Le 1
Le Quang Thanh Tue/ Scott
Mr. Jon Marshall
AP Psychology
25 March 2012
Directions: You have 25 minutes to answer the following question. It is not enough to
answer a question by merely listing facts. You should present a cogent argument based
on your critical analysis of the questions posed, using appropriate psychological
terminology.
For each of the pairs below, use an example to show how the first term in each pair affects
or is related to the second. Definitions alone without examples will not score.






Serial-position effect . . recall
Functional fixedness . . problem solving
Operational definition . . replication
Double-blind research . . bias
Operant conditioning . . superstition
Myelin sheath . . neural impulse
Response:
Serial-position effect is the psychological phenomenon in which people tend to remember items
presented first and last best. Recall is the ability to retrieve previously presented information
without direct hints. Students who are aware of the serial-position effect may use it to their
advantage in order to excel academically. Because first and last items are usually remembered best,
they should spend more time for middle sections rather than giving an equal emphasis to all parts.
That way, students will have less trouble answering questions that are not multiple-choice, i.e.
student-produced response questions.
Functional fixedness is the inability to assign a new use to a tool. It is therefore a serious
obstruction to problem solving as individuals facing those problems are unable to creatively
formulate a solution. For example, A sees a dead bug on the floor in his study and wants to remove
it. However, because the bug might be still alive and venomous, A shrinks away from using his
hands to pick it up. He wants to use the broom but his mom is sweeping the garden with it. He does
not know what to do. In this scenario, A is suffering from functional fixedness. Since the dead and
scary bug is in his study, he can use his pens as chopsticks to pick the bug up either by its antenna
or body and drop it into the trash.
Operational definition is a part of an experimental study that defines concepts and how they ought
to be measured. It needs to be free from ambiguity, logical and precise so that the experiment can
be successfully replicated by another group. For example, gravitational acceleration is the change in
velocity of an object falling towards a gravitational field, neglecting air resistance; it can be
measured by graphing the falling object's velocity function and then differentiating it. This
operational definition of gravitational acceleration is much better than one that only says “change in
speed due to gravity” because it clearly specifies what the phrase means and how it is quantified. In
addition, the first operational definition of gravitational acceleration allows for a replication of the
experiment.
Le 2
Double-blind research is an experimental method in which both the experimenters and the subjects
are not aware of who belongs to the control group and tests are distributed randomly. This method
was conceived in order to avoid experimental bias. Since neither the experimenters nor the subjects
know what groups the subjects are in and what independent variable is being tested, it is less likely
that the experimenters commit expectancy bias or inadvertently hinting the subjects what they think
the results should be. For example, when a drug is tested for its effectiveness, a double-blind study
can be administered on a group of volunteers randomly assigned to the control and experimental
groups. The control group will receive a placebo whereas the experimental group will receive the
actual drug. Because neither the experimenters nor the subjects know which group is being tested,
chances that the results are slanted by expectancy bias are small.
Operant conditioning is a form of learning in which behavior is altered by its consequences. It can
be used to shape a subject’s behavior or train it to do something new by correctly and consistently
issuing reinforcements and punishments. For example, operant conditioning can be applied to steer
an individual away from superstition – the belief that supernatural forces determine our fates.
Suppose B is a superstitious individual who thinks that Friday the 13th is an unlucky day. Her
teacher may prompt her to think otherwise by encouraging her to excel in class on that particular
day. He can let her actively participate in a sport and win, for instance. If her scores on that day turn
out to be good, her disbelief in superstition will be weakened. In this case, encouragement, attention
and good scores are positive reinforcements.
Myelin sheath is an insulating layer around the axon that helps it conduct electrical impulses more
easily. An electrical wire serves as an excellent analogy. The wire itself, made of copper, can be
associated with the axon and the myelin sheath the insulating layer. If the insulating layer was
absent, electrical potential may leak from the wire into the air. As a result, the voltage at the
endpoint would be weakened. Almost the same thing occurs when a neural impulse moves through
the axon: the Myelin sheath conserves the electrical potential of the impulse by preventing it from
leaking out into the environs.