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Psychologists, like all scientsits, use the ___ ____ to construct theories that organize, summarize and simplify observations

scientific method

A _____ is an explanation that integrates principles and organizes and predicts behavior or events.

For example, low self-esteem contributes to depression.


A _____ is a testable prediction, often prompted by a theory, to enable us to accept, reject or revise the theory.

People with low self-esteem are apt to feel more depressed.


______ would require us to administer tests of self-esteem and depression. Individuals who score low on a self-esteem test and high on a depression test would confirm our hypothesis


A technique in which one person is studied in depth to reveal underlying behavioral principles

case study

A technique for determining the self-reported attitudes, opinions or behaviors of people usually done by questioning a representative, random sample of people.


______ can change the results of a survey.


If each member of a population has an equal chance of inclusion into a sample, it is called a _____ ______ (unbiased). If the survey sample is biased, its results are not valid.

Random Sampling

Observing and recording the behavior of animals in the wild and recording self-seating patterns in a multiracial school lunch room constitute naturalistic observation

natualistic observation

Case studies, surveys, and naturalistic observation describe _____.


When one trait or behavior accompanies another, we say the two ______.

Correlation Coefficient is a statistical measure of the relationship between two variables.

Indicates strength of a relationship


Indicates direction of relationship

positive or negative

a graph comprised of points that are generated by values of two variables. The slope of the points depicts the direction, while the amount of scatter depicts the strength of the relationship


Correlation does not mean _____


The perception of a relationship where no relationship actually exists

illusory correlation

Given random data, we look for order and meaningful patterns.

Order in Random Events

Given large numbers of ______ outcomes, a few are likely to express order


Like other sciences, experimentation is the backbone of psychological research. Experiments isolate ____ and their _____

causes and their effects

Many factors influence our behavior. Experiments _____ factors that interest us, while other factors are kept under ______.


Effects generated by manipulated factors isolate _____ and _____ relationships.

cause and effect

In evaluating drug therapies, patients and experimenter's assistants should remain unaware of which patients had the real treatment and which patients had the placebo treatment

double blind procedure

Assigning participants to experimental (breast-fed) and control (formula-fed) conditions by ____ _____ minimizes pre-existing differences between the two groups.

random assignment

is a factor manipulated by the experimenter. The effect of the independent variable is the focus of the study.


For example, when examining the effects of breast feeding upon intelligence, breast feeding is the independent variable.

is a factor that may change in response to an independent variable. In psychology, it is usually a behavior or a mental process.

dependent variable

For example, in our study on the effect of breast feeding upon intelligence, intelligence is the dependent variable.

Basic Purpose: to observe and record behavior

How conducted: do case studies, surveys, or naturalistic observations

What is maniputlated: nothing

Weakness: No control of variables; single cases may be misleading


Basic Purpose: to detect naturally occuring relationships; to asses how well one varibale predicts another.

How conducted: compute statistical association, sometimes among survey responses

What is manipulated: nothing

Weakness: does not specify cause and effect


Basic Purpose: to explore cause and effect

How conducted: Manipulate one or more factors, use random assignment

What is manipulated: the independent variables

Weaknesses: sometimes not feasible; results may not generalize o other contexts; not ethical to manipulate certain variables.


____ _____ analyze and interpret data allowing us to see what the unaided eye misses.

statistical procedures

A meaningful description of data is important in research. ______ may lead to incorrect conclusions


A computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean

Standard deviation

A symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data (normal distribution). Most scores fall near the mean.

Normal Curve

the perception of a relationship where no relationship actually exists.

Illusory Correlation

the tendency for extremes of unusual scores or events to regress toward the average.

Regression Toward the Mean

A statistical statement of how frequently an obtained result occurred by experimental manipulation or by chance.

Making Inferences

When is an Observed Difference Reliable?

1.Representative samples are better than biased samples.
2.Less-variable observations are more reliable than more variable ones.
3.More cases are better than fewer cases.

When is a Difference Significant?

When sample averages are reliable and the difference between them is relatively large, we say the difference has statistical significance. It is probably not due to chance variation.

The body's information system is built from billions of interconnected cells called


In the most basic sense, every idea, mood, memory and behavior that an individual has ever experienced is a _______ phenonmenon.


The theory that linked our mental abilities to bumps on the skull was


Researchers who study the links between biology and behavior are called

biological psychologists

Life support center of the neuron.

Cell Body

Branching extensions at the cell body. Receive messages from other neurons.


Long single extension of a neuron, covered with myelin [MY-uh-lin] sheath to insulate and speed up messages through neurons.


