What is Psychology?
the science that studies behavior and mental processes.
How did the Tayshaun Prince illustrate what Psychology is about?
? Tayshaun Prince 5 for 5 YouTube
-how did you behave while waiting? Sitting up in your seat, a particular sound, different emotions
3 ways of doing Psych
1. Applied Psychological Specialties (about 65% of all PhD Psychologist): tackle real world problems.
i) Ex: school Psychologist, industrial/ organizational Psychologist, human factor Psychologist, clinical Psychologist, counseling Psychologist
2.Experimental Psychologist
-conduct basic research
i) Ex: cognitive, physiological, developmental, social
3.Teachers
Difference between a psychologist and a psychiatrist
a) A psychologist is not the same as a psychiatrist
i) Psychiatrist is an M.D. - can prescribe drugs
ii) Some states psychologist can
What were the examples of how Psychology is so specialized?
1. Relationships between the brain and psychological phenomena
-electrical brain stimulation
2. Atomization
Example-the Stroop Effect
Was faster on the first test
What slowed her down was she was reading, bit trying to focus on the colors
What was the color of the word was the same, it was congruent.
In the second time around she read it automatically
3. Conformity
Were conformist. Going out to eat with friends and out voted
4. Eating disorders
They don't know they have a problem
5. Forgetting
Why do we forget things?
Dreams
i) Conscious Mental Experiences
(1) Incorporating what is said while sleeping into a dream
What were the examples of how a single phenomenon can be studied from different vantage points?
Example: Dreams
1. Conscious mental experience
-Incorporating what is said while sleeping into a dream
-talk to someone while they dream
2. Dreams as Behavior
-Rapid eye movements (REM) during 85% of dreams
-electroencephalogram (EEG) patterns during realm similar to those when awake
3. Dreams reflect the unconscious
? Dreams are a censored masquerade defending you from the clash between unconscious urges (e.g., sex) and civilizing constraints imposed by society
-symbols in dreams reflect unconscious urges
4. Dreams as cognition
? Dreams reflect what we don't know, experienced, remembered, or thought about
EX. Dieting, upcoming exams, someone you are attracted to
What is an operational definition?
define what you are studying in terms of specific operations
(i) Ex: what does it mean to get more sleep?
1. Operationally define "more sleep" in terms of: hours of sleep
(ii) What does it mean to "have better memory for material"
1. Operationally define memory in terms of: specific test scores
Scientific Method- step 1
(1) Develop a theory
(a) Ex: sleep increases memory
Scientific Method- step 2
(2) Develop a hypothesis
(a)A testable prediction based on a theory
(b)Ex: people who get more sleep have a better memory for exam material
Scientific Method- step 3
(3) Collect data
(a) Collect data (empirical evidence) that supports or refutes hypothesis
Scientific Method- step 4
(4) Analyze the results
(a) Determine if the hypo is accepted or rejected
Scientific Method- step 5
(5) Publishing, criticizing and replicating the results
(a) Report findings precisely enough in a scientific journal so that others can test your hypo and replicate your findings
What does it mean to "go beyond the data?
? Evaluation of ideas based on probability
-no statements of certainty
-what is the probability that I got this result by chance?
-best to have results where the probability of getting result by chance is less than 5 in 100
Descriptive Methods-Survey
questionnaire or interview administrated to select group (random sample) of people
(1) Obtain descriptions of behaviors from more people than direct observation usually allows
(a) Take a random sample of the population because you cannot usually ask everyone about the behavior in question
(2) Your sample should be representative of the population
Descriptive Methods-Case Studies
intensive description and analysis of single individual
What does correlation mean with respect to causality
i) Ex: A positive correlation between success in college and eating chocolate chip cookies dough ice cream does not mean eating this ice cream will cause you to do well
(1) Could be another factor
What are practical problems in data collection?
