Units 3–5: Development, Learning,
Social, Personality & Health
29 high-yield speed cards across three units — core definitions, key comparisons, timed MCQs, and the most dangerous exam errors. The highest-volume content in AP Psychology.
Physical Development & Teratogens
Teratogen: any environmental agent that can damage the developing embryo/fetus (alcohol, drugs, infections, radiation, certain medications).
Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS): most preventable cause of intellectual disability — alcohol is the most researched teratogen. No safe level established.
Critical period: a time window when specific experiences or exposures have their greatest (often irreversible) developmental impact. Organ systems have different critical periods.
Embryonic period (weeks 2–8): greatest teratogen vulnerability — major organs forming.
| Milestone | Approximate Age |
|---|---|
| Rooting reflex | Birth (turns toward touch on cheek) |
| Grasping reflex | Birth |
| Babinski reflex | Birth → disappears ~12 mo |
| Sits without support | ~6 months |
| Walks independently | ~12 months |
| Runs, climbs | ~18–24 months |
Maturation: biologically programmed sequence; universal order but variable timing across individuals.
A pregnant woman is told she has a virus that poses the greatest risk to her baby's developing heart and limbs. Based on prenatal developmental principles, in which period is she most likely to be?
- (A) Germinal period (0–2 weeks)
- (B) Embryonic period (2–8 weeks)
- (C) Fetal period (week 9 onward)
- (D) Third trimester
- Maturation ≠ learningMaturation follows a biologically driven sequence in a general direction — independent of specific practice. However, individual variations exist: some infants skip crawling and progress directly to standing or walking. The key exam point is that the overall developmental direction is consistent, not that every individual step is invariable. Learning modifies behavior through experience.
Cognitive Development
| Stage | Age | Key Achievement | Key Limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sensorimotor | 0–2 | Object permanence (objects exist when out of sight, ~8 mo) | No symbolic/abstract thought yet |
| Preoperational | 2–7 | Symbolic/language use; pretend play | Egocentrism; no conservation; no logic |
| Concrete Operational | 7–11 | Conservation; logical operations on concrete objects; reversibility | Cannot handle abstract hypotheticals |
| Formal Operational | 12+ | Abstract reasoning; hypothetical thinking; systematic problem-solving | Not everyone fully reaches this stage |
Schema: mental framework for organizing knowledge.
Assimilation: fitting new info into existing schema (dog → all 4-legged animals are "doggie").
Accommodation: changing schema to fit new info (adjusting when told "that's a cat, not a dog").
Conservation: understanding that quantity doesn't change with appearance (same water in tall vs. wide glass).
Egocentrism: inability to take another's perspective (three mountains task).
Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD): gap between what a child can do alone and what they can do with guidance from a more skilled person.
Scaffolding: temporary support provided within the ZPD; gradually withdrawn as competence grows.
Private speech: children talk to themselves to guide their own behavior; internalizes to become inner speech in adults.
Key contrast: Vygotsky emphasized social/cultural context; Piaget emphasized individual biological stages.
A 5-year-old watches water poured from a short wide glass into a tall thin glass and insists there is "more water now." According to Piaget, this child lacks
- (A) object permanence
- (B) abstract reasoning
- (C) conservation
- (D) a zone of proximal development
- Object permanence ≠ conservationObject permanence (sensorimotor, ~8 months) = knowing objects still exist when not visible. Conservation (concrete operational, ~7 years) = knowing quantity doesn't change with shape. Two completely different concepts tested separately.
- Assimilation vs. accommodation directionAssimilation = squeeze new info into OLD schema (no change to schema). Accommodation = CHANGE the schema to fit new info. Assimilation is cognitively easier; accommodation produces growth.
Social Development & Attachment
Harlow's contact comfort: infant monkeys preferred cloth "mothers" over wire mothers with food → attachment is driven by comfort, not just feeding. Challenged the behaviorist and Freudian drive-reduction accounts of attachment.
Bowlby: attachment is an evolved biological drive for proximity to caregivers; sensitive period in early development; "internal working model" of relationships.
Ainsworth — Strange Situation: brief separations/reunions used to assess attachment style.
| Style | Behavior on Reunion | ~% (US samples, approximate) |
|---|---|---|
| Secure | Happy at reunion; uses parent as safe base | ~65% |
| Anxious-ambivalent | Distressed on separation; ambivalent at reunion; clingy + angry | ~10–15% |
| Avoidant | Little distress at separation; avoids caregiver on return | ~20% |
| Disorganized | Confused, conflicted behavior; often linked to trauma/abuse | ~5–10% |
Harry Harlow's studies with infant rhesus monkeys are most significant because they demonstrated that
- (A) early feeding determines the strength of mother-infant bonding
- (B) contact comfort, not feeding, is the primary basis of infant attachment
- (C) social isolation in infancy has no lasting effects on adult behavior
- (D) imprinting occurs during a critical period in the first hours of life
- Erikson's stages ≠ Piaget's stagesErikson's psychosocial stages cover the entire lifespan (8 stages) and are about social/emotional challenges. Piaget's cognitive stages end in adolescence. The exam often presents a scenario and asks which theorist's framework applies.
- Secure attachment ≠ no distress at separationSecurely attached children DO show distress when the caregiver leaves — what distinguishes them is that they are easily comforted at reunion. Avoidant children show little distress but that isn't healthy attachment.
Gender & Sexual Orientation
Sex: biological classification (chromosomes, hormones, anatomy).
Gender: psychological and social sense of identity as male, female, both, or neither.
Gender identity: personal sense of one's own gender.
Gender role: social norms about expected behaviors for each gender.
Sexual orientation: enduring pattern of emotional and sexual attraction (heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, etc.) — distinct from gender identity.
| Perspective | Emphasis |
|---|---|
| Biological | Prenatal hormone exposure, genetics, brain structure differences; concordance in twin studies for sexual orientation (~50% MZ) |
| Social/Cultural | Gender socialization; differential reinforcement; cultural variation in gender roles |
| Cognitive | Gender schema theory (Bem): children develop mental schemas for "male" and "female" and filter self-perception through them |
Research on sexual orientation consistently finds that concordance rates for homosexuality are higher in monozygotic twins than in dizygotic twins, but far less than 100% even in MZ twins. This pattern best supports which conclusion?
