AP PSYCH UNIT 1

Biological Perspective

Focuses on how biology influences behavior (e.g., brain, neurotransmitters).

Evolutionary Perspective

Looks at how evolution and natural selection shape behavior.

Psychodynamic/Psychoanalytic Perspective

Emphasizes unconscious drives and early experiences (Freud’s theories).

Behavioral Perspective

Studies observable behavior and its causes (classical/operant conditioning).

Humanistic Perspective

Focuses on free will, self-actualization, and human potential (Maslow, Rogers).

Cognitive Perspective

Examines mental processes like memory, thinking, and problem-solving.

Social-Cultural Perspective

Looks at how society and culture affect behavior.

Confirmation Bias

Tendency to search for information that confirms one's beliefs.

Hindsight Bias

Believing after an event that you "knew it all along."

Overconfidence

Being more confident than correct in judgments.

Experimental Method

Used to explore cause and effect by manipulating variables.

Independent Variable (IV)

The variable that is manipulated.

Dependent Variable (DV)

The variable that is measured.

Confounding Variable

A variable that could interfere with results.

Random Assignment

Randomly placing participants into control/experimental groups to reduce bias.

Experimental Group

Receives the treatment.

Control Group

Does not receive the treatment (used for comparison).

Deception

Used to ensure the study's integrity without revealing too much to participants.

Placebo Effect

When participants show improvement simply because they believe they are receiving treatment.

Single Blind

Participants don’t know which group they’re in.

Double Blind

Neither participants nor researchers know who is in which group.

Correlation

Measures the relationship between two variables.

Positive Correlation

Both variables increase together (+1).

Negative Correlation

One variable increases, the other decreases (-1).

No Correlation

No relationship between variables (0).

Illusory Correlation

Perceiving a relationship that doesn't exist.

Correlation ≠ Causation

Just because two things are related, doesn’t mean one causes the other.

Case Study

An in-depth analysis of an individual or group.

Naturalistic Observation

Observing behavior in its natural setting.

Meta-Analysis

Combining results from multiple studies.

Sample

A subset of the population being studied.

Population

The entire group of people you're interested in studying.

Representative Sample

A sample that accurately reflects the population.

Random Sample

Everyone in the population has an equal chance of being selected.

Convenience Sampling

Selecting people who are easy to access.

Sampling Bias

Occurs when the sample is not representative.

Generalizability

The extent to which study results apply to the population.

IRB

Oversees research to ensure ethical guidelines are followed.

Informed Consent

Participants must agree to the study knowing all the risks.

Informed Assent

Parental consent for minors in research.

Protection from Harm

Ensuring participants are not harmed.

Right to Withdraw

Participants can leave the study at any time.

Confidentiality

Participants' information must remain private.

Debriefing

Explaining the study's purpose to participants afterward.

Mean

The average score.

Median

The middle score in a set.

Mode

The most frequently occurring score.

Range

The difference between the highest and lowest scores.

Standard Deviation

How spread out the scores are.

Normal Curve

A bell-shaped curve representing data distribution.

68-95-99.7 Rule

Percentage of data falling within 1, 2, and 3 standard deviations from the mean.

Positive Skew

More low scores, tail on the right.

Negative Skew

More high scores, tail on the left.

Bimodal

Two peaks in the data set.

Scatterplot

A graph that shows the relationship between two variables.

Correlation Coefficient

A statistical measure of the strength and direction of a relationship between two variables.

Statistical Significance

Indicates whether the results are due to chance.

Effect Size

Measures the strength of the relationship between variables.

Psychological Approaches

Each approach explains behavior from different angles.

Experimental vs Non-experimental Methods

Experiments involve manipulating variables; non-experimental methods observe relationships without manipulation.

Independent vs Dependent Variables

IV is what you change, DV is what you measure.

Random Assignment Importance

Helps reduce bias and create equal groups.

Experimental vs Control Groups

Experimental gets treatment, control does not.

Deception and