English for Psychology: Essential Vocabulary

"cognitive schema"

A mental framework or structure that organises and interprets incoming information based on prior knowledge

"Her cognitive schema about authority figures led her to misinterpret neutral feedback as criticism."

"operant conditioning"

A learning process in which behaviour is shaped by its consequences, such as rewards and punishments

"The therapist used operant conditioning principles to reinforce the child's positive social behaviours."

"unconscious bias"

Attitudes or stereotypes that affect judgements and decisions without conscious awareness

"The workshop on unconscious bias helped staff recognise how implicit assumptions influenced their hiring decisions."

"self-efficacy"

An individual's belief in their own ability to succeed in a specific situation or accomplish a task

"Students with high self-efficacy tend to persist longer when facing academic challenges."

"attribution theory"

The study of how people explain the causes of events and behaviour, either to internal or external factors

"Attribution theory predicts that people often credit themselves for successes but blame external factors for failures."

"defence mechanism"

An unconscious psychological strategy used to protect the mind from anxiety or uncomfortable thoughts

"Rationalisation is a common defence mechanism in which people justify unacceptable behaviour with logical reasons."

"intrinsic motivation"

The drive to engage in an activity for its own sake, out of genuine interest or enjoyment

"Children who read for pleasure demonstrate strong intrinsic motivation that predicts long-term literacy gains."

"locus of control"

The degree to which individuals believe they control outcomes in their lives versus external forces

"Patients with an internal locus of control tend to adhere better to treatment regimens."

"presenting complaint"

The primary problem or symptom that leads a client to seek psychological help

"The presenting complaint was persistent insomnia, but the assessment revealed underlying generalised anxiety disorder."

"therapeutic alliance"

The collaborative and trusting relationship between a therapist and client that is central to effective treatment

"Research consistently shows that the strength of the therapeutic alliance is one of the best predictors of positive outcomes."

"psychoeducation"

The process of educating clients and their families about mental health conditions and treatment options

"Psychoeducation about the stress-response cycle helped the client understand why her anxiety symptoms escalated at night."

"differential diagnosis"

The systematic process of distinguishing one psychological disorder from others that share similar symptoms

"Reaching a differential diagnosis between bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder requires careful longitudinal assessment."

"exposure therapy"

A behavioural technique in which clients gradually confront feared stimuli to reduce avoidance and anxiety

"The psychologist designed a stepped exposure therapy programme to help the client return to driving after a road traffic accident."

"cognitive restructuring"

A therapeutic technique for identifying and challenging distorted or unhelpful thought patterns

"Through cognitive restructuring, the client learned to replace catastrophic predictions with more balanced appraisals."

"relapse prevention"

Strategies and skills taught to help clients maintain therapeutic gains and recognise early warning signs of deterioration

"The final sessions focused on relapse prevention, identifying triggers and rehearsing coping strategies for high-risk situations."

"formulation"

A structured clinical explanation of a client's difficulties, drawing on theory to link predisposing, precipitating, and perpetuating factors

"The case formulation helped both the therapist and client understand how early attachment experiences were maintaining the current depression."

"attachment style"

A pattern of relational behaviour developed in early childhood that influences how individuals form bonds throughout life

"Adults with an anxious attachment style often struggle with fears of abandonment in romantic relationships."

"object permanence"

The understanding, acquired in infancy, that objects continue to exist even when they are not directly perceived

"Piaget observed that most infants develop object permanence between eight and twelve months of age."

"zone of proximal development"

Vygotsky's concept describing the range of tasks a learner can perform with guidance but not yet independently

"The teacher pitched instruction within the child's zone of proximal development, offering scaffolding that could be gradually withdrawn."

"critical period"

A developmental window during which the brain is particularly sensitive to specific environmental inputs

"Language acquisition has a critical period; children exposed to rich linguistic input before puberty achieve native-like fluency far more easily."

"secure base"

In attachment theory, the sense of safety provided by a caregiver that allows the child to explore the environment

"A consistent secure base in early childhood predicts greater emotional resilience and social competence in adulthood."

"theory of mind"

The ability to attribute mental states — beliefs, desires, intentions — to oneself and others and to understand that others hold different perspectives

"Delays in theory of mind development are associated with difficulties in social communication seen in autism spectrum disorder."

"scaffolding"

Temporary support provided by a more skilled person that enables a learner to accomplish tasks beyond their independent capability

"Effective scaffolding involves matching the level of support to the child's current competence and gradually reducing it."

"identity diffusion"

A state in Erikson's model where an individual has not yet established a coherent sense of personal identity

"Identity diffusion is common in early adolescence but becomes problematic if it persists into late adulthood."

