GRE Psychology Subject Test: PEOPLE
Questions and Answers
E. L. Thorndike - Correct Answers -law of effect: reward-punishment. Precursor of
operant conditioning (SKINNER). Postulated a cause-and-effect chain of behavior
revolving around reinforcement. Individuals do what rewards them and stop doing what
doesn't bring some type of reward. // Instrumental learning* This type of learning
happens through "trial, error, and accidental success." The animal then acts based on
previous successes. This led to his LAW OF EFFECT- postulated that successful
behaviors are MORE LIKELY TO BE REPEATED. Demonstrated this concept with
CATS IN PUZZLE BOXES. A cat was placed inside the box and would eventually
accidentally press the escape door level and be free. In later trials, the cat would press
the lever right away.// LAW OF EFFECT = precursor to operant conditioning.
Psychologist and Columbia university.
Kurt Lewin - Correct Answers -theory of association: forerunner of behaviorism.
Association is group things together based on the fact that they occur together in time
and space. Organisms associate certain behaviors with certain rewards and certain
cues with certain situations. Pavlov later proved experimentally*// FOUNDER OF
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY. Applied gestalt ideas to social behavior. Conceived FIELD
THEORY= the total of influences upon individual behavior. A person's LIFE SPACE=
the collection of forces upon the individual. VALENCE VECTOR and BARRIER= forces
in the life space.
B. F. Skinner - Correct Answers -operant conditioning: first scientific experiments to
prove the concepts in Thorndike's law of effect and in Watson's idea of the causes/
effects of behavior. Behavior is influenced primarily by reinforcement= operant
conditioning. Created the now classic stereotype of a psychological study- rats and the
skinner box. Proved that animals are influenced by reinforcement.// BEHAVIOR
THEORY= B.F. Skinner. Behavior theory is the application of classical and operant
conditioning principles to human abnormal behavior. It is a model of behavior BASED
ON LEARNING. Behavioralists change maladaptive behavior through new learning.
RADICAL BEHAVIORALISM is associated with Skinner's operant ideas that behavior is
related only to its consequences. NEOBEHAVIORALISM uses Pavlov's classical
counterconditioning principles to create new responses to stimuli. //SKINNER BOX +
OPERANT CONDITIONING. Famous behaviorist. 2 famous books= Walden Two and
Beyond Freedom and Dignity. Both philosophically discuss the control of human
behavior.
Ivan Pavlov - Correct Answers -classical conditioning (Pavlovian conditioning): teaching
an organism to respond to a neutral stimulus by pairing the neutral stimulus with a not-
,so-neutral stimulus (CS). Ex: dogs would salivate at the sight of food, but also at the
sound of the assistant's footsteps. //BEHAVIOR THEORY= Ivan Pavlov. Behavior
theory is the application of classical and operant conditioning principles to human
abnormal behavior. It is a model of behavior BASED ON LEARNING. Behavioralists
change maladaptive behavior through new learning. RADICAL BEHAVIORALISM is
associated with Skinner's operant ideas that behavior is related only to its
consequences. NEOBEHAVIORALISM uses Pavlov's classical counterconditioning
principles to create new responses to stimuli. // CLASSICAL CONDITIONING. Acquired
fame as the winner of the Nobel Prize for his work on digestion. Later, investigating
dogs and classical conditioning.
John B. Watson - Correct Answers -school of behaviorism: expanded on Pavlov's
classical conditioning. Watson's idea of learning, like his idea of all behavior, was that
everything could be explained by stimulus-response chains and that conditioning was
the key factor in developing these chains. MOST CONCERNED WITH CHILD
DEVELOPMENT—ENVIRONMENT IMPACTS DEVELOPMENT. //BEHAVIORISM
APPROACH. Imitation of parents is what shaped kids and their behavior. Molded by
their environment. // expanded on Pavlov and founded the school of BEHAVIORALISM.
Continued to study conditioning, stimulus-response chains, and objective, observable
behaviors. Saw humans as SQUIRMING BITS OF FLESH ready to be trained.
