Glossary
random sampling: participants for research are selected randomly from the population of interest
randomised controlled trials (RCTs): a method for assessing the effectiveness of a treatment or therapy by comparing its effectiveness against a number of different control conditions
randomising: in the context of an experiment, this means that participants have been placed in one condition or another of the study in a non-systematic way
range: the difference between the highest and lowest scores in a set of data
ratio data: interval data but with the additional property that ratios are meaningful (e.g. a score of 4 indicates twice as much of a property as a score of 2)
rational-emotive therapy (RET): a form of cognitive therapy developed by Albert Ellis (1962) realistic conflict theory: Sherif’s account of intergroup conflict based on the nature of goal relations between groups
reality principle: the reality principle strives to satisfy the id’s desires in realistic and socially appropriate ways recency effect: that information presented later will have a greater influence than earlier information on a person’s judgements of other people or issues, e.g. that the last item on a list will be remembered better than the preceding items
reception paradigm of concept learning: an experimental procedure in concept learning in which the passive learner is presented with examples or non-examples of the concept with a view to learning the concept
receptive field: the zone which when stimulated activates a given detector, usually applied to the firing of single cells
receptors: proteins to which chemicals attach themselves and bring about cellular changes
recessive trait: a phenotype when there are two recessive alleles in the organism (see Phenylketonuria for example)
reciprocal inhibition: in behaviour therapy, a therapeutic principle in which an emotional response is eliminated not just by extinguishing the relationship between the CS and the UCS, but also by attaching a response to the CS which in incompatible with anxiety (e.g. relaxation)
recognition by components theory: a theory put forward by Biederman (1987) which argues that objects are recognised on the basis of the combinations of geons of which they are composed
red nucleus: a midbrain area involved in motor behaviour
reduction mnemonics: memory techniques which reduce the to-be-remembered information to simple retrieval cues from which the original material can be retrieved
reductionism: a philosophical approach to understanding the nature of complex entities (e.g. the brain) by reducing them to the interactions of their parts, simpler or more fundamental entities
reductionism: the general view that complex wholes (e.g. the brain) are best explained by investigating simpler, constituent parts and the interactions of the parts. The opposing view, that we must explain the whole as a single entity, is called holism
reductionist: a procedure or theory that reduces complex data and phenomena to simple terms reference group: a group that is psychologically significant for members’ beliefs and attitudes referent informational influence: an influence type characterised by conformity to a self-referent group norm that defines oneself as a group member
reflected appraisal: a process where we imagine how other people see us
reflex: an automatic or involuntary neuromuscular action elicited by a defined stimulus (an unconditioned response)
reflexive discourse: a general term to describe discussion and theorising about human nature and behaviour. Psychology is one form of reflexive discourse, as are philosophy and theology
regression line: see line of best fit
regression: a statistical technique that aims to quantify the relationship between an outcome variable and one or more predictor variables
rehearsal: the technique which involves repeating to-be-remembered information continuously, overtly or covertly, with a view to remembering it
reinforcement: a consistent relationship between a response and the changes in the environment that it produces; an increase in the strength of the response following the presentation of a stimulus contingent on that response reinforcement-affect model: a model of attraction that says we come to like people who are with us when we have a positive experience. The experience is gauged in terms of feelings and emotions
relational self: the tendency to define ourselves in terms of our close relationships/roles with others
relative refractory period: a period after an action potential in which a stimulus has to be of greater strength to produce another action potential
Reliability: (1) the ability of a measure to produce consistent results when the same entities are measured under different conditions. One way to conceptualise this is that, other things being equal, a person should get the same score on a measure if they complete it at two different points in time (this is called test-retest reliability). Another way to think of it is that two people, who are the same in terms of the construct being measured, should get the same score, (2) the degree to which a test produces similar scores each time it is used; stability or consistency of the scores produced by an instrument
REM sleep: a stage of sleep characterised by rapid movements of the eyes
reminiscence bump: the observation that autobiographical memories recalled by older participants are particularly good for memories acquired in the twenties, attributed to a tendency to reminisce about this time of life
rennin: an enzyme which activates angiotensin
repeated measures design: an experimental design in which each participant takes part in all of the conditions in the experiment
repisodes: episodes which are repeated and may become habitual, e.g. weekly lectures for students
representational redescription: a model proposed by Karmiloff-Smith that cognitive development involves a progression from implicit to explicit representations
representativeness heuristic: the cognitive tool used to allocate attributes to another person on the basis that they match a prototype of a category; the idea that we base our judgement more on a subjective impression of how representative an instance is of a particular phenomenon than on objective information
reproductive strategy: in the context of problem solving, a strategy which applies past solutions to the current problem
research ethics: ethical research is research that shows concern for the welfare and well-being of participants, protecting them from physical and psychological harm
resilience: developing in a typical manner despite adverse circumstances
response shaping: a form of treatment based on operant conditioning principles in which successive approximations to the desired behaviour are reinforced in a step-by-step manner
resting potential: the polarised state of a neuron that is not in the process of an action potential
restructuring (of a problem): the process in Gestalt problem-solving theory which underpins the insight that leads to the problem being solved
retention function: the observation in autobiographic recall that the number of memories recalled decreases rapidly from the most recent
reticular formation: one of the oldest parts of the brain. Involved in many behaviours, including sleep
retina: the thin layer of neural cells that lines the back of the eye and contains photosensitive cells
retinal disparity: the difference in images seen by the two eyes when they focus on a given object. The closer the object, the greater the difference. Thus the degree of disparity is a cue to distance or depth
retinal ganglion cells: cells that receive information from photoreceptors in the retina
retinal size: the size of the image cast on the retina by an object
retrieval cue: a cue or hint which helps with the retrieval of information from memory
retrieval processes: the processes in memory responsible for remembering past information
retroactive interference: the observation that a recent memory can impede the retrieval of an earlier similar memory, often by intrusion
retrograde amnesia: memory loss for events or information that predate the event that precipitated the memory loss. Contrast with anterograde amnesia
retrograde signalling: where a signal travels from a postsynaptic neuron to a presynaptic one
reversibility: Piaget used the term to refer to a general understanding of the nature of transformations, for example, the understanding that volume and mass remain the same despite changes in shape
rhodopsin: light-sensitive pigment
ribosomes: ribosomes read the sequence of mRNA and add amino acids as the codons instruct Ringlemann effect: reduction in individual effort by group members with increasing group size
Ringlemann effect reduction in individual effort by group members with increasing group size
risk factors: factors that have been found to increase the risk of the subsequent onset of a psychopathology
rule-based processes in human error: processes involving procedures or rules and which form a potential basis for human error