than a line with "wings" pointing inward
147
What can affect how you see the muller-lyer illusion?
age and surroundings (architecture common to where you live)
148
What is the Ponzo illusion?
a line or object will look longer (or larger) than another line or object of equal size if depth cues suggest the first is farther away from the viewer (perceived depth cues, not actual depth cues)
149
Why do people experience illusions like Ponzo and Muller-Lyer?
misapplication of size constancy
150
What is size constancy?
we perceive objects as having a constant size, even when their distance from us changes
151
What is the Ames room?
invented by American ophthalmologist Adelbert Ames Jr. in 1934; designed to manipulated distance cues to make two same-sized people appear very different in size
152
What is shape constancy?
perception of the form of familiar objects is constant even while our retinal images of them change (two eyes are needed for depth perception)
153
What is lightness constancy?
perception of the brightness of an object is constant even while the surrounding lighting varies (brightness is perceived relative to context)
154
What is an example of light constancy?
white paper looks white, regardless of whether it is in the sunlight or in shadows
155
How much light does white paper reflect?
90%
156
How much light does black paper reflect?
10%
157
What does the Checker-shadow illusion teach us?
our visual system makes a judgement regarding brightness even based on perceived lighting (our brain factors in the shadow which creates the illusion
158
What is gestalt?
"form" or "whole"; the brain has a tendency to perceive stimuli as whole and complete if possible
159
What are the gestalt grouping principles?
ways we group visual information into "wholes" include proximity, continuity, and similarity; this allows for our brain to see everything instead of having a blind spot where the optic nerve is
160
How does proximity group objects?
group them into pairs instead of 6 separate lines
161
How does similarity group objects?
we see columns instead of separate shapes
162
How does continuity group objects?
see straight and curved line instead of half circles
163
What is Wundt's structuralism?
wanted to uncover the basic structures of the brain. This led to introspection studying
164
What did Wundt's experiment contain?
trying to measure the time it tool the human brain and nervous system to translate information into action
165
What us introspection?
looking inside our own minds, by focusing on our own thoughts
166
What is Jame's functionalism?
probed the functions and purposes of the mind and behavior in the individual's adaptation and environment
167
What is the difference between structuralism and functionalism?
the first is the "what" and the second is the "why"
168
What did Wundt believe in that James did not?
rigid structures of the mind
169
What was the name of Darwin's book on natural selection?
On the Origin of Species (1979)
170
What is natural selection?
an evolutionary process in which organisms that are better adapted to their environment will survive and, importantly, produce more offspring
171
A characteristic cannot be passed from one generation to the next unless it is recorded in the species what?
genes
172
What is random assignment?
the researchers assign participants to groups randomly
173
What is random sampling?
a sampling technique where every member of the target population has an equal chance of being selected.
174
What are quasi-experimental designs?
similar to an experimental design, but slightly different; does not randomly assign participants to conditions because it is impossible or unethical; might be used to study groups that already exist (adults who are single, soldiers who have seen combat vs those who havent); this type of experiment does not allow for the strong casual conclusions that can be drawn from true experiments that employ random assignment
175
What are biased samples?
those that do not represent all of humanity (only men, only white people, only able-bodied people, etc). It is important to avoid this in order to predict human behavior broadly
176
What is informed consent?
all participants must know what their participation will involve and what risks might develop; they need to be told both the positives and the negatives the study might cause them even if it seems unnecessary; the participants are able to withdraw at any point
177
What is confidentiality?
researchers must keep all of the participants data confidential and, when possible, anonymous. Confidential and anonymous are different, if confidential a participant can be linked to their data
178
What is debriefing?
at the conclusion of the study the researchers need to inform the participants of its purpose and the methods they used
179
What is deception?
in some cases, if the participants know what the study is about it can affect their behavior and invalidates the data. This means the researcher will have to lie about certain parts of the study. The researcher must ensure that it will not harm the participant in any way. this is still a debated ethical issue.
180
What does the International Review Board (IRB) do?
they review the ethical nature of research conducted at colleges and universities
181
What are some main points to consider when thinking critically about psychological research?
Avoid overgeneralizing based on little info, distinguish between group results and individual needs, look for answers beyond a single study, avoid attributing causes where none have been found, consider the source of psychological info
182
What is split brain research?
This is where the corpus callosum is cut down the center creating two completely separate halves of the brain. This concluded that the corpus callosum is what relays the information between the two hemispheres. This can help epilepsy patients.
183
What is the corpus callosum?
