AP Psychology Unit 3 Vocabulary

AP Psychology Unit 3 Learning Vocabulary

acquisition

In classical conditioning, the initial stage, when one links a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus begins triggering the conditioned response. In operant conditioning, the strengthening of a reinforced response.

adolescent egocentrism

a characteristic of adolescent thinking that leads young people (ages 10 to 13) to focus on themselves to the exclusion of others

adolescent growth spurt

a dramatic increase in height and weight that occurs during puberty

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

Stressful or traumatic experiences, including abuse, neglect, and a range of household dysfunction, such as witnessing domestic violence or growing up with substance abuse, mental disorders, parental discord, or crime in the home.

animism

belief that objects, such as plants and stones, or natural events, like thunderstorms and earthquakes, have a discrete spirit and conscious life

anxious insecure attachment

explores little, wary of strangers, distressed when parent departs, ambivalent when parent returns

attachment theory (Ainsworth)

the idea that early attachments with parents and other caregivers can shape relationships for a person's whole life

authoritarian parenting style

parents place a high value on conformity and obedience, are often rigid, and express little warmth to the child

authoritative parenting style

parenting style in which parents set clear standards for their children's behavior but are also responsive to their children's needs and wishes

avoidant insecure attachment

the child is not upset when the mother leaves, and does not seek contact when she returns

babbling stage

beginning at about 4 months, the stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds at first unrelated to the household language

behavioral perspective

An approach to the study of psychology that focuses on the role of learning in explaining observable behavior.

biological preparedness

referring to the tendency of animals to learn certain associations, such as taste and nausea, with only one or few pairings due to the survival value of the learning

chronosystem

historical changes that influence the other systems

classical conditioning

a type of learning in which one learns to link two or more stimuli and anticipate events

cognitive map

a mental representation of the layout of one's environment

concrete operational stage

in Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 6 or 7 to 11 years of age) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events

conditioned response

in classical conditioning, the learned response to a previously neutral (but now conditioned) stimulus

conditioned stimulus

in classical conditioning, an originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to trigger a conditioned response

conservation

the principle that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects

continuous reinforcement

reinforcing the desired response every time it occurs

continuous vs. discontinuous

theory on whether development is gradual or whether children develop in bursts (stages)

cooing stage

at about 2 months the infant begins to make vowel-like sounds

counterconditioning

a behavior therapy procedure that uses classical conditioning to evoke new responses to stimuli that are triggering unwanted behaviors; includes exposure therapies and aversive conditioning

critical or sensitive period

relatively brief time during which learning is most likely to occur

cross-sectional study

a study in which people of different ages are compared with one another

crystallized intelligence

our accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age

dementia

a slowly progressive decline in mental abilities, including memory, thinking, and judgment, that is often accompanied by personality changes

disorganized insecure attachment

Infant's behavior is inconsistent, disturbed, and disturbing

ecological systems theory

views the person as developing within a complex system of relationships affected by multiple levels of the surrounding environment

egocentrism

in Piaget's theory, the preoperational child's difficulty taking another's point of view

emerging adulthood

the transitional period from adolescence to adulthood, spanning approximately 18 to 25 years of age

exosystem

local institutions such as school system, religious organization, and workplace

extinction

the diminishing of a conditioned response; occurs in classical conditioning when an unconditioned stimulus does not follow a conditioned stimulus ; occurs in operant conditioning when a response is no longer reinforced.

fixed interval schedule

in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed

fixed ratio schedule

in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses

fluid intelligence

our ability to reason speedily and abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood

formal operational stage

in Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts

generalization

the tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses

grammar

in a language, a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others

habituation

an organism's decreasing response to a stimulus with repeated exposure to it

higher-order conditioning

a procedure in which the conditioned stimulus in one conditioning experience is paired with a new neutral stimulus, creating a second (often weaker) conditioned stimulus. For example, an animal that has learned that a tone predicts food might then learn that a light predicts the tone and begin responding to the light alone. (Also called second-order conditioning.)

