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167 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
personality |
an individual's characteristic style of behaving, thinking, and feeling; shaped by prior (genes) and anticipated (hopes, dreams) events |
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self-report |
a method in which people provide subjective information about their own thoughts, feelings, or behaviors, typically via questionnaire or interview |
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Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) |
a well-researched, clinical questionnaire used to assess personality and psychological problems
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Projective tests |
tests designed to reveal inner aspects of individual's personalities by analysis of their responses to a standard series of ambiguous stimuli
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Rorschach Inkblot test |
a projective technique in which respondents' inner thoughts and feelings are believed to be revealed by analysis of their responses to a set of unstructured inkblots
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Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) |
a projective technique in which respondents' underlying motives, concerns, and the way they see the social world are believed to be revealed through analysis of the stories they make up about ambiguous pictures of people
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trait |
a relatively stable disposition to behave in a particular and consistent way
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Big Five |
the traits of the five-factors personality model: openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism |
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psychodynamic approach |
an approach that regards personality as formed by needs, strivings, and desires largely operating outside of awareness - motives that can also produce emotional disorders
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id |
the part of the mind containing the drives present at birth; it is the source of our bodily needs, wants, desires and impulses, particularly our sexual and aggressive desires
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superego |
the mental system that reflects the internalization of cultural rules, mainly learned as parents exercise their authority |
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ego |
the component of personality, developed through contact with the external world, that enables us to deal with life's practical demands
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defensive mechanisms |
unconscious coping mechanisms that reduce anxiety generated by threats from unacceptable impulses
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psychosexual stages |
distinct early life stages through which personality is formed as children experience sexual pleasures from specific body areas and caregivers redirect or interfere with those pleasures
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fixation |
the phenomenon in which a person's pleasure -seeking drives become psychologically stuck, or arrested, at a particular psychosexual stage
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oral stage |
the first psychosexual stage, in which experience centers on the pleasures and frustrations associated with the mouth, sucking, and being fed; in the first year and a half of life
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anal stage |
the second psychosexual stage, in which experience is dominated by the pleasures and frustrations associated with eh anus, retention and expulsion of feces and urine, and toilet training; between ages of 1 and 3
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phallic stage |
the third psychosexual stage, in which experience is dominated by the pleasure, conflict, and frustration associated with the phallic-genital region as well as coping with powerful incestuous feelings of love, hate, jealousy, and conflict; between ages of 3 and 5 |
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Oedipus conflict |
a developmental experience in which a child's conflicting feelings toward the opposite-sex parent are usually resolved by identifying with the same-sex parent; between ages of 5 and 13
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latency stage |
the fourth psychosexual stage, in which the primary focus is on the further development of intellectual, creative, interpersonal, and athletic skills; between ages of 5 and 13
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genital stage |
the fifth and final psychosexual stage, the time for the coming together of the mature adult personality with a capacity to love, work, and relate to others in a mutually satisfying and reciprocal manner
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self-actualizing tendency |
the human motive towards realizing their inner potential
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existential approach |
a school of thought that regards personality as governed by an individual's ongoing choices and decisions in the context of the realities of life and death
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social-cognitive approach |
an approach that views personality in terms of how the person thinks about the situations encountered in daily life and behaves in response to them
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person-situation controversy |
the question of where behavior is caused more by personality or by situational factors |
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personal constructs |
dimensions people use in making sense of their experiences
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outcome expectancies |
a person's assumptions about the likely outcomes of a future behavior
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locus of control |
the tendency to perceive the control of regards as internal to the self or external in the environment
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self-concept |
a person's explicit knowledge of his or her own behaviors, traits, and other personal characteristics
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self-verification |
the tendency to seek evidence to confirm the self-concept
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self-esteem |
the extent to which the individual likes, values, and accepts the self
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self-serving bias |
refers to people's tendency to take credit for their successes but downplay their responsibility for their failures |
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narcissism |
a trait that reflects a grandiose view of the self combined with a tendency to seek admiration from or exploit others |
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social psychology |
the study of the causes and consequences of sociality |
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aggression |
behavior whose purpose is to harm another |
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frustration-aggression hypothesis |
suggests that animals aggress when their desires are frustrated
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cooperation |
behavior by two or more individuals that leads to mutual benefit |
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group |
a collection of epople who have something in common that distinguishes them from others
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prejudice |
a positive or negative evaluation of another person based on the person's group membership
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discrimination |
positive or negative behavior toward another person based on the person's group membership
