Defensoría de la Víctima

A

modified by deprivation. For example, hunger can increase the effectiveness of food as an appetitive stimulus.

appetitive system

extraversion as represented by an

individual’s relative sensitivity to positive or rewarding (ap- petitive) cues and stimuli and his or her processes for ap- proaching them. Compare aversive system. See also

behavioral approachsystem. [proposed by British psy- chologist Jeffrey Alan Gray (1934–2004)]

applied behavior analysis

(ABA) the extension of B.

F. skinner’s behavioral principles (i.e., operant condition- ing) to practical settings. Variations of applied behavior analysis may be used clinically (in the form of behavior modification or behaviortherapy) as treatment for ab- normal or problematic behaviors.

applied linguistics

the field in which linguistic theories

and methods are put to practical use. Contexts in which this occurs include language teaching, the treatment of language disorders, and various aspects of artificialin-

telligence.

applied psychoanalysis

the application of psychoana-

lytic principles to the study of art, literature, religion, an- thropology, biography, history, philology, and philosophy. Sigmund freud’s own interpretations of Leonardo da Vinci, Moses, and Hamlet, as well as his studies of folklore and mythology, are prime examples.

applied psychology

the application of the theories,

principles, and techniques of psychology to practical con- cerns, such as problems of living or coping, education, vo- cational guidance, industry, ergonomics, consumer affairs, advertising, political campaigns, and environmental issues. It may be contrasted with theoretical psychology or aca- demic psychology, in which the emphasis is on understand- ing for its own sake rather than on the utility of the knowledge.

applied psychophysiology

the use or study of the

principles and techniques of psychophysiology to im- prove health, performance, or quality of life. See also clini- calpsychophysiology.

applied relaxation

a technique in which clients are

taught, in a stepwise fashion, to relax more and more rap- idly over a series of sessions in order to master panic, anxi- ety, phobias, pain, and other symptoms. The goal is for clients to be able to relax in 20 to 30 seconds in situations in which their symptoms typically occur. See also progres-

siverelaxation.

applied research

studies conducted to solve real-world

problems, as opposed to studies that are carried out to develop a theory or to extend basic knowledge. Examples include actionresearch and evaluationresearch. Com- pare basicresearch.

applied science

the use of scientific principles and the-

ories to serve a practical human purpose rather than to ex- tend knowledge for its own sake. Compare basicscience.

applied sport psychology

the use or study of the use

of sportpsychology to enhance or make consistent the performance of athletes.

applied statistics

the use of statistical methods and

procedures to understand data in psychology, sociology, economics, and other disciplines. Compare theoretical statistics.

applied tension

a technique in behaviortherapy that

focuses on changing physiological responses (e.g., low

blood pressure leading to fainting) by having the client practice muscle tensing and releasing during exposure to increasingly anxiety-evoking stimuli associated with a feared situation. The technique was developed and is still primarily used for blood, injury, and injection phobias.

applied verbal behavior

see verbalbehaviorther-

apy.

apport

n. 1. in spiritualism, the manifestation, allegedly

by supernatural means, of physical objects during a se- ance. Such objects are regarded as signs or gifts from the spirits. See also materialization. 2. an object produced in this way.

appraisal

n. the cognitive evaluation of the nature and

significance of a phenomenon or event. —appraise vb.

appraisal dimension

any of the criteria that account

for a person’s evaluation of an interaction with the envi- ronment and the generation of an appropriate emotional response. Examples of appraisal dimensions include the goal relevance of an event, its stimulus novelty, its judged pleasantness or unpleasantness, and a judgment of one’s

copingpotential in relation to this event. Different ap-

praisal theories emphasize different appraisal dimen- sions. See also stimulusevaluationchecks.

appraisal motive

see self-assessmentmotive.

appraisal theory

a group of theories stating that peo-

ple’s cognitive appraisals or evaluations of a situation de- termine the emotions they feel in response to the situation. See also cognitiveappraisaltheory.

