IB Psychology 2. Content Key Definitions

The process of psychological and cultural change that follows sustained contact between people from different cultural backgrounds. Individuals adapt to the norms, values, and behaviours of the host culture while negotiating which parts of their heritage culture to retain.

A brief electrical signal that travels down the axon of a neuron when it is activated.

Research comparing adopted children to their biological and adoptive relatives to separate genetic and environmental influences on behaviour.

The tendency to rely too heavily on the first piece of information encountered (the "anchor") when making decisions, even if it is irrelevant or arbitrary.

Research that uses non-human animals as experimental subjects to investigate biological, behavioural, or psychological processes.

A systematic error that skews results in a particular direction.

Explaining behaviour by breaking it down into smaller biological components such as genes, neurotransmitters, or brain structures.

Classical conditioning is a learning process where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with an unconditioned stimulus to produce a conditioned response.

This concept was first demonstrated by Ivan Pavlov in his famous experiments with dogs.

The idea that working memory has limited capacity, and learning is more effective when unnecessary demands are reduced.

A form of social influence where individuals change their behavior in response to a direct request from another person or group.

The probability that if one relative shows a trait, another relative will show it too.

A change in behaviour, attitude, or belief that results from real or imagined pressure from a group, even when no specific request or direct order has been made.

Measurable scales, originally developed by Geert Hofstede, along which whole societies vary in values, beliefs, and behaviour, allowing systematic comparison across cultures.

Data analysis is the process of examining, organising, and interpreting research data to identify patterns and draw conclusions about the question being studied.

A model proposing that disorders develop when an underlying biological vulnerability is triggered by environmental stress.

The process by which individuals learn and adopt the cultural norms, values, and behaviors of their society.

A research approach that compares cultures using standardised categories defined from outside.

The proportion of variation in a trait within a population that can be attributed to genetic differences.

An approach that studies psychological phenomena from inside a specific cultural community, using concepts built within that culture.

The principle that specific psychological functions are carried out by specific regions of the brain.

A long-lasting strengthening of the connection between two neurons that fire together repeatedly.

The brain's ability to change its structure and function in response to experience.

Operant conditioning is a type of learning where behaviour is shaped by its consequences.

The tools psychologists use to investigate questions and test hypotheses.