AP Psych Sem1

One of the reasons to study psychology is to

understand ourselves and others better.

Regarding the study of psychology, which of the following statements is FALSE?

Psychology is a static field that is based to a large extent on commonsense theories of behavior.

If you are conducting research to determine why people tend to be more aggressive when they are uncomfortable, then you are attempting to meet which goal in psychology?

understanding

Behavior is best described as

those things that a person intentionally does, excluding all behaviors that occur accidentally.

A psychologist who observes a child for a week and writes a report that identifies and classifies the child's behavior is working toward the goal of

description

A psychologist uses systematic desensitization to assist his client in overcoming a phobia. This illustrates the goal of

control

When current knowledge about an individual and his or her environment can be used to accurately forecast behavior at another time or in another setting, which scientific goal has been achieved?

prediction

Which of the following behaviors can best be described as overt behavior?

watching a TV game show

The psychological goal of understanding behavior is achieved when

psychologists can explain why a behavioral phenomenon occurs.

You are less likely to receive help if you have car trouble on a busy freeway than if you have car trouble on a sparsely traveled two-lane highway. Your ability to foretell your likelihood of receiving help illustrates the goal of

prediction

Psychology is different from the fields of history, law, and business because psychologyrelies on which of the following to answer questions about behavior?

scientific observations

Which of the following is the best example of covert behavior?

remembering a pleasant experience

Psychologists would best be described as

scientists, practitioners, and/or teachers

Overt behavior includes

Only those things that can be observed

Dorian is in the process of fully developing her personal potential and becoming the best person she can become. Dorian is exhibiting

self-actualization.

The idea that a behavior is controlled by rewards and punishments is most closely associated with

B.F. Skinner.

Max Wertheimer is associated with which of the following schools of thought?

Gestalt psychology

As used by Freud, the unconscious refers to

the area of the mind that lies outside of personal awareness

Which of the following would be considered humanistic psychologists?

Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers

Freud believed that mental life is like an iceberg with only a small part being exposed to view. He called the area of the mind that is not exposed and which lies outside of personal awareness the

unconscious

The founder of psychoanalytic psychology was

Sigmund Freud

You see a psychologist and tell her that you are feeling depressed. The psychologist talks to you about your past and attempts to link your present situation with unconscious patterns developed in your childhood as you interacted with your parents. The psychologist would probably belong to which school of psychology?

psychoanalytic psychology

The concept of self-actualization was developed by which theorist and is a key feature of which school of thought in psychology?

Maslow and humanism

When we see a painting by George Seurat, the famous French impressionist, we tend to experience it as a rendering of a lovely landscape rather than as the series of separate, differently colored dots of which the painting is actually composed. This phenomenon illustrates which school of thought in psychology?

Gestalt psychology

Which of the following theorists is associated with Gestalt psychology?

Max Wertheimer

Psychologists in which school of thought believed that thinking, learning, and perception should be studied in whole units rather than analyzing these experiences into smaller parts?

Gestalt psychology

Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow belong to which school of thought in psychology?

humanistic psychology

In shaping our personalities, Freud stressed the role of

unconscious thoughts.

If you heard only the individual notes of your favorite song played one per hour, you would not recognize it. However, when these notes are played together in the correct order and close in time as a melody, your favorite song is easily recognizable. The importance of being able to hear a melody rather than individual notes illustrates which school of thought in psychology?

Gestalt psychology

A learned reaction to a particular stimulus is called a(n)

conditioned response.

Which school of thought emphasizes that the psychological needs for love, self-esteem, belonging, self-expression, creativity, and spirituality are just as important as the biological needs for food and water?

humanism.

Skinner's contribution to behaviorism lies in his insistence that

one's actions are controlled by rewards and punishments.

According to Freud, unconscious thoughts are often revealed by

dreams, emotions, and slips of the tongue.

To solve problems in your life, a Gestalt psychologist might

suggest that you explore patterns in your behavior as a whole rather than analyzing each individual action.

Amy holds a doctorate in psychology. She has recently been hired by a prominent teaching hospital to conduct research into finding the best therapeutic techniques for patients suffering from acute psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia. Amy is most likely a

clinical psychologist

Most clinical psychologists hold a Ph.D. degree and follow a scientist-practitioner model, which means they

are trained to do either scientific research or therapy.

All psychologists do which of the following?

