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 stimulus
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.
Confounding variables—in a controlled experi-
ment, factors that cause differences between the
experimental group and the control group other
than the independent variable.
Connectionism—theory that memory is stored
throughout the brain in connections between neu-
rons, many of which can work together to process
a single memory.
Consciousness—awareness of the outside world and
ourselves, including our own mental processes,
thoughts, feelings, and perceptions. EEGs of wake-
ful consciousness record alpha and beta waves.
Conservation concepts—changes in the form of an
object do not alter physical properties of mass,
volume, and number.
Consolidation—the process by which information
in short-term memory is transferred to long-term
memory, presumably because of physical changes
that occur in neurons in the brain.
Construct validity—the truemeasure of validity.
Construct validity is the extent to which the test
measures a given characteristic, trait, or construct.
Contact comfort—Harlow study with monkeys and
surrogate moms—need for close contact with care-
giver independent of feeding; questions Hull’s
drive-reduction theory.
Contact theory—if members of two opposing
groups are brought together in an emergency situ-
ation, group cooperation will reduce prejudiced
thinking.
Context-dependent memory—physical setting in
which a person learns information that is encoded
along with the information and becomes part of
the memory trace.
Contiguity—Pavlovian theory that classical condi-
tioning is based on the association in time of the
CS prior to UCS.
Contingency— Rescorla theory that the predictabil-
ity of UCS following CS determines classical
conditioning.
Continuity-discontinuity controversy—deals with
the issue of whether development is a gradual, con-
tinuous process or a sequence of separate stages.
Continuous reinforcement—the schedule of rein-
forcement where eachdesired behavior emitted by
the organism is rewarded.
Contralaterality—control of one side of your body
by the other side of your brain.
Control group—in a controlled experiment, the
comparison group; the subgroup of the sample
that is similar to the experimental group in every
way except for the presence of the independent
variable.
Controlled experiment—research method in which
the experimenter manipulates the independent
variable (IV) to see the effect on the dependent
variable (DV) in order to establish a cause and
effect relationship between the IV and DV.
Conventional level—Kohlberg’s second level of
moral development, in which people realize that
society has instituted rules to maintain order and
to serve the best interests of its citizens.318 á Glossary
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