100 cards
Psychology is defined as the scientific study of behavior and mental processes, encompassing everything from brain function and perception to social interactions and psychological disorders. Its formal beginning is usually dated to 1879, when Wilhelm Wundt established the first psychology laboratory in Leipzig, Germany...
Because psychology is a science, its findings rely on the systematic application of the scientific method. Researchers typically begin by forming a hypothesis, then designing a study, collecting data, analyzing their results, and drawing conclusions. This structured process ensures that claims about behavior are replic...
All behavior ultimately arises from the activity of the nervous system, whose basic working unit is the neuron. A neuron has three main parts: dendrites, which receive signals from other neurons; the cell body, or soma, which processes information; and the axon, which transmits signals onward. Many axons are wrapped in...
Before the brain can interpret the world, it must first detect physical energy through sensory receptors. Sensation is the process of detecting this energy, while perception is the brain's interpretation and organization of that sensory information into meaningful experience. Psychologists have established important th...
Learning allows behavior to change as a result of experience, and psychologists have described several distinct mechanisms through which this occurs. Classical conditioning, discovered by Ivan Pavlov, is a form of learning through association. A normally neutral stimulus is repeatedly paired with an unconditioned stimu...
Memory is the system that allows past experience to influence present behavior, and researchers have identified multiple stages and types of memory that work together. The process begins with encoding, the conversion of information into a form that can be stored. Encoding can take visual (iconic), acoustic (echoic), or...
Psychologists have long sought to define and measure intelligence. In everyday terms, intelligence is the mental ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and adapt to new situations, although its precise nature remains debated. Charles Spearman proposed that a general factor, called g, underlies all intellectu...
When patterns of thought, emotion, or behavior cause significant distress or impairment, psychologists may diagnose a psychological disorder. The standard reference used by mental health professionals in the United States is the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, now in its fifth edition, known as t...