AP Psychology Study Guide

History and Approaches

(2-4%)
 Psychology is derived from physiology
(biology) and philosophy
 EARLY APPROACHES
o Structuralism – used INTROSPECTION
(act of looking inward to examine
mental experience) to determine the
underlying STRUCTURES of the mind
o Functionalism – need to analyze the
PURPOSE of behavior o Independent Variable: manipulated
 APPROACHES KEY WORDS by the researcher
o Psychoanalytic/dynamic – unconscious,  Experimental Group: received the
childhood treatment (part of the IV) o The stronger the # the stronger the
o Behavioral – learned, reinforced  Control Group: placebo, baseline relationship REGARDLESS of the
o Humanistic – free will, choice, ideal, (part of the IV) pos/neg sign
actualization  Placebo Effect: show behaviors  3rd variable problem (lurking
o Cognitive – Perceptions, thoughts associated with the exp. group variable)– diff. variable is
o Evolutionary – Genes when having received placebo responsible for relationship (breast
o Biological – Brain, NTs  Double-Blind: Exp. where neither implants & suicide)
o Sociocultural – society the participant or the experimenter  Illusory correlation – belief of
o Biopsychosocial – combo of above are aware of which condition correlation that doesn’t exist (old
 PEOPLE: people are assigned to (drug man predicts rain from arthritis)
o Mary Calkins: First Fem. Pres. of APA studies)  CASE STUDY: Adv. Studies ONE
o Charles Darwin: Natural selection &  Single-Blind: only participant person (usually) in great detail – lots of
evolution blind – used if experimenter can’t info Disadv: No cause and effect
o Dorothea Dix: Reformed mental be blind (gender, age, etc)  DESCRIPTIVE STATS:shape of the data
institutions in U.S. o Dependent Variable: measured o Measures of Central Tendency:
o Stanley Hall: 1st pres. of APA1st journal variable (is DEPENDENT on the  Mean: Average (use in normal
o William James: Father of American independent variable) distribution)
Psychology – functionalist  Operational Definition: clear, precise,  Median: Middle # (use in skewed
o Wilhem Wundt: Father of Modern typically quantifiable definition of your distribution)
variables – allows replication  Mode: occurs most often
Psychology – structuralist
 Confound: error/ flaw in study
o Margaret Floy Washburn–1st fem. PhD
 Random Assignment: assigns
o Christine Ladd Franklin – 1st fem.
participants to either control or Often confused
 RANDOM TERMS experimental group at random –
o Basic research – purpose is to increase minimizes bias, increase chance of equal
knowledge (rats) representation
o Applied research – purpose is to help  Random Sample: method for choosing
people participants – minimizes bias
o Psychologist – research or counseling – o Assignment and sampling can be
MS or PhD done via names in a hat, computer
o Psychiatrist – prescribe medications and generation
diagnose – M.D.  Validity: accurate results
Research Methods  Reliability: same results every time
(8-10%)  NATURALISTIC OBSERVATION:
Adv: real world validity (observe people
 EXPERIMENT : Adv: researcher in their own setting) Disadv: No cause
controls variables to establish cause and and effect
effect Disadv: difficult to generalize  CORRELATION: Adv: identify
relationship between two variables
Disadv: No cause and effect
(CORRELATION DOES NOT EQUAL  INFERENTIAL STATISTICS:
CAUSATION) establishes significance (meaningfulness)
o Positive Correlation – variables  STATISTICAL SIGNIFANCE = results
increase & decrease together not due to chance
o Negative Correlation – as one  ETHICAL GUIDELINES (APA)
variable increases the other decreases o Confidentiality: names kept secret
o Informed Consent: must agree to be
part of study
 o Debriefing: must be told the true o Oxytocin: love and bonding  Images shown to the right
purpose of the study (done after for  Agonist: drug that mimics a NT
deception)  Antagonist: drug that blocks a NT
o Deception must be warranted  Reuptake: Unused NTs are taken back up
o No harm– mental/physical into the sending neuron. SSRIs (selective
serotonin reuptake inhibitors) block
Biological Basis reuptake – treatment for depression
 AREAS OF THE BRAIN:
(8-10%)  Hindbrain: oldest part of the brain
 NEURON: Basic cell of the NS o Cerebellum – movement/balance hemisphere will be processed in
o Dendrites: Receive incoming signal the left (& vice versa), patient can
(picture walking a tightrope balance a
verbally identify what they saw
o Soma: Cell body (includes nucleus) bell)
o Medulla – vital organs (HR, BP)  BRAIN
o Axon: AP travels down this
o Myelin Sheath: speeds up signal o Pons – sleep/arousal (Ponzzzzzz)
 PLASTICITY: Brain can “heal” itself
down axon, protects axon  Midbrain
 NATURE VS. NURTURE: ANSWER
o Terminals: release NTs – send signal o Reticular formation: alertness
IS BOTH
onto next neuron  Forebrain: higher thought processes o Twin Studies:
o Vesicles: sacs inside terminal contain o Limbic System
 Identical twins – Monozygotic (MZ)
NTs  Amygdala: emotions, fear (Amy, da!  Fraternal twins – Dizygotics (DZ)
o Synapse: gap b/w neurons You’re so emotional!) o Genetics: MZ twins will have a higher
 Action Potential: movement of sodium  Hippocampus: memory (if you saw a
percentage of also developing a disease
and potassium ions across a membrane hippo on campus you’d remember it!)
o Environment: MZ twins raised in
sends an electrical charge down the axon  Hypothalamus: Reward/pleasure
different environments show differences
o All or none law: stimulus must trigger center, eating behaviors – link to
endocrine system  ENDOCRINE SYSTEM: sends
the AP past its threshold, but does not
o Thalamus: relay center for all but smell hormones throughout the body
increase the intensity of the response
o Pituitary Gland: Controlled by
(flush the toilet) (you MUST (thalaMUST) use your
thalamus, unless its MUSTY – smell) hypothalamus. release growth hormones
o Refractory period: neuron must rest
o Cerebral Cortex: outer portion of the o Adrenal Glands: related to sympathetic
and reset before it can send another
brain – higher order thought processes NS: releases adrenaline
AP (toilet resets)
 Occipital Lobe: located in the back of  BRAIN IMAGING:
 Sensory neurons – receive signals the head – vision – mom’s eyes! o EEG: brain activity – not specific
 Afferent neurons – Accept signals  Frontal Lobe: decision making, o XRAY: not useful, doesn’t show tissues
planning, judgment, movement, o CT / MRI: shows structures
 Motor neurons – send signals o PET: glucose shows brain activity (when
personality
 Efferent neurons – signal Exits  Parietal Lobe: located on the top of the in doubt pick this one)
 Interneurons – cells in spinal cord head - sensations o fMRI: glucose shows activity: real time
responsible for reflex loop  Temporal Lobe: located on the sides o lesion – brain damage
 CENTRAL NS: Brain and spinal cord of the head (temples) – hearing and
 PERIPHERAL NS: Rest of the NS face recognition
Sensation & Perception
o Somatic NS: Voluntary movement  Somatosensory Cortex: map of our (6 – 8%)
o Autonomic NS: Involuntary (heart, sensory receptors –in parietal lobe  ABSOLUTE THRESHOLD: detection of
lungs, etc)  Motor Cortex: map of our motor signal 50% of time (is it there)
 Sympathetic NS: Arouses the body receptors – located in frontal lobe  DIFFERENCE THRESHOLD (also
for fight/flight (generally activates o Left hemisphere only – damage results called a just noticeable difference (JND)
– sympathetic to you getting eaten in aphasia (damaged speech) and follows WEBER’S LAW: two
Must include bio response (HR
by a tiger helps you run away)  Broca’s Area: Inability to produce stimuli must differ by a constant
increase) for FRQ credit
 Parasympathetic NS: established speech (Broca – Broken speech) minimum proportion. (Can you tell a
homeostasis after a sympathetic  Wernicke’s Area: Inability to change?)
response (generally inhibits) comprehend speech (Wernicke’s  SIGNAL DETECTION THEORY
 NEUROTRANSMITTERS (NT): what?) 
