PSYC1001 MID SEMESTER EXAM REVISION

1. What is psychology in the eyes of many lay persons (Links to an external site.)?

They are seen as mind readers, generally pictured with client laying on the couch and telling
them about their problems

2. How would you define Psychology (Links to an external site.)?

Study of mind and mental processes. The interrelationship of the brain, mind, and behaviour
of humans.

Brain = neurobiological processes that generate mental processes and states

Mind = individual sensations, memories, perceptions, emotions etc.
Behaviour = actions that can be observed

3. Does behaviour always require a brain and intention (Links to an external site.)?

Behaviour is not always intentional. E.g. moths have photosensitive antenna that are
connected to their wings which automatically make them fly to light sources (it is an
automatic process where they are not intentionally trying to get there)

4. Why does psychology study principles, general laws, rather than individual cases?
5. Still individual cases (especially neuropsychological (Links to an external site.)) are
interesting, why?
6. How can we get insight in mental states (Links to an external site.)? (see also lecture 5)
7. How can we get insight in the role of genes (Links to an external site.) (see also lecture
3)?
8. What is meant by Nature and Nurture (Links to an external site.) (see also lecture 3)?

Nature (rationalist) is the idea that most knowledge is present at birth. Nurture (empiricist) is
the idea that you learn depending on the environment you are in. This relationship exists on
continuum.

9. Why is understanding of history (Links to an external site.) important? What are potential

problems with historical accounts?

History is a reconstruction of information that we have available to us and is based around a

consensus of what the ‘truth’ is. This allows us to learn from what was done in the past to
what can be done with this information in the future.

Issues

 Access to knowledge and data – we credit many topics to modern scientists because
the western world did not have access to some foreign work (WESTERN
PERSPECTIVE)  e.g. Al-Hazen and optics
 Political views and hidden agendas – different perspectives based on which side of the
event you experienced e.g. North vs. South Korea
  Presentist bias – We use our values now to judge what has happened in the past (we
don’t understand history from the perspective of those who lived it)

10. What does the case of Alhazen (Links to an external site.) tell us about the history of a
scientific field?

See question 9.

11. What do we mean by Zeitgeist (Links to an external site.)?

We think based on what is ‘in’ at the time which can sometimes put scientific discovery back
(WESTERN PERSPECTIVE). E.g. focus on behaviourism until discovery of computers then
people began to accept the idea that the mind was computer-like because there was something
familiar to reference to.

12. The establishment of Wundt (Links to an external site.)’s lab is often seen as the start of
psychology, is that correct? Also, where and when was this Lab established?

Wundt’s lab was established in Leipzig in 1879. The commenced controlled experimental
psychology regarding introspection  looking at the elements of consciousness and the
thought process.

13. What does trepanation (Links to an external site.) potentially tell us about what people in

the stone age were thinking about the structure that we now call ‘the brain (Links to an
external site.)’?

People in the stone age understood that the brain was the central structure that corresponds to
function. They believed that this area of the body was the root of some sort of discrepancy in
the individual (e.g. weird spirits in head, headache, not behaviourally normal etc.)

14. Why was the Edwin Smith Papyrus   (Links to an external site.)so significant?

Written by Imhotep (supposedly) showed us that specific functions are localised in the brain.

15. The Egyptians (Links to an external site.) kept the heart and threw away the brain? What
does that tell us (keep in mind the difference between Brain, Soul (mind))?

They valued the soul in an individual which they believed to be in the heart. It highlights that
the brain and soul are two distinct entities. Therefore they threw the brain out which they
found to be unimportant.

16. Why was the discovery of the ventricles (Links to an external site.) important for thinking
in terms of specialised and localised brain areas?

The discovery of the ventricles lead to the 3-cell doctrine which established 3 areas of the
brain that carried out separate functions. This established the localisation of functions.

17. What is meant by Phrenology (Links to an external site.)?

The idea that different areas of the brain give rise to different functions and traits.
18. Who were the key players (Links to an external site.) in this movement? 

