Final exam subdivisions

Question 1

Acetylcholine

Answer 1

a neurotransmitter – muscle action and memory

Question 2

Beta-endorphin

Answer 2

a neurotransmitter – pain and pleasure

Question 3

Dopamine

Answer 3

a neurotransmitter – mood, sleep, and learning

Question 4

Norepinephrine

Answer 4

a neurotransmitter – heart, intestines, and alertness

Question 5

Serotonin

Answer 5

a neurotransmitter – mood and sleep

Question 6

Sensory Memory

Answer 6

storage of brief sensory events, such as sights, sounds, and tastes.

Question 7

STM

Answer 7

a temporary storage system that processes incoming sensory memory.

Question 8

LTM

Answer 8

the continuous storage of information

Question 9

Explicit memory

Answer 9

facts and events we can consciously remember

Question 10

Implicit memory

Answer 10

memories that are not part of our consciousness, formed unknowingly

Question 11

Amygdala

Answer 11

part of limbic system; manages emotion, memory, and fear

Question 12

Hippocampus

Answer 12

part of limbic system; associated with learning and memory

Question 13

Hypothalamus

Answer 13

part of limbic system; regulates homeostatic processes

Question 14

Medulla

Answer 14

part of hindbrain; controls automated processes: breathing, bld. pres., hrt. rt.

Question 15

Pons

Answer 15

part of hindbrain; connects brain and spinal cord, involved in activity during sleep

Question 16

Cerebellum

Answer 16

part of hindbrain; balance, coordination, movement, motor skills

Question 17

Anchoring bias

Answer 17

fixation on a detail

Question 18

Confirmation bias

Answer 18

fixation on info agreeing with pre-existing beliefs

Question 19

Hindsight bias

Answer 19

“I knew it all along!”

Question 20

Representative bias

Answer 20

unintentionally stereotype someone or something

Question 21

Heuristic

Answer 21

mental short cut

Question 22

Availability heuristic bias

Answer 22

focus on info most available to you

Question 23

Vicarious reinforcement

Answer 23

process where the observer sees the model rewarded, making the observer more likely to imitate the model’s behavior.

Question 24

Vicarious punishment

Answer 24

process where the observer sees the model punished, making the observer less likely to imitate the model’s behavior.

Question 25

Steps of modeling process (observational learning)

Answer 25

1. Attention – focus on the behavior.
2. Retention – remember what you observed.
3. Reproduction – be able to perform the behavior.
4. Motivation – must want to copy the behavior.

Question 26

reciprocal determinism

Answer 26

Personality formed by:
- Behavior
- Cognitive Factors
- Situational factors

Question 27

fundamental attribution error

Answer 27

Blame others’ behavior on their character, but blame your own behavior on circumstance.

Question 28

groupthink

Answer 28

people change their opinions to conform with the group

Question 29

bystander effect

Answer 29

The more a person is surrounded by others, the less they are to act due to social loafing.

Question 30

social loafing

Answer 30

a person exerting less effort to achieve a goal when they work in a group than when working alone

Question 31

ways to reduce cognitive dissonance

Answer 31

• Change their behavior - quitting smoking.
• Change their belief through rationalization or denial - such as discounting the evidence that smoking is harmful.
• Add a new cognition – “Smoking suppresses appetite so I don’t become overweight, which is good for my health”.

Question 32

Problem-focused coping

Answer 32

identifying the problem, considering solutions and selecting solution. often when stress is seen as controllable

Question 33

Emotion-focused coping

Answer 33

avoiding, minimizing, or distancing oneself from the problem, seeking happiness or treating symptoms of the stress rather than the problem itself. often used when stress is seen as out of control

Question 34

Hallucinogens

Answer 34

substances causing changes in sensory and perceptual experiences; includes Mescaline and LSD (serotonin agonists), PCP and ketamine (NMDA glutamate receptor antagonists)

Question 35

Stimulants

Answer 35

substances that increase overall levels of neural activity; includes Cocaine, Amphetamine, Cathinones (i.e., bath salts), MDMA, caffeine, nicotine, opioids (all highly addictive)

Question 36

Depressants

Answer 36

substances that suppress the central nervous system activity by binding to GABA receptors which makes the neuron less likely to fire; includes Alcohol, Barbiturates (anticonvulsant medication), Benzodiazepines (anti-anxiety medication)

Question 37

Teratogen

Answer 37

any environmental agent (biological, chemical, or physical) that causes damage to the developing embryo or fetus.
ex. alcohol, smoking, drugs, viruses, radiation

Question 38

Sleep debt

Answer 38

Sleep debt – result of insufficient sleep on a chronic basis.