Fritz Heider - Correct Answers -FOUNDER OF ATTRIBUTION AND BALANCE
THEORIES. Attribution theory= the study of how people infer the causes of others'
behavior. People will actually attribute intentions and emotion to just about anything.
Balance theory= the study of how people make their feelings and/or actions consistent
to preserve psychological homeostasis.
Charles Osgood + Percy Tannenbaum - Correct Answers -congruency theory
Charles Osgood - Correct Answers -congruency theory // studied semantics, or word
meanings. Famous for his creation of semantic differential charts, which allowed people
to plot the meaning of words on graphs. People with similar backgrounds and interested
plotted words similarly. Indicating that words have similar connotations (implied
meaning) for cultures or subcultures. STUDIED SEMANTICS. PEOPLE WITH SIMILAR
BACKGROUNDS AND INTERESTS EXPERIENCE WORDS THAT HAVE SIMILAR
(IMPLIED MEANINGS) ACROSS CULTURES IN THE SAME WAY. Ex: near good, but
far from relaxed.
Leon Festinger - Correct Answers -cognitive dissonance theory= suggests that it is
uncomfortable for people to have beliefs that do not match their actions. After making a
difficult decision, people are motivated to back their actions up by touting corresponding
beliefs. Also, the less the act is justified by circumstance, the more we feel the need to
justify it by bringing our attitude in life with the behavior.
Clark Hull - Correct Answers -drive reduction theory: Performance= Drive X Habit =
individuals are first motivated by drive, and then act according to old successful habits.
, They will do what has worked in the past to satisfy their drive. Ex: do you look for food
do satisfy the hunger drive? Etc. DRIVE REDUCTION. REDUCE THE DRIVE.//
EXPLAINED MOTIVATION WITH MATH! Performance = Drive X Habit. AKA, we do
what we need to do and we do what has worked best in the past.
Edward Tolman - Correct Answers -expectancy-value theory: Performance =
expectation x value. Believes that people are motivated by goals that they think they
might actually meet. *Victor Vroom big companies offer little incentives to people low on
the totem pole. Tolman's experiments: animals form cognitive maps of mazes rather
than simple escape routes // behaviorist. PURPOSIVE BEHAVIOR theory asserted that
learning is acquired through meaningful behavior (termed sign learning) and that rats in
mazes formed cognitive maps rather than blindly attempting various routes. ALSO
CREATED - EXPECTANCY-VALUE THEORY of motivation in which PERFORMANCE
= EXPECTATION X VALUE.
Henry Murray + David McClelland + John Atkinson - Correct Answers -studied that
people are motivated by a need for achievement (nAch). May be manifested through a
need to pursue success, or a need to avoid failure, but either way the goal is to feel
successful. Atkinson suggested:
Henry Murray - Correct Answers -TAT
Neil Miller - Correct Answers -approach-avoidance conflict: conflict refers to the state
one feels when a certain goal has both pros and cons. The further one is from the goal,
the more they focus on the pros or reasons to approach the goal. The closer one is from
the goal, the more reasons they come up with to not obtain goal// proved experimentally
that abnormal behavior can be learned.
Donald Hebb - Correct Answers -arousal= important. A medium amount is best for
performance. // memory involves changes in synapses and neural pathways—making a
memory "tree"
Albert Bandura - Correct Answers -modeling= bobo doll
John Garcia - Correct Answers -preparedness=Garcia effect
M. E. Olds - Correct Answers -drive reduction theory
Hermann Ebbinghaus - Correct Answers -Learning Curve// forgetting curve. There is a
sharp drop in savings immediately after you learn it, but then it levels off. First to study
memory systematically—to follow up.
