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Book: Discovering Psychology

An early school of psychology that emphasized studying the purpose, or function, of behavior and mental processes.




In _______ cultures, the needs & goals of the group are emphasized over the needs and goals of the individual.


A specialty area in psychology that helps people of all ages adjust, adapt, and cope with personal and interpersonal problems in such diverse areas as relationships, work, education, marriage, child rearing, and aging.


The statement "the results are not very likely to have occurred by chance" best describes what concept?

Statistically Significant

A psychologist who stresses the importance of how behavior enables organisms to adapt to their environment would be classified as belonging to the _________ school of psychology.


Dr. Levin adheres to the theory that emphasizes the role of unconscious conflicts in determining behavior and personality. This viewpoint is most consistent with the ________ school of psychology.


Environment influences and other measurable behavior are to ________ as conscious experience, psychological growth, and self-direction are to ______.

Nurture, Nature

While researching a paper on the history of psychology, John discovered that Rene' Descartes, a seventh-century philosopher, promoted the idea that the mind & body are separate entities that interact to produce sensations, emotions, and other conscience experience. Descarte's view is called

Interactive Dualism

Dr. Brunac's research focus on the question of the degree to which heredity and environment influence the development of human abilities such as intelligence and personality characteristics. Dr. Brunac is interested in the

Nature vs Nurture

Alvira believes that our most complex conscious experience can be broken down into elemental structures, or basic components, of sensations and feelings through the research method of introspection. Alvira's view is most consistent with the school of thought in psychology called


Psychologist who has a doctorate in psychology & intensive training in the causes, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of different types of behavioral and emotional disorders is a

Clinical Psychologist

Specialty area that studies the physical, social, & psychological changes that occur at different ages & stages of the lifespan, from conception to old age is

Developmental Psychology

Specialty area in psychology that studies how people of all ages learn & is concerned with developing instructional methods and material used to train people is

Educational Psychology

Specialty area that investigates such basic psychological topics as sensory & perceptual processes, learning, emotion, and motivation is

Experimental Psychology

Point of view or general framework that reflects a psychologists emphasis in investigating psychological topics.


Specific area in psychology in which psychologists are trained and in which they work or practice is their

Specialty Area

Broad term that refers to the attitudes, values, beliefs, & behaviors shared by a group of people and communicated from one generation to another is


Perspective & specialty area that investigates mental processes, including reasoning, thinking, problem solving, language, perception, mental imagery, & memory is


Specialty are in psychology that examines individual differences & the characteristics that make each person unique, including how those characteristics originated and developed is


Perspective in psychology that studies how behavior is acquired or modified by environmental consequences and whose focus is on observable behavior & the fundamental laws of learning is


The tendency to use your own culture as the standard for judging other cultures.


Perspective & Specialty area in psychology that studies the relationship between psychological processes and the body's physical systems, including the brain & the rest of the nervous system, the endocrine system, the immune system, and genetics is


Perspective and branch of psychology that studies the effects of culture on behavior and mental processes is


The study of the nervous system, especially the brain.


Principle that organisms that inherit characteristics which increase their chances of survival in their particular habitat are more likely to survive, reproduce, and pass on their characteristics to their offspring is

Natural Selection

Specialty area in psychology that provides a variety of psychological services to children, adolescents, families, and administrators in public and private schools is


Statistical technique that involves combining and analyzing the results of many research studies on a special topic in order to identify overall trends is


To repeat or duplicate a scientific study in order to increase confidence in the validity of the original findings is to ________ the study.


A set of assumptions, attitudes, & procedures that guide researchers in creating questions to investigate, in generating, evidence, and in drawing conclusions is called

Scientific Method

Tentative Statement about how the variables in a study will be manipulated or measured.


Precise description of how the variables in a study will be manipulated or measured.


Method of investigation used to demonstrate cause-and-effect relationships by purposely manipulating a factor thought to produce change in a second factor is

Experimental Method

Mathematical methods used to summarize, analyze, and draw conclusions about data is called


Any Factor that can vary, or change, in ways that can be observed, measured, and verified is called a


Experimental techniques in which the researchers, but not the participants, are aware of the critical information about the experiment is

Single-Blind Study

In an experiment, the factor that is observed & measured for change and is thought to be influenced by the independent variable is

Dependent Variable

Branch of psychology that studies the behavior of different animal species.

Comparative Psychology

Any change attributed to a person's beliefs, & expectations rather than an actual drug, treatment, or procedure is called a

Placebo Effect

In an experiment, the group of participants who are exposed to all experimental conditions, except the independent variable or treatment variable, and against which changes in the experimental group are compared in the

Control Group/Control Condition

In a Research Study, subtle cues, or signals expressed by the researcher that communicate the kind of response or behavior that is expected from the participant.

Demand Characteristic

A noninvasive technique that produces highly detailed images of the body's structures and tissues using electromagnetic signals generated by the body in response to magnetic fields is a

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

Specific strategies and procedures that help minimize the possibility that extraneous variables or some other uncontrolled factor will influence the outcome of the experiment is

Control Group/Condition

An invasive imaging technique that provides color-coded images of brain activity by tracking the brain's use of radioactively tagged compound, such as glucose, oxygen, or a drug.

