| Term | Definition |
|---|
| psychology | the scientific study of behavior and mental processes. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 002) |
| empiricism | the view that (a) knowledge comes from experience via the senses, and (b) science flourishes through observation and experiment. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 003) |
| structuralism | an early school of psychology that used introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human mind. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 004) |
| functionalism | a school of psychology that focused on how mental and behavioral processes function—how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 005) |
| humanistic psychology | historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people; used personalized methods to study personality in hopes of fostering personal growth. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 007) |
| natural selection | the principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those that lead to increased reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 009) |
| nature-nurture issue | the longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 009) |
| biopsychosocial approach | an integrated perspective that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 010) |
| levels of analysis | the differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 010) |
| basic research | pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 012) |
| applied research | scientific study that aims to solve practical problems. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 013) |
| clinical psychology | a branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 013) |
| counseling psychology | a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 013) |
| psychiatry | a branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical (for example, drug) treatments as well as psychological therapy. (Myers Psychology 8e p. 013) |
Combine with other sets
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