Chemicals released in synaptic gap, o Corpus Callosum: bundle of nerves that
received by neurons connects the 2 hemispheres – sometimes
o GABA: Major inhibitory NT severed in patients with severe seizures –
o GlutamatE: Major Excitatory NT leads to “split-brain patients”
(get excited when seeing your mates!  Lateralization: the brain has some
o Dopamine: Reward & movement specialized features – language is
processed in the L Hemisphere
o Serotonin: Moods and emotion
 Split-brain Sensory Adaptation: diminished sensitivity
o Acetylcholine (ACh): Memory
experiments: as a result of constant stimulation (can
o Epinephrine & Norepinephrine: done by
sympathetic NS arousal you feel your underwear?)
Sperry &
o Endorphins: pain control Gazzanaga.
 Perceptual Set: tendency to see o Interposition: overlapping images appear o Kinesthetic: Sense of body position
something as part of a group – speeds up closer o Vestibular: Sense of balance
signal processing o Relative Size: 2 objects that are usually (semicircular canals in the inner ear
similar in size, the smaller one is further effect this)
 away o Taste
o Relative Clarity: hazy objects appear (gustation): 5
further away taste receptors:
o Texture Gradient: coarser objects are bitter, salty,
Inattentional Blindness: failure to notice closer sweet, sour,
something added b/c you’re so focused on o Relative Height: things higher in our umami
another task (gorilla video) field of vision look further away (savory)
 Change Blindness: failure to notice a o Linear Perspective: parallel lines o Smell (olfaction): Only sense that does
change in the scene (door study) converge with distance (think railroad NOT route through the thalamus 1st.
 Cocktail party effect: notice your name tracks) Goes through temporal lobe and
across the room when its spoken, when  BINOCULAR CUES: (how both eyes amygdala
you weren’t previously paying attention make up a 3D image)  GESTALT PSYCHOLOGY: Whole is
 VISUAL SYSTEM: Retinal greater than the sum of its parts
o Pathway of vision: light  cornea Gestalt Principles:
pupil/iris  lens  retina   Figure/ground: organize information
rods/cones  bipolar cells  ganglion into figures objects (figures) that stand
cells  optic nerve  optic chiasm  apart from surrounds (back ground)
occipital lobe
o Cornea – protects the eye  Closure: mentally fill in gaps
o Pupil/iris – controls amount of light  Proximity: group things together that
entering eye appear near each other
o Lens – focuses light on retina  Similarity: group things together
o Fovea–area of best vision(cones here) based off of looks
o Rods – black/white, dim light Disparity: Image is cast slightly different  Continuity: tendency to mentally form
o Cones – color, bright light (red, green, blue) on each retina, location of image helps a continuous line
o Bipolar cells – connect rods/cones and us determine depth
ganglion cells Convergence: Eyes strain more (looking States of Consciousness
o Ganglion cells – opponent-processing inward) as objects draw nearer
 TOP-DOWN PROCESSING: Whole  (2 – 4%)
occurs here
o Blind spot – occurs where the optic smaller parts  STATES of CONSCIOUSNESS:
nerve leaves the eye  BOTTOM-UP PROCESSING: Smaller o Conscious: controlled processes –
o Feature detectors – specialized cells Parts  Whole totally aware
that see motion, shapes, lines, etc.  AUDITORY SYSTEM: o Preconscious: Outside awareness, but
located in occipital lobe (experiments by o Pathway of sound: sound  pinna  can be brought into consciousness
Hubel & Weisel) auditory canal ear drum (tympanic (remembering)
 THEORIES OF COLOR VISION: membrane)  hammer, anvil, stirrup o Nonconscious: automatic processing
o Trichromatic – three cones for (HAS)  oval window  cochlea  (controlling respirations)
receiving color (blue, red, green) auditory nerve  temporal lobes o Unconscious: Lack of awareness;
 Explains color blindness - they are o Outer Ear: pinna (ear), auditory canal knocked out
missing a cone type o Middle Ear: ear drum , HAS (bones o Altered States: produced through drugs,
o Opponent Process – complementary vibrate to send signal) fatigue, hypnosis
colors are processed in ganglion cells – o Inner Ear: cochlea – like COCHELLA o Sleep
explains why we see an after image Key word (sounds 1st processed here)  METACOGNITION: Thinking about
 Visual Capture: Visual system  THEORIES OF HEARING: both occur thinking
overwhelms all others (nauseous in an in the cochlea  SLEEP:
IMAX theater – vision trumps vestibular) o Place theory – location where hair cells Beta Waves: awake (you betta be awake for
 Constancies: recognize that objects do bends determines sound (high pitches) the exam)
not physically change despite changes in o Frequency theory – rate at which action Alpha Waves: high amp., drowsy
sensory input (size, shape, brightness) potentials are sent
 Phi Phenomenon: adjacent lights blink determines sound (low
on/off in succession – looks like pitches)
movement (traffic signs with arrows)  OTHER SENSES:
 Stroboscopic movement: motion o Touch: Mechanoreceptors 
produced by a rapid succession of slightly spinal cord  thalamus 
varying images (animations) somatosensory cortex
 MONOCULAR CUES (how we form a o Pain: Gate-control theory: we have a
3D image from a 2D image) “gate” to control how much pain is NREM (non REM) stages-
experienced Stage 1: light sleep
o Stage 2: bursts of sleep spindles o Withdrawal: Psychological and behavior (put on seatbelt to take away
o Stage 3 Delta waves: Deep sleep physiological symptoms associated annoying car signal)
o Rapid Eye Movement (REM): dreaming, with sudden stoppage. Unpleasant – O Pos. Punishment: Add something bad to
cognitive processing can kill you. decrease a behavior (spanking)
O Neg. Punishment: Take away
Entire cycle takes 90 minutes, REM Learning
occurs inb/w each cycle. REM lasts something good to decrease a behavior
longer throughout the night (7-9 %) (take away car keys)
 CLASSICAL CONDITIONING: O Primary Reinforcers: innately
 CIRCADIAN RHYTHM: 24 hour PAVLOV! satisfying (food and water)
biological clock o Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS): O Secondary Reinforcers: everything else
o Body temp & sleep brings about response w/o needing to (stickers, high-fives)
o Controlled by the Suprachiasmatic be learned (food)  Token Reinforcer: type of
nucleus (SCN) in the brain o Unconditioned Response (UCR): secondary- can be exchanged for other
o Explains jet lag response that naturally occurs w/o stuff (game tokens or money)
 SLEEP DISORDERS training (salivate) O Generalization: respond to similar
o Insomnia: Inability to fall asleep (due o Neutral Response (NS): stimulus that stimulus for reward
to stress/anxiety) normally doesn’t evoke a response O Discrimination: stimulus signals when
o Sleep walking/talking: (due to fatigue, (bell) behavior will or will not be reinforced
drugs, alcohol) – NOT during REM o Conditioned Stimulus (CS): once (light on means response are accepted)
o Night terrors: extreme nightmares – neutral stimulus that now brings about O Extinction / Spontaneous Recovery:
