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Module 1Discovering Psychology

DEFINITION OF PSYCHOLOGYWhat do psychologists study?

Psychology - the systematic, scientific study of behaviors and mental processesBehaviors - refers to observable actions or responses in both humans and animals

Mental processes - not directly observable, refer to a wide range of complex mentalprocesses, such as thinking, imagining, studying, and dreaming

GOALS OF PSYCHOLOGYDescribe - first goal of psychology is to describe the different ways that organisms

behaveExplain - second goal of psychology is to explain the cause of behaviorPredict - third goal of psychology is to predict how organisms will behave in certain

situationsControl - the fourth goal of psychology is to control an organisms behavior

MORE APPROACHES, MORE ANSWERSHow do psychologists answer questions?

Approaches (6) to understanding behavior include:

BiologicalCognitiveBehavioralPsychoanalyticHumanisticCross cultural

MORE APPROACHES, MORE ANSWERS (CONT.)Biological approach

focuses on how our genes, hormones, and nervous system interact with ourenvironments to influence learning, personality, memory, motivation, emotions, andcoping techniques

Cognitive approach

examines how we process, store, and use information and how this informationinfluences, what we attend to, perceive, learn, remember, believe, and feel

MORE APPROACHES, MORE ANSWERS (CONT.)Behavioral approach

studies how organisms learn new behaviors or modify existing ones, depending onwhether events in their environments reward or punish these behaviors

Psychoanalyticapproachstresses the influence of unconscious fears, desires, and motivations on thoughts,

behaviors, and the development of personality traits and psychological problems laterin life

MORE APPROACHES, MORE ANSWERS (CONT.)Humanistic approach

emphasizes that each individual has great freedom in directing his or her future, a largecapacity for personal growth, a considerable amount of intrinsic worth, and enormouspotential for self-fulfillment

Cross-cultural approachexamines the influence of cultural and ethnic similarities and differences on psychological

and social functioning of a cultures membersHISTORICAL APPROACHES

How did psychology begin?Structuralism: Elements of the Mind

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Functionalism: Functions of the MindGestalt Approach: Sensations versus PerceptionsBehaviorism: Observable Behaviors

HISTORICAL APPROACHESStructuralism

was the study of the most basic elements, primarily sensations and perceptions, thatmake up our conscious mental experiences

Wilhelm WundtHISTORICAL APPROACHES

Functionalismwhich was the study of the function rather than the structure of consciousness, was

interested in how our minds adapt to our changing environmentHISTORICAL APPROACHES

Gestalt Approachemphasized that perception is more than the sum of its parts and studied how sensations

are assembled into meaningful perceptual experiencesHISTORICAL APPROACHES

Behaviorismemphasized the objective, scientific analysis of observable behaviors

CAREERS IN PSYCHOLOGYPsychologist versus Psychiatrist

Psychologists have completed four to five years of postgraduate education and haveobtained a Ph.D., PsyD., or Ed.D in psychology

Clinical Psychologists have a Ph.D., PsyD., or Ed.D., have specialized in a clinicalsubarea, and have spent an additional year in a supervised therapy setting to gainexperience in diagnosing and treating a wide range of abnormal behaviors

CAREERS IN PSYCHOLOGYPsychologist versus Psychiatrist

Counseling Psychologists provide many of the same services as Clinical Psychologists,

but usually work with different problems such as those involving marriage, family, orcareer counseling

Psychiatrists are medical doctors (M.D.s) who have spent several years in clinicaltraining, which includes diagnosing possible physical and neurological causes ofabnormal behaviors and treating these behaviors, often with prescription drugs

CAREERS IN PSYCHOLOGYMany Career Settings

49% of psychologists work as clinical or counseling psychologists in either privatepractice or therapy settings

28% of psychologists work in academic settings of universities and colleges13% of psychologists work in a variety of other kinds of jobs and career settings6% of psychologists work in industrial settings

4% of psychologists work in secondary schools and other settingsRESEARCH AREAS

Areas of SpecializationSocial and PersonalityDevelopmentalExperimentalBiologicalCognitivePsychometrics

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RESEARCH AREAS (CONT.)Areas of Specialization

Social psychologyinvolves the study of social interactions, stereotypes, prejudices, attitudes,conformity,

group behaviors, and aggressionPersonality psychology

involves the study of personality development, personality change, assessment, andabnormal behaviors


Developmental psychologyexamines moral, social, emotional, and cognitive development throughout a persons

entire lifeExperimental psychology

includes areas of sensation, perception, learning, human performance, motivation,and emotion


Biological psychologyor psychobiology involves research on the physical and chemical changes that occur

during stress, learning, and emotions, as well as how our genetic makeup, brain,and nervous system interact with our environments and influence our behaviors


Cognitive psychologyinvolves how we process, store, and retrieve information and how cognitive

processes influence our behaviorsPsychometrics

focuses on the measurement of peoples abilities, skills, intelligence, personality, andabnormal behaviors

Module 2Psychology & Science

ANSWERING QUESTIONSResearch methods

SurveyCase studyExperiment

Researchers use all three methods

Each method provides a different kind of information

SURVEYSSurvey

way to obtain information by asking many individualsanswer a fixed set of questions about particular subjects

Disadvantagesinformation can contain errors

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results can be biasedAdvantage

efficient way to obtain much information from a large number of people

CASE STUDYCase study

an in-depth analysis of the thoughts, feelings, beliefs, experiences, behaviors, orproblems of a single individual

Disadvantagedetailed information about a particular person may not apply to others

Advantagedetailed information allows greater understanding of a particular persons life

EXPERIMENTExperiment

a method for identifying cause-and-effect relationships by following a set of rules andguidelines that minimize the possibility of error, bias, and chance occurrences.

