the ultimate ap psych study guide

what is psychology?

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes

behavior

any action or reaction of a living organism that can be directly observed

mental processes

internal processes such as thinking, feeling, and desiring that can only be indirectly observed

wilhelm wundt

a German scientist who established the first psychology research laboratory. He also wrote the first textbook and he was the first to call himself a psychologist

created introspection

introspection

examining one’s own thoughts, emotions, judgments and perceptions to explain their mental state. could not be used to study children, animals, or people with mental disorders.

stanley hall

wundt’s student that went on to establish the first formal psychological laboratory in the US at Johns Hopkins University

Edward Titchener

inspired by Wundt, trained students to use introspection to identify the most basic components or structures of conscious experiences. created structuralism

structuralism

early school of thought promoted by Wundt and Titchener; used introspection to reveal the structure of the human mind

mary floy washburn

the first female to earn a ph. d. in psychology for her work in animal behavior

functionalism

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.

ex.) instead of asking subjects to describe the emotion of fear, functionalists studied how fear enabled people and animals to adapt to their environments

mary whiton calkins

the first female to finish all the requirements for a Harvard Ph.D. in psychology, but it was denied to her because she was a woman.

First president of the American Psychological Association (APA).

psychoanalysis

emphasized the role of unconscious conflicts in determining behavior and personality. focused attention on conflicts between accepted norms of behavior and unconcious sexual and aggressive impulses

sigmund freud

psychoanalysis

freud believed that dreams, “slips of the tongue” (called Freudian slips), and memory blocks (repression) all provide glimpses into the

unconscious mind

gestalt psychologists

focused on how we construct perceptual wholes

gestalt

means the whole

gestalt theories and methodologies are used to

explain the perceptual organization, or how you perceive things

the behavioral perspective

scientific investigations on observable behaviors that can be objectively measured

behaviorists believe

human behavior is learned and can be controlled through the presence or absence of rewards and punishments

ivan pavlov

behaviorism

John B Watson

applied Pavlov’s line of reasoning to human behavior. Watson believed that human beings could be led in any direction through learning

ex.) he declared that he could take an infant and teach them how to be a doctor or a lawyer or a criminal and thief like that one scene in megamind when he was a prison baby

B. F. Skinner

a) watson had great influence on. advocated behaviorism and rejected introspection and instead studied how consequences shape behavior

b) believed that psychologists should focus on **observable behavior** that could be objectively measured and verified

behaviorists

ivan pavlov, John B. watson, B. F. Skinner

the humanistic perspective

every person has the ability to self actualize or reach their full potential

carl rogers

played a key role in the rise of humanistic psychology. Rogers believed that every person has the ability to self actualize or reach their full potential. He emphasized the importance of free will and choice in behavior

abraham maslow

also a key leader in the development of human psychology, maslow’s hierarchy of needs

humanists

carl rogers, abraham maslow

the psychodynamic perspective

While continuing to emphasize the importance of unconscious infleunces, the psychodynamic perspective places less emphasis on sexual instinct

the psychodynamic approach to therapy

emphasizes repressed memories, free association, dream interpretation, and analysis of transference.

the biological perspective

Psychologists who employ the biological perspective study the physical bases of human and animal behavior

 The Cognitive Perspective

focuses on the way humans gather, store, and process sensory information.

jean piaget

cognitive psychologist who mainly studied cognitive development in children

the sociocultural perspective

focuses on how culture and social situations affect the way people think, feel, and behave

The Evolutionary Perspective

uses the principle of evolution to explain psychological processes and phenomena

Evolutionary psychologists believe

that natural selection plays a key role in determining human behavior

Natural Selection

The way that any genetically determined behaviour that enhances the ability to survive and reproduce will continue in future generations

charles darwin

argued that natural selection shaped behaviors as well as bodies

dorthea dix

Helped to establish the modern methods of therapy, especially in treating the mentally ill and insane

Biopsychosocial approach

An integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis to explain a behavior

functionalists

william james, mary whiton calkins

clinical psychology and counseling

attract the largest number of doctoral students

Clinical psychology

specializes in the evaluation of diagnosis and treatment of mental and behavioral disorders

