AP Psychology Semester Exam Review
Classical Conditioning
Conditioning process in which an originally neutral stimulus, by repeated pairing with a stimulus that normally elicits a response, comes to elicit a similar or even identical response; aka Pavlovian conditioning
Cones
Cone-shaped visual receptor cells; located in retina; works best in bright light; responsible for viewing color; greatest density in the fovea.
Retina
Contains sensory receptors that process visual information and sends it to the brain
Broca's Area
Controls language expression - an area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech.
Endorphins
Painkilling substances produced by the brain are known as...
Make and Carry Out Plans
People who have experienced severe damage to the frontal lobe of the brain seldom regain their ability to...
Gate Control Theory
Peripheral nerve fibers can have their input modified at the spinal cord level before transmission to the brain. This is the basis of many pain intervention strategies, especially nonpharmacologic interventions.
Algorithm
Processing every possible combination of the letters DBRI to arrive at the word BIRD is an example of the use of a(n)...
Lowered muscle tone
REM sleep, generally an "active" state of sleep, is accompanied by this paradoxical characteristic.
Negative Reinforcement
Taking a painkiller to relieve a toothache is behavior learned through...
Serial Position Effect
Tendency for items at the beginning and end of a list to be learned better than items in the middle
The benefit of drawing a random sample is...
That every person has the same probability of being chosen for the study.
Depth Perception
The ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance.
Accommodation
The change in the curvature of the lens that enables the eye to focus on objects at various distances is called...
Cochlea
The coiled tube in the inner ear that contains the auditory receptors.
Retroactive Interference
The disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old information
Independent Variable
The experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied
Psychophysics
The first area of psychology to be studied as a science is known as...
Selective Attention
The focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus, as in the cocktail party effect.
Learned Helplessness
The hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events
Prototype
The hypothetical "most typical" instance of a category.
Absolute Threshold
The intensity at which a sound becomes audible for a given individual is known as the individual's...
Threshold
The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse
Absolute Threshold
The lowest level of stimulation that a person can detect 50% of the time.
Positively Skewed
The mean will be higher than the median in any distribution that is...
Red-Green
The most common form of color blindness is related to deficiencies in the. ___________ color system.
Cause-effect Relationships
The most distinctive characteristic of the experimental method is that it establishes...
Primary Visual Cortex
The occipital lobes contain the...
Dependent Variable
The outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable.
Withdrawal
The painful experience associated with the termination of the use of an addictive substance is known as...
Cerebral Cortex
The part of the brain that is most active in decision making.
Blind Spot
The place in the retina where the optic nerve exits to the brain is called the...
Myelin Sheath
The primary effect of this is to increase the velocity of conduction of the action potential along the axon.
Perceptual Organization
The processes that put sensory information together to give the perception of a coherent scene over the whole visual field.
Natural Selection
The result of the evolutionary process that preserves traits that enhance the adaptation of an organism and suppresses traits that do not is called...
Homeostasis
The role of the parasympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system is to establish _________ after a fight-or-flight response.
Syntax
The rules of grammar are rules of..
Vestibular Sense
The sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance.
Shaping
The technique of strengthening behavior by reinforcing successive approximations is called...
Closure
The tendency of most people to identify a three-sided figure as a triangle, even when one of its sides is incomplete, is the result of a perceptual process known as...
Functional Fixedness
The tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual functions; an impediment to problem solving.
Social Learning Theory
The terms "modeling" and "imitation" are most closely associated with...
Smell
The thalamus processes information for hearing, taste, vision and touch, but not...
Opponent Process Theory
The theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, yellow-blue, white-black) enable color vision. For example, some cells are stimulated by green and inhibited by red; others are stimulated by red and inhibited by green.
Ossicles
The three small bones found in the middle ear (the malleus, the incus, and the stapes) that help to amplify the vibrations from sound waves. The malleus is attached to the tympanic membrane and the stapes is attached to the oval window of the cochlea.
Dependent Variable
The variable in the experiment that measures the amount of aggressive behavior exhibited by the children.
Cognitive theorists
Theorists that emphasize the formation and modification of schemas.
Metacognition
Thinking about thinking.