- (A) Sexual orientation is entirely determined by genetics
- (B) Sexual orientation is entirely determined by upbringing
- (C) Both genetic and environmental factors contribute to sexual orientation
- (D) Identical twins always share the same sexual orientation
- Sexual orientation ≠ gender identityA person's gender identity (their internal sense of gender) is distinct from their sexual orientation (who they are attracted to). Confusing these two is a common exam error in scenario-based questions.
Adolescent & Moral Development
Stage 5: Identity vs. Role Confusion (adolescence): primary task is developing a coherent sense of self — values, goals, roles.
Identity achievement: explored options and committed to an identity.
Moratorium: actively exploring, not yet committed.
Foreclosure: committed without exploration (adopted parents' identity).
Identity diffusion: no exploration and no commitment.
Imaginary audience: adolescent belief that others are constantly watching/judging them.
| Level | Stage | Moral Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Preconventional | 1. Punishment avoidance 2. Self-interest | Avoid punishment; get rewards |
| Conventional | 3. Good interpersonal 4. Social order | Social approval; uphold rules and law |
| Postconventional | 5. Social contract 6. Universal ethics | Greater good; abstract principles above law |
Gilligan's critique: Kohlberg's model overemphasizes justice-based reasoning; women often use care-based reasoning — neither is inferior.
A student says: "I returned the wallet because it would look bad if people found out I kept the money." According to Kohlberg, this reasoning reflects which level?
- (A) Preconventional — punishment avoidance
- (B) Conventional — maintaining social approval
- (C) Postconventional — social contract
- (D) Preconventional — self-interest
- Kohlberg measures reasoning, not behaviorA person can reason at postconventional level and still act immorally, or reason at preconventional level and act morally. Kohlberg's model is about the reasoning process, not the action outcome. Read the scenario's stated justification, not the action itself.
Adulthood & Aging
| Stage | Age | Task | Failure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intimacy vs. Isolation | Young adult | Form deep relationships | Loneliness, isolation |
| Generativity vs. Stagnation | Middle adult | Guide next generation, productive work | Self-absorption, stagnation |
| Integrity vs. Despair | Late adult | Reflect on life with satisfaction | Regret, despair, bitterness |
Fluid intelligence: ability to reason and solve novel problems; peaks in mid-20s, declines with age. (Speed, working memory, novel problem-solving.)
Crystallized intelligence: accumulated knowledge and verbal ability; tends to increase or remain stable through most of adulthood.
Normal aging: slower processing speed, reduced working memory, but wisdom and semantic knowledge preserved.
Alzheimer's: progressive neurodegeneration; not normal aging; loss of episodic memory first, then semantic, then procedural last.
A 70-year-old retired professor scores lower on timed tests requiring rapid mental calculations but remains an excellent communicator and retains extensive knowledge of her field. This pattern best illustrates
- (A) a decline in both fluid and crystallized intelligence
- (B) a decline in fluid intelligence but preservation of crystallized intelligence
- (C) a decline in crystallized intelligence with preserved fluid intelligence
- (D) universal cognitive decline characteristic of early Alzheimer's disease
- Fluid vs. crystallized: which declines?FLuid = FLexible novel reasoning = Falls with age. CRystallized = CRoss-referenced knowledge = Remains. This distinction is almost always tested through a real-world scenario — identify which type of ability the person is showing, then apply the aging pattern.
Language Development
| Age | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 0–4 months | Cooing (vowel sounds) |
| 4–6 months | Babbling begins (consonant + vowel strings) |
| ~10 months | Babbling shifts to native language phonemes only |
| ~12 months | First words (one-word holophrases) |
| 18–24 months | Two-word utterances ("more milk", "daddy go") |
| 2–3 years | Telegraphic speech; vocabulary explosion |
| 3–5 years | Rapid grammatical development; overextension errors |
Sensitive period for language: most sensitive approximately birth through puberty — not a hard cutoff, but language acquisition (especially native-like phonology and grammar) becomes progressively more difficult after this window. The term sensitive period is preferred over "critical period" because learning continues beyond puberty, though with more effort.
Genie case: child isolated until age 13 — could acquire vocabulary but never mastered grammar, often cited as supporting the sensitive period hypothesis for language acquisition.
Overextension: applying a word too broadly ("all men are daddy").
Underextension: applying a word too narrowly ("dog" = only our dog).
Bilingualism: some research associates it with advantages in executive control and potentially later cognitive aging, though findings in this area are mixed and debated.
A toddler calls all adult male strangers "daddy." This error best illustrates
- (A) overextension
- (B) underextension
- (C) telegraphic speech
- (D) a babbling error
- Babbling is universal, not language-specific — until ~10 monthsAll infants babble the same sounds initially, including sounds from languages they are not exposed to. Around 10 months, babbling narrows to the phonemes of the native language. Deaf infants exposed to sign language "babble" with their hands.
Classical Conditioning
US (Unconditioned Stimulus): naturally triggers a response (food).
UR (Unconditioned Response): unlearned response to US (salivation to food).
CS (Conditioned Stimulus): neutral stimulus paired with US until it alone triggers response (bell).
CR (Conditioned Response): learned response to CS (salivation to bell). Usually weaker than UR.
Conditioning requires CS to precede US (forward conditioning). CS must be a reliable predictor of the US.
| Phenomenon | Definition |
|---|---|
| Acquisition | Learning phase: CS-US pairings establish the CR |
| Extinction | Repeatedly presenting CS without US → CR weakens |
| Spontaneous recovery | Extinguished CR reappears after a rest period |
| Generalization | Similar stimuli also elicit CR (bell → higher-pitched bell) |
| Discrimination | Learning to respond only to specific CS, not similar ones |
| Higher-order conditioning | CS1 used to condition a new CS2 (CS2 → CS1 → US) |
A child who was bitten by a dog (US) becomes afraid (UR) of the dog. Later, the child is also afraid of all small furry animals, not just the dog. This demonstrates
- (A) discrimination
- (B) generalization
- (C) extinction
- (D) higher-order conditioning
- Extinction ≠ forgetting the CS-US linkExtinction = inhibiting the CR, not erasing it. Proof: spontaneous recovery — the CR reappears after rest. The original association is suppressed, not destroyed. This is critical for understanding why phobias can return after treatment.
