Latest Terms Added
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Kinesthesis
Kinesthesis involves the perception of bodily movement and position through muscular, tedious, and articular sensory feedback. Kinesthesis, differently from hearing or sight, relies on inner awareness rather than external stimuli. Kinesthesis awareness enables the person to, for example, touch their nose with two hands while keeping their eyes closed, as well as walk while not…
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Worry
Worry constitutes a process of thought and emotion, characterized by incessant and anxious streams of thought regarding outcomes which are potentially unfavorable. In psychological practice, worry is classified alongside anxiety disorders and is understood as an attempt of the mind to predict and manage future scenarios. While worry in moderation may stimulate the desire to…
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Unconditioned-stimulus
An unconditioned stimulus is a stimulus that does not require any prior learning or conditioning to trigger a response. It was first described by Ivan Pavlov in the context of classical conditioning, a learning process. Pavlov, for instance, in his experiments with dogs, considered food to be an unconditioned stimulus as it was able to…
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Assertiveness
Being assertive means expressing and receiving thoughts, feelings, and needs, all in a balanced way without aggression or indifference. It also relates to a personal point and a point of view. As in the example of one friend telling another in a thoughtful way after a joke how the joke made them feel uncomfortable. It…
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Incentive
In psychology, an incentive is any stimulus or reward that drives action, often by making some behaviors preferable. Incentives may be physical, like points or money, as well as abstract or symbolic, like praise, recognition, or satisfaction. Consider, for instance, the example of a student who studies hard for the incentive of receiving good grades…
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Self-perception
Self-perception involves the formation of ideas about the self through the observation of behaviors, thoughts, and feelings. Daryl Bem, a social psychologist, suggested in his self-perception theory, that when individuals have weak internal cues, they often reveal their attitudes and feelings through their actions. For instance, a person might conclude that they are generous after…
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Acculturation
Acculturation encompasses the psychological and cultural changes individuals undergo as they come into contact with new cultures. For instance, an immigrant integrating into a new society may learn the host country’s language and customs, but may leave some elements of culture and heritage. Psychologist John W. Berry classifies four different forms of acculturation strategies: assimilation,…
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Derangement
In the field of psychology, the term derangement implies a fracture in the workings of the mind, particularly in relation to disordering one’s thoughts and losing touch with reality. In the past, the term derangement was used to describe an entire mental disorder, but nowadays it has been replaced in clinical terminology due to the…
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Therapeutic
Therapeutic refers to efforts to enhance one’s mental health and wellness. In psychology, therapeutic approaches alleviate psychological distress and help individuals function at a higher level and attain personal objectives. For instance, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) teaches individuals to modify and reframe detrimental patterns of thinking, while mindfulness therapy helps focus on awareness and acceptance of…
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Mood
Moods are prolonged emotional conditions that contribute to emotional states. Particularly, for a given period, a person can have a determinate condition that alters a person’s reactions to stimuli around the individual. Furthermore, unlike joy and anger, moods are sentiments that are detached from a particular event. A person can be pleasantly cheerful during the…
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Deprivation
Deprivation in psychology involves the absence or loss of something essential for the individual’s well-being, such as food, sleep, stimulation, or affection. It can be manifested in many forms, such as physical (nutritional deficiency), emotional (lack of parental warmth), or social (isolation). There is research indicating that the lasting effects of deprivation, particularly in childhood,…
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Angst
In psychology, the term angst refers to a profound emotional condition that encompasses worry, anxiety, and existential dread. Most aligned with the roots of existential philosophy, and particularly with Kierkegaard and Heidegger, angst is the condition of having an uneasy awareness of the myriad of possibilities of life, and the uncomfortable relinquishment of freedom in…
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Concordance
In psychology and genetics, concordance is the degree of similarity in the presence of a trait, condition, or behavior among individuals, most notably twins. For instance, if both identical twins develop depression, researchers would state that “there is concordance for that disorder”. In twin and adoption studies, concordance rates are pivotal in gauging the relative…
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Empathy
The human capacity for empathy involves the ability to both understand and share the feelings of others. It encompasses cognitive and affective forms of empathy. For instance, witnessing a friend in distress may lead someone to recognize the sadness and also evoke some pity. Empathy is linked with positive relational outcomes which include social connection,…
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Stressor
A stressor is any event, condition, or stimulus that physically or psychologically triggers stress. These can be short-term or acute, like an important exam, or long-term and chronic, like persistent problems with one’s finances. They can be classified into three categories described as environmental, physical, or social; environmental includes factors like noise and crowding, psychological…
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Population
In psychology, population describes the collective of individuals that a researcher aims to target. This may vary from all adolescents to as narrow as generalized anxiety disorder patients. Since it is often unreasonable to study a complete population, researchers tend to rely on representative samples. For instance, a study concerning stress among college students may…
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Critical-thinking
As it pertains to psychology, critical thinking describes the capability to breakdown, weight, merge one or more actions rationally and reasonably, and arrive at informed conclusions. It requires more than mere fact-memorization, for it necessitates the recognition of biases, the scrutiny of premises, and the forthcoming consideration of alternative outcomes associated with more than one…
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Attention-span
Attention span refers to how long a person is able to focus on a task or something before losing focus. Attention is a cognitive skill and plays an integral role in learning, work, and functioning on a day to day basis. A student with a strong attention span, for example, will be able to read…
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Awareness
Within the field of psychology, awareness refers to the conscious recognition and comprehension of psychological and physiological internal states, as well as external stimuli and ongoing experiences. Awareness is often defined as a kind of attention, and as such, is attentiveness to consciousness, internal sensations, and feelings and thoughts in real time. For example, awareness…
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Memory
Memory refers to the encoding, storage and retrieval of information of which an individual possesses. Retaining and recalling information is the basis of learning, identity, and the ability to self-govern, which is the apex of decision making. Memory is usually considered as consisting of short, long and working reminiscences which perform their own set of…