AP Psychology Module 1 Notes

5/21/2018 AP Psychology Module 1 Notes

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Table of Contents

Table of Contents .......................................................................................................................................... 1

1.2 ................................................................................................................................................................. 3

4 goals ....................................................................................................................................................... 3

People ....................................................................................................................................................... 3

1.4 ................................................................................................................................................................. 7

Psychodynamic Perspective ...................................................................................................................... 7

Behavioral Perspective .............................................................................................................................. 7

Humanistic Perspective ............................................................................................................................. 7

Cognitive Perspective ................................................................................................................................ 7

Sociocultural Perspective .......................................................................................................................... 7

Biopsychological Perspective .................................................................................................................... 8

Evolutionary Perspective .......................................................................................................................... 8

1.5 ................................................................................................................................................................. 8

Psychiatrist ................................................................................................................................................ 8

Psychoanalyst ............................................................................................................................................ 8

Psychiatric Social Worker .......................................................................................................................... 8

Psychologist .............................................................................................................................................. 9

1.6 ............................................................................................................................................................... 10

Scientific Method .................................................................................................................................... 10

1.7 ............................................................................................................................................................... 10

Naturalistic Observation ......................................................................................................................... 10

Laboratory Observation .......................................................................................................................... 10

1.8 ............................................................................................................................................................... 11

Case Studies ............................................................................................................................................ 11

Surveys .................................................................................................................................................... 11

1.9 ............................................................................................................................................................... 12

Correlations ............................................................................................................................................. 12

The Experiment ....................................................................................................................................... 12

1.10 ............................................................................................................................................................. 12


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The Variables ........................................................................................................................................... 12

The Groups .............................................................................................................................................. 12

The Importance of Randomization ......................................................................................................... 12

1.11 ............................................................................................................................................................. 13

Experimental Hazards: The Placebo Effect and the Experimenter Effect ............................................... 13

Single-Bling and Double-Blind Studies .................................................................................................... 13

1.12 ............................................................................................................................................................. 13

Teresa Amabile and the Effect of Extrinsic Reward on Creativity .......................................................... 13

Top Ten Practical Tips for Writing an AP Psychology Essay .................................................................... 14

1.13 ............................................................................................................................................................. 15

The Guidelines for Doing Research with People ..................................................................................... 15

1.14 ............................................................................................................................................................. 15

The Criteria for Critical Thinking ............................................................................................................. 15

Pseudopsychologies ................................................................................................................................ 16

Summary ..................................................................................................................................................... 17

Vocabulary .................................................................................................................................................. 19


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1.24 goals:

Descriptiono What?o Observations

Explanationo Why?o Theory

Predictiono What will happen

Controlo Modification of behavior

A theory is a general explanation for a set of observations.

A behavior is an outward action or reaction of an individual. They can be observed.

Cognitions are mental processes, such as thoughts, perceptions, and attitudes.

People

Aristotle(350BC) wrote about the soul and the body in De Anima. Mind and body are not separate

(monism)

Plato(400BC), Aristotles teacher, believed the soul is separate from the body, known as dualism. We

are born with innate knowledge of the world.

Rene Decartes(1600) agrees with Platoand that the pineal gland was the seat of the soul. I think,

therefore I am.

John Lock(1650) disagrees with Decartes. Our minds are a blank slate (tabula rosa) that soak up the

knowledge of our experiences. Empiricism is the idea that knowledge comes from experience rather

than assumptions.

Gustav Fechner and Hermann von Helmholtz (1850) were the first scientists to perform scientific

experiments.


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In Germany 1879, Wilhelm Wendt(1870) applied scientific principles to the study of the human mind.

In his lab, students were taught to study the structure of the human mind. He believed that the mind is

made up of nonphysical stuff, such as thoughts, experiments, and emotions. Objective introspection is

the process of objectively examining ones own thoughts. The attention to objectivity is why Wundt isknown as the father of psychology. Wundt you like to be my father?

One of Wendts students, Edward Titchener(1900) expanded on Wendts idea, calling his new

viewpoint structuralism because of the structure of the mind. He believed that an experience can be

broken down into indicidual emotions and sensations.

Margaret F. Washburn(1900), Titcheners student was the first woman to receive a Ph.D. in psychology

and published The Animal Mind, a book on animal behavior.

William James(1900) wrote Principles of Psychologyand taught at Harvard, the first school in America

to offer classes in psychology. Unlike Wundt and Titchener, he was more interested in studying theimportance of consciousness that in analyzing it. He had a viewpoint called functionalism, which is the

focus of study of how the mind allows people to adapt, live, work, and play. He believed in a natural

selection for behavioral traits.