Forensic psychology

applies the principles of psychology to the legal profession including jury selection and psychological profiling

Educational psychology

uses knowledge of how people learn to help develop instructional methods and materials

Industrial-organizational psychology (IO psychology, has the most questions related to psychology careers)

applies the principles of psychology to the workplace including employee motivation, job satisfaction, and personnel selection

Developmental psychology

conducts research in age related behavioral changes

Experimental domain

investigates a variety of behavior processes

Personality domain

This domain of psychology is concerned with the way such feelings, thoughts, beliefs, intentions, and goals are constructed, and how these psychological factors, in turn, influence our interactions with others

Psychometric domain

concerned with the quantification and measurement of mental attributes, behavior, performance, and the like, as well as with the design, analysis, and improvement of the tests, questionnaires, and other instruments used in such measurement

Social domain

concerned with the way such feelings, thoughts, beliefs, intentions, and goals are constructed, and how these psychological factors, in turn, influence our interactions with others

Positive domain

the scientific study of what makes life most worth living, focusing on both individual and societal well-being

The Experimental Method

**The experimenter purposely manipulates and controls** selected variables in order to determine cause and effect. (independent variable, dependent variable)

experiment

a carefully controlled method of investigation used to establish a cause and effect relationship

hypothesis

 a tentative statement that describes the relationship between two or more variables. A hypothesis must be testable, verifiable, and refutable. 

independent variable

the factor that is manipulated or controlled by the experiment

ex.) in ivan pavlov’s dog experiment, the iv is the amount of food being given to the dog.

dependent variable

the factor that is measured by the experiment. It is affected by and thus dependent on the independent variable

ex.) in ivan pavlov’s dog experiment, the dv is the amount of saliva provided because of the food (the iv)

operational definition

a precise description of how the variable in a study will be manipulated and measured

ex.) in a study about whether or not violent video games make violent children, the operational definition would be

* The children's aggressive behavior will be manipulated by the level of violence the video game displays
* The game will have 3 sections of gun violence per minute

experimental group

participants who are exposed to the independent variable

ex.) testing out a new medication, experimental group receives the medication

control group

participants who are exposed to all experimental conditions except the independent variable. This enables the experimenter to make comparisons with the experimental group

ex.) while the experimental group receives the new kind of medication, the other group will take the old medication

confounding variables

an unwanted influence on the outcome of an experiment.

ex.) in an experiment testing the ability to memorize words for the SAT, an intellectual disability, someone who has already taken the SAT, or environmental factors are confounding variables

experimenter bias

occurs when a researcher’s expectations or preferences about the outcome of a study influence the results in a hoped-for direction.

sample bias

occurs when research participants are not representative of the larger population

random assignment

a) procedure by which participants are assigned to experimental and control groups by chance.

b) This minimizes preexisting differences between the different groups

placebo

placebo is an inactive substance or fake treatment often used as a control technique in drug research

Single blind study

 a procedure in which the subjects do not know whether they are in the experiment or control group

Double-blind study

a) a procedure in which neither the researcher nor the participant knows which group receives the experimental treatment.

b) This procedure reduces expeiremntal bias

advantages of experiments

1. Enables researchers to identify cause-and-effect relationships. 
2. Enables researchers to distinguish between real and placebo effects 
3. Enables researchers to control bias by using a double blind study 
4. Enables researchers to manipulate the independent variable and measure the dependent variable
5. Enable researchers to **replicate** a study thus increasing confidence that the independent variable influence the dependent variable

disadvantages of experiments

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1. Create artificial laboratory conditions that do not respond to real life situations 
2. Can be compromised by confounding variables that are difficult to identify and control 
3. Susceptible to researcher and participant biases 
4. Raise ethical concerns when subjects are deceived

descriptive research

a) includes methods that enable researchers to observe and describe behvaiors and mental processes without manipulating variables.

b) do not enable researchers to establish cause and effect relationships

survey

A research technique that uses questionnaires or interviews or combination of the two to assess the behavior, attitudes and opinions of the large number of people

social desirability bias

where survey respondents often report they are healthier, happier, and less prejudiced than would be expected based upon the results of other types of research

population

a) The entire group that a researcher wants to study.

