AP Psychology 2025 Unit 0 AP review

Psychology

The scientific study of mind and behavior

Behavioral Perspective

Focuses on how we learn observable responses

Biological Perspective

Focuses on the brain and body’s influence on emotions, memories, and sensory experiences

Cognitive Perspective

Focuses on encoding, processing, storing, and retrieving information

Evolutionary Perspective

Focuses on how natural selection of traits promotes survival

Humanistic Perspective

Focuses on how we meet needs for love and acceptance and achieve self-fulfillment

Psychodynamic Perspective

Focuses on how behavior springs from unconscious drives and conflicts

Social-Cultural Perspective

Focuses on how behavior and thinking vary across cultures and situations

Hindsight Bias

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

Confirmation Bias

Tendency to search for information that supports preconceptions

Overconfidence

Tendency to be more confident than correct

Peer Review

Process in which experts evaluate the quality of research before publication

Hypothesis

Testable prediction implied by a theory

Falsifiable

Ability of a theory or hypothesis to be proven false

Operational Definition

Definition of research variables in terms of procedures used to measure them

Replication

Repeating a research study to see if findings extend to other participants and circumstances

Survey

Obtaining self-reported attitudes or behaviors, usually through questionnaires

Social Desirability Bias

Tendency to answer questions in a socially acceptable manner

Self-Report Bias

Errors in responses when people report on their own behavior or feelings

Experimenter Bias

Researcher's expectations influence results of a study

Population

Entire group of individuals a researcher is interested in studying

Random Sample

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

Sample

Subset of a population used to generalize findings

Sampling Bias

Flawed process that produces an unrepresentative sample

Convenience Sampling

Using a sample based on availability or proximity to the researcher

Representative Sample

Sample with characteristics similar to the population

Case Study

In-depth study of one individual or group

Naturalistic Observation

Observing and recording behavior in natural environments

Meta-Analysis

Statistical technique combining results of multiple studies

Experiment

Research method where an independent variable is manipulated to observe its effect

Correlation

Measure of the extent to which two factors vary together

Correlation Coefficient

Statistical measure of the relationship between two variables, ranging from -1 to +1

Scatter Plot

Graph used to plot data to show correlation

Directionality Problem

Uncertainty about which variable causes changes in the other

Third Variable Problem

A third factor causes a relationship between two other variables

Regression Toward the Mean

Extreme scores tend to fall back toward average on retesting

Experimental Methodology

Research method involving manipulation of variables

Non-Experimental Methodology

Research that lacks manipulation of an independent variable

Independent Variable

Variable manipulated in an experiment

Dependent Variable

Variable measured in an experiment

Control Group

Group not exposed to treatment, used for comparison

Experimental Group

Group that receives the variable being tested

Random Assignment

Assigning participants to experimental or control groups by chance

Single-Blind

Participants don’t know if they are in the experimental or control group

Double-Blind

Neither researchers nor participants know group assignments

Placebo Effect

Change resulting from expectations rather than actual treatment

Confounding Variable

Other variable that may affect the dependent variable

Informed Consent

Participants are informed about study and agree to take part

Informed Assent

Minors' process of agreeing to participate in research

Protect from Harm

Ethical guideline requiring researchers to avoid physical/psychological harm

Confidentiality

Participants’ data must be kept private

Debriefing

Explaining the true nature of the study after it ends

Quantitative Research

Uses numerical data to assess variables

Qualitative Research

Uses descriptive, non-numerical data

Likert Scales

Numerical scale used to assess attitudes with labeled endpoints

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

Group that reviews and approves human research studies

Research Confederates

People who assist in an experiment but are not actual participants

Mean

Average of scores in a distribution

Median

Middle score in a distribution

Mode

Most frequently occurring score

Percentile Rank

Percentage of scores below a given score

Skewed Distribution

Distribution with lack of symmetry

Bimodal Distribution

Distribution with two peaks

Range

Difference between highest and lowest values

Standard Deviation

Average amount scores vary from the mean

Normal Curve

Bell-shaped curve showing typical distribution of many traits

Statistical Significance

Measure of how likely results occurred by chance

p-value

Probability that a result occurred by chance

Statistical Inference

Generalizing from a sample to the population

Effect Size

Measure of the strength of a relationship or difference between groups