The part of the brain that connects the two hemispheres. It is a large bundle of axons. Without this the left hemisphere information and the right hemisphere information would have no contact essentially creating two separate minds
184
What does the left hemisphere of the brain do?
comprehension, singing words in a song, spatial perception, solving basic spatial puzzles
185
What does the right hemisphere of the brain do?
source of some human verbal abilities, understanding meanings of stories, intonations of voices, catching onto song melodies, spatial perception, visual recognition, emotion, people's faces,
186
What are chromosomes?
the nucleus of each human cell contains 46 chromosomes, they come from each parent (23 from one and 23 from the other). Chromosomes contain DNA
187
What are genes?
the units of hereditary information, are short chromosome segments composed of DNA. they hold the code for creating specific proteins out of amino acids forming the bases for everything our bodies do.
188
What is DNA?
deoxyribonucleic acid; a complex molecule that carries genetic information.
189
What is a genotype?
an individual's genetic heritage, the actual genetic material present in every cell in the person's body
190
What is a phenotype?
the individual's observable characteristics
191
What do sensory receptors in the brain do?
specialized cells that detect stimulus information and transmit it to sensory nerves in the brain
192
What are the main classes of sensory receptors?
photoreception, mechanoreception, and chemoreception
193
What is photoreception?
detection of light, perceived as sight
194
What is mechanoreception?
detection of pressure, vibration, and movement, perceived as touch, hearing, and equilibrium
195
What is chemoreception?
detection of chemical stimuli, perceived as smell and taste
196
How does receptor send out signals with different variations of stimuli? (bright light vs dark light)
frequency of sending signals
197
What is the retina?
the light-sensitive surface that records the electromagnetic energy and converts it to neural impulses for processing in the brain. It sits at the back of the eye
198
What are rods?
the receptors in the retina that are sensitive to light but not very useful to color vision. Used for low illumination, night time
199
What are cones?
the receptors that we use for color perception. they are light sensitive however the require a lot of light to respond to them than rods do, so they operate best in daylight
200
What is the optic nerve?
axons of the ganglion cells, carries out the visual information of the brain for further processing
201
What are supercell clusters?
Clusters of cells that respond to more complex patterns of visual information
202
What is the figure-ground relationship?
the principle by which we organize the perceptual field into stimuli that stand out (figure) and those that are left over (background)
203
What is theory of mind?
ability of attribute mental states (beliefs, intentions, desires, knowledge) to oneself and to others and to understand that others have beliefs, desires, intentions and knowledge that are different from one's own. Autistic individuals lack a well-developed theory of mind. develops around 3-4.5 years of age. This sets stage for morality
204
What are the levels of awareness?
Subconscious awareness, sleep and dreams, no awareness
205
What is subconscious awareness?
incubation (solve a problem when you are not thinking about it), parallel processing (processing info when not thinking about it)
206
What are sleep and dreams?
low levels of consciousness of outside world (hearing something and you hear it in your dreams)
207
What is no awareness?
unconscious (censored) thought-Freud (pushing disturbing thoughts down), non-conscious processes
208
What are some types of biological rythms?
annual/seasonal, 24-hour cycles (circadian rhythms)
209
What does the suprachiasmatic nucleus do?
Monitors the circadian rhythm
210
What does the biological clock do?
controls the circadian rhythm
211
Are humans diurnal or nocturnal?
diurnal
212
What desynchronizes the biological clock?
shift-work problems, insomnia, jet lag
213
What can you do to reset the clock?
bright light, melatonin, tryptophan
214
What is the path that light travels to affect the biological rhythm?
Light->eyes->retina->thalamus->hypothalamus->
If light. if no light
awake. sleep
spinal cord
pineal gland
releases melatoin
215
Why do we need sleep?
adaptive evolutionary function, restorative function, and brain plasticity
216
What falls under adaptive evolutionary function?
safety, energy conservation/efficiency, predators are less active at night
217
What falls under restorative function?
body rejuvination and growth, growth/repair cells
218
What falls under brain plasticity?
enhances synaptic connections, memory consolidation (at least 6 hours of sleep)
219
What does chronic sleep deprivation do?
inability to sustain attention, poor decision making and problem solving, decreased activity in thalamus and prefrontal cortex
220
What are the stages of sleep?
W-alert, W-relaxed, N1, N2, N3, R
221
What are the parts of W-alert?
beta waves, high frequency, low amplitude, desychronous
222
What are the parts of W-relaxed?
alpha waves, lower frequency, increase in amplitude, synchronous
223
What are the parts of N-1?
slow frequency, low amplitude (but greater than alpha), theta waves, hypnic jerk (myoclonic jerk) like a hiccup (get more of it when stressed and sleep deprived)
224
What are the parts of N-2?
sleep spindles: sudden increase in wave frequency, still light sleep, consolidation of declarative memories (facts, events), alcohol disrupts this, k-complex (response to something one had heard experienced periodically)
225
What are the parts of N-3?
slowest frequency and highest amplitude, delta waves, deep sleep, more common bedwetting, sleep walking, sleep talking, sleep deprivation/ambien can cause sleep walking
226
What are the parts of R?