Noam Chomsky - Correct Answers -most notable figure in psycholinguistics *** Will see
Q's on his work! Transformational Grammar differentiates between surface structure
and deep structure in language. Surface Structure: the way that words are organized--
Each example below has DIFFERENT surface structure: Ex: I studied the material for
Questions and Answers
E. L. Thorndike - Correct Answers -law of effect: reward-punishment. Precursor of
operant conditioning (SKINNER). Postulated a cause-and-effect chain of behavior
revolving around reinforcement. Individuals do what rewards them and stop doing what
doesn't bring some type of reward. // Instrumental learning* This type of learning
happens through "trial, error, and accidental success." The animal then acts based on
previous successes. This led to his LAW OF EFFECT- postulated that successful
behaviors are MORE LIKELY TO BE REPEATED. Demonstrated this concept with
CATS IN PUZZLE BOXES. A cat was placed inside the box and would eventually
accidentally press the escape door level and be free. In later trials, the cat would press
the lever right away.// LAW OF EFFECT = precursor to operant conditioning.
Psychologist and Columbia university.
Kurt Lewin - Correct Answers -theory of association: forerunner of behaviorism.
Association is group things together based on the fact that they occur together in time
and space. Organisms associate certain behaviors with certain rewards and certain
cues with certain situations. Pavlov later proved experimentally*// FOUNDER OF
SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY. Applied gestalt ideas to social behavior. Conceived FIELD
THEORY= the total of influences upon individual behavior. A person's LIFE SPACE=
the collection of forces upon the individual. VALENCE VECTOR and BARRIER= forces
in the life space.
B. F. Skinner - Correct Answers -operant conditioning: first scientific experiments to
prove the concepts in Thorndike's law of effect and in Watson's idea of the causes/
effects of behavior. Behavior is influenced primarily by reinforcement= operant
conditioning. Created the now classic stereotype of a psychological study- rats and the
skinner box. Proved that animals are influenced by reinforcement.// BEHAVIOR
THEORY= B.F. Skinner. Behavior theory is the application of classical and operant
conditioning principles to human abnormal behavior. It is a model of behavior BASED
ON LEARNING. Behavioralists change maladaptive behavior through new learning.
RADICAL BEHAVIORALISM is associated with Skinner's operant ideas that behavior is
related only to its consequences. NEOBEHAVIORALISM uses Pavlov's classical
counterconditioning principles to create new responses to stimuli. //SKINNER BOX +
OPERANT CONDITIONING. Famous behaviorist. 2 famous books= Walden Two and
Beyond Freedom and Dignity. Both philosophically discuss the control of human
behavior.
Ivan Pavlov - Correct Answers -classical conditioning (Pavlovian conditioning): teaching
an organism to respond to a neutral stimulus by pairing the neutral stimulus with a not-
,so-neutral stimulus (CS). Ex: dogs would salivate at the sight of food, but also at the
sound of the assistant's footsteps. //BEHAVIOR THEORY= Ivan Pavlov. Behavior
theory is the application of classical and operant conditioning principles to human
abnormal behavior. It is a model of behavior BASED ON LEARNING. Behavioralists
change maladaptive behavior through new learning. RADICAL BEHAVIORALISM is
associated with Skinner's operant ideas that behavior is related only to its
consequences. NEOBEHAVIORALISM uses Pavlov's classical counterconditioning
principles to create new responses to stimuli. // CLASSICAL CONDITIONING. Acquired
fame as the winner of the Nobel Prize for his work on digestion. Later, investigating
dogs and classical conditioning.
John B. Watson - Correct Answers -school of behaviorism: expanded on Pavlov's
classical conditioning. Watson's idea of learning, like his idea of all behavior, was that
everything could be explained by stimulus-response chains and that conditioning was
the key factor in developing these chains. MOST CONCERNED WITH CHILD
DEVELOPMENT—ENVIRONMENT IMPACTS DEVELOPMENT. //BEHAVIORISM
APPROACH. Imitation of parents is what shaped kids and their behavior. Molded by
their environment. // expanded on Pavlov and founded the school of BEHAVIORALISM.
Continued to study conditioning, stimulus-response chains, and objective, observable
behaviors. Saw humans as SQUIRMING BITS OF FLESH ready to be trained.