- CR is usually weaker than URThe conditioned response is typically less intense than the original unconditioned response. They are similar, not identical. This distinction appears in more nuanced AP questions about conditioning strength.
Operant Conditioning
| Add (+) | Remove (−) | |
|---|---|---|
| Increases behavior | Positive reinforcement Add something desirable (praise, food) | Negative reinforcement Remove something aversive (buckle up → seatbelt alarm stops) |
| Decreases behavior | Positive punishment Add something aversive (speeding ticket) | Negative punishment Remove something desirable (take away car keys) |
| Schedule | Example | Response Rate | Extinction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed ratio (FR) | Paid per piece produced | High; post-reinforcement pause | Fast |
| Variable ratio (VR) | Slot machine | Highest, consistent | Slowest (most resistant) |
| Fixed interval (FI) | Weekly paycheck | Scallop pattern; slow after reward | Moderate |
| Variable interval (VI) | Checking email | Steady, moderate | Slow |
A teenager cleans his room to avoid his parents' nagging. Stopping the nagging when the room is clean is an example of
- (A) positive reinforcement
- (B) negative reinforcement
- (C) positive punishment
- (D) negative punishment
- Negative reinforcement ≠ punishment"Negative" = REMOVAL of something. Negative reinforcement INCREASES behavior by removing an aversive stimulus. This is the #1 most commonly confused concept in all of AP Psychology.
- Variable ratio produces slowest extinctionBecause VR reinforcement is unpredictable, the organism never knows when the reward will come — it keeps responding hoping the next response will be it. Slot machines exploit exactly this principle.
Social-Cognitive Learning
Observational (social) learning: acquiring behaviors by watching others, without direct reinforcement — challenging pure behaviorism.
Key finding: children who observed adults punching a Bobo doll were significantly more likely to imitate the aggression than controls, even without being rewarded for it.
Vicarious reinforcement: learning from consequences observed in others (model rewarded → more imitation; model punished → less).
Self-efficacy: belief in one's own ability to perform specific behaviors; developed through mastery experiences, vicarious learning, and social persuasion.
Latent learning (Tolman): learning that occurs without reinforcement but is not immediately expressed. Rats explored mazes without reward; when reward was introduced, they quickly performed as well as always-rewarded rats.
Cognitive map: internal mental representation of spatial layout, demonstrating that learning involves more than S-R connections.
Insight learning (Köhler): sudden problem solution; apes stacked boxes to reach bananas.
Preparedness (biological constraints): organisms are biologically prepared to learn some associations more easily than others (taste aversion learned in one trial).
Edward Tolman's experiments on latent learning are significant primarily because they showed that
- (A) reinforcement is always necessary for learning to occur
- (B) learning can occur without immediate reinforcement and may not be expressed until needed
- (C) rats cannot form cognitive representations of spatial environments
- (D) observational learning requires a live model rather than a filmed demonstration
- Bandura's Bobo study: performance ≠ learningChildren who saw the model punished didn't imitate spontaneously — but when later offered rewards for imitation, they performed the behavior. This shows they had learned the behavior even when they didn't perform it. Learning and performance are distinct.
Biological Constraints & Cognitive Influences on Learning
Instinctive drift (Breland & Breland): trained animals drift back toward instinctive behaviors — operant conditioning has biological limits.
Taste aversion (Garcia effect): classical conditioning of nausea to a taste after single-trial pairing, even with long delay between CS and US. Violates "rules" of classical conditioning — biologically adaptive shortcut.
Preparedness: evolution has made certain CS-US associations easier to condition (snakes/spiders → fear; nausea → food taste). Not all associations are equally conditionable.
| Feature | Classical | Operant |
|---|---|---|
| Who | Pavlov | Skinner (Thorndike's law of effect) |
| Behavior type | Involuntary/reflexive | Voluntary/emitted |
| Key mechanism | Association between stimuli | Consequences of behavior |
| Response role | Elicited by CS | Emitted, then reinforced/punished |
| Example | Fear of dentist drill sound | Studying to earn a grade |
After eating a novel food and feeling nauseous several hours later, a person develops a strong aversion to that food after only one experience. This best illustrates
- (A) operant conditioning with negative punishment
- (B) biological preparedness in classical conditioning
- (C) latent learning and cognitive mapping
- (D) instinctive drift overriding learned behavior
- Shaping ≠ extinctionShaping = reinforcing successive approximations toward a target behavior. It is a building process. Extinction is the removal of reinforcement leading to behavioral suppression. They are opposite procedures — one builds new behavior, the other diminishes existing behavior.
Attribution Theory
Fundamental attribution error (FAE): overestimate dispositional (internal) causes and underestimate situational (external) causes when explaining others' behavior.
Actor-observer bias: explain our own behavior situationally ("I was late because traffic was terrible") but explain others' behavior dispositionally ("He's always late — he's irresponsible").
Self-serving bias: attribute successes internally (ability, effort) and failures externally (bad luck, other people). Protects self-esteem.
| Type | Also Called | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Internal/Dispositional | Person attribution | "She failed because she's not smart" |
| External/Situational | Environmental attribution | "She failed because the test was unfair" |
FAE = observer over-uses internal attribution for others. This bias is reduced in collectivistic cultures (e.g., Japan), which emphasize situational context more than individualistic Western cultures.
After failing her chemistry exam, Rosa says: "The professor writes tricky questions." When her friend fails the same exam, Rosa says: "He never studies enough." Rosa's reasoning best illustrates
- (A) the fundamental attribution error only
- (B) the self-serving bias only
- (C) both the self-serving bias and actor-observer bias
- (D) the fundamental attribution error applied to both situations
- FAE applies to explaining OTHERS, not oneselfThe fundamental attribution error specifically describes how we explain other people's behavior by over-using dispositional causes. When explaining our own behavior, we use situational excuses (actor-observer bias). Self-serving bias applies to own successes and failures.
