NCERT Class 11 Psychology Glossary

 Glossary

Absolute threshold: The minimum intensity necessary for a stimulus to be detected.

Accommodation: Visual action of the ciliary muscles to change the shape of the lens. 

Acculturation: Cultural and psychological changes resulting from continuous, first-hand contact between two distinctive cultural groups. 

Achievement need/motive: Need to succeed, to perform better than others, to excel, to take challenging tasks which demonstrate person’s ability.

Acuity: The sharpness of vision.

Adolescence: The developmental period of transition from childhood to early adulthood, starting at approximately 11 to 12 years of age and ending at 18 to 20 years of age.

Adrenaline: A very vital hormone of the human body, which prepares one for fight, flight or fright response.

Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH): A hormone secreted by the anterior pituitary gland that stimulates the adrenal to secrete its corticoid hormones.

Aerial perspective: A monocular cue to depth perception consisting of the relative clearness of objects under varying atmospheric conditions. Nearer objects are usually clearer in detail and colour whereas farther objects are less distinct. Afferent neurons: Neurons involved in the process of sending information.

After images: A visual image that persists after a stimulus is removed.

All-or–none law: The rule that a neuron will always respond with its complete strength (action potential) to a stimulus or will not respond at all, regardless of the stimulus magnitude.

Amplitude: In sound waves, the distance from the baseline to the peak of each sincisoidal wave. In the EEG measurement, the distance from the maximal and minimal voltage in the EEG record. In either case, it is commonly used as a measure of intensity.

Amygdala: Two almond-shaped neural clusters that are components of the limbic system and are linked to emotion.

Animism: A facet of preoperational thought; the belief that inanimate objects have “lifelike” qualities and are capable of action.

Anxiety: A general feeling of apprehension or dread accompanied by predictable physiological changes.

Approach-approach conflict: Conflict characterising choice between two equally pleasurable or desirable goals.

Approach-avoidance conflict: Conflict caused by a situation that has both positive and negative aspects. The individual, who is both repulsed and attracted by the same goal, exhibits the feelings of ambivalence.

Arousal: A physiological state of the body. 

Artificial intelligence (AI): The field concerned with creating machines (e.g., computers) that can perform complex tasks formerly considered to require human intelligence.

Associative learning: Learning that certain events occur together. The events may be two stimuli (as in classical conditioning) or a response and its consequences (as in operant conditioning).

Please refer to attached file for NCERT Class 11 Psychology - Glossary