My Ultimate AP Psych Review

conflict

perceived incompatibility between individuals or groups about actions, goals, or ideas

attitudes

personal beliefs and feelings that influence our behavior and predispose us to respond in a particular way

attribution

a casual explanation of a given behavior

equity

a condition in which people receive from a relationship in proportion to what they give to it

informational social influence

results when one goes along with a group when one is unsure of what to do; results from one’s willingness to accept others’ opinions about reality

drive reduction theory

the idea that a physiological need creates an aroused state that motivates an organism to satisfy the need

criterion

the behavior that a test is designed to predict

acuity

sharpness of vision

angular gyrus

translates writing into speech

atherosclerosis

hardening of the arteries that leads to heart disease

behaviorism

view that psychology should be an objective science that studies behavior without reference to mental processes

belief bias

tendency for preexisting beliefs to distort reasoning

b lymphocytes

white blood cells that form in the bone marrow

cannon-bard theory

emotional experiences and physiological responses occur simultaneously, rather than one preceding the other

chc theory

our intelligence is based on g as well as specific abilities, bridged by gf and gc

concept

mental grouping of similar objects, events, or people

conduction hearing loss

caused by damage to the middle ear mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea

confirmation bias

leads to overconfidence; searching for info that supports our preconceptions and ignoring contradictory evidence

cornea

the eye’s clear, protective outer layer

dementia

the mental erosion that results from progressive damage to the brain

displacement

redirecting impulses to a less threatening object

electromagnetic energy

energy spectrum that contains visible light

empirically derived test

developed by testing a pool of items and then selecting those that discriminate the group of interest

feature detectors

nerve cells in the brain’s visual cortex that respond to specific features of the stimulus

freudian fixation

occurs when development becomes arrested in an immature psychosexual stage

freudian identification

the process by which the child’s superego develops and incorporates the parents’ values

functionalism

emphasizes the purpose and utility of behavior, focusing on how mental processes and actions help organisms adapt to their environment

gender identity

each person’s sense of being male or female, regardless of whether this identity matches sex assigned at birth

gender schema

theory that gender identity incorporates both cognition and social learning

general adaptation syndrome

concept of the body’s adaptive response to stress in 3 phases

gestalt therapy

helps people become aware of unconscious feelings and assume responsibility for them in the present

ghrelin

hormone produced by the stomach that stimulates hunger

habituation

simple form of learning; decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation

inner ear

responsible for the transduction of sound; contains the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs

iris

ring of muscle tissue that controls the size of the pupil opening

james-lange theory

holds that human bodies first experience physical sensations, and that humans will think, act, then feel afterwards

large nerve fiber

closes pain gate

lateral hypothalamus

when electrically stimulated, causes an animal to eat

left hemisphere

involved in tasks involving logic, language, and analytical thinking; specializes in arithmetic reasoning

lens

the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina

leptin

hormone produced primarily by fat tissue that plays a crucial role in regulating hunger, appetite, and energy balance within the body

middle ear

amplifies sound; contains 3 tiny bones that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea’s oval window

muller-lyer illusion

visual illusion involving the perception of line length

nanometer

unit of measurement for electromagnetic energy

oval window

sends amplified waves into the inner ear

peg word system

mnemonic strategy used to remember lists where each item is associated with a number-word pair

perceived control

an individual's subjective belief about their ability to influence or control events and outcomes in their life

premack principle

an opportunity to perform a more preferred behavior increases the probability of an individual engaging in a less preferred behavior

projection

disguising an impulse by imputing it to another person

projective test

personality test that provides ambiguous stimuli to trigger projection of one’s inner dynamics

psychphysics

study of the relationship between the physical characteristics of stimuli and our psychological experience of them

pupil

the adjustable opening in the center of the eye that admits light

R.E.S.T.

acronym for type of sensory restriction designed to reduce stress and help people become more open to positive influence

rational-emotive therapy

attempts to eliminate irrational thinking through a confrontational approach; vigorously challenges people’s illogical, self-defeating attitudes

reification

viewing an abstract concept as if it were a real, concrete thing

right hemisphere

specializes in spatial relations

self efficacy

our sense of competence and effectiveness

sensorineural hearing loss

caused by damage to the cochlea’s receptor cells or to the auditory nerve

small nerve fiber

opens pain gate

social leadership

group-oriented leadership that builds teamwork, mediates conflict, and offers support

synaptic cleft

tiny space between two neurons where they communicate through chemical signals

task leadership

goal-oriented leadership that sets standards, organizes work, and focuses attention on goals

telegraphic speech

the economical speech of children in the two-word stage; the child speaks like a telegram, using mostly nouns and verbs

theory

an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organize observations and predicts behaviors/events

two-factor theory

to experience emotion, one must be physically aroused, and cognitively label the arousal

wais

the most widely used adult intelligence test; contains verbal and performance sub-tests

wisc

the most widely used children intelligence test; contains verbal and performance sub-tests

x chromosome

what the father’s sperm contributes to produce a female

y chromosome

what the father’s sperm contributes to produce a male