Attitudes & Persuasion
Mental discomfort from holding contradictory beliefs or acting against one's attitudes. People are motivated to reduce dissonance by: (1) changing the belief, (2) changing the behavior, or (3) adding a new cognition to rationalize the inconsistency.
Forced compliance experiment: subjects paid $1 (vs $20) to say boring task was fun → $1 group actually changed their attitudes more, because they couldn't justify their lie with the small payment.
| Route | Process | Attitude Durability |
|---|---|---|
| Central route | Thoughtful analysis of argument quality; high motivation & ability needed | Strong, lasting, resistant to change |
| Peripheral route | Surface cues: attractiveness, expertise, popularity; low effort | Weak, temporary, easily changed |
A voter carefully reads policy proposals and evaluates the logic and evidence before deciding to support a candidate. According to the elaboration likelihood model, this voter is processing via the
- (A) central route, which will produce more durable attitude change
- (B) peripheral route, which will produce more durable attitude change
- (C) central route, which will produce less durable attitude change
- (D) peripheral route, which relies on message quality rather than surface cues
- Cognitive dissonance: behavior can change attitudeWe often think attitudes drive behavior — but dissonance shows the reverse: behavior (especially freely chosen) can change attitudes. When we act against our attitude without sufficient justification, we change the attitude to match the behavior.
Conformity, Compliance & Obedience
Asch (1951) — Conformity: participants gave obviously wrong line-matching answers when confederates unanimously gave the wrong answer first. ~75% conformed at least once. Factors increasing conformity: larger unanimous group, public response, high group status.
Milgram (1963) — Obedience: ~65% of participants delivered what they believed to be maximum 450-volt shocks when ordered by an authority figure. Obedience increased with: physical distance from victim, prestigious setting, authority present in person.
Zimbardo — Stanford Prison Experiment: people quickly adopted assigned social roles (guard vs. prisoner); study terminated early; demonstrates power of situational roles.
| Type | Mechanism | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Conformity | Group norms; peer pressure; no direct request | Dress like classmates |
| Compliance | Direct request; no authority power | Foot-in-the-door; door-in-the-face |
| Obedience | Direct order from authority figure | Milgram's shocks |
Foot-in-the-door: small request first → bigger request. Door-in-the-face: large request first (refused) → smaller target request.
In Milgram's obedience studies, obedience rates were LOWEST when
- (A) the study was conducted at Yale University
- (B) the authority figure was present and gave orders in person
- (C) the "learner" was in the same room as the participant
- (D) the participant was alone with the authority figure
- Conformity ≠ obedienceConformity = adjusting to match group norms (no authority required; often no direct request). Obedience = following explicit orders from an authority figure. Milgram studied obedience; Asch studied conformity. Keep these separate — exam scenarios test which is occurring.
Group Influence
| Phenomenon | Definition | AP Scenario Trigger |
|---|---|---|
| Social facilitation | Presence of others improves performance on well-learned tasks; impairs on novel/difficult tasks | Expert performing for audience; beginner performing for crowd |
| Social loafing | Individuals exert less effort in a group than alone; less accountability | Group projects; tug-of-war teams |
| Groupthink | Desire for group harmony overrides critical thinking; illusion of unanimity; Janis (1972) | Corporate board ignoring dissent; Bay of Pigs |
| Group polarization | Group discussion pushes attitudes toward more extreme positions (in same direction as initial leaning) | Online echo chambers; jury deliberations |
| Deindividuation | Loss of self-awareness and personal responsibility in groups; anonymity increases antisocial behavior | Riots; online trolling; masked crowds |
A skilled pianist performs better in a concert than when practicing alone. A beginner, however, plays worse during her first recital than when alone. These findings together best illustrate
- (A) deindividuation
- (B) social loafing
- (C) social facilitation
- (D) group polarization
- Group polarization ≠ groupthinkGroup polarization = opinions become more extreme (not necessarily more unified). Groupthink = critical thinking suppressed for the sake of harmony (unanimity, not extremity). Both involve groups making poor decisions, but through different mechanisms.
Prejudice & Discrimination
Stereotype: cognitive generalization about a group — a belief (can be positive or negative).
Prejudice: an unjustified emotional attitude toward a group — affective component.
Discrimination: unjustified behavioral treatment of a group — behavioral component.
In-group: "us" — groups we identify with. Out-group: "them." In-group bias: favoring one's own group even when groups are arbitrary (minimal group paradigm).
Out-group homogeneity: perceive out-group members as more similar to each other than in-group members.
| Strategy | Key Condition(s) |
|---|---|
| Contact hypothesis (Allport) | Equal status, common goals, intergroup cooperation, institutional support |
| Jigsaw classroom (Aronson) | Cooperative learning; each student essential to group success → mutual interdependence |
| Superordinate goals | Shared goals requiring cooperation between groups (Robbers Cave Experiment) |
Muzafer Sherif's Robbers Cave Experiment demonstrated that intergroup conflict could be best reduced by
- (A) simply increasing contact between the groups
- (B) rewarding each group for good behavior separately
- (C) introducing goals that required both groups to cooperate
- (D) separating the groups and reducing competition
- Contact alone doesn't reduce prejudiceThe contact hypothesis requires specific conditions: equal status, cooperative goals, and institutional support. Simply putting groups together without these conditions can increase prejudice. The conditions are frequently tested.
Prosocial Behavior & Aggression
Bystander effect (Darley & Latané): larger groups of bystanders → less likely any individual helps. Triggered by Kitty Genovese murder (1964).
Diffusion of responsibility: in a crowd, each person assumes someone else will act.
Pluralistic ignorance: each person looks to others; if everyone acts calm, all assume the situation is not an emergency.
