AP Psych Final

What is the nature vs. nurture dilemma, especially in regards to human development, learning, behavior, and abnormal psychology?

It debates whether genetics (nature) or environment and experience (nurture) primarily influence human traits, development, behavior, and psychological conditions.

What types of psychology are Sigmund Freud and B.F. Skinner associated with?

Freud is associated with psychoanalysis, focusing on unconscious motives

Skinner is linked to behaviorism, emphasizing observable behavior and reinforcement.

What kind of degree does a clinical psychologist have and what does a clinical psychologist do?

They typically have a doctoral degree (Ph.D. or Psy.D.) and diagnose, treat, and help manage mental health issues.

What kind of degree does a psychiatrist have and what can a psychiatrist do that a clinical psychologist can not?

Psychiatrists have medical degrees (M.D.) and can prescribe medication and provide medical treatments, which clinical psychologists generally cannot.

What is an operational definition and be able to identify operational definitions.

An operational definition clearly specifies how to measure or define a variable.

Example: Happiness is defined as "smiling at least three times per hour.”

What is the difference between a positive and negative correlation?

A positive correlation means both variables increase or decrease together; a negative correlation means one increases while the other decreases.

What is a correlation coefficient?

It is a number between -1.0 and +1.0 indicating the strength and direction of a relationship.

Example: A correlation coefficient of +0.8 suggests a strong positive relationship, such as more hours studied being associated with higher test scores.

What is the difference between a correlation coefficient of .90 and .25?

A .90 indicates a very strong positive relationship between variables, while a .25 suggests a weak positive relationship.

What is classical conditioning?

A learning process where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a meaningful stimulus, and elicits a response.
Example: Pavlov's dogs salivating to a bell after it was paired with food.

What is operant conditioning?

Operant conditioning is learning through rewards and punishments to increase or decrease behavior.
Example: Giving a dog a treat for sitting.

What is US?

Unconditioned Stimulus: A tasty treat. This naturally and automatically makes the dog happy and salivate.

What is UR?

Unconditioned Response: The dog salivates. This is the natural, automatic response to the treat.

What is CR?

Conditioned Response: The dog salivates when it hears the bell. This is a learned response to the bell, because the dog has learned to associate the bell with the treat.

What is CS?

Conditioned Stimulus: A bell. Initially, the bell means nothing to the dog.

What is the mean on a standard IQ test? What deviations above or below that IQ mean for intelligence?

The mean IQ score is 100. Scores above 100 suggest above-average intelligence; scores below 100 indicate below-average intelligence.

How do drugs affect our brains and thus our behavior?

Drugs alter our brain chemistry, which affects our neurotransmitter activity, which can change emotions, thoughts, and actions.

How is language influenced by the left and right hemispheres of our brain?

The left hemisphere primarily controls language skills such as speech and grammar, while the right hemisphere is involved in understanding context, tone, and nonverbal aspects of communication.

What is the difference between rods and cones?

Rods are responsible for vision in low light and do not detect color, while cones detect color and are used for detailed, daytime vision.

How do the volley and place principles of hearing differ?

The place principle says we hear different pitches based on where vibrations happen in the cochlea, while the volley principle explains how groups of neurons work together to send high-frequency sounds.

When dealing with cognitive development, what is object permanence and what is conservation?

Object permanence: The understanding that objects continue to exist even when they can't be seen or heard.

Conservation: The understanding that quantity remains the same even if appearance changes (like pouring water into a different shaped glass).

What is the difference between a cross-sectional and longitudinal study?

Cross-sectional study: Compares different groups at one point in time.

Longitudinal study: Follows the same group over a period of time to observe changes.

What is the difference between a semantic and episodic memory?

Semantic memory: Knowledge of facts and general information (e.g., knowing the capital of a country).

Episodic memory: Personal experiences and events (e.g., remembering your last birthday).

Name three prominent behavioral scientists (behaviorists).

B.F. Skinner, John B. Watson, and Ivan Pavlov.

In terms of classical conditioning, what is stimulus generalization? What is social learning?

Stimulus Generalization: When a response learned to one stimulus is triggered by similar stimuli.

Social Learning: Learning behaviors by observing others.

Who was Hermann Ebbinghaus?

a psychologist known for his research on memory and the forgetting curve, studying how we learn and forget information.

nonsense syllables, spacing effect

What are the different types of memory tests?

short-term memory tests, long-term memory tests, and working memory tests

What is the difference between recovered (repressed) memories and false (implanted) memories?

recovered (repressed) memories: true memories which were forgotten but then later recalled.

false (implanted) memories: false memories of events which never happened, often planted by others.

