Psychology Exam 2
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80 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Circadian Rhythms | Internally generated patterns of body functions, including hormonal signals, sleep, blood pressure, and temperature regulation, which have approximately a 24-hour cycle and occur even in the absence of normal cues about whether it is day or night. |
| Three Theories of Sleep | 1. Repair and Restoration 2. Evolutionary Theory 3. Memory Consolidation |
| Repair and Restoration | a. REM restores mental functioning b. NREM restores physiological functioning Evidence: Sleep deprived people are more likely to become ill or die |
| Evolutionary Theory | a. Carnivores more active at night b. Small prey species tend to sleep less than predators |
| Memory Consolidation | Based on cognitive research showing a link between sleep and memory. |
| Levels of Awareness | Even while asleep, we have some level of awareness. Sleep does not mean unconciousness. |
| Electroencephalograph (EEG) | Measures electric activity in the brain. |
| Electromyograph (EMG) | Measures muscle tension. |
| Electro-oculograph (EOG) | Measures eye movement. |
| Electrocardiograph (EKG) | Measures heart rate. |
| Beta Waves | Normal waking thought, alert problem solving; 13-24 cps. |
| Alpha Waves | Deep relaxation, blank mind, meditation; 8-12 cps. |
| Theta Waves | Light Sleep; 4-7 cps. |
| Delta | Deep sleep; >4 cps. |
| Sleep Stages | Awake: Delta and Alpha waves Stage 1: "Sleep Spindles" (short bursts of alpha waves) Stage 2: Theta waves, and "K complexes" Stage 3: Delta waves (low-frequency, high voltage) Stage 4: steepest sleep spindles, slowest delta waveform Rem Sleep |
| Sleep Apnea | Involves frequent, reflexive gasping for air that awakens a person and disrupts sleep. Breathing stops for a minimum of 10 seconds while sleeping. Usually accompanied by loud snoring. 2% of women and 4% of men between ages 30 and 60 have this disorder. Related to obesity. |
| Sleepwalking | Occurs when a person arises and wanders about while remaining asleep. Tends to occur within the first 3 hours of sleep (during slow-wave sleep). Episodes can last from 15-30 minutes. More common among young adults. |
| Insomnia | Marked by chronic problems getting adequate sleep including difficulty falling asleep, difficulty remaining asleep, and early morning awakenings. 20-40% of adults complain of insomnia in a 1-year period. Difficulties increase with age. More common in women than men Treatments: Sedative drugs Melatonin treatment Cognitive-behavioral treatment/sleep hygiene Relaxation training |
| Narcolepsy | Disease marked by sudden and irresistible onsets of sleep during normal waking periods. Such individuals go instantly from wakefulness into REM sleep for about 10-20 minutes. Occurs in about 0.05% of the population. Appears to have a genetic component. |
| Theories of Dreaming | 1. Wish fulfillment 2. Problem-solving 3. Activation-synthesis 4. Temperature regulation |
| Psychoactive Drugs | Chemical substances that modify mental, emotional, or behavioral functioning. Effects of drugs vary person-to-person depending on the user's: age, mood, motivation, personality, previous experience with drug, body weight, and physiology. |
| Physical Dependence | Exists when a person must continue to take a drug to avoid withdrawal illness. |
| Psychological Dependence | Exists when a person must continue to take a drug to satisfy intense mental and emotional cravings. |
| Tolerance | A progressive decrease in a person's responsiveness to a drug as a result of continued use. Compensatory conditioned responses. Can lead to overdose in new environments. |
| Narcotics (Opiates) | Examples: Morphine, Heroin Methods of Ingestion: Injected, smoked, oral Principal Medical Uses: Pain relief Desired Effects: Euphoria, relaxation, anxiety reduction, pain relief Potential Short-Term Side Effects: Lethargy, drowsiness, nausea, impaired coordination, impaired mental functioning, constipation |
| Sedatives | Examples: Barbiturates, Benzodiazepines Methods of Ingestion: oral, injected Principal Medical Uses: Sleeping pill, anticonvulsant Desired Effects: Euphoria, relaxation, anxiety reduction, reduced inhibitions Potential Short-Term Side Effects: Lethargy, drowsiness, severely impaired coordination, impaired mental functioning, emotional swings, dejection |
| Stimulants | Examples: Amphetamines, Cocaine Methods of Ingestion: oral, sniffed, injected, freebased, smoked Principal Medical Uses: Treatment of hyperactivity and narcolepsy, local anesthetic (cocaine only) Desired Effects: Elation, excitement, increased alertness, increased energy, reduced fatigue Potential Short-Term Side Effects: Increased blood pressure and heart rate, increased talkativeness, restlessness, irritability, insomnia, reduced appetite, increased sweating and urination, anxiety, paranoia, increased aggressiveness, panic |
| Hallucinogens | Examples: LSD, Mescaline, Psilocybin Methods of Ingestion: Oral Principal Medical Uses: None Desired Effects: Increased sensory awareness, euphoria, altered perceptions, hallucinations, insightful experiences Potential Short-Term Side Effects: Dilated pupils, nausea, emotional swings, paranoia, jumbled thought processes, impaired judgment, anxiety, panic reaction |
| Cannabis | Examples: Marijuana, Hashish, THC Methods of Ingestion: Smoked, oral Principal Medical Uses: Treatment of glaucoma and chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting; other uses under study Desired Effects: Mild euphoria, relaxation, altered perceptions, enhanced awareness Potential Short-Term Side Effects: Elevated eart rate, bloodshot eyes, dry mouth, reduced short-term memory, sluggish motor coordination, sluggish mental functioning, anxiety |
| Alcohol | Methods of Ingestion: Drinking Principal Medical Uses: None Desired Effects: Mild euphoria, relaxation, anxiety reduction, reduced inhibitions Potential Short-Term Side Effects: Severely impaired coordination, impaired mental functioning, increased urination, emotional swings, depression, quarrelsomeness, hangover |
| Learning | The process through which experience modifies pre-existing behavior or knowledge; occurs via experience and observation of the relationship between events. |
