AP Psych Chapter 1 Key Stuff

Structuralism

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

Empiricism

The view that knowledge originates in experience and that science should therefore rely on observation and experimentation.

Functionalism

A school of psychology that focused on how our mental and behavioral processes enable us to adapt, survive, and flourish.

Experimental Psychology

The study of behavior and thinking using the experimental method.

Behaviorism

The view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2).

Humanistic Psychology

The historically significant perspective that emphasized the growth potential of healthy people and the individual's potential for personal growth.

Cognitive Neuroscience

The interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with thinking including perception, thinking, memory, and language.

Psychology

The scientific study of observable 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. Today's science sees traits and behaviors arising from the interaction of the two.

Natural Selection

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

Levels of Analysis

The differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon.

Biopsychosocial Approach

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

Biological Psychology

A branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior.

Evolutionary Psychology

The study of the roots of behavior and mental processes using the principles of natural selection.

Psychodynamic Psychology

A branch of psychology that studies how unconscious drives and conflicts influence behavior, and uses that information to treat people with psychological disorders.

Behavioral Psychology

Method of changing abnormal behavior thru systematic program based on the learning principles of CLASSICAL conditioning, OPERANT Conditioning, or OBSERVATIONAL Learning.

Cognitive Psychology

The scientific study of all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.

Social-Cultural Psychology

The study of how situations and cultures affect our behavior and thinking.

Psychometrics

The scientific study of the measurement of human abilities, attitudes, and traits.

Basic Research

One of the two main types of research, pure research that aims to confirm an existing theory or to learn more about a concept or phenomenon

Developmental Psychology

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

Educational Psychology

The study of how psychological processes affect and can enhance teaching and learning.

Personality Psychology

The study of an individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting.

Social Psychology

The scientific study of how we think about, influence, and relate to one another.

Applied Research

One of the two main types of research, conducted specifically to solve practical problems and improve the quality of life.

Industrial-Organizational (I/O) Psychology

The application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces.

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.

Counseling Psychology

A branch of psychology that assists people with problems in living (often related to school, work, or marriage) and in achieving greater well-being.

Clinical Psychology

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

Psychiatry

A branch of medicine dealing with psychological disorders; practiced by physicians who often provide medical (for example, drug) treatments as well as psychological therapy.

SQ3R

A study method incorporating five steps Survey, Question, Read, Rehearse, Review.

Positive Psychology

the scientific study of optimal human functioning; aims to discover and promote strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to thrive

community psychology

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

testing effect

enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply reading, information. Also sometimes referred to as a retrieval practice effect or test-enhanced learning.

Wilhelm Wundt

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A German psychologist and philosopher known as the Father of Psychology for establishing the first psychology laboratory and developing structuralism and introspection as key methods in the field.Remove Ads

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Mary Whiton Calkins

Mentored by James, she became a pioneering memory researcher and the first woman to be the president of the American Psychological Association (APA)

Charles Darwin

argues that natural selection shapes behaviors as well as bodies

Dorothea Dix

Led the way to humane treatment of those with psychological disorders

Sigmund Freud

The controversial ideas of this famed personality theorist and therapist have influenced humanity's self-understanding

G. Stanley Hall

One of the first psychologists do describe adolescence, and believed that the tension between biological maturity and social dependence creates a period of “storm and stress”

William James

This psychologist was a legendary teacher-writer who authored an important 1890 psychology text.

Ivan Pavlov

best known for his work describing the psychological phenomenon of Classical Conditioning. From his work studying digestion in dogs, he observed that the dogs would salivate at the mere sight of food.

Jean Piaget

studied children's cognitive development. was a Swiss psychologist known for his work on child development. This psychologist's theory of cognitive development and epistemological view are together called "genetic epistemology".

Carl Rogers

was a humanistic psychologist who agreed with the main assumptions of Abraham Maslow, but added that for a person to "grow", they need an environment that provides them with genuineness (openness and self-disclosure), acceptance (being seen with unconditional positive regard), and empathy (being listened to and understood).

B.F. Skinner

A leading behaviorist, this psychologist rejected introspection and studied how consequences shape behavior

Margaret Floy Washburn

The first woman to receive a psychology Ph.D., this psychologist synthesized animal behavior research in The Animal Mind

John B. Watson

Working with Rayner, this psychologist championed psychology as the science of behavior and demonstrated conditioned responses on a baby who became famous as “Little Albert”