"random assignment"

The allocation of participants to experimental conditions by chance, ensuring equivalence of groups at baseline

"Random assignment strengthens causal inference by controlling for pre-existing differences between groups."

"confounding variable"

A factor other than the independent variable that may influence the dependent variable, threatening internal validity

"Socioeconomic status was identified as a potential confounding variable in the study on stress and academic performance."

"effect size"

A quantitative measure of the magnitude of a research finding, independent of sample size

"Although the result was statistically significant, the effect size was small, suggesting limited practical importance."

"inter-rater reliability"

The degree of agreement between independent raters or observers scoring the same behaviours or responses

"High inter-rater reliability was achieved after raters underwent calibration training using anchor examples."

"ecological validity"

The extent to which research findings generalise to real-world settings and everyday behaviour

"Laboratory studies of memory can lack ecological validity because they use artificial word lists rather than meaningful life events."

"null hypothesis"

The default assumption that there is no effect or relationship between variables, which the researcher attempts to reject

"The team set their alpha level at .05, meaning they would reject the null hypothesis if the probability of the data was below 5%."

"double-blind procedure"

An experimental design in which neither the participants nor the researchers administering conditions know which group receives the treatment

"The double-blind procedure was essential to rule out placebo effects and experimenter bias in the drug trial."

"meta-analysis"

A statistical technique that combines results from multiple independent studies to estimate an overall effect

"The meta-analysis of 94 studies confirmed a moderate association between mindfulness practice and reductions in depressive symptoms."

"social loafing"

The tendency for individuals to exert less effort when working in a group than when working alone

"Social loafing was reduced when each team member's contribution was made individually visible to the group."

"conformity pressure"

The influence that group norms exert on individuals to adjust their behaviour, attitudes, or beliefs to match those of the majority

"Asch's line experiments demonstrated the power of conformity pressure even when the majority's judgement was clearly wrong."

"in-group bias"

The tendency to favour members of one's own group over those belonging to other groups

"In-group bias can lead hiring managers to favour candidates who share their educational or cultural background."

"bystander effect"

The phenomenon where individuals are less likely to offer help in an emergency when others are present

"The bystander effect was tragically illustrated in cases where large crowds failed to intervene during public attacks."

"deindividuation"

A psychological state in which individuals lose self-awareness and personal responsibility when part of a group, often leading to impulsive behaviour

"Online anonymity can foster deindividuation, encouraging hostile behaviour that the same person would suppress in face-to-face interaction."

"social identity theory"

Tajfel and Turner's framework proposing that self-concept is partly derived from membership in social groups

"Social identity theory explains why sports fans can experience a personal sense of victory when their team wins."

"groupthink"

A mode of thinking in which the desire for harmony in a group overrides realistic appraisal of alternatives

"Groupthink contributed to the flawed decision-making that led to the Challenger space shuttle disaster."

"obedience to authority"

Compliance with the instructions of a perceived authority figure, even when those instructions conflict with personal values

"Milgram's experiments revealed alarmingly high levels of obedience to authority among ordinary individuals."

"executive function"

A set of higher-order cognitive processes — including planning, inhibition, and working memory — controlled mainly by the prefrontal cortex

"Deficits in executive function are a hallmark of ADHD and affect the individual's ability to organise tasks and regulate impulses."

"neuroplasticity"

The brain's ability to reorganise itself by forming new neural connections in response to learning, experience, or injury

"Stroke rehabilitation programmes exploit neuroplasticity to help patients regain lost motor and language functions."

"dissociation"

A disruption of the normally integrated functions of consciousness, memory, identity, or perception

"Severe trauma can trigger dissociation as a protective mechanism, resulting in fragmented memories of the event."

"comorbidity"

The simultaneous presence of two or more distinct psychological or medical disorders in the same individual

"High comorbidity between depression and anxiety disorder complicates treatment planning and prognosis."

"psychosis"

A severe mental state characterised by a disconnection from reality, including hallucinations and delusions

"Early intervention during the first episode of psychosis significantly improves long-term functional outcomes."

"amygdala hijack"

A term coined by Goleman for an immediate emotional response that bypasses rational thinking when a perceived threat activates the amygdala

"Understanding the amygdala hijack helped the manager recognise why she reacted so defensively during performance reviews."

"hyperarousal"

A state of elevated physiological and psychological alertness, commonly seen in post-traumatic stress disorder

"Hyperarousal symptoms such as exaggerated startle response and difficulty sleeping persisted for months after the traumatic event."

"negative cognitive triad"

Beck's model identifying three patterns of pessimistic thinking in depression: negative views of self, the world, and the future

"The therapist used thought records to help the client challenge each element of the negative cognitive triad."