In their first study of the availability heuristic, Tversky and Kahneman asked participants to estimate whether English had more words that started with the letter K or more words that had K as the third letter. What do you think? … Read More
How Does Memory Work?
Why do we remember some things and not others? How much can we remember and how long can our memories last? What processes shape our memory of the world? Memories are a fundamental part of who we are, so it’s … Read More
Operant Conditioning – Schedules of Reinforcement
By closely monitoring the occurrence of behaviors and the frequency of rewards, Skinner was able to look for patterns. Receiving a reward each time the lever is pressed would be an example of continuous reinforcement. But Skinner also wanted to … Read More
What is Psychophysics?
My apologies to those of you hoping to read about physics gone mad; the truth is that psychophysics is actually the study of our sensitivity to stimuli of different strengths. This is generally done by attempting to measure different types of … Read More
Split Brains and Hemisphere Specialization
One way of seeing differences between the two hemispheres comes from cases of patients with “split-brains”. These patients have had their corpus callosum severed in order to prevent the spread of epileptic seizures. While this process effectively stops the … Read More
How Do Psychologists Define Variables?
With any psychological question, what we are really trying to establish is better understanding of a property. We want to know about properties like happiness, depression, aggression, intelligence, etc. The problem with wanting to know about psychological properties is … Read More
Intelligence Resources
On this page you’ll find a number of resources for understanding intelligence, including ways of defining intelligence, testing, and the role of genes and environment in shaping intelligence. If I’ve missed a good resource, please share it in the comments … Read More
What is Psychology?
Psychology is the scientific study of thought and behavior. This means asking why we do the things that we do and think the thoughts that we think. If you’ve ever wondered why you need to spend so much time … Read More
States of Consciousness Resources
On this page you’ll find a number of resources for understanding states of consciousness, including consciousness and attention, the circadian rhythm and sleep cycles, drugs, hypnosis, and meditation. If I’ve missed a good resource, please share it in the comments … Read More
Language, Thought, & Cognition Resources
On this page you’ll find a number of resources for understanding the key concepts of linguistics, cognition, and thought, including language acquisition, problem-solving, and decision-making. If I’ve missed a good resource, please share it in the comments section! General Resources … Read More