apprehension

n. 1. uneasiness or dread about an

upcoming event or the future generally. Also called appre-

hensiveness. 2. the act or capability of grasping some-

thing mentally. Compare comprehension. —apprehend

vb. —apprehensible adj. —apprehensive adj.

apprehension span

the number of items that an indi-

vidual can report from a single brief exposure to an array of items. Typically the number reported is four or five. Also called span of apprehension. See also scopeofatten-

tion.

apprehension-span test

a test in which participants

report some aspect of a briefly presented array of items (e.g., letters). The wholereport task requires participants to report as many letters as they can. Recent studies have used a partialreport task, in which individuals must re- port the presence of a particular letter among a group of distractor letters in the briefly flashed display.

apprenticeship

n. a means by which a novice gains

practical experience in a trade or profession, often through a formal program of instruction and supervision from an experienced practitioner or a mentor. See also mentoring.

approach

n. 1. a move toward something (e.g., a stimu-

lus, a goal). 2. a particular method or strategy used to achieve a goal or purpose, for example, a psychodynamic approach in therapeutic practice.

approach–approach conflict

a situation involving

a choice between two equally desirable but incompatible alternatives. Also called double-approach conflict. See also approach–avoidance conflict; avoidance– avoidanceconflict.

approach–avoidance conflict

a situation involving a

single goal or option that has both desirable and undesira- ble aspects or consequences. The closer an individual

APS

A

comes to the goal, the greater the anxiety, but withdrawal from the goal then increases the desire. See also ap- proach–approach conflict; avoidance–avoidancecon-

flict; doubleapproach–avoidanceconflict.

Approach Control Test

a test for simulation and as-

sessment of air traffic control for management of aircraft approaching airports. It assesses the influence of stress fac- tors, such as time pressures.

approach coping

any strategy for managing a stressful

event or situation in which a person actively focuses on the problematic event or situation. Approach strategies may be cognitive in nature (e.g., trying to see the positive side of the situation, considering several alternatives for handling the situation) or behavioral (e.g., trying to find out more about the situation, seeking help from other people who have had similar experiences, praying for guidance, and bargaining or compromising to get something positive from the situation). Although generally seen as more adap- tive than avoidancecoping, approach strategies do have certain potential costs as well: The orientation toward threatening material can lead to increased distress and, when there is no possibility for changing the situation or for assimilating emotionally to it, nonproductive worry. [identified in 1986 by Susan H. Roth (1948– ), U.S. per- sonality psychologist, and Lawrence J. Cohen (1958– ), U.S. clinical psychologist]

approach gradient

the variation in the strength of a

drive as a function of the organism’s proximity to its goal. For example, a rat’s goal-directed behavior increases in in- tensity as it nears its goal of food. The approach gradient appears less steep than the avoidancegradient. [origi- nally proposed by Neal E. miller]

approach motivation

expectation of reward (e.g., a

positive emotional experience), which is a condition for goal-directed behavior.

approach response

any behavior that brings an or-

ganism closer to a stimulus. See adience.

appropriate affect

an expression of mood or feeling

that is in harmony with, or naturally indicative of, the ac- companying thought, action, reaction, or verbal expres- sion.

appropriate death

the death a person would choose if

given the opportunity. The concept draws attention to the differing needs and values of individuals in the terminal phase of life and challenges the assumption that a good death has the same meaning for all people. palliative care, especially as given in hospices, attempts to protect individuality and offers a communication process and car- ing environment to provide the maximum possible oppor- tunity for the dying person to make personally meaningful decisions. [introduced by U.S. psychiatrist Avery D. Weis- man]

approximation

n. the process of obtaining a value that

is at least close to the desired or actual value. For example, one might round a measurement to the nearest decimal place for ease of subsequent calculations. The degree of in- accuracy inherent to this process is known as approxima- tion error.

approximation conditioning

see shaping.

appurtenance

n. in gestaltpsychology, interaction or

mutual influence between parts of a perceptual field so that the parts appear to belong together. [defined in 1935 by Kurt koffka]

apractagnosia

n. an impaired ability to organize, re-

member, and perform a sequence of movements or skilled motor activities or to analyze spatial relationships. The condition is due to lesions in the lower part of the occipital and parietal lobes of the brain.

