1. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Asch and confederates who sometimes gave deliberately incorrect responses. Predict the Answer: Asch was testing to see whether the subjects would stick with their own perceptions or make the same response as the confederates. Conformity means aligning one’s behavior with the behavior of others, so (B) is correct.
2. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is that indicating that the researchers were taking an in-depth look at one unusual subject. Use POE to eliminate choices (A) and (C) because this is not an experiment. Eliminate (B) because a correlational study would require many more subjects in order to establish a relationship between variables. Eliminate (E) because this study was not conducted at multiple points in time. Choice (D) is correct because a case study takes a detailed look at an unusual subject or situation.
3. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are neurotransmitters pass…across a gap. Predict the Answer: This gap is the synapse, so (E) is the correct answer.
4. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are suddenly and involuntarily falling asleep during daytime hours. Use POE to find the answer. Eliminate (A) because it refers to a particular state of sleep during the night. Eliminate (B) because it refers to bodily rhythms during a typical 24-hour period. Eliminate (D) because it refers to a dysfunction occurring during nighttime sleep. Eliminate (E) because sleep-walking is an abnormal behavior occurring during nighttime sleep. Choice (C) is correct because narcolepsy is just what the key words describe.
5. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are visual perception. Predict the Answer: Gestalt, meaning “pattern” and having as its guiding principle the idea that “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts,” is the only approach focused primarily on perception. Choice (A) is correct.
6. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key concept is learned helplessness. Predict the Answer: Learned helplessness may befall an individual who has experienced futility in improving his/her situation and who therefore feels a lack of control over his/her environment. The correct answer choice has the right combination of locus of control and self-efficacy to describe this situation, and that correct answer choice is (C).
7. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are drive reduction theory. Predict the Answer: Drive reduction theory applies to physiological drives like hunger and thirst; hence, the correct response involves the physiological state of homeostasis (E). At that point, the individual’s “drive” is satisfied. You can also use POE here. Individuals would not attain a steady state of relaxation (A), self-actualization (B), achievement (C), or positive relationships (D) just from reducing drives, so eliminate these choices. Choice (E) is correct.
8. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are method of loci, peg-word system, and chunking. Predict the Answer: Choice (D), mnemonic devices. These are strategies designed to improve memory for information.
9. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words here are roller coaster, vivid memories, proximity, and brain. The question is seeking what it is about brain structure that would make recall of an arousing event more likely. Predict the Answer: Anytime that you see “memory” and “brain” together you should be thinking about the hippocampus, which is only found in (B). If you didn’t remember that, you can also use POE. Eliminate (C) because these areas deal with language. Eliminate (D) because the cerebellum relates to procedural memory and the question is about episodic memory. Eliminate (E): thought the hypothalamus is part of the limbic system, it is not related to memory. Eliminate (A): though the lobes contain parts of the association cortex, and thus are related to memory, the frontal lobes are not specifically related to arousal. It is significant that the amygdale is the “fear center” of the brain.
10. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language here indicates that Marty’s beliefs and action are not in sync and that this makes him uncomfortable. Try using POE. Marty is not projecting either his thoughts or his actions onto others, so (A) should be eliminated. Neither is he denying the existence of a problem; the problem is why he is uncomfortable. Eliminate (B). There is no group decision-making, so eliminate (C). The quality of Marty’s performance is not affected by whether or not others are around, so eliminate (E). Choice (D) is correct because Marty’s discomfort when providing an excuse for his behavior is evidence of the tension predicted by cognitive dissonance.
11. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key is correlation coefficient. Predict the Answer: Correlation coefficients range from –1.0 to 1.0, with a negative sign indicating an inverse relationship, such as the one described here. Use POE to eliminate (A) and (B) because this is not a direct relationship and eliminate (E) because it is not a legitimate correlation coefficient. Choice (C) would reflect a weak inverse relationship. Choice (D) is the correct answer.
12. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are lacking empathy, exploit others, and personality disorder. Predict the Answer: Look for the disorder that is characterized by a lack of empathy and a tendency to manipulate others; that is antisocial personality disorder (contrary to the often-used definition of “antisocial,” here it does not refer to someone who wants to be apart from others).
13. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is that indicating that Martin was unable to view the umbrella as useful for anything other than its traditional use. Predict the Answer: You are looking for a barrier to effective problem solving that involves objects. Use POE. Choices (B), (C), (D), and (E) refer to other problem-solving strategies or issues. Only choice (A) refers to the barrier to effective problem solving that involves the inability to see any but the most common possible uses for an object.
14. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are center of emotion in the brain. Try using POE to find the answer. Eliminate (A) because this is the part of the nervous system that controls bodily functions not consciously directed, like breathing. Eliminate choice (C) because this is the system responsible for balance. Eliminate (D) because this involves the brain’s response to reinforcing stimuli. Eliminate (E) because this system calms us down after a fight-or-flight response. The correct answer is (B), Limbic System.
15. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Events…that create intense emotions. Predict the Answer: Events like these often produce powerful memories for people about where they were and how they learned about the event. Use POE. Eliminate (A) because it involves people changing their memories in response to later events, expectations, and other factors. Eliminate choice (B) because this involves new information interfering with one’s recollection of previously learned information. Eliminate (D) because it involves previously learned information interfering with retention of more recently learned information. Eliminate (E) because it involves the ability to recall an image from memory after seeing it only once. Only choice (C) refers specifically to events involving high levels of arousal and emotion.
16. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are DSM-5. Predict the Answer: The DSM-5 is the fifth edition of this important reference book, so (C) is the correct answer.
17. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are stroke on the left side and unable to produce intelligible speech. Predict the Answer: Choice (B), Broca’s area is responsible for the production of intelligible speech. If this were not immediately known, consider your options and use POE. Eliminate (A) because it involves comprehension of speech. Eliminate (C) because it involves hearing. Eliminate choice (D) because it involves vision. Eliminate (E) because it involves the touch sensation.
18. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is that which describes the customer’s bad behavior and Wanda’s assessment of the customer as a jerk. Predict the Answer: This involves attribution theory and Wanda is making a dispositional attribution about the customer’s behavior. The correct answer is (C), fundamental attribution error.
19. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is that which describes people who are distressed by a physical characteristic that they have to the point that they would have surgery to “correct” it. The question seeks the DSM-5 designation for such a condition. Go ahead and use POE. Eliminate choices (A), (B), and (C) because they do not involve physical characteristics. Individuals with Narcissistic Personality Disorder are greatly concerned with their physical appearances, but they would tend to overvalue their own beauty, not think that they were grotesque to others. Choice (E) is correct because body dysmorphic disorder refers to overwhelming concern about a perceived physical defect.
20. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key term is General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS). Predict the Answer: Selye’s finding was that animals under long-term stress become more and more susceptible to physical illness over time. You can use POE here. Neither “acceptance,” nor “rebound,” nor “relaxation,” nor “resolution” would tend to produce illness; eliminate (A), (C), (D), and (E). Choice (B) is correct.
21. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Big Five and MMPI 2-RF. Predict the Answer: These are both trait inventories: they are trying to categorize personality characteristics; not explain how they came to be. Choice (A), trait theory, is correct.
22. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are NOT a symptom of a major depressive disorder. Predict the Answer: The symptoms in (C) relate to mania, which is not a component of a major depressive disorder, so (C) is your answer. Through POE, you can eliminate choices (A), (B), (D), and (E) because they are symptoms of depression.
23. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The question is seeking the term for these rules. Predict the Answer: we’re looking at sentence creation here, so (A), syntax, is what you want. If you don’t know or remember the definition of syntax, use POE. Eliminate (B) because these are the smallest meaningful units in language. Eliminate (C) because these are the basic sounds in a language. Eliminate (D) because this involves a young child producing a single word to try to convey the meaning of an entire sentence. Eliminate (E) because this involves the meaning of words, not their correct ordering.
24. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Erik Erikson and primary developmental task for young adults. Predict the Answer: The stage for young adults is “intimacy versus isolation,” so it is about developing meaningful relationships.
25. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are DSM-5, Multiple Personality Disorder, and two or more distinct personalities, often accompanied by amnesia. Predict the Answer: Though schizophrenia is often mistakenly thought to have these characteristics, only (D), Dissociative Identity Disorder, actually does. Choice (D) is correct.
26. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are NOT an ethical consideration. Use POE. The concerns addressed in choices (A), (B), (C), and (E) are legitimate ethical concerns for this research, so eliminate them. While controlling potentially confounding variables might be an important concern for these experimenters, it is not an issue of ethics. Choice (D) is the correct answer.
27. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are NOT a categorical variable. Predict the Answer: Essentially, you are looking for a variable that is not a check-off box on a census form. An IQ score is continuous: it exists over a range of values. Choice (B) is correct!
28. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are those indicating that the subjects do not know to which group they were assigned. Use POE. To double-blind an experiment means that the experimenters as well as the subjects do not know to which groups subjects were assigned. Eliminate (A). Reliability involves whether a test will produce similar results when re-administered. Eliminate (C). Validity involves whether a test actually measures what it intends to measure. Eliminate (D). Statistical significance indicates to what extent researchers can have confidence in the fact that their data support their conclusions. Eliminate (E). Choice (B) is correct because the single-blind precaution prevents subjects from knowing whether they are in the experimental group or the control group.
29. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The question is asking what strategy the coach is using when she rewards the runner each time (she) reduces her personal best by at least four seconds. Predict the Answer: (D), Fixed-ratio reinforcement is defined as providing a reward every time a certain behavior (in this case, reducing the time by four seconds) is performed. That looks like the correct answer, but you can use POE to be sure. This is not about an interval-based schedule of reinforcement (eliminate (A) and (B)); neither is it about either restricting the sorts of behaviors that will bring about a reward or expanding the sorts of behaviors that could be reinforced (eliminate (C) and (E)). Choice (D) is correct because shaping describes the strategy used by this coach.
30. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are knowing which studying techniques work well for him. Predict the Answer: Choice (A). The subject matter is clearly cognition but use POE to check out your options. Eliminate (B) because knowing yourself is intrapersonal, not interpersonal, intelligence. Eliminate (C) because state-dependent memory involves one’s mood when learning and remembering information. Eliminate (D) because it refers to knowledge of facts, not studying techniques. Eliminate (E) because it involves solving problems via a “Eureka!” moment rather than through a learning process.
31. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are operant conditioning, positive behaviors, and institutional settings. Predict the Answer: Operant conditioning is all about reinforcement, in this case by rewarding good behavior with tokens that can be redeemed for primary reinforcers. Looks like (E), token economy, is the correct answer, but you can use POE to be sure. The other answer choices contain language that is relevant to conditioning, but it is not specific to either positive behaviors or to institutional settings. Eliminate them.
32. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is change in electrical charge and trigger an action potential. Go ahead and use POE! If the correct term is not immediately apparent, consider your options. Eliminate (A) because this is the receiving end of the neuron for incoming chemical messages. Eliminate (B) because this is the part of the neuron that sends such messages. Eliminate (C) because this describes the nature of the axon. Eliminate (D) because this effect would move the neuron away from triggering an action potential. Choice (E) is correct because reaching the threshold change in electrical charge is what triggers an action potential.
33. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are from memory and errors…in the middle of a list. Predict the Answer: this phenomenon, with better memory for beginnings and endings of lists is (D), serial position effect. If you didn’t remember that, you could’ve used POE. Eliminate (A) because Francois did not want to forget this information. Eliminate (B) because it involves unconsciously burying a memory because it is distressing and that is not the issue here. Eliminate (C) because it involves an inability to create new memories and does not involve placement within a list. Eliminate (E) because this involves particularly memorable events.
34. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key terms are normal distribution, standard deviation, and mean. Predict the Answer: Shoshanna has scored exactly one standard deviation above the mean. Your knowledge of a normal distribution would tell you that 34% of test-takers score between the mean and one standard deviation above it. Shoshanna has outscored 50% of the students, plus an additional 34%. The correct answer is (B). You can also use POE. Eliminate (D) and (E) because Shoshanna clearly scored above half of the test-takers. Eliminate (A) because, in order to achieve the 98th percentile, Shoshanna would have needed to score two standard deviations above the mean, or 130.
35. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words here are Harlow and monkeys, and these should be circled. Predict the Answer: Choice (B) looks right if you remember this famous research would lead to a prediction about mother-infant bonding. You can use POE to check out the other answer choices. Eliminate (A), (C), and (E) as not related to bonding. Eliminate (D) because, though this was the Harlows’ hypothesis, it is not what they found.
36. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: circle not recognized. Use a “true/false” method for evaluating the answer choices in a “NOT” question. Eliminate (B), (C), (D), and (E) because they should be marked “True” as recognized taste buds. The correct answer is (A), spicy.
37. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key concepts are fight-or-flight and homeostasis. Go ahead and use POE. Answer choice (A) is synonymous with the “fight-or-flight” arousal response and thus incorrect. Answer choices (C), (D), and (E) involve balance, reward, and emotion, respectively, and do not involve achieving homeostasis. Choice (B) is correct because, after sympathetic activation, it is the parasympathetic system that brings us back to homeostasis.
38. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The question asks for a reason for behavior that wouldn’t be explained by any commonly accepted definition of “hunger.” Predict the Answer: You want an answer that deals with why this behavior is expected, as opposed to any sense of “need.” Choice (B) looks correct, but you can use POE to be sure. Answer choices (A), (C), (D), and (E) all deal with physiological indicators of hunger and do not address why this behavior might be expected of us. Yep, (B) is the right answer.
39. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: Here, circle Bystander Effect as the key concept. Predict the Answer: As you think about this concept, remember that it relates to our willingness to help other people, and specifically it relates to the number of other people who are aware that this individual needs help. Sounds like (C), and you can use POE to eliminate choices (A), (B), (D), and (E), as they relate to motivations and emotions, not the number of others aware of the person needing help.
40. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: As you read the question, note that the reason for the depression will need to match the “approach.” So, circle unrealistically high expectations. Predict the Answer: You are looking for an approach that focuses on how people view their situations. That’ll be (C), the cognitive approach. You can also use POE to find the answer. Eliminate (A) because this approach focuses on the unconscious and repressed memories of childhood conflict. Eliminate (B) because this approach focuses on reinforcement from one’s environment. Eliminate (D) because this approach focuses on behaviors that are adaptive for survival. Eliminate (E) because this approach focuses on genetics and brain chemistry.
41. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: Performance seems to be based on one’s state of mind going into the exam, so focus on words like not…very seriously, groggy versus nervous, energy drink versus seriously, and not feel stressed. Use POE. Once it’s apparent that the issue is about level of arousal, you can eliminate answers that deal with problem solving (B), adolescent development (C), emotion sequencing (D), or language (E). Choice (A) is correct because the Yerkes-Dodson Law is about the optimal level of arousal for a given task.
42. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: Since the question is about the paradoxical nature of REM sleep, circle that; it is important to know that REM stands for “rapid eye movement” and a paradox is an apparent contradiction. Predict the Answer: The contradiction should involve our near paralysis during REM while other aspects of our physiology are quite active, so (C) looks correct. Use POE to be sure. Answer choices (A), (B), (D), and (E) can be eliminated as they deal with restorative properties and dreaming, they contain incorrect information, and, to the extent that they present a paradox, it is unrelated to muscular activity.
43. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The function of the semicircular canals is the issue; circle it. Predict the Answer: The semicircular canals are related to balance, not hearing. Use POE. Answer choices (A), (B), and (E) are related to hearing. Answer choice (C) is unrelated to hearing, but also to balance. Choice (D) is correct.
44. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is most durable, equivalent to “long-lasting.” Use POE. Choice (A) produces very fast extinction of behavior in the absence of reinforcement; eliminate it. Choice (D) also produces fast extinction, and (B) and (C) produce extinction, in the absence of prompt reinforcement, faster than the correct response. Eliminate them as well. Choice (E), Variable-ratio reinforcement, is usually illustrated with examples from the world of gambling (e.g. slot machines, lotteries); think about the tendency of die-hard gamblers to continue gambling, even in the absence of reinforcement. Choice (E) is correct.
45. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is learns to press a lever to stop the shocks. Predict the Answer: Choice (C), negative reinforcement. You can use POE. Punishment involves producing less of a behavior; here, more of a behavior (lever pressing) is being produced, so eliminate (A) and (B). While this is reinforcement, nothing is being added for the mouse’s benefit; rather, an aversive stimulus (the shock) is being removed. So, eliminate (D). Shaping involves rewarding successive approximations of a goal. Here, there is no specific goal established for the mouse’s behavior, so eliminate (E). Choice (C) is the correct answer.
46. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key here is hypnosis. Predict the Answer: Hypnosis can produce an altered state of consciousness with heightened suggestibility. So, think about a “mind over matter” scenario. Use POE. Hypnosis has not been proven to have much value in treating addiction, ADHD, or memory issues, eliminating (A), (C), (D), and (E) respectively. Choice (B) is correct because hypnosis has proven successful in providing pain relief in cases of pain that had required pain relieving drugs or mild sedation.
47. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key idea is Kohlberg’s stage theory of moral development. Circle this. Predict the Answer: Following the decision-making rationales at the Pre-conventional, Conventional, and Post-conventional levels of Kohlberg’s theory, one sees a progression from “what’s in it for me?” to “what will others think of me?” to “what are my ideas about right and wrong?” Choice (C) looks like a pretty good option, but consider the others through POE. Eliminate (A) and (B) because Kohlberg makes no reference to religion as the basis for decision-making. Eliminate (D) because Kohlberg does not distinguish rules that are written down from those that are not. Eliminate (E) because Kohlberg does not emphasize the source of guidance and because laws, for example, can be important at all of the levels, but for different reasons.
48. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key phrase is focus in on one conversation. Predict the Answer: What is being described is a process of “selective attention” and the answer should be related to that. POE: Eliminate choice (A) because multitasking is a form of divided attention. Eliminate (B) because this involves hearing different things in each ear. Eliminate (C) because this involves distinguishing sound qualities, not tuning out conversations. Choice (E) is correct because the cocktail party effect allows the listener to tune out, or at least “turn down the volume” for competing conversations, making this an example of selective attention.
49. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are NOT and Stanley Milgram’s Yale electric shock experiment. Predict the Answer: Milgram was looking into obedience, specifically whether or not having an authority figure present might cause individuals to engage in behaviors that they would otherwise consider morally questionable. Use POE. Eliminate (A), (B), (C), and (D) because these were findings of the Milgram study; only males were used in the study.
50. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language here is the definition of schema and the fact that new information could fit. Predict the Answer: Assimilation and accommodation are the relevant processes and the issue is whether or not children had to change the existing schema. Here, they did not. The correct answer is (A). Accommodation is the process that would require alteration of the existing schema.
51. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is visual and auditory inputs, very quickly, and immediate strategic decisions. Predict the Answer: Focusing on the speed of responsiveness should lead to the correct answer. Use POE to go through your options. Choice (A) involves a sense organ sending fewer messages to the brain when there has been a constant stimulus over time. Eliminate it. Choice (B) also involves a constant stimulus; in this case, there is a cognitive process that allows an individual to get used to the stimulus, so eliminate it. Choice (C) involves knowledge of facts. Eliminate it. Choice (E) involves recollection of events in one’s life. Eliminate it. Only choice (D) involves processing of sensory inputs at speed.
52. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are the building that houses the web design department and flaw. Predict the Answer: Choice (B), non-representative sampling. Researchers are not sampling from the entire company. Web designers could have different attitudes than other employees. They may, for example, present a different gender mix than other departments. You can also use POE to find the right answer. If the flaw is not immediately apparent, consider your options. Eliminate (A) because the sampling was done randomly (“every fifth person”). Eliminate (C) because subjects were able to take the survey in a confidential manner. Eliminate (D) because this is not an observation study and the researchers are interpreting the subjects’ responses. Eliminate (E) because the subjects are not being observed as they respond to the survey.
53. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is what the coach said to students of Scandinavian heritage and what their results were. Predict the Answer: Generalizations about anticipated performance based on gender, race, ethnicity, etc. can have the effect of creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. That idea is what choice (B) is all about.
54. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are never loses her understanding of the true size. Predict the Answer: The correct response should involve an unchanging perception despite external cues, which means you’re looking at (A). You can use POE to eliminate answer choices that simply name elements of the visual system ((B), (D), and (E)) or that indicate a change in perception (C).
55. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The question is asking for an explanation of why, after students stare intently at a colorful image, different colors may emerge. Predict the Answer: Since the image has changed from what was evident at the stage of sensation, this is a matter of perception, specifically the appearance of opponent colors as predicted by opponent process theory. Use POE. Choice (B) involves an inability to distinguish certain colors. Eliminate it. Choice (C) is not specific to color. Eliminate it. Choice (D) involves clarity of color vision. Eliminate it. Choice (E) names the other major theory, besides opponent process, about how we process color; it posits that there are different types of cones responsible for processing particular colors. Eliminate it. Choice (A) is correct because, according to opponent process theory, when we saturate on a particular color, our brains bring out the opponent color.
56. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are jet lag, reset his body clock, and get his sleep schedule back on track. The question is seeking the name of a chemical relevant to these concepts. Predict the Answer: Melatonin, but if you don’t remember that, go ahead and use POE. Eliminate (A) because it is a neurotransmitter primarily involved with physical movement. Eliminate choice (C) because it is a hormone related to arousal. Eliminate (D) because it is a hormone that accelerates growth. Eliminate (E) because it is a hormone related to stress.
57. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are part of the brain that becomes most active, scanning technology, and investigate brain activity. Use POE. Eliminate (A) because, while EEG does record brain wave activity, it is not effective in identifying specific parts of the brain. Eliminate (B) and (C) because these are most useful in investigating brain structure. Eliminate (D) because it is a test of heart function. Choice (E) is correct because a PET scan measures glucose consumption in the brain in real time, making it possible to see which part of the brain “lights up” to perform a particular function.
58. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is describing Braxton’s dysfunctional checking behavior. Predict the Answer: This sort of repetitive behavior is typical of OCD. It is important to differentiate the “O” from the “C” in OCD. The “O” is the obsession, the intrusive thoughts that cause the person anxiety. The “C” is the compulsion, the ritualistic behavior that the person engages in in order to reduce this anxiety. While choices (A) and (C) both correctly identify OCD, only (A) correctly classifies the behaviors.
59. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are less-than-positive image of motorcyclists caused her to make a bad decision. Predict the Answer: The correct response will involve a barrier to effective problem solving. Go ahead and use POE. Eliminate (A) because it is a memory concept. While this fact pattern does seem to involve stereotyping, neither (B) nor (C) involves problem solving, so eliminate them. While (E) is a barrier to effective problem solving, it involves the amount of information available to the solver and the fact pattern does not address this; rather, the facts suggest that the solver used an inaccurate prototype, which is a description of the representativeness heuristic: hence, (D).
60. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Schachter and Singer’s Two Factor Theory. Predict the Answer: This theory is also sometimes known as the cognitive theory. Choice (E) looks correct, but use POE to be sure. Choice (A) describes the James-Lange Theory; eliminate it. Choice (B) describes the Cannon-Bard Theory; eliminate it. These theories of emotion are about sequencing. Choices (C) and (D) do not address this; eliminate them. Choice (E) is correct because this theory states that, after experiencing physiological arousal, the individual must make a cognitive assessment of the context for the arousal in order to identify the emotion.
61. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are right brain dominant. Predict the Answer: Choice (C), spatial design. In brain lateralization, the left brain is primarily engaged in analytical thinking, breaking things down into their component parts and being highly mathematical. It is also where speech functions are usually located. The right brain tends to be more holistic in orientation, seeing the big picture and discerning patterns.
62. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are most viewers are uninterested and Elaboration Likelihood Model. Predict the Answer: The Elaboration Likelihood Model suggests that, if the target audience is not engaged in the subject matter, persuasion should be pursued via the peripheral route (emphasizing superficial qualities) rather than the central route (emphasizing facts and logic). Use POE. Eliminate choices (A), (B), (C), and (D) because they follow the central route approach. Choice (E) contains the sort of superficial elements that are characteristic of the peripheral route.
63. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key word is gender. The question seeks to know what role gender plays in this study. Predict the Answer: Though not technically a “manipulation” by the experimenter in this instance, gender is an independent variable here because it is the factor that separates the experimental group from the control group. Choice (C) is the correct answer.
64. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are strongly favored animal rights and even more strongly in favor of animal rights. Predict the Answer: You are looking for a concept in social psychology that explains how like-minded people, when they have been meeting over a period of time, tend to become even more intensely aligned with their original points of view. That is (C), group polarization.
65. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Miller’s Magic number and seven plus or minus two. Predict the Answer: This is about the capacity of short-term, or working, memory. Choice (A) is what you want.
66. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Carl Rogers and talk therapy. Predict the Answer: Carl Rogers was a Humanist, so the correct response should be part of the Humanist approach. Use POE. Eliminate choices (B) and (E) because they are part of psychoanalytical, or Freudian, therapy. Eliminate (C) because it is part of cognitive therapy. Eliminate (D) because it is part of behavioral therapy. Choice (A) is correct because this is an essential component of Humanistic, or client-centered, therapy.
67. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Baumrind and parenting styles. Predict the Answer: Baumrind differentiated among parents who enforced strict, unquestioned discipline (Authoritarian), those who enforced firm discipline while discussing the reasons for it with their children (Authoritative), and those who enforced insufficient discipline (Permissive). Choice (D) is the correct answer.
68. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Rorschach inkblots and personality test. Predict the Answer: The inkblots do not have “correct” or “graded” responses. They are supposed to provide the therapist with insight into the patient’s unconscious mind. This aligns with the psychoanalytic approach. Projective tests present ambiguous stimuli and a person’s responses allow the therapist to detect hidden feelings and urges. So, (A) is correct.
69. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are most likely effect of chronic, long-term stress. Predict the Answer: Selye’s General Adaptation Syndrome would predict exhaustion that would lead to physical illness. Choice (E) looks correct, but use POE to consider the other options. Eliminate (A) because these symptoms of PTSD would likely follow a deeply traumatic event. Eliminate (B) and (C) because phobias and violent mood swings are also not likely outcomes of prolonged, low-level stress. Eliminate (D) because multiple personalities often come about in response to extremely traumatic and abusive events in childhood.
70. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are NOT a symptom and ADHD. Predict the Answer: Symptoms of ADHD include difficulties in staying on task (B), difficulties in executive function (E), hyperactivity (D), and impulsivity (C). Choice (A), difficulty communicating with others, is not a symptom, thus making it correct.
71. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key idea here is Weber’s Law and how it relates to an assessment of weight. Predict the Answer: Since Weber’s Law is about just noticeable differences and their proportionality with the original stimulus strength, you will be looking for an answer that relates to the JND for weight. Use POE. Eliminate choices (A) and (E) because they relate to other senses, not weight. Applying the idea of proportionality, we would be more sensitive to small differences at a smaller overall weight, eliminating (B) and (C).
72. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: This question asks when students will best remember information, thus involving retrieval of information from memory. The fact pattern distinguishes between classroom and swimming pool. Circle these ideas. Predict the Answer: Many factors could influence retrieval: positive or negative cues, a person’s emotional state at the time of learning and retrieval, etc. The language in this question suggests that the location of learning and retrieval is key. Use POE. Eliminate (A) and (B) as they have to do with mood and are quite similar. Choice (E) also relates to mood and should be eliminated. Choice (C) may relate to cues or interference, but not to location. Choice (D) is correct because, according to context-dependent memory, individuals will remember information better in the location where they learned it.
73. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: This question involves strengthening versus deterioration of skills. Use POE. Choices (A) and (B) involve the relationship between newly learned and older information. Since that distinction is not made here, eliminate these. Cues for remembering information are not mentioned here, so eliminate (C) and (D). Choice (E) is correct because, especially during the teenage years, unused neural pathways will atrophy or be pruned away.
74. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: the key word is opiates. Opiates are a class of drugs used to treat pain and, in some cases, produce sleep. Predict the Answer: Endorphins. A hint here is that endorphins contain the same root as morphine, a prominent opiate. However, if you don’t remember or know that, you can use POE. Answer choices (A), (C), and (D) are chemicals that produce different effects and should be eliminated. While barbiturates are sleeping pills, they do not provide pain relief, so you can also eliminate (B). You’re left with (E), the correct answer.
75. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: This question is about the James-Lange theory of emotion and the other key words are paralyzed from the neck down and cast doubt on. Predict the Answer: The James-Lange Theory states that emotions are caused by physiological arousal. Anything that weakens this linkage would “cast doubt on” the validity of the theory. Use POE. Choice (A) supports this linkage and is what the James-Lange Theory tells us to expect if an individual has less capacity for physical expression of arousal; eliminate it. Choices (C) and (D), in referencing a cognitive assessment of the arousal, are about the Schachter-Singer Theory; eliminate them. Choice (E) can be eliminated because it does not indicate that the facial expressions cause the emotions, only that they accompany them. Choice (B) is correct because, if the impaired physiology has no impact on the intensity of emotional expression, this calls the James-Lange Theory into question.
76. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is native African highlands and greatest threat to the validity of the research. Predict the Answer: You should recognize this research as a naturalistic observation. Two potential threats would be observer bias and observer effect. You can use POE to consider the answer choices. Eliminate (C), (D), and (E) because artificiality, informed consent, and sampling are not issues in a naturalistic observation. Eliminate (B) because the observer effect occurs when the subjects know that they are being watched; the fact pattern indicates that the apes will not be aware of the drones. Observer bias, (A), is correct because Felipe has certain expectations going into the research and this creates concern that he may “see what he hopes to see.”
77. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are nerve deafness. Predict the Answer: (C), cochlear implant. Nerve deafness is caused by damage to the stereocilia in the cochlea, or to the auditory nerve itself. Restoring hearing would need to address one of these issues. If you didn’t immediately remember that, you could also use POE. Eliminate (B), (D), and (E) because these interventions are intended to improve conduction of sound waves in Teresa’s ears and that is not her problem. Eliminate (A) because removal of brain tissue will also not address Teresa’s problem.
78. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are NOT and Freud’s stage theory of psychosexual development. Predict the Answer: Freud’s theory involves which erogenous zones might be important in a child’s development and what sorts of traumatic experiences the child may have. If you don’t remember that (C), starting school, isn’t a significant factor, you can use POE. Eliminate (A) because breastfeeding is key in the oral stage. Eliminate (B) because toilet training is key to the anal stage. Eliminate (D) because relationships with parents are key to the phallic stage. Eliminate (E) because puberty denotes the onset of the genital stage.
79. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key here is what the child said: I goed to the store with mommy. Predict the Answer: This child is overusing the rule in English that we often add “-ed” to the ends of words to make them past tense and he has not learned exceptions to this rule. This involves grammar, so the correct answer is (A).
80. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Aaron Beck, cognitive therapy, and depression. Predict the Answer: In the cognitive approach, problems would be caused by dysfunctional thinking patterns. Choice (C) looks pretty good, but you can use POE to be sure. If the correct match is not immediately apparent, consider your options. Eliminate choice (A) because it references Freudian, or psychoanalytical factors. Eliminate (B) because the emphasis is on biology. Eliminate (D) because reaching one’s potential is central to the Humanistic approach. Eliminate (E) because getting attention is reinforcing and that indicates a Behavioristic approach. Choice (C) is correct because these “assessments” and “perceptions” are cognitive processes.
81. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is that which indicates that Benjamin did particularly well studying information with which he had personal connection. Predict the Answer: Choice (D), self-reference effect. Benjamin’s memory was better for information that was personally relevant to him. You can also use POE. Eliminate (A) because it involves memory for physical activities, or “muscle memory.” Eliminate (B) because it involves remembering information better when you are in the same frame of mind as you were when you learned it. Eliminate (C) because it involves remembering information better when you are in the same place that you were when you learned it. Eliminate (E) because the question involves long-term memories and sensory memory only lasts for a second or two.
82. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are schizophrenia, positive symptoms, and negative symptoms. Predict the Answer: Positive symptoms are those that are not usually present, but that the disease introduces into the individual’s reality. Negative symptoms would be behaviors that are normally present, but the mental disorder takes them away. Use POE. Eliminate (A) because amnesia is a negative symptom and multiple personalities is a positive symptom. Eliminate (C) because delusions are a positive symptom. Eliminate (D) because no speech is a negative symptom and phobias are a positive symptom. Eliminate (E) because focused attention is not a symptom of schizophrenia. Choice (B) is correct: hallucinations are a positive symptom, produced by the illness, whereas under normal circumstances someone would have a full range of emotional expression and “flat affect” indicates that the illness has taken that away.
83. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are needs to work her way up gradually. Predict the Answer: The correct response will be a learning theory that supports step-by-step improvement. Eliminate choices (C), (D), and (E) because they are not theories about how learning takes place. Eliminate (A) because, while it is a stage in a theory of cognitive development, it does not specify the sort of sequential learning suggested by the question. Choice (B) is correct because Vygotsky’s idea is that it is only possible to scaffold an individual to a higher level of skill development once that individual is reasonably close to that level.
84. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are NOT and Freudian psychoanalysis. Predict the Answer: (E), unconditional positive regard, is characteristic of Humanistic therapy. You can use POE to eliminate answers choices (A), (B), (C), and (D), which are characteristic of psychoanalysis.
85. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are the most significant flaw in this research. Predict the Answer: There are several potential flaws in this research. However, because they are assessing health-related attitudes and behaviors, the most significant is sampling error in that people at the hiking/biking trail are likely to be more health-conscious than the average. The correct answer is (C).
86. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are great fear of snakes, followed by descriptions of increasing exposure to snakes, all while being relaxed. Predict the Answer: Having a phobia described, and then seeing a hierarchy of increasing exposure used by the therapist is an example of (A), systematic desensitization.
87. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Stanford Prison Experiment and bad behavior. Predict the Answer: Role-play, (A). Zimbardo believed that subjects’ attitudes toward other subjects changed based upon whether they were playing the roles of prison guards or prisoners in the simulation.
88. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Ainsworth, strange situation, securely attached, and insecurely attached. Predict the Answer: Ainsworth believed that whether children were securely or insecurely attached as toddlers was based on whether they had sensitive and understanding parents. The answer you want is (D).
89. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key phrase is more in common with their biological parents than with their adoptive parents. Predict the Answer: These facts seem to prioritize genetics over life experiences. This sounds like (E), but use POE to consider the other choices. Eliminate choice (A) because trait theory is about categorizing behavior, but not about explaining its origin. Eliminate (B) because it is a reversal of the correct response. Eliminate (C) because Freud did not explain behavior as genetically determined. Eliminate (D) because it is also a reversal of the correct response: temperament is one’s innate personality. Choice (E) is correct because “genetics over life experiences” translates to “nature over nurture.”
90. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is that which indicates that Rodrigo has observed nice behavior being rewarded and has learned from it. Predict the Answer: vicarious learning is a type of learning that comes from watching others go through a situation and seeing whether the result is reward or punishment. This is what you want, so (E) is the correct answer.
91. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is Bandura’s Bobo doll experiments. Predict the Answer: choice (D) is correct. These experiments focused on the tendency of children to imitate adults’ behavior.
92. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: This question is seeking the name of a “disorder” that is described in the language leading up to the question mark. Predict the Answer: Phobias are irrational or exaggerated fears. The “agora” was the marketplace in ancient Greece; hence, agoraphobia is a fear of being in public. Choice (D) is correct.
93. C
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is he only brought food to his dogs after a certain pitch bell was rung and he trained them to salivate only after that particular bell was rung. Predict the Answer: The correct response will involve specificity in the stimulus that accompanies the food and then elicits the behavior. Use POE. Eliminate (A) because it involves specific behavior, not a specific stimulus. Eliminate (B) because it is the opposite of what you are looking for. Eliminate (D) because it is an operant conditioning schedule, and this is about classical conditioning. Eliminate (E) because it describes the process of conditioning the behavior through pairing, not restricting the behavior to a specific stimulus. Choice (C) is correct because it refers to only having a particular stimulus produce the desired behavior.
94. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are NOT one of the levels of…Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Use POE. Eliminate (B) because it is the lowest level of the pyramid, (D) because it is the next level up, (A) because it is another level up, and (C) because it is the top level. The level below self-actualization is self-esteem, not self-acceptance. Choice (E) is the correct answer.
95. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are Freud and components of the psyche. Predict the Answer: Choice (E). Freud proposed three components of the psyche: the id (animalistic, childlike urges for pleasure), the superego (our conscience and concern for parental expectations), and the ego (which must decide on a course of action based on the Reality Principle). Remember that the question asks for the respective order, so (E) is correct.