NOT in REM sleep – typical in a response (bell) same as classical conditioning
children o Conditioned Response (CR): response O Overjustification Effect: reinforcing
o Narcolepsy: fall asleep out of nowhere that, after conditioning, follows a CS behaviors that are intrinsically
(due to deficiency in orexin) (salivate) motivating causes you to stop doing
o Sleep Apnea: stop breathing suddenly o Contiguity: Timing of the pairing, them (give a child 5$ for reading when
while asleep (due to obesity usually) NS/CS must be presented immediately they already like to read – they stop
 DREAM THEORIES: BEFORE the US reading)
o Freud’s Unconscious Wish o Acquisition: process of learning the O Shaping: use successive approximations
Fulfillment: Dreaming is gratification response pairing to train behavior (reward desired
of unconscious desires and needs o Extinction: previously conditioned behaviors to teach a response – rat
 Latent Content: hidden meaning of response dies out over time basketball)
dreams o Spontaneous Recovery: After a period O Continuous Reinforcement schedule:
 Manifest Content: obvious storyline of time the CR comes back out of Receive reward for every response
of dream nowhere O Fixed Ratio schedule: Reward every X
 Activation Synthesis: Brain produces o Generalization: CR to like stimuli number of response (every 10 envelopes
random bursts of energy – stimulating (similar sounding bell) stuffed get $$)
lodged memories. Dreams start random o Discrimination: CR to ONLY the CS O Fixed Interval schedule: Reward every
then develop meaning  CONTINGENCY MODEL: Rescorla & X amount of time passed (every 2 weeks
 HYPNOSIS Wagner – classical conditioning involves get a paycheck)
o It Can: Reduce pain, help you relax cognitive processes O Variable Ratio schedule: Rewarded
o It CANNOT: give you superhuman  CONDITIONED TASTE AVERSION after a random number of responses (slot
strength, make you regress, make you (ONE-TRIAL LEARNING): John machine
do things against your will Garcia – Innate predispositions can allow O Variable Interval schedule: Rewarded
 PSYCHOACTIVE DRUGS: classical conditioning to occur in one trial after a random amount of time has
o Triggers dopamine release in the (food poisoning) passed (fishing)
 COUNTERCONDITIONING: Little O Variable schedules are most resistant to
brain
o Depressants: Alcohol, barbiturates, Albert and John Watson (father of extinction (how long will keep playing a
behaviorism) – conditioned a fear in a slot machine before you think its
tranquilizers, opiates (narcotics)
baby (only to countercondition – remove broken?)
 Decrease sympathetic NS activation,
highly addictive it- later on)  SOCIAL (OBSERVATIONAL)
o Stimulants: Amphetamines, Cocaine,  OPERANT CONDITIONING: LEARNING: BANDURA!
MDMA (ecstasy), Caffeine, Nicotine SKINNER!  Modeling Behaviors: Children model
 Increase sympathetic NS activation, O LAW OF EFFECT (Thorndike): (imitate) behaviors. Study used BoBo
highly addictive Behaviors followed by pos. outcomes dolls to demonstrate the following
o Hallucinogens: LSD, Marijuana are strengthened, neg. outcomes weaken O Prosocial – helping behaviors
 Causes hallucinations, not very a behavior (cat in the puzzle box) O Antisocial – mean behaviors
addictive  PRINCIPLES OF OPERANT COND:  MISC LEARNING TYPES
o Tolerance: Needing more of a drug to O Pos. Reinforcement: Add something O Latent learning (Tolman!) – learning is
achieve the same effects nice to increase a behavior (gold star for hidden until useful (rats in maze get
o Dependence: Become addicted to the turning in HW) reinforced half way through,
drug – must have it to avoid withdrawal O Neg. Reinforcement: Take away performance improved
symptoms something bad/annoying to increase a
  Cognitive maps – mental  Working Memory Model splits STM  Forgetting curve: recall decreases rapidly
representation of an area, allows into 2 – visual spatial memory (from at first, then reaches a plateau after which
navigation if blocked iconic mem) and phonological loop little more is forgotten (EBBINGHAUS)
O Insight learning (Kohler!) – some (from echoic mem). A “central  Proactive interference
learning is through simple intuition executive” puts it together before OLD blocks new
(chimps with crates to get bananas) passing it to LTM
O Learned Helplessness (Seligman!) – no  Long term memory – lasts a life time  Retroactive interference
matter what you do you never get a o Explicit (Declarative): Conscious NEW blocks old
positive outcome so you just give up recollection  Misinformation effect: distortion of
(word scrambles)  Episodic: events memory by suggestion or misinformation
 Semantic: facts (Loftus – lost in the mall, Disney land)
Cognition o Implicit (Nondeclarative):  Anterograde amnesia: amnesia moves
(8 – 10%) unconscious recollection forward (forget new info – 50 first dates)
ENCODING: Getting info into memory  Classical conditioning  Retrograde amnesia: amnesia moves
 Automatic encoding – requires no effort  Priming: info that is seen earlier backwards (forget old info)
(what did you have for breakfast?) “primes” you to remember  ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE: caused by
 Effortful encoding – requires attention something later on (octopus, destruction of acetylcholine in
(school work) assassin, climate, bogeyman) hippocampus
 Shallow, intermediate, deep processing:  Procedural: skills LANGUAGE
the more emphasis on MEANING the  Memory organization  Phonemes: smallest unit of sound (ch
deeper the processing, and the better o Hierarchies: memory is stored sound in chat)
remembered according to a hierarchy  Morpheme: smallest unit that caries
 Imagery – attaching images to information o Semantic networks: linked meaning (-ed means past tense)
makes it easier to remember (shoe w/ memories are stored together  Grammar: rules in a language that enable
spaghetti laces) o Schemas: preexisting mental concept us to communicate
 Self-referent encoding – we better of how something should look (like a  Semantics: set of rules by which we
remember what we’re interested in (you’d restaurant) derive meaning (adding –ed makes
remember someone’s phone number who  Memory storage something past tense)
you found extremely attractive) o Acetylcholine neurons in the  Syntax: rules for combining words into
 Dual encoding – combining different hippocampus for most memories sentences (white house vs casa blanca)
types of encoding aids in memory o Cerebellum for procedural  Babbling stage: infants babble 1st stage of
 Chunking – break info into smaller units memories speech
to aid in memory (like a phone #) o Long-term potentiation: neural basis of  One-word stage: duh
 Mnemonics – shortcuts to help us memory – connections are strengthened  Two-word stage: duh duh
remember info easier over time with repeated stimulation (more  Theories of language development:
o Acronyms – using letter to remember firing of neurons) o Imitation: Kids repeat what they hear
something (PEMDAS) RETRIEVAL: Taking info out of storage – but they don’t do it perfectly
