I.The Structure of the Neuron

I.The Structure of the Neuron

A.Basic building blocks of the nervous system

B.Cells specialized for rapidly communicating information

C.Neuron parts and functions

1.Dendrites—Receive messages/signals from neighboring neurons.______

2.Soma (cell body)—Contains cytoplasm and the nucleus.______

3.Nucleus—Control center. Directs the synthesis of neurotransmitters.______

4.Axon—Transmits/sends the signal to the dendrites of neighboring neurons.______

5.Terminal buttons—Knoblike structures on the ends of axons. Transmit neurotransmitters across the synapse.______

D.Types of neurons

1.Sensory neurons—Carry signals to the brain and spinal chord.______

2.Motor neurons—Send signals from the brain and spinal chord causing movement or motion.______

3.Interneurons—Located in the brain and spinal chord. Communicate messages between sensory and motor neurons.______

E.Synapses—Tiny gap between the axon terminals and dendrites of neighboring neurons.______

II.Neurotransmitters

A.Some important neurotransmitters

1.Acetylcholine(ACH)— causes contraction of skeletal muscles. Helps regulate heart rate, involved in memory. Lack of ACH has been linked to Alzheimer’s. ______

2.Dopamine—Responsible for alertness and movement. Lack of dopamine is associated with Parkinson’s disease. Excess dopamine is linked to schizophrenia.______

3.Serotonin—Attention, moods, and emotion. Lack of serotonin is linked to depression.______

4.Endorphins—Natural painkillers.______

II.Central Nervous System

A.Consists of — Brain and spinal chord.______

B.Peripheral nervous system consists of—Everything outside of the brain and spinal chord.______

III.Peripheral Nervous System

A.Somatic nervous system—Voluntary movement.______

B.Autonomic nervous system—two further divisions, controls involuntary/automatic functions (heartbeat, respiration, digestion).

1.Sympathetic nervous system—Prepares for fight or flight (increases heart rate, respiration, dilates pupils, slows digestion).______

2.Parasympathetic nervous system—Calms us down after a threat.______

IV.The Brain at Work: Lateralization and Integration

A.Lateralization

1.Division of functions between left and right hemispheres

2.Left brain is responsible for— verbal (speaking) mathematics, analytical______

3.Right brain is responsible for —artistic expression, facial recognition, identifying emotion.______

B.Integration: Both hemispheres share work in performing most tasks

V.Brain Damage and Psychological Functioning

A.Brain plasticity—The brain’s ability to repair itself after physical trauma/damage.______

III.Exploring Psychology: Split-Brain Research: Can the Hemispheres Go It Alone?

A.Corpus callosum may be severed as a treatment for severe epilepsy

B.Patient holds a familiar object in the left hand—can use it but not name it

1.The left hand connects to the right hemisphere, which lacks language capabilities

C.Perception studies—researchers flash pictures to either left or right visual field

1.Patients can only describe the picture if flashed to the right visual field (which connects to the left hemisphere)

D.Split-brain patients appear quite normal in everyday behavior

VI.The Endocrine System

A.A grouping of glands

B.Glands release secretions called hormones

C.Regulates bodily processes such as growth, reproduction, and metabolism

D.Maintains homeostasis—an internally balanced state

VII.Important Glands

A.Hypothalamus—hunger, thirst, sexual desire.______

B.Pituitary gland “Master gland”—Influences ALL OTHER GLANDS.______

C.Pancreas—Regulates blood sugar

______

D.Pineal gland—Releases melatonin (helps you sleep when it is dark).

______

E.Adrenal glands—Produce stress hormones, helps with “fight or flight.”______

I.Learning—a relatively permanent change in behavior that results from experience

II.Principles of Classical Conditioning

A.Unconditioned stimulus (US)—Anything that causes an automatic, reflexive reaction.______

B.Unconditioned response (UR)— Any response to an unconditioned stimulus.______

C.Neutral stimulus (NS)— Anything that causes no automatic response.______

D.Conditioned stimulus (CS)— Previously neutral stimulus that now causes an automatic/unlearned response.______

E.Conditioned response (CR)— Same as the unconditioned response, but it is in response to the conditioned (previously neutral) stimulus.______

F.Extinction—The disappearance of a conditioned response. The CS no longer has an effect.______

G.Spontaneous recovery—Occurs when the response reappears after extinction.______

