#separator:tab
#html:false
#tags column:4
Behaviorism	School of thought studying observable behavior		tp-ap-psychology
Cognitive psychology	Study of mental processes such as memory and thinking		tp-ap-psychology
Psychoanalytic perspective	Freud's view that unconscious drives shape behavior		tp-ap-psychology
Humanistic psychology	Focus on growth, free will and self-actualization		tp-ap-psychology
Biopsychology	Study of how biology influences behavior		tp-ap-psychology
Wilhelm Wundt	Founded the first psychology lab in 1879		tp-ap-psychology
Hypothesis	A testable prediction		tp-ap-psychology
Independent variable	The factor the researcher manipulates		tp-ap-psychology
Dependent variable	The outcome measured		tp-ap-psychology
Random assignment	Placing participants into groups by chance		tp-ap-psychology
Control group	Group not receiving the treatment		tp-ap-psychology
Double-blind study	Neither participants nor researchers know who gets the treatment		tp-ap-psychology
Placebo effect	Improvement due to expectation, not the treatment		tp-ap-psychology
Correlation	A relationship between two variables; does not prove cause		tp-ap-psychology
Correlation coefficient	A number from -1 to +1 showing strength and direction of relationship		tp-ap-psychology
Operational definition	A precise statement of how a variable is measured		tp-ap-psychology
Informed consent	Participants agree after learning what is involved		tp-ap-psychology
Neuron	A nerve cell		tp-ap-psychology
Dendrite	Receives signals into a neuron		tp-ap-psychology
Axon	Carries signals away from the cell body		tp-ap-psychology
Action potential	An electrical impulse along an axon		tp-ap-psychology
Synapse	The gap between neurons		tp-ap-psychology
Neurotransmitter	Chemical messenger sent across a synapse		tp-ap-psychology
Dopamine	Neurotransmitter linked to reward and movement		tp-ap-psychology
Serotonin	Neurotransmitter affecting mood, sleep and appetite		tp-ap-psychology
Acetylcholine	Neurotransmitter involved in muscles and memory		tp-ap-psychology
Endorphins	Natural pain relievers		tp-ap-psychology
Central nervous system	The brain and spinal cord		tp-ap-psychology
Peripheral nervous system	Nerves outside the brain and spinal cord		tp-ap-psychology
Sympathetic nervous system	Prepares the body for action		tp-ap-psychology
Parasympathetic nervous system	Calms the body		tp-ap-psychology
Hypothalamus	Regulates hunger, thirst, temperature and hormone release		tp-ap-psychology
Hippocampus	Forms new explicit memories		tp-ap-psychology
Amygdala	Processes fear and emotion		tp-ap-psychology
Cerebellum	Coordinates balance and movement		tp-ap-psychology
Frontal lobe	Planning, judgment and movement		tp-ap-psychology
Broca's area	Involved in producing speech		tp-ap-psychology
Wernicke's area	Involved in understanding language		tp-ap-psychology
Corpus callosum	Band of fibers connecting the brain's hemispheres		tp-ap-psychology
Neuroplasticity	The brain's ability to change through experience		tp-ap-psychology
Sensation	Detecting stimuli with sense organs		tp-ap-psychology
Perception	Interpreting sensory information		tp-ap-psychology
Absolute threshold	The smallest stimulus detected half the time		tp-ap-psychology
Just noticeable difference	The smallest change that can be detected		tp-ap-psychology
Sensory adaptation	Reduced response to unchanging stimuli		tp-ap-psychology
Gestalt principles	Rules for how we organize perceptions into wholes		tp-ap-psychology
Depth perception	Judging distance		tp-ap-psychology
Binocular cues	Depth cues that need both eyes		tp-ap-psychology
Bottom-up processing	Perception built from sensory details		tp-ap-psychology
Top-down processing	Perception guided by expectations		tp-ap-psychology
Circadian rhythm	The roughly 24-hour body clock		tp-ap-psychology
REM sleep	Sleep stage with vivid dreams and active brain		tp-ap-psychology
Consciousness	Awareness of ourselves and our surroundings		tp-ap-psychology
Classical conditioning	Learning by associating two stimuli		tp-ap-psychology
Unconditioned stimulus	Naturally triggers a response		tp-ap-psychology
Conditioned stimulus	Neutral stimulus that comes to trigger a response		tp-ap-psychology
Extinction	Fading of a learned response when the association stops		tp-ap-psychology
Operant conditioning	Learning through consequences		tp-ap-psychology
