PSYCH 111 Review Sheet for Exam #2

Ch. 5 Consciousness

Sleep Circadian rhythm- cyclical changes that occur on a 24-hour basis in biological

processes. 5 stages of sleep and how we measure them (EEG): Stage 1- light sleep; Stage 2-

slower waves, sleep spindles, k complexes; Stage 3/4- deep sleep, delta waves; Stage 5- REM sleep, high brain activity.

Biological necessity of REM sleep- rats died after being deprived of REM. REM rebound where after sleep deprivation more intense REM sleep.

Theories of why we sleep: o Restoration theory- sleeping is essential for revitalizing and restoring the

physiological processes that keep the body and mind healthy and properly functioning.

o Preservation/protection theory- sleep serves an adaptive function. It protects the animal during that portion of the 24-hour day in which being awake, and hence roaming around, would place the individual at greatest risk.

Disorders of sleep: Insomnia- most common/having trouble falling asleep/waking in the night/trouble returning to sleep, narcolepsy- rapid/sudden onset of sleep, sleep apnea- blockage of airway during sleep, nightmares- bad dreams, night terrors- screaming/yelling/ confused child while in deep sleep, sleepwalking- walking while fully asleep.

Effects of sleep deprivation (Peter Tripp video): Change in mood, hallucinations, Dreaming

Common contents of dreams- chased, falling, lost, flying, sexual, naked, injury. Lucid dreaming- experience of becoming aware that one is dreaming. Sleep thought- thinking irrationally while dreaming. Theories of dreaming

o Freud and wish fulfillment- sexual and aggressive impulses symbolized in dreams.

o Activation-synthesis- theory that dreams reflect inputs from brain activation originating in the pons, which the forebrain then attempts to weave into a story.

Other alterations of consciousness Hypnosis

o Myths and misconceptions of hypnosis (for example as in Friends)- mind controlo Use of hypnosis in clinical practice (the woman who wanted to quit smoking)-

gives people’s subconscious the suggestions for alternating their perceptions, thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

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o Theories of hypnosis: Sociocognitive- hypnosis based on people’s attitudes, beliefs, and expectations. Dissociation theory- hypnosis based on separation between personality functions that are usually integrated.

Drugs and consciousness Classes of drugs (for each, think of examples and effects)

o Depressants- Decreases activity of the central nervous system. Alcohol.o Stimulants- drugs that increase activity in the central nervous system, heart rate,

respiration, and blood pressure. Tobacco- reduces stress, tension, and anxiety.o Opiate narcotics- drugs that reduce pain and induce sleep. Morphine.o Psychedelic- Alters perception, mood, thoughts. Marijuana, LSD.

Hock reading # 6 (Aserinsky & Kleitman; Dement) Importance of REM sleep and dreaming- Patients actually experienced REM while

awake.

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Ch. 6 Learning

Conditioned stimulus (CS)- initially neutral stimulus. Unconditioned stimulus (UCS)- stimulus that causes automatic response. Unconditioned response (UCR)- automatic response to unlearned stimulus. Conditioned response (CR)- response associated with UCS elicited by CS Habituation- responding less strongly over time to repeated stimulus. Aversive conditioning- classical conditioning to an unpleasant UCS. Types of reinforcement:

o Positive reinforcement- positive outcome or consequence of a behavior that strengthens the probability of the behavior.

o Negative reinforcement- removal to negative outcome of a behavior that strengthens probability of the behavior.

Punishment- outcome or consequence of a behavior that weakens probability of the behavior.

Acquisition- leaning phase where a conditioned response is established, extinction- reduction/elimination of conditioned response, and spontaneous recovery- reemergence of extinct CR after a delay in CS.

Stimulus generalization- similar CS elicits the CR vs. stimulus discrimination- less pronounced CR to a CS different from original CS.

Higher order conditioning- developing a CR to a CS by associating it to another CS. The law of effect- if a stimulus followed by a behavior results in a reward, the stimulus is

more likely to cause the behavior in the future. Schedules of reinforcement

o Fixed ratio (FR) schedule- reinforcement after a number of responses.o Fixed interval (FI) schedule- reinforcement after a specific time interval.o Variable ratio (VR) schedule- reinforcement after a random number of responses.o Variable interval (VI) schedule- reinforcement after a random time interval.

Shaping- conditioning behavior by reinforcing behaviors that comes closer and closer to target.

Chaining- linking a number of unrelated behaviors that form a longer series. Premack principle- less frequently performed behavior can be increased in frequency by

reinforcing it with a more frequent behavior. Token economies (secondary and primary reinforcers)- patients who behave in a desired

fashion receive secondary reinforcers, which can be trade for primary reinforcers. Higher-order conditioning and addictions- conditioning a response to a conditioned

stimulus by virtue of its association with another conditioned stimulus. Association to things that cause a drive for those things causes addictions.

Acquisition of phobias- through classical conditioning.

