AP Psychology Semester 1 Midterm

John Locke

Personal identity is a matter of psychological continuity

Empiricism

The idea that knowledge comes from experiences, and that observation and experimentation enable scientific knowledge

Wilhelm Wundt

Created the first psychology laboratory. Also the founder of structuralism.

Edward Bradford Titchener

Used introspection to search for the mind's structural elements

William James

Wrote the Principles of Psychology and is the founder of functionalism. He created the James-Lange theory and mentored Mary Whiton Calkins.

Charles Darwin

Developed theories of evolution and natural selection. His beliefs inspire the evolutionary approach in psychology.

Functionalism

Explored how mental and behavioral processes function- How they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish

John Watson

The father of behaviorism. He is famous for the controversial Little Albert🐁 experiment.

B. F. Skinner

A behaviorist psychologist. He created the theory of operant conditioning where he studied how consequences shape behavior.

Sigmund Freud

Father of psychoanalysis.

Cognitive Psychology

The study of mental processes, such as occur when we perceive, learn, remember, think, communicate, and solve problems

Ivan Pavlov

Known for his work in classical conditioning 🐶

Biopsychosocial Approach

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

Behavioral approach

How we learn observable responses

Psychodynamic

How behavior springs from unconscious drives and conflicts

Social-Cultural

How behavior and thinking vary across situations and cultures

Social Psychology

The scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another

Industrial-Organizational psychology

The application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces

Human Factors Psychology

An I/O psychology subfield that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use

Clinical Psychology

Studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders

Community Psychology

Studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups

Cognitive Psychologists

Psychologists who study the way people think, remember, and mentally organize information

Hindsight Bias

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

Overconfidence

We tend to think we know more than we do

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

Descriptive methods

Describe behaviors, often by using case studies, surveys, or naturalistic observations

Correlational Methods

A research method that examines how variables are naturally related in the real world. The researcher makes no attempt to alter the variables or assign causation between them.

Experimental Methods

Manipulate factors to discover their effects

Case study

In-depth analysis of a single event, situation, or individual

Naturalistic Observation

A descriptive technique of observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation

Survey

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

Social desirability bias

A tendency to give socially approved answers to questions about oneself.

Sampling bias

A flawed sampling process that produces an unrepresentative sample

Population

All those in a group being studied

Random Sample

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

Correlation

A measure of the extent to which two factors vary together, and thus of how well either factor predicts the other.

Correlation Coefficient

A statistical index of the relationship between two things (from -1 to +1)

Positive Correlation

Both variables move in same direction (up/up) (down/down)

Negative Correlation

Variables move in opposite directions (up/down) (down/up)

No correlation

no relationship between variables

Variable

Anything that can vary and is feasible and ethical to measure

Scatterplot

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

Slope suggests direction.

Amount of scatter suggests strength of correlation

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

The group exposed to the independent variable

Control Group

The group not exposed to the independent variable

Random Assignment

Randomly assigning participants to control or experimental group by chance to minimize preexisting differences.

Double-blind procedure

An experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant (blind) about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo.

- Commonly used in drug-evaluation studies.

Placebo Effect

Experimental results caused by expectations alone

Independent variable

Manipulated factor

Confounding variable

An alternate factor, not being studied, that might influence results

Dependent variable

Outcome that is measured

Lurking variable

A variable that is not among the explanatory or response variables in a study but that may influence the response variable

Validity

The extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to

Reliability

consistency of measurement

Longitudinal study

Research that follows and retests the same people over time

Cross-Sectional study

Research that compares people of different ages at the same point in time

Informed Consent

Giving potential participants enough info about about a study to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate

Debrief

Postexperimental explanations of a study, including its purpose and any deceptions, to its participants

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

Most frequently occurring value

Mean

Arithmetic average

Median

The middle score

Standard Deviation

Measure how much the scores vary around the mean score

Range

Difference between the highest and lowest score

Normal Curve

A symmetrical, bell-shape that describes the distribution of many types of data

Inferential statistics

Numerical data that allow one to generalize

Statistical significance

A statistical statement of how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chance

Fundamental Attribution Error

The tendency for observers, when analyzing another's behavior, to underestimate the impact of the situation and to overestimate the impact of personal disposition

Peripheral route persuasion

Occurs when people are influenced by incidental cues, such as a speaker's attractiveness

Central route persuasion

Occurs when interested people focus on the arguments and respond with favorable thoughts

Foot-in-the-door phenomenon

The tendency for people who have first agreed to a small request to comply later with a larger request

Door-in-the-face phenomenon

Tendency for people who won't agree to a large task, but then agree when a smaller request is made

Role

A set of expectations (norms) about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave

Cognitive dissonance theory

The theory that we act to reduce the discomfort we feel when our thoughts and our actions don't line up

Philip Zimbardo

1933-present; Field: social psychology; Contributions: proved that peoples behavior depends to a large extent on the roles they are asked to play; Studies: Stanford Prison Study-studied power of social roles to influence people's behavior

Social contagion

When you mimic an action that someone in your group does

Norms

Understood rules for accepted and expected behavior

Automcatic mimicry/chameleon effect

When someone unconsciously mimics social cues

Conformity

Adjusting one's behavior or thinking to coincide with a group standard.

Solomon Asch

Conducted famous conformity experiment that required subjects to match lines.

-Conformity

Normative social influence

Influence resulting from a person's desire to gain approval or avoid disapproval

Informational social influence

Influence resulting from one's willingness to accept others' opinions about reality

Stanley Milgram

Obedience to authority; had participants administer what they believed were dangerous electrical shocks to other participants

Obedience

A form of compliance that occurs when people follow direct commands, usually from someone in a position of authority

Social facilitation

iImproved performance on simple or well-learned tasks in the presence of others

Social inhibition

A decrease in performance in front of a crowd

Social loafing

The tendency for people in a group to exert less effort when pooling their efforts toward attaining a common goal than when individually accountable

Deindividuation

The loss of self-awareness and self-restraint occurring in group situations that foster arousal and anonymity

Group polarization

The enhancement of a group's prevailing inclinations through discussion within the group

Groupthink

The mode of thinking that occurs when the desire for harmony in a decision-making group overrides a realistic appraisal of alternatives

Culture

The enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next

Individualistic cultures

Cultures that emphasize the needs and goals of the individual over the needs and goals of the group

Collectivist cultures

Cultures in which people subordinate their personal goals to those of a stable community

Prejudice

An unjustifiable (and usually negative) attitude toward a group and its members. Prejudice generally involves stereotyped beliefs, negative feelings, and a predisposition to discriminatory action.

Stereotype

A generalized belief about a group of people

Discrimination

To act in negative and unjustifiable ways towards members of the group

Just-world phenomenon

The tendency for people to believe the world is just and that people therefore get what they deserve and deserve what they get