Question 39

Sleep Rebound

Answer 39

Sleep rebound – a sleep-deprived individual will tend to take a shorter time to fall asleep during subsequent opportunities for sleep.

Question 40

Stanley Milgram Study

Answer 40

Obedience experiment: participants told to ‘shock’ learners under the instruction of an authority figure, and 2/3 participants continued to give shocks to an unresponsive learner
- showed the surprising degree to which people obey authority

Question 41

Phillip Zimbardo study

Answer 41

Stanford Prison Experiment: a mock prison was constructed and participants were given roles: prisoner or guard. The participants fell into their roles intensely, demonstrating the power of social roles, social norms, and scripts.

Question 42

Solomon Asch study

Answer 42

Conformity experiment: one subject and the rest were confederates; asked to look at two pictures of lines and determine which one was equal in height.
- The subject was likely to go along with the group, especially if there was a higher amount of people and they all gave the wrong answer
- Showed the influence of group majority on an individual’s judgement

Question 43

Dendrites

Answer 43

branching extensions of the soma (cell body), serving as input sites for messages from other neurons

Question 44

Axon

Answer 44

a major extension of a neuron where signals are transmitted and delivered to terminal buttons, which release neurotransmitters

Question 45

Neuron

Answer 45

cells in the nervous system that act as interconnected information processors, which are essential for all of the tasks of the nervous system

Question 46

Neurotransmitter

Answer 46

chemical messenger of the nervous system

Question 47

Frontal lobe

Answer 47

part of the cerebral cortex involved in reasoning, motor control, emotion, and language; located in front

Question 48

Parietal lobe

Answer 48

part of the cerebral cortex involved in processing various sensory and perceptual information; located on top

Question 49

Temporal lobe

Answer 49

part of cerebral cortex associated with hearing, memory, emotion, and some aspects of language; located near the ear

Question 50

Occipital lobe

Answer 50

part of the cerebral cortex associated with visual processing; located in back

Question 51

Major depressive disorder symptoms

Answer 51

“depressed mood most of the day, nearly every day” and loss of interest and pleasure in usual activities (for diagnosis, at least five symptoms for at least two weeks)

Symptoms:
- Weight loss or weight gain/increased or decreased appetite.
- Difficulty falling asleep or too much sleep.
- Psychomotor agitation or psychomotor retardation.
- Fatigue/loss of energy.
- Feelings of worthlessness or guilt.
- Difficulty concentrating, indecisiveness.
- Suicidal ideation – thoughts of death, thinking about/planning suicide, suicide attempt.

Question 52

Limbic system

Answer 52

collection of structures involved in processing emotion and memory

Question 53

Endocrine system

Answer 53

series of glands that produce chemical substances known as hormones

Question 54

Thalamus

Answer 54

sensory relay for the brain

Question 55

Substance withdrawal

Answer 55

negative symptoms experienced when drug use is discontinued.

Question 56

Substance tolerance

Answer 56

occurs when a person requires more and more of a drug to achieve effects previously experienced at lower doses; linked to physiological dependence.

Question 57

Substance dependence

Answer 57

Physiological dependence - involves changes in normal bodily functions and withdrawal upon cessation of use.
Psychological dependence – emotional need for the drug.

Question 58

Stereotypes

Answer 58

a specific belief or assumption about individuals based solely on their membership in a group. (“People who have a name that begins with J are arrogant and obnoxious.”)

Question 59

Prejudice

Answer 59

a negative attitude and feeling toward an individual based solely on one’s membership in a particular social group. (“I hate people with the first letter J in their name; they make me angry.”)

Question 60

Discrimination

Answer 60

a negative action toward an individual as a result of one’s membership in a particular group. (“I would never hire nor become friends with a person if I knew he or she had a name that started with J.”)