Increasing helping: be specific ("You in the red shirt — call 911!"), reduce ambiguity, reduce group size.
| Perspective | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Biological | Testosterone, amygdala activation, low serotonin, genetic influences |
| Frustration-aggression hypothesis | Frustration (blocked goals) increases aggression; displaced onto available targets |
| Social learning | Aggression modeled and reinforced (Bandura's Bobo doll studies) |
| Cognitive | Hostile attribution bias: ambiguous acts interpreted as aggressive intent |
In a study, participants were more likely to help a person having a seizure when they were the only witness compared to when they were one of five witnesses. This best demonstrates
- (A) social loafing
- (B) the bystander effect and diffusion of responsibility
- (C) deindividuation in large groups
- (D) the frustration-aggression hypothesis
- Catharsis does NOT reduce aggressionResearch does not support the idea that "venting" aggression (hitting a pillow, yelling) reduces subsequent aggression. It often increases it. The catharsis hypothesis is a common intuitive belief that contradicts psychological research — easy to test as a "distracter."
Motivation
| Theory | Core Idea |
|---|---|
| Instinct theory | Behavior driven by innate, unlearned patterns |
| Drive-reduction theory (Hull) | Biological needs create drives; behavior reduces the drive to restore homeostasis |
| Arousal theory | Optimal arousal level motivates behavior; Yerkes-Dodson law (moderate arousal = best performance; higher for easy tasks) |
| Incentive theory | External rewards/goals "pull" behavior; focus on extrinsic motivation |
| Maslow's hierarchy | Physiological → Safety → Belonging → Esteem → Self-actualization; lower needs are generally prioritized before higher ones, though the hierarchy is not always rigid in practice |
Intrinsic: motivated by internal rewards (interest, enjoyment, mastery).
Extrinsic: motivated by external rewards (money, grades, praise).
Overjustification effect: adding extrinsic rewards for an intrinsically motivated activity can decrease intrinsic motivation. If you pay a child to read, they may stop reading when payment ends.
Hunger regulation: hypothalamus monitors blood glucose; lateral hypothalamus (hunger "on") and ventromedial hypothalamus (hunger "off" / satiety). Leptin from fat cells signals satiety to brain.
A student who once loved writing begins to lose her enjoyment of it after her teacher starts giving her a prize for every essay she submits. This best illustrates
- (A) drive-reduction theory
- (B) the overjustification effect
- (C) Maslow's need for esteem
- (D) the Yerkes-Dodson law
- Yerkes-Dodson: optimal arousal varies by task difficultyFor easy/well-learned tasks, higher arousal = better performance. For difficult/novel tasks, moderate-to-low arousal is optimal. This is frequently tested via a graph or scenario — always consider task difficulty, not just the arousal level.
Emotion
| Theory | Theorist(s) | Sequence | Key Claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| James-Lange | James, Lange | Stimulus → physiological arousal → emotion | We feel afraid because our heart races; emotion follows body response |
| Cannon-Bard | Cannon, Bard | Stimulus → simultaneous physiological arousal AND subjective emotion | Thalamus sends signals to both body and cortex at the same time |
| Two-Factor (Schachter-Singer) | Schachter, Singer | Stimulus → physiological arousal → cognitive label → emotion | Arousal is nonspecific; emotion labeled based on available situational context (misattribution is possible) |
Facial feedback hypothesis: facial expressions can influence the emotional state they represent. Forcing a smile can mildly increase positive mood.
Ekman's universal emotions: six basic emotions with universal facial expressions — happiness, sadness, fear, anger, disgust, surprise.
Display rules: cultural norms governing which emotions can be expressed when and to whom — vary significantly across cultures.
During a class experiment, some students were injected with adrenaline but told it was a vitamin supplement, then placed in a room with an actor who was either euphoric or angry. The students' emotional experience matched the actor's mood. This best supports which theory?
- (A) James-Lange theory
- (B) Cannon-Bard theory
- (C) Schachter-Singer two-factor theory
- (D) Facial feedback hypothesis
- James-Lange vs. Cannon-Bard: the sequenceJames-Lange: arousal CAUSES emotion (notice the heartbeat first, THEN feel fear). Cannon-Bard: arousal and emotion are SIMULTANEOUS (heart races AND feel fear at the same time). In the AP exam, focus on the causal vs. simultaneous distinction.
Personality: Psychoanalytic & Humanistic
Structural model: Id (unconscious; pleasure principle; "want it now") | Ego (conscious; reality principle; mediates) | Superego (moral ideal; conscience and ego ideal).
Topographic model: Unconscious | Preconscious | Conscious.
Defense mechanisms: unconscious strategies to protect ego from anxiety. Five most-tested: repression (blocking from consciousness), projection (attributing own impulse to others), rationalization (self-justifying excuse), displacement (redirect to safer target), reaction formation (act opposite to true feeling). Also tested: regression (revert to childlike behavior), sublimation (channel into socially acceptable outlet).
Neo-Freudians: Jung (collective unconscious, archetypes); Adler (inferiority complex, social drives).
Maslow: self-actualization as the pinnacle of personality growth; peak experiences; positive human potential.
Carl Rogers: personality shaped by self-concept (how we see ourselves); unconditional positive regard (accepting someone regardless of behavior) facilitates growth.
Congruence: alignment between self-concept and actual experience → psychological health.
Conditions of worth: when love is made conditional on specific behaviors → distorted self-concept and psychological problems.
Both Maslow and Rogers: optimistic, emphasize free will, conscious experience, and growth potential.
A student makes a careless error on a test and immediately says: "I failed because the room was too noisy." According to Freud, this is best explained as
- (A) reaction formation
- (B) displacement
- (C) rationalization
- (D) projection
- Displacement vs. projection vs. rationalizationDisplacement = redirect emotion/impulse to a safer target (yell at dog after boss yells at you). Projection = attribute your unacceptable feeling to someone else ("I'm not angry at him — he's angry at me"). Rationalization = provide a logical excuse. Scenarios require careful reading of which mechanism is actually described.
Personality: Behavioral, Traits & Assessment
Allport: first major trait theorist; identified cardinal traits (one dominant theme), central traits (~5–10 defining traits), and secondary traits (situational).
