Visualizing Psychology » (2nd Edition)

Karen Huffman is a professor of psychology at Palomar College in San Marcos, California, where she teaches full-time and serves as the Psychology Student Advisor and Co-Coordinator for Psychology Faculty. Karen received the National Teaching Award for Excellence in Community/Junior College Teaching given by Division Two of the American Psychological Association (APA). She also was recognized with the first Distinguished Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching from Palomar College, and an Outstanding Teaching award from the University of Texas at Austin. Karen's special research and presentation focus is in active learning and critical thinking, and she has presented numerous online web seminars and workshops throughout the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. Karen is the author of Wiley introductory psychology texts including, Psychology in Action and Living Psychology.

Siri J. Carpenter is a PhD in Psychology from Yale University. Her work has appeared in numerous publications, including Science, ScienceNOW, Reuters Health, The APA Monitor (the monthly magazine of the American Psychological Association), the APS Observer (magazine of the American Psychological society, World Book Science Year, and others.

This text provides a new, visually-oriented look into the field of psychology. Rather than offering an encyclopedic printed text, Visualizing Psychology presents a straightforward, logically intuitive approach to the subject. With the help of illustrations and graphics, the book brings complex concepts to life. Huffman also uses a user-friendly approach to engage the reader.

Introduction and Research Methods     2
Introducing Psychology     4
What Is Psychology?     4
Origins of Psychology     6
A Brief History: Psychology's Intellectual Roots     6
What a Scientist Sees: The Biopsychosocial Model     10
Women and Minorities in Psychology     11
The Science of Psychology     12
The Scientific Method: A Way of Discovering     12
Ethical Guidelines: Protecting the Rights of Others     12
Research Methods     15
Experimental Research: A Search for Cause and Effect     16
Descriptive Research: Naturalistic Observation, Surveys, and Case Studies     18
Correlational Research: Looking for Relationships     20
Biological Research: Tools for Exploring the Brain and Nervous System     20
Getting the Most from Your Study of Psychology     24
Familiarization     24
Active Reading     24
Visual Learning     24
With Your Own Eyes: Improving Your Grade     26
Time Management     26
Distributed Study     27
Overlearning     27
Neuroscience and Biological Foundations     32
Our Genetic Inheritance     34
Behavioral Genetics: Is It Nature or Nurture?     34
Evolutionary Psychology: Darwin Explains Behavior and Mental Processes     36
Neural Bases of Behavior     37
How Do Neurons Communicate?     38
What a Scientist Sees: How Poisons and Drugs Affect Our Brain     41
Hormones: A Global Communication System     42
Nervous System Organization     44
Central Nervous System (CNS): The Brain and Spinal Cord     44
With Your Own Eyes: Infant Reflexes     47
Peripheral Nervous System (PNS): Connecting the CNS to the Rest of the Body     47
What a Scientist Sees: Sexual Arousal     49
A Tour Through the Brain     50
Lower-Level Brain Structures: The Hindbrain, Midbrain, and Parts of the Forebrain     50
The Cerebral Cortex: The Center of "Higher" Processing     53
Two Brains in One? A House Divided     55
Stress and Health Psychology     62
Understanding Stress     64
Sources of Stress     64
How Stress Affects the Body     66
Stress and Illness     69
Cancer: A Variety of Causes-Even Stress     69
Cardiovascular Disorders: The Leading Cause of Death in the United States     69
What a Scientist Sees: Type A Personality and Hostility     71
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): A Disease of Modern Times?     72
Gastric Ulcers: Are They Caused by Stress?     72
Health Psychology in Action     74
Tobacco: Hazardous to Your Health     74
Alcohol: A Personal and Social Health Problem     76
With Your Own Eyes: Do You Have an Alcohol Problem?     77
Chronic Pain: An Ongoing Threat to Health     77
Health and Stress Management     78
Coping with Stress     78
Resources for Healthy Living: From Good Health to Money     80
Sensation and Perception     86
Understanding Sensation     88
Processing: Detection and Conversion     88
Adaptation: Weakening the Response     89
How We See and Hear     91
Waves of Light and Sound     91
Vision: The Eyes Have It     92
Hearing: A Sound Sensation     92
Our Other Senses     96
Smell and Taste: Sensing Chemicals     96
The Body Senses: More than Just Touch     97
Understanding Perception     99
Selection: Extracting Important Messages     99
With Your Own Eyes: Illusions      99
Organization: Form, Constancy, Depth, and Color     101
