FULL ALL INCLUSIVE ALMOST AP PSYCH TERMS

Encoding

Process of putting information into memory.

Display Rules

the social/cultural norms dictating when, where, and how people should express emotions, influencing whether you suppress (like hiding anger) or amplify feelings (like smiling at a gift) to fit social expectations, varying across cultures and genders

Parasympathetic Nervous System

that calms the body, conserving energy and promoting "rest and digest" functions like slowing

Cognitive Appraisal

the crucial mental process where you interpret or evaluate an event, determining your emotional and stress response

Implicit Personality Theory

describes our unconscious belief system that certain traits go together, allowing us to quickly form complete impressions of people from minimal information

Hindsight Bias

a cognitive bias where people perceive past events as being more predictable than they actually were before the event took place. “I knew that all along”

Accomodation

a key concept from Piaget's theory of cognitive development where you change or create new mental frameworks (schemas) to fit new information that doesn't match existing ones, contrasting with assimilation (fitting new info into old schemas).

Phonological loop

Memory system for sounds and words utilizing repetition

Visuospatial sketchpad

Memory system for visual and spatial information. (WRONG)

Explicit memory

Memories that can be consciously recalled. (Maybe)

Implicit memory

Memory for skills and conditioned responses that do not require conscious thought.

Iconic memory

Brief visual memory.

Serial position effect

Remembering the first and last items best.

Gary the snail

Example of learning and new memory formation in the brain

Stimulus (Maybe conditioned)

Anything that triggers a response.

Classical conditioning

Learning by pairing two stimuli.

Latent Learning Versus Classical Conditioning

Latent learning occurs without reinforcement and is not immediately expressed, whereas conditioning involves learning through associations that are typically reinforced or repeatedly paired.

Latent Learning

Learning that occurs without reinforcement and is not immediately observable.

B.F Skinner enhanced Behaviorism

Study of observable behavior rather than mental processes.

Neutral stimulus (NS) (Police Question)

Something that does not cause a response at first.

Unconditioned response (UCR)

Natural response to a stimulus.

Unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

Stimulus that naturally triggers a response.

Conditioned response (CR)

Learned response to a previously neutral stimulus.

Conditioned stimulus (CS)

Neutral stimulus that triggers a learned response.

Acquisition

First stage of learning a new response.

Generalization

Responding in the same way to similar stimuli.

Discrimination (10 to 25 Hertz question)

Ability to tell the difference between stimuli.

Operant conditioning (B.F Skinner)

Learning by consequences of behavior.

Negative reinforcement

Removing something unpleasant to increase a behavior.

Fixed-ratio schedule

Reward after a set number of behaviors.

Variable-ratio schedule

Reward after a random number of behaviors.

Fixed-interval schedule

Reward after a set amount of time.

Variable-interval schedule

Reward after varying amounts of time.

Latent learning

Learning that is not obvious until needed.

Attribution theory

Explaining behavior by the person's traits or the situation.

Fundamental attribution error

Overestimating personality and underestimating the situation when explaining others' behavior.

Actor-observer bias

Explaining our own behavior by the situation but others' behavior by personality.

Cognitive dissonance theory

Discomfort from holding conflicting thoughts or behaviors.

Peripheral route persuasion

Influence based on superficial cues or emotions. (Celebrity Promoting something)

Central route persuasion

Influence based on facts and logical arguments.

Social facilitation

Performing better on simple tasks when watched by others.

Social loafing

Exerting less effort when working in a group.

Group polarization

Group decisions become more extreme than individual opinions.

Groupthink

Desire for harmony leads to poor decision-making in a group.

Mere exposure effect

Liking something more after seeing it often.

Altruism

Helping others without expecting anything in return.

Bystander effect

Less likely to help when others are present.

Social Reciprocity Theory

People feel obligated to return favors or respond in kind to others’ actions.

Reciprocity norm

Helping others who help us.

Superordinate goals

Shared goals that require cooperation and reduce conflict.

Homeostasis (Drinking water question)

Maintaining a stable internal state.

Incentive (Answer to stress over a test)

External goal that motivates behavior.

Cortisol

Released by adrenal cortex/glands

Facial feedback effect (NOT RIGHT ANSWER PROB) (NORMS IS THE RIGHT ANSWER)

Facial expressions can influence emotions.

Behavior feedback effect

Body movements can influence mood.

Problem-focused coping

Dealing directly with the cause of stress.

Emotion-focused coping

Managing emotional reactions to stress.

Learned helplessness

Feeling powerless after repeated failures.

External locus of control

Belief that outside forces control life.

Internal locus of control

Belief that personal actions control life outcomes.

Activation-Synthesis Theory

The brainstem sends random signals during REM sleep; the cortex tries to create a story (dream) from these signals, often involving memories and emotions.

Informtion-Processing Theory

Dreams help sort, sift, and consolidate the day's experiences into memories, improving learning and recall.

Active Processing Theory

Making sense of random neural firings

Cognitive Appraisal

The personal interpretation of a situation that determines how stressful it is and what emotional response it will trigger.

Instinct Theory

Behavior is driven by unlearned, innate patterns (instincts) common to a species, like migration or mating rituals.

Drive-Reduction Theory

Biological needs (hunger, thirst) create tension (drives) that motivate us to satisfy them, seeking homeostasis (balance)

Arousal Theory

People seek an optimal level of arousal; too little leads to boredom, too much to stress, with performance best at moderate arousal

Incentive Theory

Motivation comes from external stimuli (incentives) – rewards (money, praise) or punishments.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Motivation progresses through a pyramid of needs, from basic physiological ones to safety, love, esteem, and finally, self-accusation