o Method of loci – using locations to  Serial Position Effect: tendency to  Overregularization: grammar
remember a list of items in order remember the beginning and the end of the mistake where children over use
 Context dependent memory – where list best certain morphemes (I go-ed to the
you learn the info you best remember  Recall: remember what you’ve been told park)
the info (scuba divers testing) w/o cues (essays) o Operant conditioning: reinforced for
 State dependent memory – the  Recognition: remember what you’ve been language use
physical state you were in when told w/ cues (MC) o Inborn universal grammar: theory
learning is the way you should be when  Flashbulb memories: particularly vivid comes from NOAM CHOMSKY –
testing (study high, test high) memories for highly important events says that language is innate and we are
STORAGE: Retaining info over time (9/11 attacks) predisposed to learn it
 Information Processing Model –  Repressed memories: unconsciously o Critical period: period of time where
Sensory memory, short term memory, buried memories – are unreliable something must be learned or else it
long term memory model  Encoding failure: forget info b/c you cannot ever happen (language must be
 Sensory Memory – stores all incoming never encoded it (paid attention to it) in the learned young – Genie the Wild Child)
stimuli that you receive (first you have first place (which is the real penny) o Linguistic determinism: language
to a pay attention)  Encoding specificity principle: the more influences the way we think (Hopi
o Iconic Memory – visual memory, closely retrieval cues match the way we people do not have words for the past,
lasts 0.3 seconds learned the info, the better we remember thus cannot easily think about the past)
o Echoic Memory – auditory memory, the info (like state dependent memory) developed by WHORF
lasts 2-3 seconds THINKING
 Short Term Memory – info passes  Concepts: mental categories used to group
from sensory memory to STM – lasts objects, events, characteristics
30 secs, and can remember 7 ± 2 items  Prototypes: all instances of a concept are
o Rehearsal (repeating the info) resets compared to an ideal example (what you
the clock first think of)
  Algorithms: step by step strategies that o Pituitary gland: monitors, initiates, and
guarantee a solution (formula) restricts hormones
 Heuristics: short cut strategy (rule of  Males – testosterone
thumb)  Females - estrogen
o Representative Heuristic: make o Sexual Response Pattern: Excitement
inferences based on your experience phase, plateau, orgasm, refractory period
(like a stereotype) – assume someone (resolution phase) (cannot “fire” again
must be a librarian b/c they’re quiet until you reset, guys only)
o Availability heuristic: relying on o Alfred Kinsey: 1st researcher to conduct
availability to judge the frequency of studies in sex, suggested that people were
 HIERARCHY OF NEEDS: theory derived
something (over estimating death due to very promiscuous. Studies lacked a
by MASLOW – needs lower in the pyramid
plane crashes due to recent events) representative sample, created scale of
have priority over needs higher in the
 Functional Fixedness: keep using one homosexuality
pyramid
strategy – cannot think outside of the box o Homosexuality: biological roots:
 Belief bias: tendency of one’s preexisting differences in the brain, identical twins
 Intrinsic motivation: inner motivation –
beliefs to distort logical reasoning by more likely to both be gay, later sons
you do it b/c you like it
making invalid conclusions more likely to be (hormones from mom)
 Extrinsic motivation: motivation to obtain
 Belief perseverance: tendency to cling to THORIES OF EMOTIONS
a reward (trophy)
our beliefs in the face on contrary evidence JAMES-LANGE: stimulus
HUNGER
 Confirmation bias: look for evidence to physiological arousal  emotion
 Signals of hunger:
support what we already believe CANNON-BARD: stimulus 
o Stomach contractions tell us we’re hungry
 Inductive reasoning: data driven Cog. Labelphysiological arousal & emotion
o Glucose (sugar) level is maintained by
decisions, specific  general simultaneously
the pancreas (endocrine system).is the key
 Deductive reasoning: driven by logic, SCHACTER TWO FACTOR: adds in
o Insulin decreases glucose. Too little
general  specific cognitive labeling (bridge experiment)
glucose makes us hungry. stimulus  arousal interpret external
 Divergent thinking: ability to think about o Orexin is released by the hypothalamus
many different things at once cues  label emotion
– telling us to eat. Some stimuli are routed directly to the
Motivation & Emotion o Other chemicals include ghrelin, amygdala bypassing the frontal cortex (gut
(6-8%) obestatin, and PPY reaction to a cockroach)
o Lateral hypothalamus: when stimulated  Behavioral factors: there are SIX universal
THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
makes you hungry, when lesioned you emotions (happiness, anger, sadness,
 INSTINCT: complex behaviors have fixed will never eat again. (I’m LATE for
patterns and are not learned (explains surprise, disgust, feat) seen across ALL
lunch. I’m hungry. The LATEral cultures
animal motivation) hypothalamus makes you hungry.)
 DRIVE REDUCTION: physiological need Non-verbal cues: gestures, duchenne smile
o Ventromedial hypothalamus: when (you can tell a real smile from a fake one)
creates aroused tension (drive) that stimulated you feel full, when destroyed
motivates you to satisfy the need (driven by Facial feedback hypothesis: being forced
you eat eat eat eat (fat woman and cake) to smile will make you happier (facial
homeostasis: equilibrium) o Leptin: leptin signals the brain to reduce
o Primary drive: unlearned drive based expressions influence emotion)
appetite STRESS AND HEALTH
on survival (hunger, thirst)
 Obesity: GENERAL ADAPTATION
o Secondary drive: learned drive
o Increased risk of heart attack, SYNDROME (GAS): three phases of a
(wealth or success)
hypertension, atherosclerosis, diabetes stress response (SELYE came up w/ this)
 OPTIMUM AROUSAL: humans aim to o Can be genetic – adopted children
seek optimum levels of arousal –easier tasks o Alarm: body/you freak out in response to
resemble their biological parents stress
requires more arousal, harder tasks need
o Set point: there is a control system that o Resistance: body/you are dealing with
less
dictates how much fat you should carry – stress
every person is different o Exhaustion: body/you cannot take any
 Eating Disorders:
o Anorexia: weight loss of at least 15%
ideal weight, distorted body image
 Causes: overly critical parents,
perfectionist tendencies, societal ideals
o Bulimia: usually normal body weight, go
through a binge-purge eating pattern (eat
massive amounts, then throw up)
 Causes: same as anorexia
SEXUALITY more, give up
 Biology of sex:  Type A Personality: rigid, stressful person,
o Hypothalamus: stimulation increasesNot valid today
perfectionist. At risk for heart disease
sexual behavior, destruction leads to  Type B Personality: laid back, nonstressed.
