AP psych final
An individual was admitted to the hospital after experiencing a mild tingling on the right side of the face and a sudden inability to speak. Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), a doctor would likely find (A) an abnormality in the brain tissue of the left hemisphere (B) an increase in brain activity in the left frontal lobe (C) an increase in blood flow to the right hemisphere (D) an abnormal growth in the right frontal lobe (E) a pattern of red and yellow highlighting activity in Broca's area
A
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 (E) evolved psychological mechanisms
B
Consistent with the concept of neural plasticity, neurons in mammals have been found to change the way they function as a result of repeated stimulation by doing which of the following? (A) Closing the synaptic gap (B) Growing new dendritic spines (C) Increasing the speed of depolarization along the axon (D) Reducing the intensity of action potentials (E) Blockingreuptakeofneurotransmitter molecules
B
A tumor that destroys the ventromedial hypothalamus is likely to produce which of the following? (A) Total lack of interest in food (B) Changes in the taste of food, but no change in the amount eaten (C) Changes in stomach volume and less-frequent eating (D) Frequent eating and obesity (E) Reduced production of fat
D
The idea that the explanation for prejudice lies in children's modeling of their parents' prejudicial beliefs, emotions, and behaviors is most closely aligned with the theories of which of the following? (A) Lev Vygotsky (B) John B. Watson (C) Jean Piaget (D) B. F. Skinner (E) Albert Bandura
E
Which developmental milestone must be reached before an infant experiences separation anxiety? (A) Imprinting (B) Theory of mind (C) Conservation (D) Egocentrism (E) Objectpermanence
E
Ashley began her banking career as a teller, but she was quickly promoted to increasingly more responsible managerial positions. Despite the fact that she has very limited experience to justify her promotions, she believes that she has been successful because she is very talented. Which of the following explanations is Ashley using to justify her success? (A) Self-serving bias (B) Hindsight bias (C) Defensive attribution (D) External attribution (E) Social schema
a
In classical conditioning, stimulus generalization occurs when an organism responds (A) to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus (B) to stimuli that are similar to the unconditioned stimulus (C) to the conditioned stimulus the same way as to the unconditioned stimulus (D) with different types of responses to neutral stimuli (E) with different types of responses to the unconditioned stimulus
A
In the first part of an experiment, one group of rats received reinforcement after correctly navigating a maze. A second group received no reinforcement after wandering around the maze. In the next part, both groups received reinforcement after navigating the maze. Despite not receiving reinforcement at the beginning of the experiment, the second group performed as well as the first. The learning that occurred in the second group in the absence of reinforcement is called (A) latent learning (B) extinction (C) partial reinforcement (D) observational learning (E) classical conditioning
A
Melvin, a server at a restaurant, is in the middle of a lunch rush. He is completing orders, serving customers, and seating new guests. He has adapted to this level of stress and is coping. Which of the following terms identifies a stage in Hans Selye's general adaptation syndrome that Melvin is currently experiencing? (A) Resistance (B) Exhaustion (C) Withdrawal (D) Alarm (E) Pressure
A
Research shows that women who are referred by a physician to participate in a study of eating disorders have more severe problems than women who volunteer on their own to participate in the study. If research on eating disorders regularly involves only women referred by physicians, the results of the studies might be limited because of the presence of (A) sampling bias (B) placebo effects (C) social desirability (D) dependent variables (E) nonrandom assignment
A
Which of the following is an example of a cognitive distortion according to Aaron Beck's cognitive therapy model of treatment? (A) "If I don't get all As in college, then my degree will be worth nothing." (B) "My mother had a difficult childhood and has difficulty showing affection." (C) "There is a girl in my class who does not talk to anyone because she is shy." (D) "If I don't go to the mall today, then I might miss the end-of-season sales." (E) "Mybrotherdoesnotliketohangoutwith me because I am so much younger than he."
A
Which of the following is more associated with environmental effects than with genetic influence? (A) Fetal alcohol syndrome (B) Prenatal maturation (C) Temperament (D) Rooting reflex (E) Sequence of motor development
A
Which of the following studies in the field of social psychology met with the greatest criticism about the ethical issues involved? (A) Stanley Milgram's studies on obedience (B) Irving Janis' studies on groupthink (C) Solomon Asch's studies on conformity (D) Muzafer Sherif's Robbers Cave study (E) Robert Zajonc' s studies on the mere-exposure effect
A
In Mary Ainsworth's Strange Situation experiment, infants who were classified as securely attached were more likely to (A) have a tantrum when the mother left the room (B) express happiness when the mother returned to the room (C) prevent the mother from leaving the room (D) try to play with the stranger when the mother left the room (E) not notice when the mother returned to the room
B
Morgan made the fundamental attribution error in explaining her students' poor performance on their geography examination when she said which of the following? (A) "I thought it was too cold in the room on test day. Maybe that's why the students did poorly." (B) "The students just do not care enough about their grades." (C) "The class meets at such an early time. Perhaps that's why the class performed poorly." (D) "I will have to present the material to them another way and retest." (E) "MaybeIamjustnotagoodteacher."
