AP Psych Practice Test

Which of Freud's ideas would NOT be accepted by most contemporary psychologists? A)Development is essentially fixed in childhood. B) Sexuality is a potent drive in humans. C) The mind is an iceberg with consciousness being only the tip. D) Repression can be the cause of forgetting.

A) Development is essentially fixed in childhood.

Which perspective emphasizes the learning of observable responses? A) behavioral B) social-cultural C) neuroscience D) cognitive

A) behavioral

The biopsychosocial approach emphasizes the importance of... A) different approaches in exploring behavior and mental processes. B) basic research over pure research. C) pure research over basic research. D) having a single academic perspective to guide research.

A) different approaches in exploring behavior and mental processes.

Which two dimensions of personality have the Eysencks emphasized? A) extraversion-introversion and emotional stability-instability B) internal-external locus of control and extraversion-introversion C) internal-external locus of control and emotional stability-instability D) melancholic-phlegmatic and choleric-sanguine

A) extraversion-introversion and emotional stability-instability

Which of the following is the correct order of psychosexual stages proposed by Freud? A) oral; anal; phallic; latency; genital B) anal; oral; phallic; latency; genital C) oral; anal; genital; latency; phallic D) anal; oral; genital; latency; phallic

A) oral; anal; phallic; latency; genital

Neo-Freudians such as Adler and Horney believed that... A) Freud placed too great an emphasis on the conscious mind. B) Freud placed too great an emphasis on sexual and aggressive instincts. C) the years of childhood were more important in the formation of personality than Freud had indicated. D) Freud's ideas about the id, ego, and superego as personality structures were incorrect.

B) Freud placed too great an emphasis on sexual and aggressive instincts.

Which of the following is the major criticism of the social-cognitive perspective? A) It focuses too much on early childhood experiences. B) It focuses too little on the inner traits of a person. C) It provides descriptions but not explanations. D) It lacks appropriate assessment techniques.

B) It focuses too little on the inner traits of a person.

The text defines personality as... A) the set of personal attitudes that characterizes a person. B) an individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting. C) a predictable set of responses to environmental stimuli. D) an unpredictable set of responses to environmental stimuli.

B) an individual's characteristic pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting.

In psychology, behavior is best defined as... A) anything a person says, does, or feels. B) any action we can observe and record. C) any action, whether observable or not. D) anything we can infer from a person's actions.

B) any action we can observe and record.

According to Wilhelm Wundt, the focus of scientific psychology should be the study of... A) observable behavior B) conscious experience C) unconscious motivation D) physiology and behavior

B) conscious experience

Humanistic theories of personality... A) emphasize the driving force of unconscious motivations in personality. B) emphasize the growth of potential of "healthy" individuals. C) emphasize the importance of interaction with the environment in shaping personality. D) describe personality in terms of scores on various personality scales.

B) emphasize the growth of potential of "healthy" individuals.

A major criticism of trait theory is that it... A) places too great an emphasis on early childhood experiences. B) overestimates the consistency of behavior in different situations. C) underestimates the importance of heredity in personality development. D) places too great an emphasis on positive traits

B) overestimates the consistency of behavior in different situations.

Id is to ego as ________ is to ________. A) reality principle; pleasure principle B) pleasure principle; reality principle C) conscious forces; unconscious forces D) conscience; "personality executive"

B) pleasure principle; reality principle

With regard to personality, it appears that... A) there is little consistency of behavior from one situation to the next and little consistency of traits over the life span. B) there is little consistency of behavior from one situation to the next but significant consistency of traits over the life span. C) there is significant consistency of behavior from one situation to the next but little consistency of traits over the life span. D) there is significant consistency of behavior from one situation to the next and significant consistency of traits over the life span.

B) there is little consistency of behavior from one situation to the next but significant consistency of traits over the life span.

According to Freud, defense mechanisms are methods of reducing... A) anger. B) fear. C) anxiety. D) lust.

C) anxiety.

Research on locus of control indicates that people with a strong internal locus of control are ________ than people with a strong external locus of control. A) more dependent B) more intelligent C) better able to cope with stress D) more sociable

C) better able to cope with stress

Which subfield is most directly concerned with studying human behavior in the workplace? A) clinical psychology B) personality psychology C) industrial-organizational psychology D) psychiatry

C) industrial-organizational psychology

Which of the following individuals is also a physician? A) clinical psychologist B) experimental psychologist C) psychiatrist D) biological psychologist

C) psychiatrist

In defining psychology, the text notes that psychology is most accurately described as a... A) way of asking and answering questions. B) field engaged in solving applied problems. C) set of findings related to behavior and mental processes. D) nonscientific approach to the study of mental disorders.

C) set of findings related to behavior and mental processes.

Dr. Ernst explains behavior in terms of different situations. Dr. Ernst is working from the ________ perspective. A) behavioral B) evolutionary C) social-cultural D) cognitive

C) social-cultural

20. Projective tests such as the Rorschach inkblot test have been criticized because... A) their scoring system is too rigid and leads to unfair labeling. B) they were standardized with unrepresentative samples. C) they have low reliability and low validity. D) it is easy for people to fake answers in order to appear healthy.

C) they have low reliability and low validity.

In studying personality, a trait theorist would most likely A) use a projective test. B) observe a person in a variety of situations. C) use a personality inventory. D) use the method of free association.

C) use a personality inventory.

4. The way we encode, process, store, and retrieve information is the primary concern of the ________ perspective. A) neuroscience B) evolutionary C) social-cultural D) cognitive

D) cognitive

For humanistic psychologists, many of our behaviors and perceptions are ultimately shaped by whether our ________ is ________ or ________. A) ego; strong; weak B) locus of control; internal; external C) personality structure; introverted; extraverted D) self-concept; positive; negative

D) self-concept; positive; negative

Which of the following places the greatest emphasis on the unconscious mind? A) the humanistic perspective B) the social-cognitive perspective C) the trait perspective D) the psychoanalytic perspective

D) the psychoanalytic perspective