? Practical considerations in conducting research:
Length may be too long
Amount of money may too much (buying equipment)
Too many subjects and I can't get to them all
Independent Variable
vary it independently of other factors
(1) EX: Hypo- watching TV lowers test grades
(a) IV is watching TV or not
Dependent Variable
varies depending on what happens in the experiment. Dependent on the manipulation
DEPENDS ON THE INDEPENDENT
(1) EX: Hypo- watching TV lowers test grades
(a) DV is exam scores
ethical Problems in psychological data collection
a) Ethical considerations in conducting research�shock, deprivation, aggression
Neurons
a) Estimated to be over 100 billion neurons in the human nervous system
(1) Individual cell-neuron
(2) Multiple neurons serving a single function-nerve A neuron is an electrically excitable cell that processes and transmits information through electrical and chemical signals
Neurons consist of 3 parts
1.Cell body (soma)
2.Dentrites
3.Axon
Cell body (soma)
metabolism occurs here
Dendrites
#NAME?
Axon
- single fiber extending away from soma that transmits activity to other neurons, muscles or glands
(a) May be 2-3 feet long
(b) Glial cells form a myelin sheath around axon- protective coat that helps speed neuron impulse
(i) Hardening of myelin sheath lads to less ability to transmit nerve impulse (multiple sclerosis)
Synapse
junction between neurons(slight physical separation) Information from one neuron flows to another neuron across a synapse.
Electrochemical process
(1) How does it start? Or how to neurons communicate?
(a) Neurons communicate via chemical messengers classed neurotransmitters that are stored in synaptic vesicles
(b) The neurotransmitters cross from one neuron to another at receptor sites to excite(switch on) and inhibit
Neurotransmitters and their functions
i) Acetylcholine (Ach)- enables muscle action, learning, and memory
(1) Fewer neurons that produce Ach in Alzheimer's patients
ii) Serotonin- affects mood, hunger, sleep and arousal
(1) Low levels tied to depression (Prozac and other drugs raise serotonin levels
What is the difference between an antagonist and an agonist?
i) Antagonist- a drug that bins to a cell and blocks action from occurring
(1) Ex: curare clocks receptor sites fro the muscles (including the heart)
ii) Agonist- a drug that binds to the cell and triggers a response by the cell
(1) Ex: some opiate drugs (morphine) produce a temporary "high" by amplifying normal sensations of pleasure
What comprises the central nervous system?
The nervous system comprises the central nervous system, consisting of the brain and spinal cord, and the peripheral nervous system, consisting of the cranial, spinal, and peripheral nerves, together with their motor and sensory endings...
Brainstem
(a) A medulla-breathing and heartbeat
(b) Reticular formation-helps to control arousal
(i) Researchers in 1949 found that if you electrically stimulate the RF in a sleeping cat, the cat almost immediately becomes awake and alert
(c) Thalamus- sensory relay station on way to cortex
(i) Receives sensory info from all except smell
(d) Cerebellum- non-verbal learning, memory, motor coordination, balance
Limbic System
ring of structures around the brain stem
(a) Amygdale- linked to emotion (aggression and fear) and conscious memories
(b) Hippocampus- helps in forming memories
(c) Hypothalamus-control of temp, metabolism, endocrine balance, and linked to emotion and reward (including pleasure)
What is the cerebral cortex?
outer layer of right and left hemisphere
(a) Each hemispheres have lobes
(b) What we think about when we typically talk about the brain
Thalamus
Part of the Brainstem
sensory relay station on way to cortex
Cerebellum
Part of the Brainstem
non-verbal learning, memory, motor coordination, balance
Hippocampus
Part of the limbic system
helps in forming memories
Hypothalamus
Part of the limbic system
control of temp, metabolism, endocrine balance, and linked to emotion and reward (including pleasure)
Sensory functions of the cerebral cortex
1. Includes receiving sensory info and dispatching motor control signals
Motor functions of the cerebral cortex
1. Keep in mind that typically the right hemisphere controls the left part of the body and the left hemisphere controls the right part of the body
Association areas (3/4 of cortex)
1. Involved in "higher mental functioning" such as learning remembering, thinking, speaking, and integrating information
Mapping the cortex
(i) Each hemisphere broken into lobes (ex visual lobe in the back of brain)
What are the lobes of the brain?
1.Frontal
2.Parietal
3.Occipital
4.Temporal
Frontal Lobe
modifies emotions to generally fit socially acceptable norms as well as planning, reasoning, memory
a. Damage to frontal lobes can lead to a person who shows no impulse controls
b. Case of Phineas Gage
Broca's area
damage to this leads to loss of speech production but speech comprehension is not affected L HEM
Wernicke's area
damage to this leads to loss of speech comprehension but speech production not affected . L HEM
corpus callosum
connects the hemispheres
What psychological function does each hemisphere have?
