AP Psychology: U1M1-U1M3 (P1)

2025 Midterm (Myer's Psychology-Third Edition)

scientific attitude

a mindset characterized by curiosity, skepticism, and humility, which encourages scientists to ask questions, seek evidence, and remain open to new ideas, “the rat is always right”

critical thinking

thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions. examines assumptions, appraises the source, discerns hidden biases, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions with reason, can use results to identify effective policies

Socrates

the mind is separable from the body and continues after the body dies; knowledge is innate and born within us. pondered whether mind and body are connected or distinct, and whether human ideas are innate or result from experiences

Aristotle

derived principles from careful observations, stated that knowledge is not preexisting and instead grows from the experiences stored in our memories

René Descartes

pondered how the immaterial mind and physical body are connected and communicate, discovered nerve paths that enable reflexes through dissection

Francis Bacon

wrote that “human understanding from its peculiar nature, easily supposes a greater degree of order and equality in things than it really finds”

John Locke

the mind at birth is tabula rasa, “a blank state” on which the experience writes. helped form empiricism

empiricism

the idea that knowledge comes from experience, and that observation and experimentation enable scientific knowledge

Wilhelm Wundt

seeked to measure the atoms of the mind, “the fastest and simplest mental processes”. established the first psychological laboratory in Germany

G. Stanley Hall

established the first formal U.S psychology laboratory as a student of Wundt

Edward Bradford Titchener

student of Wundt which introduced structuralism and aimed to classify and understand elements of the mind’s structure

structuralism

an early school of thought promoted by Wundt and Titchener; used self-reflection to learn about the mind’s structure, or used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind

introspection

the process of looking inward in an attempt to directly observe one’s own psychological processes

William James

consider the evolved functions of our thoughts and feelings

Charles Darwin

stated that consciousness is adaptive serves a function and enables us to consider our past, adjust to our present, and plan our future.

functionalism

an early school of thought promoted by James and influenced by Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral process’s function—how they enable the organism to adapt survive and flourish

Mary Whiton Calkins

became a pioneering researcher and the first woman to be president of the American Psychological Association

Margaret Floy Washburn

the first woman to receive a psychology Ph.D. and synthesized animal behavior research

experimental scientists

explore behavior and thinking with experiments

John B. Watson

dismissed introspection and redefined psychology as “the scientific study of observable behavior”. found that fear could be learned from his “Little Albert” experiment (baby associating white bunny with loud noise)

B.F. Skinner

supported Watson’s view of being conditioned and studied how consequences shape behavior, known for “Skinner’s Box” experiment (enclosed chamber with animal to study how they learn and respond to different reinforcement/punishment schedules)

behaviorism

the view that psychology should be an objective science that studies behavior without reference to mental processes. focuses on idea that all behaviors are learned through interactions from the environment

Sigmund Freud

psychoanalytic psychology which emphasized the ways our unconscious mind and childhood experiences affect our behavior

Carl Rogers

found both behaviorism and Freudian psychology too limiting

Abraham Maslow

supported Carl Rogers and focused on conditioned responses or childhood memories and our potential for personal growth

humanistic psychology

historically significant perspective that emphasized human growth potential, linked to positive psychology which is connected to Martin Seligman

cognition

how our mind processes and retains information

cognitive psychology

the study of mental processes, such as occur when we perceive, learn, remember, think, communicate, and solve problems through different perspectives and interpretations

cognitive neuroscience

the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language)

psychology

the science of behavior and mental processes

behavior

anything that an organism does and is observable and able to be recorded

mental processes

internal, subjective experiences we infer from behavior—sensations, dreams, thoughts, beliefs, and feelings

Ivan Pavlov

pioneered the study of learning and known for experiment “Pavlov’s Dogs” (discovered classical conditioning or learning through association by making dogs salivate to sound of bell)

Jean Piaget

known for work on childhood development and believed cognitive growth occurred in stages

nature-nurture

the longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors. today’s sciences see traits and behaviors arising from the interaction of nature and nurture. nurture works on what nature provides

natural selection

the principle that inherited traits that better enable an organism to survive and reproduce in a particular environment will (in competition with other trait variations) most likely be passed on to succeeding generations

evolutionary psychology

the study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection

behavior genetics

the study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior

culture

the enduring behaviors. ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to another

positive psychology

the human scientific study of human flourishing, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive

biological influences

• genetic predispositions (genetically influenced traits)

• genetic mutations (random errors in gene replication)

• natural selection of adaptive traits and behaviors passed down through generations

• genes responding to the environment

psychological influences

• learned fears and other learned expectations

• emotional responses

• cognitive processing and perceptual interpretations

social-cultural influences

• presence of others

• cultural, societal, and family expectations

• peer and other group influences

• compelling models (such as in the media)

biopsychosocial approach

an integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural viewpoints

behavioral psychology

the scientific study of observable, and its explanation by principles of learning

biological psychology

the scientific study of the links between biological (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological processes.

evolutionary psychology

analyzes how our actions are faciliated from the survival of our ancestor’s genes

psychodynamic psychology

a branch of psychology that studies how unconscious drive and conflicts influence behavior and uses that information to treat people with psychological disorders

social-cultural psychology

the study of how situations and culture affect our behavior and thinking

testing effect

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information. also referred to as a retrieval practice effect or test-enhanced learning

SQ3R

a study method incorporating five steps: survey, question, read, retrieve, review. (scan, question, test, take in, review)

psychometrics

the scientific study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits

basic research

pure science that aims to increase the scientific nowledge base

developmental psychology

a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span

educational psychology

the study of how psychological processes affect and can enhance teaching and learning

personality psychology

the study of individuals’ characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting

social psychology

the scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another

applied research

scientific study that aims to solve practical problems

industrial-organizational (I/O) psychology

the application of psychological concepts and methos to optimizing human behavior in workplaces

human factors psychology

a field of psychology allied with I/O psychology that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to make

counseling psychology

a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living 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 are licensed to provide medical treatments as well as psychological therapy

community psychology

a branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups

seven main theoretical perspecives

biological, evolutionary, psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, social-cultural