Branched endings of an axon that transmit messages to other neurons.

Terminal Branches of Axon

How neuron impulses are generated.


The neural impulse or _____ _____, is a brief electrical charge that travels down an ______.

action potential

The fluid interior of rest axon carries mostly _____ (pos. or neg) charged ions, while the fluid outside has mostly ____ (pos. neg) charged ions.


This polarization, called the ____ _____ occurs because the cell membrane is _____ _____.

resting potential
selectively permeable

An action potential occurs when the first part of the axon opens its gates and ____ (pos. neg.) charged ions rush in, causing that part of the neuron to become _____.


During the resting pause following an action potential, called the ___ ____, the neuron pumps ____ (pos. neg.) charged ions back outside the cell.

refractory period

To trigger a neural impulse, _____ signals minus _____ signals must exceed certain intensity called he _____.


Increasing the stimulus above this level ___ (will/will not) increase the neural impulse's intensity . This phenomenon is called an _____ - _____ - _____.

will not
all or none

the strength of a stimlus ____ (does/does not) affect the intensity of a neural impulse. A strong stimulus (can/ can not) trigger more neurons to fire.

does not

A neural impulse. A brief electrical charge that travels down an axon and is generated by the movement of positively charged atoms in and out of channels in the axon's membrane.

Action Potential

Each neuron receives excitatory and inhibitory signals from many neurons. When the excitatory signals minus the inhibitory signals exceed a minimum intensity (threshold) the neuron fires an action potential.


A strong stimulus can trigger more neurons to fire, and to fire more often, but it does not affect the action potentials strength or speed.

All-or-none repsonse

of an action potential remains the same throughout the length of the axon.


a junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. This tiny gap is called the synaptic gap or cleft.


(chemicals) released from the sending neuron travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing it to generate an action potential.


Neurotransmitters in the synapse are reabsorbed into the sending neurons through the process of _____. This process applies the brakes on neurotransmitter action.


Serotonin pathways are involved with _____ regulation.


____ _____are involved with diseases such as schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease

dopamine pathways

Describe how nerve cells communicate


The junction between tow neurons is called a _____, and the gap is called the ________ ______.This discovery was made by ____ _____

synaptic gap
Sir Charles Sherrington

______ are the chemical messengers that convey information across the gaps between neurons.


These neurotransmitters bind to receptor sites and unlock tiny channels,allowing electrically charged _____ to enter the neuron.


Neurotransmitters influence neurons either by ______ or _______ their readiness to fire. Excess neurotransmitters are reabsorbed by the sending neuron in a process called _____.

exciting or inhibiting

_____ mimics neurotransmitter. This ____ molecule excites. Activates a message, purpose it to send a message. It is similar enough in structure to the neurotransmitter molecule that it mimics its effects on the recieving neuron. Morphine, for instance mimics the action of endorphins by stimulating receptos in brain areas involved in mood and pain sensations.


_____ blocks neurotransmitter. This _____ molecule inhibits. Purpose is to stop a message. It has a structure similar enough to the neurotransmitter to occupy its receptor site and block its action, but not similar enough to stimulate the receptor. Curare poisoning paralyzesits victims by blocking ACh receptors involved in muscle movement.


Describe how neurotransmitters influence behavior, and explain how drugs and other chemicals affect neurotransmission.


_____ is a neurotransmitter that is important in muscle contraction and is also important in learning and _____.


Naturally occuring opiatelike neurotransmitters that are present in the brain are called ______.


When the brain is flooded with drugs such as _____ or _____, it may stop producing these neurotransmitters.

heroin or morphine

Drugs that produce their effects by mimicking neurotransmitters are called _____.


Drugs that block the effects of neurotransmitters by occupying their _____ _____ are called _____

receptor sites

While certain ______drugs contain a temporary high by mimicking the endorphins, the poison, the poison ______ produces paralysis by blocking the activity of the neurotransmitter ACh


consists of all the nerve cells. It is the bodys speedy, electrochemical communication system

Nervous System

the brain and spinal cord

central nervous

the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of body.

Peripheral Nervous System

_____ consist of neural cables containg many axons. They are part of the peripheral nervous system and connect muscles, glands, and sense organs to the central nervous system


the division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body skeletal muscles

Somatic nervous system

part of the Peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and other muscles

autonomic nervous system

division of the autonomic nervous system that AROUSES the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations.

Sympathetic Nervous System

division of the Autonomic system that CALMS the body, conserving its energy


inerconnected neurons form ______ in the brains. These networks are complex and modify with growth and experience.

