AP® Psychology Notes

These flashcards cover key concepts and terms from AP Psychology, focusing on psychological perspectives, research methods, and types of disorders.

Biological Perspective

How the brain, body, and chemicals shape our thoughts, feelings, and actions.

Cognitive Perspective

Focuses on how we process information, think, reason, and solve problems.

Humanistic Perspective

How personal growth, potential, and self-image affect our behavior.

Psychometric Psychology

Studies the measurement of psychological qualities.

Positive Psychology

Study of factors that contribute to happiness and optimal human functioning.

Hindsight Bias

Tendency to believe, after an event occurs, that we knew it would happen all along.

Confirmation Bias

The tendency to search for information that confirms our existing beliefs.

Single-Blind Study

Only the participants don't know which group they're in.

Double-Blind Study

Both participants and researchers are unaware of which group participants are in.

Independent Variable (IV)

The factor the researcher manipulates.

Dependent Variable (DV)

The factor that may change in response to the independent variable.

Placebo Effect

Where expectations can influence results.

Null Hypothesis

The starting assumption that there is no real difference between groups.

Correlational Coefficient

A number that indicates the strength and direction of a correlation.

Statistical Significance

The difference between groups is likely due to the experimental manipulation.

Cognitive Maps

Mental representations of our surroundings developed through experience.

Social Influence

The process through which individuals or groups change our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.

Attribution Theory

The process of explaining the causes of behavior.

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

Our expectations can lead us to behave in ways that confirm our expectations.

Stereotype Threat

Fear of confirming a negative stereotype about one’s group.

Just-World Phenomenon

Belief that the world is fair, leading to blaming victims of misfortune.

Cognitive Dissonance Theory

The discomfort we feel when our actions and attitudes do not match.

Social Comparison

Evaluating oneself based on comparisons to other members of society.

Ego (Freud)

The rational part of the personality that operates based on the reality principle.

Id (Freud)

The primitive part of the personality that operates on the pleasure principle.

Superego (Freud)

The moral component of the personality that internalizes societal rules.

Operant Conditioning

Learning that occurs through rewards and punishments.

Classical Conditioning

Learning to associate a neutral stimulus with a stimulus that naturally triggers a response.

Anxiety Disorders

Excessive fear, worry, and apprehension that interferes with daily life.

Psychosocial Development

Erik Erikson's theory that we face a series of psychosocial crises throughout life.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Develops after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event.

Bipolar Disorder

Mood swings between depression and mania.

Personality Disorders

Enduring patterns of behavior that deviate significantly from cultural expectations.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Combines cognitive therapy with techniques to change behavior.

Eclectic Approach

Combining different therapeutic approaches to tailor treatment.

Biomedical Therapy

Using medications or procedures that act on the nervous system to treat psychological disorders.