BSEH SS Psychology key terms

A method in which a person reports their own inner experiences, thoughts, and feelings as they occur. Early psychologists used it to study consciousness, but it is limited by subjectivity and poor verifiability.

An early school of psychology that aimed to break mental experience into its basic elements, such as sensations and feelings, mainly through trained introspection. It focused on the 'what' of the mind rather than its functions.

A school of psychology concerned with how mental processes help people adapt to their environment. It emphasized the purpose and practical use of consciousness rather than its component parts.

An approach that studies only observable behaviour, treating mental events as outside the scope of scientific psychology. It stresses learning through stimulus-response associations and environmental control of behaviour.

A perspective holding that perception and thought cannot be reduced to separate parts; experience is organized into whole patterns. It gave psychology principles such as proximity, similarity, and closure in perception.

A testable, precise prediction about the relationship between variables, stated before data collection. It must be falsifiable so that evidence can support or refute it.

A clear statement of how a variable will be measured or manipulated in a particular study, such as defining aggression as the number of shocks delivered. It allows other researchers to replicate the procedure.

Any characteristic or condition that can take different values across people, situations, or time, such as age, anxiety score, or noise level. Researchers manipulate or measure variables to test hypotheses.

The consistency of a measure or of results across repeated testing, raters, or items. A reliable tool gives similar scores under similar conditions, though it may still fail to measure the intended construct.

The extent to which a study or measure actually assesses what it claims to assess. Internal validity concerns causal conclusions; external validity concerns whether findings generalize beyond the sample and setting.

Selecting participants from a population so that every member has an equal chance of being chosen. It improves the representativeness of a sample and supports generalization of findings.

A statistical relationship in which changes in one variable are accompanied by changes in another, ranging from -1 to +1. Correlation does not by itself establish that one variable causes the other.

Systematic error that occurs when a researcher's expectations or preferences distort what is recorded or how behaviour is interpreted. Blinding and standardized rating procedures help reduce it.

A research plan that follows the same participants over an extended period, measuring them repeatedly. It reveals age-related change within individuals but is costly and vulnerable to attrition.

A research plan comparing different age groups measured at a single point in time. It is quick and inexpensive but confuses age differences with cohort or generational differences.

A period in the lifespan marked by characteristic patterns of physical, cognitive, or social functioning, such as infancy or adolescence. Stages are usually described as qualitatively distinct but overlapping.

In Piaget's theory, fitting new information into an existing mental framework or schema without changing that framework. It contrasts with accommodation, where the schema itself is modified.

In Piaget's theory, altering an existing schema or creating a new one when new information does not fit current understanding. Together with assimilation it drives cognitive development.

The understanding that objects continue to exist even when they are out of sight. Piaget placed its emergence in infancy, though later research suggests earlier and more gradual development.

An enduring emotional bond between an infant and a caregiver, reflected in seeking proximity and distress at separation. Its quality is often assessed through separation and reunion behaviour.

The minimum intensity of a stimulus that a person can detect about half the time. It marks the boundary between not sensing and sensing a stimulus such as light or sound.

The smallest change in stimulus intensity that a person can reliably notice, also called the just noticeable difference. It grows in proportion to the original stimulus intensity, as Weber observed.

A framework explaining detection of weak stimuli as a joint outcome of sensory sensitivity and decision criteria. It accounts for hits, misses, false alarms, and correct rejections under uncertainty.

The tendency to perceive familiar objects as stable in size, shape, and colour despite changes in the retinal image. It allows reliable recognition as viewing conditions shift.

The ability to judge distance and three-dimensional relations from two-dimensional sensory input. It relies on binocular cues such as retinal disparity and monocular cues such as linear perspective.

Learning in which a neutral stimulus comes to elicit a response after being repeatedly paired with a stimulus that already produces that response. The conditioned response is often involuntary.

Learning in which the consequences of a behaviour change the likelihood of that behaviour recurring. Reinforcement increases behaviour, while punishment decreases it.

Any consequence that strengthens or increases the frequency of a behaviour. Positive reinforcement adds a pleasant outcome; negative reinforcement removes an unpleasant one.

The gradual weakening and disappearance of a learned response when the reinforcement or conditioned stimulus pairing is withdrawn. It is not simply forgetting; spontaneous recovery can occur.

Learning that occurs by watching others and imitating their actions, especially when the model is rewarded. Attention, retention, reproduction, and motivation are usually involved.

The process by which information is transformed and registered in memory so that it can be stored. Encoding can be visual, acoustic, or semantic, and deeper processing usually improves later recall.

The process of accessing stored information and bringing it back into awareness or use. Failure of retrieval, not loss of storage, often explains forgetting.

A limited-capacity system that temporarily holds and manipulates information during tasks such as reasoning and comprehension. It is often described as including a phonological loop and a visuospatial sketchpad.

Forgetting caused by other material competing with what is to be remembered. Proactive interference is disruption by earlier learning; retroactive interference is disruption by later learning.

A mental shortcut or rule of thumb that simplifies judgement and decision making but can produce predictable biases. Availability and representativeness are common examples.

The cognitive activity of moving from a current state to a goal when an obstacle blocks the direct route. It involves strategies such as algorithms, heuristics, means-end analysis, and restructuring.

The tendency to seek, notice, and interpret information in ways that support existing beliefs while ignoring contrary evidence. It can distort reasoning and sustain false conclusions.

The drive to engage in an activity for its own sake, because it is interesting, enjoyable, or satisfying. It contrasts with acting to obtain external rewards or avoid punishment.

The drive to act in order to gain external outcomes such as money, praise, grades, or approval, or to avoid negative consequences. Overuse of rewards can sometimes undermine intrinsic interest.

The need to pursue excellence, meet high standards, and succeed in challenging tasks. It is often measured through preference for moderately difficult goals and personal responsibility for outcomes.

A theory of emotion stating that bodily changes occur first and the perception of those changes produces the emotional experience. We feel afraid because we run, rather than running because we are afraid.

A theory of emotion proposing that bodily arousal and the subjective emotional experience occur simultaneously and independently. It challenged the idea that body changes must precede feeling.

The interpretation and evaluation of a situation as relevant to one's goals and well-being, which shapes the emotion experienced. Different appraisals of the same event can produce different emotions.

A sensory experience that occurs without any external stimulus, such as hearing voices or seeing things others do not. It is a symptom in several disorders but is not by itself diagnostic.

A fixed false belief held with strong conviction despite clear evidence to the contrary and not shared by the person's culture. It is a feature of psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia.

A severe mental state in which contact with reality is impaired, typically involving hallucinations, delusions, or disorganized thinking. It can occur in schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and substance use.

The co-occurrence of two or more disorders in the same individual during the same period. It complicates diagnosis and treatment because conditions can interact and worsen each other.

A structured psychological treatment that targets unhelpful thoughts and behaviours and teaches practical skills to change them. It is widely used for anxiety and depressive disorders and is usually time-limited.

A behavioural technique in which a client learns relaxation and then gradually confronts feared situations in a hierarchy. It reduces anxiety through counterconditioning and is used for phobias.

A relatively stable evaluation of a person, object, or issue, typically involving cognitive, affective, and behavioural components. Attitudes guide how we interpret and respond to the social world.

The discomfort felt when one holds conflicting beliefs or when behaviour contradicts an attitude. People often reduce it by changing the attitude to match the behaviour.

A negative attitude toward a group and its members based on group membership rather than individual qualities. It has cognitive, affective, and behavioural components and often rests on stereotypes.