Cognitive Models of Learning Latent learning- learning that isn’t directly observable.

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Observational learning (Bandura)- learning by watching others. Children learn to act aggressively by watching aggressive role models.

Insight learning- all of the sudden learning of something through an aha moment.

Biological Influences on Learning Conditioned taste aversion- only takes one trial to develop where one learns a condition

an associated between taste and illness. Preparedness- evolutionary predisposition to learning pairing of feared stimuli over

others due to their survival value.

Learning fads – popular techniques that state with radical learning techniques. e.g. sleep-assisted learning- learning new materials while asleep.

Hock reading # 34 (Wolpe): o Development of phobiaso Reciprocal inhibition- when you response inhibit each other only one may exist at a

given moment. Systematic desensitization- decreasing your level of anxiety or fear gently and gradually.

Ch. 7 Memory

Three systems of memoryi) Sensory memory

Iconic- visual sensory information and echoic- auditory sensory information Method of partial report- we have the availability of all the letters in each row, but

usually only can remember one row.ii) Short-term memory

Capacity- how much we can maintain in our short-term memory. Magic number- span of short term memory: 7 plus or minus 2 Rehearsal- repeating information to extend he duration of short-term memory. Maintenance- repeating stimuli in their original form to retain them Elaboration- linking stimuli to each other in a meaningful way to improve retention

of information Depth of processing- the more deeply we transform information the better we

remember it. Decay- fading of information from memory Interference- loss of information due to competition of new information Retroactive and proactive inhibition

iii) Long-term memory Explicit/declarative (Semantic-knowledge of facts about the world, Episodic-

events of life)

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Implicit (Procedural- memory of how to do things, Priming- ability to identify a stimulus more easily and quickly after we’ve encountered a similar stimuli.)

Forgetting in long-term memory Primacy- remember the words at the beginning of a list well, recentcy- remember

words at the end of a list, Von Restroff Effect- tendency to remember stimuli that are distinctive or stick out from other stimuli.

Serial position curve- graph depicting the effect of both primacy and recentcy on people’s ability to recall items on a list.

(Review the chart that you reorganized for the MyPsychLab assignment!)

Three stages of memoryi) Encoding- process of getting memory into our memory banks.

Mnemonics- a learning aid, strategy, or device that enhances recall.ii) Storage

Schemas- process of keeping information in memory. Mistakes caused by schemas- can cause us to remember things that never

happened or to oversimplify things.iii) Retrieval

Recall- generating previously remember information. Recognition- selecting previously remembered information from an array of options

Relearning- reacquiring knowledge that we’d previously learned by largely forgotten over time.

Depth of processing- the level to which information is processed after being introduced into the memory.

Elaborative rehearsal- deep sematic processing of a to-be-remembered item resulting in the production of durable memories.

Distributed versus massed practice- studying information in small increments over time versus large increments over a brief amount of time.

Context-dependent- superior retrieval of memories when the external context of the original memories matched the retrieval context. and state-dependent learning- superior retrieval of memories when the organism is in the same psychological state as it was during encoding.

Biology of memoryo Hippocampus- after strong stimulus hippocampal cells respond at an enhanced

level to ordinary stimuli. LTPo Amygdala- LTP lie response in the amygdala following the creation of a fear

memoryo LTP (Long –Term Potentiation)- gradual strengthening of the connection among

neuron form repetitive stimulation.

Clinical disorders of memory

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Amnesia (Retrograde- loss of memories from our past; Anterograde- inability to create new memories from our experiences)

Clive Wearing Alzheimer’s disease (causes and effects)- plaque and neurofibrally tangles cause

memory loss and intellectual decline

Problems with memory Flashbulb memories- emotional memories that are extraordinarily vivid and detailed. Source monitoring- ability to identify the origins of a memory. Eyewitness testimony- isn’t accurate when conditions aren’t exact & leading questions-

question, which have bais toward one response.

Hock reading #16 (Loftus): False presuppositions (implanting information into a question) Problems of memory reconstruction and eye witness testimony

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Language, Thinking, and Reasoning

Language- system that combines symbols in rule-based ways to create meaning

Units of language: Phonemes- categories of sound our vocal apparatus produces. Morphemes- smallest meaningful units of speech. Syntax- grammar rules that govern how words are composed into meaningful stings. Semantics

Theoretical accounts of language acquisition: what does each account say about language acquisition, and what is the major problem/shortcoming of each one?

Imitation account- children lean language through imitation. Nativist account- children are born knowing how language works. Social-pragmatics account- children infer what words and sentences mean from context

and social interactions. General cognitive processing account- language learning is result of general skills that

children apply across a variety of activities.

Other important topics for language/reading: Differences between animal and human communication- animals don’t have same vocal

apparatus. Second language acquisition- different learning potential of a second language as age

differs, Critical period for language- windows of time in development during which an organism must lean a ability if its going to lean it at all.

