Key Terms
perspective within psychology that emphasizes the potential for good that is innate to all humans
humanism
focus on the role of the unconscious in affecting conscious behavior
psychoanalytic theory
study of how biology influences behavior
biopsychology
area of psychology that focuses on the interactions between mental and emotional factors and physical performance in sports, exercise, and other activities
sport and exercise psychology
method for acquiring knowledge based on observation, including experimentation, rather than a method based only on forms of logical argument or previous authorities
empirical method
area of psychology that focuses on improving emotional, social, vocational, and other aspects of the lives of psychologically healthy individuals
counseling psychology
well-developed set of ideas that propose an explanation for observed phenomena
theory
relationship between two or more variables; when two variables are correlated, one variable changes as the other does
correlation
professional organization representing psychologists in the United States
American Psychological Association (APA)
focused on how mental activities helped an organism adapt to its environment
functionalism
area of psychology that focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders and other problematic patterns of behavior
clinical psychology
observational research study focusing on one or a few people
clinical or case study
inferring that the results for a sample apply to the larger population
generalize
allows young scientists to further develop their research programs and broaden their research skills under the supervision of other professionals in the field
postdoctoral training program
long research paper about research that was conducted as a part of the candidate’s doctoral training
dissertation
perspective that asserts that biology, psychology, and social factors interact to determine an individual’s health
biopsychosocial model
conclusions are drawn from observations
inductive reasoning
studies in which the same group of individuals is surveyed or measured repeatedly over an extended period of time
longitudinal research
doctoral degree conferred in many disciplinary perspectives housed in a traditional college of liberal arts and sciences
PhD
researcher expectations skew the results of the study
experimenter bias
process of informing a research participant about what to expect during an experiment, any risks involved, and the implications of the research, and then obtaining the person’s consent to participate
informed consent
people's expectations or beliefs influencing or determining their experience in a given situation
placebo effect
subset of a larger population in which every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected
random sample
committee of administrators, scientists, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving human participants
Institutional Review Board (IRB)
variable that is influenced or controlled by the experimenter; in a sound experimental study, the independent variable is the only important difference between the experimental and control group
independent variable