sexual inhibition INDUSTRIAL/ORGANIZATIONAL
PSYCH
 Industrial / Organizational Psych: o Other senses are fairly developed o Secure attachment (60% of infants):
psychological of the workplace – focuses on o Brain development continues for a few upset when mom leaves, easily calmed
employee recruitment, placement, training, years on return. Tend to be more stable adults
satisfaction, productivity  JEAN PIAGET’S COGNITIVE DEV. o Avoidant attachment (20% infants):
 Ergonomics / Human Factors: intersection  Schemas – concepts or frameworks that actively avoids mom, doesn’t care when
of engineering and psych – focuses on organize info she leaves
safety and efficiency of human-machine  Assimilation: incorporate new info into o Ambivalent attachment(10% infants):
interactions existing schema (aSSimlation – same stuff) actively avoids mom, freaks out when
 Hawthorne effect: productivity increases  Accommodation: adjust existing schemas she leaves
when workers are made to feel important to incorporate new information o Disorganized attachment (5%):
(teacher teaches when principal comes in) (ACcommodation - All Change) confused, fearful, dazed – result of abuse
 Theory X management: manager controls  Sensorimotor Stage: Birth to 2 years:  BAUMRIND: parenting styles
employees, enforces rules. Good for lower focused on exploring the world around o Authoritarian: rules & obedience, “my
level jobs them way or the highway” – kids lack
 Theory Y management: manger gives o Lack Object Permanence: Objects when initiative in college
employees responsibility, looks for input. removed from field of view are thought to o Permissive: kids do whatever – no rules
Good for high level jobs disappear (peek-a-boo) – kids lack initiative in college
 Employee Commitment: o Dev. Sense of Self: by 2 yrs can o Authoritative: give and take w/ kids –
o Affective: emotional attachment (best recognize themselves in the mirror kids become socially competent and
type)  Pre-operational Stage: 2 – 7 years: use reliable
o Continuance: stay due to costs of leaving pretend play, developing language, using  KOHLBERG’S MORAL DEV
o Normative: stay due to obligation (they intuitive reasoning o Preconventional morality: Children:
paid for your school) o Lack Conservation: recognize that they follow rules to avoid punishment
 Meaning of Work: substances remain the same despite o Conventional morality: adolescents:
o Job – no training, just do it for $$. No changes in shape, length, or position (girls follow rules b/c rules exist to keep order
happiness with juice in glasses) o Postconventional morality: adults: they
o Career – work for advancement. Some o Lack Reversibility: cannot do reverse do what they believe is right (even if it
happiness operations (count out both 4+2 and 2+4) goes against society)
o Calling – work because you love it. Lotsa o Are egocentric: inability to distinguish  Carol Gilligan: said moral reasoning and
happiness one’s own perspective from another’s – moral behaviors are two different things
think everyone sees what they see (what you say isn’t always what you do)
Development  Concrete Operational Stage: 7-11 yrs: use  ERIKSON’S SOCIOEMOTINAL DEV. :
(7-9%) operational thinking, classification, and 8 stages, each stage represents a crisis that
 Prenatal Development: can think logical in concrete context must be resolved, results in competence or
o Zygote: 0 – 14 days, cells are dividing  Formal Operational Stage: 11-15 yrs: use weakness
o Embryo: until about 9 weeks, vital abstract and idealist thoughts, o Trust vs Mistrust (birth – 18 months): if
organs being formed hypothetical-deductive reasoning needs are dependably met infants dev
o Fetus: 9 wks to birth, overall  Problems with Piaget’s theory: stages to basic trust
development discrete, dev. differs b/w kids o Autonomy vs shame&doubt (1 -3 yrs):
o Teratogens: external agents that can  VYGOTSKY’S THEORY: cognitive toddlers learn to exercise their will and
cause abnormal prenatal development development is a social process too, need to think for themselves
(alcohol, drugs, etc) interact w/ others o Initiative vs guilt (3-6 yrs): learn to
 Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS): large o Zone of Proximal Development: gap initiate tasks and carry out plans
amount of alcohol leads to FAS, causes b/w what a child can do on their own and o Industry vs inferiority (6 yrs to
deformities, intellectual disability, w/ support. Need scaffolding (teachers) puberty): learn the pleasure of applying
death SOCIOEMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT themselves to tasks
 Temperament: patterns of emotional o Identity vs role confusion: (adolescence
 Physical Development: reactions and babies (precursor to thru 20s): refine a sense of self by testing
o Maturation: natural course of personality) roles and forming an identity
development, occurs no matter what  Imprinting: baby geese believe the first o Intimacy vs isolation: (20s—40s): form
(walking) thing they see after hatching is their mom – close relationships and gain capacity for
o Reflexes: innate responses we’re born happens during a critical period (from love
with LORENZ) o Generativity vs stagnation: (40s-60s):
 Rooting, sucking, swallowing,  HARRY HARLOW: discovered that discover sense of contributing to the
grasping, stepping contact comfort is more important than world, thru family & work
o Habituation: after continual exposure feeding (monkeys fed on wire or cloth o Integrity vs despair: (60s and up):
you pay less attention – used to test mothers). Monkeys raised in isolation reflect on your life, feel satisfaction or
babies couldn’t socialize failure
o Eyes have the most limited  MARY AINSWORTH: developed the  PUBERTY! (rapid skeletal and sexual
development, takes till 1 year strange situation paradigm (children left maturation)
 Visual cliff: babies have to learn depth alone in a room w/ a stranger, then reunited
perception, so they will cross a “cliff” w/ mom – determines your attachment style
 o Primary sex characteristics: necessary When ego cannot mediate b/w the id and o Transference: looks for feelings to
structures for reproduction (ovaries, superego, we use defense mechanisms transferred to psychoanalyst
testicles, vagina, penis)  Repression: push memories back into the o Dream interpretation: analyze the
o Secondary sex characteristics: unconscious mind (sexual abuse is too manifest (seen message) and latent
nonreproductive characteristics that dev traumatic to deal w/ so you repress it) (hidden messages) content
during puberty (breasts, hips, deepening  Projection: attribute personal shortcomings o Projective Tests: ambiguous stimuli
of voice, body hair) & faults on to others (man who wants to shown to look at your unconscious
o Frontal lobe continuous dev (not fully have an affair accuses his wife of having motives (THESE SUCK B/C THEY
developed till 25) one) ARE VERY SUBJECTIVE)
 GENDER DEVELOPMENT: sex =  Denial: refuse to acknowledge reality  Thematic apperception test (TAT) :
chromosomes, gender = what you identify (refuse to believe you have cancer) tell a story about a picture (when
yourself as Displacement; shift feelings from an someone has a tattoo (tatt) you ask
o Gender roles: expected behaviors unacceptable object to a more acceptable what it means
(norms) for men/women one (can’t tell at teacher, go home and yell  Rorschach inkblot: show an inkblot
o Social learning theory: we learn gender at the dog) NEO-FREUDIANS
roles and identity from those around us  Reaction formation: transform  CARL JUNG: believed in the collective
 AGING: unacceptable motive into his opposite unconsciouss (shared inherited reservoir of
o Cellular clock theory: cells have a (woman who fears sexual urges becomes a memory – explains common myths across
maximum # of divisions before they religious zealot) civilizations & time)
can’t divide anymore  Regression: transform into an earlier  KAREN HORNEY: said personality
o Free-radical theory: unstable oxygen development period in the face of stress develops in context of social relationships,
molecules w/in cells damage DNA (during exam week you start to suck your NOT sexual urges (security not sex is
o Over time skills decrease (reaction thumb) motivation, men get womb envy)
time, memory)  Rationalization: replace a less acceptable TRAIT PERSPECTIVE
 CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY: studies reasoning with a more acceptable one (don’t  Traits are enduring personality
ppl of different ages at the same point in get into your college – justify it was a sucky characteristics, people can be described by
time college anyway) these – have strong or weak tendencies.
