PSYC 1111 short Answer Questions
Exam with Complete Solutions
List and describe two techniques used by psychologists to study brain function. - ANS-
lesion method: surgically removing or disabling a brain structure to gain better
understanding of its function; this method is only used in animals
Transcranial magnetic stimulation TMS: new method that creates a "virtual" lesion- a
temporary one that does not involve removing or permanently disabling brain tissue.
Stimulates brain by using a powerful magnetic field made by a wire coil placed on
person's head; can be used by researcher to temporarily inactivate neural circuits
transcranial direct stimulation: small electric current stimulates or suppresses activity in
parts of the cortex; enables researchers to identify the functions of a particular area
Describe how PET and MRI are used by researchers to study living brains. - ANS-PET
(positron-emission tomography) is a method for analyzing biochemical activity in the
brain, for example by using injections of a glucose-like substance containing a
radioactive element
whereas
MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) is a method for studying body and brain tissue,
using magnetic fields and special radio receivers
How do circadian rhythms affect performance - ANS-performance increases during day
and decreases at night
why do you feel out of sync when you fly across time zones or change shifts - ANS-
Because in normal conditions, the SCN (suprachiasmatic nucleus) are in phase with
one another. When you travel or change a shift, your sleep patterns change and it can
take a few days for your sleep and hormone patterns to return to normal.
why do some people get the winter blues - ANS-Some people respond to the limited
daylight and become lethargic, drowsy, and depressed. The people with winter blues
have out of sync circadian rhythms. They can also have an abnormality in the way they
produce or respond to melatonin
How do culture and learning affect reports of PMS and estimates of its incidence? -
ANS-In the main countries, PMS is seen as an actual thing. In tribal cultures however,
it's virtually unknown. Hormones can affect emotions yet very few women are likely to
undergo personality shifts due to PMS.
,**What are the stages of sleep? - ANS-tage 1 - drifting to sleep
Stage 2 - sleep spindles, minor noises probably wont disturb you
Stage 3 - delta waves, you are hard to waken
Stage 4 - delta waves have taken over and you're in deep sleep
REM
How can you tell if you move from one stage of sleep to the next? - ANS-If you dream,
you're in REM sleep and the stages can be measured by how easy it is to wake you
How does sleep become disrupted and what is the result? - ANS-If you wake in REM
sleep, you can be extremly disoriented and some people can also have "waking
dreams" where they see things that aren't really true.
What are the mental benefits to sleep? - ANS-They help with cronic mental functioning,
decrease stress levels, and raise creativity and attention
What does Freud mean about dreams being the royal road to the unconcious? - ANS-
According to him, every dream is meaningful and symbolic of something. They allow us
to express our unconsious wishes and desires.
How might dreams be related to your current problems and concerns? - ANS-If you
have concerns about realtionships, work, or your heath, your dreams can convey your
worry by creating a "nightmare" of the situation
How might dreams be related to ordinary daytime thoughts? - ANS-Dreaming can be
seen as simply a modification of the cognitive activity that goes on when we are awake.
Can dreams be caused by meaningless brain stem signals? - ANS-Yes, this is part of
the activation synthesis theory. Neurons fire spontaneously in the pons during REM
sleep which can cause dreams
What are some common misconceptions about what hypnosis can do? - ANS-Hypnosis
can't exceed physical strength, doesn't increase acurate memory, can't gain access to
repressed memories, and you can't regress back to childhood/another life
What are the legitimate uses of hypnosis in psychology and medicine? - ANS-Hypnosis
can increase focus, cause amnesia, relieve pain, and cause relaxation
What are two ways of explaining what happens during hypnosis? - ANS-Dissociation
theory - a split in conciousness in which one part of hte mind operates independently of
others
, Sociocognitive approach - hypnosis results from an interaction between the social
influence of the hypnotist and the abilities, beliefs, and expectations of the subject
How can recreactional drugs affect the brain? - ANS-They act on the brain
neurotransmitters. The drug can affect cognitive and emitonal functioning and can
reduce the dopamine receptors in the brain
What are the four important features of classical conditioning? - ANS-unconditioned
stimulus
unconditioned response
conditioned stimulus
conditioned response
What is actually learned in classical conditioning? - ANS-Where the neutral stimulus
becomes a conditioned stimulus. ( example bell, saying pavlov)
How can classical conditoning explain your irrational fear of heights or mice? - ANS-A
phobia can be explained by a bad experience that can often times have nothing to do
with the thing you fear. You can be taught very easily to fear something much like you
can also recover from your fears.
How could you be conditioned to like certain tastes and odors and be turned off by
others? - ANS-Food poisioning is one example of how you can be turned off of tastes
and odors. You can be conditioned to like certain tastes by pairing them with good
experiences.
why do we experience separate sensations even though they all rely on similar neural
signals - ANS-the nervous system encodes the message through different nerve
pathways through different areas of the brain. Therefore, sensory crossover only exists
in rare occasions (synesthesia). Because these pathways are uniquely human, we can
only experience the world as it exists to a human being.→ Johannes Muller's doctrine of
specific nerve energies, the principle that different sensory modalities exist because
signals received by the sense organs stimulate different nerve pathways leading to
different areas of the brain(ref. pg. 176)
describe what kind of code in the neural system helps explain why a pinprick and a kiss
feel different - ANS-functional codes; particular receptors fire or are inhibited in the
presence of specific stimuli (kiss is different stimuli than pinprick)
detail how psychologists measure the sensitivity of our senses - ANS-Measuring the
absolute threshold
Measuring the difference threshold
Applying signal detection theory
Exam with Complete Solutions
List and describe two techniques used by psychologists to study brain function. - ANS-
lesion method: surgically removing or disabling a brain structure to gain better
understanding of its function; this method is only used in animals
Transcranial magnetic stimulation TMS: new method that creates a "virtual" lesion- a
temporary one that does not involve removing or permanently disabling brain tissue.
