ACTUAL AP Psychology Module 1 Vocab

psychology

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes

empiricism

the view that (a) knowledge comes from experience via the senses, and (b) science flourishes through observation and experiment

structualism

an early school of psychology that used introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human mind

functionalism

a school of psychology that focused on how mental and behavioral processes function; how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish

humanistic psychology

historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people; used personalized methods to study personality in hopes of fostering personal growth

nature-nurture issue

the longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors

natural selection

the principle that, among the range of inherited traits variations, those contributing to reproduction and survival will most likely be passes on to succeeding generations

levels of analysis

the differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon

biopsychosocial approach

an integrated perspective that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis

basic research

pure science that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base

applied research

scientific study that aims to solve practical problems

counseling psychology

a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being

clinical psychology

a branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders

psychiatry

a branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who sometimes provide medical (for example, drugs) treatments as well as psychological therapy

Neuroscience perspective

How the body and brain enable emotions, memories, and sensory experiences.

Evolutionary perspective

How the natural selection of traits promotes the perpetuation of one's genes.

Behavior genetics perspective

How much our genes and our environment influence our individual differences.

Psychodynamic perspective

How behavior springs from unconscious drives and conflicts.

Behavioral perspective

How we learn observable responses.

Cognitive perspective

How we encode, process, store, and retrieve information.

Social-cultural perspective

How behavior and thinking vary across situations and cultures.