They all rely on critical thinking and information gained from scientific research.

A practitioner with an M.D. or Ph.D., who receives further training in the theories and therapy techniques developed by Sigmund Freud is probably a

psychoanalyst.

Requiring a master's degree and one to two years of supervised experience, this mental health professional does not treat serious mental disorders but uses practical helping skills with clients who have problems in their marriage, family, or career. This mental health professional described is a

licensed counselor.

Psychiatrists differ from psychologists because psychiatrists

are physicians with a specialization in abnormal behavior and psychotherapy.

Which degree in psychology emphasizes therapy skills rather than a research orientation?

Psy.D.

Aaron earned a Psy.D. This means that he will most likely be

employed by a university as a psychological researcher and professor.

Simon lives in Florida and has a bipolar disorder that requires medication to control his extreme mood swings. Simon's medication will need to be prescribed by which mental health professional?

psychiatrist

Dr. Dauphine has been studying consistent trends in how males and females have selected their mates throughout the long history of humankind. Dr. Dauphine is most likely a(n) \__________ psychologist.

evolutionary

The study of similarities and differences in the behavior of different species is called

comparative psychology

Psychologists who specialize in the treatment of human emotional problems are called \__________ psychologists.

clinical or counseling

Manuel is a psychologist employed by the human relations department of a car manufacturer. He helps select job applicants and also helps to improve workplace conditions and work relationships so that the company can operate effectively. Manuel is most likely a(n) \__________ psychologist.

industrial-organizational

Which type of psychologist would most likely study the improvements in children's memory as they age from three to 12 years?

developmental

If you read an article comparing the value of breastfeeding versus formula feeding on the physical growth of infants, the psychologist who wrote this article is probably a \__________ psychologist.

developmental

Dr. Bogato is a psychologist who works at a mental hospital with clients who have severe mental disorders, such as major depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. He works closely with the psychiatrists at the hospital and conducts psychotherapy with the residents. Dr. Bogato is most likely a \__________ psychologist.

clinical

Using a test she developed, Dr. Candel is able to distinguish among the students' different learning styles, that is, whether they are vision learners, auditory learners, tactile learners, etc. Dr. Candel is most likely a(n) \__________ psychologist.

educational

Quinton is studying the temperamental differences in persons exhibiting Type A and Type B behaviors. Quinton is most likely a \__________ psychologist.

social or personality

"I seek to understand the principles whereby a person's ability to think, speak, perceive, and learn changes as they go through the life span." This statement would most likely be made by a \__________ psychologist.

developmental

Which type of psychologists would be most likely to study the communication patterns of chimpanzees and porpoises?

comparative psychologists

John's poor performance in reading was found to be due to visual discrimination problems. This determination of the cause for his poor reading performance illustrates which goal of psychology?

understanding

Research on "bystander apathy" reveals that people often fail to help when other possible helpers are nearby due to a "diffusion of responsibility." Explaining this perplexing problem meets which goal of psychology?

understanding

An environmental psychologist helps redesign a college dorm to reduce feelings of crowding. The psychologist's work reflects which of psychology's goals?

control

Which goal of psychology is illustrated by a psychologist seeking to discover why sociopaths tend to repeat their destructive behavior?

understanding

Which goal of psychology involves naming or classifying behaviors and is based on making a detailed record of scientific observations?

description

An engineering psychologist helps redesign a car to make it safer and more fuel efficient. The psychologist's work reflects which of psychology's goals?

control

Students who do well on an intelligence test tend to do well in their school grades. This ability of the IQ tests to forecast future school success illustrates which goal of psychology?

prediction

Which question below relates most directly to the goal of controlling behavior?

How can child abuse be prevented?

Which of the following is the best description of the field of psychology?

the scientific study of overt behavior and mental processes

In an experiment, the group that serves as a point of reference for a comparison of results is the \__________ group.

control

Personal differences between the experimental and control group can be evenly balanced if each participant has an equal chance of being in either group through a process known as \__________.

Random assignment

In a carefully controlled experiment, the only possible cause for any effect noted in the dependent variable is the

Independent variable

In an experiment, control over extraneous variables, such as the time of day or the temperature of the room, can be obtained by

making all conditions except the independent variable exactly the same for all subjects.