apraxia

n. loss or impairment of the ability to perform

purposeful, skilled movements despite intact motor func- tion and comprehension. The condition may be develop- mental or induced by neurological dysfunction and is believed to represent an impairment of the ability to plan, select, and sequence the motor execution of movements. There are several major types of apraxia, including bucco- facial (or orofacial) apraxia, involving difficulty performing skilled facial movements; ideational apraxia, involving diffi- culty carrying out in the proper order a series of acts that comprise a complex task; ideomotor apraxia, involving dif- ficulty imitating actions or gesturing to command; limb ki- netic (or melokinetic) apraxia, involving difficulty making precise, coordinated but individual finger movements; and

speech (or verbal) apraxia, involving difficulty coordinating the movements necessary for speaking. See also develop- mentalapraxiaofspeech. —apraxic adj.

apraxia of gait

see gaitapraxia.

apraxia of speech

a speech-articulation disorder due

to lack of coordination of the muscles used in speaking, in the absence of sensory loss or paralysis. Also called

apraxic dysarthria. See also developmentalapraxiaof speech.

apraxic agraphia

see graphomotorapraxia.

A prime

(symbol: A9) a measure of the sensitivity for cor- rectly detecting or remembering a stimulus in a task or test. This measure is based on the nonparametric theory of signal detection, which does not make stringent assump- tions about the distribution of responses. See signaldetec-

tiontheory.

a priori

denoting conclusions derived from premises or

principles: deducing from prior assumptions. Compare a posteriori. [Latin, “prior to”]

a priori comparison

any examination in which two or

more quantities are compared in accordance with plans es- tablished prior to conducting a research study. For exam- ple, even before data are collected, a researcher might hypothesize that two groups given personal instruction would show better mean performance on a task compared to those who receive only written instruction. Thus, he or she could decide in advance to compare the combined per- sonal instruction groups to the written instruction groups. Also called a priori contrast; planned comparison (or

contrast). Compare posthoccomparison.

apriorism

n. in philosophy, the position that asserts the

reality of innateideas and the validity of knowledge that is not created by or dependent upon experience. It is thus the opposite of empiricism.

aprosexia

n. inability to focus attention.

aprosody

n. absence of the normal variations in the

rhythm, stress, and pitch of speech, resulting in monotone speech. Unusual or abnormal variations are known as dys- prosody (or dysprosodia). Also called aprosodia.

APS

1. abbreviation for americanpainsociety. 2. abbre- viation for americanphilosophicalsociety. 3. abbrevia- tion for americanpsychosomaticsociety. 4. abbreviation

APsaA

A

for called American Psychological Society. association for psychological science, formerly

APsaA

abbreviation for americanpsychoanalyticasso-

ciation.

aptitude

n. the capacity to acquire competence or skill

through training. Specific aptitude is potential in a particu- lar area (e.g., artistic or mathematical aptitude); general aptitude is potential in several fields. Both are distinct from

ability, which is an existing competence.

aptitude measure

a unit, instrument, or system for cal-

culating one’s capacity to acquire competence or skill through training, by comparison with a peer standard.

Aptitude Research Project tests

see arptests.

aptitude test

any assessment instrument designed to

measure potential for acquiring knowledge or skill. Apti- tude tests are thought of as providing a basis for making predictions for an individual’s future success, particularly in an educational or occupational situation. In contrast,

achievementtests are considered to reflect the amount of learning already obtained.

aptitude–treatment interaction

(ATI) a phenome-

non in which people with certain attributes (e.g., personal- ity traits, cognitive styles) respond better to one type of intervention, whereas people with different attributes re- spond better to another. For example, people with high spa- tial aptitudes might learn better when material is presented to them visually with charts and diagrams, whereas people with high verbal aptitudes might learn better when the same material is presented in words. The influence of per- sonal characteristics on treatment outcome is of particular interest in educational and psychotherapeutic contexts, given the goal of finding the optimal instructional method or intervention for different types of people. [identified in 1977 by U.S. psychologists Lee J. cronbach and Richard Eric Snow (1936–1997)]

AQ

abbreviation for achievementquotient.

