Glossary
telencephalon: part of the forebrain. Made up of the two cerebral hemispheres containing the cortex, the basal ganglia and the limbic system
template matching theory: the idea that we recognise a pattern by matching the percept with templates stored in memory until a match is found
temporal lobes: part of the cortex that lies at the sides of the brain and contains the hippocampus
temporal summation: when the incoming information is close together in time and there is an increased change of response in a particular direction. In the case of a barrage EPSP, an axon potential will be initiated
teratogens: a substance or agent which can affect the development of an unborn child, e.g. radiation, pollution
tertium quid: the possibility that an apparent relationship between two variables is actually caused by the effect of a third variable on them both (often called the third variable problem)
test statistic: a statistic for which we know how frequently different values of this statistic occur. The observed value of such a statistic is typically used to test hypotheses
test-retest reliability: a measure of the correlation between the scores of the same people on the same test given on two different occasionstest-retest reliability: see reliability
texture gradient: the change in the texture of a surface with distance from the observer
thalamus: part of the diencephalon. Involved in numerous functions
theory of mind (TOM): to understand that others have beliefs, desires and intentions that are different from one's own
theory of planned behaviour: Ajzen’s extension of the theory of reasoned action. States that the immediate antecedent of actual behaviour is behavioural intention. This being the case, behavioural intention is predicted by perceived behavioural control, attitude and subjective norm
theory of reasoned action: Fishbein and Ajzen’s theory that the immediate antecedent of actual behaviour is behavioural intention. Behavioural intention is predicted by attitude and subjective norm
theory: although it can be defined more formally, a theory is essentially a hypothesised general principle or set of principles that explain known findings about a topic and from which new hypotheses can be generated
thinking: a broad term which refers to problem-solving, making judgements, decision-making and reasoning
time-series design: research involving measuring a variable (or variables) at (usually) regular intervals over a long period of time
tip of the tongue phenomenon: a mental state in which a person is unable to produce a word they want but feels that it is on the tip of their tongue
token economy: a group therapy procedure based on positive reinforcement in which desired behaviours are reinforced with tokens that the individual can later exchange for desired items
top-down processing: the perceptual processing of a visual (or other object) which is driven by context, expectation or knowledge
trace decay: the idea that forgetting occurs because memory traces decay with time, in a manner analogous to radioactive decay
traits: enduring personal qualities or attributes that influence behaviour across situations. In biology, characteristic variations, e.g. eye colour
transactional model of stress: a model of stress and coping developed by Lazarus (1975) in which an individual first appraises a stressor as either benign or threatening, and if it is believed to be threatening, then assesses the various coping resources they have available, and decides on the best way to deal with the stressor
transcription: the process of copying DNA to RNA
transfer RNA (tRNA): a molecule which transfers a specific amino acids to a growing polypeptide chain at the ribosomal site of protein synthesis
transference: in psychoanalytic therapy, a procedure in which the analyst is used as a target for emotional responses, and the client behaves or feels towards the analyst as they would have behaved towards an important person in their lives
transgenic mice: a genetically modified mouse, but could refer to other organisms as well
transparent languages: languages where there is a consistent relation between the sounds of speech and the way these sounds are represented by letters
Treisman’s attenuation model: the idea that although all auditory inputs are processed all but the selected input are attenuated or ‘softened’
triadic relations: in relation to infancy, the joint attention of an adult and infant to an object or event
trial and error strategy: a problem-solving strategy which relies on random behaviour until the solution is found. On subsequent trials, the randomness decreases as the appropriate solution is learnt
triangular model of love: Sternberg’s idea of three interacting aspects of love: intimacy, commitment and passion
triarchic theory: the triarchic theory of intelligence consists of three sub-theories: (1) the componential sub-theory which outlines the structures and mechanisms that underlie intelligent behaviour categorised as metacognitive, performance or knowledge acquisition components, (2) the experiential sub-theory that proposes intelligent behaviour be interpreted along a continuum of experience from novel to highly familiar tasks/situations, (3) the contextual sub-theory which specifies that intelligent behaviour is defined by the sociocultural context in which it takes place and involves adaptation to the environment, selection of better environments and shaping of the present environment
tricyclic antidepressants: a group of drugs used to treat symptoms of depression that have their effect by increasing the amount of norepinephrine and serotonin available for synaptic transmission in the brain
two-factor theory of emotion: the theory that emotional experience is a combination of both physiological arousal and cognitive appraisal of an arousing situation. The arousal acts as a volume (high-low) to emotional experience, while the appraisal adds meaning (fear, sadness, etc.) to the experience
two-tailed hypothesis: a non-directional hypothesis such as ‘listening to your tutor will affect statistics exam marks’. This is non-directional because you do not predict a direction for the effect: you haven’t said whether exam marks would be better or worse because of listening to the tutor
two-tailed test: a test of a non-directional hypothesis such as ‘listening to your tutor will affect statistics exam marks’. This is non-directional because you do not predict a direction for the effect: you haven’t said whether exam marks would be better or worse because of listening to the tutor
two-way independent ANOVA: a test of whether the means from different conditions differ when data across those conditions are independent (e.g. different participants have been tested in all conditions) and the conditions represent all combinations of levels of two independent variables
two-way mixed ANOVA: a test of whether the means from different conditions that represent all combinations of levels of two independent variables differ. One of the independent variables must have been manipulated using the same participants (i.e. is a repeated measure) whereas the other must have been manipulated using different participants (is an independent measure)
two-way repeated measures ANOVA: a test of whether the means from different conditions differ when data across those conditions are related (e.g. the same participants have been tested in all conditions) and the conditions represent all combinations of levels of two independent variables
Type I error: Believing that there is a genuine effect in the population, when in reality no such effect exists
Type II error: Believing that there is no effect in the population, when in reality there is
typicality effect: the experimental observation that it is quicker to decide that a typical member of a category is a member of the category than an atypical member. Thus it is quicker to decide that a Labrador is a dog than that a Chihuahua