Disadvantageinformation obtained in one experimental situation or laboratory setting may not apply to

other situationsAdvantage

has the greatest potential for identifying cause-and-effect relationships with less error andbias than either surveys or case studies

CULTURAL DIVERSITY: USE OF PLACEBOSPlacebo

intervention, such as taking a pill, receiving and injection, or undergoing an operation,that resembles medical therapy but has no medical effects

Placebo effectchange in the patients illness that is attributable to an imagined treatment rather than to

a medical treatmentResearchers believe that placebos work by reducing tension and distress and by creating

powerful self-fulfilling propheciesIndividuals think and behave as if the drug, actually a placebo, is effective

CULTURAL DIVERSITY: USE OF PLACEBOS (CONT.)Placebo examples

Rhino HornBear GallbladdersTiger BonesMagnets

CORRELATIONCorrelation

an association or relationship between the occurrence of two or more events

a correlation does NOT prove causation, just a relationship is present, which is usuallyattributable to a third variable

Correlation coefficienta number that indicates the strength of a relationship between two or more events: the

closer the number is to 1.00 or +1.00, the greater is the strength of the relationshipCORRELATION (CONT.)

Perfect positive correlation coefficient+1.00 means that an increase in one event is always matched by an equal increase in a

second event

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Positive correlation coefficientindicates that as one event tends to increase, the second event tends to, but does not

always, increaseincreases from +0.01 to +0.99 indicate a strengthening of the relationship between the

occurrence of two eventsCORRELATION (CONT.)

Zero correlationindicates that there is no relationship between the occurrence of one event and the

occurrence of a second eventNegative correlation coefficient

indicates that as one event tends to increase, the second event tends to, but does notalways, decrease

-0.01 to -0.99 indicates a strengthening in the relationship of one event increasing andthe other decreasing

CORRELATION (CONT.)Perfect negative correlation coefficient

-1.00 means that an increase in one event is always matched by an equal decrease in asecond event

correlations such as +1.00 or -1.00 are virtually never found in applied psychologicalresearch

CORRELATION (CONT.)DECISIONS ABOUT DOING RESEARCH

What is the best technique for answering a question?Questionnaires and interviewsLaboratory experimentsStandardized testsAnimal models

DECISIONS ABOUT DOING RESEARCH (CONT.)Questionnaire

technique for obtaining information by asking subjects to read a list of written questions

and check off specific answersInterview

technique for obtaining information by asking questions, ranging from open-ended tohighly structured, about a subjects behaviors and attitudes, usually in a one-on-onesituation

DECISIONS ABOUT DOING RESEARCH (CONT.)Laboratory experiments

techniques to gather information about the brain, genes, or behavior with the lease errorand bias by using a controlled environment that allows careful observation andmeasurement

Standardized teststechnique to obtain information by administering a psychological test that has been given

to hundreds of people and shown to reliably measure thought patterns, personalitytraits, emotions, or behaviors

DECISIONS ABOUT DOING RESEARCH (CONT.)Animal Models

involves examining or manipulating some behavioral, genetic, or physiological factor thatclosely approximates some human problem, disease, or condition

DECISIONS ABOUT DOING RESEARCH (CONT.)Choosing research settings

Naturalistic setting

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relatively normal environment in which researchers gather information by observingindividuals behaviors without attempting to change or control the situation

Laboratory settinginvolves studying individuals under systematic and controlled conditions, with many of

the real-world influences eliminatedSCIENTIFIC METHOD: EXPERIMENT

Advantages of scientific methodApproach of gathering information and answering questions so that errors and biases are

minimizedIdentifying cause-and-effect relationships

Conducting and Experiment: seven rulesRule 1: AskRule 2: IdentifyRule 3: ChooseRule 4: AssignRule 5: ManipulateRule 6: MeasureRule 7: Analyze

SCIENTIFIC METHOD: EXPERIMENT (CONT.)Rule 1: Ask

hypothesis - educated guess about some phenomenon stated in precise, concretelanguage to rule out any confusion or error in the meaning of its terms

Rule 2: Identify & defineindependent variable

a treatment or something that the researcher controls or manipulatesdependent variable

one or more of the subjects behaviors that are used to measure the potential effectsof the treatment or independent variable

Operational definitionprecise description of how the variables will be measured

SCIENTIFIC METHOD: EXPERIMENT (CONT.)Rule 3: Choose

random selection - each participant in a sample population has an equal chance of beingselected for the experiment

Rule 4: Assignexperimental group - those who receive the treatmentcontrol group - participants who undergo all the same procedures as the experimental

participants except that the control participants do not receive the treatmentSCIENTIFIC METHOD: EXPERIMENT (CONT.)

