©THEBRIGHT EXAM STUDY SOLUTIONS 8/22/2024 12:54 PM
MCAT Psychology and Sociology
Review
Absolute poverty - answer✔✔inability to meet a bare minimum of basic necessities, including
clean drinking water, food, safe housing, and reliable access to healthcare
acetylcholine (ACh) - answer✔✔the neurotransmitter used at the neuromuscular junction,
throughout the PNS and by the preganglionic neurons of the SNS
acetylcholinesterase - answer✔✔the enzyme that breaks down ACh in the synaptic cleft
achieved status - answer✔✔statuses that are considered to be due largely to an individual's
efforts
acquisition - answer✔✔in classical conditioning, the process of learning the association between
a conditioned stimulus and response
action potential - answer✔✔localized change in the neuron's membrane potential that propagates
away from its point of origin. All-or-none processes mediated by the opening of voltage gated
sodium and potassium channels when the membrane is brought to threshold potential; opening of
sodium channels causes characteristic depolarization, while opening sodium channels repolarizes
the membrane
activation-synthesis theory - answer✔✔theory that dreams are simply byproducts of brain
activation during REM sleep. Suggests that the content of dreams is not purposeful or
meaningful
actor-observer bias/self-serving bias - answer✔✔tendency to blame our actions on the situation
and blame the actions of others on their personalities
addiction - answer✔✔a compulsion to do an act repeatedly; can consist of a psychological
dependence and/or a physical dependence as evidenced by drug addiction withdrawal
adrenal cortex - answer✔✔outer region of the adrenal gland. the adrenal cortex produces cortisol
in response to long-term chronic stress and aldosterone in response to low blood pressure and
blood osmolarity
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adrenal medulla - answer✔✔inner region of the adrenal gland, and part of the SNS and releases
epinephrine and norepinephrine into the bloodstream when stimulated. Epi and norepi. prolong
and enhance the effect of the sympathetic stimulation on the body
adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) - answer✔✔a tropic hormone produced by the anterior
pituitary gland that targets the adrenal cortex, stimulating it to release cortisol and aldosterone
affect - answer✔✔a person's visible emotion in the moment
affirmative action - answer✔✔policies that take factors like race and sex into consideration to
benefit underrepresented groups in admissions or job hiring decisions; these policies have been
used to benefit those believed to be current or past victims of discrimination
aggregate - answer✔✔people who exist in the same space but do not interact or share a common
sense of identity
aggression - answer✔✔behavior that is forceful, hostile, or attacking. in sociology, aggression is
considered something that is intended to cause harm or promote social dominance within a group
Mary Ainsworth - answer✔✔famous for her strange situation experiments where mothers would
leave their infants in an unfamiliar environment to see how they would react. Studies suggested a
distinction between securely attached infants and insecurely attached infants
algorithm - answer✔✔a step-by-step detailing the steps that aids with problem solving
alpha waves - answer✔✔low amplitude, high frequency brain waves present in a relaxed state.
