Download All Famous Experiments!!!! Great for studying

Famous Experimenters
Alfred Adler
Neo-Freudian who thought social tensions were more important than sexual tensions in the development of personality,
Developed the inferiority inferiority/ superiority complexes. He would have said that people developed their personality
because they didn't want to be inferior. Actually excluded from the Vienna School of thought by Freud for this.
inferiority complex
Adler's conception of a basic feeling of inadequacy stemming from childhood experiences, a sense of personal inferiority arising
from CONFLICT between the desire to be noticed and the fear of being humiliated
Mary Ainsworth
A developmental psychologist who compared effects of maternal separation, and devised patterns of attachment; Used "The
Strange Situation"-observation of parent/child attachment and vivided the attachments into 3 broad categories (Secure 66%,
Avoidant 22%, and Anxious/Ambivalent/Resistant 11%)
The strange situation
An observational measure of infant attachment that requires the infant to move through a series of introducions, separations,
and reunions with the caregiver and an adult stranger in a prescribed order used by Mary Ainsworth. Also called the STRANGER
PARADIGM.
Avoidant attachments
A form of attachment that is the 2nd most common (22%) according to Mary Ainsworth, where infants may resist being held by
the parents and will explore the novel environment. They do not go to the parents for comfort when they return after an
absence
Secure attachments
A from of attachment that is the most common(66%) according to Mary Ainsworth, where a child displays confidence when the
parent is present, shows mild distress when the parent leaves, and quickly reestablishes contact when the parent returns good
balance between exploration and attachment
Resistant attachments
A form of attachment pattern that is the LEAST prevalent(11%) according to Mary Ainsworth characterizing infants who remain
close to the parent and fail to explore before separation, are usually distressed when the parent leaves, and combine clinginess
with angry, resistive behavior when the parent returns.
Noam Chomsky
United States linguist whose theory of generative grammar redefined the field of linguistics , language development; he also
disagreed with Skinner about language acquisition, stated there is an infinite # of sentences in a language, and humans have an
INBORN native ability to develop language, children can deduce the structure of their native languages from "mere exposure".
Supporting evidence from the mistakes children do, and do not make, in language acquisition process, also there is a criticalperiod hypothesis for language acquisition.
Solomon Asch
A social psychologist that studied conformity; showed that social pressure can make a person say something that is obviously
incorrect ; in a famous study(line length study) in which participants were shown cards with lines of different lengths and were
asked to say which line matched the line on the first card in length, even when people knew that it was wrong they were more
likely to pick it if another person said it was right. Also did the Impression Formation Study
Bobo doll Experiment
An experiment that was conducted by Albert Bandura in the 1940s, 1st group of kids were placed in room with bobo doll and
hammer, nothing happened; second group show movie where adult hits bag with hammer and the kids followed suit when
placed with bag and hammer; people's behavior can become more violent as a result of violent media.
Aaron Beck
A psychologist associated with cognitive therapeutic techniques. Believe problems arise from a persons maladaptive ways of
thinking about the world. Created the Beck Scales-depression inventory, hopelessness scale, suicidal ideation, anxiety
inventory, and youth inventories
Alfred Binet
The indvidual that published the first measure of intelligence(based on "mental age") in 1905. The purpose of his intelligence
test was to correctly place students on academic tracks in the French([specifically Parisan) school system.
Hermann Ebbinghaus
German psychologist who conducted the first extensive experiments on memory, used nonsense syllables and recorded how
many times he had to study a list to remember it well, from this he was able to develop his "forgetting curve"
Ebbinghaus's Forgetting Curve
Shows that we lose 2/3 of information in first hour of learning; rate of forgetting levels off after a few days. , Meaningless
material decays rapidly, then reaches a plateau, after which little is forgotten. (Ebbinghaus), hegave himself lots of material to
study went over 14,000 practice repetitions to memorize 420 nonsense syllables and tested his memory at different time
intervals to create this which plots forgetting as a function of time.
Albert Ellis
An early psychoanalyst and a pioneer in Rational-Emotive Therapy (RET), focuses on altering client's patterns of irrational
thinking to reduce maladaptive behavior and emotions
Rational Emotive Therapy
A Cognitive Therapy based on Albert Ellis' theory that cognitions control our emotions and behaviors; therefore, changing the
way we think about things will affect the way we feel and the way we behave., The therapist ACTIVELY challenges the patient's
irrational beliefs.
