AP Psychology

Psychology

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes

central nervous system

brain and spinal cord, body's decision maker

Darrin is watching a horror movie. When the evil main character makes a surprise appearance, Darrin jumps out of his seat, his heart rate accelerates, and he screams.

Which of the following pathways most directly contributes to his ability to calm down after this startle response?

The parasympathetic nervous system

A researcher conducted a study to investigate whether women in the first trimester of pregnancy score higher on levels of disgust than women who are in a later stage of pregnancy. The researcher believes that being more selective about food choices helps pregnant women avoid diseases that could harm their fetuses.

A researcher from which of the following psychological perspectives would most likely be interested in examining this relationship?

Evolutionary

Annette begins staring at the red, white, and blue colors of the flag hanging at the front of her classroom. When she shifts her gaze to the white wall, she perceives a green, black, and yellow afterimage of this flag. Which of the following theories best explains Annette's experience?

Opponent-process

Dr. Cruickshank conducted a study to examine whether cerebral cortex activity in the brain would be higher during memory retrieval for a test or during the initial learning process. She conducted brain scans on 10 volunteers while they were learning a new set of vocabulary words and while they were given a test on the same vocabulary words.

In which lobes of the brain should Dr. Cruickshank expect to see activity when subjects process the sounds of the vocabulary words?

Temporal lobes

The neurotransmitter that is primarily associated with the feeling of wanting something is

dopamine

Which of the following is classified as an antagonist?

An antidepressant, because they block serotonin and norepinephrine receptors.

Holly asks her brother to turn up the music he is playing so she can hear it better. He turns it up one level, and Holly asks him why he didn't turn it up like she asked. Which of the following concepts explains why Holly did not think her brother turned up the music?

The volume had not yet reached the just-noticeable difference threshold.

Which of the following scenarios most clearly describes the effects of a strong kinesthetic sense?

Being able to tell exact bodily position without looking at the body

Which of the following scenarios is most likely to result in impairment of the kinesthetic sense?

damage to cerebellum

MacKeller looks at the blooming cherry trees on a visit to Washington, DC's National Cherry Blossom Festival. Which of the following refers to the transformation of the visual image of the cherry trees into neural impulses that are perceived by the brain?

Transduction