Rule 5: Manipulatedouble blind procedure - neither participants nor researchers know which group is

receiving which treatment

Rule 6: Measureby manipulating the treatment so that the experimental group receives a different

treatment than the control group, researchers are able to measure how theindependent variable (treatment) affects those behaviors that have been selected asthe dependent variables

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Rule 7: Analyzestatistical procedures

used to determine whether differences observed in dependent variables (behaviors)are due to independent variables (treatment) or to error or chance occurrence

APPLICATION: RESEARCH CONCERNSConcerns about being a subject

human and animalCode of ethics

the American Psychological Association publishes a code of ethics and conduct forpsychologists to follow when doing research, counseling, teaching, and relatedactivities

Role of deceptionone way that researchers control for participants expectations is to use bogus

procedures or instructions that prevent participants from learning the experiments truepurpose

APPLICATION: RESEARCH CONCERNS (CONT.)

Ethics of animal researchHow many animals are used in research?

18 to 22 million animals are used each year in biomedical researchAre research animals mistreated?

Of the millions of animals used in research, only a few cases of animal mistreatmenthave been confirmed.

APPLICATION: RESEARCH CONCERNS (CONT.)Ethics of animal research

Is the use of animals justified?researchers are currently using animals to study epilepsy, Alzheimers disease, fetal

alcohol syndrome, schizophrenia, AIDS, and transplantation of brain tissuenone of which is possible with human subjects

Who checks on the use of animals in research?U. S. Department of Agricultureuniversities hire veterinariansuniversities have animal subject committees

APPLICATION: RESEARCH CONCERNS (CONT.)Ethics of animal research

How do we strike a balance?many experts in the scientific, medical, and mental health communities believe that

the conscientious and responsible use of animals in research is justified and shouldcontinue

Module 3Brains Building BlocksStructure of the Brain

Geneschains of chemicals that are arranged like rungs on a twisting ladderthere are about 100,000 genes that contain chemical instructions that equal about

1,000,000 pages of written instructionsgenes program the development of individual parts into a complex brain & body

STRUCTURE OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)

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3 Functions of glial cellsguide the growth of developing neuronswrap around neurons and form an insulation to prevent interference from other electrical

signalsrelease chemicals that influence a neurons growth and function

STRUCTURE OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)

Neurona brain cell with 2 specialized extensionsone extension is for receiving electrical signalsthe other extension is for transmitting electrical signals

3 PARTS OF THE NEURONCell Body

large egg-shaped structure that provides fuel, manufactures chemicals, and maintainsthe entire neuron in working order

Dendritebranchlike extensions that arise from the cell bodyreceive signals from other neurons, muscles, or sense organspass these signals onto the cell body

Axona single threadlike structure that extends from and carries signals away from the cell

body to neighboring neurons, organs, or muscles

ALZHEIMERS DISEASEAlzheimers Disease

results from excessive buildup of toxic substances which destroy neuronsAlzheimers Boom

PERIPHERAL & CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEMPeripheral Nervous System

made up of nerves that are located throughout the body, except in the brain & spinal cordCentral Nervous System

made up of neurons located in the brain & spinal cordPERIPHERAL & CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM

Nervesstringlike bundles of axons and dendrites that come from the spinal cord and are held

together by connective tissuecarry information from the senses, skin, muscles, and the bodys organs to and from the

spinal cordnerves in the peripheral nervous system have the ability to grow or reattach if severed or

damagedSENDING INFORMATION: ACTION POTENTIAL SEQUENCE

axon membrane has chemical gates that can open to allow electrically charged particlesto enter or can close to keep out these particles

ions are chemical particles that have electrical chargesopposite charges attract and like charges repel

SENDING INFORMATION: NERVE IMPULSESending Information

the nerve impulse refers to the series of separate action potentials that take placesegment by segment as they move down the length of the axon

All-or-None law

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if an action potential starts at the beginning of the axon, the action potential will continueat the same speed segment to segment to the very end of the axon

SENDING INFORMATION: NERVE IMPULSE (CONT.)Nerve impulse

nerve impulse is made up of 6 action potentials, with the first occurring at the beginningof the axon

SENDING INFORMATION: NERVE IMPULSE (CONT.)Resting state

the axon has a chargethe charge results from the axon membrane separating positive ions on the outside from

negative ions on the insideSENDING INFORMATION: NERVE IMPULSE (CONT.)

Sending informationaction potential is a tiny electrical current that is generated when the positive sodium ions

rush inside the axonthe enormous increase of Na ions inside the axon causes the inside to reverse its chargethe inside becomes positive & the outside becomes negative

NEUROTRANSMITTERNeurotransmitters

dozens of different chemicals that are made by neurons and then used forcommunication between neurons during the performance of mental or physicalactivities

Excitatory transmittersopen receptor locks and turn on neurons

Inhibitory transmittersclose locks and turn off neurons

NEUROTRANSMITTER (CONT.)Axons branch out and end near dendrites of neighboring cellsAxon terminals are the tips of the axons branches

A gap separates the axon terminals from dendrites - called the synapse or synaptic gapPresynaptic neuron message-sending neuronPostsynaptic neuron message-receiving neuron

WHAT DOES ALCOHOL DO?GABA Neurons

GABA neurons have chemical locks that can be opened by chemical keys in the form ofthe neurotransmitter GABA

GABA Keysalcohol molecules so closely resemble those of the GABA neurotransmitter that alcohol

can function like GABA keys and open GABA receptorswhen GABA neurons are excited, they decrease neural activity

REFLEXReflex

unlearned, involuntary reaction to some stimulusneural connections underlying a reflex are prewired by genetic instructions

Reflex sequencesensors

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sensors trigger neurons that start the withdrawal effectafferent neurons

carry information from the senses to the spinal cordREFLEX (CONT.)

