AP PSYCHOLOGY: IMPORTANT TERMS & PEOPLE
Unit 1 – History & Approaches
Major Psych Perspectives
natural selection
-Evolutionary
-Behavioral
dualism vs. monism
-Biological
-Psychodynamic/Psychoanalytic
psychology vs. psychiatry
-Cognitive
-Humanistic
nature vs. nurture issue
-Socio-Cultural
(Biopsychosocial approach)
The Scientific Method
theory & hypothesis
critical thinking
correlational research
overconfidence
false consensus effect
confirmation bias
hindsight bias
Types of Research
Wilhelm Wundt
William James
structuralism
functionalism
Unit 2: Research Methods & Statistics
Controls (to reduce bias)
Experiments
random sample
random assignment
operational definitions
placebo & placebo effect
double-blind procedure
reliability (replicate)
validity
Neural Communication
Neurotransmitters
Neural System
Brain Imaging
Brain “Stuff”
neuron
sensory neurons
motor neurons
interneurons
dendrite
axon
myelin sheath
action potential
threshold
synapse
endorphins
serotonin
dopamine
acetylcholine
norepinephrine
GABA
Glutamate
reuptake
inhibitory vs. excitatory
agonists vs. antagonists
Central Nervous System
Peripheral Nervous System
+Somatic Nervous System
+Autonomic Nervous System
-Sympathetic NS
-Parasympthatetic NS
Endocrine System
hormones
adrenal glands
pituitary gland (master)
EEG
CT
PET
MRI
fMRI
lesion
plasticity
corpus collosum
split brain (left v. right)
dual processing
glial cells
association areas
aphasia
Phineus Gage
The Brainstem
The Limbic System
The Cerebral Cortex
Genetics
medulla
pons
reticular formation
spinal cord
*cerebellum
*thalamus
amygdala
hypothalamus
hippocampus
cingulate gyrus
*basil ganglia
Frontal Lobe
+prefrontal cortex
+motor cortex
+Broca’s Area
Parietal Lobe
+somatosensory strip
Temporal Lobe
+auditory cortex
+Wernicke’s Area
Occipital Lobe
+visual cortex
DNA
chromosome
genes
behavior genetics
molecular genetics
fraternal twins
identical twins & studies
mutations
mating preferences
heritability
Unit 3: Neuroscience
Unit 4: Sensation & Perception
Vision(know how the eye sees) Hearing (know how ear hears)Other Senses
transduction
outer, middle, inner ear kinesthesis
pupil
hammer, anvil, stirrup vestibular
iris
cochlea (oval window) gate-control theory of pain
lens
basilar membrane
sensory interaction
retina
auditory nerve
rods
place theory
cones
frequency theory
optic nerve
conduction hearing loss
fovea
sensorineural hearing loss
feature detectors
Young-Hemholtz trichromatic theory
Opponent-process theory
experimental group
control group
independent variable
dependent variable
confounding variable
4 Ethical Guidelines
Statistics
survey
case study
naturalistic observation
*experiment
illusory correlation
correlation coefficient
correlation is NOT cause
Perception
gestalt
figure-ground
grouping (all 5)
depth perception
“visual cliff”
binocular cues
+retinal disparity
monocular cues (all 6)
perceptual constancy
+size, color, shape
perceptual adaptation
perceptual set
measures of central tendency
mean, median, & mode
range
standard deviation
normal distribution (curve)
scatterplot
Extra “Stuff”
bottom-up processing
top-down processing
selective attention
inattentional blindness
change blindness
absolute threshold
difference threshold
signal detection theory
Weber’s Law
sensory adaptation
cocktail party effect
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drive-reduction theory
homeostasis
optimum arousal
instinct
incentives
hierarchy of needs
intrinsic motivation
extrinsic motivation
set point
basal metabolic rate
anorexia nervosa
bulimia nervosa
binge-eating
Unit 5: Motivation & Emotion
sexual response cycle
+4 stages
estrogen
testosterone
Unit 6: Learning
Behaviorism
Operant Conditioning
associative learning
law of effect (Thorndike)
Classical Conditioning
shaping
unconditioned response (UCR) reinforcer
unconditioned stimulus (US)
positive reinforcement
conditioned response (CR)
negative reinforcement
conditioned stimulus (CS)
punishment (pos & neg)
acquisition
primary v. secondary reinforcers
extinction
B.F. Skinner
spontaneous recovery
generalization
discrimination
Pavlov’s experiments
Watson & Little Albert
Storage
Cognition
Thinking
Language
concepts
prototypes
algorithms
availability heuristics
representative heuristics
functional fixedness
mental set
belief perseverance
framing
Reinforcement Schedules
Other Types of Learning
Fixed-Ratio
Variable-Ratio
Fixed-Interval
Variable-Interval
learned helplessness (Seligman)
taste aversion (Garcia)
latent learning
cognitive map
insight learning
observational learning (Bandura)
modeling
mirror neurons
Unit 7: Cognition
Memory
Encoding
effortful processing
rehearsal
spacing effect
serial position effect
semantic encoding
visual encoding
-imagery
-mnemonic devices
-chunking
James-Lange theory
Cannon-Bard theory
Schacter-Singer two-factor theory
catharsis
feel good-do good phenomenon
adaptation level phenomenon
relative deprivation
general adaptation syndrome
Type A & B personality
sensory memory
iconic memory
echoic memory
long-term potentiation
short-term memory
working memory
long-term memory
flashbulb memories
implicit memories
explicit memories
Retrieval
recall
recognition
priming
déjà vu
mood-congruent
Forgetting
7 sins of forgetting
encoding failure
storage decay
proactive interference
retroactive interference
misinformation effect
source amnesia
Other Fun to Remember
eyewitness testimony
Elizabeth Loftus
improving memory (7)
phoneme
morpheme
grammar
semantics
syntax
stages of language dev.
