AP Psychology Unit 3A Vocab Quiz

Dementia

Serious loss of memory and thinking skills that interferes with daily life (Alzheimer's is the most common type)

Vygotsky

Russian psychologist; focused on social learning, Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), and scaffolding

Piaget

Swiss psychologist; 4 stages of cognitive development (Sensorimotor → Preoperational → Concrete → Formal Operational)

Longitudinal research

Studies the SAME group of people over a long period of time (example: follow the same kids from age 5 to 25)

Visual cliff

Experiment showing babies have depth perception by 6-8 months (they won't crawl over the "drop")

Scaffold / Scaffolding

Temporary help from a parent or teacher that is slowly removed as the child learns (Vygotsky)

Psychosocial conflicts

Erik Erikson's 8 life crises (example: Trust vs Mistrust, Identity vs Role Confusion)

Pheromone

Chemical signal released by the body that affects behavior or physiology in others of the same species (humans have weak evidence)

Identity

Answer to "Who am I?" - most important task of adolescence (Erikson stage 5)

Morpheme

Smallest unit of meaning in language ("un-" + "lock" + "-ed" = 3 morphemes)

Disorganized attachment

Scariest attachment style (Ainsworth); child acts confused or afraid of the caregiver - often linked to abuse or trauma

Imprinting

Rapid, strong attachment formed in baby animals right after birth (Konrad Lorenz's baby geese followed him like mom)

Syntax

Rules for putting words in the correct order to make sentences ("The cat chased the dog" vs wrong order)

Egocentric / Egocentrism

Piaget term; young children think everyone sees the world exactly like they do (can't take another person's perspective)

Teratogen

Any substance or agent that can harm a developing fetus (alcohol, drugs, viruses, smoking)

Overgeneralization

Child applies grammar rules too widely ("I goed to the park", "foots" instead of feet)

Ecosystem (in psych)

Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory - all the environments that affect a child (micro, meso, exo, macro, chrono)

Temperament

A baby's natural personality style you're born with (easy, difficult, or slow-to-warm-up) - stays pretty stable across life