Interneuronrelatively short neuron whose primary task is making connections between other neurons

Efferent neuroncarry information away from the spinal cord to produce responses in various muscles and

organs throughout the bodyPARKINSONS DISEASE

Parkinsons Diseaseincludes symptoms of tremors and shakes in the limbs, a slowing of voluntary

movements, and feelings of depressionas the disease progresses, patients develop a shuffling walk and may suddenly freeze in

space for minute or hours at a timePARKINSONS DISEASE (Cont.)

Parkinsons Disease

It is caused by destruction of neurons that produce dopamineL-dopa is a medication that boosts the levels of dopamine in the braineventually the drug causes involuntary jerky movementsafter prolonged use, L-dopas beneficial effect may be replaced by unwanted jerky

movementsFETAL TISSUE TRANSPLANTS

Sterotaxic procedurefixing a patients head in a holder and drilling a small hole through the skullthe holder has a syringe that can be precisely guided into a predetermined location in the

brainTo date, about 150 Parkinsons patients have been treated with fetal tissue transplants

about 30 to 60% showed substantial improvement, but none have been completely cured

patients under 60 showed most improvement, while those over 60 reported little or noimprovement in symptoms

Module 4Incredible Nervous System

GENES & EVOLUTIONGenetic information

brain and body developed according to complex chemical instructions that were written ina human cell no larger than a grain of sand

FertilizationZygoteChromosomes

Chemical alphabetGenes and proteinsGenomeGenetic factors

GENES & EVOLUTION (CONT.)Fertilization

occurs when a sperm, which contains 23 chromosomes, penetrates an egg, whichcontains 23 chromosomes

GENES & EVOLUTION (CONT.)

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Zygotethe largest human cell, about the size of a grain of sanda zygote is a cell that results when an egg is fertilizeda zygote contains 46 chromosomes arranged in 23 pairs

GENES & EVOLUTION (CONT.)Chromosomes

a short, rodlike, microscopic structure that contains a tightly coiled strand of the chemicalDNA, which is an abbreviation for deoxyribonucleic acid

GENES & EVOLUTION (CONT.)Chemical alphabet

each chromosome contains a long, coiled strand of DNA, which resembles a ladder thathas been twisted over an over upon itself

each rung of the DNA ladder is made up of four chemicalsthe order in which the four different chemicals combine to form rungs creates a

microscopic alphabetGENES & EVOLUTION (CONT.)

Genes and proteinsGene - a specific segment on the long strand of DNA that contains instructions for

making proteinsProteins - chemical building blocks from which all the parts of the brain and body are

constructedGENES & EVOLUTION (CONT.)

GenomeThe Human Genome Projectbegan in 1995 and cost over $2.7 billionreached its first goal in 2003 of mapping all the human genesresearchers found only about 30,000 human genes instead of the estimated 100,000

GENES & EVOLUTION (CONT.)Genetic factors

researchers are discovering how genetic factors interact with the environment to result in

the development of mental retardation, emotional and personality traits, mentaldisorders, and various cognitive abilities

Fragile X syndromean inherited developmental disability, is due to a defect in the X chromosome

GENES & EVOLUTION (CONT.)Evolution of the human brain

1859 Charles Darwin published the Origin of SpeciesTheory of Evolution

says that different species arose from a common ancestor and that those species thatsurvived were best adapted to meet the demands of their environment

STUDYING THE LIVING BRAINBrain scans

techniques that can look through the thick skull and picture the brain with astonishinglyclarity yet cause no damage to the extremely delicate brain cells

MRI - magnetic resonance imageryinvolves passing nonharmful radio frequencies through the brain

fMRI - functional magnetic resonance imagingmeasures the activity of specific neurons that are functioning during cognitive tasks,

such as thinking, listening

STUDYING THE LIVING BRAIN (CONT.)

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Brain scans and Cognitive NeurosciencePET scan - positron emission tomography

involves injecting a slightly radioactive solution into the blood and then measuring theamount of radiation absorbed by brain cells called neurons

STUDYING THE LIVING BRAIN (CONT.)

