Glossary ❮ 329Circadian rhythms—daily patterns of changes that
cycle approximately every 24 hours such as the
sleep/wake cycle.
Classical conditioning—learning that takes place
when two or more stimuli are presented together;
unconditioned stimulus is paired repeatedly with
a neutral stimulus until it acquires the capacity to
elicit a similar response.
Client-centered or person-centered therapy—
humanistic therapy introduced by Carl Rogers in
which the client rather than the therapist directs
the treatment process.
Clinical psychologists—psychologists who evalu-
ate and treat mental, emotional, and behavioral
disorders.
Cochlea—snail-shaped, fluid-filled tube in the inner
ear with hair cells on the basilar membrane that
transduce mechanical energy of vibrating molecules
to the electrochemical energy of neural impulses.
Cognition—all the mental activities associated
with thinking, knowing, and remembering
information.
Cognitive approach—psychological perspective
concerned with how we receive, store, and process
information; think/reason; and use language.
Cognitive dissonance—according to Festinger, the
theory that changes in attitudes can be motivated by
an unpleasant state of tension caused by a disparity
between a person’s beliefs or attitudes and behavior.
Cognitive illusion—systematic way of thinking that
is responsible for an error in judgment.
Cognitive learning—a type of learning that involves
mental events, problem solving, and rule formation.
Cognitive map—a mental picture of the layout of
one’s environment.
Cognitive restructuring—cognitive therapy in
which clients discuss their fears and are led to
change their attitudes and beliefs about the situa-
tions that frighten them.
Cognitive therapy—therapy that teaches people
more adaptive ways of thinking and acting in order
to eliminate maladaptive thinking and emotional
reactions.
Cognitive triad—Beck’s cognitive therapy that looks
at what people think about their Self, their World,
and their Future.
Cohort—group of people in one age group.
Cohort effect—observed group differences based
on the era when people were born and grew up
exposing them to particular experiences which may
affect results of cross-sectional studies.
Cohort-sequential—research design that combines
aspects of cross-sectional and longitudinal research
to correct for cohort effect.Collective unconscious—according to Jung, the
powerful and influential system of the psyche that
contains universal memories and ideas that all
people have inherited from our ancestors over the
course of evolution.
Collectivism—primary identification of an individual
as a member of a group (family, school, company,
community) and goals of the group as one’s goals.
Color blindness—sex-linked trait more common in
males where individual cannot see certain colors,
most often red and green.
Compliance—modification of our behavior at
another person’s request.
Compulsion—an irresistible impulse to repeat some
action over and over although it serves no useful
purpose.
Computerized axial tomography (CAT or CT)— a
computerized image using X-rays passed through
the brain to show structure and/or the extent of a
lesion.
Concept—a mental grouping or category for similar
objects; one of the basic elements of thought.
Concrete operational stage—Piaget’s third stage of
cognitive development (7–12 years) during which
the child develops simple logic and masters conser-
vation concepts.
Conditioned response (CR)—in classical condition-
ing, the learned response to a conditioned stimu-
lus which results from repeated pairing with the
unconditioned stimulus.
Conditioned stimulus (CS)—in classical condition-
ing, originally a neutral stimulus that comes to
trigger a conditioned response after being repeat-
edly paired with the unconditioned stimulus.
Conditions of worth—conditions that others place
on us for receiving their positive regard.
Conduction deafness—loss of hearing that results
when the eardrum is punctured or ossicles lose their
ability to vibrate. A hearing aid may restore hearing.
Cones—photoreceptors that detect color and fine
detail in daylight or in bright conditions. Most
concentrated at the fovea of the retina; none are in
the periphery.
Confabulation—filling in gaps in memory by com-
bining and substituting memories from events
other than the one you’re trying to remember.
Confirmation bias—a tendency to search for and use
information that supports our preconceptions and
ignore information that refutes our ideas; often a
hindrance to problem solving.
Conflict situations—problems in choosing between
alternatives.
Conformity—the adoption of attitudes and behav-
iors shared by a particular group of people.BM.indd 329 27-05-2018 15:32:46