o Adv: inexpensive & quick  Sublimation: replace unacceptable impulse They are stable, genetic, and predict other
o Disadv: can be differences due to w/ a socially acceptable one (man w/ strong attributes.
generational gap sexual urges paints nudes. Dexter)  Use factor analysis to find these: statistical
FREUD’S PSYCHOSEXUAL STAGES procedure used to identify similar
 LONGITUDINAL STUDY: studies same
ppl over time  Oral stage (0-18 months): pleasure focuses components
o Adv: eliminates groups differences, lots on the mouth (id)  TRAIT THEORIES:
 Anal stage (18 – 36 months): pleasure  Big Five: (by Costa & McCrae) (acronym
of detail
involves eliminative functions (ego forms) OCEAN) You vary on each of these
o Disadv: expensive, time consuming, high
drop out rates  Phallic stage (3 – 6 yrs): pleasure focuses o Openness : imaginative, independent, like
on genitals (superego forms) variety
 Problem-focused coping: solving or doing
o Oedipal complex: young boys learn to o Conscientiousness: organized, careful,
something to alter the course of stress
(planning, acceptance) identify w/ their father out of fear of disciplined
retribution (castration anxiety) o Extraversion: sociable, fun-loving,
 Emotion-focused coping: reducing the
o Electra complex: young girls learn to affectionate (opoosite it introversion:
emotional distress (denial, disengagement)
identify w/ their mother b/c they cannot shy, timid, reserved)
Personality with their father (penis envy) o Agreeableness: soft hearted, trusting,
(5-7%)  Latency stage (6 yrs to puberty): psychic helpful
time out – personality is set o Neuroticism (emotional stability): calm,
PSYCHODYNAMIC EXPLANATION
SIGMUND FREUD said personality was  Genital State (adulthood): sexual secure
largely unconscious. reawakening – oedipal and electra What’s wrong with trait theory? – ignores
“feelings” are repressed, turn sexual wants the role of the situation in behavior
 Conscious: immediate awareness of current
onto an appropriate person What’s good about it? - identifying traits
environment
 FIXATION: can become “stuck” in an gives us perspectives about careers,
 Preconscious: available to awareness
earlier stage – influences personality (oral relationships, health
(phone #s)
stage smokes/drinks, anal is “anal
 Unconscious: unavailable to awareness
retentive”, phallic is promiscuous)
 id: our hidden true animalistic wants and How do we test this approach?
What’s wrong w/ Freud theory? –
desires – operates on the pleasure principle,
unverifiable, descriptive not predictive  MMPI – helpful for mental health and job
all about rewards and avoiding pain (devil
What’s good about it? – 1st theory about placement
on your shoulder – entirely unconscious)
personality, sparked psychoanalysis  Myer’s Briggs – gave you 4 letter combo
 superego: our moral conscious (angel on How do we test this approach? What’s wrong w/ these tests?
your shoulder, all 3 consciousness)
 Psychoanalysis: analyze a person’s  They’re long, social desirability can be an
 ego: reality principle, has to deal w/ society, unconscious motives thru the use of: influence, and they’re too broad
stuck mediating b/w the id and superego (its o Free Association: say aloud everything HUMANISTIC PERSPECTIVE
you! – conscious and preconscious)
that comes to mind w/o hesitation  Emphasized personal growth and free will.
You don’t like yourself? So change!
 CARL ROGERS: talked about our self-  GALTON: 1st to suggest intelligence was o Achievement: tests what you know(SAT)
concept (idea of who we are). Your self- inherited. Intelligence based on muscle  TEST CREATION:
concept is the center of your personality strength, size of head, reaction time, etc. o Standardization: administer a test to a
o Actual (social) self: what others see  CATTELL: 2 clusters of mental abilities representative sample of future test takers
o Ideal (true) self: who you WANT to be o Crystalized intelligence: reasoning and to establish a basis for meaningful
o A positive self-concept makes us perceive verbal skills - what you learn in school – comparison (test it out 1st)
the world positively (optimist) the cold hard (like crystals!) facts o Should be reliable: same results over
o A negative self-concept makes us feel o Fluid intelligence: spatial abilities, rote time
dissatisfied and unhappy memory, things that come natural to you  Split-half reliability: compare two
What wrong with humanistic theory? - – can’t learn in school. Also decrease halves of the test
too optimistic about human nature, abstract over time  Test-retest reliability: use the same
concepts are difficult to test  SPEARMAN’S G FACTOR: said a test on 2 different occasions
What’s good about it? – emphasizes general intelligence (g) underlies all mental o Should be valid: test is accurate –
conscious experiences and change abilities (typical IQ of today) measures what it is intended to
 Individualistic Cultures: give priorities to  GARDNER: multiple intelligences (8):  Content validity: test measures what
own goals over group goals. Define your linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, you want it to (an IQ test actually
identify in terms of you (American society) spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, intrapersonal measures IQ)
 Collectivistic Cultures: give priority to the (self), interpersonal (social), naturalist  Predictive validity: test is able to
goals of the group, your identity is part of  STERNBERG: TRIARCHIC THEORY accurately predict a trait (high math
that group (China) o Analytical: mental components to solve scores predicts good engineer)
SOCIAL-COGNITIVE PERSPECTIVE problems, what IQ tests assess (book  Standardized tests establish a normal
 Behavior is a complex interaction of inner smarts) distribution
process and environmental influence – o Practical: ability to size up new  Standard deviations are used to compare
which influences personality situations and adapt to real-life demands scores.
 Emphasizes conscious awareness, beliefs, (street smarts)  Standard deviation measures how much
expectations, and goals o Creative: intellectual and motivational the scores vary from the mean. The
 BANDURA! Talked about RECIPROCAL processes that lead to novel solutions, percentages stay the same in every curve
DETERMINISM: interaction of behavior, idea, products
cognitions,  BINET: developed 1st intelligence test,
and combined with TERMAN – developed
environment the STANFORD-BINET IQ TEST
make up you.