Nicaraguan Sign Language- the inhabitants created their own sign language, which became more complex after each generation.

Artificial intelligence/machine language learning- study and design of computer system created to mimic human cognitive abilities.

Linguistic determinism- language defines our thinking, linguistic relativity- view that characteristics of language shape our thought processes.

Stroop effect (what it is, and its significance)- reading comes natural, interference when thinking of colored words.

Thinking and Reasoning

Cognitive economy Top down processing-taking information from related experience and using it to organize

information. Categories- collections of real or imagined objects, actions, and characteristics that

share core properties.

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Schemas- categories we’ve stored in memory that organize relations among actions, objects, and ideas.

Problem solving methods: Trial and error- is a method of problem solving based on experience with no explicit use

of insight or theory building. Algorithm- Set of instructions for solving a problem Heuristics- estimation of how probable an event is based on the ease of generating an

example.

Important concepts in problem solving/reasoning: Salience of surface similarities- how attention grabbing something is on the surface-

level. Mental sets- phenomenon of becoming stuck in a specific problem-solving strategy

inhibiting our ability to generate alternatives. Functional fixedness- difficulty conceptualizing that an object typically used for one

purpose can be used for another. Analogical reasoning- Insight- grasping the nature of a problem Cultural differences Experiential differences Expertise differences

Heuristics and biases Availability heuristic- prominence of idea in someone’s memory Representativeness heuristic- People tend to judge the probability of an event

by finding a 'comparable known' event and assuming that the probabilities will be similar.

Hindsight bias- tendency to overestimate how well we could have successfully forecasted known outcomes

Confirmation bias- tendency to seek evidence that supports our hypotheses and neglect information that contradicts them.

(Some of this is in Chapter 10 and some is in Chapter 2; all of it was covered in either lecture or discussion section)

No Hock reading for this chapter!!

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Ch. 9 Intelligence and IQ Testing (Pg 353 – 363 only!)

Theories of intelligence: Sensory capacity- the amount of sensory information we can process. g (General intelligence)- hypothetical factor that accounts for overall differences in

intellect among people and s (specific abilities)- particular ability level in a narrow domain.

Triarchic Model- 3 kinds of intelligence: practical, analytical, and creative. Multiple intelligences- ideas that people vary in their ability levels across different

domains of intellectual skill.

Nature versus nurture in intelligence

Intelligence testing Mental age- measured intelligence, minus intelligence age Non-intelligence (environmental) based explanations for IQ differences between Blacks

and Caucasians

Expectancy effect and self-fulfilling prophecies related to teaching and learning

Stereotype threat

Hock reading #14 (Gardner) Theory of Multiple Intelligences What are the 8 types of intelligence and how they qualify as intelligences

Ch. 10 Human Development

Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory 4 stages of cognitive development- sensorimotor- no thought beyond immediate physical

experiences, preoperational- able to think beyond the here and now, but unable to perform mental transformations, concrete- able to perform mental transformations bun only on concrete physical objects, formal operations- hypothetical and abstract reasoning.

Object permanence- objects continue to exist even when out of view. Egocentrism- inability to see world form other peoples perspectives. Conservation- transform in the shape of an object with the same amount of water-

Piaget.

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Assimilation- asorbing new experience into current knowledge structures, Accommodation- altering belief to make it more compatabile with experience.

Vygotsky’s Social and Cultural Theory Scaffolding- learning mechanisms were parents provide initial assistance in children’s

learning but gradually remove structure as children become more competent. Zone of proximal development- phase in learning where children can benefit from

instruction.

Kohlberg’s Theory of Moral Development (text book and Hock) 3 stages of moral thinking Criticisms for Kohlberg’s theory

Erikson’s Theory of Identity Development Idea of psychosocial crisis and how it relates to personality growth Focus on the 5th stage (Adolescence: Identity vs. Role Confusion)

Bowylby’s Attachment Theory Attachment styles

o Secure- after mom’s departure upset but greets return with joy, secure base.o Insecure avoidant- indifference to mom’s departure and little reaction with return.o Insecure anxious-panics with departure and mixed reaction on return.o Disorganized- inconsistent and confused responses with mom’s departure and

return. What influences the development of these attachment styles? The environment of the

baby. What outcomes are associated with each attachment type? Secure babies usually grow

up well adjusted, helpful, empathetic.

Other important concepts: Imprinting- baby birds follow and attach themselves to any large moving object they see

in the hours immediately after being born. Ainsworth’s stranger anxiety- fear of strangers developing at 8 or 9 months of age. Harlow’s monkey studies (contact comfort)- contact comfort prevails over nourishment. Social-emotion learning (video on kids learning social and emotional skills in school)- Gender identity development- individuals sense of being male or female, gender roles-

behaviors that tend to be associated with being male or female, gender stereotypes- stereotyping certain activities as male or female.

What cognitive abilities decline and what even improve in aging adults What are 4 concepts of age in addition to years lived

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