Big Five (OCEAN) — the current consensus model:
- Openness to experience — curiosity, creativity vs. conformity
- Conscientiousness — organized, disciplined vs. impulsive
- Extraversion — sociable, talkative vs. introverted
- Agreeableness — cooperative, trusting vs. antagonistic
- Neuroticism — emotionally unstable, anxious vs. calm
| Method | Examples | Critique |
|---|---|---|
| Self-report (objective) | MMPI-2, NEO-PI | Socially desirable responding; faking |
| Projective tests | Rorschach inkblots; TAT (Thematic Apperception Test) | Low reliability and validity; hard to score; unconscious reveal questionable |
| Behavioral assessment | Direct observation; situational tests | Time-consuming; lab vs. real world |
Bandura's reciprocal determinism: person × behavior × environment all mutually influence each other.
A psychologist asks a patient to describe what she sees in ambiguous inkblots. The psychologist then interprets responses as revealing unconscious conflicts. This is an example of
- (A) a self-report personality inventory
- (B) behavioral assessment
- (C) a projective personality test
- (D) the MMPI-2
- Projective tests have low validity — not low useProjective tests (especially the Rorschach) are widely used in clinical settings despite well-documented reliability and validity problems. AP questions often contrast their theoretical appeal (access to unconscious) with their psychometric weaknesses.
Health Psychology & Positive Psychology
Health psychology: applies psychological principles to understanding and improving physical health and illness prevention.
Biopsychosocial model: health and illness result from the interaction of biological (genetics, physiology), psychological (thoughts, emotions, behavior), and social (culture, relationships, socioeconomic status) factors. Replaces the biomedical model's narrow focus on biology alone.
Health behaviors: exercise, sleep, diet, substance avoidance, regular medical screening — all modifiable contributors to health outcomes.
Positive psychology: the scientific study of human flourishing, optimal functioning, and well-being — beyond just treating pathology.
PERMA model: Positive emotions · Engagement (flow) · Relationships · Meaning · Achievement.
Flow (Csikszentmihalyi): state of complete absorption in a challenging activity that matches skill level — associated with high well-being.
Resilience: capacity to recover from adversity; fostered by social support, optimism, and sense of purpose.
Gratitude, optimism, self-determination: consistently linked to well-being and health outcomes in positive psychology research.
A health psychologist studying why some patients recover faster from surgery considers their social support networks, optimistic outlook, and immune function together. This approach best reflects
- (A) the medical model of health
- (B) the biopsychosocial model
- (C) positive psychology's PERMA model
- (D) Maslow's hierarchy applied to recovery
- Biopsychosocial ≠ just listing all factorsThe biopsychosocial model emphasizes the INTERACTION and mutual influence of all three domains, not just an additive list. Biological factors influence psychological states which influence social relationships and vice versa — the feedback is bidirectional.
Stress & Coping
General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS): three-stage model of physiological stress response.
Stage 1 — Alarm: stressor activates sympathetic nervous system; HPA axis releases cortisol; fight-or-flight mobilization.
Stage 2 — Resistance: body maintains elevated response; cortisol remains high; appears to cope but resources depleting.
Stage 3 — Exhaustion: physiological resources depleted; immune function drops; vulnerability to illness, burnout, collapse.
| Strategy | Definition | When Best |
|---|---|---|
| Problem-focused coping | Act to reduce or eliminate the stressor itself | Controllable stressors |
| Emotion-focused coping | Regulate emotional distress caused by stressor | Uncontrollable stressors |
| Positive reappraisal | Reframe stressor as a challenge or growth opportunity | Long-term benefit |
| Social support seeking | Seek instrumental or emotional help from others | Very effective buffer |
Type A personality: competitive, hostile, time-urgent → higher cardiovascular disease risk. Hostility is the most predictive component.
A soldier who has been in combat for months appears to be functioning but develops several infections and extreme fatigue. According to Selye's GAS, this soldier is most likely in the
- (A) alarm stage
- (B) resistance stage
- (C) exhaustion stage
- (D) recovery stage
- The resistance stage looks like coping but isn't sustainableThe resistance stage can be mistaken for "fine" because the person appears to manage. But resources are depleting — it's a slow-burning vulnerability phase leading to exhaustion. Exam scenarios describe people who "seem okay" but then collapse: that's resistance transitioning to exhaustion.
Psychological Disorders: Introduction
DSM-5-TR (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders): primary diagnostic tool in the US; classifies disorders by symptom clusters, not causes.
3 D's of psychological disorder: Dysfunction (impairs daily life), Distress (causes suffering), Deviance (violates cultural norms). These are guiding dimensions for clinical judgment — not a rigid checklist. Some disorders may show severe dysfunction with minimal subjective distress; cultural context shapes what counts as deviant.
Medical model: disorders are diseases with biological causes, diagnosed and treated by professionals. Criticized for ignoring context.
Biopsychosocial model of disorders: disorders result from interacting biological vulnerabilities, psychological factors, and social/environmental stressors.
| Perspective | Cause of Disorder |
|---|---|
| Biological | Genetics, neurotransmitter imbalance, brain structure |
| Psychoanalytic | Unresolved unconscious conflicts |
| Behavioral | Learned maladaptive behaviors |
| Cognitive | Distorted thought patterns (irrational beliefs) |
| Humanistic | Blocked growth, lack of unconditional positive regard |
| Sociocultural | Cultural norms, poverty, discrimination, systemic stress |
A clinical psychologist notes that the DSM-5-TR defines disorders primarily by
- (A) identifying their neurobiological causes
- (B) describing clusters of observable symptoms and their impact on functioning
- (C) classifying them according to psychoanalytic etiology
- (D) measuring deviation from a statistical mean on cognitive tests
- Deviance alone ≠ disorderBeing statistically unusual or culturally deviant does not constitute a disorder. Dysfunction AND distress AND deviance together define disorder. A creative genius is statistically deviant but not disordered. Cultural context matters — behavior normal in one culture may be "deviant" in another.