Tools versus Animalsnaming animalsnaming tools

ORGANIZATION OF THE BRAINDivisions of the Nervous SystemMajor divisions of the nervous system

central nervous system - CNSperipheral nervous system - PNS

ORGANIZATION OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)Central nervous system - CNS

made up of the brain and spinal cordORGANIZATION OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)

Peripheral nervous system - PNSincludes all the nerves that extend from the spinal cord and carry messages to and from

various muscles, glands, and sense organs located throughout the bodySubdivisions of the PNS

Somatic nervous system - SNSAutonomic nervous system - ANS

sympathetic divisionparasympathetic division

ORGANIZATION OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)Somatic nervous system

network of nerves that connect either to sensory receptors or to muscles that you canmove voluntarily, such as muscles in your limbs, back, neck, and chest

nerves contain two kinds of fibersAfferent

sensory fibers; carry information to the brainEfferent

motor fibers; carry information from brain or spinal cord to the musclesORGANIZATION OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)

Autonomic nervous system - ANSregulates heart rate, breathing, blood pressure, digestion, hormone secretion, and other

functionsSympathetic division

triggered by threatening or challenging physical or psychological stimuli, increasesphysiological arousal and prepares the body for action

Parasympathetic divisionreturns the body to a calmer, relaxed state and is involved in digestion

ORGANIZATION OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)ORGANIZATION OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)

Major Parts of the BrainForebrainMidbrainHindbrain

pons

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medullacerebellum

ORGANIZATION OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)Hindbrain - Has three distinct structures:

Ponsfunctions as a bridge to interconnect messages between the spinal cord and brain

coordinates left and rights side of the bodyMedulla

located on top of the spinal cordincludes a group of cells that control vital reflexes, such as respiration, heart rate, and

blood pressureCerebellum

located in the very back and underneath the braininvolved in coordinating but not in initiating voluntary movements

ORGANIZATION OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)Midbrain

has a reward or pleasure center, which stimulated by food, sex, money, music, looking atattractive faces, and some drugs (cocaine)

has areas for visual and auditory reflexescontains the reticular formation, which arouses the forebrain so that it is ready to process

information from the sensesORGANIZATION OF THE BRAIN (CONT.)

Forebrainlargest part of the brainhas right and left sides called hemisphereshemispheres are responsible for a number of functions, including learning and memory,

speaking and language, emotional responses, experiencing sensations, initiatingvoluntary movements, planning, and making decisions

CONTROL CENTERS: FOUR LOBESWrinkled cortex

a thin layer of cells that essentially covers the entire surface of the forebrainFour lobes

Frontal lobeParietal lobeOccipital lobeTemporal lobe

CONTROL CENTERS: FOUR LOBES (CONT.)Frontal lobe

involved with personality, emotions, and motor behaviorsParietal lobe

involved with perception and sensory experiencesOccipital lobe

involved with visual processingTemporal lobe

involved with hearing and speakingCONTROL CENTERS: FOUR LOBES (CONT.)

Frontal lobe: functionsmotor cortexnarrow strip of cortex that is located on the back edge of the frontal lobe and extends

down its sideinvolved in the initiation of all voluntary movements

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right side controls leftleft side controls rightorganization and function of motor cortex

Other functions of frontal lobemuch knowledge of other frontal lobe functions comes from individuals who had damage

to that area

Phineas Gage

CONTROL CENTERS: FOUR LOBES (CONT.)

Parietal lobe: functionlocation of somatosensory cortexnarrow strip of cortex that is located on the front edge of the parietal lobe and extends

down its sideOther functions of parietal lobe

involved in several cognitive functions, including recognizing objects, remembering items,and perceiving and analyzing objects in space

CONTROL CENTERS: FOUR LOBES (CONT.)Temporal lobe: functions

primary auditory cortexlocated on top edge of each temporal lobe, receives electrical signals from receptors

in the ears and transforms these signals into meaningful sound sensations, such asvowels and consonants


auditory association arealocated directly below the primary auditory cortextransforms basic sensory information, such as noises or sounds, into recognizable

auditory information, such as words or music


Brocas area - frontal lobelocated in left frontal lobenecessary for combining sounds into words and arranging words into meaningful

sentencesWernickes area

located in the left temporal lobenecessary for speaking in coherent sentences and for understanding speech

CONTROL CENTERS: FOUR LOBES (CONT.)Occipital lobe: functions

visionprimary visual cortex

located at the very back of the occipital lobereceives electrical signals from receptors in the eyes and transforms these signals

into meaningless basic visual sensations, such as lights, lines, shadows, colors,and textures

CONTROL CENTERS: FOUR LOBES (CONT.)Occipital lobe: functions

visual association area

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transforms basic sensations, such as lights, lines, colors, and textures, into complete,meaningful visual perceptions, such as persons, objects, or animals

LIMBIC SYSTEM: OLD BRAINStructures and functions

HypothalamusAmygdala

ThalamusHippocampus

LIMBIC SYSTEM: OLD BRAIN (CONT.)Hypothalamus

regulates many:motivational behaviors, including eating, drinking, and sexual responsesemotional behaviors such as arousing the body when fighting or fleeingsecretion of hormones, such as occurs at pubertyhomeostasis water/salt, temperature, insulin levels, etc.

Amygdalalocated in the tip of the temporal lobereceives input from all the senses

evaluates the emotional significance of stimuli and facial expressions, especially thoseinvolving fear, distress, or threat

LIMBIC SYSTEM: OLD BRAIN (CONT.)Thalamus

gathers and processes information from the sensesinvolved in receiving sensory information, doing some initial processing, and then

relaying the sensory information to areas of the cortexregulates awareness, attention, motivation, and emotional sensations

Hippocampuscurved structure inside the temporal lobeInvolved in saving many kinds of fleeting memories by putting them into permanent

storage in various parts of the brain

LIMBIC SYSTEM: OLD BRAIN (CONT.)Autonomic nervous system

Sympathetic - triggered by threatening or challenging physical or psychological stimuliPhysiological responses

increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, and dilated pupilsfight or flight

Parasympatheticdecreases physiological arousalreturns the body to a calmer, more relaxed statestimulates digestion during eatingPhysiological responses

decreases heart rate

lowers blood pressurestimulate digestionbody returns to more relaxed state.