Fritz Heider - Correct Answers -FOUNDER OF ATTRIBUTION AND BALANCE
THEORIES. Attribution theory= the study of how people infer the causes of others'
behavior. People will actually attribute intentions and emotion to just about anything.
Balance theory= the study of how people make their feelings and/or actions consistent
to preserve psychological homeostasis.
Charles Osgood + Percy Tannenbaum - Correct Answers -congruency theory
Charles Osgood - Correct Answers -congruency theory // studied semantics, or word
meanings. Famous for his creation of semantic differential charts, which allowed people
to plot the meaning of words on graphs. People with similar backgrounds and interested
plotted words similarly. Indicating that words have similar connotations (implied
meaning) for cultures or subcultures. STUDIED SEMANTICS. PEOPLE WITH SIMILAR
BACKGROUNDS AND INTERESTS EXPERIENCE WORDS THAT HAVE SIMILAR
(IMPLIED MEANINGS) ACROSS CULTURES IN THE SAME WAY. Ex: near good, but
far from relaxed.
Leon Festinger - Correct Answers -cognitive dissonance theory= suggests that it is
uncomfortable for people to have beliefs that do not match their actions. After making a
difficult decision, people are motivated to back their actions up by touting corresponding
beliefs. Also, the less the act is justified by circumstance, the more we feel the need to
justify it by bringing our attitude in life with the behavior.
Clark Hull - Correct Answers -drive reduction theory: Performance= Drive X Habit =
individuals are first motivated by drive, and then act according to old successful habits.
, They will do what has worked in the past to satisfy their drive. Ex: do you look for food
do satisfy the hunger drive? Etc. DRIVE REDUCTION. REDUCE THE DRIVE.//
EXPLAINED MOTIVATION WITH MATH! Performance = Drive X Habit. AKA, we do
what we need to do and we do what has worked best in the past.
Edward Tolman - Correct Answers -expectancy-value theory: Performance =
expectation x value. Believes that people are motivated by goals that they think they
might actually meet. *Victor Vroom big companies offer little incentives to people low on
the totem pole. Tolman's experiments: animals form cognitive maps of mazes rather
than simple escape routes // behaviorist. PURPOSIVE BEHAVIOR theory asserted that
learning is acquired through meaningful behavior (termed sign learning) and that rats in
mazes formed cognitive maps rather than blindly attempting various routes. ALSO
CREATED - EXPECTANCY-VALUE THEORY of motivation in which PERFORMANCE
= EXPECTATION X VALUE.
Henry Murray + David McClelland + John Atkinson - Correct Answers -studied that
people are motivated by a need for achievement (nAch). May be manifested through a
need to pursue success, or a need to avoid failure, but either way the goal is to feel
successful. Atkinson suggested:
Henry Murray - Correct Answers -TAT
Neil Miller - Correct Answers -approach-avoidance conflict: conflict refers to the state
one feels when a certain goal has both pros and cons. The further one is from the goal,
the more they focus on the pros or reasons to approach the goal. The closer one is from
the goal, the more reasons they come up with to not obtain goal// proved experimentally
that abnormal behavior can be learned.
Donald Hebb - Correct Answers -arousal= important. A medium amount is best for
performance. // memory involves changes in synapses and neural pathways—making a
memory "tree"
Albert Bandura - Correct Answers -modeling= bobo doll
John Garcia - Correct Answers -preparedness=Garcia effect
M. E. Olds - Correct Answers -drive reduction theory
Hermann Ebbinghaus - Correct Answers -Learning Curve// forgetting curve. There is a
sharp drop in savings immediately after you learn it, but then it levels off. First to study
memory systematically—to follow up.
Noam Chomsky - Correct Answers -most notable figure in psycholinguistics *** Will see
Q's on his work! Transformational Grammar differentiates between surface structure
and deep structure in language. Surface Structure: the way that words are organized--
Each example below has DIFFERENT surface structure: Ex: I studied the material for