Position Emission Tomography (PET SCAN)

A study investigating the effects of a naturally occuring event on the research participants is a

Natural Experiment

The Statement "depression scores will be measured based on significance scores on the Beck Depression Inventory (BD)" best describes a:

Operational definition

Along with Neurons, the human nervous system is made up of other types of cells called glial cells. A ____ is a type of glial cell that provides a support structure for developing neurons and fills in the space between the neurons.


When a neuron depolarizes and ions cross the axon membrane, the result is a brief positive electrical impulse of +30 millivolts-the action potential. During the _________ _______ the neuron reestablishes the resting potential negative charge of -70 millivolts and then is ready to activate again.

Refactory Period

A neurotransmitter communicate either an excitatory or an inhibitory message to a postsynaptic neuron. Excessive levels of _______ a type of neurotransmitter, has been linked with the hallucinations & perceptual distortions that characterize the sever mental disorder called Schizophrenia.


Neurogenesis refers to the development of new neurons. Research conducted by Elizabeth Gould and her colleagues (1998) provided evidence that monkeys was generating new neurons in what part of the brain?


Highly specialized cell that communicates information in electrical and chemical form.


Neurotransmitter that usually communicates an inhibitory message.


Neurotransmitters that regulate pain perception.


Small gaps that separate segments of the myelin sheath that surrounds the axons of many neurons:


Neurotransmitter that is involved in sleep, moods, and emotional states, including depression.


A part of a neuron that contains the nucleus:

Cell Body/Soma

Disease that involves the degeneration of patches of the myelin sheath that surrounds many neurons and causes such symptoms as muscular weakness, loss of coordination, and disturbances in speech and vision:

Multiple Sclerosis

Chemical Messenger manufactured in the synaptic vesicles of a neuron:


Neural condition in which the axon's interior is more negatively charged than the exterior fluid surrounding it, which occurs while the neuron is waiting for sufficient stimulation to activate it.

Neutral Transmission

The point of communication between two neurons.


Tiny pouches, or sacs, in the axon terminals that contain chemicals called neurotransmitters.

Synaptic Vesicles

Neurotransmitter involved in the regulation of bodily movements and pleasurable or rewarding sensations.


Minimum level of stimulation required to activate a particular neuron.

Stimulus Threshold

The scientific study of the nervous system, especially the brain.


Time period, lasting a thousandth of a second or less, that follows the action potential and during which the neuron is unable to fire.

Refactory Period

Disease characterized by progressive loss of memory and deterioration of intellectual functioning, caused by sever depletion of several neurotransmitters, most notably, acetylcholine.


Specific group of painkilling drugs derived from the opium poppy that includes morphine, heroin, and codeine.


Drug that eliminates the effects of both endorphins and opiates by blocking opiate receptor sites.


Disease characterized by rigidity, muscle tremors, poor balance, and difficulty in initiating movements, caused by the degeneration of neurons in one brain area that produces dopamine.


Twisted strands of DNA in the nucleus of the cell body.


Structure in the cell body that contains the cells genetic material.


Bundles of neuron axons that carry information in the peripheral nervous system.


System composed of glands located throughout the body those secrete hormones into the bloodstream.

The Endocrine System

Simple, automatic behaviors that are processed in the spinal cord without any brain involvement.

Spinal Reflexes

Pair of endocrine glands that are involved in the human stress response.

Adrenal Glands

The brain and spinal cord are suspended in this fluid, which protects them from being jarred.

Cerebrospinal Fluid

Brain Structure that regulates the release of hormones by the pituitary gland.


Division of the nervous system that includes all the nerves lying outside the central nervous system.

Peripheral Nervous System

Body's defense system against invading viruses and bacteria.

Immune System

Endocrine glands that secrete hormones that regulate sexual characteristics and reproductive processes.

Ovaries in females; Testes in males

Specialized cells that line the inner surface of the ventricles that produce neurons in the developing brain.

Neural Stem Cells

The nearly symmetrical left and right halves of the cerebral cortex.

Cerebral Hemispheres

The area on each cerebral hemisphere located above the temporal lobe that processes somatosensory information.

Parietal Lobe

Midbrain area involved in motor control and containing a large concentration of dopamine-producing neurons.

Substantia Nigra

The curved forebrain structure that is part of the limbic systems and is involved in learning and forming new memories.


Area of the hypothalamus that plays a key role in regulating daily sleep-wake cycles and other body rhythms.

Surachiasmatic Nucleus

American Psychologist who received the Nobel Prize in Physiologic or medicine in 1981 for his pioneering research on brain specialization in split-brain patients.

