AP Psychology : Fundamental Psychological Theories
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP Psychology
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Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
John Locke described the human mind at birth as a tabula rasa, meaning __________.
"magical tool"
"open book"
"blank slate"
"wise judge"
"slow worker"
"blank slate"
Locke, a staunch Empiricist, believed that we can only acquire knowledge from observation and experience; in fact, he argued that we are born without any knowledge at all. Thus, he considered the human mind at birth a tabula rasa, or "blank slate".
Example Question #1 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
Albert Bandura was famous for championing which learning theory?
Operant conditioning
Classical conditioning
Cognitive reappraisal
Behaviorism
Social learning
Social learning
Albert Bandura is the creator of the social learning theory. This theory states that people can learn simply by observing others in a social context. His most famous social learning experiment was the Bobo Doll experiment.
Example Question #1 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
Which of the following is associated with John Locke's concept of the mind?
Open slate
Dualism
Behaviorism
Tabula rasa
Tabula rasa
"Tabula rasa" is Latin for "empty slate." John Locke proposed that the mind was an initially empty slate that could be filled with the empirical observations one makes about the world. This contradicts many things we now know about the brain, namely the conventions of innate capacities such as the abilities to acquire language, learn motor skills, process stimuli, etc. Locke claimed we are born with no prior knowledge.
Example Question #1 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
Which of these is not commonly associated with psychoanalysis?
Free association
Sigmund Freud
Maslow's hierarchy of needs
Defense mechanisms
The unconscious
Maslow's hierarchy of needs
Abraham Maslow was a humanistic psychologist who came up with a hierarchy of needs to describe basic human functioning.
Psychoanalysis, founded by Sigmund Freud, was more focused on unconscious drives and the motives of human behavior.
Example Question #1 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
Which of the following is a branch of applied psychology?
Developmental psychology
Neuroscience
Clinical psychology
Cognitive psychology
Experimental psychology
Clinical psychology
Applied psychology includes branches of psychology that involve working directly with people. Some of the most popular branches of applied psychology are clinical psychology, counseling psychology, and school psychology.
Example Question #2 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
Which psychological perspective deals with how behaviors differ across cultures?
Sociocultural
Psychodynamic
Behavioral
Cognitive-behavioral
Eclectic
Sociocultural
The sociocultural theory of psychological science is focused on how behavior and thought processes vary across cultures. One of the most famous psychologists in social-cultural research is Albert Bandura.
Example Question #2 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
According to Freud, what acts as a mediator between the id and the superego?
The associative consciousness
The conscious
The ego
The unconscious
The alterego
The ego
Freud defined the ego as the largely conscious, executive part of one's personality that mediates the id's impulses and the superego's judgement standards.
Example Question #1 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
Which researcher developed the term "collective unconscious?"
Carl Jung
William James
Sigmund Freud
Erik Erikson
Fredrich Fromm
Carl Jung
Carl Jung coined the term "collective unconscious," which is defined a shared, inherited memory that all humans possess due to our shared ancestry. The collective unconscious is used to explain the commonalities observed between different cultures throughout the world.
Example Question #1 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
According to Freud, which of the following is controlled by the id?
Intelligence
Problem solving
Happiness
Aggression
Love
Aggression
According to Freud, the id operates on the "pleasure principle," meaning that it controls our primeval urges, including aggression and sex. The id demands immediate gratification, and requires a well-developed superego to balance the id's selfishness.
Example Question #1 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
Which endocrinologist is considered the "Father of Stress," and developed the General Adaptation Syndrome to describe the three phases of stress?
Sigmund Freud
Hans Selye
Thomas Warwick
Carl Jung
William James
Hans Selye
Hans Selye was an Austrian-Canadian endocrinologist of Hungarian origin who is best known for developing the General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS). GAS's three stages are, alarm, resistance, and exhaustion.
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