AP PSYCHOLOGY || Unit 1 (Fall 2026)

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Gestalt Psychology

"the whole is different from the sum of its parts"

Structuralism (goal)

The first formal school of thought in psychology, aimed at analyzing the basic elements, or structure, of conscious mental experience.

Wilhelm Wundt

"the father of psychology"

Introspection

examining of one's own thoughts and feelings; Thinking about the way you think

Psychology

the scientific study of behavior and mental processes

Functionalism

focuses on the PURPOSE or FUNCTION of our behavior rather than the individual structures

Psychodynamic Perspective (goal)

focuses on the subconscious's effect on our behavior

Subconscious

The part of the mind that we are not consciously aware of

Psychoanalysis

A category of therapies designed at analyzing the subconscious (like ink blots or free association)

Behavioral Perspective

Focuses on how conditioning, or learning associations, affects our behavior

Conditioning

learning associations between our behavior and consequences (rewards and punishments) or between two stimuli (thunder and lightning)

Humanistic Perspective

focuses on positive aspects of psychology like reaching our full potential and becoming our best version of ourselves

Cognitive Perspective

focuses on mental process and how they affect behavior such as problem solving, critical thinking, intelligence, memory, etc... (it's a lot of stuff)

Biological Perspective

focuses on how our behavior is affected by our physical brains and body chemistry (hormones, neurons, neurotransmitters, etc...)

Sociocultural Perspective

focuses on how the norms and expectations of our culture can impact our behavior and mind

Positive Psychology

the scientific study of human functioning, with the goals of discovering and promoting strengths and virtues that help individuals and communities to thrive

Biopsychosocial Perspective

focuses on a combination of physical elements, cognitive elements, and social elements and how they affect our behavior

Applied Research

Studies done for a specific purpose or for solving a problem

Basic Research

Studies conducted for knowledge's sake, without a specific purpose or problem to solve

Case Study

A detailed study of a single person or event (like Phineas Gage)

Case Study (advantages)

Lots of detail and they're good for unique situations

Case Study (disadvantages)

The results can't be applied to everyone, they often rely on eyewitness testimonies or memories of people (which are often incorrect), and they can't be replicated or reproduced

Correlations

Shows relationships between two different variables

Positive Correlation

as one variable increases, so does the other (like studying and grades)

Negative Correlation

as one variable increases, the other decreases (like absences and grades)

Zero Correlation

no relationship between variables (like shoe size and grades)

Correlation Scatterplots

Shots relationships between variables on a graph

Positive Correlation (Scatterplot)

The variables increase together or decrease together

Negative Correlation (Scatterplot)

as one variable increases, the other decreases

Correlation Coefficient (r)

A numerical range showing the strength of the relationship between two variables (+1.00 to -1.00)

Illusory Correlation

thinking there is a relationship between two variables when there isn't one ('this always happens to me' when it likely doesn't).

Correlations (disadvantages)

Does NOT show causation

Surveys

Questionnaires and interviews that ask people directly about their experiences, attitudes, or opinions.

Likert Scale

A way to answer a survey that offers choices like 'strongly agree', 'agree', 'strongly disagree', etc... in response to statements

Representative Sample

a sample that accurately reflects the characteristics of the population as a whole

Sampling Bias

A problem that occurs when a sample is not representative of the population from which it is drawn.

Random Sampling

Choosing participants randomly from the population to take part in a survey or experiment

Random Selection

Choosing members of a sample to be in the experimental or control group of an experiment

Survey (advantages)

Easy to get lots of info

Survey (disadvantages)

People lie, it's difficult to get a representative sample, surveyors have agendas and have biased questions, people read into the questions too much

Social Desirability Bias

the tendency for people to say what they believe is appropriate or acceptable, rather than what may actually be true

Self-Report Bias

When people don't accurately report their own behaviors or traits

Naturalistic Observation

observing and recording behavior in naturally occurring situations without trying to manipulate and control the situation

Laboratory Observation

watching animals or humans behave in a laboratory setting

Observations (advantages)

We see actual behavior instead of relying on memories and perceptions of individuals

Observations (disadvantages)

observers can have biases or get tired and miss things; participants act differently when being observed

Hawthorne Effect

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

Observer Bias

tendency of observers to see what they expect to see

Experiment

Research method aimed at determining cause and effect relationships

Independent Variable

variable that is manipulated; difference between the control and experimental group

Dependent variable

the variable that is being measured in an experiment

extraneous variables

any variables other than the independent variable that seem likely to influence the dependent variable in a specific study

Experimental Group

The group that receives the Independent Variable

Sampling

The process of choosing who is in an experiment

Control Group

The group that does not receive the experimental method

Random Assignment

randomly choosing who is in the experimental group and who is in the control group within an experiment

Quasi-Experiment

An experiment in which random selection may not be practical, because people are already in groups (like women and men)

Placebo

a fake treatment given to control groups to mimic the experimental group's variable or to provide for a single-blind study

Single-Blind Study

study in which the subjects do not know if they are in the experimental or the control group

Double-Blind Study

An experiment in which neither the participant nor the researcher knows whether the participant has received the treatment or the placebo

Peer Review

When a colleague professionally reviews the work of another and critiques it