Behaviorist
This approach to psychology emphasizes observable responses over inner experiences when accounting for behavior.
Lips
This area of the body has the largest number of sensory neurons.
All-or-none Response
This describes the firing of neurons.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
This is a brain-imaging technique that produces the most detailed picture of brain structure.
Depth Perception
This is lost when someone loses one eye. This can make climbing a set of irregular stairs more difficult.
Anterograde Amnesia
This is the condition that occurs after one has been involved in a bad head injury where they can remember events that occurred before the accident, but has difficulty remembering any events since the accident.
Behaviorism
This psychological approach holds that development is largely a product of learning.
Reticular Activating System
This regulates levels of arousal.
Behavioral
This therapeutic approach is most likely to be criticized because it does not treat the underlying cause of the disorder.
Rehearsal
This transfers information to the long-term memory.
Barbiturates
This will NOT increase behavioral and mental activity.
Synaptic Vesicles
Tiny pouches or sacs in the axon terminals that contain chemicals called neurotransmitters.
Scatterplot/Scattergram
a graph depicting the relationship between two interval or ratio scale variables, with each axis representing one variable, often used to graph correlation data
Conditioning
a learning process in which an organism's behavior becomes dependent on the occurrence of a stimulus in its environment
Elaborative Rehersal
a method of transferring information from STM into LTM by making that information meaningful in some way
Gestalt Laws
a set of rules describing the circumstances - such as proximity, similarity, and good form - under which visual characteristics will be grounded into perceptual units.
Industrial-Organizational Field
application of psychological concepts and methods to optimizing human behavior in workplaces.
Overregularization of Grammatical Rules
applying rules of grammar even to instances where they do not apply
Central Tendency
average tendency of data, taken using mean
Sleep Cycle
passage through the four stages of NREM sleep (I, II, III, IV), then reversal (IV, III, II), and finally, instead of reentering stage I and awakening, entering REM sleep and returning to stage II
Visual Field
the area an individual can see when looking straight ahead
Parasympathetic Nervous System
the subdivision of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy
Semicircular Canals
three canals within the inner ear that contain specialized receptor cells that generate nerve impulses with body movement
Method of Loci
use of familiar locations as cues to recall items that have been associated with them
Metacognition
"Thinking about thinking" or the ability to evaluate a cognitive task to determine how best to accomplish it, and then to monitor and adjust one's performance on that task
Object Permanence
A baby looks under the sofa for a ball that has just rolled underneath it. According to Jean Piaget, the baby's action shows development of...
Positive Punishment
A behavior is followed immediately by the presentation of a stimulus that decreases the future frequency of the behavior
Hypothalamus
A brain tumor that results in obesity would most likely be located in the...
Barbiturates
A category of depressant drugs that reduce anxiety and produce sleepiness.
Episodic Memory
A category of long-term memory that involves the recollection of specific events, situations and experiences.
Cochlea
A coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear through which sound waves trigger nerve impulses.
Instinct
A complex pattern organized, unlearned behavior that is species-specific.
Schema
A concept or framework that organizes and interprets information.
Positive Correlation
A correlation where as one variable increases, the other also increases, or as one decreases so does the other. Both variables move in the same direction.
Circadian Rhythm
A cycle of biological functioning that lasts about 25 hours.
Circadian Rhythm
A cycle, such as waking and sleeping, that repeats about once a day.
Anxiety
A disorder characterized by phobic and panic disturbances.
Depression
A disorder in which one lacks energy, will to activities enjoyed and expects catastrophe.
Antagonist
A drug that binds to and inhibits the activity of one or more receptors in the body. Antagonists are also called inhibitors.
Negative Correlation
A finding that two factors vary systematically in opposite directions, one increasing as the other decreases.
Instinct
A genetically programmed action pattern.
Amygdala
A limbic system structure involved in memory and emotion, particularly fear and aggression.
Testosterone
A male sex hormone produced by the testes; women secrete smaller amounts of testosterone from the adrenal cortex and ovary.
Experimental Method
A method of investigation used to demonstrate cause-and-effect relationships by purposely manipulating one factor thought to produce change in another factor.
Algorithm
A methodical, logical rule or procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem.
