Sensation- the simulation of the sense
organs/sensory receptors and the transmission
of sensory information to the central nervous
system; are the raw materials of human
experience
Perception- is not automatic; is a process by
which sensory information is actively organized
and interpreted by the brain; are the finish
product.
Gestalt principle of perceptual
1. Law of similarity- says that when part of
configuration are perceived similar.
2. Law of continuity-people link individual
element together so they form
continues line or pattern that makes
sense.
3. Law of proximity- element that near
each other are likely to be perceived as
part of the same configuration.
4. Law of closure- people tend to close the
open edges of a figure or fills in gaps in
an incomplete figure so that their
identification of the form is more
complete than what is actually there.
Figure-ground-seem to stand out of the
background.
Learning- is relatively permanent
influence/change in the behavior, knowledge
and skills that is acquired through experience.
Approaches to learning
1. Behavioral approaches
2. Cognitive approaches
Behaviorism- the view that behavior should be
explained by observable experience
Two behavioral views
1. Classical conditioning
2. Operant conditioning
Classical conditioning a type of learning which
an organism learns to connect, or associate
stimuli.
Ivan Pavlov- animal psychology
Unconditioned stimulus- refers to anything that
automatically elicit or bring forth an
unconditioned response.
Neutral stimulus- elicits no response until it is
repeatedly paired with the unconditioned
stimulus.
Conditioned stimulus- it was paired of
unconditioned stimulus to bring about response
formerly caused only by the unconditioned
stimulus.
Extinction- involves the weakening of the
conditioned response in the absence of the
unconditioned stimulus.
Generalization- tendency of a new stimulus to
the original conditioned stimulus to produce a
similar response.
Discrimination- occurs when the organism
responds to certain stimuli but not to others
differentiation.
Operant conditioning- is a type of learning in
which an organism learns to engage in a certain
because of the effects of the behavior;
organisms learn to do or not do things based on
the consequences of the behavior.
Burrhus Frederic Skinner- animal psychology
Reinforcer- is any stimulus that increases the
probability that responses preceding it will be
repeated.
Kinds of reinforcer
1. Positive reinforcer- increases the
probability that a behavior will occur
when it is added.
 2. Negative reinforcer- increase the
probability that the behavior will occur
when it is removed.
3. Immediate reinforcer- are more
effective than delayed reinforcer.
4. Primary reinforcer are effective
because of biological make up of
organism
5. Secondary reinforcer- acquire their
value through being associated wich
established reinforcers.
Rewards are pleasant events that affect
behavior.
Punishment are aversive event that decrease
the frequency of the behavior they follow.
Memory- is process by which we encode, store,
and retrieve info.
Three basic process
1. Encoding- recording of info; happens
even without person being aware of it.
2. Storage- save for future use; storing-
maintaining the coded info within the
memory system
3. Retrieval recovering of stored
information; finding the information n
storage and then bringing it into
awareness or consciousness.
Two forms
1. Recall- deliberately search through
memory
2. Recognition- information to be
retrieved is actually presented to the
person.
Stages of memory
1. Sensory memory- refers to the initial,
momentary storage of information,
lasting only on instant.
Iconic memory- information from the
visual system while echoic memory-
auditory information coming from the
ear.
2. Short-term memory- holds info 15 to 25
secs and stores it according to its
meaning rather than as mere sensory
stimulation.
chunk- grouping of stimuli that can be
stored as a unit in short term memory.
Rehearsal- the repetition of information
that has entered short term memory;
allows for the transfer of info into LTM.
3. Long-term memory- the final
storehouse; if the information in STM is
rehearsal using elaborative rehearsal;
occurs when the information is
considered and organized in some
fashion.; have no limitation in terms of
the amount of information it can hold
and how long it can hold the info.
Types of Long term memory
1. Procedural- memory procedures and
skills.
2. Declarative- memory of various sorts of
knowledge.
a. Semantic memory-memory of facts
b. Episodic memory- memory of
particular events in ones life.
Retrieval cue- is a stimulus that allows us to
recall more easily the information that is in LTM
Tip-of-the-tongue phenomena
Forgetting- when memory fails
1. Decay- the loss of information through
it nonuse.
2. Interference- information in memory
disrupts the recall of other information.
3. Cue-dependent forgetting- occurs when
there one insufficient retrieval cues to
rekindle information that is in memory.
Memory dysfunctions
1. Alzheimers disease- a progressively
degenerative disorder that produces
loss of memory and confusion.
2. Amnesia memory loss that occurs
with other mental difficulty.
Types of amnesia
a. Retrograde amnesia memory is lost
prior to physical trauma
b. Anterograde amnesia- failure to
remember events that occurs after
physical trauma because of the effects
of the trauma.
Intelligence the capacity to understand the
world, think rationally, and use resources
effectively when faced with challenge.
Theories of intelligence
1. Fluid and crystalized intelligence
Fluid intelligence- reflects information
processing capabilities, reasoning, and
memory
Crystalized intelligence- is the
accumulation of information, skills, and
strategies that people have learned
through experience and that they can
apply in problem solving applicants.
2. Multiple intelligence- proposed by
Howard Gardener in 1983; each person
has the some eight kind of intelligence,
Gardner proposed eight intelligence
and suggested the possible addition of
ninth known as existentialist
intelligence
A) Visual- spatial intelligence; good in
visualizing things.
B) Linguistic-verbal intelligence; able
to us words well.
C) Logical-mathematical intelligence;
good at reasoning, recognize
problem, and logically analyze.
D) Bodily-kinetic intelligence; good at
body movement, physical control,
and performing action.
E) Musical intelligence; good and
thinking in rhythm and sounds.
F) Interpersonal intelligence; good
understanding and interacting with
other people.
G) Intrapersonal intelligence; good of
being aware of their own emotional
states.
H) Naturalistic intelligence; highly
aware of event subtle changes to
their environment.
Assessing intelligence
Intelligence tests- test devised to quantify a
persons level of intelligence
Mental age- the average of individuals who
achieve a particular level of performance on a
test.
Intelligence quotient- A score
Achievement test- is attest designed to
determine a persons level of knowledge in a
specific subject are.
Aptitude test- is a test designed to predict a
persons ability in a particular are or line of
work.
Mental retardation- is a disability characterized
by significant limitations both in the intellectual
functioning and in conceptual, social, and
practical adaptive skills.
Roots of mental retardation
1. Biological reason
fetal alcohol syndrome
down syndrome- extra chromosome
problem in the structure of a
chromosome
birth complications- lack of oxygen
after birth- head injury
 2. Familial retardation- history of
retardation in family.
The intellectually Gifted- have an IQ scores
greater than 13; are able to do most things
better than average person can.
Motivation- encompasses all the processes that
initiate, direct, and sustain behavior.
Three components of motivation
1. Activation- is the initiation of motivated
behavior; it involves taking the first step
required to achieve.
2. Intensity- refers to the focused energy
and attention applied in order to
achieve a goal or complete a project.
3. Persistence is the faithful and
continued effort put forth in order to
achieve a goal or finish; pushes you to
continue or keep moving
Motives- are needs or desires that energized
and direct behavior toward a goal.
Approaches to motivation.
1. Instinct approach- people and animal
are born preprogrammed with sets of
behaviors essential to their survival.
Instincts- inborn pattern of behavior
that are biologically determined that
than learned.
2. Drive reduction approach- when people
lack some basic biological requirement
such as water, a drive to obtain that
requirement is produced.
Drive- motivational tension, or arousal,
that energizes behavior in order to
fulfill some need.
Primary drives- basic drives related to
biological needs of the body.
Secondary drives- need are brought
about by prior experience and learning.
Homeastatis- a basic motivational phenome
that underlies primary drives and involves the
bodys tendency to maintain a steady internal
state
3. Arousal approach we try to maintain a
certain level of stimulation and activity,
increasing or reducing them as
necessary.
4. Incentive approach suggested that
motivation stems from the desire to
obtain valued external goals or
incentives.
5. Cognitive approach- suggest that
motivation is a product of peoples
thoughts, expectation, and goals.
Two types of motivation
1. Intrinsic motivation- causes us to
participate in an activity for our own
enjoyment
2. Extrinsic motivation- causes us to do
something for some concrete, tangible
reward.
Abraham Maslows hierarchy of needs: ordering
motivational needs
Physiological needs- food, water,
shelter, clothing, sex, sleep
Safety needs- family security,
protection.
Social needs- belonging, friendship,
love.
Esteem needs- need to be respected
individuals.
Self-actualization- to feel complete and
valid in all aspects of self, to feel
confident in being oneself.
Emotion- an identifiable feeling state involving
physiological arousal, a cognitive, appraisal of
the situation or stimulus causing that internal
state, and an out word behavior expressing the
state; feeling influence behavior
Amygdala- seat of emotion.
Six basic emotion Types of stress

