A Level Psychology (AQA)

Ellis proposed that depression occurs when an activating event triggers an irrational belief which in turn produces a consequence i.e. an emotional response like depression

extends Ellis's explanation of depression to a therapy - D stands for disputing irrational thoughts and E for the effect of disputing

a neurotransmitter. In the central nervous system it plays a key role in attention and arousal. In the peripheral nervous system it causes muscles to contract

refers to sounds or the sense of hearing

tendency for a person to respond to any questionnaire/interview item with agreement regardless of the actual content

a short increase and decrease of electrical activity in the membrane of a neuron, transmitting a signal away from the cell

German philosopher and sociologist who came up with the theory of authoritarian personality

small glands located on top of each kidney that are part of the endocrine system that release adrenaline and noradrenaline

a hormone produced by the adrenal gland that are often part of the immediate stress response

stimulates the release of cortisol from the cortex of the adrenal gland

a behaviour disorder in which the individual has no ability to experience shame or guilt and lacks a social conscience, meaning that they may find it easier to commit crimes

changing from being in an autonomous state to being in an agentic state

a mental state where we feel no personal responsibility for our behaviour because we believe ourselves to be acting for an authority figure. This frees us from the demands of our consciences and allows us to obey even a destructive authority figure

intense fear of being in public places where you feel escape might be difficult

a general statement of what the researcher intends to investigate; the purpose of the study

the developer of the Strange Situation

a loss of memory due to brain damage, disease or psychological trauma

data that do not fit in with the pattern of the other data

an important aspect of confidentiality; a participant remains anonymous

a group of drugs which increase the production of serotonin and/or noradrenaline to reduce symptoms of depression

a mental health condition where a person has a repeated pattern of behaviour manipulating or violating the rights of others

a state of emotional and physical arousal. Emotions include having worried thoughts and feelings of tension. Physical changes include an increased heart rate and sweatiness

a group of mental disorders characterised by levels of fear and apprehension which are disproportionate to any threat posed

a method for reducing or curing phobias as part of systematic desensitisation

a way to explain behaviour

a component of the phonological loop which acts as an inner voice

an activity that prevents rehearsal of words in the articulatory loop

a social psychologist who worked on social influence

a stage of infant development in the first few weeks of life where behaviour towards people and inanimate objects is similar

an emotional bond between two people that endures over time. Leads to certain behaviours such as clinging and proximity-seeking

refers to whether a person is securely or insecurely attached

if a person performs an action when there are known constraints then their motive for acting must be stronger

transmits information to and from internal bodily organs. Divided into the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems

being aware of the consequences of one's own actions and therefore taking voluntary control of one's own behaviour

came up with the social learning theory

a type of graph in which the frequency of each variable is represented by the height of the bars

a study done before an investigation to identify a starting point

in an observational study, dividing the behaviours to be observed into individual components. A form of operationalisation

a field of study concerned with the role of genes in behaviour such as inherited factors in mental disorder or aggression

a therapy for depression focusing on encouraging patients to engage in those activities they are avoiding to increase environmental reinforcement

a way of explaining behaviour in terms of what is observable and in terms of learning

any form of therapy derived from the behaviourist model

in the context of sapling when certain groups may be over or under represented within the sample selected

elements of the situation that reduce moral strain

a perspective that emphasises the importance of physical processes in the body such as genetic inheritance and neural function

the ability of some organisms to associate significant combinations of stimuli, responses and reinforcers

a psychoanalyst who believed that mental health and behavioural problems could be attributed to childhood

a quasi-legal document produced by the BPS that instructs psychologists in the UK about what behaviour is and is not acceptable when dealing with human participants

an area of the brain in the frontal lobe usually in the left hemisphere associated with production of language

the value of a test statistic calculated for a particular data set

genes involved with causing a mental disorder

the amount of information that can be held in a memory store

the distinction made between the body and mind, first systematically discussed by the philosopher Descartes

a research method that involves a detailed study of a single individual, institution or event. Provides a rich record of human experience but are hard to generalise from

the component of the WMM that coordinated the activities of the three subsystems in memory and allocated processing resources to those activities

consists of the brain and the spinal cord and is the origin of all complex commands and decisions

the surface layer of the forebrain

the extent to which something occurs randomly

grouping sets of digits or letters into units

learning by association. Occurs when two stimuli are repeatedly paired together

a method of treatment for mental disorders where the focus is on the problem from the client's viewpoint rather than any diagnosis from the therapist

questions for which there is a fixed choice of responses determined by the question-setter

the format in which information is stored in the various memory stores

refers to the process of thinking

an approach that focuses on how our mental processes affect behaviour

a method for treating mental disorders based on both cognitive and behavioural techniques

a method of interviewing eyewitnesses to help them retrieve more accurate memories using four main techniques: reinstate the context, report everything, reverse the order and change the perspective

an individual's characteristic way of thinking

the scientific study of biological structures that underpin cognitive processes

a group of people who place more value on the collective rather than on the individual, and on interdependence rather than on independene

minority influence is more powerful if the minority demonstrates dedication to their position, such as by making personal sacrifices

the presence of two or more coexisting unhealthy conditions or diseases

a superficial and temporary type of conformity where we outwardly go along with the majority view, but privately disagree with it

a measure of similarity between two individuals or sets of individuals on a given trait

in classical conditioning, the response elicited by the conditioned stimulus has been learned so that that the neutral stimulus produces the unconditioned response

when a parent places limits or boundaries on their love of their children

an individual in an experiment who is not a real participant and has been instructed how to behave by the researcher

an ethical issue concerned with a participant's right to have personal information protected

a change in a person's behaviour or opinions as a result of real or imagined pressure from a person or group of people

any variable, other than the independent variable that may have affected the dependent variable so we cannot be sure of the true source of changes to the dependent variable

the aim of Rogerian therapy; when the self-concept and ideal self are seen to broadly accord or match

minority influence is most effective if the minority keeps the same beliefs, both over time and between all the individuals that form the minority

a kind of observational study in which behaviour is observed indirectly in pictorial or verbal material. A detailed analysis is done that may involve an initial qualitative analysis to produce categories, which then can be represented with qualitative data or quantitative data analysis

data that are not in categories, can take any value within a range

the condition in a repeated measures design that provides a baseline measure of behaviour without the experimental treatment

in an experiment with an independent groups design, a group of participants who receive no treatment. Their behaviour acts as a baseline against which the effect of the independent variable may be measured

watching and recording behaviour within a structured environment

making a decision by weighing up costs against gains

a form of therapy that aims to increase a client's self-esteem through unconditional positive regard from the therapist

an attempt to control for the effects of order in a repeated measures design: half the participants experience the conditions in one order and the other half in the opposite order

the variables investigated within a correlation. They are not referred to as the independent and dependent variables because a correlation investigates the association between the variables, rather than trying to show a cause and effect relationship

the time within which an attachment must form if it is to form at all

a kind of natural experiment in which the IV is different cultural practices and the DV is a behaviour such as attachment

one group of participants representing one section of society is compared with participants from another group

a trigger of information that allows us to access a memory

a method of testing memory where participants are given material to be learned and then when recall is tested, they are given cues to enhance recall

the differences in norms and values that exist between people in different groups

restricted to a particular culture

an ethical issue where the participant is not told the true aims of the study and thus cannot give fully informed consent

memories that are consciously recalled