Franz Josef Gall & Spurzheim  areas of the brain have specialised functions and if you
were good at something (well developed) the brain would need more space which made them
believe heads had lumps

Jean Pierre Flourens  tried to locate these specialised areas working on animals (cerebral
hemispheres = perception and judgement gone, cerebellum = motor coordination issues)

Paul Broca  patient couldn’t speak and lost some motor function but comprehension skills
were still intact (lesion became known as Broca’s area)

Karl Wernicke  opposite of Broca’s patient, could talk but didn’t make sense

19. Why do you think the idea of phrenology was appealing to many (think in terms of
cerebral/functional specialisation (Links to an external site.)/localisation)?

It was the first sense of idea that different areas in the brain gave rise to specific functions
which we could use to localise particular issues in the brain.

20. What is Flourens (Links to an external site.) known for and what did he do?

See question 18.

21. What happened to Phineas Gage (Links to an external site.) and why is this case (kind of)
considered an example of cerebral specialisation?

Had a railroad accident where a metal pole went through left of frontal lobe. He survived and
was still able to perform normal functions to some degree suggesting that different areas of
the brain have different functions and contribute to our personality.

22. What is lobotomy (Links to an external site.) and why could it become so popular. Reflect
on the Zeitgeist of the time.

Lobotomy is a surgical procedure where connections in the brain are severed to reduce
tension or agitation. It was popular due to the demand to treat mental health issues and a lack
of psychologists to treat these conditions.

23. What is Broca (Links to an external site.) (with patient Tan (Links to an external site.))

known for? Why was he called Tan?

See question 18.

24. What about Wernicke (Links to an external site.)? What was his patient still able to, and
what not?

See question 18.

25. Would you rather be a Broca patient or a Wernicke patient? And why? Think also in
terms of possible future use of Brain Computer Interfaces (Links to an external
site.) (BCIs)

Broca because we will hopefully be able to computerise comprehension in the future.

26. What is meant by brain plasticity (Links to an external site.) and what role does age play?

Ability for the brain to modify connections to make brain function continue. Other parts of
the brain will ‘take on’ functions of the areas lost to some degree. It is usually in infancy.

27. What is meant by neuro-imaging (Links to an external site.) in (very) general terms.

It is the ability to look at areas of the brain as they perform specialised functions e.g. 3D
glasses  do you see face or house.

28. Why do some consider/criticise neuro-imaging as ‘modern day phrenology (Links to an

external site.)’?

Considered  we look at specialised areas and the network that runs through it

Criticised  neuroimaging results being inherently correlated i.e. we see lighting up and
make a link to particular functions without inferring a deeper meaning

29. Some say ‘the brain is a  network  (Links to an external site.) of highly specialised areas
that need to talk to each other’ Do you agree and why or why not?

The brain needs to communicate with other specialised areas to carry out highly complex
actions. If we have a specialised area of the brain and the network that runs through it we can
make connections between specialised areas.

30. What is the Nature-Nurture debate   (Links to an external site.)about?

See question 8.

31. What was Molyneux’s question (Links to an external site.) to John Locke (Links to an

external site.)?

Whether a man who has been born blind and who has learnt to distinguish and name a globe
and a cube by touch, would be able to distinguish and name these objects simply by sight,
once he had been enabled to see.

Molyneux was an empiricist.

32. Why was Locke (Links to an external site.) the right person to ask?

He was one of the only British empiricists of the time and went against his idea that by
experiencing it through the senses it would then be in the mind. This would mean if you have
interpreted it through touch you should know what it is from visually looking at the shapes of
the objects.
33. What do philosophers mean when they talk about Nativism (Links to an external
site.) and Empiricism

See question 8.

34. What is the Tabula Rasa idea (Links to an external site.) and which (Links to an external

site.) Greek Philosopher was a big fan to this idea?

Tabula Rasa was the idea that the mind is an empty vessel and we know nothing when we are
born. We take in knowledge from the moment we are born. Aristotle was a big fan of this.

