AP Psychology Unit 4 Notes

A comprehensive set of flashcards covering key concepts and theories in psychology from the provided lecture notes.

Attribution Theory

Explains how people interpret and explain the causes of behaviors, recognizing our thought processes with a focus on internal and external factors.

Dispositional Attribution

An internal attribution referring to traits like intelligence, attitude, or personality. Assuming someone’s actions are due to their character and not their situation

Situational Attribution

An external attribution considering environmental factors that impact an individual's behavior.

Explanatory Style

How a person usually explains the reasons behind events— whether they blame themselves or external factors

Explanatory Style - Optimistic

Good things are likely to happen again and bad things only happen once

Attributing setback to external, unstable (can change over time), and specific (limited to the situation) factors

Explanatory Style - Pessimistic

Bad things as likely to happen again and good things as one time events

Attributing negative events to internal (blaming themselves), stable (unlikely to change), and global (affecting all aspects off their life) factors

Fundamental Attribution Error (FAE)

Blaming someone’s actions on their personality and not on their situation

Actor-Observer Bias

The tendency to blame our actions on the situation while blaming others' actions on their personalities.

Self Serving Bias

The tendency to attribute one’s successes to personal characteristics and failures to external factors to enhance self esteem

Locus of Control

Individual belief about the extent to which they have control over the events affecting their lives

External Locus of Control

Belief that chance or outside forces beyond personal control determine fate.

Internal Locus of Control

Belief that one controls their own fate. Personal decisions, effort, and abilities

Mere Exposure Effect

The phenomenon where repeated exposure to novel stimuli increases liking.

Collectivism

A cultural value that emphasizes the importance of the group or community over individual goals and desires, prioritizing group cohesion and interdependence.

Multiculturalism

The view that promotes the acknowledgment and respect of diverse cultural backgrounds and traditions, encouraging the coexistence and value of various cultural identities within a society.

Social Traps

Situations where individuals or groups pursue immediate rewards that later prove to have negative or catastrophic consequences for the larger community

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

When a person's expectations influence their behaviors, causing those expectations to come true.

Social Comparison

Evaluating one's abilities and opinions by comparing oneself with others.

Upward Social Comparsion

Comparing oneself to others who are perceived to better off or more skilled, which can motivate self improvement but can decrease self esteem

Downward Social Comparison

Comparing oneself to others who are perceived to be worse off, which can boost self esteem but can foster complacency

Obedience

Following direct commands,, usually from an authority figure even if they contradict personal beliefs

Social Facilitation

Tendency for people to perform differently when in the presence of others, showing improved performance on simple or well practiced tasks and worse or complex or new ones

Relative Deprivation

A feeling of dissatisfaction or injustice due to the perception of being worse off compared to others.

Stereotype

A generalized belief about a group of people. Stereotypes can reduce cognitive load by providing a quick and oversimplified way to categorize people and situations without the need for detailed processing. It is also reinforced by confirmation bias

Belief Perseverance

Tendency to hold onto one’s initial beliefs after they have shown to be false, ignoring contradictory evidence

Prejudice

A preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience that leads to a usually negative attitude toward a group and its members. Based on negative emotions, stereotype, and predisposition to discriminatory action

Self-Serving Bias

Taking personal credit for success while blaming failure on external factors.

Discrimination

Unjustifiable negative behavior toward a group and its members.

Implicit Attitudes

Unconscious beliefs or feelings that influence a person’s behavior and perceptions without their awareness

Just-World Phenomenon

Belief that the world is just and people get what they deserve, leading people to rationalize injustice and misfortune as deserved

In-groups

Groups that we identity with “us” or see ourselves as belonging to (gender, rage, age, etc.) Providing powerful source of our identity and self esteem, and a strong sense of belonging. This can develop an ingroup bias, preference for our own group over others

Out-groups

Social groups with whom a person does not identify with

Out-Group Homogeneity Bias

Seeing out-group members as being very similar, more than what is true

Ethnocentrism

Belief in the superiority of one's nation or ethnic group, accompanied with feelings of contempt for others

Cognitive Dissonance

Mental discomfort from conflicting beliefs or behaviors. Holding conflicting beliefs, attitudes, or values, often leading to an alteration in one of the beliefs or behaviors to reduce the discomfort

Social Norms

Unwritten rules dictating acceptable behavior within a society or group, influencing individual actions

Conformity

Individuals adjust their thoughts, feelings, or behavior to align with those of a group as a result of real or imagined group pressure

Informational Social Influence

When we are in situations where we aren’t sure how to act, we look for social comparison to figure out how to behave. We accept information from others as evidence about reality in situations where the correct action or belief is uncertain

Normative Social Influence

The need for social acceptance, we conform in order to fit in

Persuasion

The process of creating, reinforcing, or changing others beliefs or actions.

