M IDTERM R EVIEW

1. MIDTERM REVIEW Introduction to Psychology (PSYC E-15) Todd Farchione, Ph.D. Tommy Chou, M.A.

2. Broad Terminology • Idiographic vs. Nomothetic • Idiographic: Study of individuals • Nomothetic: Study of groups and general laws • Holistic vs. Reductionistic • Holistic: Understanding concepts/systems as a whole • Reductionistic: Understanding concepts/systems as interacting parts • Descriptive vs. Experimental • Descriptive data presents characteristics • Experimental data evaluates the results of a controlled change

3. Research Methods • Operationalization • Creating measurable, objective definitions of variables, esp. in experimental design • Independent and Dependent Variables • Independent Variables (IV): what you change (in a controlled manner) • Dependent Variables (DV): what you observe to note the results of changes IV’s

4. Research Design: A Continuum of Structure Less Structured More Structured Naturalistic Observation Covert non-participation Overt non-participation Covert participation Overt participation Case Study Eclectic Clinical Observational Psychometric Archival Survey Questionnaire Interview Non-reactive Archival Physical Traces Experiment Classical experiment Factorial design Quasi-experimental Single-subject design Idiographic/nomothetic QL Idiographic QL Nomothetic QT Nomothetic QT Greater structure in the research method generally yields greater precision in psychological measurement. Without intrusion into the daily activities of the participants, naturalistic observation can be employed in a case study, the survey, and quasi-experimental design Report Formats N/A Narrative style APA poster APA article

5. Biological Psychology • Phrenology • Previously held beliefs that the shape of the skull could indicate various personality traits • Current perspectives in biological psychology • Specific regions and structures found in the brain account for specific functions • Structures bridged by parts such as the corpus collosum • Be sure to understand the major structures and functions of the brain!

6. Psychoanalysis • Two meanings: • Theory of personality • Method of therapy • Parts of the psyche • Id: lower-order desires and drives • Ego: moderates id, superego, and reality • Superego: “moral compass”

9. Behaviorism, Classical Conditioning • Pavlov’s dog • Four major components: • Unconditioned Stimulus (US) • Stimulus that naturally produces response (food) • Conditioned Stimulus (CS) • Stimulus that does not naturally produce response, but can after pairing with US (bell) • Unconditioned Response (UR) • Natural response to US (salivation in response to food) • Conditioned Response (CR) • Response to CS, which occurs even with removal of US (salivation in response to bell)

10. Behaviorism, Operant Conditioning • B.F. Skinner • Three major components • Discriminative stimulus (SD) • Stimulus preceding response • Operant response (RO) • Target behavior • Response stimulus (SR) • Reinforcement or punishment, depending on the operant response

11. Classical vs. Operant Conditioning

12. Operant Conditioning, Response Stimuli • Reinforcement vs. Punishment • Reinforcement acts to increase frequency of target behavior • Punishment decreases unwanted behaviors • Positive vs. Negative Reinforcement/Punishment • Positive: adds a stimulus (reinforcement: prize; punishment: electric shock) • Negative: removes a stimulus (reinforcement: alarm; punishment: privileges) • Shaping, prompting, modeling, flooding, and other methods used in conditioning are important as well; be sure to know these concepts!

13. Schedules of Reinforcement • Continuous vs. Intermittent • Fixed Ratio: Applying reinforcement after a specific number of responses. • Variable Ratio: Applying reinforcement after a variable number of responses. • Fixed Interval: Applying reinforcerafter a specific amount of time. • Variable Interval: Applying reinforcer after a variable amount of time