AP Psychology Unit 1 Terms & Definitions

Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking

thinking that does not blindly accept arguments and conclusions. Rather, it examines assumptions, appraises the source, discerns hidden biases, evaluates evidence, and assesses conclusions .

Empiricism

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

Structuralism

an early school of thought promoted by Wundt and Titchener; 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.

Functionalism

an early school of thought promoted by James and influenced by Darwin; explored how mental and behavioral processes function-how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish.

Behaviorism

the view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2).

Humanistic Psychology

a historically significant perspective that emphasized human growth potential.

Cognitive Psychology

the study of mental processes, such as occur when we perceive, learn, remember, think, communicate, and solve problems.

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.

Nature-Nurture Issue

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

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 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.

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 the next.

Positive Psychology

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

Biopsychosocial Approach

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

Behavioral Psychology

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

Biological Psychology

the scientific study of the links between biological (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological processes. (Some biological psychologists call themselves behavioral neuroscientists, neuropsychologists, behavior geneticists, physiological psychologists, or biopsychologists.)