Exam 1: Introduction to the Science of Psychology

Ogun was constantly fearful and tense. He went to a psychiatrist to receive treatment. Although Ogun expected to talk his problems over with the psychiatrist, the doctor talked only briefly to Ogun and prescribed a pill to help him relax. The doctor was treating Ogun with a __________ approach.

Dr. Dalbey is studying the effects of fatigue on aggression. He hypothesizes that the more fatigue a person is experiencing, the more aggressively the person will behave. Unbeknownst to Dr. Dalbey, the participants' level of hunger also had an impact on their aggression. Hunger could thus be a(n)__________ variable.

Dr. Jiminez investigated the influence of snacking on the onset of sleep in preschool children. One group of preschoolers ate a candy bar prior to bedtime, and the other group ate nothing. Time until the onset of sleep was recorded for each child. In this experiment, eating or not eating the snack is the __________ variable, and the time until the onset of sleep is the __________ variable.

An experimenter wants to determine if taking a specific amount of the drug Prozac relieves depression. Which of the following will be most in need of an operational definition in this study?

As you go south from Maine to Florida, your latitude decreases, but the average daily temperature goes up. This illustrates a

Roger and Amanda are attempting to define consciousness. "What is consciousness? What does consciousness consist of?" asks Roger. Amanda says, "I think it would be more helpful to think about the purpose of consciousness. For example, how does it help us adapt to our environment?" Roger takes a __________ approach to defining consciousness, while Amanda takes a __________ approach.

Dr. Dare works with children who frequently skip school. When students attend class, she gives them tokens to be redeemed for candy at the end of the day. Dr. Dare is using the __________ approach.

A researcher at the university has students in the introductory psychology participant pool fill out a survey about life satisfaction. This use of the introductory psychology participant pool represents __________ sampling of the human population.

Ben believes very strongly in being competitive and doing what is necessary for his own goals. He sees himself as being an important business leader one day. Ben is most likely a(n)

As an environmental psychologist, Fred would be most interested in

Meghan says to Jamal, "Instead of trying to break down consciousness into little pieces, we should look at it from the whole perspective. Like how people experience a full motion movie from thousands of still pictures. That is what's important to know!" Meghan clearly supports the work of __________ psychologists.

Ellen wants to see if the level of lighting in a room will affect the performance of individuals on an IQ test. She lets one group in her study have very bright lights and a second group have more normal lighting. She finds that the individuals in the bright light group have better scores on the test than do the individuals in the normal light group. The difference between the two groups' scores is statistically significant, which means

William James believed the focus of research should be on how mental images, sensations, and memories come together as a function of experience. Before him, Titchener believed it was important to define the

Dr. Kilgore is studying the effects of Prozac on depression. Dr. Kilgore ran a double-blind study on a group of sixty college students. Thirty students received Prozac and thirty students received a placebo. At the beginning and end of the study, Dr. Kilgore administered the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI)to determine the efficacy of the drugs. In this experiment, the group that received Prozac is considered the __________ group.

A community psychologist conducts research examining how women who breastfeed their babies feel that they are treated in society. She recruits women who are or who have recently nursed their children, and asks them to participate in a face-to-face interview. Each interview lasts two hours. Which goal of research is she pursuing?

Congratulations! You have been hired to teach psychology at the university. During the first week of classes, a student stops by your office and tells you, "I'm thinking of becoming a psychology major, but I don't think I want to be a therapist. What else can I do with a psychology degree?" Briefly summarize four of the many options available.

Cornelius is interested in studying cooperation in children between the ages of two and six. He suspects that cooperation is greatest in groups of girls as opposed to groups of boys or coed groups. After carrying out his observation, he decides to examine the results to determine any relationships between gender and cooperation. Cornelius is planning to carry out a(n)

Sabina is having problems with chronic anxiety. She goes to a psychiatrist who tells her that she needs medication to reduce her anxiety. Which approach to psychology does Sabina's psychiatrist take?

Randy is a great football player who would rather be named the most valuable player of the league than have his team win a particular football game. Randy is likely from a(n)__________ culture.

Chandra has gathered data from several studies investigating the relative effects of heredity and environment on an individual's level of well-being. Chandra uses various statistical methods on the data in hopes of finding significant results. Chandra must be a __________ psychologist.