AQS

abbreviation for attachmentq-set.

Aquachloral

n. a trade name for chloralhydrate.

aqueduct of Sylvius

see cerebralaqueduct. [Francis-

cus Sylvius (1614–1672), Dutch anatomist]

aqueous humor

the clear fluid that occupies the ante-

rior and posterior chambers of the eye. It is produced by the epithelium of the ciliaryprocesses, which are part of the ciliarybody.

arachidonic acid

a long-chain, polyunsaturated fatty

acid that is a component of cell membranes. When liber- ated from the membrane by the enzyme phospholipase A2, it is transformed into a series of compounds known as ei- cosanoids, which serve as precursors for prostaglandins, thromboxanes, anandamide, and leukotrienes.

arachidonoylethanolamide

(AEA) n. see endoge-

nouscannabinoid.

2-arachidonoylglycerol

(2-AG) n. see endogenous

cannabinoid.

arachneophobia

n. see spiderphobia.

arachnoid

n. see arachnoidmater.

arachnoid granulations

a series of extensions of the

middle layer of the meninges (arachnoidmater) through

the outer layer (duramater) that permits cerebrospinal fluid to drain into the bloodstream.

arachnoid mater

the middle one of the three membra-

nous layers (meninges) covering the surface of the brain and spinal cord, so called because its strands of tissue re- semble spiders’ webs. Also called arachnoid; arachnoid

membrane.

arachnophobia

n. see spiderphobia.

Arago phenomenon

the impaired sensitivity to light

that exists in the center of the visual field under poor light conditions. It is presumably caused by the absence of reti-

nal rods in the fovea centralis. See scotopic vision. [Dominique Arago (1786–1853), French physicist]

Aran–Duchenne disease

see spinalmuscularatro-

phy. [François Aran (1817–1861), French physician; Guil- laume Duchenne (1806–1875), French neurologist]

ARAS

abbreviation for ascendingreticularactivating system.

arbitrary inference

a cognitivedistortion in which

a person draws a conclusion that is unrelated to or contra- dicted by the evidence.

arbitrary matching to sample

a variation of match-

ingtosample in which the correct alternative during the choice phase bears an arbitrary relationship to the stimu- lus presented as the sample. For example, after presenta- tion of a blue stimulus as a sample, the correct choice may be to select a triangle. Also called symbolic matching to

sample.

arbitrary symbol

a linguistic sign (a written or spoken

word) that bears no obvious resemblance to the thing or concept signified (see referent). Because the vast majority of words in all languages are considered to fall into this category, arbitrariness is often cited as an important char- acteristic of human languages; this idea is of central signif- icance in the structuralist approach to linguistics (see

structuralism). Compare iconic symbol. See also pho- neticsymbolism.

arbitration

n. a method of settling controversies in

which the parties involved present their arguments and supporting information to an impartial agent, such as a judge or, in a labor dispute, an arbitrator or arbitration board. By mutual agreement, the arbiter’s decision is final. This process is distinguished from mediation, in which the outside agent (the mediator or conciliator) seeks to help the parties reach a mutually acceptable agreement. —ar-

bitrate vb.

arborization

n. a branching, treelike structure, as of the

dendrites of a neuron. Arborization adds to the complex- ity of neurons and neuronal circuitry.

archaic inheritance

presumed phylogenetic influences

in the development of the individual’s mental processes, such as the racialmemory and archetypes of Carl jung’s

analyticpsychology. See phylogeny.

archetype

n. 1. a prototypical example of something or

the original model from which something is held to derive. See also prototype. 2. in the analytic psychology of Carl jung, any one of a set of symbols representing aspects of the psyche that derive from the accumulated experience of humankind. These inherited symbols are held in the

collectiveunconscious and serve as a frame of reference with which individuals view the world and as one of the foundations on which the structure of personality is built.

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