Neurodevelopmental Disorders & Schizophrenia
| Disorder | Core Features | Biological Link |
|---|---|---|
| ADHD | Inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity; appears before age 12; not just "naughty" | Dopamine/norepinephrine dysregulation; frontal lobe underactivation |
| ASD (Autism Spectrum) | Social communication deficits, restricted/repetitive behaviors; wide spectrum; high co-occurrence with other conditions | Genetic factors; altered connectivity; NOT caused by vaccines |
Positive symptoms (add something): hallucinations (usually auditory), delusions (persecution, grandeur), disorganized speech and behavior.
Negative symptoms (remove something): flat affect, poverty of speech (alogia), avolition (lack of motivation), social withdrawal.
Dopamine hypothesis: excess dopamine activity linked to positive symptoms. Antipsychotics (neuroleptics) block D2 receptors.
Risk factors: genetic predisposition (MZ concordance ~50%), prenatal viral exposure, urban upbringing, cannabis use.
A patient with schizophrenia speaks in unconnected sentences, believes the CIA is monitoring her thoughts, and hears voices warning her of danger. These experiences are classified as
- (A) positive symptoms — hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized speech
- (B) negative symptoms — representing loss of normal functioning
- (C) positive symptoms — hallucinations only; the rest are negative
- (D) negative symptoms — sensory and cognitive distortions
- Positive ≠ good; negative ≠ badIn schizophrenia, "positive" means symptoms that are present (added): hallucinations, delusions. "Negative" means symptoms that are absent (reduced from normal functioning): flat affect, social withdrawal. Positive symptoms are not desirable; negative symptoms are not harmless.
- Schizophrenia ≠ split/multiple personalityA very common public misconception. Schizophrenia is a psychotic disorder involving breaks from reality. Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) involves multiple distinct identities — a completely different condition.
Mood, Anxiety, OCD & PTSD Disorders
| Disorder | Key Features | Biological Link |
|---|---|---|
| Major Depressive Disorder | Persistent sadness, anhedonia, hopelessness, fatigue; ≥2 weeks; 2× more common in women | Low serotonin, norepinephrine; SSRIs, SNRIs |
| Bipolar I | Full manic episodes + depressive episodes; mania = elevated mood, decreased sleep, grandiosity, impulsivity | Strong genetic component; lithium stabilizes |
| Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) | Excessive, uncontrollable worry about multiple areas; ≥6 months | GABA dysfunction; SNS hyperarousal |
| Panic Disorder | Recurrent unexpected panic attacks + persistent fear of future attacks; agoraphobia may develop | Misinterpretation of physiological sensations |
| Social Anxiety Disorder | Intense fear of social/performance situations; anticipatory anxiety; avoidance | Amygdala hyperreactivity |
| OCD | Obsessions (intrusive thoughts) + compulsions (repetitive behaviors to reduce anxiety); recognized as irrational but compelled | Serotonin dysfunction; basal ganglia circuit |
| PTSD | After traumatic event: flashbacks, nightmares, hypervigilance, avoidance, emotional numbing; ≥1 month | Amygdala hyperactivation; hippocampal volume reduction; dysregulated HPA stress response |
A combat veteran experiences repeated vivid flashbacks of explosions, avoids crowds, sleeps poorly, and startles at sudden noises. His symptoms have persisted for 8 months. The most likely diagnosis is
- (A) generalized anxiety disorder
- (B) panic disorder with agoraphobia
- (C) posttraumatic stress disorder
- (D) major depressive disorder with anxious distress
- Bipolar disorder ≠ mood swings in generalBipolar requires distinct episodes of full mania (or hypomania) and depression, not just fluctuating moods. Normal mood variation is not bipolar. The manic phase specifically involves decreased need for sleep, grandiosity, reckless behavior, and pressured speech — not just "feeling happy."
- OCD: compulsions reduce but don't eliminate anxietyCompulsions temporarily reduce anxiety, which reinforces them via negative reinforcement — the disorder is self-maintaining. The person recognizes the behavior is irrational but feels compelled anyway. This distinguishes OCD from psychosis.
Dissociative, Personality & Eating Disorders
Dissociative amnesia: inability to recall important autobiographical information, usually traumatic; not due to substance or neurological cause.
Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID): presence of two or more distinct personality states (alters); often linked to severe childhood trauma; controversial regarding prevalence and validity.
Depersonalization/derealization disorder: persistent feeling of being detached from one's own mind/body or surroundings seeming unreal.
| Cluster | Theme | Key Example |
|---|---|---|
| A — Odd/Eccentric | Social isolation, magical thinking | Paranoid, Schizoid, Schizotypal PD |
| B — Dramatic/Emotional | Impulsivity, instability, manipulation | Antisocial (ASPD), Borderline (BPD), Narcissistic, Histrionic PD |
| C — Anxious/Fearful | Anxiety, inhibition, dependency | Avoidant, Dependent, OCD PD |
Antisocial PD: persistent pattern of violating others' rights, lack of remorse; different from schizophrenia. Borderline PD: unstable relationships, identity, and emotions; impulsivity; fear of abandonment.
Anorexia nervosa: restriction of caloric intake → significantly low weight; intense fear of gaining weight; distorted body image. Associated with one of the highest mortality rates of any psychiatric disorder.
Bulimia nervosa: recurrent binge-purge cycles; normal or above-normal weight; erosion of tooth enamel; electrolyte imbalances.
Binge-eating disorder (BED): recurrent binges without compensatory purging; most common eating disorder.
Risk factors: sociocultural pressures (thin ideal), perfectionism, family history, history of trauma.
A person has two or more distinct identities that alternately control behavior, with memory gaps across identity states. This best describes
- (A) schizophrenia
- (B) dissociative amnesia
- (C) dissociative identity disorder
- (D) antisocial personality disorder
- Schizophrenia ≠ DID (the #1 public misconception)This confusion is so common it is almost guaranteed to appear. Schizophrenia = psychosis (breaks from reality: hallucinations, delusions). DID = multiple distinct identity states. Completely different disorders, categories, causes, and treatments.