linguistic determinism
general intelligence (g)
savant syndrome
emotional intelligence
mental age
Unit 8: Testing & Individual Differences
Stanford-Binet test
standardization
intelligence quotient (IQ-know how to determine) content validity
achievement tests
predictive validity
aptitude tests
intellectual disability
WAIS
Down Syndrome
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Prenatal & Newborn
zygote
embryo
fetus
fetal alcohol syndrome
teratogens
placenta
habituation
maturation
Piaget’s Cognitive Dev.
Unit 9: Development
Social Development
Extra “Stuff”
Know This!!!
schema
Erickson’s 8 Stages
parenting styles
Kohlberg’s Moral Dev.
assimilation
attachment
+authoritarian
+3 stages
accommodation
critical period
+authoritative
cross-sectional studies
Sensorimotor Stage
imprinting
+permissive
longitudinal studies
+object permanence
Ainsworth’s attachment studies puberty
stages of grief
+stranger anxiety
Harlow’s monkeys
primary sex characteristics
Preoperational Stage
secondary sex characteristics
+egocentrism
Concrete Operational Stage
+conservation
Formal Operational Stage
Unit 10: Personality
Sigmund Freud
defense mechanisms
Carl Jung
terror-management theory
psychoanalysis
defense mechanisms
collective unconscious
self-actualization
unconscious
+repression
projective tests
Abraham Maslow
id
+regression
Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) self-concept
ego
+reaction formation
Roschach inkblot test
Carl Rogers
superego
+projection
personality inventory
internal locus of control
free association
+rationalization
+MMPI
external locus of control
psychosexual stages
+displacement
Big 5 Factors (CANOE)
self-serving bias
fixation
+sublimation
reciprocal determinism
spotlight effect
Oedipus complex
+denial
Unit 11: Abnormal Psychology
DSM-IV
Dissociative Disorders Schizophrenia
Somatoform Disorders
Anxiety Disorders
+dissociative identity dis. Delusions
+hypochondriasis
+generalized anxiety dis. +dissociative amnesia
hallucinations
+conversion disorder
+panic disorder
+dissociative fugue
disorganized thinking
Personality Disorders
+ocd
Mood Disorders
paranoid
antisocial, narcissistic, borderline, histrionic
+phobias
+major depressive dis. catatonic
schizoid, schizotypal, paranoid
+ptsd
+bipolar disorder
avoidant, dependent, ocd
-mania
Unit 12: Treatment
Dorothea Dix
insight therapies
Behavior Therapy
Cognitive Therapy
psychopharmacology
eclectic approach
client-centered therapy counterconditioning
Aaron Beck
biomedical therapy
Psychotherapy
active listening
exposure therapy
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy antipsychotic drugs
psychoanalysis
rational-emotive therapy systematic desensitization group/family therapy
antianxiety drugs
resistance
aversive conditioning
EMDR
antidepressants
interpretation
token economy
light exposure therapy
mood-stabilizers
transference
ECT
Unit 13: Social Psychology
fundamental attribution error
conformity
social facilitation
prejudice
central route persuasion
Solomon Asch
social loafing
discrimination
peripheral route persuasion
normative social influence
deindividuation
stereotypes
foot-in-the-door phenomenon informational social influence
group polarization
ingroup/outgroup
door-in-the-face phenomenon obedience studies
groupthink
scapegoat theory
cognitive dissonance theory
Milgram experiment
bystander effect
just-world phenomenon
mere-exposure effect
Stanford Prison Experiment
social exchange theory
aggression
self-fulfilling prophecy
social responsibility norm
frustration-aggression principle
Unit 14: Consciousness
Consciousness
alpha waves
dream
hypnosis (& controversy)
psychoactive drugs
circadian rhythm
delta waves
hallucinations
posthypnotic suggestions
depressants
REM sleep
REM rebound
narcolepsy
night terrors
stimulants
NREM sleep
sleep apnea
manifest content
hallucinogens
latent content
effects of drug use
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