In order to carefully control conditions and confirm or disconfirm a hypothesis about the causes of behavior, one must

perform an experiment

Which of the following is NOT a step in a psychological experiment?

administering the same independent variable to both groups

Experiments can determine cause-and-effect relationships with the suspected cause being the \__________variable.

independent

In an experiment if the obtained results would occur by chance in less than five experiments out of 100, the results

were statistically significant.

The chief function of the control group in an experiment is that it

provides a point of reference against which the behavior of the experimental group can be compared.

In an experiment to test the effects of a new flu drug, two groups are used. One group is given the drug, the other group is given a placebo. The group that receives the placebo is called the \__________ group.

control

You are conducting an experiment to determine if listening to music while studying improves learning. If there was no difference between the test performance of the experimental and control groups, then we can conclude that

listening to music while studying had no effect on learning.

In an experiment to study the effects of study skills training on academic achievement, the study skills training would be the \__________ variable.

Independent

In an experiment to study the effects of fertilizer on plants, the growth rate of the plants would be the \__________ variable.

Dependent

An experiment is performed to see if background music improves learning. Two groups study the same material, one while listening to music and another without music. The independent variable is

music

A researcher wants to determine the effect of sleep loss on human problem-solving. Subjects in an appropriate control group for such an experiment would be described as having

A normal amount of sleep

Suppose you want to find out if using cell phones while driving a car affects the likelihood of having an accident. Driving ability as defined by the scores achieved on a test of driving ability would be the \__________variable.

Dependent

An experiment is performed to test the effects of sleep deprivation on rote memory. In this experiment, the dependent variable is the

rote memory scores

In an experiment to study the effects of fertilizer on plants, the fertilizer used on each plant would be the \__________ variable.

independent

In an experiment to find out if taking Vitamin C decreases the number of colds one has during the winter, the number of colds would be the independent variable.

False

Changes in subjects' behavior caused by the unintended influence of an experimenter's actions is referred to as

Researcher bias

The placebo effect is a form of

research participant bias

A small, randomly selected part of a larger population that accurately reflects characteristics of the whole population is known as a

representative sample.

In-depth studies of the brain injuries of Phineas Gage and Michael Melnick are examples of

natural clinical tests.

Psychologists who want to make measurements to discover relationships between events use a technique called

the correlational method.

Naturalistic observation, correlational studies, the clinical method, and the survey method are considered \__________ methods.

nonexperimental

A correlational coefficient is best characterized as a(n)

measure of the extent of the relationship between two existing traits, behaviors, or events.

Correlations allow us to

predict behavior

A nonexperimental study designed to measure the degree of relationship (if any) between two or more events or variables is called a \__________ study.

correlational

Psychologists who want to study behavior as it unfolds in natural settings use a technique called

naturalistic observation.

From her studies of chimpanzees in the wild in Tanzania, Jane Goodall showed that humans are not the only tool-making animals. In discovering this information, Jane Goodall used which type of research method?

naturalistic observation

A police officer expecting criminal behavior shoots a person who is reaching for his wallet because he perceives the suspect as reaching for a gun. This is a dangerous example of the

observer bias.

Simister and Cooper decided to find out if there is a relationship between crime and the weather. They obtained data on temperatures and criminal activity in Los Angeles over a four-year period. When they graphed air temperature and the frequency of aggravated assaults, they found that assaults and temperatures rise and fall more or less in parallel. Therefore, knowing the temperature in Los Angeles now allows us to

predict the number of aggravated assaults.

Teachers in one study were told to watch normal elementary school children who had been labeled for the study as "learning disabled," "intellectually disabled," "emotionally disturbed," or "normal." Sadly, the teachers gave the children very different ratings, depending on the labels used. This illustrates the serious consequences of

The observer effect

A teacher asks the school psychologist to observe her class through the two-way mirror and determine why the class disruptions are occurring. Just as the psychologist is walking into the room off to the side of the classroom to observe, the teacher assistant tells the psychologist, "Pay close attention to Claire and Robert over there by the maps. I think they are the real troublemakers in the class." After this encounter, the school psychologist will have to struggle with the

observer bias

Kip is sorting scores into four classes of equal size, which she then puts in order. Kip is creating

frequency distribution.

Melissa is using the three measures of central tendency, which are types of

descriptive statistics

Graphical statistics, measures of central tendency, and measures of variability are the three basic types of \__________statistics.

descriptive