What a Scientist Sees: Perceptual Constancies     104
With Your Own Eyes: Color Aftereffects     106
Interpretation: Explaining Our Perceptions     106
States of Consciousness     114
Consciousness, Sleep, and Dreaming     116
With Your Own Eyes: Are You Sleep Deprived?     119
Stages of Sleep: How Scientists Study Sleep     119
Sleep Disorders: When Sleep Becomes a Problem     123
Psychoactive Drugs     126
Psychoactive Drugs: Four Categories     129
Altering Consciousness Through Meditation and Hypnosis     133
Meditation: A Healthy "High"     133
What a Scientist Sees: Meditation and the Brain     134
Hypnosis: Uses and Myths     135
Learning     142
Classical Conditioning     144
The Beginnings of Classical Conditioning     144
Fine-Tuning Classical Conditioning     146
Operant Conditioning     149
The Beginnings of Operant Conditioning     149
Reinforcement: Strengthening a Response     150
What a Scientist Sees: Partial Reinforcement Keeps 'em Coming Back     152
Punishment: Weakening a Response     153
Cognitive-Social Learning     156
Insight and Latent Learning: Where Are the Reinforcers?     156
Observational Learning: What We See Is What We Do     158
The Biology of Learning     160
Neuroscience and Learning: The Adaptive Brain     160
Evolution and Learning: Biological Preparedness and Instinctive Drift     161
Conditioning and Learning in Everyday Life     163
Classical Conditioning: From Prejudice to Phobias     163
With Your Own Eyes: Classical Conditioning as a Marketing Tool     164
Operant Conditioning: Prejudice, Biofeedback, and Superstition     164
Cognitive-Social Learning: We See, We Do?     166
Memory     172
The Nature of Memory     174
Four Models of Memory: An Overview     174
Sensory Memory     176
Short-Term Memory     177
What a Scientist Sees: Chunking in Chess     177
Long-Term Memory     179
Improving Long-Term Memory: Organization, Rehearsal, Retrieval     180
Biological Bases of Memory     182
Neuronal and Synaptic Changes in Memory     182
Hormonal Changes and Memory     183
Where Are Memories Located?      183
Biological Causes of Memory Loss: Injury and Disease     184
Forgetting     186
Theories of Forgetting     186
Factors Involved in Forgetting     188
Memory Distortions     189
With Your Own Eyes: A Memory Test     190
Memory and Eyewitness Testimony     191
Repressed Memories     192
With Your Own Eyes: Tips for Memory Improvement     193
Thinking, Language, and Intelligence     198
Thinking     200
The Thinking Brain: Making Connections     200
Cognitive Building Blocks     200
Solving Problems     202
Barriers to Problem Solving     202
Creativity: Finding Unique Solutions     204
With Your Own Eyes: Are You Creative?     204
Language     206
What Is Language?     206
Language and Thought: A Complex Interaction     206
Language Development: From Crying to Talking     207
Can Humans Talk to Nonhuman Animals?     209
Intelligence     211
Do We Have One or Many Intelligences?     211
Measuring Intelligence?     213
The Intelligence Controversy     216
Extremes in Intelligence: Mental Retardation and Giftedness     216
The Brain's Influence on Intelligence     217
Genetic and Environmental Influences on Intelligence     218
What a Scientist Sees: Family Studies of Intelligence     218
Ethnicity and Intelligence: Are IQ Tests Culturally Biased?     219
Life Span Development I     226
Studying Development     228
Theoretical Issues: Ongoing Debates     228
Research Methods: Two Basic Approaches     230
Physical Development     232
Prenatal and Early Childhood: A Time of Rapid Change     232
What a Scientist Sees: How an Infant Perceives the World     237
Adolescence and Adulthood: A Time of Both Dramatic and Gradual Change     238
Cognitive Development     242
Stages of Cognitive Development: Birth to Adolescence     243
With Your Own Eyes: Putting Piaget to the Test     246
Assessing Piaget's Theory: Criticisms and Contributions     248
Life Span Development II     254
Social, Moral, and Personality Development     256
Social Development: The Importance of Attachment     256
What a Scientist Sees: Attachment: The Power of Touch     257
Moral Development: Kohlberg's Stages      260
Personality Development: Erikson's Psychosocial Theory     264
How Sex, Gender, and Culture Affect Development     266
Sex and Gender Influences on Development     266
Cultural Influences on Development     270
Developmental Challenges Through Adulthood     272
Committed Relationships: Overcoming Unrealistic Expectations     272
With Your Own Eyes: Are Your Relationship Expectations Realistic?     273
Work and Retirement: How They Affect Us?     274
Death and Dying: Our Final Developmental Crisis     276
Motivation and Emotion     282
Theories and Concepts of Motivation     284
Biological Theories: Looking for Internal "Whys" of Behavior     284
With Your Own Eyes: Sensation Seeking     286
Psychosocial Theories: Incentives and Cognitions     287