Psychological Therapies
| Approach | Theorist(s) | Core Technique | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychoanalytic / psychodynamic | Freud | Free association, dream analysis, transference interpretation, resistance analysis | Insight into unconscious conflicts; personality issues |
| Client-centered (humanistic) | Rogers | Active listening, unconditional positive regard, empathy, genuineness; non-directive | Self-concept issues; growth-oriented clients |
| Behavior therapy | Skinner, Wolpe, Watson | Systematic desensitization, exposure therapy, token economy, aversion therapy | Phobias, OCD, addictions, autism |
| Cognitive therapy (CBT) | Beck, Ellis | Identify/challenge cognitive distortions (Beck) and irrational beliefs (Ellis's REBT); homework | Depression, anxiety, eating disorders — broad evidence base |
| Group therapy | Multiple | Social support; universality; practice social skills; cost-effective | Substance use, grief, social anxiety |
Systematic desensitization (Wolpe): pair relaxation response with graduated exposure hierarchy — classically reconditions fear response. Used for specific phobias.
Exposure and response prevention (ERP): for OCD — expose to feared stimulus, prevent compulsive response → anxiety extinguishes over time.
Token economy: operant conditioning in institutional settings — tokens earned for target behaviors; exchanged for privileges.
Aversion therapy: pair undesired behavior with aversive stimulus (e.g., alcohol + nausea-inducing drug).
A therapist helps a client with a spider phobia by first teaching relaxation, then gradually exposing the client to increasingly anxiety-provoking spider-related images while remaining relaxed. This technique is called
- (A) flooding
- (B) aversion therapy
- (C) systematic desensitization
- (D) token economy
- Systematic desensitization ≠ floodingSystematic desensitization is gradual, paired with relaxation. Flooding is immediate, full-intensity exposure with no gradual hierarchy — it extinguishes fear through prolonged exposure. Both are exposure-based, but distinctly different protocols. AP questions test whether you can distinguish them from scenario descriptions.
Biological & Sociocultural Treatments
| Drug Type | Mechanism | Used For | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antidepressants (SSRIs) | Block serotonin reuptake → more serotonin in synapse | Depression, anxiety, OCD | Prozac (fluoxetine) |
| SNRIs | Block serotonin + norepinephrine reuptake | Depression, anxiety, chronic pain | Effexor (venlafaxine) |
| Antipsychotics (neuroleptics) | Block dopamine (D2) receptors | Schizophrenia, mania | Haloperidol (typical); Clozapine (atypical) |
| Mood stabilizers | Mechanism not fully understood; modulates multiple systems | Bipolar disorder | Lithium |
| Anxiolytics (benzodiazepines) | Enhance GABA activity → inhibitory | Anxiety, panic; short-term | Valium, Xanax |
| Stimulants | Increase dopamine/norepinephrine | ADHD | Ritalin, Adderall |
ECT (Electroconvulsive therapy): brief electrical current through the brain induces a seizure; effective for severe treatment-resistant depression; temporary memory effects; mechanism not fully understood. Not used as torture — modern ECT is done under anesthesia.
TMS (Transcranial magnetic stimulation): non-invasive; magnetic pulses stimulate or inhibit specific brain areas; fewer side effects than ECT; approved for treatment-resistant depression.
Deep brain stimulation (DBS): electrodes implanted; used for severe OCD, Parkinson's, treatment-resistant depression.
Therapeutic alliance: the quality of the therapist-client relationship is consistently the strongest predictor of treatment outcome across all therapy types.
Cultural competence: effective therapy requires sensitivity to cultural background, values, and explanatory models of illness.
Barriers to treatment: stigma, cost, limited access, cultural mismatch between client and therapist, lack of culturally adapted treatment options.
Self-help groups: peer support; Alcoholics Anonymous model; effective adjunct to formal treatment.
A patient with schizophrenia shows significant improvement in positive symptoms after beginning a medication that blocks dopamine receptors. The drug class being used is
- (A) SSRIs, which increase serotonin availability
- (B) benzodiazepines, which enhance GABA activity
- (C) antipsychotics, which reduce dopamine activity
- (D) mood stabilizers, which regulate bipolar episodes
- SSRIs treat depression AND anxiety — not depression onlySSRIs are the first-line treatment for major depressive disorder, but also for generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety, OCD, and PTSD. The name "antidepressant" is misleading for AP exam purposes — match mechanism to disorder, not just drug name.
- Therapeutic alliance predicts outcome across ALL therapy typesResearch consistently shows the quality of the client-therapist relationship is the strongest predictor of positive outcome, regardless of which specific therapy is used. This is tested as a contrast to the idea that specific technique determines success.
Unit 3 highest-yield: Piaget's 4 stages (esp. conservation, object permanence), operant conditioning 4-way grid (negative reinforcement = most confused concept), classical conditioning phenomena (esp. extinction ≠ forgetting), Ainsworth attachment styles, Kohlberg's moral reasoning levels.
Unit 4 highest-yield: FAE vs. actor-observer vs. self-serving bias (read who is explaining whose behavior), negative reinforcement vs. punishment (this crosses units 3 and 4), Milgram obedience conditions, Schachter-Singer two-factor emotion theory, Freudian defense mechanisms by scenario.
Unit 5 highest-yield: Positive vs. negative symptoms of schizophrenia, antipsychotics = dopamine blockers, SSRIs = serotonin reuptake blockers, systematic desensitization vs. flooding, GAS three stages, schizophrenia ≠ DID (appears on virtually every exam).
Conditioning → Therapy: Classical conditioning underpins systematic desensitization and aversion therapy. Operant conditioning underpins token economies and behavioral interventions for ASD/ADHD. When a therapy question describes "pairing" or "reinforcing," trace it back to the learning unit.
Neurotransmitters → Disorders → Drugs: Low serotonin → depression/OCD → SSRIs. Excess dopamine → schizophrenia → antipsychotics. Low dopamine → ADHD/Parkinson's → stimulants. This three-way linkage is a single connected chain — know it in all directions.