Mary Whiton Calkins (1900) was a student of James and was denied a Ph.D. from Harvard. She did

research in human memory and became the first female president of the APA.

Francis Cecil Sumner (1920) became the first African American to earn a Ph.D. at Clark University and is

the father of A.A. psychology.

Although functionalism is not a major perspective, it is still used in educational, evolutionary, and

industrial psychology.

Max Wertheimer objected to structuralism because he felt that psychological events, such as perceiving

and sensing, could not be broken down into smaller elements. He believed that things are better as a

whole and not different parts. People naturally seek out patterns.

Gestalt Psychology. People naturally fill in the blanks.

Gestalt is a German word for an organized whole.


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Sigmund Freudwas a neurologist in Austria and when he could not find a physical solution for his

patients, he believed it was the mind that repressed the threatening urges and when they tried to

surface, the created nervous disorders. He believed that personality was formed in the first six years of

life. Some of his followers were Alfred Adler, Carl Jung, and Anna Freud, who started the ego

movement. Freudian psychoanalysis, the theory and therapy based on Freuds idea, is the basis of

modern psychotherapy. He believed that a phobia is a symptom of a repressed conflict and cannot be

cured without years of psychoanalysis.

Ivan Pavlov, a Russian physiologist, worked with dogs to show that a reflex can be learned to

conditioned. He would ring a bell which caused dogs to salivate before the food was served.

John B. Watson (1900) started a view known as behaviorism, which is the science that focuses on only

the observable behavior, not consciousness. He was influenced by Ivan Pavlov. He believed that

behavior is learned. He believed that phobias are learned through conditioning. He made a baby, Little

Albert, cry every time he saw a white rat. He wanted to prove that behavior is a result of a stimulus.

Mary Cover Jones(1920) was fascinated with Little Albert and started a new experiment on Little

Peter with the goal of counterconditioning. She made Peter fear a white rabbit and then like rabbits

after giving him food when the rabbit was near. She is credited when people talk about the benefits and

problems associated with early and late maturation in puberty.


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1.4Psychodynamic Perspective

Modern version of psychoanalysis that is focused on the development of a sense of self and thediscovery of other motivations behind a persons behaviorother than sex.

Freudian concepts are so enduring is the lack of any scientific way to test them.Behavioral Perspective

Still very influential. After John B Watson moved on, B. F. Skinnerreplaced him. He developed a theory of how

voluntary behavior is learned called operant conditioning. This theory says that when behavioral

responses that are followed by pleasurable consequences are reinforced.

o A baby will cry again after getting his mothers attention.Humanistic Perspective

Seen as the third force in psychology, besides psychoanalysis and behaviorism. This is aperspective that people have free will to choose their own destiny.

Followers include Abraham Maslow (1950) and Carl Rogers (1950).o They emphasized the human ability to be the best person he could be. Not study on

animals or people with nervous disorders.

Cognitive Perspective

Focuses on how people think, remember, store, and user information. 1960s Focuses on memory, intelligence, perception, though process, problem solving, language, and

learning.

Cognitive neuroscience is the study of the physical workings of the brin and nervous systemwhen engaged in memory and thinking.

o MRI, PET, and fMRI.Sociocultural Perspective

Combines the area of social psychology, which is the study of groups and social roles andcultural psychology, which is the study of cultural norms.

o Both are about the effect that people have on one another. Reminds people that they behave not only on whether they are alone or with a group, but the

social norm, such as fads and class differences.

Darleyand Latane(1968) found that the precence of other people actually lessened the chancesthat a person in trouble woul receive help.


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o Bystander affectTendency to feel that someone else is responsible for taking action.o Diffusion of responsibility

Biopsychological Perspective

BiopsychologyStudy of the biological basis of behavior and mental processes. Human behavior is a result of events in the body

o i.e. Hormones, heredity, tumorsEvolutionary Perspective

Focuses on the biological bases of universal mental characteristics that all humans share. Reason for lying and fear Natural selection

o People who ate the bitter poisonous plants die and those who didnt eat them passedthose genes on to their offspring.

1.5Psychiatrist

Medical (M.D. or D.O.) degree Specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of psychological disorders Prescribe medicine Provide therapy Private practice or hospitals

Psychoanalyst

A psychiatrist (M.D.) or a psychologist (Ph.D., Psy.D., or Ed.D) who has training in the theories ofSigmund Freud.

