AQA GCSE Psychology key terms

A region of the frontal lobe that controls voluntary movement.

A neuron that carries signals from the central nervous system to an effector, such as a muscle or gland.

An explanation of memory involving separate sensory, short-term and long-term stores, with information moving between them.

The extent to which a research task resembles an activity encountered in everyday life.

A fatty insulating covering around some nerve fibres that helps electrical impulses travel faster.

A research method that investigates a naturally occurring independent variable which the researcher does not manipulate.

The process by which inherited characteristics that increase reproductive success become more common over generations.

The influence of inherited biological factors on behaviour.

An association in which higher values of one variable tend to occur with lower values of the other.

A mental framework containing unfavourable beliefs about oneself, which can bias the interpretation of experiences.

Beck’s three connected patterns of negative thinking about the self, the world and the future.

A newborn baby.

The body's communication system, which receives information, processes it and coordinates responses.

Damage to nerve cells in the brain, for example following a stroke or an injury.

A specialised nerve cell that receives and transmits information in the nervous system.

The development and strengthening of connections between neurons associated with learning and experience.

The scientific study of the nervous system, including the brain.

A chemical messenger that carries signals between nerve cells. Serotonin and noradrenaline are linked to mood and emotion.

The communication of information through signals other than words, such as facial expressions, posture and gestures.

A symmetrical, bell-shaped distribution in which most scores cluster around the centre and the mean, median and mode are equal.

A testable statement predicting no difference between conditions or no relationship between variables.

The top number in a fraction, showing how many parts are being considered.

The influence of experience and the environment on behaviour.

Following a direct order from someone perceived to have authority.

Understanding that an object continues to exist even when it cannot be seen.

A research method that collects data by watching and recording behaviour.

A monocular depth cue in which an object that partly hides another is perceived as nearer than the object it hides.