LIMBIC SYSTEM: OLD BRAIN (CONT.)LIMBIC SYSTEM: OLD BRAIN (CONT.)

Autonomic nervous systemHomeostasis

sympathetic and parasympathetic systems work together to keep the bodys level of

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arousal in balance for optimum functioningENDOCRINE SYSTEM

Endocrine SystemMade up of numerous glands that are located throughout the body. Glands secrete

various chemicals called hormones.Pituitary

PancreasThyroidAdrenal glandsGonads

ENDOCRINE SYSTEM (CONT.)Pituitary gland

hangs below the hypothalamusdivided into anterior and posteriorAnterior

front portionregulates growth through secretion of growth hormoneproduces hormones that control the adrenal cortex, pancreas, thyroid, and pancreas

Posteriorrear portionregulates water and salt balance

ENDOCRINE SYSTEM (CONT.)Pancreas

regulates the level of sugar in the bloodstream by secreting insulinThyroid

located in the neckregulates metabolism through secretion of hormones

ENDOCRINE SYSTEM (CONT.)Adrenal glands

adrenal cortex (outside part) - secretes hormones that regulate sugar and salt balance

adrenal medulla (inside part) - secretes two hormones that arouse the body to deal withstress and emergencies

epinephrine (adrenaline)norepinephrine (noradrenaline)

ENDOCRINE SYSTEM (CONT.)Gonads

Femalesovaries produce hormones that regulate sexual development, ovulation, and growth

of sex organsMales

testes produce hormones that regulate sexual development, production of sperm, andgrowth of sex organs

Module 5Sensation

EYE: VISIONStructure and function

eyes perform 2 separate processes

gather and focus light into precise area in the back of eyearea absorbs and transforms light waves into electrical impulses - process called

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transductionEYE: VISION

Structure and function

Vision: 7 steps

Image reversedLight waves

CorneaPupilIrisLensRetina


Image reversed

In the back of the eye, objects appear upside down.somehow the brain turns the objects right side up

Light waves

light waves are changed from broad beams to narrow, focused ones


Cornea

rounded, transparent covering over the front of your eyePupil

round opening at the front of the eye that allows light waves to pass into the eyesinterior


Iris

circular muscle that surrounds the pupil and controls the amount of light entering theeye

Lenstransparent, oval structure whose curved surface bends and focuses light waves into

an even narrower beamEYE: VISION

Structure and function

Retina

located at the very back of the eyeball, is a thin film that contains cells that areextremely sensitive to light

light sensitive cells, called photoreceptors, begin the process of transduction byabsorbing light waves

Conesconcentrated in center of eye (fovea)

approx. 6 million

allow us to see in bright light, see fine spatial detail, and see different colorsadapt quicklyone cone often synapses onto only a single ganglion cell (increases visual acuity)

Rodsconcentrated in periphery

approx. 120 millionallow us to see in dim light and at nightadapt slowlythe axons of many rods synapse onto one ganglion cell (increases sensitivity to dim

light)

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EYE: VISIONVisual pathways: Eye to brain

Optic nerve

Primary visual cortexVisual association areas

EYE: VISIONVisual pathways: eye to brain

Optic nerve

nerve impulses flow through the optic nerve as it exits from the back of the eyethe exit point is the blind spotthe optic nerves partially cross and pass through the thalamusthe thalamus relays impulses to the back of the occipital lobe in the right and left

hemisphereEYE: VISION

Visual pathways: eye to brain

Primary visual cortexthe backs of the occipitals lobes is where primary visual cortex transforms nerve

impulses into simple visual sensationsVisual association areas

the primary visual cortex sends simple visual sensations to neighboring associationareas

Visual Impairment and the Artificial EyeEAR: AUDITION

Stimulus:

Sound waves

stimuli for hearing (audition)ripples of different sizes

Sound waves travel through space with varying heights and frequency.Height

distance from the bottom to the top of a sound wavecalled amplitude

Frequency

number of sound waves occurring within one secondEAR: AUDITION

Measuring sound waves

decibel: unit to measure loudness

threshold for hearing:

0 decibels (no sound)140 decibels (pain and permanent hearing loss

EAR: AUDITIONOuter, middle, and inner ear

Outer ear - consists of three structures

external earoval shaped structure that protrudes from the side of the headfunction - pick up sound waves and then send them down the auditory

canalauditory canal

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long tube that funnels sound waves down its length so that the waves strikethe tympanic membrane (ear drum)

tympanic membranetaut, thin structure commonly called the eardrumSound waves strike the tympanic membrane and cause it to vibrate


Middle ear

bony cavity sealed at each end by membranes.the membranes are connected by three tiny bones called ossicles

hammer, anvil, and stirruphammer is attached to the back of the tympanic membraneanvil receives vibrations from the hammerstirrup makes the connection to the oval window (end membrane)


Inner ear

contains two structures sealed by bonecochlea: involved in hearingvestibular system: involved in balance