John Garcia
His experiments in injecting animals with drugs that made them nauseous after feeding them a certain food helped to establish
the idea that organisms learn best behaviors that affect survival., Researched taste aversion. Showed that when rats ate a novel
substance before being nauseated by a drug or radiation, they developed a conditioned taste aversion for the substance. Also
showed that taste preferences were established by biological predispositions.
Taste Aversion
A type of classical conditioning in which a previously desirable or neutral food comes to be perceived as repugnant because it is
associated with negative stimulation (John Garcia).
Garcia Effect
Named after researcher John Garcia, it is basically food aversion that occurs when people attribute illness to a particular food.
Howard Gardner
Laid out the theory of multiple intelligences (MI) in his book Frames of Mind. Claimed that pencil and paper IQ tests do not
capture the full range of human intelligences, and that we all have individual profiles of strengths and weaknesses across
multiple intelligence dimensions. He identified at least eight types of intelligences: linguistic, logical/mathematical,
bodily/kinesthetic, musical, spatial (visual), interpersonal (the ability to understand others), intrapersonal (the ability to
understand oneself), and naturalist (the ability to recognize fine distinctions and patterns in the natural world)
Theory of multiple intelligences
Gardner's theory, which proposes at least 8 independent intelligences on the basis of distinct sets of processing operations that
permit individuals to engage in a wide range of culturally valued activities
Harry Harlow
Psychologist who researched the relationship of body contact and nourishment to attachment, using Rhesus monkeys and
artificial mothers. Wire Mother vs. Cloth mother)> Babies would get food from Wire mother, but would cling to and imprint on
cloth mother. Showed that they needed contact as well as nurishment. Also proving that monkey preferred the soft cloth
mother and due to isolation they never learned how to mate.
Hermann von Helmholtz
German physiologist who demonstrated that the movement of impulses in the nerves and in the brain was not instantaneous,
but instead took a small but finite amount of time. Against Vitalism, believed in the conservation of energy in animals and also
modified the Tichromatic theory. Estimated the speed of nerve conduction at (apprx 90 ft/sec) , Also proposed that specific
sound frequencies vibrate specific portions of the basilar membrane producing distinct pitches
Karen Horney
A neo-Freudian( and feminist) who criticized Freud, stated that personality is molded by current fears and impulses, rather than
being determined solely by childhood experiences and instincts, neurotic trends; concept of "basic anxiety". Also said that
psychoanalysis was biased against woman, and that men acted superior because they had "Womb Envy"
basic anxiety
Horney's theory of the deep-seated form of anxiety in children that is associated with feelings of being isolated and helpless in a
world perceived as potentially threatening and hostile.
Penis Envy
In Psychoanalytic Thought, the desire of girls to posses a penis and therefore have the power that being male represents.
Womb Envy
The envy of pregnancy, childbirth, and motherhood, which results in the unconscious depreciation of women. Mens impulse
toward creative work may be an over-compensation for their small role in procreation.
Electra complex
conflict during phallic stage in which girls supposedly love their fathers romantically and want to eliminate their mothers as
rivals, counterpart to the Oedipus complex for females
Oedipus complex
According to Freud, a boy's sexual desires toward his mother and feelings of jealousy and hatred for the rival father,
counterpart to the Electra Complex for males.
William James
Developed pragmatism(Functionalism). One of the founders of modern psychology, and the first to attempt to apply psychology
as a science rather than a philosophy. Wrote first psychology textbook "The Principles of Psychology" and was interested in the
the Meaning of Truth, (influenced by Darwin!)
Functionalism
William James school of psychology that focused on how mental and behavioral processes FUNCTION - how they enable the
organism to adapt, survive, and flourish. (influenced by Darwin!)
Edward Titchner
He introduced structuralism, and was a student of Wilhelm Wundt; He also encouraged introspection. Broke consciousness
down into three elements: physical sensations, feeling, and images
Structuralism
An early school of psychology that used introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human mind. (Edward Titchner)
Wilhelm Wudnt
Study the structure of the mind through introspection, developed the FIRST psychological lab inn Leipzig. Teacher of Edward
Titchner.
Alfred Kinsey
College professor at Indiana University, Bloomington, author of "Sexual Behavior in the Human Male" and "Sexual Behavior in
the Human Female;" collectively known as the Kinsey Report; report was controversial and inflammatory but well-received and
immensely popular. Factored in the spurring of research for birth control., 1) Publishes a study based on male sexuality 2) Took
a sample of 10,000 men, data said that sexual orientation was diverse and many were bisexual
Wolfgang Kohler
A Gestalt psychologist who became known for his experiments with chimpanzees and insight in problem solving. He believed
that by perceiving the WHOLE situation, chimps were able to create novel solutions to problems (rather than just by trial and
error). Through insight, chimps were able to use props in order to retrieve rewards., started Gestalt psychology with 2
companions Kurt Koffka, Max Wertheimer
Carl Lange
Danish physiologist who proposed a theory of emotion similar to, and about the same time as James' theory that awareness of
physiological responses leads to experiences of emotion.
