AP Psychology-Final Exam Study Guide

Unit 1, Part I: Psychology’s History and Approaches

Theoretical Perspectives

  • Behavioral – Focuses on observable behavior and how it’s learned through conditioning (Pavlov, Watson, Skinner).

  • Biological – Explains behavior in terms of genes, hormones, neurotransmitters, and brain structures.

  • Cognitive – Focuses on thinking, perception, memory, and problem-solving.

  • Evolutionary – How natural selection favors behaviors that enhance survival and reproduction.

  • Humanistic – Emphasizes free will, personal growth, and self-actualization (Rogers, Maslow).

  • Psychodynamic – Behavior is influenced by unconscious drives, childhood conflicts (Freud).

  • Social-Cultural – How behavior varies across cultures and social situations.

Unit 1, Part II: Research Methods

  • Research Methods – Experiments, correlational studies, case studies, surveys, naturalistic observation.

  • Correlation Coefficient (r) – Measures relationship strength/direction (ranges −1 to +1).

  • Empirical Evidence – Information gained through observation and experimentation.

  • Ethical Considerations – Informed consent, confidentiality, no harm, deception only when justified, debriefing.

  • Experimental Group – Receives the independent variable (treatment).

  • Control Group – Does NOT receive the IV; used for comparison.

  • Generalizability – How well results apply to the broader population.

  • Independent Variable (IV) – What the researcher manipulates.

  • Dependent Variable (DV) – What is measured.

  • Illusory Correlation – Belief in a relationship where none exists.

  • Measures of Central Tendency – Mean, median, mode.

  • Measures of Variability – Range, standard deviation, variance.

  • Random Assignment – Participants placed into groups by chance (↠ reduces confounding variables).

  • Random Sample – Every member of the population has an equal chance of being chosen (↠ increases generalizability).

  • Reliability – Consistency of results.

  • Validity – Accuracy—does it measure what it claims to measure?

  • Sampling Bias – Sample not representative of the population.

  • Standard Deviation – Measure of how spread out data are from the mean.

  • Statistical Significance (p < .05) – Results unlikely due to chance.

Unit 2, Part I: Biological Bases of Behavior

  • Agonists – Mimic neurotransmitters (e.g., opioids mimic endorphins).

  • Antagonists – Block neurotransmitters (e.g., naloxone blocks opioids).

  • Brain Lateralization – The two hemispheres have specialized functions (left: language; right: spatial/creative).

  • Cerebellum – Balance, coordination, procedural memory.

  • Cerebral Cortex Lobes –

    • Frontal – Decision making, planning, motor cortex, speech production (Broca).

    • Parietal – Sensory input, spatial awareness.

    • Occipital – Vision.

    • Temporal – Hearing, language understanding (Wernicke), memory.

  • Endorphins – Natural painkillers; linked to pleasure.

  • Fight-or-Flight Response – Sympathetic nervous system activation.

  • Genetics of Identical Twins – Identical twins share 100% of genes; often used to study nature vs. nurture.

  • Hemispheric Specialization – Specific tasks rely more on one hemisphere.

  • Hippocampus – Formation of new explicit (episodic) memories.

  • Limbic System – Emotions and drives; includes amygdala, hippocampus, hypothalamus.

  • Parts of a Neuron – Dendrites, soma, axon, myelin sheath, terminal buttons, synapse.

  • Spinal Reflexes – Automatic responses that bypass the brain.

  • Sympathetic Nervous System – Arouses body (↑ heart rate, dilated pupils).

  • Parasympathetic Nervous System – Calms body (rest and digest).

  • Wernicke’s Area – Language comprehension.

Unit 2, Part II: States of Consciousness

  • Biological Effects of Alcohol – Depressant; slows neural processing, reduces inhibitions, disrupts REM sleep and memory.

  • Characteristics of Sleep Stages –

    • NREM-1: Light sleep, hypnagogic sensations.

    • NREM-2: Sleep spindles.

    • NREM-3: Deep sleep, delta waves.