b) A random sample helps minimize bias and ensures the example is representative

Naturalistic Observation

researchers observe the behavior of subjects as it occurs in a real social setting

naturalistic observations are

descriptive and do not explain behavior

Case Studies

a) A case study is in depth examination of a single research participant.

b) Case studies enable researchers to obtain detailed knowledge about a person.

c) They also provide an opportunity to conduct in depth studies of rare or unusual cases.

case studies

cannot be used to establish cause-and-effect relationships. They are susceptible to inaccurate recording and the subject's bias used

The longitudinal method

a) measures a single individual or group of individuals over an extended period of time.

b) Longitudinal studies can reveal in-depth information but take long periods of time

The cross-sectional method

compares individuals of various ages at one point in time

correlational studies

a) researchers observe or measure a relationship between variables in which changes in one variable are reflected in changes in other variables.

b) they do not directly manipulate the variables.

c) can be used to analyze the data gathered in any type of descriptive research

Correlation Coefficient

 a) a numerical value that indicates the strength and direction of the relationship between two variables

b) Correlation coefficients are calculated by a formula that produces a number ranging from positive 1.00 to negative 1.00

positive correlation

Indicates that two variables move or vary in the same direction

ex.) studies have found a positive relationship between smoking and the incidents of lung cancer. That is as frequency of smoking increases, the incidents of lung cancer increases

negative correlation

Indicates that two variables move or vary in opposite directions. 

ex) studies have found a negative correlation between level of education and anger. That is, as education increases, anger decreases

zero correlation

Indicates that there is no relationship between two variables 

ex) a study found no correlation between cellphone use and the incidents of brain tumors

Correlation studies

 indicate the possibility of a cause and effect relationship

correlation

does not prove causation. **just because it fits the other, doesn’t always mean why**

Advantages of Correlation Studies

1. They can be used to describe or clarify a relationship between two variables 
2. They can be an efficient way to utilize preexisting data. 
3. They can be used to dispel illusory correlations. Although widely believed, an illusory correlation is in fact non-existent.

illusory correlation

perceiving a relationship when there is none

Disadvantages of Correlational Studies

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1. **They cannot be used to establish cause-and-effect relationships**.
2. They cannot be used to establish the direction of causal influence. Can not say “because this, this”
3. They do not allow researchers to actively manipulate the variables 
4. They make it more difficult to identify the impact of confounding variables

mean

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1. The sum of a set of scores in a distribution divided by the number of scores. The mean is the average. 
2. Extreme scores have a greater impact on the mean (or average) than on the mode or the median.
3. Any change in the highest score in any distribution must result in a change in the mean

median

Middle number in a list 

mode

The most frequently occurring score in a distribution. 

measure of variation

 a single score that presents information about the spread of scores in a distribution

range

The highest score in a distribution minus the lowest score in a distribution

standard deviation (MUST KNOW WHAT THIS IS)

1. The most widely used measure of variation
2. A standard measurement of how much the scores in a distribution deviate from the mean

inferential statistics

1. Most experiments are conducted with a small sample of subjects. 


2. Psychologists want to **generalize** the results from their small sample to a larger population. 
3. Inferential statistics are used to determine how likely it is that a study’s outcome is due to change and whether the outcome can be legitimately generalized to the larger population from which the sample was selected

normal distribution

a) In a normal distribution of test scores, the percentage of scores that fall at or above the mean is 50. The percentage of test scores that fall at or below the mean score is also 50

b) In a normal distribution, approximately one-third of the scores fall one standard deviation below the mean and one-third of the scores fall one standard deviation above the mean

All score-based normal curves have the following 68-95-99.7 rule in common:

1. Approximately 68% of all scores fall within one standard deviation of the mean 
2. Approximately 95% of all scores fall within two standard deviations of the mean 
3. Approximately 99.7% of all scores fall within three standard deviations of the mean

Positively skewed distributions

contains a preponderance of scores on the low end of the scale (looks like a p on its back) The mean (average) will be higher than the median

Negatively skewed distribution

contains a preponderance of scores on the high end of the scale (opposite of positive graph) The mean will be lower than the median

bimodal distribution

a set of scores with two peaks or modes around which values tend to cluster, such that the frequencies at first increase and then decrease around each peak