{I’m
outgoing o Chronological age = actual age
(behavior), I o Mental age = tested age compared to
choose to teach b/c it lets me be other of that age
outgoing (environment), and I have o 100 is average
thought this through which is why I  WECHSLER: developed the WAIS and
teach despite making less money WISC – most commonly used today Abnormal Behavior
(cognitive)}  FLYNN effect: IQ has steadily risen over
 Self-efficacy: belief that one can succeed, the past 80 years – probably due to (7 – 9%)
so you ensure you do education standards and better IQ tests  Defining abnormal behavior:
 Internal locus of control: you control your  Extremes of Intelligence: high IQ = above o Requires “clinically significant”
own fate 135; intellectual disability = below 70 disturbance in cognition, emotional
 External locus of control: chance / outside  Causes of intellectual disability: regulation or behavior AND
forces control your fate o PKU – liver fails to produce an enzyme o Significant distress or disability social
What’s wrong with social-cognitive? – Too needed to breakdown chemicals – leads situations, occupations or other important
specific, cannot generalize to brain damage activities
What’s good about it? – Highlights o Down syndrome – extra copy of 21st  Historical causes: biology, psychological
situations, and cognitive explanations of chromosome issues, supernatural issues (demons)
personality o Fragile X – higher chance in boys due to  Medical model: emphasizes treatment of
How do we test it? – Observations & ONE X chromosome disorders, as they have a biological origin.
interviews (time consuming)  Influence on IQ: Came through the reformation of
o Genetics: MZ twins have similar IQ, institutions in U.S. (DORTHEA DIX)
Testing & adopted kids more similar to biological  Biopsychosocial model: currently used
parents model – stress biological, psychological,
Individual Differences o Environment: early neglect leads to and social causes
(5-7%) lower IQ, good schooling to higher IQ  Diagnosing abnormal behavior:
Individual Theories about Intelligence  Types of Tests: o DSM: manual listing all currently
o Aptitude: predicts your abilities to learn accepted psychological disorders.
a new skill (ASVAB) Classifies them based on criteria –
 provides no explanation of causes or  Major depressive disorder: extreme  Marked by disruptive, inflexible, enduring
treatments sadness and despair, apathy towards life, w/ behavior patterns – makes this very
ANXIETY DISORDERS no known cause difficult to treat!
Most common disorders in the U.S.  Disruptive mood regulation disorder: o Antisocial: NOT “avoidant of
 Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD): Frequent temper tantrums inconsistent with socialization” – more like “anti-society” –
person is generally anxious, all the time, for developmental level AP exam favorite
disregard for others, manipulative, breaks
NO REASON  Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): form laws
 Panic Disorder: person is prone to frequent of depression that occurs typically winter – o Borderline: instable interpersonal
panic attacks (feeling like you’re having a found mostly in Northern areas (Alaska, relationships & self-image, “I hate you,
heart attack). Can come w/ agoraphobia: Ireland) UNIQUE TREATMENT = don’t leave me”
anxiety about being in places you cannot LIGHT THERAPY o Histrionic: excessive emotionality &
escape (fear of public spaces / people) BIPOLAR DISORDERS attention seeking
 Phobias: irrational fear that disrupts your  Bipolar disorder: bouts of severe o Narcissistic: need for admiration & lack
life depression & manic episodes of empathy (who cares about everyone
CAUSES OF ANXIETY DISORDERS: o Mania: heightened mood, characterized else – look at me!)
 Psychodynamic: repressed thoughts & by risky behaviors, fast talking, flights of
feelings manifest in anxiety and rituals ideas
Treatment of
 Behaviorist: fear conditioning leads to CAUSES OF DEPRESSIVE AND Psychological Disorders
anxiety, which is then reinforced. Phobias
might be learned through observational
BIPOLAR DISORDERS (5-7%)
learning  Biology: lower levels of serotonin &
 PSYCHODYNAMIC APPROACH: SEE
Biological: natural selection favored those with norepinephrine linked to depression, higher
PERSONALITY SECTION
certain phobias (heights). Twins often share levels of norepinephrine linked to mania.
disorders. Often see less GABA in the brain Runs in families suggesting GENES. Twin  HUMANISTIC APPROACH:
o Client-centered therapy: (developed by
 Obsessive-compulsive Disorders (OCD): studies also support this.
person sf overwhelmed with both:  Cognitive: negative thought patterns leads CARL ROGERS) techniques include
o Obsessions: persistent unwanted thoughts to depression active listening, accepting environment,
SCHIZOPHRENIA focuses on patient growth (you figure
(did I leave the stove on?)
NOT MULTIPLE PERSONALITIES! out what needs to change and do it)
o Compulsions: senseless rituals (hand
THEY HAVE ONE PERSONALITY!  COGNITIVE APPROACH:
washing)
 SYMPTOMS o Rational-emotive therapy: (developed
 Post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD):
o Positive Symptoms (not good – means by ELLIS) techniques include analyzing
characterized by flashbacks, problems w/
something added)) self-defeating behaviors to change
concentration, and anxiety following a
 Hallucinations: sensory experiences thought patterns – and then change
traumatic event (war, natural disasters)
w/o sensory stimulation (seeing and/or behaviors associated w/ said patterns
SOMATOFORM DISORDERS
hearing things)  Best for anxiety disorders
 Psychological disorders w/ no apparent
 Delusions: fixed, false beliefs (people  Very confrontational
physical cause
are out to get them, grandiose thoughts o Cognitive therapy: (developed by
o Conversion disorder: loss of feeling or
(I am God) BECK) illogical thoughts 
usage of a limb or body part (sight) –
 Disorganized thinking, Disorganized psychological problems, challenges
absolutely no physiological cause though
speech those thoughts
o Illness Anxiety Disorder: person
o Negative Symptoms (something taken  Best for depression
interprets normal symptoms as a major
away)  Self-directed – you figure out your
disease – must disrupt their life
 Flat affect: lack ability to show errors
DISSOCIATIVE DISORDERS
emotions  BEHAVIORAL APPROACH (typically
 Dissociative Identity Disorder: formerly
 Impaired decision making, inability used for anxiety disorders / phobias)
multiple personalities – person fractures
to pay attention o Classical Conditioning:
into several distinct personalities who
o Catatonia: become frozen over periods  Counterconditioning Little Albert &
normally have no awareness of each other.
of time (exhibit waxy flexibility: can Watson
NOT SCHIZOPHRENIA!
move them into new positions)  Aversive conditioning: associate an
o Usually caused by traumatic childhood
 CAUSES OF SCHIZOPHRENIA unpleasant experience (e.g. nausea)
abuse
o Brain abnormalities: enlarged ventricles w/ an unwanted behavior (e.g.