Action Potential
A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon.
Hypothalamus
A neural structure lying below the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion and reward.
Adrenal Glands
A pair of endocrine glands that sit just above the kidneys and secrete hormones that help arouse the body in times of stress
Pons
A part of the hindbrain that, with other brain structures, controls respiration and regulates heart rhythms. It is a major route by which the forebrain sends information to and receives information from the spinal cord and peripheral nervous system.
Withdrawal
A pattern of uncomfortable or painful physical symptoms and cravings experienced by the user when the level of drug is decreased or the drug is eliminated.
Difference Threshold
A person is asked to listen to a series of tones presented in pairs, and asked to say whether the tones in each pair are the same or different in pitch. In this situation the experimenter is most like measuring the individual's...
Retinal Disparity
A person with sight in only one eye lacks this visual cue for seeing depth.
Law of Effect
A principle developed by Edward Thorndike that says that any behavior that results in satisfying consequences tends to be repeated and that any behavior that results in unsatisfying consequences tends not to be repeated
Extinction
A procedure in which the reinforcement of a previously reinforced behavior is discontinued. Also may be used to describe the "process" by which a previously learned behavior disappears as a result of non-reinforcement.
Transduction
A process by which sensory receptors produce neural impulses when they receive physical or chemical stimulation.
Spontaneous Recovery
A process in which a previously extinguished response reemerges after the presentation of the conditioned stimulus
Natural Selection
A process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits tend to survive and reproduce at higher rates than other individuals because of those traits.
Cognitive Perspective
A psychological approach that emphasizes mental processes in perception, memory, language, problem solving, and other areas of behavior
Frontal Lobe
A region of the cerebral cortex that has specialized areas for movement, abstract thinking, planning, memory, and judgement
Occipital Lobe
A region of the cerebral cortex that processes visual information
Random Sample
A sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion
Positive Reinforcement
A situation in which a behavior or response is followed by the addition of a reinforcing stimulus. The stimulus increases the probability that the response will occur again.
Sleep Apnea
A sleep disorder characterized by temporary cessations of breathing during sleep and repeated momentary awakenings.
Wernicke's Area
A specialised area in the left temporal lobe which is involved with comprehending the sounds of human speech
Hypnosis
A state that induces heightened suggestibility in the hypnotized individual.
Unconditioned Stimulus
A stimulus that evokes an unconditioned response without previous conditioning
Causation from Correleation
A survey shows that children who have encyclopedias in their homes earn better grades in school than children whose homes lack encyclopedias. The researcher concludes that having encyclopedias at home improves grades. This conclusion is erroneous primarily because the researcher has incorrectly inferred...
Hypnosis
A systematic procedure that typically produces a heightened state of suggestibility.
Divergent Thinking
A teacher asks students to think of as many uses for a brick as possible. By listing 50 uses, most of which the class finds new and unusual, Susan is displaying...
MRI
A technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated images that distinguish among different types of soft tissue; allows us to see structures within the brain
Episodic Memory
A teenager would most probably draw on which of the following to recall her tenth birthday party?
Confirmation Bias
A tendency to search for information that confirms one's preconceptions
Behaviorism
A theoretical orientation based on the premise that scientific psychology should study only observable behavior
Modeling
A therapeutic technique in which the client learns appropriate behavior through imitation of someone else.
Corpus Callosum
A thick band of axons that connects the two cerebral hemispheres and acts as a communication link between them.
Operant Conditioning
A type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher.
Maintenance Rehersal
A type of rehersal in short-term memory in which the inforamtion is repeated over and over again in order to maintain it.
Bipolar Cells
A type of retinal cells that accepts electric (nerve) impulses from the photoreceptors and passes them to the ganglion cells
Debriefing
A verbal description of the true nature and purpose of a study
Morpheme
A word or part of a word that is in itself meaningful, but that cannot be broken into smaller meaningful units is called a...
Sympathetic Nervous System
Branch of the autonomic nervous system that produces rapid physical arousal in response to perceived emergencies or threats.
Double-blind Control
Essential for assessment of a treatment designed to reduce schizophrenic symptoms.
