Hi, my name is Zeinab Safa. I'm studying at Montmorency College. I'm in Social Science-individual and I've been in this program since fall 2019. It is my third semester. This glossary will be for new students who want to learn more about Social Science terms and words, especially about psychology terms.
In this glossary, you will find words about psychology because it is my favorite subject and I want to get into psychoeducation. You will find for each term: a part of speech, pronunciation, definition, a translation to French, an example, and a picture. You can start your lecture!
Amnesia
noun
a partial or total loss of memory.
Example: Certainly, on considering the occurrence of psychogenic amnesia, there is no doubt that powerful negative emotions can induce disturbances of memory, but this does not necessarily imply that repression forms a part of normal forgetting (Baddeley, 1997), and there is little experimental evidence to support this claim, primarily because it is difficult to carry out laboratory experiments that manipulate the level of emotion due to limits of what is ethically acceptable.
fr: Amnésie
Amygdala
noun
an almond-shaped neural structure in the anterior part of the temporal lobe of the cerebrum; intimately connected with the hypothalamus and the hippocampus and the cingulate gyrus; as part of the limbic system it plays an important role in motivation and emotional behavior
Example: The hypothalamus also receives important input from the amygdala, which is involved in emotional processes.
fr: Amygdale
Anxiety
noun
Anxiety is an emotion characterized by feelings of tension, worried thoughts and physical changes like increased blood pressure. People with anxiety disorders usually have recurring intrusive thoughts or concerns. They may avoid certain situations out of worry.
Example: In light of our current understanding of anxiety disorders, evaluate Freud's interpretation and handling of the Wolf-Man case.
fr: Anxiété
Behavior
noun
The way in which an animal or person acts in response to a particular situation or stimulus.
Example: It is also important to understand that a person's attitude and beliefs can affect behavior and therefore, can influence health as a result (Condon et al, 2003).
fr: Comportement
Catharsis
noun
the process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions.
Example: Music is a means of catharsis for her. Emotional catharsis is an important factor in a person's well-being. Crying is a great catharsis for releasing pain and anger. I always feel relieved and relaxed after experiencing a catharsis.
fr: Catharsis
Cognitive
adjective
of, relating to, being, or involving conscious intellectual activity (such as thinking, reasoning, or remembering)
Example: In addition, Bowlby reviewed data from academic studies describing infants' cognitive and social development including those of the famous and highly regarded child psychologist Piaget.
fr: Cognitive
Depression
noun
Depression is a medical illness which affects the brain which in turn affects the rest of the body. Depression can affect anyone: children, adolescents, young adults, middle-aged adults and older people. 20% of adults will have suffered from depression at some point in their lifetimes.
Example: Some research indicated that depressed mood results in excessive gambling while other research showed excessive gambling leads to depression.
fr: Dépression
Hypothalamus
noun
A region of the forebrain below the thalamus which coordinates both the autonomic nervous system and the activity of the pituitary, controlling body temperature, thirst, hunger, and other homeostatic systems, and involved in sleep and emotional activity.
Example: In the hypothalamus, leptin binds to specific receptors in the arcuate nucleus, which causes a series of events to occur.
fr: Hypothalamus
Lobotomy
noun
a surgical operation involving incision into the prefrontal lobe of the brain, formerly used to treat mental illness.
Example: Set in the 1950's, this movie is about a girl who is sent to a mental institution while she awaits her lobotomy. I mentioned a brain scan; you'd think I'd suggested a lobotomy. frontal lobotomy, thank you. His mother had his sister Rose, institutionalized and ordered her to undergo a lobotomy in 1937.
fr: Lobotomie
Memory
noun
the faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information.
Example: Dad has a selective memory: he remembers the times he was right and forgets the times he was wrong.
fr: Mémoire
Nerve
Noun
(in the body) a whitish fiber or bundle of fibers that transmits impulses of sensation to the brain or spinal cord, and impulses from these to the muscles and organs.
Example: Without the oligodendroglia cells forming myelin, nerve signals would become slowed or even completely blocked, thus causing symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis.
fr: Nerf
Psychiatric
Adjective
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psychiatry.
Example: Ciocchetti emphasises his belief that appropriate psychiatric care would be far more appropriate than common punishment.
fr: Psychiatrique
Psychoeducation
noun
Psychoeducation is an evidence-based therapeutic intervention for patients and their loved ones that provides information and support to better understand and cope with illness.
Example: Psychoeducational testing to determine IQ and/or the presence of learning disabilities may also be part of the evaluation process. Children should have psychoeducational evaluation to help plan appropriate educational interventions
fr: Psychoéducation
Reinforcement
noun
In behavioral psychology, reinforcement is a consequence applied that will strengthen an organism's future behavior whenever that behavior is preceded by a specific antecedent stimulus. This strengthening effect may be measured as a higher frequency of behavior, longer duration, greater magnitude, or shorter latency.
Example: Skinner always recommended positive reinforcement such as rewards over negative reinforcement or punishment, (Eysenck, 2002).
fr: Renforcement
Schizophrenia
noun
A long-term mental disorder of a type involving a breakdown in the relation between thought, emotion, and behavior, leading to faulty perception, inappropriate actions and feelings, withdrawal from reality and personal relationships into fantasy and delusion, and a sense of mental fragmentation.
Example: It has been shown that unpopular children are more likely to have psychological difficulties such as schizophrenia, anxiety disorders, mood disorders and criminal behaviour (Kupersmidt, Coie and Dodge, 1990)
fr: Schizophrénie
Stimulus
noun
a thing or event that evokes a specific functional reaction in an organ or tissue.
Example: In Jakarta (Indonesia), for example, a stronger stimulus might be needed to elicit a positive response for the hurt-leg test (e.g. only crippled or maimed men would receive help, according to the local experimenter's interpretation).
fr: Stimulus
Suppression
noun
the conscious exclusion of unacceptable thoughts or desires
Example: Subjects when under suppression were unable to transfer visually presented information to the phonological short-term store.
fr: Supression
Tenseness
noun
a state of mental or emotional strain or suspense
Example: Could he feel the tenseness in her body? His fingers worked at the tenseness along her back. She closed her eyes, and in spite of the situation, his fingers slowly siphoned the tenseness from her back.
fr: Tension
Thalamus
noun
either of two masses of gray matter lying between the cerebral hemispheres on either side of the third ventricle, relaying sensory information and acting as a center for pain perception.
Example: Korsakoff's syndrome occurs due to neuronal loss in the mamillary bodies and is associated with cell shrinkage in a particular nucleus of the thalamus and the mamillary bodies.
fr: Thalamus
Trait
noun
a distinguishing quality or characteristic, typically one belonging to a person.
Example: He was a letter-of-the-law man, a common trait among coaches.
