AP Psych - All Units (Semester 1 & 2)

empiricism

the view that knowledge originates in experience and that science should, therefore, rely on observation and experimentation

structuralism

early school of thought by Wilhelm Wundt and Edward Titchener, used introspection to reveal the structure of the mind

functionalism

early school of thought by William James and influenced by Charles Darwin, explored the function of behavior and mental processes - how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish

experimental psychology

the study of behavior and mental processes using the experimental method

psychology

the scientific study 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

natural selection

the principle that, among the range of inherited trait varieties, those contributing to reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations

levels of analysis

the differing, complementary views - biological, psychological, and social cultural - for analyzing any given phenomenon

biopsychosocial approach

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

behavioral perspective

theoretical approach to psychology that focuses on how we learn observable responses

biological perspective

theoretical approach to psychology that focuses on how the body, the brain, and genetics enable behavior and mental processes

cognitive perspective

theoretical approach to psychology that focuses on how we encode, process, store, and retrieve information

evolutionary perspective

theoretical approach to psychology that focuses on how natural selection of traits has promoted the survival of genes

humanistic perspective

theoretical approach to psychology that focuses on how we meet our needs for love and acceptance and achieve self-fulfillment

psychodynamic perspective

theoretical approach to psychology that focuses on how behavior springs from unconscious drives and conflicts

social-cultural perspective

theoretical approach to psychology that focuses on behavior and mental processes vary across situations and cultures

applied research

scientific study that aims to solve practical, real-world problems

basic research

scientific study that aims to merely increase the scientific knowledge base

clinical psychology

a branch of psychology that studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders

community psychology

a branch of psychology that studies how people interact with their social environments and how social institutions affect individuals and groups

counseling psychology

a branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living and in achieving greater well-being

developmental psychology

a branch of psychology that studies physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span

educational psychology

a branch of psychology that studies how psychological processes affect and can enhance teaching and learning

human factors psychology

a branch of psychology that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use

I/O psychology

a branch of psychology that applies psychological concepts and methods to the workplace

personality psychology

a branch of psychology that studies individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting

positive psychology

a branch of psychology whose goal is to discover and promote strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities thrive

psychiatry

a branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders

psychometrics

a branch of psychology that studies the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits

social psychology

a branch of psychology that studies how we think about, influence, and relate to one another

critical thinking

thinking that examines assumptions, assesses sources, discerns hidden values, confirms evidence, and never holds any conclusion as irrevocable

hindsight bias

the tendency to believe, after learning an outcome, that one would have foreseen it

overconfidence

the tendency to be more confident than correct

case study

a method of research in which one individual or group is studied in depth

cross-sectional study

a study in which people of different ages are compared with one another

hypothesis

a testable prediction

longitudinal study

research in which the same people are restudied and retested over a long period

naturalistic observation

a method of research in which behavior is observed and recorded in naturally occurring situations, without the researcher trying to manipulate or control the scenario

operational definitions

a carefully worded statement of the exact procedures used in a research study, especially defining how a variable is measured

population

a group being studied, from which a sample is drawn

random sample

a sample in which each member of a population has an equal chance of inclusion

replicate

to repeat the essence of a research study to see whether the basic finding holds true

sample

a small group drawn from a population

sampling bias

a flawed sampling porcess that produces an unrepresentative sample

stratified sampling

a variation of random sampling in which the population is divided into subgroups and weighted based on demographic characteristics

survey

a method of research in which a representative sample of participants self-report attitudes or behaviors

theory

an explanation that organizes a large set of observations and data

confounding variables

a factor other than the independent variable that might produce an effect in an experiment

control group

the group that is not exposed to the treatment, or the manipulated independent variable, that is used for comparison

correlation

the measure of the extent to which two variables change together, and thus of how well either variable predicts the other

correlation coefficient

a number, between -1.0 and +1.0, that indicates the strength and direction of a correlation

demand characteristics

cues in an experiment that tell the participant what behavior is expected, thus representing a confounding variable

dependent variable

the factor being measured, that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable

double-blind procedure

an experimental procedure in which both the participants and the researchers are ignorant about whether the participants are in the experimental group or the control group

experiment

a scientific study in which a researcher manipulates a variable to observe the effect another variable

experimental group

the group that is exposed to the treatment, or the manipulated independent variable

experimenter bias

an experimenters unconscious impact on the results of an experiment due to their own expectations

Hawthorne effect

a change in a subject's behavior caused simply by the awareness of being observed

illusory correlations

a perceived, but non-existent, relationship between variables

independent variable

the factor being manipulated, that might produce an effect on the dependent variable

participant bias

a participants impact on the result of the study due to them acting in ways they believe correspond to the researcher's expectation

placebo

an inert substance or condition that the participant assumes is an active agent

placebo effect

experimental results caused by expectations alone

random assignment

assigning participants to experimental and control groups by chance, thus minimizing preexisting differences between groups

reliability

the extent to which a test yields consistent results

scatterplot

a graphed cluster of dots in which each dot represents the value of two variables

single-blind procedure

an experimental procedure in which the participants are ignorant about whether they are in the experimental group or the control group

validity

the extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to

descriptive statistics

numerical data used to measure and describe characteristics of groups

histogram

a bar graph depicting a frequency distribution

inferential statistics

numerical data that allow one to generalize from sample data the probability of something being true of a whole population

mean

the arithmetic average of a distribution, calculated by adding the scores then dividing by the number of scores

measures of central tendency

a measure that describes the approximate middle of a set of scores; mean, median, and mode

measures of variation

a measure that describes how similar or dissimilar a set of scores are; range and standard deviation

median

the middle score in a distribution

mode

the most frequently occurring score or scores in a distribution

normal curve

a symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many types of data, in which most scores fall near the mean and fewer and fewer near the extremes

range

the gap between the highest and lowest scores in a distribution

skewed distribution

a representation of scores that lack symmetry around their average value

standard deviation

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

statistical significance

a statistical statement of how likely it is that an obtained result occurred by chance

t-test

produces a p-value; a calculation used to determine statistical significance

p-value

the result of a t-test; a numerical value that represents statistical significance

confidentiality

the ethical principle of safeguarding individual information about a study's participants

culture

the enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next

debriefing

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

ethics

moral principles that govern research procedures

informed consent

the ethical principle that a study's participants be told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate

B.F. Skinner

behavioral psychologist

Carl Rogers

humanistic psychologist

Charles Darwin

British biologist, developed the concept of

evolution through natural selection

Dorothea Dix

American activist who fought to improve care and treatment of mental patients

G. Stanley Hall

American psychologist who established the first psychology research laboratory in the United States and founded the American Psychological Association

Ivan Pavlov

Russian physiologist who discovered classical conditioning

Jean Piaget

cognitive psychologist

John Watson

behavioral psychologist

Margaret Washburn

American psychologist who was the first woman to earn a Ph.D. in psychology

Mary Calkins

American psychologist who was the first woman to serve as president of the APA

Sigmund Freud

psychodynamic psychologist

Wilhelm Wundt

German psychologist who established the first psychology laboratory