AP Psychology - Final AP Exam Review

All Terms Studied and need to Know for Final Exam Unit 1 - Approaches to Psychology Unit 2 - Scientific Foundations of Psychology Unit 3 - Biological Bases of Behavior Unit 4 - Sensation and Perception Unit 5 - Consciousness Unit 6 - Learning

Unit 1 - Approaches to Psychology

Now Entering Unit 1

Plato

Proposed that the human psyche was the seat of all knowledge and that the human mind was imprinted with all of the knowledge it needed

Aristotle

He wrote much about the philosophy of the mind

Rene Descartes

The first to write of the concept of emotions

John Locke

Personal identity is a matter of psychological continuity

Wilhelm Wundt

Established the very first psychology laboratory in Leipzig Germany in 1879

Dorothea Dix

Founded or expansion of more than 30 hospitals for the treatment of the mentally ill

Margaret Floy Washburn

Developed her motor theory which said that thought or consciousness could be seen in bodily movements

Mary Whiton Calkins

Based her system on the conviction that the foundational unit of study for psychology should be the conscious self

G. Stanley Hall

First American to earn a PhD in Psychology. First to open a psychology lab in the US. First president of the APA

Charles Darwin

Provided two key theories - natural selection and sexual selection

Empiricism

The idea that what we know comes from experience, and that observation and experimentation enable scientific knowledge

Dualism

The view that the mind and body both exist as separate entities

Structuralism

Early school of thought promoted by Wundt and Titchener; used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind

Introspection

The examination or observation of one's own mental and emotional processes

Functionalism

Early school of thought promoted by James and influenced by Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral processes function- how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish

Behaviorism

The view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2).

SQ3R

A study method incorporating five steps: Survey, Question, Read, Retrieve, Review

Tabula Rasa

"A blank slate"

Basic Research

Theory driven, hypothesis testing science driven by a quest for fundamental understanding

Nature vs. Nurture Issue

The longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors

Psychology

Behavior: the way in which someone conducts oneself or behaves

Mental Processes: all the things that a human mind can do naturally

Natural Selection

the principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those contributing to reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations

Biopsychosocial Approach

An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis

Applied Research

A scientific study within the field of psychology that focuses on solving problems, curing illness, and innovating new technologies

Positive Psychology

The scientific study of human functioning, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive

Humanistic Psychology

A historically significant perspective that encompasses the growth potential of healthy people

Cognitive Psychology

The scientific study of all the mental activities associated with thinking knowing and remembering and communicating

Evolutionary Psychology

The study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection

Biological Perspective

A way of looking at psychological issues by studying the physical basis for animal and human behavior

Psychodynamic Perspective

Encompasses a number of theories that explain both normal and pathological personality development in terms of the dynamics of the mind

Developmental Psychology

Study how people grow develop and adapt at different life stages

Social-Cultural Psychology

Considers the way that different individuals interact with their social groups and how these social groups influence different individuals and how they develop throughout their lives

Human Factors Psychology

The study of how people and machines interact and technology

Social Psychology

Study interpersonal and group dynamics and social challenges such as prejudice, implicit bias, bullying, criminal activity, and substance abuse

Personality Psychology

Centered on identifying describing and measuring the specific traits that make up human personality

Industrial-Organizational Psychology

Focus on the behavior of employees in the workplace (I/O)

Psychiatry

Specializes in mental health, including substance use disorders

Community Psychologists

Help vulnerable groups to build resilience and strength, social support networks as well as understand the social impacts of environmental issues

Behavioral Perspective

The way we behave and learn can be explained through our interactions with the environment

Counseling Psychology

Focus on facilitating personal and interpersonal functioning across the lifespan

Educational Psychology

Study almost everything about students and analyze their learning process.