Private practice or hospitals This label is not protected by law so anyone can use it

Psychiatric Social Worker

Trained in the area of social work Master of Social Work (M.S.W.) degree Licensed Clinical Social Worker (L.C.S.W.) Focused on environemtal conditions that can have an impact of mental disorders


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o i.e. poverty, overcrowding, stressPsychologist

No medical training but a doctorate degree

Cannot prescribe medication


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1.6Scientific Method

1. Perceiving the Questiona. What is happening?

2. Forming a Hypothesisa. A tentative explanationb. Confirm biaspeople tend to notice what they want to believe

3. Testing the Hypothesisa. Detailed observations or a survey or experiment

4. Drawing Conclusionsa. Hypothesis was or was not supportedb. Could have been a poor design

5. Report Your Resultsa. Write up what you did, why you did it, and how you did itb. Allows others to replicate your research

Empirical questions are those that can be tested by observation or experience.

1.7Naturalistic Observation

Watch subjects behave in their normal environmento Animal researchers

Allows researchers to get a realistic picture of how behavior occurs Observer EffectWhen subjects know they are being watched and do not behave normally Participant ObservationWhen the researcher becomes a participant in the group being

researched

Observer BiasWhen the researcher has an opinion and sees what he wants to see.o

Blind ObserversResearchers who do not know the question Observations made at one time in a certain setting might not be the same at another time

Laboratory Observation

When observing behavior in subjects is not practical in a natural setting More controlled


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1.8Case Studies

Case StudyWhen one individual is studied in greater detail Provides a lot of detail Study rare things Phineas Gagefamous case study Disadvantage is that researchers cannot apply the results to similar people Vulnerable to bias

Surveys

Used to find personal and covert behavior Has a large sample A representative sample is a group of people that represent the population, which is the entire

group that researchers study.

Response bias, people will lie Courtesy biasWhen people lie to make themselves seem more favorable


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1.9Correlations

A correlation is a measure of the relationship between multiple variables A variable is anything that can change or vary A correlation coefficient (r) is a number that represents the direction and strength of a

relationship

The Experiment

Determins the cause An experiment is when researchers deliberately manipulate the variable

1.10The Variables

The operational definition is the definition of a variable of interest that allows it to bemeasured.

o Makes qualitative variables measurableThe Groups

The best way to control for confounding variables is to make groupso Experimental groupgroup that receives the experimental manipulation (independent

variable).

The Importance of Randomization

Random selection is the best way to choose the participants for any study. Random assignment is the best way to control over extraneous variables. In random

assignment, each participant has an equal chance of being assigned to a group.


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1.11Experimental Hazards: The Placebo Effect and the Experimenter Effect

People are often influenced by their own thoughts If there is a placebo effect, the control group will show changed in the dependent variable Experimenter EffectThe tendency of the experimenters expectations for a study to

unintentionally influence the results of the study.

o The behavior of the experimenter caused the participant to change his response patternSingle-Bling and Double-Blind Studies

To control the placebo effect, give the control group an actual placeboo Sugar pillo Salt water injection

Single-blind StudyWhen the experimenter knows but the participants are blind Double-blind StudyNeither the participants nor the experimenter knows who got what

o Robert Rosenthal and Lenore Jacobson(1968) wrote in Pygmalion in the Classroomthatsome teachers were told which students had high success rate and they were treated

differently.

1.12Teresa Amabile and the Effect of Extrinsic Reward on Creativity

Dr. Teresa Amabile(1982) was a famous Harvard Business College professor. She worked in the study of

creativity in children and adults

In a study, she randomly selected a group of girls from a local school (age 7-11) and divided them into

two groups to have an art party. Her hypothesis was that girls who create art for extrinsic rewards

would be less creative than those who create art for intrinsic motivation. In the experimental group, she

said she would give prizes to the best three collages and in the control group, they would be raffled

away. She then had local artists come in and rate the colleges. He hypothesis was correct. The children

that competed for prizes were lower than the other group.


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Top Ten Practical Tips for Writing an AP Psychology Essay

1. Read the prompt two times, and read it slowly and carefully.2. What specifically is the essay asking for in the question?3. Determine how many points the essay is worth (most are worth about 10 points)4. Picture visually what the rubric is for the grader.5. Write a brief outline on your essay booklet to this rubric.6. Write a thorough, but concise essay.7. Keep an eye on the clock. (Start wearing a watch if you dont normally)8. Write in a technical, rather than creative, style to address each point.9. Assume the grader DOES NOT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT PSYCHOLOGY! (Explain and underline

each term or concept)

10.Write neatly and in pen (not pencil)


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1.13Institutional review boards are groups of psychologists at universities that look over a research study

and judge it according to its safety.