Central Route of Persuasion

A method of persuasion that involves deeply engaging with the content of a message, leading to a careful analysis and thoughtful consideration, and typically resulting in more durable attitude change

Peripheral Route of Persuasion

A method of persuasion that relies on superficial cues such as attractiveness or credibility of the speaker, rather than the actual content of the message, leading to temporary attitude changes

Halo Effect

Cognitive bias where a positive impression in one area (like attractiveness) leads to positive evaluations in other areas, influencing overall judgments about a person

Foot in the Door Technique

A persuasive strategy where agreement to a small, initial requires increases the likelihood of compliance with a larger subsequent request

Door in the Face Technique

A persuasion strategy where a large, initial request is made knowing it will be refused, followed by a smaller, more reasonable request that is more likely to be accepted

Elaboration Likelihood Model

A theory that describes how people process persuasive messages, either through deep analysis (central route) or using quick cues or credibility of the speaker (peripheral route)

Group Polarization

The desire for harmony or conformity in a group leading to irrational decision making. Members suppress differing opinions leading to a loss of individual creativity. When people in a group talk about an idea, they often end up agreeing even more strongly with each other making their group opinion more extreme

Groupthink

Mode of thinking where group harmony overrides realistic appraisal of alternatives.

Social Loafing

Individuals in a group reduce effort and rely on others.

Deindividuation

Loss of self-awareness, individuality, and restraint in group settings leading to impulsive and deviant behavior

False Consensus Effect

Overestimating the extent to which others share our beliefs.

Superordinate Goals

Shared goals that require cooperation among individuals or groups, overriding smaller or individual conflicts and fostering collaborative efforts

Industrial-Organizational Psychologists

Professionals applying psychological concepts to workplace optimization.

Burnout

Exhaustion from long-term involvement in demanding situations.

Diffusion of Responsibility

Reduction in feelings of personal responsibility in group situation, leading to a decrease in the likelihood of intervetion

Bystander Effect

Less likelihood of individuals to help in emergencies when others are present. The greater the number of bystanders the less likely anyone is to act

Personality

Individual’s unique and relatively stable patterns of behavior, characteristics, thought, and emotions. It persists overtime and across situations

Psychodynamic Theory

Emphasizes internal conflicts, motives, and unconscious forces.

Id

The unfiltered and basic drives of an individual.

Ego

The reality principle that uses reason to navigate reality.

Superego

The internalized moral standards striving for perfection.

Repression

Keeping distressing thoughts in the unconscious.

Regression

Retreating to a more infantile psychosexual stage when faced with anxiety.

Projection

Disguising threatening impulses by attributing them to others.

Displacement

Redirecting emotions from the source of conflict to a safer target.

Reaction Formation

Acting in opposition to how one actually feels.

Rationalization

Justifying behaviors in an acceptable manner.

Denial

Refusal to accept reality or facts.

Sublimation

Transforming unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable actions.

Projective Tests

Tests with open responses to understand the unconscious mind.

Rorschach Inkblot Test

A projective test using inkblots to identify inner feelings.

Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)

A projective test where individuals create stories about ambiguous scenes.

Unconditional Positive Regard

A nonjudgmental acceptance critical for personal growth.

Trait Theory

Enduring characteristics that form a person's personality.

Openness to Experience

Degree of intellectual curiosity and creativity.

Conscientiousness

The care given to organization and thoughtfulness.

Extraversion

Tendency to experience positive emotions and seek social bonding.

Agreeableness

Trusting and cooperative nature in social interactions.

Emotional Stability (Neuroticism)

Ability to remain calm and confident in crisis.

Objective Tests

Personality tests scored in a standard way.

Personality Inventories

Questionnaires gauging feelings and behaviors.

Factor Analysis

Statistical procedure identifying clusters of related items on a test.

Likert Scale

Numerical scale used to assess attitudes with labeled anchors.

Motivation

Biological, social, emotional, and cognitive forces driving action.

Intrinsic Motivation

Internal motivation driven by personal satisfaction.

Extrinsic Motivation

External factors influencing behavior, such as rewards.

Incentive Theory

Behavior driven largely by external rewards or punishments.

Instinct

Rigidly patterned, unlearned behaviors throughout a species.

Approach-Approach Conflict

Choosing between two positive options.

Avoidance-Avoidance Conflict

Choosing between two negative options.

Approach-Avoidance Conflict

Choosing a goal with both positive and negative aspects.

Sensory-Seeking Theory

Different needs for experiences impacting motivation.

Experience Seeking

Desire for new and unconventional adventures.

Disinhibition

Seeking recreational situations for relaxation and fun.

Boredom Susceptibility

Tendency to feel bored without stimulating activities.

Physiological Experience

Physical changes observed in emotions.

Cognitive Experience

Brain's remembered response to emotions.

James-Lange Theory

Emotions are expressed based on bodily reactions.

Facial Feedback Hypothesis

Facial expressions influence emotional experiences.

Simultaneous Experience (Cannon-Bard Theory)

Emotion and arousal happen simultaneously.