o Legitimacy is doubted by some, more
(atrophy), smaller frontal cortex drinking alcohol)
common in those w/ good health  Exposure therapy: slowly expose
insurance o Genetics: runs in families, MZ twins at
people to whatever it is that makes
o Treatment involves integration of the higher risk
them anxious
personalities o Dopamine hypothesis: too much
 Systematic desensitization:
 Dissociative Amnesia + Fugue: following dopamine in the brain
associate a pleasant relaxed state w/
a traumatic event a person leaves, taking on o Diathesis – Stress: individual has a
gradually increasing anxiety
a whole new life & personality w/ no genetic predisposition, disease must be
triggering stimuli (create a
memory of the previous one “turned-on” by environmental stimuli
desensitization hierarchy – ex. List of
DEPRESSIVE DISORDERS (like stress) –most commonly developed
things about flying that makes you
during college years
nervous – step through each one till
PERSONALITY DISORDERS
you can do it)
  Intensive exposure therapy arguments and explanations. Leads to  Risky shift: groups make riskier decisions
(Flooding): force someone to long term behavior change together rather than alone
experience the fear (afraid of  Peripheral route to persuasion: change PREJUDICE
drowning, throw you in a pool) people’s attitudes through incidental cues  Ingroup: “US” – ppl w/ whom we share a
o Operant Conditioning: use behavior (like a speaker’s attractiveness). Leads to common identity
modification (reward good behaviors w/ temporary behavior changes  Outgroup: “them” – ppl perceived as
token reinforcers ). Used in schools, w/  Foot in the door phenomenon: different or not part of the group
autistic children, etc. complying w/ a small request then leads  Ingroup bias: tendency to favor our own
 OTHER THERPAIES: to going along w/ a larger request (can I group
o Family therapy: treats the family as a have $5? Yes. Now can I have $25?)  Scapegoat theory: prejudice offers an
system, individual behaviors are  Door in the face phenomenon: a large outlet for anger by providing someone
influenced by family dynamics request is turned down, when then leads you else to blame
o Group therapy: therapy through a group to be more likely to comply w/ a small  Ethnocentrism: tendency to see your
– lets patients see “they’re not alone” request (can I have $100? Heck no! How own group as more important than others
 BIOLOGICAL APPROACH: CALLED about $20? Okay)  Just-world phenomenon: tendency for
BIOMEDICAL THERAPIES  STANFORD PRISON EXPERIMENT ppl to believe that the world is just and
o Drug therapies (psychopharmacology): (ZIMBARDO): classic “experiment” therefore ppl get what they deserve
 Anti-psychotics: decrease dopamine: where individuals were assigned to be (homeless ppl)
treats schizophrenia guards / prisoners. w/in days they took on AGGRESION
 Side effects: TARDIVE their roles and went too far. Highly  Genetic influence: runs in families, can
DYSKINESIA: hand tremors (similar unethical breed for in animals
to Parkinson’s- due to lack of  Cognitive dissonance (FESTINGER): two  Lower serotonin, higher testosterone
dopamine), worsening of negative opposing thoughts conflict w/ each other,  Environmental influence: social
symptoms, extreme sedation causing discomfort (dissonance), which learning theory (BANDURA) – observing
 Drug names: thorazine, clozapine makes us find ways to justify the situation violence in others makes us more violent
 Anti-depressants: increase serotonin (cult that was going to be abducted by for a time
through REUPTAKE inhibition aliens, smokers) o Also: pollution, crowding, heat, humidity
 Side effects: drowsiness, anxiety, can SOCIAL INFLUENCE  Frustration-aggression hypothesis:
increase suicide risk in teens  Conformity: classic experiment done by frustration creates anger, which leads to
 Drug names: SSRIs (selective ASCH – showed lines of different lengths, aggression
serotonin reuptake inhibitors) like confederates gave wrong answers to see if ATTRACTION
others would go along w/ it
Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil. SNRIs (selective  Mere exposure effect: repeated exposure
norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors) o Normative social influence: we to novel stimuli increases liking of them
Cymbalta, Effexor conform to gain approval or to not stand (the more time you spend around
 Mood stabilizers: used in the treatment out from the group (be part of the norm something the more you like it)
of BIPOLAR disorder : LITHIUM o Informational social influence: we  Physical attractiveness: pretty ppl are
 Anti-anxiety drugs: depress the conform to others b/c we think their thought to be more credible, less likely to
central nervous system (dangerous in opinions must be right do bad things
combo w/ alcohol) Xanax, Ativan  Obedience: classic experiment done by  Similarity: we prefer ppl similar to us
o Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT): send MILGRAM: participants were to “teach”  Passionate Love: Early stage of romance
electricity to induce minor seizures. Used another individual using shocks. 60% of – intense pos. obsession w/ another (due
(rarely) to treat depression (when nothing participants would administer lethal shocks to arousal)
else works). Thought to “reboot” the brain to another person simply b/c they were told
 Compassionate Love: Later stage – deep
o Psychosurgery (frontal lobotomy): to
attachment to someone who your life is
frontal lobe is surgically destroyed. Used GROUP INFLUENCE
intertwined w/ - best with equality and
to treat depression or violent individuals –  Social facilitation: perform better on self-disclosure (revealing intimate details
almost never used anymore simple or well learned tasks in the presence about self)
of others
Social  Social loafing: tendency for ppl in a group
ALTRUISM
 Altruism: unselfish regard for the
(8-10%) to exert less effort when pooling their effort welfare of others
 Attribution theory: we explain others together (tug of war)
 Bystander effect: the more ppl around
behaviors by crediting the situation or the  Deindividuation: loss of self-awareness the less likely we are to help someone in
person’s disposition (they only passed b/c and self-restraint occurring in group need (Kitty Genovese)
they cheated) situations that foster arousal and anonymity
 Social exchange theory: social behavior
 Fundamental attribution error (mob mentality)
(helping) is an exchange process – aim is
tendency for observers to underestimate  Group polarization: the more time spent to maximize benefits and minimize cost
the importance of the situation and w/ a group the more similar (polarized) their
 Reciprocity norm: we give so we can get
overestimate the impact of personal thoughts / opinions will become
disposition (that guy cut me off b/c he’s a  Groupthink: desire for harmony w/in a
jerk – not that his wife could be in labor) group leads to everyone going along w/ the
 Central route to persuasion: change same thinking, ignoring other possibilities
people’s attitudes through logical or bad ideas
CONFLICT
 Social trap: conflicting parties pursue
their own best interests, which can result
in destructive results (prisoner’s dilemma
– game theory)

 Approach approach conflict: win – win

situation; conflict is which win you have
to choose (you can eat out at ONE of your
two favorite restaurants – you can only
choose one though)
 Approach avoidance conflict: win – lose
situation; outcome has positive and
negative aspects (marriage)
 Avoidance avoidance conflict : lose –
lose; both outcomes are bad but you have
to choose one (clean your room or do
your homework)
 Multiple approach avoidance conflict:
two (or more) win-lose situations; conflict
is which to choose (College A is good for
your major but no scholarship, College B
is bad for your major but has a
scholarship)
SOCIAL SELF
 Self-concept bias: what we consider
important in ourselves is what we
consider important in others
 False-consensus effect: we overestimate
the degree to which everyone else thinks /
acts the way we do
 Self-fulfilling prophecy: a belief that
leads to its own fulfillment (I expect you
all to pass, you know this, you study –
fulfilling my prophecy)
 Self-serving bias: readiness to perceive
ourselves as favorably
 Spotlight effect (self-objectification) :
tendency of an individual to overestimate
the extent to which others are paying
attention to them

FRQ TIPS: Define then Apply the term. B.S.

what you don’t know!