AP psychology exam review

Covers: approaches/perspectives, research methods and statistics, biology, states of consciousness, sensation and perception, cognition, memory, development, learning, social psychology, motivation and emotion, personality, clinical, and therapy/treatments

Physiological

Organisms physical process

Cognitive

Organisms thinking and understanding

behavioral perspective

Study on how all behavior is observable and measurable.

Psychodynamic perspective

Study of the unconscious, childhood, and aggression and how they affect the adult self

Humanistic perspective

Study how humans differ from animals, mainly that man’s have free will and can reach their full potential

Cognitive perspective

Study how we perceive, think, and solve problems

Evolutionary perspective

Study of the evolution of humans over time and how humans adapt to theri environment

Sociocultural perspective

Study of how experiences like culture, gender, and family affect our life

Biological perspective

Study the physiology of the body to explain behavior

Eclectic approach

Combining ideas from multiple theories

Confirmation bias

The tendency to interpret new evidence as confirmation of ones existing beliefs

Hindsight bias

Tendency to think that you knew the outcome all along

Overconfidence

The tendency to be more confident than correct

Psychiatrist

an prescribe medicine

Counseling psychologist

Works in schools and industrial firms

Developmental psychology

Studies physical, emotional, cognitive, and social changes that occur throughout life

Industrial and organizational psychologist

Studies behavior in the workplace

Psychometric psychologist

Studies the measure of our abilities, attitudes, and traits

Positive psychologist

Uses scientific methods to explore the building of a meaningful life that points beyond ourselves

Hypothesis

A testable prediction

Falsifiability

An assertion can be shown as false, must be present in all hypotheses

Operational definition

A clear statement of what a variable is in a experiment

Peer review

Experts evaluate a research article’s accuracy

Replication

Repeating research to see if the same results are obtained

Theory

Explanation that integrates prinicple’s, organizes, and predicts behavior. Must be a highly tested hypothesis

Generalizability of results

Results from a sample population are applicable to the greater population

Meta analysis

Combining significant results of multiple studies

Population result

The participants that can be selected for the sample

Sampling

The process by which participants are selected for the experiment

Sample population

The small group of participants that a researcher studies

Sampling bias

Flawed sampling process that produces an unrepresentative sample

Convenience sampling

Collecting research form readily available participants

Random sample

Everyone has an equal chance of being selected for the experiment because the participants are chosen at random. Used to avoid sampling bias

Experimental methodologies

Manipulation of variables to establish cause and effect relationships

Independent variable

A variable that is manipulated by the experimenter

Dependent variable

A factor that is not manipulated by the experimenter, may change in response to the independent variable

Confounding variables

Additional factors that may influence results of the experiment

Experimental group

Group that receives the treatment

Control group

Group that does not receive the treatment

Random assignment

Randomly assigning the control and experimental groups, limits bias in experiments

Placebo effect

Something administered that has no real effect on the person but makes the user believe it does

Variables of interest

Any changing quantity in a study that may impact the dependent variable

Single blind procedure

Subjects do not know a part of the experiment

Double blind procedure

The experimenters and the subjects dont know to whcih group the subjects belong to

Reliability

A study that is replicable and consistent

Validity

Study that measures what is supposed to be measured

Experimental study

Experimental studies need an experimental and control group, which allows for cause and effect to be found

Correlational study

Correlational studies gather data without an experimental and a control group rather instead studies the relationship between the variables

Non experimental research

Collecting data based on variables that lack manipulation of variables

Case study

Researching one subject/small group of subjects

Longitudinal study

Study that gathers data over a long period of time

Cross sectional study

Study that gathers data from multiple age groups

Naturalistic observational study

Observing and recording behavior in the natural environment of the subject. Researcher is usually hidden.

survey

Technique used to identify the self-reported attitudes or opinions of the subjects

Social desirability bias

When the subject responds in a way that they assume the researcher wants/expects

Self report bias

When subjects do to accurately report their behavior

Correlations

A relationship between two variables but does not mean cause and effect

Directionality problem

Correlation does not imply causation

Third variable problem

Correlation does not imply causation because of third variables

Scatterplots

A graph of participant’s scores on two variables, demonstrates the direction and strength of the relationship

Positive correlation

As one variable goes up/down, the other variable goes up/down

Negative correlation

Inverse relationship between the variables

Effect size

The strength of the relationship between two variables, the larger the effect size, the more one variable can be explained by the other.

Regression towards the mean

Variables that are extremely higher or lower than average on the first measurement mover closer the the mean on the second measurement

Descriptive statistics

Describes data listed in a frequency distribution/graph

Inferential statistics

Forming conclusions about the effect of the independent variable

Mean

Average of the scores, most affected by by outliers. Found by adding all the scores and dividing by the number of scores

Median

Put all scores in numerical order and then cross off the numbers until you reach the middle. If there are two numbers in the middle, add them and then divide the total by 2.

Mode

The most frequently occurring score in the distribution

Frequency distribuion

Shows how frequently each of the scores appear

Variance

How spread out scores are from another

Range

Highest score - lowest score

Percentile rank

How your score compares to the rest of the population (percentile)

Normal distribuition

A frequency distribution shaped like a symmetrical bell shaped curve

Standard deviation

The average distance of scores around the mean

Positive skew

Hump on the left

Negative skew

Hump on the right

Null hypothesis

Opposite of your hypothesis

Statistical significance

Cause and effect can be gathered from analysis, P value determines significance

P value

Must be less than 5% for significance

Quantitative research

Relies on numerical data

Qualitative research

Relies on in depth narrative data that is not translated into numbers

Institutional review

Federally mandated groups that evaluate risks and benefits of human participant researchi

Informed consent

Subjects must be informed about the experiment before they participate. Psychologists cannot use coercion to make subjects give consent/stay

Informed assent

Participants under 18 may give assent to participate with parental authorization

Protection from harm

Subjects should not be intentionally harmed from participating in an experiment

Confidentiality

Information about the subject remains private

Deception in research

Deception must be justified and participants must be debriefed at the end of the study

Research confederate

Participant that is in on the experiment

Debriefing

Subjects must be told about the true intent of the experiment before leaving.

Nature VS nurture

Nature = inherited traits

Nurture = Environmental traits

Darwin and natural selection

Traits that contribute to reproduction and survival are the most likely to be passed onto future generations

Eugenics

Applying principles of the evolutionary perspective in ways that discriminate against others

Behavior genetics

Study of the power and limits of genetic/environmental influence on behavior

Identical twins

Monozygotic

Fraternal twins

Dizygotic

central nervous system

The brain and spinal cordso

Somatic nervous system

The part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body’s skeletal muscles/voluntary movements

Peripheral nervous system

Sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body

Autonomic nervous system

Part of the peripheral nervous system that c on trolls the body’s skeletal muscles