(a) Besides controlling different halves of the body, the functions of each hemisphere are different (cerebral lateralization)
(b) In a typical right handed person:
(i) Right hemisphere- spatial orientation, face recognition, music, visual imagery
(ii) Left hemisphere- language, math, logic
Visual pathways from the eyes to the brain
1.retina
2.optic chiasm
3.blind spot
retina
has the receptor cells that absorb light and are connected to nerve cells leading to the brain
What is the optic chiasm?
where fibers cross over in brain
blind spot
where optic nerve leaves eye
Seeing color
a) Depends on wavelength of light�brain processes info contained in light
b) Hue-essential colors (ROGYBV)
How does seeing color work?
Stage 1
b) Red green and blue cones respond to stimuli
c) Young-Helmholtz Trichromatic Theory
i) All colors are combos if red green and blue and there are receptor cells in the retina for these 3
d) Nicely explains color blindness-deficiency in one of the receptors
stage 2
a) After leaving receptors, the visual info is analyzed in terms of Opponent processes (3 stage system)
i) Red vs. green
ii) Blue vs. yellow
iii) Black vs. white
Color Blindness
a) 10% men
b) 1% women
c) Trichromat-normal
d) Dichromat- lack one receptor (red or green)
e) Monochromat�only light-dark receptors
c) Body senses (vestibular, kinesthetic)
c) Body senses (vestibular, kinesthetic)
i) Vestibular- body orientation with respect to gravity, movement of body as a whole (equilibrium)
ii) Kinesthetic (muscle, tendon, and join senses)�position and movement of body parts
Other senses
a) Hearing (griggs, pp. 103-105)
b) Chemical senses (taste, smell)
c) Body senses (vestibular, kinesthetic)
i) Vestibular- body orientation with respect to gravity, movement of body as a whole (equilibrium)
ii) Kinesthetic (muscle, tendon, and join senses)�position and movement of body parts
d) Skin (cutaneous)
Perception
a) Process through which people use knowledge and understanding of the world to interpret sensations as meaningful experiences (ex- to understand what is the meaning behind he sensory info)
i) How is it that you understand that I am smaller than the screen on the stage, or that I have feet if in the back
ii) With out it the would be confused
b) Perception is an active process
i) To hear something we turn our head
ii) To determine the shape of something we manipulate it in our hand
iii) If there are gaps in sensory info, the brain fills them
Necker cube example
i) Illusion
Industrial Psych
Work place
School Psych
Deal with school children, help teachers
Cognitive
Mental process, memory
Physiological
how behaviors effect on bodily functions
Social
peoples thoughts feeling behaviors are constructed and translate to others
Developmental
age, or stages of age, children or elders
Neuro
brain process, neurons and drugs- behaviors effect brain, diseases
Degrees in psychology
i) BA, BS: may work as a lab assistant or technician, or go on to do something completely different
ii) MA, MS: may practice therapy (supervised by a Ph.D. or M.D.) or be involved in more intensive research programs, or teach.
iii) Ph.D. or PsyD (clinical vs. experimental?) May practice therapy in private or in hospital setting, oversea and conduct research, teach undergraduate/graduate courses
Peer reviewed journals
i) Per reviewed journals
(1) Before being published, research articles in psych (and any science for that matter) are reviewed by other experts in the field.
(a) Ex: psych science, journal of experimental psych, human psychopharmacology
(2) APA (American psych association) format
(3) Abstract (brief), introduction (in-depth research, can give you a lot of info on the subject, gaps it wants to fill, and thesis) methods (the steps this study took to do the research), results (stats, numbers and results), discussion (discuss results, what went wrong, right, do differently, future research), references
Reference
i) Last Name, F.M Other Last Name, F.M., & Last Name, F.M. (Year). The ----Tab---------name of the article: Use caps only at the beginning of the title Tab--------or after colon. The Title of the Journal Uses Caps, 23(2), 490-502.