alpha waves are the first indicator that a person is ready to drift off to sleep
altruism - answer✔✔a behavior that helps ensure the success or survival of the rest of the social
group, possibly at the expense of the success or survival of the individual
Alzheimer's disease - answer✔✔most prevalent forms of the dementia, characterized
behaviorally by the inability to form new memories, known as anterograde amnesia
amalgamation - answer✔✔occurs when majority and minority groups combine to form a new
group
amygdala - answer✔✔almond-shaped structure deep within the brain that orchestrates emotional
experiences
anal stage - answer✔✔the second stage of Freud's five psychosexual stages; in this stage the
child seeks sensual pleasure through control of elimination
anterior pituitary gland - answer✔✔adenohypophysis and is made of glandular tissue and it
makes and secretes six different hormones: FSH, LH, ACTH, TSH, prolactin, and growth
hormone. it is controlled by releasing and inhibiting factors from the hypothalamus
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anterograde amnesia - answer✔✔inability to form new memories
antisocial personality disorder - answer✔✔psychological disorder characterized by a history of
serious behavior problems beginning in adolescence, including significant aggression against
people or animals, deliberate property destruction, lying or theft, and serious rule violation
anxiety disorder - answer✔✔emotional state of unpleasant physical and mental arousal; a
preparation to fight or flee. in a person with an anxiety disorder, the anxiety is intense, frequent,
irrational (out of proportion), and uncontrollable; it causes significant distress or impairment of
normal functioning
aqueous humor - answer✔✔thin, watery fluid found in the anterior segment of the eye (between
lens and cornea). The aqueous humor is constantly produced and drained, and helps brings
nutrients to the lens and cornea, as well as remove metabolic wastes
Solomon Asch - answer✔✔Conducted research on conformity and group pressure by placing
subjects in a room with several confederates and observing behavior of the subject when the
confederates provided clearly wrong answers to questions
ascribed status - answer✔✔statuses that are assigned to a person by society regardless of the
person's own efforts
assimilation - answer✔✔process in which an individual forsakes aspects of his or her own
cultural tradition to adopt those of a different culture. Generally, this individual is a member of a
minority group who is attempting to conform to the culture of the dominant group
associative learning - answer✔✔process of learning in which one event, object, or action is
directly connected with another. Two general categories include classical and operant
conditioning
Attenuation model of selective attention - answer✔✔model of selective attention in which the
mind has an attentuator, like a volume knob, that can tune up inputs to be attended and tune
down unattended inputs, rather than totally eliminating them (accounts for the cocktail party
effect)
attitude - answer✔✔person's feelings and beliefs about other people or events around him, and
his behavioral restrictions based on those underlying evaluations
attribution theory - answer✔✔theory that attempts to explain how individuals view behavior -
both our own behavior and the behavior of others - by attributing behavior to either internal or
external cues
auditory cortex - answer✔✔area of the temporal lobe responsible for processing sound
information
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auditory tube - answer✔✔Eustachian tube that connects the middle ear cavity with the pharynx
and it functions to equality middle ear pressure with atmospheric pressure so that pressure on
both sides of the tympanic membrane is equal
authoritarian parenting - answer✔✔parenting style in which parents impose strict rules that are
expected to be followed unconditionally in an attempt to control children. This style is
demanding and often relies on punishment
authoritative parenting - answer✔✔parenting style that places limits on behavior and
consistently follows through on consequences, but also expresses warmth and nurturing and
allows for two-way communication between parents and children
autonomic ANS - answer✔✔division of the PNS that innervates and controls the visceral organs
(everything but the skeletal muscles). It is also known as the involuntary nervous system and can
be subdivided into sympathetic and parasympathetic branches
availability heuristic - answer✔✔mental shortcut of making judgments on the frequency of
something occurring based on how readily it is available in our memories
avoidance learning - answer✔✔process by which one learns to perform a behavior in order to
ensure that a negative or aversive stimulus will not be present
avoidant personality disorder - answer✔✔characterized by feelings of inadequacy, inferiority,
and undesirability, and a preoccupation with fears of criticism
axon - answer✔✔long projection off the cell body of a neuron down which an action potential
can be propagated
Babinski reflex - answer✔✔in response to the sole of the foot being stroked, a baby's big toe
moves upward or toward the top surface of the foot and the other toes fan out
back stage - answer✔✔dramaturgical approach where we can let down our guard and be
ourselves, as opposed to front stage where we are playing a role for others
Albert Bandura - answer✔✔famous for his Bobo doll studies that demonstrated observational
learning; also pioneered the idea of the importance of self-efficacy in promoting learning
baroreceptor - answer✔✔sensory receptor that responds to the changes in pressure, for example,
there are baroreceptors on the carotid arteries and the aortic arch that monitor blood pressure
basal nuclei - answer✔✔known as basal ganglia and these structures in the brain help to smooth
coordinated movements by inhibiting excess movement
basilar membrane - answer✔✔flexible membrane in the cochlea that supports the organ of Corti
(structure that contains the hearing receptors). the fibers of the basilar membrane are short and
