Psychology Vocabulary

Achievement Motivation - Амжилтын сэдэл

Achievement Orientation – Амжилтын чиг баримжаа

Affirmation - Итгэл

Analysis – Дүн шинжилгээ

Anchoring - Тулгуур

Arousal – Өнгөрсөн, одоо, ирээдүйдээ санаа зовох сэдэл

Our level of anxiety about a past, present, or future event

Arousal continuum – Зан төлөвийн байдал

Indicates our relative level of anxiety from none to extreme: sleepy, bored, interested, excited,
anxious, etc

Attribution – Шалтгаан (амжилт болон ялагдлын шалтгааныг тайлбарлах)

How we explain the causes of our successes and failures. TWO MEASURES

Autotelic – Хийж байгаа зүйлдээ бүх зүйлээ зориулах чадвар

Literally, "self projection". Our ability to fully put our entire energy and all our skills fully into
whatever task is at hand

Behavior Modification – Зан чанарын өөрчлөлт

A structured process by which we retrain ourselves or someone else to behave in a more
productive way. CONDITION someone how we WANT them to behave
Brainstorming – Санаа гаргах
an idea-creation process in which we come up with every possible solution to a problem, no
matter how crazy they might seem on the surface

Case Study – Кейс судалгаа (Тодорхой хүний мэдээллийн сан)

A detailed collection of information about a particular individual

Causality – Учир шалтгааны холбоо

The cause & effect relationship between a stimulus and its response.

Conditioning -
The process by which we learn to give a certain response to a particular stimulus. TWO KINDS

Classical conditioning
Ivan Pavlov-established that a certain stimulus causes a specific response

Operant conditioning
Thorndike/B.F. Skinner- says that we associate certain behaviors with the consequences they
bring...therefore, behaviors that are reinforced will increase

Congruence - Нийцэл
The measurable similarity between what we think we are doing, and what we are actually doing.

Defense Mechanism – Хамгаалалтын механизм (тавгүйтүүлэх бодол санааг хянах)

a pattern of thinking that either (a) helps us repress thoughts or emotions that make us anxious,
or (b) allow us to change what is really happening into something we can deal with better
Defensive – Няцаалт (сөрөг мэдээллийг няцаах )
When a person responds to information with anger, resistance, counterattack, or withdrawal.

Dream Analysis
The process of asking someone to record every person, place, and item that appears in their
dreams, in an effort to discover thinking patterns that will explain their behaviors

Dysfunctional Behavior – Сөрөг үйлдэл (Сөрөг нөхцөлд буруугаар хариу үйлдэл үзүүлэх)
Whether you call them difficulties, obstacles, problems, or dysfunctional behaviors, the effect
remains the same. Any action we take that leads to an undesired conclusion we should have
expected is a dysfunctional action.

Emotions – Сэтгэл хөдлөл

Feelings that accompany thoughts, actions, or other feelings. Vallerand (1984)=only 7 basic
emotions: Happy, surprised, interested, afraid, angry, sad, disgusted

Empathy – Өрөвч сэтгэл

An expression of feeling similar to the way someone else is feeling. NOT SYMPATHY. When
you can relate to the feeling

Environment – Орчин тойрон

Every person, location, and situation that we have ever experienced. Past environments=current
behavior?
Experiencing – Туулж үзэх
In Humanism, the act of living this very moment to its absolute fullest

Extinction – Хэрэггүй зан чанараас татгалзах

the process by which we "kill off" a behavior by providing no unconditioned stimulus

Extrinsic – Гадны нөлөлөл

That which comes from outside of us, particularly motivation or reinforcement

Faulty Thought Process – Сөрөг бодол

Similar to Dysfunctional Behavior, it is any set of ideas or beliefs that contains some
fundamental error.

