Samenvattingen en studiehulp bij Psychology van Gray en Bjorklund

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What is the background of the study of psychology? - BulletPoints 1

• The three fundamental ideas of psychology come down to: Behavior and mental experiences have physical causes that can be studied scientifically; the way people behave, feel and think is shaped over time by their experiences in their environment; the body produces behavior and mental experiences, and is a product of evolution through natural selection.
• According to Descartes, the difference between humans and animals was the mind. He defined thoughts as conscious considerations and judgments. He suggested that the soul influences the body in a specific place: a small organ (pineal body) located between the two hemispheres of the brain. Descartes argued that thread-like structures bring sensory information through physical pathways to the brain (we now know as nerves or neurons). The soul receives the information and processes this information. On the basis of thoughts, the soul will then let movements take place and carry out its will by triggering physical actions in nerves that in turn act on the muscles. This opened the door to psychology as a science.
• Materialism was developed by Thomas Hobbes and included that the soul is a meaningless concept that consists of nothing but matter and energy. Hobbes argued that conscious thoughts are a product of the brain and therefore subject to natural laws. This philosophy does not impose any limitations on what people want to study in psychology.
• Darwin’s idea is that living things evolve gradually over generations through the process of natural selection. The individuals that are best adapted to their environments, are more likely to survive and reproduce than those less well-adapted to their environments.  Random changes in genetics happen within each generation. These variations are passed on from generation to generation, especially

What is the background of the study of psychology? - BulletPoints 1

• The three fundamental ideas of psychology come down to: Behavior and mental experiences have physical causes that can be studied scientifically; the way people behave, feel and think is shaped over time by their experiences in their environment; the body produces behavior and mental experiences, and is a product of evolution through natural selection.
• According to Descartes, the difference between humans and animals was the mind. He defined thoughts as conscious considerations and judgments. He suggested that the soul influences the body in a specific place: a small organ (pineal body) located between the two hemispheres of the brain. Descartes argued that thread-like structures bring sensory information through physical pathways to the brain (we now know as nerves or neurons). The soul receives the information and processes this information. On the basis of thoughts, the soul will then let movements take place and carry out its will by triggering physical actions in nerves that in turn act on the muscles. This opened the door to psychology as a science.
• Materialism was developed by Thomas Hobbes and included that the soul is a meaningless concept that consists of nothing but matter and energy. Hobbes argued that conscious thoughts are a product of the brain and therefore subject to natural laws. This philosophy does not impose any limitations on what people want to study in psychology.
• Darwin’s idea is that living things evolve gradually over generations through the process of natural selection. The individuals that are best adapted to their environments, are more likely to survive and reproduce than those less well-adapted to their environments.  Random changes in genetics happen within each generation. These variations are passed on from generation to generation, especially when they increase chances of survival and reproduction. Because of this evolution, innate characteristics of species can be studied for the function they served in survival or reproduction. Empiricists philosophers study the relationships between these innate characteristics and the environment.

What different methods are there in the field of psychology? - BulletPoints 2

• An experiment is the most direct and conclusive approach to testing a hypothesis about a cause-effect relationship between two variables. A variable is anything that can change or take on multiple values. The independent variable is the variable that is supposed to affect another variable. The dependent variable is the variable that is believed to be affected by the independent variable. In a within-subject experiment, each participant (subject) is tested in every condition of the independent variable. The participant is tested repeatedly. In between-groups experiments, there is a separate group of participants for each condition of the independent variable. One group usually is exposed to the manipulation, and the other group is not. This can be done with a minimum of two groups, but can also be done with more groups.

In and out of schizophrenia: activation and deactivation of the negative and positive schemas – Article 1

Schizophrenia has positive and negative symptoms that are both analysed using a traditional cognitive model. The model exists of the cognitive triad: schemas about self, world and the future. When interventions are made, they should target the meaning behind both positive and negative symptoms. However, in the current system, the content for both symptoms is similar. The view of the self is weak, vulnerable, ineffective and worthless. The view of others as controlling, dangerous and rejecting.

What are cognitive schemas?

Cognitive schemas are responsible for cognitive organization. The content originates from the cognitive triad. If schemas interfere with accommodation in life situations, they are called dysfunctional. If schemas are extreme of fantastic, they are called delusional.

How do cognitive schemas affect symptoms of schizophrenia?

Schizophrenia can develop due to a genetic predisposition in combination with the development of negative thoughts and stressful life-events. These negative thoughts become embedded into cognitive schemas and a person can develop negative symptoms, such as withdrawal, violence and isolation. On the other hand, positive symptoms can come from dysfunctional symptoms and get transformed into delusions. These symptoms start with an overstimulation of the HPA axis which leads to an excessive output of cortisol. That leads to an overflow of dopamine and the development of hallucinations.

Motivation is one of the main factors in developing negative symptoms. There are two ways that motivation affects the symptoms, in belief and expression.

1. Factor 1 of negative symptoms: amotivation factor. This symptom comes from a dysfunctional belief about the self. The self-image is focused on weakness, worthless and helplessness. To avoid pain and frustration, symptoms like avoidance and distancing arise. It is possible to get above these thoughts, for example when a positive expectation overrides the negative attitude.
2. Factor 2 of negative symptoms: expressive factor.  These symptoms evolve because of inhibition of behavioural responses. It includes inhibition of speech or general motor activity.

What is the empirical basis for the cognitive model of negative symptoms?

Evaluation of the self has an influence on negative symptoms. Positive evaluations lead to less negative symptoms. On the other hand, dysfunctional beliefs correlate to the severity of negative symptoms. It was found that a lower self-efficacy leads to more severe negative symptoms. The three components of the cognitive triad (self, others and future) express themselves in specific situations in the context of task orientation, pleasure, interpersonal relations and energy.

Negative symptoms are related to beliefs about the future, negative thoughts about task performance or future success corelate with severe negative symptoms. Individuals that have the deficit syndrome (more severe negative symptoms) have more defeatist beliefs then those that do not experience severe negative symptoms. Furthermore, a decrease in the expectation of pleasure can contribute to more negative symptoms. Asocial beliefs also play a role and correlate with asociality in schizophrenia.

How are positive symptoms developed?

Development of positive systems is labelled the transformational or