Roger Wolcott Sperry

A clinical neuropsychologist working at a local hospital has been asked to evaluate a patient who reported memory problems, particularly with long-term memory. To test his memory, the neuropsychologist asks the patient to memorize a story then returns the next day to determine how much of the story the patient is able to remember. The patient is unable to remember the story suggesting that he is unable to adequately form new memories. Based on this preliminary finding, the neuropsychologist should conduct more testing to look at the functioning of what brain area?

The Hippocampus

At a recent conference, Dr. Garz argued that the prefrontal cortex is an area of the brain that has developed only to serve working memory functions. Dr. Granger disagreed, arguing that the prefrontal cortex not only serves working memory functions but also works with other brain areas to orchestrate many behaviors and underlying cognitive functions. What themes are being discussed by these two opposing views?

Neurogenesis vs Neuroplasticity

James suffered a brain injury after a motor vehicle accident. He was rushed into the emergency room and was evaluated by a physician. The doctor's examination revealed that James had suffered a lesion to his frontal lobe, particularly to Broca's area, and he has temporarily lost the ability to produce speech. A few months later, James made a full recovery and regained his language functioning. Interestingly, however, the doctor found that his language production seemed to be operating from Wernicke's area rather than from the lower left frontal lobe. This startling phenomenon best exemplifies what concept?

Functional Plasticity

A process by which a form of physical energy is converted into a neural signal that can be processed by the nervous system.


The retina contains cones and rods. Cones are short, thick pointed sensory receptors of the eye that detect _____.


Long, thin, blunt sensory receptors that are primarily responsible for peripheral vision.


In this area of the retina, called the ____ the fibers that make up the optic nerve leave the back of the eye and project to the brain.

Optic Disk/Blind Spot

A property of color that corresponds to the amplitude of the light wave.


The unit of measurement used to describe "loudness".


The point at which a stimulus is strong enough to be detected because it activates sensory receptors.


The smallest possible strength of a stimulus that can be detected half the time.

Absolute Threshold

Specialized cells unique to each sense organ that respond to a particular form of sensory stimulation.

Sensory Receptors

The smallest possible difference between to stimuli that can be detected half the time.

Difference Threshold

The finding that repeated exposure to a stimulus increases a person's preference for that stimulation.

Mere Exposure Effect

Technical term for our sense of taste.


Fluid filled structures that are lined with hair like receptors that shift in response to motion, changes in the body position, or changes in gravity.

Semi-Circular Canals & Vestibular Sacs

Touch receptor located beneath the skin, when stimulated by pressure, it converts the stimulation into neural messages that are relayed to the brain.

Pacinian Corpuscles

A condition characterized by a partial or complete loss of the sense of smell.


Specialized sensory receptors for pain that are found in the skin, muscles. and internal organs.


Cells located high in the nasal cavity that is stimulated by inhaled molecules in the air.

Olfactory Cells

Enlarged ending of the olfactory cortex at the front of the brain, where the sensation of smell is registered.

Olfactory Bulb

The body's natural painkillers that are produced in many parts of the brain and the body.


A phenomenon in which a person continues to experiment intense painful sensations in a limb that has been amputated.

Phantom Limb

Myelinated nociceptors involved in the fast pain system that transmit sharp, intense, but short-lived pain signals, immediately following injury.

A-Delta Fibers

School of Psychology founded in Germany in the early 1900's that maintained that our sensations are actively processed according to consistent perceptual rules that result in meaningful whole perceptions.

Gestalt Psychology

Law that states that when several perceptual organizations are possible, the perceptual interpretation that will occur will be the one that produces the "best, simplest, and most stable shape."

Law of Simplicity

Monocular cue that suggests that faraway objects often appear hazy or slightly blurred by the atmosphere.


Binocular cue that relies on the fact that our eyes are set a couple of inches apart and thus casts slightly different images on the retina of each eye.

Binocular Disparity

Gestalt principle of perceptual organization that states that we automatically separate the elements of a perception into the feature that clearly stands out from the less distinct background.

Figure-Ground Relationship

Gestalt principle of the organization that refers to the tendency to perceive objects that are close to one another as a unit or figure.

The Law of Proximity

The use of monocular or binocular visual cues to perceive the distance or three-dimensional characteristics of objects.

Depth Perception

The perception of an image in which the ground can be perceived as the figure and the figure as the ground; under-scores that our perception of figure and ground is a psychological phenomenon.

Optical Illusion

German Psychologist who founded Gestalt psychology in the early 1900's, studied the optical illusion of apparent movement, and described principles of perception

Max Wertheimer

The scientific investigations of claims of various paranormal phenomena.


Gestalt principle of organization that refers to perceive objects of similar size, shape, or color as a unit or figure.

The Law of Similarity

Mary was given a neurological examination in order to further assess her complains of dizziness and lack of balance. Mary reported to her physician that she felt dizzy often, and that she even fainted once. What receptors should the neurologist thoroughly explore in his assessment of her symptoms?

Hairlike receptor cells in semicircular canals and vestibular sacs.

A student is on a school bus on his way home. He notices that although the bus is moving fast, a large building that is far away seems to be moving slowly. This phenomenon can best be described by what concept?

Motion Parallax

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