Simon LeVay
Wrote Sexual Brain and Queer Science, completed research on the DNA and finding a gay gene, he found the gene INAH3 was
more than twice as large in heterosexual men as in homosexual men. Also found that certain brain regions (specifically, a
cluster of cells on the hypothalamus) is different in homosexual(smaller) versus heterosexual men
Elizabeth Loftus
This psychologist discovered the misinformation effect: After exposure to subtle misinformation, many people misremember;
as memory fades with time following an event, the injection of misinformation becomes easier, research on memory
construction and the misinformation effect created doubts about the accuracy of eye-witness testimony, Along with John
Palmer, showed people a filmed automobile accident, asked how fast cars were going when they smashed or bumped or
contacted, asked if they had seen broken glass in the film (there was none) to study the tendency of people to construct
memories based on how they are questioned.
misinformation effect
Occurs when participants' recall of an event they witnessed is altered by introducing misleading post event information
Abraham Maslow
A humanistic psychologist who proposed the hierarchy of needs, also developed the view that the human needs for security,
love, belonging, self-esteem and self-actualization were more important than physiological needs for food, sleep and sex. He
developed a theory of a hierarchy of human needs, of which the highest were the need for "self-actualization"
Ancel Keys
Developed the Laboratory of Physiological Hygiene at the University of Minnesota, , Led the hunger experiment where men
were semistarved. The participants became food-obsessed, supports Maslow's hierarchy of needs.
hierarchy of needs
Maslow's Theory of Motivation which states that we must achieve lower level needs, such as food, shelter, and safety before
we can achieve higher level needs, such as belonging, esteem, and self-actualization.
self-actualization
According to Maslow, the ultimate psychological need that arises after basic physical and psychological needs are met and selfesteem is achieved; the motivation to fulfill one's potential
Masters and Johnson
These two authors wrote a book called "Human Sexual Response" which proved that sex isn't just pleasurable for men., among
the first to use laboratory experimentation and observation to study the sexual response cycle (1950s-60s); 4 levels include
excitement, plateau, orgasm , and resolution
Stanley Milgram obedience to authority
-Studies of obedience by Stanley Milgram. Milgram told participants they would be participating in a study of the effects of
punishment on learning. Their task was to administer electric shock to a "learner," but in reality, the "learner" was a
confederate. Found that 65% of participants could be coaxed to deliver every level of shock
-Milgram may have found high obedience because his participants were volunteers
-Raised ethical issues. To ensure that there are no long-lasting effects, participants were debriefed
Carl Jung
Student of Freud. Broke over Freud's emphasis of sexuality. Believed all people had a collective unconscious of the past
generations, but the connection faded due to modernization., "the collective unconscious" and mythic "archetypes"
Freud's follower. He also believed that Libido was all types of energy not just sexual. identified archetypes by studying dreams,
visions, paintings, poetry, folk stories, myths, religions. Is also the Father of analytical psychologist.
collective unconscious
Carl Jung's concept of a shared, inherited reservoir of memory traces from our species' history.
personal unconscious
According to Jung, the level of awareness that houses material that is not within one's conscious awareness because it has been
repressed or forgotten.
Ivan Pavlov
a Russian researcher in the early 1900s who was the first research into learned behavior (conditioning) who discovered classical
conditioning, by training dogs to salivate at the ringing of a bell, simplest form of classical conditioning is reminiscent of what
Aristotle would have called the law of contiguity
Jean Piaget
Swiss psychologist remembered for his studies of cognitive development in children., Four stage theory of cognitive
development: 1. sensorimotor, 2. preoperational, 3. concrete operational, and 4. formal operational. He said that the two basic
processes work in tandem to achieve cognitive growth-assimilation and
Philippe Pinel
He insisted that madness was not due to demonic possession, but an ailment of the mind, and who contributed to the more
humane treatment of psychiatric patients in the late 1700s
Carl Rogers
Humanistic psychologist who stressed the inportance of acceptance, genuineness, and empathy in fostering human growth. ,
Developed "client-centered" therapy, self theory, and also unconditional positive regard
client-centered therapy
A humanistic therapy, developed by Carl Rogers, in which the therapist uses techniques such as active listening within a
genuine, accepting, empathic environment to facilitate clients' growth.
self theory
The theory according to Carl Rogers that when we are unsure of our attitudes, we infer them much as would someone
observing us, by looking at our behavior and the circumstances under which it occurs
unconditional positive regard
According to Carl Rogers, an attitude of total acceptance toward another person.