1. Anger 2. Disgust 3. Fear 4. Sadness 5. Acute stress

Joy 6. Surprise
Sometimes stress can be brief, and specific to
Emotional intelligence- is a type of social the demands and pressures of a particular
intelligence that involves the ability to monitor situation, such as a deadline, a performance or
ones own and others emotions, to facing up to a difficult challenge or traumatic
discriminate among them, and to use the event.
information to guide ones thinking and
Episodic acute stress
emotion.
Some people seem to experience acute stress
Personality- is a pattern of characteristic that
over and over. This is sometimes referred to as
produce consistency and individually in a
episodic acute stress. These kind of repetitive
person. Psychodynamic approach assumes that
stress episodes may be due to a series of very
personality is motivated by inner forces and
real stressful challenges, for example, losing a
conflicts about which motivated by inner forces
job, then developing health problems, followed
and conflicts about which people have little
by difficulties for a child in the school setting.
awareness and over which they have no
control. Chronic stress
Structure of personality The third type of stress is called chronic stress.
This involves ongoing demands, pressures and
Id- is the raw, unorganized, inborn part of the
worries that seem to go on forever, with little
personality; operates according to the pleasure
hope of letting up. Chronic stress is very
principle
harmful to peoples health and happiness.
Ego- strives to the balance desires of the ID and
the realities of the objective, outside world; is
the executive of the personality: it makes
decision; reality principle

Superego- represents the rights and wrong of

society as taught and modeled by a persons
parents and other significant individuals;
morality principle; type of conscience that
punishes misbehavior with feelings of guilt.

Defense mechanisms- refers to peoples

unconscious ways of dealing with conflict; used
by ego to defend against anxiety

Denial- people refuse to acknowledge

consciously the existence of danger or
threatening condition.

Stress is often described as a feeling of being

overloaded, wound up tight, tense and worried.