Chris Drew (PhD)

Weber’s law, also known as Weber-Fechner law, explains that perception of intensity of a stimulus grows at a slower rate than the actual physical intensity. When dealing with intense stimuli (high initial intensity), larger changes are necessary for stimulus discrimination detection than those with less sensitive ones.  For example, imagine holding two weights – one […]

Adaptive functioning refers to a person’s ability to effectively manage daily living tasks and social interactions as compared to their age, cultural, and environmental expectations. For example, suppose a child can dress appropriately for the weather and age-appropriately interact with peers. In that case, they are demonstrating adaptive functioning skills. Similarly, an adult who can

The term “affect” refers to an underlying state or feeling a person has that is connected to their emoitons. Affective states are usually described along two dimensions: valence (from positive to negative) and arousal (from high to low). In common parlance, the terms affect and emotion are often used interchangeably. Even academics use the two

Automatic processing refers to mental activity that does not require conscious effort or control. There are some cognitive tasks that an individual can perform without even thinking about it. In some cases, there simply is no need to expend a great deal of mental effort or concentration to perform a given task. Researchers usually define

Circular logic occurs when the supporting premise of one statement is based on the premise of another statement, which in turn is based on the support of a preceding statement. Since each statement is supported by the other, there is no way to disprove any of them. This line of thinking is often referred to

Effortful processing refers to mental activity that requires conscious effort. When engaged in thinking about a given subject or performing a task mentally, the individual must concentrate when processing the information related to those tasks. Effortful processing is sometimes referred to as controlled processing. For example, reading text regarding a complex subject requires concentration. The

A psychosocial stressor is a life event or situation that creates stress. It may be a mildly stressful event such as being stuck in a traffic jam or a more severe stressor such as enduring a chronic disease. The unfortunate thing about psychosocial stress, is that even positive events can create stress (referred to as

Article Summary Social-cognitive theory (SCT) is a theory of learning that examines how cognitive processes and environmental factors influence behavior. The theory considers how the individual’s past experiences, including reinforcements and interpretations of the environment through individual-specific cognitive processes, combine to shape expectations and behavior in any given situation. An individual’s behavior shapes the environment,

Structuralism and functionalism are two early schools of thought in psychology. The former studied the mind’s structure while the latter focused on its functions. Structuralism was developed by Wilhelm Wundt and his student Edward Titchener in the late 19th century. The primary focus of this approach is to understand the basic elements of the mind,