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common knowledge effect |
the tendency for group discussions to focus on information that all members share
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group polarization |
the tendency for groups to make decisions that are more extreme than any member would have made alone
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groupthink |
the tendency for groups to reach consensus in order to facilitate interpersonal harmony
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deindividualization |
occurs when immersion in a group causes people to become less aware of their individual values
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diffusion of responsibility |
the tendency for individuals to feel diminished responsibility for their actions when they are surrounded by others who are acting the same way
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bystander intervention |
the act of helping strangers in an emergency situation
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altruism |
behavior that benefits another without benefiting oneself |
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kin selection |
the process by which evolution selects for individuals who cooperate with their realitves
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reciprocal altruism |
behavior that benefits another with the expectation that those benefits will be returned in the future
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mere exposure effect |
the tendency for liking to increase with frequency of exposure
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passionate love |
an experience involving feelings of euphoria, intimacy, and intense sexual attraction
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companionate love |
an experience involving affection, trust, and concern for a partner's well-being
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social exchange |
the hypothesis that people remain in relationships only as long as they perceive a favorable ratio of costs to benefits |
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social influence |
the control of one person's behavior by another
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norms |
customary standards for behavior that are widely shared by members of a culture
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norm of reciprocity |
the unwritten rule that people should benefit from those who have benefited them
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normative influence |
a phenomenon that occurs when another person's behavior provides information about that is appropriate
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conformity |
the tendency to do what others do simply because others do it
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obedience |
the tendency to do what authorities tell us to do
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attitude |
an enduring positive or negative evaluation of an object or event
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belief |
an enduring piece of knowledge about an object or event
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informational influence |
a phenomenon that occurs when another person;s behavior provides information about what is true
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persuasion |
a phenomenon that occurs when a person's attitudes or beliefs are influenced by a communication from another person
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systematic persuasion |
the process by which attitudes or beliefs are changed by appeals to reason
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heuristic persuasion |
the process by which attitudes or beliefs are changed by appeals to habit or emotion
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foot-in-the-door technique |
a social influence technique that involves making a small request before making a large request
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cognitive dissonane |
an unpleasant state that arises when a person recognizes the inconsistency of his or her actions, attitudes, or beliefs
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social cognition |
the process by which people come to understand others
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stereotyping |
the process by which people draw inferences about people based on their knowledge of the categories to which those people belong
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perceptual confirmation |
the tendency for people to see what they want to expect
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self-fulfilling prophecy |
the tendency for people to behave as they are expected to behave
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attribution |
an inference about the cause of a person's behavior
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correspondence bias |
the tendency to make dispositional attributions instead of situational attributions |
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actor-observer effect |
the tendency to make situational attributions for our own behaviors while making dispositional attributions for the identical behaviors of others |
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mental disorder |
a persistent disturbance of dysfunction in behavior, thoughts, or emotions that causes significant distress or impairment |
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medical model |
abnormal psychological experiences are conceptualized as illnesses that, like physical illnesses, have biological and environmental causes, defined symptoms, and possible cures
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Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) |
a classification system that describes the features used to diagnose each recognized mental disorder and indicated how the disorder can be distinguished from other, similar problems
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comorbidity |
refers to the co-occurence of two or more disorders in a single individual |
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biopsychosocial perspective |
explains mental disorders as the result of interactions among biological, psychological, and social factors |
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diathesis-stress model |
suggests that a person may be predisposed for a psychological disorder that remains unexpressed until triggered by stress |
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Research Domain Criteria Project (RDoC) |
a new initiative that aims to guide the classification and understanding of mental disorders by revealing the basic processes that give rise to them
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anxiety disorder |
the class of mental disorders in which anxiety is the prominent features
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phobic disorders |
disorders characterized by marked, persistent, and excessive fear and avoidance of specific objects, activities, or situations
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specific phobia |
a disorder that involves an irrational fear of a particular object or situation that markedly interferes with and individual's ability to function
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social phobia |
a disorder that involves an irrational fear of being publicly humiliated or embarrassed
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preparedness theory |
the idea that people are instinctively predisposed towards certain fears
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panic disorder |
a disorder characterized by the sudden occurrence of multiple psychological and physiological symptoms that contribute to a feeling of stark terror