Reinforcement	Anything that increases a behavior		tp-ap-psychology
Punishment	Anything that decreases a behavior		tp-ap-psychology
Positive reinforcement	Adding something pleasant to increase behavior		tp-ap-psychology
Negative reinforcement	Removing something unpleasant to increase behavior		tp-ap-psychology
Variable-ratio schedule	Reinforcement after an unpredictable number of responses		tp-ap-psychology
Observational learning	Learning by watching others		tp-ap-psychology
Albert Bandura	Bobo doll studies on observational learning		tp-ap-psychology
Ivan Pavlov	Discovered classical conditioning using dogs		tp-ap-psychology
B.F. Skinner	Pioneer of operant conditioning		tp-ap-psychology
Encoding	Getting information into memory		tp-ap-psychology
Storage	Keeping information over time		tp-ap-psychology
Retrieval	Getting information out of memory		tp-ap-psychology
Working memory	Short-term memory used to process information		tp-ap-psychology
Explicit memory	Memory of facts and experiences you can state		tp-ap-psychology
Implicit memory	Memory shown through skills and habits		tp-ap-psychology
Mnemonic device	A memory aid		tp-ap-psychology
Spacing effect	Learning is better spread out than crammed		tp-ap-psychology
Retroactive interference	New learning disrupts old memories		tp-ap-psychology
Proactive interference	Old learning disrupts new memories		tp-ap-psychology
Anterograde amnesia	Inability to form new memories		tp-ap-psychology
Heuristic	A mental shortcut		tp-ap-psychology
Confirmation bias	Seeking information that supports existing beliefs		tp-ap-psychology
Functional fixedness	Seeing objects only in their usual uses		tp-ap-psychology
Algorithm	A step-by-step method that guarantees a solution		tp-ap-psychology
Intelligence quotient	Score derived from standardized intelligence tests		tp-ap-psychology
Reliability	Consistency of a test		tp-ap-psychology
Validity	Whether a test measures what it claims to		tp-ap-psychology
Standardization	Uniform procedures and norms for a test		tp-ap-psychology
Developmental psychology	Study of change across the lifespan		tp-ap-psychology
Piaget's stages	Sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, formal operational		tp-ap-psychology
Object permanence	Knowing that things exist when not seen		tp-ap-psychology
Conservation	Understanding that amount stays the same despite shape change		tp-ap-psychology
Egocentrism	Difficulty seeing another person's viewpoint		tp-ap-psychology
Attachment	Emotional bond between infant and caregiver		tp-ap-psychology
Harlow's monkeys	Showed infants need comfort contact as well as food		tp-ap-psychology
Authoritative parenting	High warmth with firm limits		tp-ap-psychology
Erikson's stages	Eight psychosocial crises across life		tp-ap-psychology
Zone of proximal development	Tasks a child can do with help; Vygotsky's idea		tp-ap-psychology
Maslow's hierarchy	Needs from physiological to self-actualization		tp-ap-psychology
Intrinsic motivation	Doing something for its own enjoyment		tp-ap-psychology
Cannon-Bard theory	Emotion and body arousal occur at the same time		tp-ap-psychology
Cognitive dissonance	Discomfort when beliefs and actions conflict		tp-ap-psychology
Fundamental attribution error	Overestimating personality and underestimating situation when explaining others' behavior		tp-ap-psychology
Conformity	Adjusting behavior to fit a group		tp-ap-psychology
Bystander effect	People are less likely to help when others are present		tp-ap-psychology
Big Five traits	Openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism		tp-ap-psychology
Id, ego, superego	Freud's three parts of personality		tp-ap-psychology
Defense mechanism	Unconscious strategy to reduce anxiety		tp-ap-psychology
Locus of control	Belief about whether outcomes come from inside or outside you		tp-ap-psychology
Psychological disorder	Patterns of thought or behavior that cause distress or impairment		tp-ap-psychology
Anxiety disorder	Excessive fear or worry		tp-ap-psychology
Mood disorder	Disturbance of emotion such as depression		tp-ap-psychology
Cognitive-behavioral therapy	Treatment changing unhelpful thoughts and behaviors		tp-ap-psychology
Psychotherapy	Treatment through talking with a trained professional		tp-ap-psychology
Antidepressant	Medication treating depression		tp-ap-psychology