Biopsychosocial Theories: Interactionism Once Again     287
Motivation and Behavior     289
Hunger and Eating: Multiple Factors     289
Achievement: The Need for Success     293
Sexuality: The World's Most Powerful Motive?     294
Intrinsic versus Extrinsic Motivation: Is One Better than the Other?     296
Theories and Concepts of Emotion     298
Three Components of Emotion     298
Four Major Theories of Emotion     300
Culture, Evolution, and Emotion     304
What a Scientist Sees: Polygraph testing     306
Personality     312
Trait Theories     314
Early Trait Theorists     314
The Five-Factor Model: Five Basic Personality Traits     314
With Your Own Eyes: Love and the "Big Five"     316
Evaluating Trait Theories     317
Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic Theories     318
Freud's Psychoanalytic Theory: The Power of the Unconscious     318
Neo-Freudian/Psychodynamic Theories: Revising Freud's Ideas     322
Evaluating Psychoanalytic Theories: Criticisms and Enduring Influence     324
Humanistic Theories     325
Roger's Theory: The Importance of the Self     325
What a Scientist Sees: Congruence, Mental Health, and Self-Esteem     325
Maslow's Theory: The Search for Self-Actualization     326
Evaluating Humanistic Theories: Three Major Criticisms     327
Social-Cognitive Theories     328
Bandura's and Rotter's Approaches: Social Learning Plus Cognitive Processes     328
Evaluating Social-Cognitive Theory: The Pluses and Minuses     329
Biological Theories     330
Three Major Contributors to Personality: The Brain, Neurochemistry, and Genetics     330
The Biopsychosocial Model: Pulling the Perspectives Together     331
Personality Assessment     332
Interviews and Observation     332
Objective Tests     332
Projective Tests     334
Are Personality Measurements Accurate?     334
Psychological Disorders     340
Studying Psychological Disorders     342
Identifying Abnormal Behavior: Four Basic Standards     342
Explaining Abnormality: From Superstition to Science     342
Classifying Abnormal Behavior: The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV-TR     344
What a Scientist Sees: Seven Psychological Perspectives on Abnormal Behavior     345
Anxiety Disorders     348
Four Major Anxiety Disorders: The Problem of Fear     348
Causes of Anxiety Disorders     350
Mood Disorders     352
Understanding Mood Disorders Major Depressive Disorder and Bipolar Disorder     352
Causes of Mood Disorders: Biological versus Psychosocial Factors     353
Schizophrenia     354
Symptoms of Schizophrenia: Five Areas of Disturbance     354
Types of Schizophrenia: Recent Methods of Classification     356
Causes of Schizophrenia: Nature and Nurture Theories     356
Other Disorders     359
Substance-Related Disorders     359
Dissociative Disorders: When the Personality Splits Apart     360
Personality Disorders: Antisocial and Borderline     360
How Gender and Culture Affect Abnormal Behavior     362
Gender and Depression: Why Are Women More Depressed?     363
Culture and Schizophrenia: Differences Around the World     364
Avoiding Ethnocentrism     364
Therapy     372
Insight Therapies     374
Psychoanalysis/Psychodynamic Therapies: Unlocking the Secrets of the Unconscious     374
Cognitive Therapies: A Focus on Faulty Thoughts and Beliefs     376
Humanistic Therapies: Blocked Personal Growth     378
With Your Own Eyes: Client-Centered Therapy in Action     380
Group, Family, and Marital Therapies: Healing Interpersonal Relationships     381
Behavior Therapies     383
Classical Conditioning Techniques     383
Operant Conditioning Techniques     384
Observational Learning Techniques     384
Evaluating Behavior Therapies     386
Biomedical Therapies      386
Psychopharmacology: Treating Psychological Disorders with Drugs     387
Electroconvulsive Therapy and Psychosurgery     388
What a Scientist Sees: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)     389
Evaluating Biomedical Therapies     389
Therapy Essentials     391
Therapy Goals and Effectiveness     391
Cultural Issues in Therapy     392
Women and Therapy     393
Institutionalization     394
Social Psychology     400
Our Thoughts about Others     402
Attribution: Explaining Behavior     402
Attitudes: Learned Predispositions toward Others     403
Our Feelings about Others     405
Prejudice and Discrimination     405
Interpersonal Attraction     408
What a Scientist Sees: Love Over the Life Span     410
Our Actions toward Others     411
Social Influence: Conformity and Obedience     411
What a Scientist Sees: What Influences Obedience?     414
Group Processes     416
Aggression     419
Altruism: Helping Others     420
Applying Social Psychology to Social Problems     422
Reducing Prejudice and Discrimination      422
Overcoming Destructive Obedience: When Is It Okay to Say No?     423
Statistics and Psychology
Answers to Self-Tests
Glossary
References
Credits
Name Index
Subject Index