(1) 23= volume
(2) 2-issue
(3) 409-502-page#
(4) Listed in alphabetical order by last name
Nominal
assign numbers to things that aren't numbers, but numbers represent them (1 if male, 2 if female)
Ordinal
scale (1-10 how happy are you) low, medium, high, but things in order
Interval
you know there is a set difference between things (temp or time of day (60 min between an hour))
Ratio
has an absolute (zero, ruler, income, gpa) anything you can have 0 of
Correlation
a) Positive
i) As A increases, B increases also as A decreases, B decreases
b) Negative
i) As A increases B decreases, A decreases, B increases
What is the goal of a science?
? As a science, the goal of psychology (and other sciences) is to discover the laws or principles that govern the relations among objects being studied
What are the specific research methods of Psychology
1. Descriptive methods-not interference with behavior
2. Correlational method-i) Investigate relationship between 2 variables to determine whether they occur together or not in a systematic way
ii) Value +1 and -1 (correlational coefficient
3. Experimental Method-a) Establish cause and effect
i) Manipulate an independent variable to see the effect on the dependent variable
What are the three parts of a neuron?
3. Axon�single fiber extending away from soma that transmits activity other neurons muscle or glands
-may be 2 to 3 feet long
-glial cells form a myelin sheath around axon�protective coat that helps speed neuron impulse
-multiple sclerosis-hardening of the myelin sheath leads to less ability to transmit nerve impulse
How many layers are there of the brain?
a) Brainstem
Limbic System
Cerebral cortex
What major parts comprise the brainstem?
a) Brainstem
-medulla�breathing and heartbeat
b) Reticular information�helps to control arousal
c) Thalamus�sensory relay station on way to cortex
d) `11Cerebellum�non-verbal, learning, memory, motor coordination and balance
What major parts comprise the limbic system?
Limbic System�ring of structures around the brainstem
? Amygdala�linked to emotion (aggression and fear) and conscious memories
? Hippocampus�helps in forming memories
? Hypothalamus�control of temperature, metabolism, endocrine balance
How do the hemispheres of the brain control motor function?
Right side of brain controls left side functions and left side controls right side functions
Who was Phineas Gage?
#NAME?
What is the difference between Broca's Area and Wernicke's Area?
...
What is cerebral lateralization?
? Besides controlling different halves of the body, the function of each hemisphere are different (cerebral lateralization)
Discuss an experiment involving a split brain patient.
Split brain patients�cut corpus callosum in cases of severe epilepsy
? Ex. Split brain patient... picture of the cup going into the left hemisphere
-There objects behind the screen the person can't see
-They ask what they see and the see a cup, left hemisphere controls the area
-the left hemisphere controls language
? Ex. The right hemisphere doesn't see anything
-the right hemisphere control special
-even though you can't tell me what it is, try to pick out the right object and they can because the right hemisphere is special
What is the peripheral nervous system?
? Interfaces with the central nervous system and the environment
? It has two parts the somatic and Autonomic
What is the somatic system of the peripheral nervous system?
1. Somatic System--deals with voluntary actions�carries messages to and from sense receptors, muscles, and body surface
What is the autonomic system of the peripheral nervous system?
2. Autonomic System--deals with involuntary actions�messages are sent to your internal organs from central nervous system ( you don't have control)
What is the parasympathetic system of the autonomic nervous system?
1. Parasympathetic Division�conserve and protect bodily resources; it stimulates your digestion, pupil constriction, lower heart rate
What is the sympathetic system of the autonomic nervous system?
2. Sympathetic Division (Fight or Flight)�prepares body in cases of emotional excitement; some are constipated, inhibit digestion, dilate pupil, you sweat, increase heart rate and respiration
How can you use the sympathetic division to test for lying?
Ex. Using the Sympathetic Division to test if there lying
-a polygraph or lie detector test measures amounts of seat on finger tips (galvanometer�more sweat means skin can conduct more electricity), heart rate, breathing rate, blood pressure
-Ex. Myth Busters
-when you first sit down they ask you very neutral questions like birthday
-they establish a baseline
-if you start lying your heart rate goes up
Ex. Broadcast news�nervous, stress, sweating, his heart rate speeds up, his body reacts trying to deal with the situation
What is the endocrine system?
