Important People - AP Exam

Question 1

Mary Whiton Calkins

Answer 1

The first female president of the American Psychological Association.

She created self-psychology, which emphasized a self-evaluation of one’s personal experiences.

Question 2

Charles Darwin

Answer 2

Developed theories of evolution and natural selection.

His beliefs inspire the evolutionary approach in psychology.

Question 3

Dorothea Dix

Answer 3

An advocate for the mentally ill by highlighting the deplorable conditions in asylums.

She created the first mental hospitals in America.

Question 4

Sigmund Freud

Answer 4

Sigmund Freud is the father of psychoanalysis.

Question 5

G. Stanley Hall

Answer 5

Known as the founder of educational psychology and child psychology.

He shaped adolescent themes in psychology.

Question 6

William James

Answer 6

Wrote the Principles of Psychology and is the founder of functionalism.

He created the James-Lange theory and mentored Mary Whiton Calkins.

Question 7

Ivan Pavlov

Answer 7

Known for his work in classical conditioning.

Question 8

Jean Piaget

Answer 8

Created stages of development for children including the sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operation phases.

Question 9

Carl Rogers

Answer 9

A humanist psychologist who created client-centered therapy where the therapist guides personal growth.

Question 10

B.F. Skinner

Answer 10

A behaviorist psychologist.

He created the theory of operant conditioning where he studied how consequences shape behavior.

Question 11

Margaret Floy Washburn

Answer 11

The first woman granted a Ph.D. in psychology.

Question 12

John B. Watson

Answer 12

The father of behaviorism.

He is famous for the controversial Little Albert experiment.

Question 13

Wilhelm Wundt

Answer 13

Created the first psychology laboratory in Germany.

Also the founder of structuralism.

Question 14

Charles Darwin

Answer 14

Darwin is known for his principle of natural selection and his other contributions to evolution.

He established the idea that all species of life come from the same ancestor.

Question 15

Paul Broca

Answer 15

Broca discovered Broca’s area in the brain, which is associated with language and speaking.

Question 16

Carl Wernicke

Answer 16

Wernicke studied nerve disease and parts of the brain.

He discovered Wernicke’s area, which is essential in understanding language and speech.

Question 17

Roger Sperry

Answer 17

Sperry was one of the few key neuropsychologists to claim that we have two brain hemispheres, and each has its own specialized functions.

He studied split-brain patients and conducted experiments to learn more about each half of the brain.

He actually won a Nobel Prize for his research.

Question 18

Michael Gazzaniga

Answer 18

Gazzaniga helped with the understanding of lateralization.

He also worked with split-brain patients to advance his research and began to understand how the two hemispheres of the brain work together.

Question 19

William James

Answer 19

James coined the term “stream of consciousness.”

He is considered the Father of American Psychology.

Question 20

Sigmund Freud

Answer 20

Freud is the father of psychoanalysis and studied many areas of psychology through his psychoanalytic perspective.

He came up with three levels of consciousness: the conscious, preconscious, and the unconscious.