Research Methods
What are physiological measures?
Data gathered from participant’s physical processes (Heart rate, blood pressure, hormone levels)
Define sensation
The process by which information in the physical world is detected by sensory, auditory, kinesthetic and vestibular senses
What is implicit memory?
Procedural knwoeldge and learned associations that are difficult to verbalize
What is accomodation?
Existing metnal structures are modified to manage new information, creates new schemas
Define social psychology
The study of human behaviour in social situations.
What is observer bias?
The observer sees what they what to see instead of what is actually happening.
What are transducers?
Sensory receptor cells that convert physical or chemical energy from the evrioment into electrical nerve impulses
What are the 2 types of explicit memory?
Episodic and somatic
what is assimilation?
Exisitng schemas and mental constructs are used to adpat new information
What are ingroups and outgroups?
Ingroup a group that someone identifies as belonging to
Outgroup a social group one does not identify with
What are the 3 types of variables?
Independent Variables, dependent variables, extraneous variables.
Combining information from all senses to make sense of a situation
What is encoding?
The storeage of memories from working memory to long term memory
What is egocentrism?
The inability to see the world from other's perspectives.
What is social cognition?
The process of thinking about ourselves and others in a social context.
What is a quasi research study and why is it used?
Non-experimental research approach to compare 2 groups when random assignment can’t be used.
What factors can increase the chance we will pay attention to something
1. Physically salient
2. appealing or interesting
3. has meaning or importance
4. allows us to meet our goals
Describre memory retrieval processes
A stimuli from any sense cues the retrieval process, memory network is activated, activation spreads through the links in the memory network, reintegration occurs
What is conservation?
Failure to understand that the properties of matter, numbers and volume stay the same hwne appearance or shape is changed.
Who do the happiest people compare themselves to?
Themselves
What does a correlation value of -.07 represent?
A strong negative correlation, high value of one variable is associated with a low value of the other variable (hours of exercise and body weight)
Explain top-down versus bottom up processes
Top down is how you perceive something when you have had previous expereinces
Bottom up is how you perceive unfamilar events
What are schemas?
The way memories are organized as concepts based on expectations, experiences, vlaues and biases
What is theory of mind?
The ability to understand that other's have differing thoughts and feelings that they will act on.
upward:comparing yourself to someone who ranks higher than you either for motivation or to make yourself feel bad.
Downward: comparing yourself to a someone you rank higher than to make yourself feel better