Unit 2 - Scientific Foundations of Psychology

Now Entering Unit 2

Culture

The distinctive customs, values, beliefs, knowledge, art, and language of a society or a community

Hindsight Bias

The tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it

Critical Thinking

Thinking that analyzes and evaluates evidence rather than relying on blindly accepting arguments or opinions as facts

Theory

An explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and predicts behaviors or events

Hypothesis

A testable prediction, often implied by a theory

Operational Definition

A carefully worded statement of the exact procedures used in a research study

Replication

Repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic finding extends to other participants and circumstances

Case Study

An observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles

Naturalistic Observation

Observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation

Survey

A technique for ascertaining the self-reported attitudes or behaviors of a particular group, usually by questioning a representative, random sample of the group

Sampling Bias

A systematic and directional error involved in the choice of units, cases, or participants from a larger group for study

Population

All the cases in a group being studied, from which samples may be drawn

Random Sample

A sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion

Correlation

A measure of the extent to which two variables change together, and thus of how well either variable predicts the other.

Correlation Coefficient

A statistical index of the relationship between two variables

Variable

Something in an experiment that can change or be altered such as a characteristic or value

Scatterplots

A graphed cluster of dots, each of which represents the values of two variables.

Illusory Correlation

The perception of a relationship where none exists

Regression Toward The Mean

The tendency of results that are extreme by chance on first measurement ie. extremely high or low than average to move closer to the average when measured a second time

Vaildity

The extent to which a test measures or predicts what its supposed to

Experiment

A research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process

Experimental Group

In an experiment, the group that is exposed to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent variable.

Control Group

In an experiment, the group that is not exposed to the treatment, serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment.

Randomly Assign

Assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance

Double Blind Procedure

Experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo

Placebo Effect

Experimental results caused by expectations alone

Independent Variable

The experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied.

Confounding Variable

A factor other than the independent variable that might produce an effect in an experiment

Dependent Variable

The outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable.

Descriptive Statistics

Numerical data used to measure and describe characteristics of groups. Includes measures of central tendency and measures of variation.

Histogram

A bar graph depicting a frequency distribution

Mode

The most frequently occurring score(s) in a distribution

Mean

The arithmetic average of a distribution, obtained by adding the scores and then dividing by the number of scores

Median

The middle score in a distribution; half the scores are above it and half are below it

Range

The gap between the lowest and highest scores

Skewed

One where frequency data is not spread evenly; data is cluster at one end

Normal Curve

A symmetrical bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data

Standard Deviation

A measure of dispersion that shows the spread of scores around the mean

Statistical Significance

The degree to which a research outcome cannot reasonably be attributed to the operation of chance or random factors

Participant Bias

When the participants involved in research respond in a manner that suggests they are trying to match up with the desired result of the researcher

Informed Consent

The process by which researchers working with human participants describe their research project and obtain the subjects consent to participants in the research based on the subjects understanding of the projects methods and goals

Debriefing

A set of procedures including counseling and the giving of information aimed at preventing psychological morbidity and aiding recovery after a traumatic event

Skewed Distribution

One where frequency data is not spread evenly; the data is clustered at one end

Inferential Statistics

Ways of analyzing data using statistical tests that allow the researcher to make conclusions about whether a hypothesis was supported by the results

Meta Analysis

Where researchers combine the findings from multiple studies to draw an overall conclusion

External Validity

The extent to which we can generalize findings of a study to other situations, people, settings, and measures

Internal Vailidity

The degree of confidence that the causal relationship being tested is trustworthy and not influenced by other factors or variables

Nominal

Frequency or count data that consists of the number of participants falling into categories

Ordinal

A variable whose possible values have a clear rank order

Z-Score

A statistic that tells us where a score lies in relation to the population mean

P-Score

A number, calculated from a statistical test, that describes how likely you are to have found a particular set of observations if the null hypothesis were true

IRB

Federally-mandated, locally-administered groups changed with evaluating risks and benefits of human participant research at their institution

Coercion

The process of attempting to influence another person through the use of threats, punishments, force, direct pressure, and other negative forms of powers

Anonymity

There is no way for anyone (including the researcher) to personally identify participants in the study

Unit 3 - Biological Bases of Behavior

Now Entering Unit 3

Neuron

A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system

Dendrite

A neuron's often bushy, branching extensions that receive and integrate messages, conducting impulses toward the cell body