B
The Flynn effect is best illustrated by which of the following statements? (A) A child must clean his room before his parents allow him to watch television. (B) Intelligence scores increase from generation to generation. (C) An individual feels overweight but eats large portions of high-calorie food anyway. (D) An individual agrees to a small request and complies later with a larger request. (E) Crystallizedintelligenceincreaseswithage
B
The results of a correlational study involving student volunteers in a psychology laboratory might not apply to the general population because (A) laboratory environments are generally too artificial to generate accurate results (B) the sample is not randomly chosen and therefore may not be a representative sample (C) only experimental studies apply to the general population (D) in a correlational study, no variables are actually manipulated (E) correlational studies do not involve naturalistic observation
B
To study differences in the cognitive processing of younger and older adults, Genevieve assessed a groupof30yearoldsandagroupof60yearolds using the same cognitive task. She found no significant difference in cognitive processing between the two groups. Which of the following is a true statement that best explains her findings? (A) Researchers have not documented changes in cognitive ability over the human life span. (B) Genevieve's participants were most likely women, who do not decline cognitively as they age. (C) Genevieve's task involved semantic memory, which does not typically show decline among people of the ages she tested. (D) Most decline in cognitive ability is associated withdementia,whichwouldnotyethave occurred in the participants at age 60. (E) Genevieve's older participants were most likely taking memory medications that prolong the ability to be proficient in cognitive tasks.
C
When a projective technique is used, a person could be asked to (A) select statements that she believes best describe her personality (B) select statements that she believes identify her likes and dislikes (C) look at some pictures and tell a story about each of them (D) respond to grade-level questions about math, English, social studies, and science (E) respond to questions designed to assess her artistic potential
C
Which of the following is a common symptom of the manic phase of bipolar disorder? (A) Auditory hallucinations (B) A feeling of intense sadness (C) Rapid speech (D) The presence of two distinct personalities (E) Narcolepsy
C
Which of the following treatments would be most effective for someone who experiences a rapid heartbeat, light-headedness, and nausea when speaking in public? (A) Medication to reduce dopamine levels (B) Interpretation of transference behaviors (C) Systematic desensitization (D) Reflective listening (E) A versive conditioning
C
An evolutionary psychologist would explain that humans desire social interaction, social acceptance, and social affiliation due to a need for (A) achievement (B) individualism (C) behavioral change (D) survival (E) self-actualization
D
As a result of being hypnotized, an individual may not feel the hypnotist touching her arm because of (A) synesthesia (B) psychosis (C) paralysis (D) suggestibility (E) locus of control
D
Fluoxetine (Prozac®) has been shown to reduce depression primarily by (A) blocking receptor sites and decreasing the levels of dopamine and norepinephrine in the brain (B) blocking activity of monoamine oxidase in the brain (C) blocking receptor sites and decreasing the level of serotonin in the synapses (D) blocking reuptake and increasing the level of serotonin in the synapses (E) mimicking neurotransmitters in receptor sites and increasing the level of acetylcholine in the brain
D
If an individual has lost the ability to feel pain in the left arm, there is most likely damage to what area of the brain? (A) Left occipital lobe (B) Left parietal lobe (C) Right frontal lobe (D) Right parietal lobe (E) Rightoccipitallobe
D
Jim decides to seek treatment for his alcoholism that involves taking a medication that causes nausea when paired with alcohol. What type of treatment has Jim chosen? (A) Cognitive (B) Psychodynamic (C) Humanistic (D) Behavioral (E) Gestalt
D
Research on the development of personality traits across the life span has revealed that (A) an individual' s personality traits become more variable as the individual ages (B) the greatest changes in personality traits occur between the ages of about thirty and fifty (C) the oral, anal, and genital stages in Freudian personality theory seem to be valid, but the later stages are not (D) an individual's personality traits tend to be relatively stable during middle adulthood (E) one' s personality traits change often because of environmental factors
D
Serena is in a hotel room with a cake that needs slicing, but she does not have a knife. She goes to the bathroom and comes back with a long strand of dental floss, which she uses to cut the cake. Serena has overcome which barrier to problem solving? (A) Availability heuristic (B) Divergent thinking (C) Confirmation bias (D) Functional fixedness (E) Fixation
D
Which of the following is an example of an individual who demonstrates an internal locus of control? (A) A woman believes that the reason she is often late to work is because of the traffic in her neighborhood. (B) A student volunteers at a food shelter because her school club requires community service of its members. (C) A man thinks that his displays of aggression are due to the extra caffeine he has been consuming lately. (D) A student decides to run for student government because he feels he can make some positive changes in the school. (E) A teacher decides that students are noisy in her afternoon classes because of the energy they get after eating lunch.
D
Which of the following psychological theories would explain posttraumatic stress disorder as being the result of irrational beliefs and ideas? (A) Psychoanalytic (B) Gestalt (C) Evolutionary (D) Cognitive (E) Humanistic
D
Which of the following treatments assumes a biological cause for a disorder? (A) Systematic desensitization (B) Rational-emotive behavioral therapy (C) Client-centered therapy (D) Electroconvulsive therapy (E) Free association
D
Tina's mother often entertains Tina by bouncing a bunny puppet back and forth along the side of Tina's crib. Initially, Tina pays close attention to the puppet but after a while, she begins to ignore it and continues doing what she was doing before the puppet appeared. Which of the following psychological concepts best explains Tina's change in behavior? (A) Attachment (B) Discrimination (C) Maturation (D) Accommodation (E) Habituation
E
When people consume large amounts of alcohol, they are often unable to recall what they did and said while they were drinking. This occurs because alcohol interferes with the brain's ability to form new memories in the (A) reticular formation (B) occipital lobe (C) parietal lobe (D) thalamus (E) hippocampus
E