EAR: AUDITIONCochlea

bony coiled exterior that resembles a snails shell

contains receptors for hearing

function is transduction

transforms vibrations into nerve impulses that are sent to the brain for processing into auditory

information

EAR: AUDITIONAuditory brain areas

sensations and perceptionstwo step process occurs after the nerve impulses reach the brain

primary auditory cortex

top edge of temporal lobetransforms nerve impulses into basic auditory sensations

auditory association area

combines meaningless auditory sensations into perceptions, which are meaningfulmelodies, songs, words, or sentences

VESTIBULAR SYSTEM: BALANCEPosition and balance

vestibular system is located above the cochlea in the inner earincludes semicircular canals

bony arches set at different angleseach semicircular canal is filled with fluid that moves in response to movements of your head

canals have hair cells that respond to the fluid movement

function of vestibular system

include sensing the position of the head, keeping the head upright, and maintaining balance

CHEMICAL SENSESTaste

chemical sense because the stimuli are various chemicals

Surface of the tongue

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chemicals, which are the stimuli for taste, break down into moleculesmolecules mix with saliva an run into narrow trenches on the surface of the tonguemolecules then stimulate the taste buds

Taste buds -

shaped like miniature onionsreceptors for taste

chemicals dissolved in saliva activate taste budsproduce nerve impulses that reach areas of the brains parietal lobebrain transforms impulses into sensations of tastenot located in a particular area like previously believed

CHEMICAL SENSES (CONT.)

Five basic tastes

sweetsaltysourbitterumami: meaty-cheesy taste

CHEMICAL SENSES (CONT.)Smell or olfaction

called a chemical sense because its stimuli are various chemicals that are carried by the air

Function of olfaction

receptors, through transduction, transform chemical reactions into nerve impulsesCHEMICAL SENSES (CONT.)

Smell, or olfaction

Steps for olfaction

StimulusOlfactory cellsSensation and memories

Functions of olfactionCHEMICAL SENSES (CONT.)

Smell, or olfaction

Stimulus

we smell volatile substancesvolatile substances are released molecules in the the air at room temperatureexample:

skunk spray, perfumes, warm brownies; not glass or steelCHEMICAL SENSES (CONT.)

Smell, or olfaction

Olfactory cells

receptors for smell are located in a I-inch-square patches of tissue in the uppermost

part of the nasal passages.olfactory cells are covered in mucusvolatile molecules dissolve and stimulate the cellsthe cells trigger nerve impulses that travel to the brainwhich interprets the impulses as different smells

CHEMICAL SENSES (CONT.)Smell, or olfaction

Sensations and memories

nerve impulses travel to the olfactory bulb

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impulses are relayed to the primary olfactory cortexcortex transforms nerve impulses into olfactory sensationscan identify as many as 10,000 different odorswe stop smelling our deodorants or perfumes because of decreased respondingcalled sensory adaptation

CHEMICAL SENSES (CONT.)

Smell, or olfactionFunctions of olfaction

to intensify the taste of foodto warn of potentially dangerous foodselicit strong memories; emotional feelings

Smell MemoryTOUCH

Touch

includes pressure, temperature, and pain

Receptors in the skin

skin

hair receptors

free nerve endingsPacinian corpuscle

TOUCH (CONT.)Skin

outermost layerthin film of dead cells containing no receptors

just below, are fist receptors which look like groups of threadlike extensions

middle and fatty layer

variety of receptors with different shapes and functions

some are hair receptors

TOUCH (CONT.)Hair receptors

free nerve endings wrapped around the base of each hair folliclehair follicles fire with a burst of activity when first bent

If hair remains bent for a period of time, the receptors will cease firing.

sensory adaptation

example: wearing a watch

TOUCH (CONT.)Free nerve endings

near bottom of the outer layer of skin

have nothing protecting or surrounding them

Pacinian corpuscle

in fatty layer of skinlargest touch sensor

highly sensitive to touchresponds to vibration and adapts very quickly

TOUCH (CONT.)Brain areas

somatosensory cortex

located in the parietal lobe

transforms nerve impulses into sensations of touch temperature, and pain

PAINWhat causes pain?

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pain: unpleasant sensory and emotional experience that may result from tissue damage, ones

thoughts or beliefs, or environmental stressors

pain results from many different stimuli

PAIN (CONT.)How does the mind stop pain?

gate control theory of painnonpainful nerve impulses compete with pain impulses in trying to reach the brain

creates a bottleneck or neutral gate

shifting attention or rubbing an injured area decreases the passage of painful impulses

result: pain is dulled

PAIN (CONT.)Endorphins

chemicals produced by the brain and secreted in response to injury or severe physical or

psychological stress

pain reducing properties of endorphins are similar to those of morphine

brain produces endorphins in situations that evoke great fear, anxiety, stress or bodily injury as

well as intense aerobic activity

http://www.msjc.edu/sjcpsyc/mmaggard/PSYC101/module5.doc

Module 6Perception

PERCEPTUAL THRESHOLDSBecoming aware of a stimulus

Gustav Fechner

defined the absolute threshold as the smallest amount of stimulus energy (such as sound or

light) that can be observed or experienced

Absolute threshold

the intensity level of a stimulus such that a person will have a 50% chance of detecting it

PERCEPTUAL THRESHOLDS (CONT.)Subliminal stimulus

has an intensity that gives a person less than a 50% chance of detecting the stimulus

PERCEPTUAL THRESHOLDS (CONT.)E. H. Weber

worked on the problem of how we judge whether a stimulus, such as loud music, has increased or

decreased in intensity

concept of just noticeable difference (JND)

refers to the smallest increase or decrease in the intensity of a stimulus that a person is able to

detect

Webers lawThe increase in intensity of a stimulus needed to produce a just noticeable difference grows in

proportion to the intensity of the initial stimulus.

