AP Psychology Chapter 1

Question 1

Psychology

Answer 1

The scientific study of behavior and mental processes.

Question 2

Objective Introspection

Answer 2

The process of examining and measuring one’s own thoughts and mental activities

Question 3

Structuralism

Answer 3

Early perspective in psychology associated with Wilhem Wundt and Edward Titchener, in which the focus of study is the structure or basic elements of the mind.

Question 4

Functionalism

Answer 4

Early perspective in psychology associated with William James, in which the focus of study is how the mind allows people to adapt, live, work, and play.

Question 5

Gestalt Psychology

Answer 5

Early perspective in psychology focusing on perception and sensation, particularly the perception of patterns and whole figures.

Question 6

Psychoanalysis

Answer 6

The theory and therapy based on the work of Sigmund Freud.

Question 7

Behaviorism

Answer 7

The science of behavior that focuses on observable behavior only.

Question 8

Psychodynamic perspective

Answer 8

modern version of psychoanalysis that is more focused on the development of a sense of self and the discovery of other motivations behind a person’s behavior than sexual motivations.

Question 9

Cognitive perspective

Answer 9

modern perspective that focuses on memory, intelligence, perception, problem solving, and learning.

Question 10

Cognitive neuroscience

Answer 10

study of the physical changes in the brain and nervous system during thinking.

Question 11

Sociocultural perspective

Answer 11

perspective that focuses on the relationship between social behavior and culture.

Question 12

Biopsychological perspective

Answer 12

perspective that attributes human and animal behavior to biological events occurring in the body, such as genetic influences, hormones, and the activity of the nervous system

Question 13

Evolutionary perspective

Answer 13

perspective that focuses on the biological bases of universal mental characteristics that all humans share.

Question 14

Psychiatrist

Answer 14

a medical doctor who has specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders.

Question 15

Psychoanalyst

Answer 15

either a psychiatrist or a psychologist who has special training in the theories of Sigmund Freud and his method of psychoanalysis.

Question 16

Psychiatric social worker

Answer 16

a social worker with some training in therapy methods who focuses on the environmental conditions that can have an impact on mental disorders, such as poverty, overcrowding, stress, and drug abuse.

Question 17

Psychologist

Answer 17

a professional with an academic degree and specialized training in one or more areas of psychology.

Question 18

Scientific Method

Answer 18

system of gathering data so that bias and error in measurement are reduced.

Question 19

Hypothesis

Answer 19

tentative explanation of phenomenon based on observations.

Question 20

Replicate

Answer 20

in research, repeating a study or experiment to see if the same results will be obtained in an effort to demonstrate reliability of results.

Question 21

Observer effect

Answer 21

tendency of people or animals to behave differently from normal when they know they are being observed.

Question 22

Participant Observation

Answer 22

a naturalistic observation in which the observer becomes a participant in the group being observed.

Question 23

Observer bias

Answer 23

tendency of observers to see what they expect to see.

Question 24

Case study

Answer 24

Study of one individual in great detail

Question 25

Representative sample

Answer 25

randomly selected sample of subjects from a larger population of subjects

Question 26

Population

Answer 26

the entire group of people or animals in which the researcher is interested

Question 27

Correlation

Answer 27

a measure of the relationship between two variables

Question 28

Correlation coefficient

Answer 28

a number derived from the formula for measuring a correlation and indicating the strength and direction of a correlation.

Question 29

Experiment

Answer 29

a deliberate manipulation of a variable to see if corresponding changes in behavior result, allowing the determination of cause and effect relationships

Question 30

Operational definition

Answer 30

definition of a variable of interest that allows it to be directly measured

Question 31

Independent variable

Answer 31

variable in an experiment that is manipulated by the experimenter

Question 32

Dependent variable

Answer 32

Variable in an experiment that represents the measurable response or behavior of the subjects in the experiment

Question 33

Experimental group

Answer 33

subjects in an experiment who are subjected to the independent variable

Question 34

Control group

Answer 34

subjects in an experiment who are not subjected to the independent variable and who may receive a placebo treatment.

Question 35

Random assignment

Answer 35

process of assigning subjects to the experimental or control groups randomly, so that each subject has an equal chance of being in either group

Question 36

Placebo effect

Answer 36

the phenomenon in which the expectations of the participants in a study can influence their behavior

Question 37

Experimenter effect

Answer 37

tendency of the experimenter’s expectations for a study to unintentionally influence the results of the study

Question 38

Single-blind study

Answer 38

study in which the subjects do not know if they are in the experimental or the control group

Question 39

Double-Blind Study

Answer 39

Study in which neither the experimenter nor the subjects know if the subjects are in the experimental or control group

Question 40

Pseudopsychologies

Answer 40

Systems of explaining human behavior that are not based on or consistent with scientific evidence