UNIT I REVIEW

KEY TERMS AND CONCEPTS TO REMEMBER

Test yourself on these terms by trying to compose the definition before checking your answers.

1. critical thinking, p. 4
2. empiricism, p. 7
3. structuralism, p. 7
4. introspection, p. 8
5. functionalism, p. 8
6. behaviorism, p. 10
7. humanistic psychology, p. 11
8. cognitive psychology, p. 13
9. cognitive neuroscience, p. 13
10. psychology, p. 13
11. nature–nurture issue, p. 14
12. natural selection, p. 14
13. evolutionary psychology, p. 14
14. behavior genetics, p. 14
15. culture, p. 15
16. positive psychology, p. 16
17. biopsychosocial approach, p. 17
18. behavioral psychology, p. 17
19. biological psychology, p. 17
20. psychodynamic psychology, p. 18
21. social-cultural psychology, p. 18
22. testing effect, p. 20
23. SQ3R, p. 20
24. psychometrics, p. 24
25. basic research, p. 24
26. developmental psychology, p. 24
27. educational psychology, p. 24
28. personality psychology, p. 24
29. social psychology, p. 24
30. applied research, p. 24
31. industrial-organizational (I/O) psychology, p. 24
32. human factors psychology, p. 24
33. counseling psychology, p. 25
34. clinical psychology, p. 25
35. psychiatry, p. 25
36. community psychology, p. 25

KEY CONTRIBUTORS TO REMEMBER

Wilhelm Wundt, p. 7

G. Stanley Hall, p. 7

Edward Bradford Titchener, p. 7

William James, p. 8

Charles Darwin, p. 8

Mary Whiton Calkins, p. 8

Margaret Floy Washburn, p. 9

John B. Watson, p. 10

B. F. Skinner, p. 10

Sigmund Freud, p. 10

Carl Rogers, p. 11

Abraham Maslow, p. 11

Ivan Pavlov, p. 13

Jean Piaget, p. 13

Dorothea Dix, p. 25

For a complete list of key people throughout the text, see Appendix C, Psychological Science’s Key Contributors, at the end of this text.

AP^® EXAM PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Multiple-Choice Questions

1. The debate about the relative contributions of biology and experience to human development is most often referred to as what?
   1. Evolutionary analysis
   2. Behaviorism
   3. The cognitive revolution
   4. The nature–nurture issue
   5. Natural selection
2. Which of the following professionals focuses on the study of human flourishing and the attainment of a happy, meaningful life?
   1. Positive psychologist
   2. Evolutionary psychologist
   3. Behavioral psychologist
   4. Cognitive psychologist
   5. Psychotherapist
3. Which psychological principle best explains why studying an hour per day for a week is more effective than one 7-hour study session?
   1. Testing effect
   2. Distributed practice
   3. SQ3R
   4. Retrieval practice effect
   5. Psychometrics
4. Which of the following kinds of psychologists would most likely explore how we process and remember information?
   1. Developmental
   2. Biological
   3. Social
   4. Cognitive
   5. Personality
5. According to the behavioral perspective, psychological science should be rooted in what?
   1. Introspection
   2. Observation
   3. Cultural influences
   4. Growth potential
   5. Basic needs
6. Which of the following psychologists would most likely conduct psychotherapy?
   1. Biological
   2. Clinical
   3. Industrial-organizational
   4. Cognitive
   5. Evolutionary
7. Which subfield or perspective is most interested in studying the link between mental activity and brain activity?
   1. Humanistic psychology
   2. Gestalt psychology
   3. Cognitive neuroscience
   4. Psychodynamic perspective
   5. Evolutionary perspective
8. What was the main difference between the psychological thinking of Wilhelm Wundt and earlier philosophers who were also interested in thinking and behavior?
   1. Wundt was German; earlier philosophers were American.
   2. Wundt was the first professor from a major university interested in psychology.
   3. Wundt was the first scholar to call himself a psychologist.
   4. Wundt used psychotherapy techniques established by Freud to examine the thinking and behavior of healthy individuals.
   5. Wundt and his students gathered data about human thinking and behavior in a laboratory setting.
9. Which school of thought in psychology focused on the adaptive nature of thinking and how our consciousness evolves to meet our needs?
   1. Functionalist
   2. Structuralist
   3. Behavioral
   4. Humanistic
   5. Psychodynamic
10. The study of our human potential for personal growth has been a focus of which psychological perspective?
    1. Behavioral
    2. Functionalist
    3. Humanistic
    4. Psychodynamic
    5. Structuralist
11. Which of the following is the best example of applied research?
    1. Investigating personality traits
    2. Using psychological concepts to boost worker productivity
    3. Experimenting with how people perceive different stimuli
    4. Studying the changing abilities of children from ages 2 to 5
    5. Exploring the neural changes that occur during adolescence
12. Self-reflective introspection about the elements of experience best describes a technique used by which school of thought in psychology?
    1. Functionalists
    2. Empiricists
    3. Structuralists
    4. Behaviorists
    5. Humanists
13. Which psychological perspective is most likely to focus on how our interpretation of a situation affects how we react to it?
    1. Psychodynamic
    2. Biological
    3. Social-cultural
    4. Evolutionary
    5. Cognitive
14. The science of behavior and mental processes is the definition of which field of study?
    1. Philosophy
    2. Cognitive neuroscience
    3. Basic research
    4. Psychology
    5. Applied research

Free-Response Questions

1. Arianna is nervous around large crowds and often leaves social situations such as school dances and parties because she feels like she might have a panic attack. Her father died when she was a young girl, but she still often has nightmares about his death. Arianna enjoys school. She generally receives good grades and appreciates the positive feedback from her teachers, which further encourages her to improve her academic skills.

   Explain how each of the seven main theoretical perspectives in psychology would explain Arianna’s behavior.

Rubric for Free Response Question 1

1 point: The biological approach would attribute Arianna’s nervousness to brain chemistry, hormones, or genetic influences. Page 17

1 point: The evolutionary approach would explore how avoiding social crowds might have been a survival advantage for early humans, such as by reducing exposure to germs and violence. Page 17

1 point: The psychodynamic approach would examine Arianna’s early life and how she dealt with losing her father, focusing on Arianna’s childhood experiences and unconscious anxieties. Page 18

1 point: The behavioral approach would look at what Arianna has learned in the past through rewards and punishments. She may have had a negative experience in a large group in the past and as a result has learned to avoid social gatherings. Page 17

1 point: The cognitive approach would focus on examining how Arianna perceives situations. Her interpretation of social situations may impact the outcome. Page 17

1 point: The humanistic approach would look at how Arianna’s environment may have hindered growth and self-fulfillment. Page 17

1 point: The social-cultural approach would examine how interactions within the cultures Arianna belongs to influence her expectations about social situations. If her family or other cultural influences encourage her to attend social functions, that might influence her to continue to try attending those kinds of events. Page 18

2. Jacob’s parents are encouraging him not to major in psychology because they worry he might not want to spend his life around mentally ill people. Help Jacob explain to his parents that psychologists do other types of work, by describing the specific focuses of each of the following types of psychologists:
   • Educational psychologists
   • Industrial-organizational psychologists
   • Forensic psychologists
   • Community psychologists

(4 points)