Stanley Schachter
Developed the 2 factor emotion theory-physiological happens first, cognitive appraisal must be made in order to experience
emotion. Had .Experiments on the Spillover Effect.
Two-factor theory of emotion
Schachter and Singer's theory that emotion is the interaction of physiological arousal and the cognitive label that we apply to
explain the arousal, The idea that emotional experience is the result of a two-step self perception process in which people first
experience physiological arousal and then seek an appropriate explanation for it.
Theodore Simon
Working with Binet, he published a test of general mental ability that was loaded with items that required abstract reasoning
skills rather than sensory skills. Helped figure out mental Age
John Locke
Believed people were born like blank slates and the environment shapes development, (tabula rasa). Wrote Essay Concerning
Human Understanding, and Second Treatise of Government.
B.F Skinner
A behaviorist and pioneer of operant conditioning who believed that everything we do is determined by our past history of
rewards and punishments. he is famous for use of his operant conditioning aparatus which he used to study schedules of
reinforcement on pidgeons and rats.
Charles Spearman
An english psychologist, known for his work in statistics, as a pioneer of factor analysis and for Spearman's rank correlation
coefficient. He also did seminal work on models for human intelligence, including his theory that disparate cognitive test scores
reflect a single general factor and coining the term g factor. Predicted that doing good on one part of a test should mean that
you do good on another part.
G factor
SPEARMAN'S term for a general intellectual ability that underlies all mental operations to some degree
General Intelligence
a general intelligence factor that, according to Spearman and others, underlies specific mental abilities and is therefore
measured by every task on an intelligence test
Robert Sternberg
A professor at Yale and the author of Successful Intelligence, the concept of successful intelligence contrasts with the more
narrow academic intelligence measured by IQ tests and other standardized examinations". evised the Triarchic Theory of
Intelligence (academic problem-solving, practical, and creative)
Triarchic Theory
Theory proposed by Robert Sternberg that states that intelligence consists of three parts including Analytic = the ability to solve
problems, Creative = the ability to deal with new situations, and Practical = the ability to adjust and cope with one's
environment
Lewis Terman
Revised Binet's IQ test and established norms for American children; tested group of young geniuses and followed in a
longitudinal study that lasted beyond his own lifetime to show that high IQ does not necessarily lead to wonderful things in life.
he test then became the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Test. He is also known for his longitudinal research on gifted kids.
Edward Thorndike
Pioneer in operant conditioning who discovered concepts in intstrumental learning such as the law of effect. Known for his
work with cats in puzzle boxes.
law of effect
Thorndike's principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely, and that behaviors followed by
unfavorable consequences become less likely
John Watson
Founder of behaviorism, the view that psychology should restrict its efforts to studying observable behaviors, not mental
processes, amous for Little Albert study in which baby was taught to fear a white rat
Little Albert study
Study by John Watson and Reyner (1920), in which a little boy(11 months( became afraid of white fuzzy objects, especially
white rats because he associated them with a loud clang after seeing a bunny and hearing a loud clang at the same time.
Benjamin Whorf
A linguist who noticed that the more words that you have for a certain type of thing, the more subtle the distinctions you
recognize in it. Also , language we use might control, and in some ways limit our thinking. For example since the Hopi didn't
have a grammatical structure that as useful for the past, they rarely talked or worried about it.
Linguistic relativity hypothesis
The notion that the language a person speaks largely determines the nature of that person's thoughts (Benjamin Whorf)
Thomas Young
Published "A Theory of Color Vision" in England (his theory was later called the trichromatic theory), , Double Slit Interference
Experiment: Light is made of waves
Philip Zimbardo
Conducted the famous Stanford Prison experiment. It was conducted to study the power of social roles to influence people's
behavior. It proved people's behavior depends to a large extent on the roles that are asked to play
Stanford Prison experiment
Philip Zimbardo's study of the effect of roles on behavior. Participants were randomly assigned to play either prisoners or
guards in a mock prison. The study was ended early because of the "guards'" role-induced cruelty. Proved that situational
forces can lead ordinary people to exhibit horrendous behavior