complete solution updated 2024/2025
Trait Theories: Five Factor Model - openness, conscientiousness, extraversion,
agreeableness, and neuroticism
(OCEAN)
Psychology - scientific study of behavior and mental processes
Psychodynamic approach - emphasizes unconscious thought, the conflict between
biological drives (such as the drive for sex) and society's demands, and early
childhood family experiences
Behavioral approach - scientific study of observable behavioral responses and their
environmental determinants. It focuses on an organism's visible behaviors, not
thoughts or feelings
Cognitive approach - emphasizes the mental processes involved in knowing: how
we direct our attention, perceive, remember, think, and solve problems.
Humanistic approach - emphasizes a person's positive qualities, the capacity for
positive growth, and the freedom to choose one's destiny
Biological approach - focus on the body, especially the brain and nervous system
Sociocultural approach - examines the influences of social and cultural
environments on behavior. Socioculturalists argue that understanding a person's
behavior requires knowing about the cultural context in which the behavior occurs
Evolutionary approach - uses evolutionary ideas such as adaptation, reproduction,
and natural selection as the basis for explaining specific human behaviors
Validity - refers to the extent to which a test measures what it is intended to
measure
Theory - a tested, well-substantiated, unifying explanation for a set of verified,
proven factors
Case Study - An in-depth look at a single individual.
Naturalistic Observation - The observation of behavior in a real-world setting
Zero Correlations - means that there is no systematic relationship between the
variables
, Negative Correlations - means that as one variable increases, the other decreases
Positive Correlations - means that as one variable increases, the other also
increases, or as one decreases the other does as well
Neurotransmitters - chemical substance that is released at the end of a nerve fiber
by the arrival of a nerve impulse and, by diffusing across the synapse or junction,
causes the transfer of the impulse to another nerve fiber, a muscle fiber, or some
other structure
Plasticity - brain's special ability to adapt and change
Sympathetic Nervous System - arouses the body to mobilize it for action and thus is
involved in the experience of stress
Parasympathetic Nervous System - calms the body
Brainstem - stemlike brain area that includes much of the hindbrain (excluding the
cerebellum) and the midbrain; connects with the spinal cord at its lower end and then
extends upward to encase the reticular formation in the midbrain.
Cerebellum - consists of two rounded structures thought to play important roles in
motor coordination
Hindbrain - located at the skull's rear, is the lowest portion of the brain. The three
main parts are the medulla, cerebellum, and pons.
Limbic System - A set of subcortical brain structures central to emotion, memory,
and reward processing
Hippocampus - The structure in the limbic system that has a special role in the
storage of memories
Amygdala - An almond-shaped structure within the base of the temporal lobe that is
involved in the discrimination of objects that are necessary for the organism's
survival, such as appropriate food, mates, and social rivals.
Hypothalamus - A small forebrain structure, located just below the thalamus, that
monitors three pleasurable activities—eating, drinking, and sex—as well as emotion,
stress, and reward
Cerebral Cortex - Part of the forebrain, the outer layer of the brain, responsible for
the most complex mental functions, such as thinking and planning.
Four lobe - Occipital, temporal, frontal, parietal
Motor cortex - A region in the cerebral cortex, located just behind the frontal lobes,
that processes information about voluntary movement.