AP Psychology Science Practices

Purpose: The science practices and skills are essential for students to engage with AP Psychology concepts.
Integration: Course material includes repetition and integration of these skills to prepare students for the AP exam.

Objective: Apply psychological perspectives, theories, concepts, and research findings in various scenarios.
- 1.A: Apply theories or concepts to scenarios, explaining and contrasting behaviors and mental processes.
- 1.B: Discuss the impact of cultural norms and cognitive biases on behavior.

Objective: Evaluate qualitative and quantitative research methods and study designs.
- 2.A: Identify the research design used (experimental vs. non-experimental).
  - Experimental Methodology: Involves independent variables and random assignments.
  - Non-experimental Methodologies: Includes case studies, correlations, meta-analyses.
- 2.B: Analyze experimental methodologies and identify elements such as hypothesis and variable definitions.

Objective: Evaluate representations in psychological research data.
- 3.A: Identify psychology-related concepts in data representations (tables, graphs).
- 3.B: Calculate and interpret measures of central tendency (mean, median, mode, range) and variations.
- 3.C: Draw insights from data trends and relationships.

Objective: Develop and justify psychological arguments using evidence.
- 4.A: Propose claims based on psychological reasoning.
- 4.B: Support or refute claims using scientifically derived evidence, analyzing the impact of policies or claims.

Assess whether study samples are representative of populations and the implications of sampling methods.
Evaluate ethical procedures in research, focusing on informed consent, confidentiality, and participant protection.

Importance of institutional review for human and animal research.
Evaluate informed consent processes and confidentiality measures.
Assess the use of deception and the appropriateness of debriefing participants after studies.