35. Aristotle’s (Links to an external site.) teacher Plato (Links to an external site.) was a

nativist. What made him a nativist?

We can’t just get our knowledge from perceiving in our environment. Then must be some
innate thought process which allows us to interpret what we perceive (rationalise). The
human mind was imprinted with all of the knowledge it needed. As a result, learning was a
matter of unlocking and utilizing this inbuilt knowledge

36. The way we acquire knowledge, according Plato (Links to an external site.), was also by
using our ratio (Links to an external site.), what did he mean by that? (think in terms of
the endless possibilities of a form like a triangle)

We have knowledge that we use to make inferences about the rest of the world e.g. we have
seen one triangle so we can interpret endless triangles.

37. Were the British philosophers (Links to an external site.) mostly empiricists or nativists?

They were mainly nativists (rationalists). John Locke was one of the first British empiricists.

38. What about the European mainland philosophers, like Emmanuel Kant (Links to an

external site.)?

Nativism (rationalist).

39. What did John Locke mean when he said “Nothing is in the mind which was not first in
the senses”?

We are born without innate ideas and it is through experience that we gain our knowledge in
the mind.

40. Why is a reflex, which is often innate, not part of the philosophical discussion?
41. In terms of Body and Mind, what do we mean by monism and dualism (Links to an
external site.)?

Monism  only one can exist (the body or the mind)

 The body (materialism)  the world is all physical in nature and the brain can be
broken down to biological processes
  The mind (mentalism)  reality only exists in the mind and without the mind there
would be no reality

Dualism  the body and mind exist in coexistence

 Interactionism  communication between the parts is essential

42. What is the idea behind materialism (Links to an external site.), nowadays often known as
(neuro)reductionism (Links to an external site.)?

See question 41.

43. What did Bishop Berkeley (Links to an external site.) mean by subjective idealism (Links

to an external site.)?

“Objects cannot exist without being perceived” – reality only exists in the mind, no mind =
no reality (physical world would be irrelevant)

Mind-independent reality is incoherent, concluding that the world consists of the minds of
humans and of God

44. Descartes (Links to an external site.) was a dualist (Links to an external site.). What does

that mean?

Descartes is a dualist in the sense that he believes the reality of two worlds – the world of
matter and the world of mind. According to him, all the tangible contents of the universe
including matter, energy and human bodies belong to the first and mental events and states
belong to the second.

“Human mind knows objects: it is innate”

“I think therefore I am”

45. Interactionism (Links to an external site.) implies an interaction. What needed to interact

to make Descartes' ideas work?

The mind and body needed to interact with one another. E.g. mind tells the body the ear is
itchy and the hand scratches it.

46. Where (Links to an external site.) was this interaction supposed to happen?

Incorrectly hypothesised to be in the pineal gland. This was because it was close to the
ventricles, so cerebrospinal fluid delivered messages to nerves that resulted in behaviour.

47. Noam Chomsky (Links to an external site.) can be considered 'a modern day

nativist (Links to an external site.)'? Why?

He believes that language is an innate part of the mind. Everyone has a language acquisition
device from birth that makes them capable of learning a language (non-specific) that
experience activates during a sensitive period (i.e. Genie Wiley).
48. The idea of having innate faculties (Links to an external site.) in your mind, does that
mean that you don’t need to learn?

No. We have the device that makes us capable to learning from birth but we need to activate
it through learning to be able to use it.

49. What is the role of age (Links to an external site.) in this? See Genie’s story (Links to an

external site.).

See question 47. Genie was not exposed to language and so went beyond the sensitive period
of language acquisition. When she was taught language she could only learn a handful of
words and couldn’t form full sentences.

50. What do we mean when we talk about ‘critical period (Links to an external site.)’
(nowadays also known as 'sensitive period')

We are able to activate the language activation device until a certain point after which its
function will decrease significantly.

51. Weber (Links to an external site.) and Fechner (Links to an external site.) are known

for Psychophysics (Links to an external site.). What do we mean by that?