? Its compliments and often works with the autonomic nervous system
? Carries out long term regulation of basic body functions and helps deal with stress
? Secretes hormones directly into bloodstream to act on the body
What are examples of the endocrine system?
Ex.
Pancreas�regulates liver of sugar in blood
Adrenal Glands�adrenaline (energy)
Ovaries and Testes�sex drive and development
Thyroid�metabolism, bon, growth, and body heat reproduction
What is sensation?
? This is what's going on�to represent the world physical energy is detected by receptor cells in one of the sense organs and transformed into neutral energy (transduction) and sensory experience�this is called sensation
What is perception?
? The selection, organization, and interpretation of these sensations are called perception
? You send something and then you give it meaning
What is a threshold?
? For sensation to occur, there must be a minimum amount of physical energy (e.g., pounds, degrees, decibels)�
What is the difference between physical and psychological sensation/
...
What is psychophysics?
? The study of physical energy relates to psychological experience is psychophysics
What is absolute threshold?
minimum physical energy to activate a given sensory system of 50% of the time
What is response bias?
favor responding in a certain way due to noise, expectations formed by experience, reward and punishment
How does the human eye respond to light?
#NAME?
What are rods and cones?
? Rods�120 million, mostly in peripheral eye which allow us to see light and dark
? Cones�8 million, mostly in the center of the eye which allow us to see light and dark, and color
What are the parts of the Eye
-the cornea (transparent)�light enters
-pupil�opening in muscular iris (colored muscle) regulating amount of light
-lens�focus light onto your retina�focuses light ways by changing its curvature called accommodation
What is the Young-Helmholtz Trichromatic Theory of color vision?
According to the Young-Helmholtz theory of color vision, there are three receptors in the retina that are responsible for the perception of color. One receptor is sensitive to the color green, another to the color blue, and a third to the color red. These three colors can then be combined to form any visible color in the spectrum.
What is perception?
? The process through which people use knowledge and understanding of the world to interpret sensations as meaningful experiences (i.e.to understand what is the meaning behind the sensory information)
Examples of perception as an active process.
#NAME?
What is the perception of depth
Ex. You see 3 dimensions out of 2; it allows you to judge distance
Baby is on table then it's a clear glass
Depth is innate-research on visual cleft
The baby sees depth and the mother makes a face and they know it's a situation the can lead to harm
Some depth perception requires both eyes
What is the difference between binocular and monocular depth cues?
Binocular cues are, "Depth cues that depend on the use of two eyes" (Myers, D., 2007, p. 245).
Monocular cues are, "Depth cues available to either eye alone
What are examples of monocular depth cues?
1. Linear perspective (e.g. railroad tracks)�as tracks get more distant, they appear to converge
2. Texture gradient�closer objects seem more rough or seem to have some detailed texture
3. Interposition (superposition)�one object interrupts another
What is form perception?
1. Form perception
-region segregation�finding the edges of objects to determine specific form�we have specific cells that detect these edges
What is "figure-ground"?
objects stand out against backgrounds
Ex. The Dalmatian dog---it is an example of an unclear picture...everything id the same color, the same pattern
What are reversible figures?
�contour clear, but it is unclear what the figure and what is ground
Ex. The vase and the two faces
Ex. Violin fish
Ex. The old lady and the young lady
What is the Gestalt viewpoint?
? Gestalt viewpoint�tendency to organize pieces of information into meaningful wholes
What are examples of Gestalt "Laws
The Gestalt "laws"�items that are close together are prepared together
-proximity�nearest elements
-similarity�similar elements
-Common fate�elements moving in the same direction or at same rate
-closure�see incomplete figures as complete
How is perception impacted by motivation?
1. Motivation�when hungry, ambiguous picture is perceived as related to food
How is perception impacted by expectations?
2. Expectations�Paris in the, the spring. You expect there to be one the...our expectations guide us
Why are there optical illusions?
3. Context�tall vs. Short, depends who you're with, the situation�perceiving music as loud or soft�the b13 example...looks like a B when surrounded by letters and when surrounded by numbers it looks like a 13
PsycInfo
...
what is the value of no correlation
0
stated that dreams are a cencored masquerade
sigmund freud
Impulse goes away
axon
measured during an experiment
dependent variable
conserve and protect bodily resources
parasympathetic NS
p-value
probability