    • REM: Dreaming, rapid eye movement, paralysis, memory consolidation.

  • Theories of Why We Dream –

    • Activation-Synthesis – Brain makes sense of random neural activity.

    • Information Processing – Consolidate memories.

    • Freudian Theory – Dreams express unconscious desires.

Unit 3: Sensation and Perception

  • Afterimages – Opponent-process rebound effect when cones get fatigued.

  • Cocktail Party Effect – Ability to focus on one voice amid noise; hearing your name draws attention.

  • Depth Perception – Binocular cues (retinal disparity) and monocular cues (linear perspective, relative size).

  • Frequency and Pitch – Higher frequency → higher pitch (sound waves).

  • Gestalt Principles – We organize stimuli into meaningful wholes (proximity, similarity, closure, continuity).

  • Olfaction – Sense of smell; does not pass through the thalamus.

  • Path to Processing Visual Information – Retina → Optic nerve → Thalamus → Occipital lobe.

  • Selective Attention – Focusing on one stimulus; leads to inattentional blindness.

  • Sensory Adaptation – Decreased sensitivity due to constant stimulation.

  • Sensory Interaction – Senses influence each other (e.g., smell affects taste).

Unit 5, Part I: Cognition

  • Algorithm – Step-by-step method guaranteeing a solution.

  • Availability Heuristic – Judging based on what easily comes to mind.

  • Ebbinghaus’ Forgetting Curve – Rapid initial forgetting, then levels off.

  • Encoding Failure – Information never enters long-term memory.

  • Episodic Memory – Personal experiences/events.

  • Functional Fixedness – Inability to see new uses for familiar objects.

  • Iconic vs. Echoic Memory –

    • Iconic: visual, lasts < 1 sec.

    • Echoic: auditory, lasts 3–4 sec.

  • Implicit Memory – Unconscious memory (skills, conditioning).

  • Language and Culture – Language can shape thought (linguistic relativity).

  • Levels of Processing – Deep processing (meaning) leads to better memory than shallow (appearance).

  • Memory Storage – Sensory → Short-term/working → Long-term.

  • Proactive vs. Retroactive Interference –

    • Proactive: old interferes with new.

    • Retroactive: new interferes with old.

  • Recall – Retrieving information without cues.

  • Serial Position Effect – Tendency to remember first and last items best.

Unit 5, Part II: Testing and Individual Differences

  • Aptitude Tests – Predict future performance (e.g., SAT).

  • Criterion-Related Validity – How well a test predicts an outcome.

  • Crystallized vs. Fluid Intelligence –

    • Crystallized: accumulated knowledge; increases with age.

    • Fluid: problem-solving; decreases with age.

  • Flynn Effect – Rising IQ scores over decades.

  • Standardized Tests – Uniform procedures, norms for comparison.

  • Reliability and Validity –

    • Reliable tests give consistent scores.

    • Valid tests measure what they claim.

Unit 6: Developmental Psychology

  • Cross-Sectional Studies – Compare different age groups at one time.

  • Longitudinal Studies – Follow the same group over time.

  • Effects of Aging – Decline in fluid intelligence, slower processing; stable crystallized intelligence.

  • Physical Development –

    • Brain: pruning, myelination.

    • Puberty: sexual maturation, hormone surge.

  • Piaget’s Stages –

    • Sensorimotor (0–2): object permanence.

    • Preoperational (2–7): egocentrism, lack conservation.

    • Concrete Operational (7–11): logical thinking, conservation.

    • Formal Operational (12+): abstract reasoning.

  • Erikson’s Stages – Trust vs mistrust, autonomy vs shame, initiative vs guilt, industry vs inferiority, identity vs role confusion, intimacy vs isolation, generativity vs stagnation, integrity vs despair.

  • Attachment Styles –

    • Secure: distressed when parent leaves, comforted on return.

    • Avoidant: little distress, avoids parent.

    • Ambivalent/Resistant: extreme distress, not easily comforted.

    • Disorganized: inconsistent behavior.