Psychological Science (Seventh Edition) Book Summary
1.1Psychological Science is het Study of Mind, Brain and Behavior
Psychological Science= the study through research of mind, brain and behavior
- Mind= mental activity
- Brain= mental activity results from biochemical processes within the brain
- Behavior= the totality of observable hum (or animal) actions
1.1Psychological Science teaches critical thinking
Amiable skepticism= remains open to new ideas but is wary of new ‘scientific
findings’ when good evidence and sound reasoning do not seem to support them
Critical thinking= systematically questioning and evaluating information using
well-supported evidence
1.2Psychological Science helps us understand biased or inaccurate thinking
Common Biases=
1. Ignoring evidence (confirmation bias)= people are inclined to overweigh
evidence that supports their beliefs and tend to downplay evidence that
does not match what they believe
2. Seeing causal relationships that do not exist= the misperception that 2
events that happen at the same time must somehow be related
3. Hindsight bias/ accepting after-the-fact explanations= once people know
an outcome, they interpret and reinterpret old evidence to make sense of
that outcome, giving a false sense of predictability
4. Taking mental shortcuts= people often follow simple rules, heuristics, to
make decisions
- Availability heuristic= when things that come most easily to mind guide
our thinking
1.1Why are people unaware of their weaknesses
Another bias= thinking that people are motivated to feel good about themselves
Hypothesis generation= considering some possibilities
, Dunning- Kruger effect= people lack the ability to evaluate their own
performance in areas where they have little expertise
1.2Many psychological questions have a long history
Mind/body problem= are the mind and body separate and distinct, or is the mind
simply the subjective experience of ongoing brain activity?
Sensus communis= Leonardo da Vinci believed that sensory images arrived in
the middle region of the brain/ sensus communis
Dualism= the idea that the mind and the body are separate yet intertwined
(Descartes)
Nature/nurture debate= are psychological characteristics biologically innate, or
are they acquired through the environment
1.3mental processes and behaviors serve functions for individuals and groups
A system of Logic (1843)= John Stuart Mill declared that psychology should
become a science of observation and experiment
William James= foundation for modern psychology
- stream of consciousness= the mind consists of an everchanging,
continuous series of thoughts
- functionalism= an approach to psychology concerned with the adaptive
purpose, or function, of mind and behavior
- natural selection= features that are adaptive are passed along and those
that are not adaptive are not passed along
Mary Whiton Calkins= first woman president of the American Psychological
Association
1.1The field of psychology spans the range of human experience
Diversity and inclusion= the value and practice of ensuring that psychological
science represents the experiences of all humans
Clinical Area of psychology that seeks to
understand , characterize and treat
mental illness
1.1Psychological Science is het Study of Mind, Brain and Behavior
Psychological Science= the study through research of mind, brain and behavior
- Mind= mental activity
- Brain= mental activity results from biochemical processes within the brain
- Behavior= the totality of observable hum (or animal) actions
1.1Psychological Science teaches critical thinking
Amiable skepticism= remains open to new ideas but is wary of new ‘scientific
findings’ when good evidence and sound reasoning do not seem to support them
Critical thinking= systematically questioning and evaluating information using
well-supported evidence
1.2Psychological Science helps us understand biased or inaccurate thinking
Common Biases=
1. Ignoring evidence (confirmation bias)= people are inclined to overweigh
evidence that supports their beliefs and tend to downplay evidence that
does not match what they believe
2. Seeing causal relationships that do not exist= the misperception that 2
events that happen at the same time must somehow be related
3. Hindsight bias/ accepting after-the-fact explanations= once people know
an outcome, they interpret and reinterpret old evidence to make sense of
that outcome, giving a false sense of predictability
4. Taking mental shortcuts= people often follow simple rules, heuristics, to
make decisions
- Availability heuristic= when things that come most easily to mind guide
our thinking
1.1Why are people unaware of their weaknesses
Another bias= thinking that people are motivated to feel good about themselves
Hypothesis generation= considering some possibilities
, Dunning- Kruger effect= people lack the ability to evaluate their own
performance in areas where they have little expertise
1.2Many psychological questions have a long history
Mind/body problem= are the mind and body separate and distinct, or is the mind
simply the subjective experience of ongoing brain activity?
Sensus communis= Leonardo da Vinci believed that sensory images arrived in
the middle region of the brain/ sensus communis
Dualism= the idea that the mind and the body are separate yet intertwined
(Descartes)
Nature/nurture debate= are psychological characteristics biologically innate, or
are they acquired through the environment
1.3mental processes and behaviors serve functions for individuals and groups
A system of Logic (1843)= John Stuart Mill declared that psychology should
become a science of observation and experiment
William James= foundation for modern psychology
- stream of consciousness= the mind consists of an everchanging,
continuous series of thoughts
- functionalism= an approach to psychology concerned with the adaptive
purpose, or function, of mind and behavior
- natural selection= features that are adaptive are passed along and those
that are not adaptive are not passed along
Mary Whiton Calkins= first woman president of the American Psychological
Association
1.1The field of psychology spans the range of human experience
Diversity and inclusion= the value and practice of ensuring that psychological
science represents the experiences of all humans
Clinical Area of psychology that seeks to
understand , characterize and treat
mental illness
