AP Psychology Vocabulary Comprehensive Review

Vocabulary flashcards covering core concepts in introductory psychology, including units on research methods, biology, memory, development, learning, motivation, social psychology, and clinical disorders.

Hindsight bias

The tendency to believe, after something happens, that you "knew it all along."

Hypothesis

A testable prediction about the relationship between variables.

Operational definition

A clear, specific explanation of how a variable will be measured or defined in a study.

Control group

The group in an experiment that does not receive the treatment; it is used for comparison.

Case study

An in-depth study of one person, group, or situation.

Naturalistic observation

Watching and recording behavior in a natural environment without interfering.

Survey

A research method where people answer questions about their thoughts, behaviors, or opinions.

Social desirability bias

When people answer in a way that makes them look good instead of being fully honest.

Sampling bias

When a sample does not represent the larger population.

Random sample

A sample where every person in the population has an equal chance of being chosen.

Illusory correlation

Seeing a relationship between two things when no real relationship exists.

Random assignment

Assigning participants to experimental groups by chance to reduce differences between groups.

Double-blind procedure

A study where neither the participants nor the researchers know who is receiving the treatment or placebo.

Placebo effect

When a person experiences a change because they believe they received treatment, even if they did not.

Dependent variable

The outcome or behavior being measured in an experiment.

Independent variable

The variable that the researcher changes or manipulates.

Confounding variable

An outside factor that could affect the results of an experiment.

Experimenter bias

When a researcher’s expectations influence the results of a study.

Informed consent

An ethical rule requiring participants to be told the basic details and risks of a study before agreeing.

Debriefing

Explaining the true purpose and details of a study after it is over.

Mode

The most frequently occurring number in a data set.

Median

The middle number in a data set when the numbers are arranged in order.

Mean

The average of a data set.

Correlation coefficient

A number from $-1$ to $+1$ that shows the strength and direction of a relationship between two variables.

Neurotransmitters

Chemical messengers that send signals between neurons, such as Dopamine which is involved in reward and movement.

Central nervous system

The brain and spinal cord.

Peripheral nervous system

All the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord.

Somatic nervous system

The part of the peripheral nervous system that controls voluntary movement of skeletal muscles.

Autonomic nervous system

The part of the nervous system that controls automatic body functions like heartbeat, digestion, and breathing.

Sympathetic nervous system

The part of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body during stress, often referred to as "fight or flight."

Antagonist

A chemical that blocks or reduces the effect of a neurotransmitter.

Agonist

A chemical that mimics or increases the effect of a neurotransmitter.

Endocrine system

The body’s system of glands that release hormones into the bloodstream.

Plasticity

The brain’s ability to change, adapt, or reorganize itself after learning or injury.

Split brain

A condition where the corpus callosum is cut, separating the two brain hemispheres.

Heritability

The amount of variation in a trait among people that genetic differences can explain.

Epigenetics

The study of how environment and experiences can affect gene expression without changing DNA.

Circadian rhythm

The body’s internal $24$-hour biological clock.

REM sleep

A sleep stage with rapid eye movement, vivid dreams, and high brain activity.

Insomnia

Difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep.

Narcolepsy

A sleep disorder involving sudden, uncontrollable sleep attacks.

Sleep apnea

A sleep disorder where breathing repeatedly stops and starts during sleep.

Manifest content

According to Freud, the remembered storyline of a dream.

Latent content

According to Freud, the hidden meaning of a dream.

Tolerance

Needing more of a drug to get the same effect.

Addiction

Compulsive use of a substance or behavior despite harmful consequences.

Withdrawal

Unpleasant physical or psychological symptoms after stopping a drug.

Stimulant

A drug that speeds up the central nervous system, such as caffeine.

Depressant

A drug that slows down the central nervous system, such as alcohol.

Psychoactive drugs

Drugs that affect mood, perception, consciousness, or behavior.

Hallucinogens

Drugs that distort perception and may cause hallucinations.

Encoding

The process of getting information into memory.

Storage

The process of keeping information in memory over time.

Retrieval

The process of bringing stored information back into awareness.

Sensory memory

Very brief memory of sensory information, such as sights or sounds.

Short-term memory

Temporary memory that holds a small amount of information for a short time.

Long-term memory

Relatively permanent memory storage.

Explicit memories

Memories we consciously know and can explain, like facts and events.

Implicit memories

Memories that affect behavior without conscious awareness, like skills and habits.

Iconic memory

A brief visual memory of an image.

Chunking

Grouping information into meaningful units to make it easier to remember.

Mnemonics

Memory tricks or strategies that help people remember information.

Flashbulb memory

A vivid memory of an emotional or important event.

Recall

Retrieving information without being given options, such as an answering a short-answer question.

Recognition

Identifying information from a list of choices, such as answering a multiple-choice question.

Mood congruent

The tendency to remember information that matches your current mood.

Serial position effect

The tendency to remember the first and last items in a list better than the middle items.

Anterograde amnesia

The inability to form new long-term memories after an injury or event.

Retrograde amnesia

The inability to remember information from before an injury or event.

Repression

According to Freud, the unconscious blocking of painful memories.

Misinformation effect

When misleading information changes a person’s memory of an event.

Convergent thinking

Thinking that focuses on finding one correct answer.

Divergent thinking

Thinking that creates many possible solutions or ideas.

Schema

A mental framework used to organize and interpret information.

Forgetting curve

The pattern showing that memory fades quickly at first and then levels off over time.

Tip of the tongue phenomenon

The feeling that you know something but cannot fully retrieve it.

Functional fixedness

The tendency to see objects as only useful for their usual purpose.

Bottom-up processing

Processing information starting with sensory details and building up to a full perception.

Top-down processing

Using prior knowledge, expectations, or experiences to interpret sensory information.

Change blindness

Failing to notice changes in a visual scene.

Cocktail party effect

The ability to focus on one voice or conversation while ignoring others.

Depth perception

The ability to see the world in $3$ dimensions and judge distance.

Gestalt psychology

The idea that people naturally organize sensory information into meaningful wholes.

Inattentional blindness

Failing to notice something visible because attention is focused elsewhere.

Interposition

A depth cue where one object blocking another makes the blocked object seem farther away.

Linear perspective

A depth cue where parallel lines appear to meet in the distance.

Perceptual constancy

Seeing objects as stable even when sensory information changes.

Perceptual set

A mental tendency to perceive something in a certain way based on expectations.

Proximity

A Gestalt principle where objects close together are seen as a group.

Relative size

A depth cue where smaller-looking objects are perceived as farther away.

Retinal disparity

A binocular depth cue caused by the slightly different images seen by each eye.

Selective attention

Focusing awareness on one specific stimulus.

Selective inattention

Failing to notice certain stimuli because attention is focused elsewhere.

Convergence

A depth cue where the eyes turn inward when looking at close objects.

Sensory adaptation

Reduced sensitivity to a constant stimulus over time.

Visual cliff

A research tool used to test depth perception in infants and animals.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

Physical and cognitive problems caused by alcohol exposure before birth.

Habituation

Decreasing response to a repeated stimulus.

Assimilation

Fitting new information into an existing schema.

Accommodation

Changing an existing schema to fit new information.