Psychology Midterm study guide
All term from Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 14
Learning Objectives
1. Describe the growth of scientific psychology from its early pioneers to contemporary
concerns
2. Describe psychology’s current perspectives, and identify key subfields
3. Identify four big ideas that run throughout psychology
4. Explain how hindsight bias and overconfidence can make research finding seem like
common sense
5. Explain how the elements of the scientific attitude make scientific inquiry so useful.
6. Describe how psychological theories guide scientific research
7. Compare and contrast case studies, surveys, and naturalistic observation. Explain the
importance of random sampling.
8. Describe positive and negative correlations. Explain how correlation measures can aid
the process of prediction but not provide evidence of cause-effect relationships
9. Explain how experiments help researchers isolate cause and effect, focusing on the
characteristics of experimentation that make this possible.
10. Explain why psychologists study animals, and discuss the ethics of experimentations
with both animals and humans.
11. Describe how personal values can influence psychologists’ research and its application,
and discuss psychology’s potentials to manipulate people.
12. Explain why psychologists concerned with human biology
13. Describe the parts of the neurons
14. Explain how nerve cells communicate
15. Describe how neurotransmitters influence mood and behavior, and explain how drugs
and other chemicals affect neurotransmitters.
16. Identify the two major divisions of the nervous system, describe their basic functions
17. Describe the techniques for studying the brain.
18. Describe the functions other the parts of the brain
19. Identify the four lobes of the brain
20. Describe the functions of the motor cortex, the sensory cortex, and the association area.
21. Define consciousness and discuss how our perceptions are directed by selective
attention.
22. Describe the cycle of our circadian rhythm and the stages of sleep.
23. Describe the theories of why we need sleep
24. Identify the major sleep disorders
25. Compare the major perspectives on why we dream.
26. Identify the areas of change that developmental psychologist study
27. Identify the three major issues in developmental psychology
28. Describe conception, and define chromosomes, DNA, gene, genome, nothing how they
relate.
29. Describe the abilities and traits of a newborn
30. Explain how twin and adoption studies help us understand the effects of nature and
nurture.
31. Describe developmental changes in brain and motor abilities during infancy and
childhood
32. Outline Piagets four stages of cognitive development
33. Explain how the bonds of attachment form between parents and infants
34. Indentify the primary parenting styles and assess their impact on development.
35. Describe adolescents’ reasoning abilities and moral development.
36. Identify Eriksson stages of psychosocial development.
37. Discuss gender similarities and differences in psychological traits
38. Explain how biological sex is determined and describe the role of sex hormones in
biological development and gender differences
39. Discuss the importance of gender roles
40. Summarize the current views on sexuality
41. Discuss how evolutionary psychologists use natural selection to explain human sexuality
and behavior
42. Contrast sensation and perception.
43. Distinguish between absolute and difference threshold and explain Weber’s Law
44. Explain the function of sensory adaptation
45. Describe characteristics of visible sight
46. Explain the process by which the eye converts light energy into neural messages.
47. Discuss the role of feature detection and parrellel processing in the brain’s visual
information processing
48. Describe Gestalt psychology’s contribution to our understanding of perception
49. Describe the characteristics of air pressure waves that we hear as meaningful sounds
50. Describe the auditory process
51. Describe the basic touch sensations
52. Describe the value of feeling pain
53. Describe the senses of taste and smell
54. Describe the main focuses of social psychology
55. Describe what experiments on conformity and obedience reveal about the power of
social influence
56. Describe the conditions in which the presence of others is likely to result in social
facilitation, social loafing, and deindividuation
57. Discuss how group interaction can facilitate group polarization and groupthink.
58. Describe how prejudice can change over time and the social roots of prejudice
59. Describe various biological influences of aggression.
60. Describe the influence of proximity, physical attractiveness, and similarity on
interpersonal attraction.
61. Describe the effect of physical arousal on passionate love, and predictors of
compassionate love.
62. Describe steps in the decision-making process (bystander effect, altruism).