| Conditioning | Learning associations between events in the environment. |
| Classical (Pavlovian) Conditioning | A type of learning in which a stimulus acquires the capacity to elicit a response originall elicited by another stimulus. |
| Unconditioned Stimulus | In classical conditioning, a stimulus that unconditionally—naturally and automatically—triggers a response. |
| Unconditioned Response | In classical conditioning, the unlearned, naturally occurring response to the unconditioned stimulus (US), such as salivation when food is in the mouth. |
| Conditioned Stimulus | In classical conditioning, an originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to trigger a conditioned response. |
| Conditioned Response | In classical conditioning, the learned response to a previously neutral (but now conditioned) stimulus (CS). |
| Basic Processes in Classical Conditioning | Acquisition Extinction Spontaneous Recovery Stimulus Generalization Stimulus Discrimination Higher-Order Conditioning CS used as UCS in next pairing |
| Processes in Operant Conditioning | Acquisition Shaping Successive Approximations Extinction Stimulus Control Generalization Discrimination Reinforcers |
| Reinforcers | Strengthen response tendencies (primary and secondary; secondary is conditioned). |
| Schedules of Reinforcement | Ratio: Dependent on behavior Fixed: certain # of behaviors before reinforcement. Variable: # of behaviors needed for reinforcement change (vary) Interval Schedules: Dependent on time Fixed: reinforcement given on a set schedule Variable: Amount of time before reinforcements varies. |
| Positive Reinforcement | Strengthen a response by presenting a reward. |
| Negative Reinforcement | Strengthen a response by removing an aversive stimulus. Escape/avoidance learning: responses are adopted to escape/avoid aversive stimuli. Phobia extinction |
| Punishment | Weakens response tendencies; Can either present an aversive or remove a reinforcer E.g., getting spanked after stealing a cookie or getting a ball taken away after throwing it in the house. |
| Learned Helplessness | Failure to act due to perceived lack of control over contingencies. |
| Superstitious learning/behavior | Skinner's subjects began picking up odd habits, such as preening or turning, because they incorrectly paired those habits with a reward. |
| Taste Aversion | A type of classical conditioning in which a previously desirable or neutral food comes to be perceived as repugnant because it is associated with negative stimulation. |
| Ecologically Relevant Stimuli | When conditioning fits an organisim's ecological role, it is paired more easily. |
| Latent Learning | Learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it. |
| Observational Learning | Responses are influenced by observing the behavior of others (models). Basic Processes: Attention Retention Reproduction Motivation |
| Encoding | First stage of the memory process; in it information is transformed or coded (a transduction process) into a form that can be processed further and stored. |
| Three Basic Processes of Memory | Encoding Storage Retrieval |
| Encoding | Convert memories into a form we can store in our memory. |
| Storage | Memory can be stored for varying lengths of time. |
| Retrieval | Bring memory into consciousness. |
| Types of Encoding | Structural Phonemic Semantic |
| Structural | Encodes visual aspects Examples: People's faces, capitalized letters of a word |
| Phonemic | Encodes sound Examples: Retain melodies and catch phrases |
| Semantic | Encodes meaning Examples: More likely to remember when you think about what the material means, not rote memorization. |
| Enriched Encoding | The more information you have on a certain subject, the better chance you have of retrieval in the future. |
| Short-Term Memory | Memories must be processed here for permanent storage. Approximately 20 seconds in duration. 7 +/- 2 chunks capacity at any one time. |
| Chunk | Meaningful unit of information. |
| Long-Term Memory | Permanent storage with very large capacity (maybe unlimited). Rehearsal is necessary for transfer from STM to LTM. |
| Maintenance | Save or maintain memories in STM for a short period (repetition). |
| Elaborative | Attach meaning to material to be remembered. More permanent memory for transfer to LTM. |
| Semantic Clusters | We organize memories in these, information is connected in clusters. When they are activated multiple things alone the cluster are activated. |
| Organization | Increases memory retrieval by relating items to one another. |
| Memory Cues | Any stimulus associated with a memory; usually enhance retrieval of a memory. |
| Recall | When you remember as many pieces of information as you can; the order does not matter. |
| Mnemonic Devices | Techniques for using associations to memorize and retrieve information. |
| Recognition Test | Test in which retention is measured by the ability to pick out previously learned items from a list that also contains unfamiliar items. |
| Relearning Test | Test of retention that compares the time or trials required to learn material a second time with the time or trials required to learn the material the first time. |
| Why do we forget? | Ineffective encoding (lower level of processing), decay, interference (retroactive vs. proactive), retrieval failure, repression (when we want to forget the information), amnesia |
| Types of Amnesia | Retrograde and Anterograde |
| Retrograde Amnesia | Loss of memories that were stored before a traumatic event. |
| Anterograde Amnesia | Inability to store new memories after a traumatic event. |
| Episodic Memory | Memory of one's life, including time of occurrence. |
| Procedural/Nondeclarative/Implicit Memory | A subsystem within Long term memory which consists of skills we acquire through repetition and practice (e.g., dance, playing the piano, driving a car). |
| Episodic/Declarative/Explicit Memory | Memory of learned skills that does not require conscious recollection. |
| Alzheimer's | Kills cells mainly in the hippocampus and cortex leads to impairment in memory. |
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