The Guidelines for Doing Research with People

1. Rights and well-being of participants must be weighed against the studys value to sciencea. People come first, research second

2. Participants must be allowed to make an informed decision about participationa. Researchers have to explain the study to themb. Informed consent is when the parents of children are informed and give their consent

3. Deception must be justifieda. DebriefingTelling the participants why they were deceived

4. Participants may withdraw from the study at any timea. Participants are allowed to drop out for any reason

5. Participants must be protected from risk or be told of risks6. Investigators must debrief participants7. Data must remain confidential

a. Report only group findings or false namesAnimals are used in about 7% of psychological studies

1.14Critical thinking means making reasoned judgments

The Criteria for Critical Thinking

1. There are very few truths that do not need to be subjected to testinga. Think of it using the scientific method

2. All evidence is not equal in qualitya. Poorly done experimentsb. Incorrect assumptions based on correlationsc. No control group

3. Just because a person is considered to be an authority does not make everything they claim truea. See the evidenceb. Linus Pauling, a famous scientist, claimed that vitamin C can cure the common cold

4. Critical thinking requires an open minda. It is still good to be a little skeptical, but not to gullible


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Pseudopsychologies

Pseudopsychologies are systems of explaining human behavior that are not based on scientific evidence

and have no real value.

Palmistry is the reading of palms.

Graphology is the analysis of personality through handwriting


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Summary What is Psychology?

o Definition of Psychology History of Psychology

o What is the difference between structuralism and functionalism? Who were theimportant people in those early fields?

o Who were the important people behind the Gestalt, psychoanalytic and behaviorismapproaches?

Modern Perspectiveso What are the seven modern perspectives?o Describe the important contributions of Skinner, Maslow and Rogers.

Psychological Professionso How does a psychiatrist differ from a psychologist?o What are other types of professionals who work in various areas of psychology?

Psychology as a Scienceo What are the steps of scientific method?o Why is psychology considered a science?

Types of Studies:o What are the differences in the various types of studies and what are some drawbacks

to each?

o Case studydescriptiveo Surveyo Random sampleeveryone has an equal opportunity to be choseno Representative samples

Naturalistic observation Correlation

o Correlation Coefficiento Illusory correlation


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o Correlation vs. Causation Experimental design:

o Independent vs. Dependent Variableso Control group vs. Experimental groupo Placebo effecto Random assignmento Operational definitionso Replicationo Single-blind vs. Double-blind procedureso Extraneous and Confounding variables

APA Ethical Guidelines for research


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Vocabulary

Abraham Maslow, 7Adler, Alfred, 5

Amabile, Teresa, 13

Aristotle, 3

behavior, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10

Behavioral Perspective, 7

behaviorism, 5, 7

Biopsychological Perspective,

8

Biopsychology, 8

Blind Observers, 10

Calkins, Mary Whiton, 4Carl Rogers, 7

Case Study, 11

Cognitions, 3

Cognitive neuroscience, 7

fMRI, 7

MRI, 7

PET, 7

Cognitive Perspective, 7

Confirm bias, 10

correlation, 12

correlation coefficient, 12

Courtesy bias, 11

Critical thinking, 15

Darley, 7

Debriefing, 15

Decartes, Rene, 3

Double-blind Study, 13

Empiricism, 3

Evolutionary Perspective, 8

experiment, 5, 10, 12Experimental group, 12

Experimenter Effect, 13

Fechner, Gustav, 3

Freud, 5

Freud, Anna, 5

Freud, Sigmund, 5, 8

functionalism, 4

Gage, Phineas, 11

Gestalt, 4

Graphology, 16

Helmholtz, Hermann von, 3Humanistic Perspective, 7

Informed consent, 15

Institutional review boards,

15

Jacobson, Lenore, 13

James, William, 4

Jones, Mary Cover, 5

Jung, Carl, 5

Latane, 7

Lock, John, 3

Objective introspection, 4

Observer Bias, 10

Observer Effect, 10

operant conditioning, 7

operational definition, 12

Palmistry, 16

Participant Observation, 10

Pauling, Linus, 15

Pavlov, Ivan, 5

placebo effect, 13Plato, 3

population, 11

Pseudopsychologies, 16

Psychiatric Social Worker, 8

Psychiatrist, 8

psychoanalysis, 5, 7

Psychoanalyst, 8

Psychodynamic Perspective,

7

Psychologist, 9

Pygmalion in the Classroom,13

Random assignment, 12

representative sample, 11

Resenthal, Robert, 13

Scientific Method, 10

Single-blind Study, 13

Skinner, B. F., 7

Sociocultural Perspective, 7

structuralism, 4

Sumner, Francis Cecil, 4

theory, 3, 5, 7

Titchener, Edward, 4

variable, 12

Washburn, Margaret F., 4

Watson, John B., 5

Wendt, Wilhelm, 4

Wertheimer, Max, 4

AP Psychology Module 1 Notes

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