Neural network

Autonomic repsonses to stimyli, called ______, illustrate the work of the ____ ______. Simple pathways such as these are involved in the ______-______ repsonse and in the _____ reflex.

spinal cord
knee jerk

The _____ _____ is the body's "slow" chemical communication system. Communication is carried out by hormones synthesized by a set of glands.

endocrine system

The system transmits inforation through chemical messengers called _____ at a much _____ rate than the nervous system, and its effects last _______ time

a longer

are chemicals synthesized by the endocrine glands that are secreted in the bloodstream. Hormones affect the brain and many other tissues of the body.


In a moment of danger, the autonomic nervous system orders the _____ glands to release _____ and _____.


The most influential gland is the _____, which under the conrol of an adjacent brain area called the ____, helps regulate _____ and release of hormones by other endocrine glands.


Is called the "master gland." The anterior pituitary lobe releases hormones that regulate other glands. The posterior lobe regulates water and salt balance.

pituitary gland

thyroid and parathyroid glands

Regulate metabolic and calcium rate.

glands consist of the adrenal medulla and the cortex. The medulla secretes hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine) during stressful and emotional situations, while the adrenal cortex regulates salt and carbohydrate metabolism

adrenal glands

Sex glands are located in different places in men and women. They regulate bodily development and maintain reproductive organs in adults.


is the oldest part of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells and enters the skull. It is responsible for automatic survival functions


is the base of the brainstem that controls heartbeat and breathing.


is the brain's sensory switchboard, located on top of the brainstem. It directs messages to the sensory areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla.


is a nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal.

reticular formation

The "little brain" attached to the rear of the brainstem. It helps coordinate voluntary movements and balance.


A brain _____ experimentally destroys brain tissue to study animal behaviors after such destruction


have shed light on a number of brain disorders. Alterations in brain morphology due to neurological and psychiatric diseases are now being catalogued

clinical observations

An amplified recording of the electrical waves sweeping across the brain's surface, measured by electrodes placed on the scalp.

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

is a visual display of brain activity that detects a radioactive form of glucose while the brain performs a given task.


uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated images that distinguish among different types of brain tissue. Top images show ventricular enlargement in a schizophrenic patient. Bottom image shows brain regions when a participants lies

MRI Scan

Thalamus serves as the brains sensory switchboard , recieving information from all the senses except _____


is a doughnut-shaped system of neural structures at the border of the brainstem and cerebrum, associated with emotions such as fear, aggression and drives for food and sex. It includes the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus.

limbic system

one componenet of the limbic system is the _____ that process memory.


consists of two lima bean-sized neural clusters linked to the emotions of fear and anger.


lies below (hypo) the thalamus. It directs several maintenance activities like eating, drinking, body temperature, and control of emotions. It helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland


Rats cross an electrified grid for self-stimulation when electrodes are placed in the _____ (hypothalamus) ____(top picture). When the limbic system is manipulated, a rat will navigate fields or climb up a tree (bottom picture).

reward system

oresearchers believe that alcohold dependence, drug abuse, binge eating, and other _____ may stem from a genetic _____. _____ ____ in the natural brain systems for pleasure and well-being.

reward deficiency syndrome

The intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebral hemispheres. It is the body's ultimate control and information processing center.

cerebral cortex

Each brain hemisphere is divided into four lobes that are separated by prominent fissures. These lobes are the ______ lobe (forehead),___lobe (top to rear head), _______ lobe (back head) and ______ lobe (side of head).


The _____ ______is the area at the rear of the frontal lobes that control voluntary movements

motor cortex

The _____ ______ (parietal cortex) receives information from skin surface and sense organs

sensory cortex

The functional MRI scan shows the auditory cortex is active in patients who ________.


More intelligent animals have increased "uncommitted" or ______ areas of the cortex.


Aphasia is an impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to _____ area (impaired speaking) or to _____ area (impaired understanding).


brain activity when hearing words

auditory cortex and wenickes area

brain activity when seeing words

visual cortex and angular gyrus

brain activity when speaking words

brocas area and the motor cortex

refers to the brain's ability to modify itself after some types of injury or illness.


Our brain is divided into two hemispheres.
The _____ hemisphere processes reading, writing, speaking, mathematics, and comprehension skills. In the 1960s, it was termed as the _____ brain.



splitting the brain

With the corpus callosum severed, objects (apple) presented in the right visual field can be named. Objects (pencil) in the left visual field cannot.

split brain patients

A number of brain scan studies show normal individuals engage their _____ brain when completing a perceptual task and their ____ brain when carrying out a linguistic task.


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