PSYC 1000 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Gestalt Psychology, Natural Selection, Behaviorism

• School: Memorial University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 1000
• Professor: Dr.Susan Walling

Document Summary

Psychology: the study of mental processes and behaviours. Mental processes: the activities of our brain when engaged in thinking, observing the environment, and using language. Behaviour: observable activities of an organism, often in response to environment cues. Culture: a set of shared beliefs and practices that are transmitted across generations. No key terms, but found these important terms throughout reading the textbook. Myths: stories of forgotten origins that seek to explain or rationalize the fundamental mysteries of like and are universal, common to all cultures. Philosophy: a study of knowledge, reality, and the nature and meaning of life. Natural selection: proposes that chance variations are passed down from parent to offspring, and that some of these variations are adaptive. Adaptive: better suited to a(cid:374) orga(cid:374)is(cid:373) s e(cid:374)viro(cid:374)(cid:373)e(cid:374)t. these adaptive variatio(cid:374)s help the organism to survive and reproduce in their specific environment. On the other hand, less adaptive variations will reduce the ability for the organism to survive.