Rapid Eye Movement, dreaming, EEG similar to relaxed wakefulness, alpha, beta, theta, non-declarative memories: motor and procedural, REM rebound: your body will push you into REM faster if sleep deprived (sacrifices deep sleep), paralyzed during this time, arousal
227
What diseases/health problems have common sleep issues?
Alzheimer, stroke, cancer, mental disorers
228
What can induce sleep?
infectious diseases
229
Sleeping too much is a reflection of what?
other issues in the body
230
What are some sleep disorders?
Insomnia, sleep walking, talking, eating, nightmares (REM), night terrors (deep sleep), narcolepsy, sleep apnea, melancholia
231
What are the types of sleep apnea?
obstructive, central
232
What helps sleep apnea?
CPAP
233
How many sleep apnea events happen each night?
100s
234
What is associated with sleep apnea?
SIDS
235
How does using ATP make you more tired?
the more atp you use the more adenosine you have the more tired you are, but caffeine blocks adenosine
236
How long do narcolepsy attacks last?
5-10 mins
237
What can cause narcolepsy attacks?
high emotions (hypothalamus releases hypocretin)
238
Is narcolepsy gained or genetic?
both
239
What are some theories of dreaming?
historical/religious significance, freud's psychodynamic approach (manifest and latent content), cognitive theory (information processing and memory)
240
How does psychoactive drugs affect the users?
acts on the nervous system to alter consciousness, modify perception, change mood, deal with life's difficulties, reduce tension, relieve boredom/fatigue, curiosity, losing track of one's responsibilities, problems in the workplace/relationships, drug dependence increased risk of some fatal diseases. Physical/psychological dependence / addiction
241
What is tolerance?
the need to take increasing amounts of a drug to get the same effect
242
What is addiction?
a physical or psychological dependence, or both, on a drug
243
What is a physical dependence?
the physiological need for a drug that causes unpleasant withdrawal symptoms such as physical pain and a craving for a drug when it is discountinued
244
What is a psychological dependence?
the strong desire to repeat the use of a drug for emotional reasons, such as a feeling of well being and reduction of stress
245
How does the brain become addicted?
the drugs increase the dopamine levels in the reward pathways
246
What are depressants?
a drug that acts on the body to slow down the brain (alcohol, opiates)
247
What are stimulants?
a drug that increases the central nervous system's activity (amphetamines, cocaine, Ecstasy, caffeine, nicotine)
248
What are hallucinogens?
a drug that modifies a person's perceptual experiences and produce visual images that are not real (marijuana, LSD)
249
What was John Gottman's experiment?
He studied couples to predict whether they will divorce or not. He could predict the success or failure of marriage with 91% accuracy by listening to couple argue for five minutes
250
Is random sampling or random assignment more commonly used?
random assignment, expts almost never use random sampling due to health issues/consent
251
What is awareness in reference to consciousness?
we are aware of not only our thoughts, but everything that surrounds them (the fish in the pond are our thoughts, but we are also aware of the water that surrounds them); the awareness of the self and thoughts about one's experiences.
252
What is arousal in reference to conscousness?
the physiological state of being engaged with the environment
253
What is the reticular activating system?
a network of structures including the brain stem, medulla, and thalamus. this determines the physiological state of arousal and engagement with the environment
254
What is trichromatic theory?
color perception is produced by three types of cone receptors in the retina that are particularly sensitive to different, but overlapping, ranges of wavelengths.
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What is opponent-process theory?
cells in the visual system respond to red-green and blue-yellow colors; and a green cell might be excited by red and inhibited by green, whereas another cell might be excited by yellow and inhabited by blue.
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What is depth perception?
the ability to perceive objects three-dimensionally
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What are binocular cues?
depth cues that depend on the combination of the images in the left eye and right eye and on the way the two eyes work together
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What is convergence?
a binocular cue to depth and distance in which the muscle movements in an individual's two eyes provide information about how deep and/or far away something is
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What is monocular cues?
Powerful depth cues available from the image in one eye, either the right or the left
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What is the structures of the ear?
Outer ear, middle ear, inner ear, and in some cases cochlear implant
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What is the outer ear?
Pinna, and external auditory canal. The pinna collects sounds and channels them into the interior ear. the outermost part of the ear
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What is the middle ear?
the part of the ear that channels the sound through the eardrum, hammer, anvil, and stirrup to the inner ear. the tympanic membrane separates the outer and middle ear. when the hammer, anvil, and stirrup vibrate they transmit sound to the fluid filled inner ear
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What is the inner ear?
The part of the ear that includes the oval window, cochlea, and basilar membrane and whose function is to convert sound waves into neural impulses to send to the brain.
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What are cochlear implants?
devices that were specifically developed to replace damaged hair cells (inner ear). This allows deaf individuals to detect sound