Flow -
Concept developed by Csikszentmihalyi to describe the state of being in perfect physical,
emotional, and intellectual harmony, performing in an effortless and successful way

Heuristics
Automatic thinking patterns we use to process information. Comparison to previous learning
styles/knowledge. Faulty heuristics shows how errors in our thought patterns corrupt our
thinking process
Homeostasis
The condition under which every part of our body, mind, and/or soul is working together
properly. BALANCE

Imagery
Creating a picture in the "mind's eye". Cognitive psychologists believe that imagining an
enjoyable event or the process of accomplishing a task, makes that event or task more possible
Associated with concentration enhancement, self confidence, skill acquisition, emotional control,
practice strategy and coping with pain and injury

Lang's bio-informational theory

Proposes that the same neural pathways in the brain used in performing skills are activated
during the use of vivid imagery

Innate
Literally, "from within us". Something that comes from within us that is part of our inner
being...opposite of learning

Inner Conflict
The "wresting match" that takes place between our Id, Ego, and Superego.

Intervention
As a verb it is the act of coming between a cause and its effect
As a noun it is a strategy, chosen to help a person change a dysfunctional behavior

Intrinsic
That which comes completely form inside us, particularly motivation or reinforcement

Learning
The process by which experience causes a permanent change in our knowledge or behavior.
Locus of Evaluation
The center of our assessment process. All of us evaluate our won behavior and performance
Internal locus: If the central aspects of our evaluation process come from within us (values,
thoughts, feelings)
External Locus: If our evaluation is primarily based on the opinions of others, or from social
comparison

Logic
A though process in which a conclusion must follow a set of precepts. (something MUST be
true)

Mental Rehearsal
The process by which we work through all the skills we need to perform successfully only within
our mind

Metacognition
The process of thinking about our thinking processes...

Modeling
A process, primarily used for skill acquisition, in which we observe or act out the proper way to
perform.

Motivation
Our sustained dedication to doing something-the core reason why we participate, work, and
strive for success

Nature vs Nurture
Percentage of our personality and character that are due to nature, and that which is due to
nurture...

Paranoia
The fear that other people are talking, thinking about, or acting against us

Peak Experience
An activity during which we realize, "This is one of the highest points of my life" We find the
moment exciting, fulfilling, joyful, transcendent.

Peak Performance
Behavior in an activity that exceed what is normally anticipated

Perception
How we receive information through our senses. Two people might see, hear, smell, taste, or
touch the same thing, yet honestly perceive it in a completely different way.

Present
Not only "at this time" but also taking into account the place, others who are there and our
interactions with them, our physical, mental, and emotional state, the thoughts and feelings we're
experiencing, etc..

Processing
The way in which we deal with incoming information
Bottom-Up Processing: Information brought in through senses, but some are lost along the way
as it is filtered
Top-Down processing: occurs when our brain organized information into categories we have
created, so it will have a meaning we have assigned to it

Projective Testing
Tests that ask a person to interpret marks or symbols, in the hopes that they will reveal their
hidden thoughts and feelings. (INK BLOTS)

Punishment
When something we consider to be bad happens to us when we do not perform a required
behavior

Reflection
A technique in Humanistic counseling in which the counselor, having listened carefully to the
statements of the subject, restates those comments back to the subject in an effort to get more
meaning out of what they are saying

Reinforcement
A response that occurs to some action on your part (reward)
Positive: Given a reward for good behavior
Negative: Comes when something we might consider to be bad is removed from our
environment after we do what is asked

Relaxation
A technique used to help us eliminate some of the anxiety we may feel in a stressful situation
(PMR, breathing techniques, biofeedback)

PMR (Progressive muscle relaxation)

One of the most common forms of relaxation used in a sport....systematic focus of attention on
various gross muscle groups throughout the body, and requires the individual to progress through
the body, tensing and then releasing each of the muscle groups in turn

Repression
The act of hiding or "burying" our feelings they cause us too much pain

Response
any reflective action that follows a stimulus
Unconditioned: One that occurs without our having been trained to do so
Conditioned: Response we've been trained to give

Role Play
A technique in which we represent either ourselves expressing our true feelings to someone we
have difficulty communicating with, or the other person, imagining them explaining why they
are behaving the way they do
Schema
Frameworks we use to incorporate new information. Schemas are sufficiently flexible to accept
info that is extremely different that that we already had (bird=ostrich because why tf not)

Self
In Humanism, the personal patterns of perception and values that we label "me"

Self-Actualization
A concept by Maslow/Rogers that claims that our primary inner force is to grow, develop, and
become the best person we possibly can.