H.Reconditioning—The relearning of a previously conditioned behavior.______

I.Stimulus generalization—When a stimulus similar to the CS elicits the same response. Ex: The dogs heard a phone ring and began salivating. The phone is similar to the bell, so it causes the same response.______

J.Stimulus discrimination—When ONLY the CS elicits the CR. Other stimuli do not cause a reaction.______

I.Principles of Operant Conditioning

A.Positive reinforcement—Providing something enjoyable for a desired behavior, Ex: a cookie for cleaning your room.______

B.Negative reinforcement—REMOVING SOMETHING UNPLEASANT. This is a GOOD THING. Ex. The car stops beeping when you put your seatbelt on. ______

C.Primary reinforcer—Rewarding in itself (food, drink, sex).______

D.Secondary reinforcer—Not rewarding in itself, but can be used to attain primary reinforcers.______

II. Schedules of Reinforcement

A.Continuous reinforcement – Reinforcement EVERY TIME a behavior is exhibited.

______

B.Partial reinforcement (ratio = number of responses; interval = passage of time)

1.Fixed-ratio (FR) schedule—Reinforcement after a set number of responses. Ex. after every 10 pushups you get a dollar.______

2.Variable-ratio (VR) schedule—Reinforcement after a changing number of responses. Ex. 3 pushups = 1 dollar, 7 more pushups = 1 dollar, 4 more pushups = 1 dollar

______

3.Fixed-interval (FI) schedule—Reinforcement after a set amount of time. pushups for 30 seconds = 1 dollar, 60 seconds = 1 dollar, 90 seconds = 1 dollar. ______

4.Variable-interval (VI) schedule—Reinforcement after a changingamount of time. Pushups for 10 seconds = $1, after 20 seconds = $1, after 30 more seconds = $1

______

III.Punishment

A.Something unpleasant follows a behavior

B.Introduce an aversive stimulus or remove a pleasant one

C.Objective: decrease occurrence of undesirable behavior(s)

Sensation and Perception

selective attention – Choosing to focus on one thing.

top-down processing – Filling in gaps based on previous knowledge.

bottom-up processing – Putting all the details together from the bottom up. No background knowledge.

absolute threshold – The smallest amount of a stimulus you can detect 50% of the time.

just noticeable difference – The smallest amount of change needed to detect a change has occurred.

Weber’s Law – The smaller the stimulus, the smaller the change needed to be able to notice a change. The greater the stimulus, the greater the change needed to be able to notice a change.

*Remember the envelopes with coins, and the shoes with coins?

sensory adaptation – Diminishing sensitivity to an unchanging stimulus. Ex.The pool isn’t cold anymore! You can’t feel your socks.

rods – Photoreceptors responsible for peripheral vision and black and white.

cones – Photoreceptors responsible for color and fine detail.

cornea – The outermost protective layer of the eye.

iris – Colored portion of the eye. Muscle that surrounds the pupil.

lens – Bends incoming light to focus an image on the retina. Process called accommodation.

retina – Portion of the eye that contains the rods & cones.

trichromatic theory – Theory of color vision that says we have 3 sets of cones: red cones, green cones, and blue cones.

opponent process theory – Cones come in pairs (red/green, yellow/blue, black/white). When one color is stimulated, the other is inhibited.

kinesthetic sense – Receptors located in joints, ligaments, and tendons. Helps us maintain awareness of our body’s position.

vestibular sense – Fluid-filled sacks in your inner ear help you maintain balance and equilibrium.

olfaction – Sense of smell. Strongest link to emotional memories.

taste – Closely related to sense of smell.

monocular cues for depth perception –

• relative size
• texture gradient
• linear perspective
• interposition
• shadowing

States of Consciousness

circadian rhythm –

REM –

insomnia –

narcolepsy -

sleep apnea –

night terrors –

manifest content –

latent content –

activation synthesis theory –

posthypnotic suggestion –

posthypnotic amnesia –

Motivation and Emotion

instinct theory –

drive reduction theory –

arousal theory –

incentive theory –

lateral hypothalamus –

ventromedial hypothalamus –

intrinsic motivation –

extrinsic motivation –

7 basic emotions –

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microexpressions –

James-Lange theory –

Cannon-Bard theory –

Schachter theory –

Social Psychology

social loafing –

deindividuation –

social facilitation –

group polarization –

groupthink –

fundamental attribution error –

actor-observer bias –

self-serving bias –

foot-in-the-door phenomenon

Social Psych Experiment Description? Researchers?