G

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galvanic skin response (GSR) a measure of the change in electrical resistance of the skin, commonly used as a measure of autonomic reaction and arousal.

gender: term commonly used to refer to the psychological characteristics (e.g. behaviour and attitudes) of being male and female (in contrast to ‘sex’ which refers to purely physiological characteristics).

gender identity: an individual’s perception about whether they are male or female.

gender roles: a given culture or society’s acceptable set of attitudes and behaviours for each gender.

gene: biological units of heredity, crucial for transmitting traits.

general adaptation syndrome (GAS):
a model,
proposed by
Hans Selye, depicting
physiological mechanisms
that occur in response to a
stressor over an extended period
of time. There are three stages: (a) alarm stage which
activates an
arousal response (e.g. to fight or flee); (b)
resistance stage when body is attempts to cope with the
stressor; (c) exhaustion stage takes place if the
stressor continues over a long period of time, leading to
physical symptoms such as stomach ulcers.


general
intelligence (g):

mental
attribute that underlies a range of
intellectual tasks.
Proposed by
Charles Spearman,
who found
that people that performed well on one type of
mental
ability test also tended to do well on other types of test.


generalisability:
the extent to which findings based on an study using a
sample of
participants are representative of the target
population or of other populations.



genetic:

inherited; having to do with
information that is passed from parents to children through
genes in sperm and egg cells.

genetics:
the study of
heredity of physical and
psychological traits.


genius:

a term used to describe a person with exceptional ability
and creativity within a particular field, for instance
intellect (by defining
IQS of 140 + as the guideline for
genius).

 

genital
stage:
in
psychoanlaytic
theory, the last stage of
psychosexual
development
, when the main source of pleasure is the
genitals.

 

genotype:

the genetic code which is inherited and carried in
DNA.


Gestalt:

a German word (translated as configuration?or organised
whole? that emphasises that the whole (whether of a person
or image) is greater than the sum of its parts.


Gestalt
psychology
:
approach that views
psychological
phenomena, such as
perception, learning and thinking, as organised, structured
wholes. For instance, the Gestalt approach to
problem solving seeks the need for structural understanding
in comprehending how different parts of the problem fit
together to reach the goal.


Gestalt
therapy:

a
therapy
that considers all dimensions of a person’s life and
experience, to stimulate personal growth and increased
self-awareness, in order to develop a sense of the whole
person.


goal state:

in problem solving, the desired outcome of a problem.



gratification:
is the positive
emotional response
(happiness) to a fulfilment of desire.



group dynamics:

the branch of

social psychology
that studies the

psychodynamics
of interaction in social groups.


group
polarisation:

the
tendency for groups to shift to make more extreme decisions
than decisions made independently by members of the group.
If individual members of a group are already cautious in
their attitude, they will demonstrate a shift toward an even
more cautious attitude during group discussion within a
like-minded group. When individuals are less cautious before
group discussion, they are likely to show a shift towards
more risky decisions.


group
therapy:

when
therapeutic sessions are carried out in groups rather than
individually, whereby the therapist acts as a facilitator
amongst the group. Group
therapy can help individuals feel
less isolated and through fostering social interaction, are
able to discuss with and help others.


groupthink:

the
tendency for decision making groups to reach a conclusion
that is extreme and which tend to be unwise or unrealistic,
as a result of discounting information that is inconsistent
with their view and expressing disapproval against any
member who disagrees.

guilt:
is a higher form of development than
shame. Guilt has an
internal punitive voice which operates at the level
superego
(an internalised punitive harsh parental figure). There are
two kinds of guilt: Valid guilt and invalid guilt.

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