Chapter 1 Phy-201

• Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental processes.
• Studies in psychology range from the behavior of a single nerve cell to the behavior of crowds of people or entire cultures.
• The goals of psychology are to describe, explain, predict, and influence behavior.
• Aristotle, a Greek philosopher, wrote about dreams, sleep, the senses, and memory.
• René Descartes (1596–1650) proposed that the mind and body are separate entities that interact to produce sensations, emotions, and other conscious experiences.
• Sigmund Freud (1856−1939) emphasized the role of unconscious conflicts in determining behavior and personality.
• Behaviorism, which emphasized the study of observable behaviors, especially as these pertain to the learning process, dominated the approach in the US early 1900s.
• Ivan Pavlov (1849−1936) demonstrated that dogs could learn to associate a neutral stimulus with an automatic behavior.
• John Watson (1878−1958) posited that the goal of the behaviorists was to discover the fundamental principles of learning.
• Positive correlation: finding that two factors move in the same direction, increasing or decreasing together.
• Correlational Studies: Correlational studies show how strongly two variables are related to each other.
• Representative Sample: A selected segment that very closely parallels the larger population being studied on relevant characteristics.
• Correlations can be used to analyze the data and/or results gathered by any type of descriptive or experimental methods.
• Only experiments allow for cause-and-effect statements.
• Random Selection: Process in which subjects are selected randomly from a larger group to ensure all participants have an equal chance of being assigned to any of the experimental conditions or groups.
• Experimental Variables: IV, DV, & CV
• Correlation does NOT equal Causation!!!
• Experimental research demonstrates that one variable causes change in a second variable.
• Dependent variable: factor that is observed and measured for change in an experiment (outcome variable)
• Purposely manipulating one factor to produce change in another factor is a key aspect of experimental research.
• Negative correlation: finding that two factors move in opposite directions, one increasing as the other one decreases.
• Survey Method: A selected segment of the population used to represent the group that is being studied.
• Experimental research: A method of investigation used to demonstrate the cause-and-effect relationship between two or more variables.
• Confounding variable: external variables that are not the focus of the experiment, but could affect the outcome of an experiment
• Independent variable: factor that is purposely manipulated to produce change in an experiment (predictor variable)
• Social psychology understands how an individual’s thoughts, feelings, and behavior are affected by social environments and the presence of other people.
• Biological psychology explores relationships between psychological processes and the body’s physical systems, with neuroscience referring specifically to the study of the brain and the rest of the nervous system.
• Psychologists are open-minded and have a healthy sense of scientific skepticism.
• Industrial/organizational psychology understands the relationship between people and work.
• Descriptive research methods include strategies for systematically observing and describing behavior.
• Applied psychology applies the findings of basic psychology to diverse areas such as sports psychology, media psychology, forensic psychology, rehabilitation psychology, and military psychology.
• The Scientific Method is a set of assumptions, attitudes, and procedures that guides all scientists, including psychologists, in conducting research.
• Clinical psychology focuses on the causes, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of psychological disorders.
• Analyze the Data and Draw Conclusions in the Scientific Method involves using statistics to analyze, summarize, and draw conclusions about the data they have collected.
• Surveys are a research method in descriptive research.
• Personality psychology explains the nature of human personality, including the uniqueness of each person, traits, and individual differences.
• The steps in the Scientific Method are Formulate, Design, Analyze, and Report.
• These research methods do not explain cause.
• Counseling psychology helps people adjust, adapt, and cope with personal and interpersonal challenges, improving well-being, alleviating distress and maladjustment, and resolving crises.
• Health psychology researches psychological factors in the development, prevention, treatment, and promotion of health.