Developed Weber’s law where a just noticeable difference is proportionate to stimulus value.
Quantifies the perception of change in a given stimulus.

E.g. 2 red pens are noticeably different or two shades can be so similar that they look the
same (even if they aren’t)

52. What is a Just Noticeable Differenc (Links to an external site.)e (JND)

There is a certain limit to where we can notice difference which continues until a point where
the mind can’t interpret the difference (even though there physically is one).

53. Why is the ‘Weber Fraction (Links to an external site.)’ interesting if one likes to think in
terms of ‘laws (Links to an external site.)’ that rule the ‘mind’.
54. What do we mean by ‘the problem of demarcation (Links to an external site.)’ from a
philosophy of science point of view?

It is difficult to find a limit between what is strictly scientific and what is considered
unscientific. Scientific theories aren’t fact and are open to being criticised and changed
according to new knowledge that comes about.

55. Come up with a few reasons why the story of Clever Hans (Links to an external site.) is
so striking in terms of ‘doing the right experiment’

There was a plausible hypothesis that a horse could not have a complex thought process and
effective testing was done that followed the scientific method. It was only when they retested
and put blinkers on him that their hypothesis was able to be confirmed.
56. What do we mean by ‘subliminal (Links to an external site.)’. For example in the field
of advertising (Links to an external site.).

Underlying, it is not apparent to the perceiver what they are interpreting subconsciously.

57. What is Karl Popper’s (Links to an external site.) central idea in one sentence?

He believed that good scientific theories needed to be open to being proven wrong
(falsifiable).

E.g. black swan and white swan

58. And Thomas Kuhn’s (Links to an external site.) (although it was Max Planck (Links to an

external site.) who really made that point (Links to an external site.))?

It isn’t just linear progress to proving a theory wrong, especially when you are against big
scientific names. Old theories are well established whereas new theories have few followers
and has very little testing behind it making it hard to believe for people. Max Planck
suggested that changes in psychology are based on big discoveries and changes of the
zeitgeist.

59. What did Popper mean by falsifiability  (Links to an external site.) en what is so crucial
about the Popper’s Swans example.

Falsifiability is the capacity for a hypothesis to be proven wrong.

E.g. are all swans white? If you search the whole world and only find white swans you
technically haven’t proven it you have just proven all you have found is white. If you try to
disprove it by finding a black swan it is a lot easier.

60. What is meant in Kuhn’s terminology ‘old and new theory (Links to an external site.)’

See question 58.

61. Skinner (Links to an external site.) never changed his mind, even when the cognitive
revolution (Links to an external site.) take place and most evidence was against his ideas
(see also lecture 5). Who would like this fact better in terms of the predictions of their
ideas, Popper or Kuhn?

Kuhn  people will stick to what they know even if all the evidence proves them wrong

62. What is, in general terms, meant by introspection? (Links to an external site.)

Introspection is looking at the elements of consciousness that make up a thought process

(initially done by Wundt and formed the basis of structuralism)

63. What in very general terms is the difference between Structuralism   (Links to an external
site.)and Functionalism? (Links to an external site.)
Structuralism  we look at the basic elements and how they build up to become our
experience.

Functionalism  pointed out the constant stream of consciousness that prevents inspecting
individual elements. More concerned with the purpose of the elements and what we use them
for.

E.g. structuralism wants to know what the parts of the brain are whereas functionalism wants
to know the functions of the brain.

64. Who was Titchener (Links to an external site.)?

Titchener studied structuralism under Wundt conducting introspection experiments.

65. Can you describe how introspection works based on the perception of a pencil?

Describe the aspects of the pencil without identifying that it is a pencil. This gives an
understanding into the sub-conscious thought process that identifies the fundamental features
of an object that allow us to identify it.

66. Why was according William James (Links to an external site.), ‘the stream of

consciousness (Links to an external site.)’ a problem for the structuralist approach?

We are trying to measure how one thinks whilst also thinking ourselves and this interferes
with our measurement of introspection.

