AP Psych Unit Vocab 1-30

Absolute Refractory Period

After firing, no chance of a refire until regrouped or at proper voltage

Absolute threshold

the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus

Accommodation

The lens changing shape to focus on objects at different distances

Achievement test

a test designed to assess what a person has learned

Activation-Synthesis Theory

Proposes that dreams result from the brain's attempt to make sense of random neural activity during REM sleep

Addiction

Compulsive drug use despite harmful consequences

Adverse Childhood Experiences

Events including abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction that can have lasting impacts on relationships.

Agonist vs. antagonist chemicals

a. Agonist - chemical (drug or poison) that mimics or facilitates a neurotransmitter

b. Antagonist - a chemical (drug or poison) that opposes the action of a neurotransmitter

Alzheimer's Disease

A degenerative brain disorder leading to memory loss and cognitive decline.

All-or-Nothing Principle

A neuron either fires completely or not at all

Amplitude

The magnitude of a wave; the primary determinant of loudness.

Animism

A belief, typically in young children, that inanimate objects have feelings, thoughts, or life-like qualities

Anxious Attachment Style

An attachment style characterized by a strong desire for closeness but fear of abandonment

Anterograde Amnesia

Involves the inability to form new memories after the onset of amnesia

Aptitude test

a test designed to predict a person’s future performance

Arousal Theory

Proposes people seek an optimal level of psychological arousal and engage in behaviors to maintain that level.

Assimilation

The process of interpreting new information in terms of existing schemas

Autobiographical Memory

Memory of personal experiences and events

Availability Heuristic

Basing our judgement regarding the likelihood of an event on how readily information comes to our mind.

Aversive conditioning

type of counter conditioning that associates an unpleasant state with an unwanted behavior

Avoidant Attachment Style

An attachment style where individuals are emotionally distant and avoid intimacy in relationships

Belief Perseverance

The tendency to cling to a belief even when presented with contradictory evidence. Is very difficult to overcome

Bell curve

for the rule of normal distribution is:

a) 68% of all observations fall within the standard deviation of the mean

b) 95% of all observations fall within 2 degrees of the standard deviation of the mean

c) 99.7% of the observations fall within 3 degrees of the standard deviation of the mean

Big Five Theory

Proposes that personality can be described by five broad dimensions or traits: agreeableness, openness to experience, extraversion, conscientiousness, and emotional stability.

Biological Preparedness

The idea that organisms are biologically programmed to learn certain associations more easily than others

Blindsight

Ability to respond to visual stimuli without consciously perceiving them.

Bottom-Up Processing

Use of sense receptors to take in energy and register raw data. The act of sensing.

Brain Plasticity

Ability of the brain to rewire itself or modify or create new connections throughout development. Allows for the function of a damaged part of the brain to be assumed by a different part

Broca’s Aphasia (expressive) located in the left frontal lobe

the inability to articulate ideas or understand spoken or written language because of brain damage/injury

Broca's Area

A brain region crucial for speech production