Spring 2007, Exam 1 1) Psychology became a separate discipline when which of the following occurred?

A) Sigmund Freud published his first book "The Interpretation of Dreams" in 1902 B) natural law became a common belief among scientists C) the scientific method was used to investigate human behavior and mental processes D) the American Psychological Association lobbied universities to establish psychlogical laboratories 2) Researchers have found that Parkinson's disease is related to deficiencies in the production of the chemical dopamine in the brain. Of the following professionals, ______ psychologists would probably be MOST interested in these findings. A) psychometric B) social C) clinical D) physiological 3) About half of all psychologists specialize in ______ psychology. A) physiological or experimental B) clinical or counseling C) personality or developmental D) social or developmental 4) The person most directly responsible for moving psychology out of the realm of philosophy and into the world of science is ______. A) William James B) Sigmund Freud C) Wilhelm Wundt D) B. F. Skinner 5) Watson felt that psychologists should study ______. A) consciousness B) elements of thought C) observable behavior D) mental imagery 6) When we listen to a favorite piece of music, we tend to experience the melodies and harmonies as a beautiful single piece of music rather than as the series of separate notes of which the song is actually composed. This phenomenon illustrates an important point made by ______. A) Gestalt psychologists B) psychoanalysts C) humanists D) behaviorists 7) Fifteen years ago, most psychology textbooks described psychology as the "study of behavior." Today, most of these describe psychology as the "study of behavior and mental processes." This definitional change can in large part be attributed to the impact of ______ psychology. A) behavioral B) cognitive C) existential D) humanistic 8) A ______ is a medical doctor with four years of medical training and three years of residency training (spent mostly in supervised clinical practice). A) psychoanalyst B) psychologist C) psychiatrist D) psychiatric social worker

9) A psychologist, studying pilot trainees, picks a select group of trainees who are hopefully representative of all other trainees. The group of trainees being studied by this psychologist are collectively known to researchers as a ______. A) sample B) target group C) population D) control group 10) Observing behavior as it happens in real-life natural settings without imposing laboratory controls is known as the ______. A) naturalistic observation method B) correlational method C) experimental method D) psychometric approach 11) Which of the following is true of case studies? A) They tend to be lacking in detailed, descriptive information. B) They eliminate problems of observer bias. C) It is impossible to confidently draw generalized conclusions from their results. D) They fail to provide observations of real-life behavior. 12) Each of the following is true of the survey method of research EXCEPT ______. A) they get information from only a very small number of people B) people may not always give honest responses when asked about topics that make them feel embarrassed, guilty, or uncomfortable C) the results can be meaningless unless the questions are worded clearly and unambiguously D) surveys are relatively inexpensive to run 13) If a researcher wanted to determine whether, and to what extent different variables are associated with each other they would need to use the __________ method of research. A) case study B) survey C) correlational D) experimental 14) In an experiment to test the effects of varying amounts of anxiety on performance, the independent variable is the ______. A) subject's performance B) amount of anxiety C) age of the subject D) cause of the anxiety 15) In an experiment, a researcher manipulates one variable to see how it affects a second variable. The first variable, which is manipulated, is called the ______. A) independent variable B) control variable C) hypothetical variable D) dependent variable 16) The specific behavior that is observed and measured in a psychological study is called the __________ variable. A) independent B) dependent C) response D) extraneous 17) In an experiment to test the effects of anxiety on performance, the dependent variable is the ______. A) person's performance B) age of the person

C) amount of anxiety

D) cause of the anxiety

18) The only research method that can demonstrate a cause-and-effect relationship between variables is the ______ method. A) correlational B) experimental C) case study D) naturalistic observation 19) Expectations by the experimenter that might influence the results of an experiment or his or her interpretation are called ______. A) phi effects B) experimenter effects C) treatment bias D) sample bias 20) If a psychologist gave one group of rats extra handling and an enriched environment and deprived a second group of rats, then measured how quickly each group learned a maze, he or she would be engaged in ______. A) correlational research B) naturalistic observation C) field research D) a controlled experiment 21) Cells within our bodies that are specialized for the tasks of receiving, moving, and processing information are called __________. A) neurons B) ganglion cells C) endocrine cells D) glial cells 22) The short fibers which extend from the neuron, allowing it to receive messages from other neurons are ______. A) synapses B) nerve bundles C) axons D) dendrites 23) The function of the neuron's axon is to ______. A) receive messages from neighboring neurons B) conduct electrical impulses toward other neurons C) regulate the neuron's life processes D) insulate against leakage of electrical impulses 24) The "all or none law" refers to the fact that ______. A) all the dendrites on a neuron must receive messages telling the neuron to fire or it will not fire at all B) all the neurons in a single nerve fire simultaneously or not at all C) a single neuron fires at full strength or not at all D) all the neurons in a particular area of the brain fire simultaneously or not at all 25) A neuron is likely to ______ when stimulated by a strong signal. A) fire more often B) fire for a longer period of time C) fire in a coded sequence D) fire more intensely 26) When a neural impulse crosses the synaptic space, it does so ______. A) like an electric spark B) through chemicals

