Chapter 1

Friday, August 20, 2010

12:58 PM

What is Psychology

The scientific study of behavior and mental processes

- Collection of data through systematic observation in order to describe explain predict and
hopefully control behavior
Areas of Psychology
• Research- oriented
- APA divisions (54; 2006)
○ Developmental
○ Physiological
○ Experimental

Application-oriented
- Clinical (counseling)
 Diagnoses and treat psychological disorders.
 Psychologist-cant prescribe drugs, psychiatrist can prescribes drugs
- Sports and Exercise

Research Methods
- Naturalistic Observation
 Systematic study of animal or human behavior in natural settings rather than in a
laboratory.
 Example Jane Goodall, Timothy Treadwell
 Advantages
□ Behavior is natural and spontaneous
 Disadvantages
□ Time consuming
□ Observer bias. Undocumented reports from psychologists.
- Case Studies
 Intensive investigative analysis of a single individual
 Jean Piaget, Sigmund Freud
 Advantages
□ Close and concentrated
□ Examine all aspects of behavior
 Disadvantages
□ Time
□ Cannot generalize
- Surveys
 Predetermined questionnaires or interviews administered to a select group of people
 Gallup Poll- elections
 ESPN.com poll, daily surveys
 Advantage
□ Quick easy way to gather info
 Disadvantage
□ Do no determine or explain causes of behavior
□ Sampling error
- Correlation Research
 Technique used to determine a naturally occurring relationship between two or more
variables (r=…)
Alcohol Intake and Driving Skills

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 variables (r=…)
 Alcohol Intake and Driving Skills
 Alcohol Intake and female attractiveness

 Computer and height; speeding tickets and weight

 Stress and traffic; heat and foul play
 Advantages- allows for predictions
 Disadvantages- cannot prove cause and effect
- Experimental Research
 A research process that establishes variables, hypotheses, procedures, statistics, and
conclusions in order to apply cause and effect
 Participants; population/sample; IV- variable that is manipulated to test its effects on the
dependent variable, DV- behavior that is changed; treatment group vs. Control Group
□ Experimental Example
 ….The effects of IV on DV
 Advantages- cause and effect
 Disadvantages- lab setting, experimenter bias
 Longitudinal Studies
□ Studying the same group at different times
 Cross sectional studies
□ Studying different groups at the same time

Pioneers of Psychology
- Wilhelm Wundt
 First formal psychological laboratory, 1879
 First psychology class- 4 students
 First experiment: reaction time study
- Sigmund Freud
 Psychoanalysis and Psychodynamics
- Ivan Pavlov
 Learning occurs through classical conditioning
- B.F. Skinner
 Learning is best achieved through operant conditioning- rewards and punishments
- G Stanley Hall
 Student of Wundt
 Founded the APA, 1890
- Alfred Binet
 1st modern intelligence test, 1905
Ethics in Psychology
- APA Ethics Code
 (Stanley Milgram, 1963) - Obedience Experiment
 Code Examples
□ Informed consent
□ Deception
□ Debriefing
□ Sexual harassment
□ Sexual relationships with clients

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Chapter 2
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
1:21 PM

Physiological Psychology
- Internal physical chemical processes to understand behavior
Nervous System
- CNS and Peripheral
- Network of nerve cells that send messages throughout the body

Nervous System
Central Nervous System Peripheral Nervous System (transmits info to an
From the CNS
(processes interprets and stores info) - Somatic NS(controls skeletal muscles - Autonomic NS(regulates internal Organs)
Sympathetic NS Parasympathetic NS

(gas) (break)
- Brain - Spinal Cord

Endocrine System
- Glands
- Release of hormones into the bloodstream to regulate body functions
Case Studies
John P.
Gayle G.
Howard M.
Phineas Gage

The Neural Impulse

- Neuron- smallest unit in the CNS (contains 90% of neurons in our bodies)
 100 billion in the brain alone
- 3 types; sensory (afferent), motor (efferent), interneuron
 Sensory(afferent) neurons carry messages from sense to the brain
 Motor(efferent)- send messages from the brain to the muscles
 Interneuron's- 99percent of all neurons "extension cords"
- Components
- Dendrites- incoming messages
- Cell body
- Axon- 1mm. To 3ft; outgoing messages
- Myelin Sheath- insulates axons and increases speed
□ 2mph-200mph
The Synapse
- Axon terminals, synaptic cleft (space between neurons)
- Neurotransmitters- a chemical release into the blood stream that excites other neurons and
influences our behavior
- Acetylcholine (Ach) - main contributor to Alzheimer's Disease
- Neuropeptide (NPY)-food craving
- Serotonin- mood regulation; depression
- Endorphins- inhibit pain messages
- Dopamine- Parkinson's disease
- Drugs/Toxins
- Black widow venom- Ach over-firing
- Caffeine- blocks adenosine, which keeps us clam
- LSD- inhibits dream suppressing neurons
- Cocaine- prevents re-absorption of dopamine
CNS- Brain
- Key areas
- Hindbrain- earliest part of brain evolved
□ Medulla- "gate"; HR; breathing
□ Pons- maintains sleep- wake cycle
□ Cerebellum-reflexes, balance, coordination
- Limbic System- learning and emotions
□ Thalamus- relays and translates incoming messages from the sense receptors (except
smell) to the brain
□ Hypothalamus- primary motivations and emotion
 Eating, drinking, sexual behavior
□ Hippocampus- new memories
□ Amygdala- extreme fear and rage
- Broca's area- ability to talk
- Wernicke's area- understanding what is heard or read
- Corpus Callosum- nerve fibers that connect the right and the left hemispheres
- Cerebral Cortex- the brain

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 □ Convolutions- wrinkles
□ 4 lobes
 Occipital Lobe
◊ Receives and interprets visual information
 Temporal Lobe
◊ Regulates complex visual tasks, hearing and smelling
◊ Handles balance coordination, motivation and emotion
 Parietal Lobe
◊ Responds to sensations of touch and bodily positions
◊ Contains the primary somatosensory cortex
 Frontal Lobe
◊ Voluntary movements attentions drive and task completion
◊ Phineas Gage
- CNS Hemispheres
Left Hemisphere Right Hemisphere
- Right hand - Left hand
- Speech - Spatial Construction
- - Language math - Face Recognition
- Writing - Music, Dance
- Math and logic - Art, Sculpture
- Fantasy

Examining the brain

- EEG- electroencephalograph- 1929, size, strength, and rhythm of brain waves.
- Microelectrodes- single neuron functionalities;axon potentials, etc.
- CT- computerized axial tomography- 3D images of brain
- MRI- magnetic, resonance imaging magnetic field and radio waves to produce image of
inner brain structures
- PET- positron emission tomography- injection of radioactive substances to map brain
activity
- Fmri- functional MRI-

Peripheral Nervous System

- Autonomic Nervous Systems- All neurons that carry messages to internal organs
- Sympathetic- tells the body to prepare for spontaneous

Behavior Genetics
- Key Terms: Genetics- study of how traits are passed from one generation to the next.
- Heredity- to the transmission of traits from one generation to the next
- Traits- characteristics/behaviors on which organisms differ
- Behavior Genetics- study of the relationship between heredity and behavior

Behavior Genetics
How is it studied?
- Family Studies
o Siblings of schizophrenics- 9% risk
o Children of schizophrenics- 13% risk
o Environmental effects; learned behavior
- Twin Studies
o Identical (One Ovum) v Fraternal (2 Ova)
o Id. Twin of schizophrenic- 50% chance of diagnosis
o Fr. Twin- 17% chance
o Suggests heredity dose play a role in human behavior

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