insecure attachment

demonstrated by infants who display either a clinging, anxious attachment or an avoidant attachment that resists closeness

insight learning

the process of mentally working through a problem until the sudden realization of a solution occurs

instinctive drift

tendency for animals to return to innate behaviors following repeated reinforcement

latent learning

learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it

law of effect

Thorndike's principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely, and that behaviors followed by unfavorable consequences become less likely

learned helplessness

the hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events

lifespan

the length of time a person lives

longitudinal study

research in which the same people are restudied and retested over a long period

macrosystem

consists of cultural values, laws, customs, and resources

menarche

the first menstrual period

menopause

the time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines

mesosystems

refers to interactions among systems, as when parents and teachers coordinate to educate a child

microsystems

elements of the person's immediate surroundings, such as family and peer group

morphemes

the smallest meaningful units of language

nature vs. nurture

name for a controversy in which it is debated whether genetics or environment is responsible for driving behavior

negative punishment

taking away a pleasant stimulus to decrease or stop a behavior

negative reinforcement

Increasing behaviors by stopping or reducing aversive stimuli, such as shock.

object permanence

the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived

one-trial learning

when conditioning occurs after a single experience involving relatively intense fear, pain, or sickness

one-word stage

the stage in speech development, from about age 1 to 2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words

operant conditioning

a type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher

overgeneralization

applying grammar rules in areas they don't apply ("I writed a story"; goed; comed)

parallel play

action in which children play with similar toys, in a similar manner, but do not interact with each other

partial reinforcement

reinforcing a response only part of the time

permissive parenting style

a parenting style that allows freedom, lax parenting that doesn't set limits or enforce rules constantly

phonemes

the basic units of sound in language

Piaget

theorist that developed a series of stages in which an individual passes during cognitive development.

positive punishment

adding an undesirable stimulus to stop or decrease a behavior

positive reinforcement

Increasing behaviors by presenting positive stimuli, such as food.

preoperational stage

in Piaget's theory, the stage (from about 2 to 6 or 7 years of age) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete logic

pretend play

make-believe activities in which children create new symbolic relations, acting as if they were in a situation different from their actual one

primary reinforcer

an innately reinforcing stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need

primary sex characteristics

the body structures (ovaries, testes, and external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible

puberty

the period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of reproducing

reflex-rooting

an infant will turn its mouth toward a nipple (or anything else) that touches its cheek

reversibility

the capacity to think through a series of steps and then mentally reverse direction, returning to the starting point

scaffolding

temporary support that is tailored to a learner's needs and abilities and aimed at helping the learner master the next task in a given learning process

secondary reinforcer

any reinforcer that becomes reinforcing after being paired with a primary reinforcer, such as praise, tokens, or gold stars

secondary sex characteristics

nonreproductive sexual characteristics, such as female breasts and hips, male voice quality, and body hair

secure attachment

a relationship in which an infant obtains both comfort and confidence from the presence of his or her caregiver

semantics

the set of rules by which we derive meaning from morphemes, words, and sentences in a given language; also, the study of meaning

sensorimotor stage

in Piaget's theory, the stage (from birth to about 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities

separation anxiety

emotional distress seen in many infants when they are separated from people with whom they have formed an attachment

shaping

an operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior

social learning

Learning through observing others.

spermarche

first occurrence of ejaculation

spontaneous recovery

the reappearance of a learned response after extinction has occurred

stability vs. change

the debate about which early traits and characteristics persist through life or change

stimulus discrimination

a differentiation between two similar stimuli when only one of them is consistently associated with the unconditioned stimulus

superstitious behavior

a behavior repeated because it seems to produce reinforcement, even though it is actually unnecessary

syntax

the rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentences in a given language

taste aversion

a type of classical conditioning in which a previously desirable or neutral food comes to be perceived as repugnant because it is associated with negative stimulation

telegraphic speech

early speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram—"go car"—using mostly nouns and verbs.

temperament

a person's characteristic emotional reactivity and intensity

teratogen

agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm

theory of mind

people's ideas about their own and others' mental states—about their feelings, perceptions, and thoughts, and the behaviors these might predict

unconditioned response

in classical conditioning, an unlearned, naturally occurring response to an unconditioned stimulus

unconditioned stimulus

in classical conditioning, a stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response.