SENSATION VERSUS PERCEPTIONBasic Differences

Sensations

our first awareness of some outside stimulus.

outside stimulus activates sensory receptors, which in turn produce electrical signals that are

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transformed by the brain into meaningless bits of information

Perceptions

the experience we have after our brain assembles and combines thousands of individual

sensations into a meaningful pattern or image

SENSATION VERSUS PERCEPTION (CONT.)Changing sensation into perception

Stimuluschange of energy in the environment, such as light waves, sound waves, mechanical pressure,

or chemicals

Transduction

change physical energy into electrical signals

electrical signals are changed into impulses that travel into the brain

Brain

impulses from senses first go to different primary areas of the brain

SENSATION VERSUS PERCEPTION (CONT.)Changing sensation into perception

brain: association areas

sensation impulses are sent to the appropriate association area in the brain

Personalized perceptionseach of us has a unique set of personal experiences, emotions, and memories that are automatically

added to our perceptions by other areas of the brain

RULES OF ORGANIZATIONStructuralist versus Gestalt psychologists

Structuralists

believed that you add together hundreds of basic elements to form complex perceptions

Gestaltists

believe our brains follow a set of rules that specify how individual elements are to be

organized into a meaningful pattern, or perception

RULES OF ORGANIZATION (CONT.)Organizational rules

rules of organization: identified by Gestalt psychologistsspecify how our brains combine and organize individual pieces or elements into a meaningful

perception

Figure-ground

states: in organizing stimuli, we tend to automatically distinguish between a figure and a

ground

Similarity

states: in organizing stimuli, we group together elements that appear similar


Closure

states: in organizing stimuli, we tend to fill in any missing parts of a figure and see the figureas complete

Proximity

states: in organizing stimuli, we group together objects that are physically close to one another


Simplicity

states: stimuli are organized in the simplest way possible

Continuity

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states: in organizing stimuli, we tend to favor the smooth or continuous paths when

interpreting a series of points or lines

PERCEPTUAL CONSTANCYSize, shape, brightness & color constancy

Size constancyrefers to our tendency to perceive objects as remaining the same size even when their images

on the retina are continually growing or shrinkingShape constancy

refers to our tendency to perceive and object as retaining its same shape even though when we

view it from different angles, its shape is continually changing its image on the retina

PERCEPTUAL CONSTANCY (CONT.)Size, shape, brightness & color constancy

Brightness constancy

refers to the tendency to perceive brightness as remaining the same in changing illumination

Color constancy

refers to the tendency to perceive colors as remaining stable despite differences in lighting

DEPTH PERCEPTIONBinocular (two eyes) depth cues

Depth perceptionrefers to the ability of your eye and brain to add a third dimension, depth, to all visual

perceptions, even though images projected on the retina are in only two dimensions, height,

and width

Binocular depth cuesdepends on the movement of both eyes

Convergence

refers to a binocular cue for depth perception based on signals sent from muscles that turn the

eyes

DEPTH PERCEPTION (CONT.)Retinal disparity

refers to a binocular depth cue that depends on the distance between the eyes

DEPTH PERCEPTION (CONT.)Monocular depth cues

produced by signals from a single eye

Linear perspective

monocular depth cue that results as parallel lines come together, converge, in the distance

Relative size

monocular depth cue that results when we expect two objects to be the same size and they are

not

Interposition

monocular depth cue that comes into play when objects overlap


Light and shadowmonocular depth cues where brightly lit objects appear closer, while objects in shadows

appear farther away

Texture gradient

monocular depth cue in which areas with sharp, detailed texture are interpreted as being closer

and those with less sharpness and poorer detail are perceived as more distant


Atmospheric perspective

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monocular depth cue that is created by the presence of dust, smog, clouds, or water vapor

Motion parallax

monocular depth cue based on the speed of moving objects

DEPTH PERCEPTION (CONT.)ILLUSIONS

Strange perceptions

Illusiona perceptual experience in which you perceive an image as being so strangely distorted that, in

reality, it cannot and does not exist

Impossible figure

perceptual experience in which a drawing seems to defy basic geometric laws

Stereogram

a stereogram is formed by superimposing two repeating patterns

the two patterns are slightly offset; when viewed properly, this offset is seen as a binocular

disparity

Stereogram

EXTRASENSORY PERCEPTIONDefinition

a group of psychic experiences that involve perceiving or sending information (images) outside

normal sensory processes or channels

Four general abilities

Telepathy - ability to transfer ones thoughts to another or to read the thoughts of others

Precognition - ability to foretell events

Clairvoyance - ability to perceive events or objects that are out of sight

Psychokinesis - ability to exert mind over matter; moving objects

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