Self-Efficacy
Our sense of effectiveness, and a belief that we have the resources to accomplish what we set out
to do.

Shaping
The process by which we reinforce (and/or reward) behaviors which are close to what we want,
in order to get the subject to move toward the intended goal

Social Comparison
Drawing our standards for evaluation from the behavior of our "peer" group. We judge ourselves
by how well we "measure up" to others who are important to us
Stimulus
Any Action from our environment (that registers in our sense) that causes us to respond in a
certain way.
Unconditioned Stimulus: Usually creates a response beyond our control (physical reactions)
Conditioned stimulus: one we must be trained to respond to (complaining)

Stressor
Any element of life that causes a physiological reaction in us.
Eustress: Good stress (heartbeat, breathing, muscles)
Distress: BAD. Causes a physiological change that's NO BUENO.

Stress Process
Defined as a substantial imbalance between the demand (physical and/or psychological) and
response capability, under conditions where failure to meet that demand has important
consequences.
(i) causes of stress (environmental demand), (ii) stress response (person's reactions), (iii) stress
experience (psychological interpretation), (iv) actual behavior (outcome).

Sublimation
The process by which our Ego transforms our Id's base desires into acceptable outcomes

Synergy
The intricate relationship between several variables, which causes them to suddenly "come
together" in a truly unique, often enjoyable, and beneficial way
Therapeutic Alliance
in Humanism, it is the relationship between the subject and their counselor functioning as a team
to recognize difficulties, establishing a plan of action, set goals, and measure achievement

Thoughts
Ideas that pop into our heads at different times.
Automatic: Those which come out of our schemas and beliefs. Immediately thought of as the
"truth"
Voluntary: Thoughts we choose to have, and we are aware that they are coming into our heads

Transference
The process of using previous experiences, particularly in our personal relationships, to help us
prepare for and succeed in current activities.

Unconscious Mind
The actions of our mind that take place without our actually having to "think" about it.

Visualization
A technique in which we use imagery to "see" ourselves performing effectively, improve our
game skills, and enjoy success

Worst-Case Scenario
The most awful situation we can possibly imagine...actually causes balance. The situation could
be a lot worse than it actually is
Anxiety
Subjective evaluation of a situation, and concerns jeopardy to one's self-esteem during
performance or social situations, physical danger, or insecurity and uncertainty. Anxiety
increase=performance decrease

Cognitive Anxiety
The worry component...has been effectively defined by Borkovec as a chain of thoughts and
images negatively affect-laden and relatively uncontrolable

Somatic Anxiety
Closely linked to physiological arousal....awareness of physiological changes that provides a
signal to the individual that they are anxious (trembling, nausea)

State Anxiety
Can be defined as fear, nervousness, discomfort, and the arousal of the autonomic nervous
system induced TEMPORARILY by situations perceived as dangerous (i.e., how a person is
feeling at the time of a perceived threat)
Sport Competition Anxiety Test (SCAT)

Trait Anxiety
Can be defined as a relatively enduring disposition to feel stress, worry, and discomfort
Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2)
Catastrophe Model
Explained the varied effects of anxiety as seen in real-life performances. 3D, and centered on the
concept of a "performance surface" to describe the combined effects of physiological arousal and
cognitive anxiety on performance levels
Suggested that when cognitive anxiety was high (toward the front of the performance surface),
continued increases in physiological arousal would result in a catastrophic decline in
performance

Working memory
Replaying auditory material, extracting information from long term memory, making decisions,
and comparing current with planned situations...

Processing Efficiency Theory

Emphasizes that the relationship between anxiety and performance is best explained by changes
in efficiency rather than changes in absolute performance level

SMARTER goal setting

Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Time-based
Exciting
Review

Personality
"Those relatively stable and enduring aspects of individuals which distinguish them from other
people, making them unique but at the same time permit a comparison between individuals"

PST-Psychological skils training

Refers to the systematic and consistent practice of
mental or psychological skills.
is not just for elite athletes (ii) is not just for problem athletes (iii) does not provide quick fix
solutions.
Three phases of a PST programme: (i) education (ii) acquisition (iii) practice.