What makes someone an expert?

extensive practice, experience, learning from mistakes, time

What is a phoneme?

phonemes are the smallest units of sound that distinguish one word from another

the “p” in pat, and the “b” in bat, changes the word’s meaning

What is a morpheme?

morphemes are the smallest units of language that carry meaning.

the word “unhappy” has two morphemes “un” and “happy”

How do B.F. Skinner and Noam Chompsky differ on the idea of language acquisition/learning?

Skinner: Believed language is learned through conditioning, reinforcement, and imitation (behaviorist view).

Chomsky: Proposed that humans have an innate "universal grammar" enabling language learning naturally, independent of reinforcement.

What are the ‘Big 5’ personality traits?

Openness to Experience

Conscientiousness

Extraversion

Agreeableness

Neuroticism

What is psychoanalysis?

a therapeutic approach and theory developed by Sigmund Freud that explores how unconscious thoughts, feelings, and past experiences influence current behavior and mental health.

What role does the conscious and unconscious play for a psychoanalyst?

The conscious involves thoughts and feelings we're aware of, which a psychoanalyst helps clients explore.

The unconscious contains hidden memories, desires, and conflicts that influence behavior; psychoanalysts work to uncover and understand.

How did Sigmund Freud and Jean Piaget differ when they described childhood development?

Freud: Focused on unconscious desires and psychosexual stages.

Piaget: Focused on how children actively develop thinking skills through stages.

What are Freud’s stages of psychosexual development?

Oral Stage (0-1 year): Pleasure centers on the mouth (sucking, biting).

Anal Stage (1-3 years): Pleasure focuses on bowel and bladder control.

Phallic Stage (3-6 years): Focus on genitals; child feels desire for the opposite-sex parent (Oedipus/Electra complex).

Latency Stage (6-12 years): Sexual feelings are dormant; focus on school, friendships.

Genital Stage (12+ years): Sexual maturity; focus on relationships and reproduction.

What are Piaget’s stages of cognitive development?

Sensorimotor (0-2 years): Babies learn through senses and movement; they explore the world around them.

Preoperational (2-7 years): Children use words and images but struggle with logic and understanding others’ perspectives.

Concrete Operational (7-11 years): Kids start thinking logically about concrete events; understand conservation and others’ viewpoints.

Formal Operational (12+ years): Teens develop abstract thinking and can think about possibilities and hypothetical situations.

Describe humanistic psychology and unconditional positive regard.

Humanistic psychology: Focuses on helping people grow and reach their full potential through self-awareness and personal growth.

Unconditional positive regard: Accepting and loving someone without any conditions or judgments.

What are the most common personality tests? How do they differ?

MMPI focuses on mental health diagnosis.

Big Five measures broad personality traits.

MBTI sorts people into personality types based on preferences.

What are Erik Erikson’s 8 stages of social development?

Trust vs. Mistrust (Infancy): Developing a sense of security and trust when needs are met.

Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (Early childhood): Learning to do things independently.

Initiative vs. Guilt (Preschool): Taking initiative and exploring, or feeling guilty about attempts.

Industry vs. Inferiority (School age): Gaining confidence through achievements or feeling inadequate.

Identity vs. Role Confusion (Adolescence): Figuring out who they are.

Intimacy vs. Isolation (Young adulthood): Forming loving relationships or feeling lonely.

Generativity vs. Stagnation (Middle adulthood): Contributing to society or feeling unproductive.

Ego Integrity vs. Despair (Old age): Reflecting on life with satisfaction or regret.

What is the DSM and how does it help psychologists?

(Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) is a guide that lists and describes mental health conditions. It helps psychologists diagnose and classify mental disorders accurately.

What is GAD?

Generalized Anxiety Disorder: A mental health condition characterized by excessive, ongoing worry and anxiety about many different things.

What is SAD?

Seasonal Affective Disorder: A type of depression that occurs at certain times of the year, usually in winter when there’s less sunlight.

What is OCD?

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A mental health condition where people have unwanted, repeated thoughts (obsessions) and feel driven to perform certain actions or rituals (compulsions) to reduce anxiety.

What is major depression?

is a common and serious mood disorder that causes persistent feelings of sadness and loss of interest.

What is bipolarism?

is a mental illness characterized by extreme shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out daily tasks.

What is schizophrenia?

a serious, chronic brain disorder that affects how a person thinks, feels, and behaves. It's characterized by a range of symptoms, including hallucinations, delusions, disorganized thinking.

What is autism?

a lifelong developmental condition that affects a person's social skills, communication, relationships, and self-regulation.

Who this are?

Ameliya 😝