AP Psych Ultimate Study Guideeee (new 2025 curriculum) 🧠

Psychology

the science of behavior and mental processes

Industrial/Organizational Psychology

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

Behavioral Psychology

Perspective of learned behaviors, conditioning, and reinforcement

Psychodynamic Perspective

Freud’s theories that view personality with a focus on the unconscious mind and the importance of childhood experiences

Biopsychosocial approach

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

Evolutionary perspective

perspective of how the theory of evolution can explain psychological processes

biological perspective

perspective of physical and biological bases of behavior

cognitive perspective

perspective of mental processes, memory, thinking, and problem-solving

experiment

a research method in which an investigator manipulates one or more factors (independent variables) to observe the effect on some behavior or mental process (the dependent variable). By random assignment of participants, the experimenter aims to control other relevant factors

Naturalistic Observation

a non-experimental technique of observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation

Case study

a non-experimental technique in which one individual or group is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles

Correlational study

a study observing the statistical relationship between two variables; when two things are this, changes in one variable are associated with changes in another

Meta-analysis

a statistical procedure for analyzing the results of multiple studies to reach an overall conclusion

sample

a smaller group chosen from a larger population to represent the whole group

random sample

a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion

sampling bias

a flawed sampling process that produces an unrepresentative sample

control group

in an experiment, the group NOT exposed to the treatment; contrasts with the experimental group and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment

experimental group

in an experiment, the group exposed to the treatment, that is, to one version of the independent variable

random assignment

assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance, thus minimizing preexisting difference between the different groups

single blind procedure

an experimental procedure in which the research participants are ignorant (blind) about whether they have received the treatment or a placebo

double blind procedure

an experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant (blind) about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo; commonly used in drug-evaluation studies

replication

repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic finding can be reproduced

debrief

the post experimental explanation of a study, including its purpose and any deceptions, to its participants

informed consent

giving potential participants enough information about a study to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate

protection from harm

not harming your participants unnecessarily? idk man

confidentiality/anonymity

participants information must be kept private and secure; when possible, data should be collected without identifying information

institutional review board

group that reviews research proposals to make sure they are following ethical guidelines

Little Albert Study

Famous psychological experiment where behaviorist John B. Watson caused “Little Albert,” a baby, to fear white rats by creating an association between two unrelated stimuli: noise and white rats; soon, Albert became afraid of the white rats and, eventually, all white fluffy things

Phineas Gage Study

a man who experienced a traumatic brain injury when an iron rod was driven into his skull (owie), which destroyed part of his brain (frontal lobe); he survived, but he had drastic changes in his personality; this accidnet helped us get a better understanding of the different parts of the brain, most notably the frontal lobe

Mean

the arithmetic average of a distribution, obtained by adding the scores and then dividing them by the number of scores

Mode

the most frequently occurring score(s) in a distribution

standard deviation

a computed measure of how much scores vary around the mean score

Positive correlation

as one variable increases, the other also increases; ex. as hours of study increases, grades tend to increase

negative correlation

as one variable increases, the other decreases; ex. As the number of hours spent watching TV increases, grades tend to decrease

independent variable

the variable manipulated by the experimenter

dependent variable

the variable that is measured to see how it is affected by the changes in the experiment 

confounding variables

in an experiment, a factor other than the factor being studied that might influence a study’s results

Nature-Nurture

a longstanding controversy over the relative contributions that genes and experience make to the development of psychological traits and behaviors. Today’s science views traits and behaviors as arising from the interaction of nature and nurture

Natural selection

the principle that the inherited traits enabling 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

Epigenetics

“above” or “in addition to” (epi) genetics; the study of molecular mechanisms by which environments can influence genetics expression (without a DNA change)

Central Nervous System

the brain and spinal cord

Peripheral Nervous System

the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body

Somatic Nervous System

the division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body’s skeletal muscles; also called the skeletal nervous system

Autonomic Nervous System

the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart); its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms

Sympathetic Nervous System

the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy

Parasympathetic Nervous System

the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy

Motor Cortex

a cerebral cortex area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements

Somatosensory Cortex

a cerebral cortex area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations

Neurons

a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system

Dendrite

a neuron’s often bushy, branching extensions that receive and integrate messages, conducting impulses toward the cell body

Cell Body

a part of a neuron that contains the nucleus; the cell’s life-support center

Axon

 the segmented neuron extension that passes messages through its branches to other neurons or to muscles or glands

Myelin Sheath

a fatty tissue layer segmentally encasing the axons of some neurons; it enables vastly greater transmission speed as neural impulses hop from one node to the next