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agoraphobia |
a specific phobia involving a fear of public places
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generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) |
a disorder characterized by chronic excessive worry accompanied by three or more of the following symptoms: restlessness, fatigue, concentration problems, irritability, muscle tension, and sleep disturbance
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obsessive-compulsive disorder |
disorder in which repetitive, intrusive thoughts and ritualistic behaviors designed to fend off those thoughts interfere significantly with an individual's functioning
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posttraumatic-stress disorder |
a disorder characterized by chronic physiological arousal, recurrent unwanted thoughts or images of the trauma, and avoidance of things that call the traumatic event to mind
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mood disorders |
mental disorders that have mood disturbance as their predominant feature; take two major forms of depression and bipolar disorder
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major depressive disoder |
a disorder characterized by a severely depressed mood and/or inability to experience pleasure that lasts 2 or more weeks and is accompanied by feelings of worthlessness, lethargy, and sleep and appetite disturbance
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seasonal affective disorder |
depressive episodes in a seasonal pattern
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helplessness theory |
individuals who are prone to depression automatically attribute negative experiences to causes that are internal, stable, and global
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bipolar disorder |
a condition characterized by cycles of abnormal, persistent high mood (mania) and low mood (depression) |
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expressed emotion |
a measure of how much hostility, criticism, and emotional overinvolvement are used when speaking about a family member with a mental disorder |
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schizophrenia |
a psychotic (break from reality) disorder characterized by the profound disruption of basic psychological processes; a distorted perception of reality; altered or blunted emotion; and disturbances in though, motivation, and behavior |
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positive symptoms |
thoughts and behaviors not seen in those without the disorder
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hallucinations |
false perceptual experiences that have a compelling sense of being real despite the absence of external stimulation
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delusions |
patently false beliefs, often bizarre and grandiose, that are maintained in spite of their irrationality |
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disorganized speech |
a severe disruption of verbal communication in which ideas shift rapidly and incoherently among unrelated topics
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grossly disorganized behavior |
behavior that is inappropriate for the situation or ineffective in attaining goals, often with specific motor disturbances
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negative symptoms |
deficits or disruptions to normal emotions or behavior
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cognitive symptoms |
deficits in cognitive abilities, specifically in executive functioning, attention, and working memory |
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dopamine hypothesis |
the idea that schizophrenia involves and excess of dopamine activity |
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autism spectrum disorder (ASD) |
a condition beginning in early childhood in which a person shows persistent communication deficits as well as restricted and repetitive patterns of behaviors, interests, or activities |
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attention-deficite/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) |
a persistent pattern of severe problems with inattention and/or hyperactivity or impulsiveness that cause significant impairments in functioning |
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conduct disorder |
a condition in which a child or adolescent engages in a pattern of deviant behavior involving aggression against people or animals, destruction of property, deceitfulness or theft, or serious rule violation |
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personality disorders |
enduring patterns of thinking, feeling, or relating to others or controlling impulses that deviate from cultural expectations and cause distress or impaired functionality
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antisocial personality disorder (APD) |
a pervasive pattern of disregard for and violation of the rights of others that begins in childhood or early adolescence and continues into adulthood |
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suicide |
intentional self-inflicted death
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suicide attempt |
a self-inflicted injury from which a person had at least some intention of dying
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nonsuicidal self-injury |
the direct, deliberate destruction of body tissue in the absence of any intent to die
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catatonic behavior |
a marked decrease in all movement or an increase in muscular rigidity |
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psychotherapy |
an interaction between a socially sanctioned clinician and someone suffering from a psychological problem, with the goal of providing support or relief from the problem |
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eclectic therapy |
a form of psychotherapy that involves drawing on techniques from different forms of therapy, depending on the client and the problem
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psychodynamic psychotherapies |
therapies that explore childhood events and encourage individuals to use the understanding that results to develop insight into their psychological problems |
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resistance |
a reluctance to cooperate with treatment for fear of confronting unpleasant unconscious material
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transference |
an event that occurs when the analyst begins to assume a major significance in the client's life and the client reacts to the analyst based in unconscious childhood fantasies
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interpersonal pyschotherapy |
a form of psychotherapy that focuses on helping clients improve current relationships
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person-centered therapy |
assumes that all individuals have a tendency toward growth and that this growth can be facilitated by acceptance and genuine reactions from therapists. Developed by Psychologist Carl Rogers
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gestalt therapy |
therapy that has the goal of helping the client become become aware of his or her thoughts, behaviors, experiences, and feelings and to "own: or take responsibility for them. Developed by Frederick Perls. |
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behavior therapy |
a type of therapy that assumes that disordered behavior is learned and that symptom relief is achieved through changing overt maladaptive behaviors into more constructive behaviors. Done through elimination unwanted behaviors, promoting desired behaviors, and reducing unwanted emotional responses
