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behavior control

1. the use of conditioning, therapeutic techniques, or other methods to steer individual or group behavior in a desired direction. For example, behavior control may be used to help children with conduct problems engage in more appropriate actions at school and at home. In some contexts, the term also refers to the misuse of certain treatments (e.g., drugs) to manage institutionalized individuals, particularly patients with mental illnesses.

2. see fate control.

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Psychology term of the day

February 17th 2025

sexually dimorphic nucleus

sexually dimorphic nucleus

a nucleus of the central nervous system that differs in size between males and females. In humans, for example, a nucleus in the medial preoptic area of the hypothalamus that synthesizes gonadotropin-releasing hormone tends to be larger and more active in males than in females because gonadotropin release is continuous (it is cyclical in females). In songbirds whose males sing more than females, several brain nuclei associated with both song learning and song production are larger in males than in females.