67. What do we mean by perceptual organisation?  (Links to an external site.)

The ability to impose organisation on sensory data, so as to group sensory primitives arising
from a common underlying cause.

68. Often the Gestalt movement (Links to an external site.) was described by ‘the whole is

more than the sum of its parts’  (Links to an external site.). But Kurt Koffka (Links to an
external site.) said: "The whole is OTHER than the sum of its parts". What did he mean
by that? So what is the difference?

The whole may not just necessarily be made up of the individual parts. Our ability to use
perceptual organisation allows us to see beyond the pieces and recognise a whole (see
subjective contour)

69. Which Gestalt Principles (Links to an external site.) are there?

Similar  things that look similar will be grouped together

Proximity  things close together will be seen as belonging together

Closure  we tend to see complete figures even when part of the information is missing

Good continuation  elements in a line look more related

70. Which initial European movement (Links to an external site.) had its roots in animal
research?

Behaviourism (classic and operant conditioning)

71. Who (Links to an external site.) is known as the discoverer of Classical

Conditioning (Links to an external site.)?

Ivan Pavlov  giving dog food with bell and dog drools. When you ring bell dog will drool
without food.

72. Little Albert (Links to an external site.)’s emotional response… what kind of conditioning
was that, classical or operant (Links to an external site.)?

Classic conditioning (make baby scared of rabbit)

73. What was Thorndike (Links to an external site.)’s puzzle box (Links to an external site.)?

Associate voluntary behaviour (cat stepping on lever) and consequence (fish as treat).

74. Why was the Skinner box (Links to an external site.) a big improvement?

Skinner has an experimental box that examines natural flow of behaviour better. Skinner box
lets you measure a number of successful responses on the part of the animal because it stays
inside the box and pushes the lever many times to receive multiple awards. In Thorndike’s,
the animal has to escape the box to earn its reward ending the experiment.

75. Who is seen as the most important person in the world of Operant Conditioning (Links to

an external site.)?

B.F. Skinner.

76. Why was the rat Barnabus (Links to an external site.) both a success as well as a problem
for the behaviourists (Links to an external site.)?

Barnabus was a successful result of operant conditioning where he was conditioned to

perform a sequential series of tasks which followed with a reward. The issue is that it
assumes humans learn in the same way as animals.

77. What is meant by the Cognitive Revolution (Links to an external site.)?

Occurred in the 1950’s. Focus was on behaviourism before this, and this has shifted to
attention to the individual human and conscious. Focused on linguistics, neuroscience and
computer science. Became known as cognitive revolution.

78. What is meant by the Cognitive Neuroscience (Links to an external site.)?

The study of how the brain enables the mind. Explores how neurons operate and
communicate to form complex neuronal architectures that comprise the human brain.
79. Have you tried conditioning Pavlov's dog (Links to an external site.)?

Yes. Ring a bell and provide food he will drool. Over time when you ring the bell he will
associate that with food and drool without food being present.

80. In the history of mental health (Links to an external site.) problems, they often talk about
imbalances. What is meant by that?

Mental health issues were regarded as a balance of blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile.
An imbalance of this would cause disastrous issues aided by trepanation or blood letting.

81. So how did they try to bring the balance back?

Blood letting since Hippocrates believed that balance came down to the ratio of the four
fluids (blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile)

82. Which parts of the world where the first to establish mental hospitals (Links to an
external site.)?

Eastern parts of the world by the 8th century

83. Asylums where far from ‘holiday resort hotels (Links to an external site.)’. Can you give
some examples of the problems? Think about the expertise of the staff and the way they
treated the patients!

Undertrained staff, abusive, money enterprise.

84. The movie One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest  (Links to an external site.) was an eye-
opener (Links to an external site.) for the general audience. Why?

Insight into societal problems such as stereotypes about people who have mental disorders.

85. We sometimes use the term Mesmerized. (Links to an external site.) Where does that

come from?
86. Who was Lightner Witmer (Links to an external site.)?