Glial Cells

cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons; they may also play a role in learning, thinking, and memory

Action Potential

a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon

Resting Potential

the state of a neuron when it's ready to fire but hasn’t yet

Refractory Period

in neural processing, a brief resting pause that occurs after a neuron has fired; subsequent action potentials cannot occur until the axon returns to its resting state

Synapse

the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at this junction is called the synaptic gap or synaptic clef

Reuptake

a neurotransmitter’s reabsorption by the sending neuron

Multiple Sclerosis

caused by damage to the myelin sheath, which slows down or blocks signals 

Alzheimer’s Disease

abnormal build-up of proteins in and around brain cells; combination of age-related changes in the brain, along with genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors 

Schizophrenia

caused by chemical imbalance and other changes in the brain

Agonist

a molecule that increases a neurotransmitter’s action

Antagonist

 a molecule that inhibits or blocks a neurotransmitter’s action

Endocrine System

 the body’s “slow” chemical communication system; a set of glands and fat tissue that secrete hormones into the bloodstream

Pituitary Gland

 the brain’s master gland, it releases hormones that regulate growth and other essential processes

Adrenal Gland

small glands located on top of each kidney. They produce hormones that help regulate your metabolism, immune system, blood pressure, response to stress and other essential functions

Acetylcholine

neurotransmitter that enables muscle action, learning, and memory

endorphins

neurotransmitters that are natural painkillers

Dopamine

neurotransmitter that is involved in reward and motivation

Norepinephrine

neurotransmitter that arouses alertness and energy

Serotonin

Neurotransmitter that regulates mood and sleep

GABA

Neurotransmitter that calms the nervous system

Substance P

Neurotransmitter that is involved in transmitting pain signals to the brain

Melatonin

Hormone that regulates sleep-wake cycles

Oxytocin

Hormone that influences bonding and social behaviors

Depressants

drugs that reduce neural activity and slow body functions; ex: alcohol, opioids, etc

Stimulants

drugs that excite neural activity and speed up body functions; ex: cocaine, nicotine, etc

Hallucinogens

psychedelic drugs that distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input; ex: cannabis, ecstasy, etc

Tolerance

the diminishing effect with regular use of the same dose of a drug, requiring the user to take larger and larger doses before experiencing the drug’s effect

Withdrawal

the discomfort and distress that follow discontinuing an addictive drug or behavior

Addiction

 an everyday term for compulsive substance use (and sometimes for dysfunctional behavior patterns, such as out-of-control gambling) that continue despite harmful consequences

Physical Dependence

occurs when the body has become dependent on a substance

Occipital Lobe

the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; it includes ares that receive information from the visual fields

Parietal Lobe

the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; it receives sensory input for touch and body position

Temporal Lobe

the portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; it includes the auditory areas, each of which receives information primarily from the opposite ear. They also enable language processing.

Frontal Lobe

the portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead. They enable linguistic processing, muscle movements, higher-order thinking, and executive functioning (such as making plans and judgments)

Corpus Callosum

 the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them

Broca’s Area

a frontal lobe brain area, usually in the left hemisphere, that helps control language expression by directing the muscle movements involved in speech

Wernicke’s Area

a brain area, usually in the left temporal lobe, involved in language comprehension and expression

Medulla

the hindbrain structure that is the brainstem’s base; controls heartbeat and breathing

Cerebellum

the hindbrain’s “little brain” at the rear of the brainstem; its functions include processing sensory input, coordinating movement output and balance, and enabling nonverbal learning and memory

Limbic System

 neural system located mostly in the forebrain – blow the cerebral hemispheres – that includes the amygdala, hypothalamus, hippocampus, thalamus, and pituitary gland; associated with emotions and drives

Amygdala

two lima-bean-sized neural clusters in the limbic system; linked to emotion

EEG

(electroencephalogram) an amplified recording of the waves of electrical activity sweeping across the brain’s surface. These waves are measured by electrodes placed on the scalp.

PET Scan

(positron emission tomography) technique for detecting brain activity that displays where a radioactive form of glucose goes while the brain performs a given task

fMRI

a technique for revealing blood flow and, therefore, brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans.The scans show brain function as well as structure

MRI

(magnetic resonance imaging) a technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated images of soft tissue. They also show brain anatomy.

CT Scan

(computed tomography) a series of X-ray photographs taken from different angles and combined by computer into a composite representation of a slice of the brain’s structure

Plasticity

this ability to rewire itself allows the brain to adapt after injury or damage; when one part of the brain is damaged, other areas can sometimes take over its function