Availability Heuristic
Estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind, we presume such events are common
Evolutionary Perspective
Examines human thoughts and actions in terms of natural selection. Stresses that some traits might be advantageous for survival and that these traits would be passed down from the parents to the next generation.
Hypothalamus
Hunger and eating are primarily regulated by the...
Pain
Hypnosis has been found useful in the treatment of...
Green
If Carmelita stares at a red spot for one minute then shifts her gaze to a white piece of paper, she is likely to experience an afterimage that is...
Aversive Conditioning
If a man who is a heavy smoker is given an electric shock every time he takes a puff on a cigarette, this behavior-modification techniques is being used.
Unconditioned and Conditioned Response
In Ivan Pavlov's experiments in classical conditioning, the dog's salivation was a(n)...
50%
In a normal distribution of test scores, the percentage of scores that fall at or below the mean score is..
Dependent Variable
In an experiment, this is the variable that refers to the outcome that is measured by the experimenter.
Conditioned Stimulus
In classical conditioning, an originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to trigger a conditioned response
Difference not likely due to chance
In experimental psychology, a significant difference refers to a...
Response, Reinforcement
In operant conditioning, the concept of contingency is exemplified by an "if A, then B" relationship in which A and B, respectively, represent...
Perceptual Organization
In psychology, Gestalt principles are used to explain...
Depressant
In terms of the effect on the central nervous system, alcohol can be classified as a(n)...
Control Group
In the Bobo doll experiment, what is the name of group that didn't watch a film (or watched a nonviolent film).
Maturation
In their discussions of the process of development, the advocates of nature in the nature-nurture controversy emphasizes this.
Framing
In thought, the terms in which a problem is stated or the way that it is structured.
Self-efficacy
According to Albert Bandura, people who believe that their efforts will be successful and that they are in control of events have a high level of...
Encoding
According to the information-processing view of memory, the first stage in memory processing involves this.
Short-term Memory
Activated memory that holds a few items briefly before the information is stored or forgotten
Respiratory Rate
Activation of the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system results in an increase in...
Tone
After several trials during which a dog is given a certain kind of food at the same time that a specific tone is sounded, there is evidence of conditioning if the dog salivates when ________________ is only presented.
Cognition
All the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.
Cognitive
Although Paul seems bright and capable to his parents and friends, he has been failing in school. Paul agrees to speak with a psychologist, who suggests that his problems stem from internal processes such as unrealistic expectations and negative thinking. The psychologist's view is typical of this model of behavior.
Temporal Lobe
An area on each hemisphere of the cerebral cortex near the temples that is the primary receiving area for auditory information
Punishment
An event that follows a response that weakens or suppresses the tendency to make that response.
Classical Conditioning
An example of this is a child's fear of a dog after being bitten by a dog.
Humanistic Perspective
An explanation for behavior which suggests that humans strive for self-fulfillment and are motivated by a basic goodness. Developed originally by Carl Rogers.
Phi Phenomenon
An illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession.
free will
An important difference between humanistic and psychoanalytic approaches is that humanistic psychologists believe in the importance of...
Long-term Potentiation
An increase in a synapse's firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory
Episodic
An individual's ability to remember the day he or she first swam the length of a swimming pool is most clearly an example of this type of memory.
Extinguished
An individual's fear of dogs that is lost as the individual is exposed to dogs in nonthreatening situations is referred to by behaviorists as a fear that has been...
Case Study
An observation technique in which one person is studied in depth in the hope of revealing universal principles.
Shaping
An operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior.
Delay of Punishment
Because studies of learning show that events occurring close together in time are easier to associate than those occurring at widely different times, parents should probably avoid this...
Responses that have been reinforced in the past.
Behavior therapists emphasize the following treatment of clients.
behavior, reinforcement
Behaviorally oriented therapists seek to modify a client's _____ by changing the contingencies of ______ for the client
Chunking
Combining small pieces of information into larger clusters or chunks that are more easily held in memory.
Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation
Carla tutors other students because she likes to be helpful, whereas Jane tutors classmates strictly for pay. Their behaviors demonstrate the difference between...