Stimulates brain by using a powerful magnetic field made by a wire coil placed on
person's head; can be used by researcher to temporarily inactivate neural circuits
transcranial direct stimulation: small electric current stimulates or suppresses activity in
parts of the cortex; enables researchers to identify the functions of a particular area
Describe how PET and MRI are used by researchers to study living brains. - ANS-PET
(positron-emission tomography) is a method for analyzing biochemical activity in the
brain, for example by using injections of a glucose-like substance containing a
radioactive element
whereas
MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) is a method for studying body and brain tissue,
using magnetic fields and special radio receivers
How do circadian rhythms affect performance - ANS-performance increases during day
and decreases at night
why do you feel out of sync when you fly across time zones or change shifts - ANS-
Because in normal conditions, the SCN (suprachiasmatic nucleus) are in phase with
one another. When you travel or change a shift, your sleep patterns change and it can
take a few days for your sleep and hormone patterns to return to normal.
why do some people get the winter blues - ANS-Some people respond to the limited
daylight and become lethargic, drowsy, and depressed. The people with winter blues
have out of sync circadian rhythms. They can also have an abnormality in the way they
produce or respond to melatonin
How do culture and learning affect reports of PMS and estimates of its incidence? -
ANS-In the main countries, PMS is seen as an actual thing. In tribal cultures however,
it's virtually unknown. Hormones can affect emotions yet very few women are likely to
undergo personality shifts due to PMS.
,**What are the stages of sleep? - ANS-tage 1 - drifting to sleep
Stage 2 - sleep spindles, minor noises probably wont disturb you
Stage 3 - delta waves, you are hard to waken
Stage 4 - delta waves have taken over and you're in deep sleep
REM
How can you tell if you move from one stage of sleep to the next? - ANS-If you dream,
you're in REM sleep and the stages can be measured by how easy it is to wake you
How does sleep become disrupted and what is the result? - ANS-If you wake in REM
sleep, you can be extremly disoriented and some people can also have "waking
dreams" where they see things that aren't really true.
What are the mental benefits to sleep? - ANS-They help with cronic mental functioning,
decrease stress levels, and raise creativity and attention
What does Freud mean about dreams being the royal road to the unconcious? - ANS-
According to him, every dream is meaningful and symbolic of something. They allow us
to express our unconsious wishes and desires.
How might dreams be related to your current problems and concerns? - ANS-If you
have concerns about realtionships, work, or your heath, your dreams can convey your
worry by creating a "nightmare" of the situation
How might dreams be related to ordinary daytime thoughts? - ANS-Dreaming can be
seen as simply a modification of the cognitive activity that goes on when we are awake.
Can dreams be caused by meaningless brain stem signals? - ANS-Yes, this is part of
the activation synthesis theory. Neurons fire spontaneously in the pons during REM
sleep which can cause dreams
What are some common misconceptions about what hypnosis can do? - ANS-Hypnosis
can't exceed physical strength, doesn't increase acurate memory, can't gain access to
repressed memories, and you can't regress back to childhood/another life
What are the legitimate uses of hypnosis in psychology and medicine? - ANS-Hypnosis
can increase focus, cause amnesia, relieve pain, and cause relaxation
What are two ways of explaining what happens during hypnosis? - ANS-Dissociation
theory - a split in conciousness in which one part of hte mind operates independently of
others
, Sociocognitive approach - hypnosis results from an interaction between the social
influence of the hypnotist and the abilities, beliefs, and expectations of the subject
How can recreactional drugs affect the brain? - ANS-They act on the brain
neurotransmitters. The drug can affect cognitive and emitonal functioning and can
reduce the dopamine receptors in the brain
What are the four important features of classical conditioning? - ANS-unconditioned
stimulus
unconditioned response
conditioned stimulus
conditioned response
What is actually learned in classical conditioning? - ANS-Where the neutral stimulus
becomes a conditioned stimulus. ( example bell, saying pavlov)
How can classical conditoning explain your irrational fear of heights or mice? - ANS-A
phobia can be explained by a bad experience that can often times have nothing to do
with the thing you fear. You can be taught very easily to fear something much like you
can also recover from your fears.
How could you be conditioned to like certain tastes and odors and be turned off by
others? - ANS-Food poisioning is one example of how you can be turned off of tastes
and odors. You can be conditioned to like certain tastes by pairing them with good
experiences.
why do we experience separate sensations even though they all rely on similar neural
signals - ANS-the nervous system encodes the message through different nerve
pathways through different areas of the brain. Therefore, sensory crossover only exists
in rare occasions (synesthesia). Because these pathways are uniquely human, we can
only experience the world as it exists to a human being.→ Johannes Muller's doctrine of
specific nerve energies, the principle that different sensory modalities exist because
signals received by the sense organs stimulate different nerve pathways leading to
different areas of the brain(ref. pg. 176)
describe what kind of code in the neural system helps explain why a pinprick and a kiss
feel different - ANS-functional codes; particular receptors fire or are inhibited in the
presence of specific stimuli (kiss is different stimuli than pinprick)
detail how psychologists measure the sensitivity of our senses - ANS-Measuring the
absolute threshold
Measuring the difference threshold
Applying signal detection theory