96. D
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is that which indicates that psychological problems are constantly being manifested as physical problems. The question wants to know the “DSM-5” designation for this category of disorder. Use POE. Eliminate (A) because dissociative disorders involve a lack of continuity between thoughts, memories, behaviors, and identity, but do not manifest as physical problems. Eliminate (B) because, while panic disorder is an anxiety disorder and has physical symptoms associated with it (e.g. rapid heartbeat, sweating) these are temporary, not longstanding, conditions. Eliminate (C) because compulsions do not typically involve physical limitations. Eliminate (E) because fugue is a dissociative disorder involving amnesia, not physical disability. Choice (D) is correct because this is a somatic disorder that involves converting a psychological problem into a physical one.
97. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key language is have relatively few words in their language describing color and spend very little time thinking about or assessing color. Predict the Answer: Choice (B), the Sapir-Whorf theory, is correct because it says that the language one uses affects the way he or she thinks. You can also use POE. Eliminate (A) and (C) because these are theories about how children develop language. Eliminate (D) because it is about cognitive development generally, not specifically about language. Eliminate (E) because it is a memory concept.
98. E
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key term is inferential statistics. Predict the Answer: These are statistics that let researchers know to what extent they can feel comfortable making inferences based on the data they generate. Examples include normal distributions, z-scores, and confidence intervals. Choice (E) is correct.
99. A
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key words are those in the next-to-last sentence indicating that productivity increase was found to be due to workers being observed rather than to the experts’ recommendations. Predict the Answer: this sounds like (A), the Hawthorne effect, but use POE to consider the other options. Eliminate (B) because the experts did not predict that productivity would decline. Eliminate choices (C) and (D) because they are forms of reinforcement and reinforcement is not an issue in this fact pattern. Social facilitation in this context involves whether workers’ productivity improves or declines when other workers are around. Here, there is no evidence that productivity changed in response to the number of workers around; it was the observation that was key. Eliminate (E).
100. B
Understand the Question/Key Words: The key term is negative punishment. Predict the Answer: “Punishment” means that the intention of the measure is to reduce a behavior. “Negative” means that the behavior reduction is being achieved by removing something from the individual, as opposed to applying something new. Use POE. Choice (A) describes a reward scenario; eliminate it. Choice (C), (D), and (E) are all positive punishers ((C) and (E) are aversive stimuli) in that they add something to the individual’s environment. Choice (B) is “negative” in that it removes the individual’s usual social activities.
1. Essay number one is worth seven points, one for each of the concepts and its application. Points are given based on a student’s ability to explain behavior and apply theories and perspectives in authentic contexts. Each essay is unique, but here is our run-down of what a student should definitely cover in his or her Free Response Essay for this question:
• The availability heuristic is a mental shortcut that evaluates the likelihood of an outcome based on how easily information about that outcome comes to mind. Mercedes may have overestimated the likelihood that Provincial College would be a suitable destination for her based on the ease with which information about Provincial came to her from her guidance office and her cousin.
• The representativeness heuristic is a mental shortcut that evaluates the similarity of things based on a category prototype. Here, Mercedes had a prototypical small, liberal arts college in mind and she assigned characteristics to Provincial that may not, in fact, have applied had she done further investigation.
• Individualism involves taking care of one’s own needs. Mercedes is making a college choice based upon her individual preferences.
• Groupthink occurs when a group prioritizes consensus above the continued exploration of divergent opinions. Mercedes’ “family council” had differing points of view about her college selection, but, at a certain point, prioritized unanimity and harmony over continued discussion. Groupthink often results in poor decision-making.
• Social support is the network of family, friends, neighbors, etc. whose support helps cushion the negative effects of stressful events. When she left for school, Mercedes left behind her usual networks and she was vulnerable to the stresses bound to come with a new school and new living arrangements.
• Confirmation bias is the tendency to seek out evidence to support one’s preexisting views, or to interpret ambiguous evidence as supportive of one’s views. Mercedes easily accepted the information about Provincial that she obtained from her guidance office and her cousin and she did not seek out additional, and possibly contrary, evidence.
• Mental set is a tendency to think about solutions to a problem in a predetermined way. Mercedes adopted a certain point of view about her college selection early on and never diverged from that. She might have benefited from a broader exploration of possibilities.
2. Essay number two is worth seven points. Points are given based on students’ ability to analyze psychological research studies, including analyzing and interpreting quantitative data. Each essay is unique, but here is our run-down of what a student should definitely address in his or her Free Response Essay for this question:
• This is an experiment because Sharlene is manipulating a variable and because there is both an experimental group and a control group.
• The independent variable is whether or not students receive the supplements.
• The operational definition of the dependent variable is the rating of “on-task behavior” given by the evaluators.
• The experiment will not be valid unless students are randomly assigned to the experimental group and the control group. This will limit the possibility of having a biased sample in either group.
• Sharlene and the evaluators should not know which students received the supplements and which did not because this could affect the ratings given. When the experimenters do not know who is in the experimental group, this is “double blind.”
• There are several ethical concerns that would earn a point here. Students (and their parents) did not provide an informed consent for participation in the study. Students’ participation was not voluntary. There is no indication that there will be confidentiality for the results. There is no indication that students will be debriefed on the results. There is no indication that efforts have been made to minimize potential harm to participants; for example, how will it be determined whether any student has an allergy to one of the supplements?
• One confounding variable is expectation: the control group is not receiving a placebo, whereas the experimental group knows it is receiving something that is supposed to be helpful. This could cause the experimental group to perform better.