Introduced clinical psychology and made first psychological clinic (1896). Worked on people
with learning disabilities.

87. Lightner Witmer was the first to establish what (Links to an external site.)?

See question 86.

88. Which three components (Links to an external site.) about the human mind did Sigmund

Freud (Links to an external site.) distinguish?

Id – yummy food

Super Ego – don’t eat you will get fat

Ego – let’s only have one bite

89. Later in his life Freud didn’t like hypnosis (Links to an external site.), why was that?

He believed that hypnosis wasn’t working on hysteric patients so moved to free association.

90. What and who are Neo-Freudians (Links to an external site.)?

Neo-Freudians followed his beliefs. These people included:

 Anna Freud
 Carl Jung – collective unconsciousness = everything is there from your past
 Alfred Adler
 Karen Horney
 Erich Fromm
 Erik Erikson

91. Give an example of a therapy (Links to an external site.) in the behaviourism/behavioural

tradition.

Systematic desensitisation

92. Carl Rogers (Links to an external site.) is considered the godfather of

which psychological clinical approach (Links to an external site.)?

Humanistic approach

93. What is the DSM (Links to an external site.)? And what the current 'version'?

DSM-5  bible for the diagnosis of patients.

Types of Experiments
Logical Fallacies
Fallacy Description
Appeal to ignorance Just because we don’t know
one thing doesn’t mean we
know another thing
Reification Like a motif, an object
symbolises a concept
Pragmatic fallacy Something is true because it
had some sort of benefit to
you
Gathering similar anecdotes
is not evidence it is just
confirmation bias
Example
There is unknown things in
science therefore the
spiritual world must be real
Two top scientists at the
UES University failed to
explain just how the statue
could weep by itself (they
were “baffled”), so it must
be the work of God
Rose represents love
That poker machine is a
lucky one
I had a cold and took this
mysterious pill so therefore
this pill will cure your cold
too
Acupuncture words
therefore chi also exists
The fact that psychoanalysis

Weasel words Misleading words,
euphemism, and
terminology
Argument from authority Believing something just
because someone in a
higher position has said it
Confusion of correlation and State a correlation and
causation relate it to one being a
cause of the other
Ad hominem Attacks person that makes
argument rather than the
argument itself
False Dichotomy
has helped so many people
validates every idea Freud
had
Thought to support
Helps in the maintenance of
general health and
wellbeing
May
It is said that the left side of
our brain is more artistic
and emotional
The vaccination of babies is
widely considered to be the
leading cause of autism
We know that vitamin C can
cure common colds and
even cancer, because the
idea was first proposed by
Linus Pauling, the only
scientist to ever win two,
unshared, Nobel Prizes
A greater proportion of
university graduates are
homosexual than those with
lesser education, so
university makes you gay
The divorce rates for
Conservative Christians are
much higher than for
Atheists, so religion must
ruin marriages
Charles Darwin was
mentally ill, which casts
doubt on his theory of
evolution by natural
selection
Einstein was just a patent
clerk when he proposed the
ridiculous ‘photoelectric
effect’
 Denialism
Example 1: Error of the host – too liberal with his views.

Example 3: Sample size too large – we are more likely to find evidence which raises issue
with statistical power, we found something that is so obscure given the large sample size that
it is hard to generalise to the entire population.

Slippery slope – taking one thing that we know and making a major assumption of what will
happen in the future

Begging the question – Assuming an answer in the way the question is phrased (circular
argument), using premise to justify conclusion

Excluded middle – only looking at the tail ends of situations

Straw man argument – characterising or stereotyping a position to make it easier to attack

Observational selection – only looking at information that is relevant to supporting your

claim
Small effect = only really high sample size (n=2000) would find something significant

P-value indicates reliability of result not size of effect

Cannot assume the effect size is small just because we have a sensitive study (i.e. sensitive
study is needed to test small effects, but doesn’t imply everything a sensitive study detects
is small!)

Inferential statistic conclusions are about populations not samples