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token economy |
a form of behavior therapy in which clients are given "tokens" for desired behaviors, which they can later trade for rewards |
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exposure therapy |
an approach to treatment that involves confronting and emotion-arousing stimulus directly and repeatedly, ultimately leading to a decrease in the emotional response |
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cognitive therapy |
focuses on helping a client identify and correct any distorted thinking about self, others, or the world
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cognitive restructuring |
a therapeutic approach that teaches clients to question the automatic beliefs, assumptions, and predictions that often lead to negative emotions and to replace negative thinking with more realistic and positive beliefs
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mindfulness meditation |
teaches an individual to be fully present in each moment; to be aware of his or her thoughts, feelings, and sensations; and to detect symptoms before they become a problem
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cognitive behavioral therapy |
a blend of cognitive and behavioral therapeutic strategies
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group therapy |
a technique in which multiple participants (who often do not know each other at the outset) work on their individual problems in a group atmosphere |
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antipsychotic drugs |
medications that are used to treat schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders. include chlorpromazine, thioridazine, and haloperidol
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psychopharmacology |
the study of drug effects on psychological states and symptoms |
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antianxiety medication |
drugs that help reduce a person's experience of fear or anxiety. Include neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), diazepam, Lorazepam, alprazolam
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antidepressants |
a class of drugs that help lift people' moods. Include monoamine oxidase inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressants, and most commonly serotonin re-uptake inhibitors
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electroconvulsive therapy |
a treatment that involves inducing a brief siezure by delivering an electrical shock to the brain |
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transcranial magnetic stimulation |
a treatment that involves placing a powerful pulsed magnet over a person's scalp, which alters neuronal activity in the brain
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phototherapy |
a therapy that involves repeated exposure to bright light
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psychosurgery |
the surgical destruction of specific brain areas
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placebo |
an inert substance or procedure that has been applied with the expectation that a healing response will be reproduced
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iatrogenic illness |
a disorder or symptom that occurs as a result of a medical or psychotherapeutic treatment |
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stressors |
specific events or chronic pressures that place demands on a person or threaten the person's wellbeing |
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stress |
the physician and psychological response to internal or external stressors
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health psychology |
the subfield of psychology concerned with the ways psychological factors influence the causes and treatment of physical illness and the maintenance of health
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chronic stressor |
sources of stress that occur continuously or repeatedly
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learned helpessness |
the belief that one has no control over one's situation based on past experience
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fight-or-flight response |
an emotional and physiological reaction to an emergency that increases readiness for action
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general adaptation syndrome |
three-stage physiological stress response that appears regardless of the stressor that is encountered
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telomeres |
caps at the ands of each chromosome that protect the ends of chromosomes and prevent them from sticking to eachother |
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immune system |
a complex response system that protects the body from bacteria, viruses, and other foreign substances
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Type A behavior patterns |
tendency towards easily aroused hostility, impatience, a sense of time urgency, and competitive achievement strivings
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burnout |
a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion created by long-term involvement in an emotionally demanding situation and accompanied by lowering performance and motivation
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repressive coping |
avoiding situations or thoughts that are reminders of a stressor and maintaining an artificially positive viewpoint |
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rational coping |
facing the stressor and working to overcome it
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reframing |
finding a new or creative way to think about a stressor that reduces its threat
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meditation |
the practice of intentional contemplation
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relaxation therapy |
a technique for reducing tension by consciously relaxing muscles of the body
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relaxation response |
a condition of reduced muscle tension, cortical activity, heat rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure
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biofeedback |
the use of an external monitoring device to obtain information about a bodily function and possibly gain control over that function
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social support |
aid gained through interacting with others
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psychosomatic illness |
an interaction between mind and body that can produce illness
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somatic symptom disorders |
the set of psychological disorders in which a person with at least one bodily symptom displays significant health-related anxiety, expresses disproportionate concerns about symptoms, and devotes excessive time and energy to symptoms or health concerns
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sick role |
a socially recognized set of rights and obligations linked with illness
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self-regulation |
the exercise of voluntary control over the self to bring the self into line with preferred standards
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alarm phase |
phase of stress when the body rapidly mobilizes its resources to respond to a threat |
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resistance phase |
phase of stress response when the body tries to adapt to the stressor by shutting down unnecessary processes such as digestion, growth, and the sex drive |
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exhaustion phase |
phase of stress response when the body's resistance collapses, creating damage that can make the body more susceptible to infection, aging, organ damage, or death |