AP Psych Vocab #2

Concept

mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people

Prototypes

mental image that’s an ideal version/reference of a concept (ex: apples to fruit)

Schemas

clusters of concepts that create our view of the world

Assimilation

(SS=same schema) when a schema is expanded by adding info similar to what u know

Accommodation

(CC=change or create schema) new schema are created bc info that is learned is diff from what u already know (adding turtle would turn schema into animals)

Decision making strategies

formal & informal strategies used to solve problems

Executive functions

cognitive processes that allow individuals to generate, organize, plan, and carry out goal-directed behaviors and experience critical thinking (POTE)

Formal

slower strategies that take more time but will be more accurate

(ex: algorithm)

Algorithm

a step by step process; if done correctly you will get the right answer

Informal

faster & usually accurate but also prone to biases and errors

(ex: heuristics)

Heuristics

thinking shortcuts based on our past experiences & judgment

Representativeness Heuristic

when u decide based on characteristics associated w a group

(ex: good basketball players are tall)

Availability Heuristic

when you assume the right answer is the 1st thing to pop in your brain

Priming

exposure to a certain stimulus influences your response to what comes next; it’s an unconscious response

(ex: repeating silk tricks brain to answer milk in the cow question)

Mental Set

a way of thinking about a situation that has worked in the past so you use it again

Framing

cognitive bias where ppl make decisions based on how info is presented rather than the info itself

ADHD

behavioral condition that makes focusing on everyday requests & routines challenging

(ppl are poor at the POTE, leading to lack of executive function)

Experimental Research

carefully done procedure to examine validity of a hypothesis; only way to prove causation

Independent Variable

the factor the researcher is testing (“if” part of the hypothesis/the treatment)

Random Assignment

randomization that ensures each participant has an = chance of being assigned to treatment condition in an experiment (makes experiment more valid)

Hypothesis

educated guess about a relationship btwn variables

Falsifiable hypothesis

a hypothesis that can be proven wrong during testing (u can’t assume the outcome)

operational definitions

defining IV, DV, and extraneous variables in terms of precisely described operations, measurements, or procedures, to make experiment replicable

replicability

able to be repeated by others

dependent variable

the outcome or results of the experiment that’s being measured

confounding variable

thing that may affect the outcome besides the IV; only diff between 2 treatment groups should be IV

population

targeted group of your experiment

sample

small portion of ppl selected to represent the population

representative sample

sample that most commonly mirrors the population being studied

random sampling

method of choosing subjects in which all members of a population have an equal chance of being chosen

convenience sampling

method of choosing subjects based on their availability, willingness, and ease of access

experimental group

subjects that will receive IV so the experimenter can see if it makes a difference

control group

subjects that will not receive the IV; their results will be compared to experimental group to give a baseline

placebos

harmless substance given to control groups so they don’t know which group they’re in

sampling bias

when samples are not random so experiment is not valid or generalizable to the population

single blind study

when the subjects don’t know what group they’re in

double blind study

neither experimenter or subjects know who is getting the IV, independent 3rd party administers treatments and observes results

experimenter bias

experimenter’s pre existing expectations/beliefs regarding the outcome can influence the results of an experiment

social desirability bias

where participants act a certain way bc they think that is the expectation or bc it makes them look good