Psychology 1002A/B · Flashcards

Psychology 1002 Exam Review: Biopsychology, Sensation and Perception, Learning and Cognition

30 termsUniversity of Western Ontarioby @studyboardUpdated October 2026

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A study set written by the Studyboard team for the topics in this course's published outline. It isn't official course material from University of Western Ontario and doesn't contain real exam questions.

Terms in this set (30)

  1. Structuralism vs functionalismStructuralism (Wundt, Titchener) used introspection to break consciousness into basic elements. Functionalism (James) studied the purpose of mental processes in helping organisms adapt.
  2. What was behaviourism's main claim about psychology?That psychology should study only observable behaviour and how the environment shapes it, not unobservable mental states (Watson, Skinner).
  3. Naturalistic observation: one strength and one weaknessStrength: behaviour is seen in real settings, giving high external validity. Weakness: no control over variables, so causes cannot be identified, and observers may alter behaviour.
  4. What is a placebo effect?An improvement caused by a person's expectation of treatment rather than by the treatment itself, which is why control groups often receive an inert placebo.
  5. Central vs peripheral nervous systemThe CNS is the brain and spinal cord. The PNS includes all nerves outside it, divided into the somatic (voluntary muscles, senses) and autonomic (internal organs) systems.
  6. What is a resting potential and its approximate value?The voltage across a neuron's membrane at rest, about -70 mV, maintained by unequal ion distribution and the sodium-potassium pump.
  7. EPSP vs IPSPAn excitatory postsynaptic potential depolarizes the membrane, making firing more likely; an inhibitory postsynaptic potential hyperpolarizes it, making firing less likely. The neuron sums them.
  8. How is neurotransmitter action ended at the synapse?By reuptake into the presynaptic terminal, by enzymatic breakdown (e.g. acetylcholinesterase), or by diffusion away from the synapse.
  9. Which neurotransmitter is the main inhibitory transmitter in the brain?GABA. Glutamate is the main excitatory neurotransmitter.
  10. What do SSRIs do?Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors block the reuptake of serotonin, leaving more of it in the synapse; they are used to treat depression.
  11. Function of the cerebellumCoordinates movement, balance and timing, and supports motor learning.
  12. Role of the hypothalamusRegulates hunger, thirst, body temperature and sexual behaviour, and controls the pituitary gland, linking the nervous and endocrine systems.
  13. What did split-brain studies reveal?When the corpus callosum is cut, information shown only to the right hemisphere (left visual field) cannot be named aloud, because language is usually in the left hemisphere.
  14. fMRI vs EEGfMRI measures blood-oxygen changes and gives good spatial resolution but poor timing. EEG measures electrical activity from the scalp and gives excellent timing but poor spatial resolution.
  15. Monozygotic vs dizygotic twins in behavioural geneticsMZ twins share about 100% of genes, DZ twins about 50%. If MZ twins are more similar on a trait than DZ twins, the trait has a genetic influence.
  16. What does heritability mean, and what does it not mean?Heritability is the proportion of variation in a trait across a population that is due to genetic differences. It does not describe how much of one individual's trait is caused by genes.
  17. Absolute thresholdThe minimum stimulus intensity a person can detect 50% of the time.
  18. What does signal detection theory add to threshold measurement?It separates sensitivity from response bias, classifying responses as hits, misses, false alarms and correct rejections, since detection also depends on expectations and motivation.
  19. Trichromatic vs opponent-process theory of colour visionTrichromatic: three cone types (short, medium, long wavelengths) combine to code colour. Opponent-process: later neurons code red-green, blue-yellow and black-white pairs, explaining afterimages. Both are correct at different stages.
  20. Place theory vs frequency theory of pitchPlace theory: different pitches stimulate different places on the basilar membrane (best for high pitches). Frequency theory: neuron firing rate matches sound frequency (best for low pitches).
  21. Name three Gestalt grouping principles.Proximity (near items group together), similarity (alike items group), and closure (we fill in gaps to see whole figures); others include continuity and common fate.
  22. Bottom-up vs top-down processingBottom-up processing builds perception from sensory features. Top-down processing uses knowledge, expectations and context to interpret sensory input.
  23. Binocular depth cues vs monocular depth cuesBinocular cues need both eyes: retinal disparity and convergence. Monocular cues work with one eye: linear perspective, interposition, relative size, texture gradient.
  24. Positive reinforcement vs negative punishmentPositive reinforcement adds a pleasant stimulus to increase a behaviour (praise). Negative punishment removes a pleasant stimulus to decrease a behaviour (taking away a phone).
  25. What is learned helplessness (Seligman)?After repeated uncontrollable aversive events, animals or people stop trying to escape even when escape becomes possible; it has been linked to depression.
  26. Drive-reduction theory of motivationPhysiological needs create aversive drive states (e.g. hunger), and behaviour is motivated to reduce the drive and return the body to homeostasis.
  27. Yerkes-Dodson lawPerformance increases with arousal up to a moderate level and then declines; the optimal arousal level is lower for complex tasks.
  28. Algorithm vs heuristicAn algorithm is a step-by-step procedure guaranteed to find a solution if followed. A heuristic is a mental shortcut that is faster but can lead to errors.
  29. Retrograde vs anterograde amnesiaRetrograde amnesia is loss of memories formed before an injury. Anterograde amnesia is inability to form new long-term memories after the injury.
  30. What is the misinformation effect (Loftus)?Misleading information presented after an event can distort memory of it, e.g. using the word 'smashed' led people to estimate higher speeds and falsely recall broken glass.

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