C) via direct contact between the axon and the dendrite D) through some, as yet, unknown process 27) When a neural impulse reaches the end of an axon, it causes tiny oval sacs at the end of the axon to release chemicals called ______. A) antioxidants B) hormones C) neurotransmitters D) electrolytes 28) The central nervous system consists of ______. A) the somatic and autonomic nervous systems B) the sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions, which control the inner or central part of the body C) all the nerves in the body that take messages from the environment and send them to the brain and spinal cord D) the brain and the spinal cord 29) The autonomic nervous system has two divisions: ______. A) central and peripheral B) sympathetic and parasympathetic C) limbic and endocrine D) receptors and effectors 30) You're walking all alone down a dark street when, suddenly, you hear a scream and then footsteps coming closer and closer. Your heart begins to pound, you're scared stiff, and you feel like running. Which part of the nervous system causes your body's reaction? A) the sympathetic nervous system B) the midbrain C) the hippocampus D) the parasympathetic nervous system 31) A young woman recovering from a blow to her head finds she has great difficulty maintaining her balance and coordinating her movements. Injury to which part of her brain is likely to be causing her difficulties? A) cerebral cortex B) thalamus C) cerebellum D) medulla 32) The part of the brain that acts like a "thermostat," regulating hunger, thirst, sexual drive, and body temperature is the ______. A) hypothalamus B) amygdala C) thalamus D) hippocampus 33) The part of the brain that receives and interprets visual information is the ______. A) occipital lobe B) frontal lobe C) temporal lobe D) parietal lobe 34) The loosely connected ring of structures between the central core and the cerebral hemispheres that control emotion and is involved in the formation of new memories is the ______. A) limbic system B) reticular formation

C) endocrine system

D) pons

35) "Split-brain" patients are patients who have had ______. A) their brain stem cut down the middle B) a prefrontal lobotomy C) their corpus callosum cut out D) their cerebellum split in the middle 36) The hemisphere that specializes in analyzing sequences and details and has language is ______. A) the left hemisphere B) the rear hemisphere C) the front hemisphere D) the right hemisphere 37) The minimum stimulus intensity required for detection is the ______ whereas the smallest detectable difference between a standard stimulus intensity and another stimulus value is the ______. A) base value; just noticeable difference (jnd) B) response criterion; sensory constant C) absolute threshold; difference threshold D) detection standard; beta criterion 38) Which of the following is true of rods? A) They can not see blue light B) They are responsible for night vision. C) They operate mainly in the daytime. D) They are found mainly in the fovea. 39) In regard to the way rods and cones operate, ______. A) neither rods nor cones share neurons with other rods or cones B) cones, but not rods, must share neurons C) both cones and rods share neurons D) rods, but not cones, share neurons 40) One of the major reasons for more traffic accidents at night is difficulties in ______. A) afterimage adaptation B) dark adaptation C) light adaptation D) optic adaptation 41) Jamie leaves a darkened movie theater and walks out into a bright light. Normally, it will take about ______ minute(s) for her rods and cones to adjust to the outside light. A) 900 B) 15 C) 1 D) 60 42) The place in the retina where the axons of all the ganglion cells come together to leave the eye is called the ______. A) blind spot B) main rod C) fovea D) optic chiasm 43) Which of the following is true?

A) B) C) D)

Hearing, but not vision, undergoes adaptation. Vision, but not hearing, undergoes adaptation. Both hearing and vision undergo adaptation. Neither vision nor hearing undergo adaptation.

44) Which sense has the most direct route from the sense organ to the brain and connects into the Limbic system? A) sound B) smell C) taste D) sight 45) The senses that monitor our equilibrium and awareness of body orientation in space are the ______ senses. A) kinesthetic B) vestibular C) olfactory D) cutaneous 46) Whether you are standing right next to it or a mile away from it, you know a tree is the same size because of ______. A) retinal disparity B) the phi phenomenon C) perceptual constancy D) the figure-ground distinction 47) When you stand to the side of a window frame, it casts a trapezoidal (nonrectangular) image on your retina. It still seems rectangular to you, though, because of ______. A) the phi phenomenon B) figure-ground constancy C) shape constancy D) size constancy 48) When Bill looks at his lamp alternately with his left and right eye, the image seems to jump from one position to another. With both eyes he perceives only one image. This illustrates ______. A) the Gestalt principle of similarity B) interposition C) the Gestalt principle of proximity D) retinal disparity 49) A person who is blind in one eye can use each of the visual distance and depth cues EXCEPT ______. A) shadowing B) convergence C) aerial perspective D) motion parallax 50) This is NOT a trick question. If you do not give the correct answer, your exam may not be scored correctly. Here is the question: What year is it? A) 2007 B) 1776 C) 1600 D) 1492

1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) 10) 11) 12) 13) 14) 15) 16) 17) 18) 19) 20) 21) 22) 23) 24) 25) 26) 27) 28) 29) 30) 31) 32) 33) 34) 35) 36) 37) 38) 39) 40) 41) 42) 43) 44) 45) 46) 47)

C D B C C A B C A A C A C B A B A B B D A D B C A B C D B A C A A A C A C B D B C A C B B C C

48) D 49) B 50) A, C