|
A |
Absolute threshold
The minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time
Accommodation
Adapting one’s current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information
Accommodation
The process by which the eye’s lens changes shape to focus the image of near objects on the retina
Acetylcholine (ACh)
A neurotransmitter that, among its functions, triggers muscle contraction
Achievement motivation
A desire for significant accomplishment: for mastery of things, people, or ideas; for attaining a high standard
Achievement test
A test designed to assess what a person has learned
Acoustic encoding
The encoding of sounds, especially the sound of words
Acquisition
The initial stage in classical conditioning; the phase associating a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus comes to elicit a conditioned response. In operant conditioning, the strengthening of a reinforced response
Action potential
A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon. The action potential is generated by the movement of positively charged atoms in and out of channels in the axon’s membrane
Active listening
Empathetic listening in which the listener echoes, restates, and clarifies. A feature of Rogers client-centered therapy
Acuity
The sharpness of vision
Adaptation-level phenomenon
Our tendency to form judgments (of sounds, of lights, of income) relative to a “neutral” level defined by our prior experience
Adolescence
The transition period from childhood to adulthood, extending from puberty to independence
Adrenal glands
A pair of endocrine glands just above the kidneys. The adrenals secrete the hormones epinephrine (adrenaline) and nor epinephrine (noradrenaline), which help to arouse the body in times of stress
Aerobic exercise
Sustained exercise that increases heart and lung fitness; may also alleviate depression and anxiety
Aggression
And physical or verbal behavior intended to hurt or destroy
Algorithm
A methodical, logical rule or procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem. Contrasts with the usually speedier- but also more error-prone use of heuristics
Alpha waves
The relatively slow brain waves of a relaxed, awake state
Altruism
Unselfish regard for the welfare of others
Alzheimer’s disease
A progressive and irreversible brain disorder characterized by gradual deterioration of memory, reasoning, language, and finally, physical functioning
Amnesia
The loss of memory
Amphetamines
Drugs that stimulate neural activity, causing speeded up body functions and associated energy and mood changes
Amygdala
Two almond-shaped neural clusters that are components of the limbic system and are linked to emotion
Anorexia nervosa
An eating disorder in which a normal-weight person (usually and adolescent female) diets and becomes significantly (15 percent or more) underweight, yet, still feeling fat, continues to starve
Antisocial personality disorder
A personality disorder in which the person (usually a man) exhibits a lack of conscience for wrongdoing, even toward friends and family members. May be aggressive and ruthless or a clever con artist
Anxiety disorders
Psychological disorders characterized by distressing, persistent anxiety or maladaptive behaviors that reduce anxiety
Aphasia
Impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca’s area (impairing speaking) or to Wernike’s area (impairing understanding)
Applied research
Scientific study that aims to solve practical problems
Aptitude test
A test designed to predict a person’s future performance, aptitude is the capacity to learn
Artificial intelligence (AI)
Science of designing and programming computer systems to do intelligent things and to stimulate human thought process such as intuitive reasoning, learning, and understanding language. Includes practical implications (chess playing, industrial robots, expert systems) and efforts to model human thinking inspired by our current understanding of how the brain works
Assimilation
Interpreting one’s new experience in terms of one’s existing schemas
Association areas
Areas of cerebral cortex that are not involved in primary motor or sensory functions; rather, they are involved in higher mental functions such as learning, remembering, thinking, and speaking
Associative learning
Learning that certain events occur together. The events may be two stimuli (as in classical conditioning) or a response and its consequences (as in operant conditioning)
Attachment
An emotional tie with another person; shown in young children by their seeking closeness to the caregiver and showing distress on separation
Attitude
A belief and feeling that predisposes one to respond in a particular way to objects, people, and events
Attribution theory
The theory that we tend to give a casual explanation for someone’s behavior, often by crediting either the situation or the person’s disposition
Audition
The sense of hearing
Automatic processing
Unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned information, such as word meanings
Autonomic nervous system
The part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart). Its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms
Availability heuristic
Estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind (perhaps because of their vividness), we presume such events are common
Aversive conditioning
A type of counterconditioning that associates an unpleasant state (such as nausea) with an unwanted behavior (such as drinking alcohol)
Axon
The extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages are sent to other neurons or to muscles or glands