Other Areas - AP Psychology

A type II error means that the experimenter has failed to recognize an effect that is present. On the other hand, a type I error indicates that the experimenter has mistakenly stated that the independent variable has an effect when it has no real effect.

Nominal data is best represented by a bar chart. Nominal data can be variables such as religion. This is because there is no inherent rank. No one religion is statistically “better” than the other; therefore, it would be impossible to place one higher up than another in a rank order scheme.

The correct choice is “independent variable.” The independent variable is changed in order to observe the changes, if any, that it has on the dependent variable or variables. The dependent variable is defined as the variable that changes in response to the independent variable.

The distance that any point is from the mean is known as the standard deviation. When looking at a normal distribution, the mean is the middle or arithmetic average of the set and the deviation measures the spread of the data points from this central tendency.

Ordinal data is used when variables that have an inherent natural order, such as the collegiate class structure: freshman, sophomore, junior, senior. One must complete every level in order to transcend to the next. Nominal data deals with variables such as religion that do not have an inherent natural order. Interval data deals with things like temperature. Last, ratio data would deal with things like time.

All of the members of a group under consideration are referred to as a population. A sample is the subset of the group under consideration. “Statistic” or “parameter” would be incorrect choices because a statistic represents a measure of a sample, while a parameter refers to a measure of a population.

A normal distribution is asymptotic because it approaches a curve closely. It is unimodal because of its singular mode, and it is symmetric because both sides are mirror images of each other. There are other kinds of distributions like skewed distributions that are unimodal, asymptotic, and asymmetrical. These descriptions can vary depending on the shape of the distribution.

A parameter measures a population—the whole group that is being considered. A statistic represents a measure of a sample—a subset of the group that is being considered. For example, if you were conducting a study on Spanish people in your university, then the population would be all of the Spanish people at your university. A sample could be all of the Spanish people in one of your classes.

Modern IRBs have set standards for the ethical treatment of subjects. Each of the studies listed violated the regulations set by IRBs. Milgram’s use of deception violated the rights of his subjects and may have exposed them to unnecessary mental anguish. Zimbardo’s prison experiment was not terminated after “prison guards” inhumanely abused “inmates,” which resulted in both physical and mental harm of subject’s well being. Last, researchers in the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment did not provide treatments to subjects in order to observe the final stages of the disease, which resulted in the death and suffering of many individuals. Each of these violated the rights of subjects involved in varying degrees.

Modern IRBs have set standards for the ethical treatment of subjects. Each of the studies listed violated the regulations set by IRBs. Milgram’s use of deception violated the rights of his subjects and may have exposed them to unnecessary mental anguish. Zimbardo’s prison experiment was not terminated after “prison guards” inhumanely abused “inmates,” which resulted in both physical and mental harm of subject’s well being. Last, researchers in the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment did not provide treatments to subjects in order to observe the final stages of the disease, which resulted in the death and suffering of many individuals. Each of these violated the rights of subjects involved in varying degrees.

In addition to her "ten needs" theory, Karen Horney is also considered to be the founder of feminine psychology. Feminine psychology was a direct response to her disagreements with Sigmund Freud's theories of penis envy and the instinct orientation of psychoanalysis.

Noam Chomsky—a major figure in cognitive psychology and linguistics—challenged behavioral theories of language development, and instead argued for the idea that children possess an innate ability to acquire language.

Phrenology was used to determine which psychological faculties a person possessed based on the bumps, divots, and shape of their skull. Phrenologists would place a person’s skull in their hand and feel for areas they believed to correspond with the brain’s functions. Phrenologists would also examine the skulls of the deceased and identify patterns in order to determine differences between male and female intelligence.

Kohlberg and Piaget are two theorists that studied moral development. Kohlberg described three stages of moral development: preconventional, conventional, and postconventional. On the other hand, Vygotsky is associated with cognitive development and the zone of proximal development. Erikson developed the psychosocial stages of development, which focus on specific crises that people encounter at each stage of life. Harlow studied contact comfort among rhesus monkeys. Bandura studied social learning theory and developed theories on observational learning and self-efficacy.

"John Locke" was the seventeenth philosopher that created the concept known as tabula rosa. He believed that the mind was a blank slate and the experiences we have shape who we will become.

Freud's theory included the Electra complex (the female version of the Oedipal Complex, where a child is sexually attracted to their opposite sex parent and is furious at their same sex parent), the Superego (one of the three parts of the personality which is the moralistic ideal of personality), and defense mechanisms (unconscious strategies people use to defend against harm, including repression, deflection, and denial). Pavlov is associated with behavioralism (specifically with conditioning in dogs). Yalom is associated with existential theory. Rogers is associated with person-centered therapy (humanistic therapy).

Existential therapy is a humanistic therapy. It does not have a defined technique and it focuses more on existential questions (What do I want from life? How do I want to live my life? etc.) than changing any sort of cognitions or behaviors. Cognitive behavioral therapies encompass Aaron Beck's cognitive therapy, Meichenbaum's cognitive behavioral modification, and Albert Ellis' rational emotive behavior therapy.

All of these therapists have conducted research on their theories. Freud specifically used case studies to do research. Rogers is known as the father of psychotherapy research for this groundbreaking new way of studying the therapy process. He recorded sessions and used this as material for research.

REBT holds that problems arise when people believe they SHOULD or MUST be a certain way in order to get other people to accept them. Albert Ellis used crude humor to get his points across. He utilized these phrases as a way to describe these tendencies.

Sequential cohort studies are a combination of longitudinal and cross-sectional methods insofar as they compare the behaviors or attitudes of specific groups of people over an extended time period.