Language Acquisition Device
Chomsky's concept of an innate, prewired mechanism in the brain that allows children to acquire language naturally
Belief Perseverance
Clinging to one's initial conceptions even after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited
Monocular Cues
Depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone
Binocular Cues
Depth cues, such as retinal disparity and convergence, that depend on the use of two eyes
Sensory Adaptation
Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation.
Neurotransmitters
Dopamine, norepinephrine, and acetylcholine are all examples of...
Depth
Eleanor Gibson and her colleagues have used the visual cliff to measure an infant's ability to perceive...
Primacy
Elena is presented with a list of 20 numbers. When asked to recall this list, she remembers more numbers from the beginning than from the end of the list. This phenomenon demonstrates this effect...
Pituitary
Endocrine gland attached to the base of the brain that secretes hormones that affect the function of other glands as well as hormones that act directly on physical processes.
Left Cerebral Hemisphere
For most people, speech functions are primarily localized here.
Simple Spatial Reasoning
For most people, this is an activity based in the right hemisphere of the brain.
Psychoanalytic Perspective
Freud's theory of personality development where children move through a series of stages in which they confront conflicts between biological drives and social expectation. Resolution of conflicts determine psychological adjustment/growth.
Spicy
Gustatory receptors are sensitive to bitter, sweet, salty and sour flavors but not...
Negative Reinforcement
Increasing behaviors by stopping or reducing negative stimuli, such as shock. A negative reinforcer is any stimulus that, when removed after a response, strengthens the response. (Note: negative reinforcement is not punishment.)
Representativeness Heurisitic
Judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes; may lead one to ignore other relevant information.
Metacognition
Knowing the effectiveness if different strategies for learning statistical formulas. This is an example of...
Syntax
Language rules that govern how words can be combined to form meaningful phrases and sentences
Industrial-Organizational Psychology
Leadership, job satisfaction, and employee motivation are all studied in this psychological discipline.
Latent Learning
Learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it
Rods
Located in the periphery of the retina, these are sensory receptors for vision that work best in reduced illumination, and only allow perception of achromatic colors, low sensitivity to detail and are not involved in color vision.
Sickness
Studies of learning have shown that animals develop an aversion for tastes associated with...
Punishment
Most effective in eliminating undesired behavior when the punishment is delivered soon after the behavior.
Learned helplessness
Most likely to result when responses have no effect on the environment.
Language Acquisition Device (LAD)
Noam Chomsky's view of language proposes that there is an inherent...
Functional Fixedness
On a fishing trip, Ed realizes that he mistakenly packet the sewing kit instead of the the tackle box. He returns home because he sees that doesn't see that the sewing kit tools could be used for fishing. What is this an example of?
Dopamine
One suspected cause of schizophrenia is the abnormal increase of this neurotransmitter in the brain.
REM Sleep
Rapid eye movement sleep, a recurring sleep stage during which vivid dreams commonly occur. Also known as paradoxical sleep, because the muscles are relaxed (except for minor twitches) but other body systems are active.
Inner Ear
Receptors that are especially important in helping a person maintaining balance are located here.
Continuous
Responses extinguish fastest when they are learned through this type of reinforcement schedule.
Hear Sounds
Stimulation of portions of the left temporal lobe of the brain during surgery will cause the patient to...
The general function of the bones in the middle ear.
To transfer sound information from the tympanic membrane to the oval window.
Significant Difference
Two results are only significantly different if their difference is much larger than the estimated error.
Punishment Schedule
Unlike reinforcement, which can maintain behavior even if intermittent, punishment works best on a "continuous punishment schedule"
Middle
When a list of words is learned in order, the words most likely to be forgotten are those that are at the...
Action Potential
When a neuron is stimulated to its threshold, the movement of sodium and potassium ions across the membrane creates a(n)...
The Phi Phenomenon
When a pair of lights flashing in quick succession seems to an observer to be one light moving from place to place, the effect is referred to as...
Bipolar Cells
When struck by light energy, cones and rods in the retina generate neural signals that then activate the...
Insight
Wolfgang Kohler considered a chimpanzee's sudden solving of a problem evidence of...
Over-justification Effect
a decrease in intrinsic motivation as a result of being rewarded for doing something in which they are already intrinsically motivated to do
Vision
main function of occipital lobe