Exeter Township Senior High School

Advanced Placement Psychology

Mrs. Lambdin – Room S205
dlambdin@exeter.k12.pa.us
Course Syllabus

Course Description
Advanced Placement Psychology is taught in the block mode with 90
minute classes for 90 days. AP Psychology is designed to introduce
students to the systematic and scientific study of the behavioral and
mental processes of human beings. Key concepts of the major schools of
psychology and important theorists with their contributions to psychology
are taught. Vocabulary is an essential part of psychology; therefore,
vocabulary is emphasized. The culmination of the course is for students
to take the Advanced Placement exam in May.

Prerequisites
• Reading ability commensurate with college-level textbooks
• Minimum G.P.A. as specified by the Social Studies Department
• Intrinsic motivation to accept the challenges of a college course
• Desire to study for AP Exam in May

Textbook
Psychology, (Eighth Edition, 2006), Worth Publishers, by David G. Myers.

Recommended Supplies
Three-ring binder with nineteen dividers (Prologue + 18 chapters)
3 x 5 note cards for vocabulary words and definitions

Course Objectives
• Communicate and defend psychological concepts and facts
• Assess some of the differing approaches adopted by psychologists,
including the biological, behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, psychodynamic,
and sociocultural perspectives
• Appreciate how psychologists think and learn
• Build an effective psychological vocabulary by applying the vocabulary to
diverse scenarios
• Describe, explain, and predict why and how people react to particular
situations
• Apply what is learned in educational discussions and debates
Page 2 – Advanced Placement Psychology Syllabus
Course Requirements
• Readings: The entire required textbook will be read along with
supplemental readings to prepare the student
• Writings: Essays, reports, homework activities, outlines, and vocabulary
index cards must be prepared for every chapter.
• Group Work: In college, as well as high school, getting along with others
is crucial; therefore, group work will be part of AP Psychology.

Summer Project
1. Students will research a pre-determined theorist in psychology, submit
a typed report and present a professional individual class presentation. A rubric
will be provided to aid in what is expected.
2. Each student will read the Prologue and Chapter 1 of the textbook,
Psychology, Eighth Edition, 2006 by David Myers. The instructor will provide an
outline of the Prologue as a model for outlining future chapters. Each student will
then create their own outline for Chapter 1.
3. Students will create flashcards for each vocabulary word in the
Prologue and Chapter 1. One vocabulary word should be on one side with the
definition of that word on the other side of each card.
4. All summer work is due the first day of class. *If any work is not
completed on the first day of class, the student will have to drop the class,
so please do NOT procrastinate!

Classroom Rules
• Laugh with, not at anyone! ☺
• Silent when others speak. Classroom discussion makes the class more
interesting, and we want to be able to hear everyone.
• Extend help to others. Teamwork is required in all walks of life.
• Check folder when absent; talk to other classmates! Take responsibility!
• Homework is due the next day. Homework will not be accepted late
unless the student was absent. School is your job, and when you have a
job and you do not hand in your work when your boss asks for it, you
could be fired! Instead of being fired in school, you will earn a zero. 
Please do not allow this to happen! Be a dependable worker.
• Procrastination hurts! Late projects are subjected to a 10% per day
deduction. This “pay” decrease should not be necessary. Schedule your
work so you do not have to procrastinate!

Assessment
*Exams 40%
Quizzes 20%
Projects 20%
**Homework 10%
Classroom Participation 10%
100%
Page 3 – Advanced Placement Psychology Syllabus

* Exams will model the AP Exam. After each chapter or unit there will be a
multiple choice test similar to the AP Exam, and there will also be free response
questions, similar to the AP Exam.
** Most homework will consist of creating vocabulary cards and outlining each
chapter to aid in studying for chapter exams, and for review for the AP Exam in
May, which all AP Psychology students are required to take.

Outline of Course (Subject to change - modeled around AP Psych Exam)

Title Weight on AP Exam Days
I. Introduction to Psychology 2-4% 2
II. Research Methods in Psychology 6-8% 3
III. Biological & Evolutionary Bases of Behavior 8-10% 10
IV. Sensation & Perception 7-9% 7
V. Mind, Consciousness, and Alternate States 2-4% 4
VI. Learning and Behavioral Analysis 7-9% 7
VII. Memory & Forgetting 4-5% 4
VIII. Cognitive Processes 4-5% 4
IX. Intelligence & Intelligence Assessment 5-7% 6
X. Human Development across the Life Span 7-9% 8
XI. Motivation 4-5% 4
XII. Emotion, Stress & Health 4-5% 4
XIII. Understanding Human Personality 6-8% 6
XIIII.Psychological Disorders 7-9% 8
XV. Therapies for Psychological Disorders 5-7% 5
XVI.Social Cognition and Relationships 4-5% 4
XVII Social Processes, Society, and Culture 4-5% 4
90
*Days are subject to change, but will follow closely to College Board suggestions.

The following chapters are in our textbook, Psychology, (Eighth Edition, 2006),
Worth Publishers, by David G. Myers, which correlate with the College
Board AP Psychology Exam. We will read and learn about all these
chapters in different ways.

Course Outline
Prologue: The Story of Psychology
 Psychology’s Roots
 Contemporary Psychology
Chapter 1: Thinking Critically with Psychological Science
 Need for Psychological Science
 Description
 Correlation
 Experimentation
 Statistical Reasoning
 Frequently Asked Questions About Psychology
Page 4 – Advanced Placement Psychology Syllabus

Chapter 2: Neuroscience and Behavior

 Neural Communication
 The Nervous System
 The Endocrine System
 The Brain
Chapter 3: Nature, Nurture and Human Diversity
 Behaving Genetics
 Evolutionary Psychology
 Parents and Peers
 Cultural Influences
 Gender Development
 Reflections on Nature and Nurture
Chapter 4: Developing Through the Life Span
 Prenatal Development and the Newborn
 Infancy and Childhood
 Adolescence
 Adulthood
 Reflections on Two Major Developmental Issues
Chapter 5: Sensation
 Sensing the World
 Vision
 Hearing
 Other Important Senses: Touch, Taste Smell, Body
Chapter 6: Perception
 Selective Attention
 Perceptual Illusions
 Perceptual Organization
 Perceptual Interpretation
 Extrasensory Perception
Chapter 7: States of Consciousness
 Consciousness and Information Processing
 Sleep and Dreams
 Hypnosis
 Drugs and Consciousness
 Near-Death Experiences
Chapter 8: Learning
 How We Learn
 Classical Conditioning
 Operant Conditioning
 Learning by Observation
Chapter 9: Memory
 Phenomenon of Memory
 Encoding
 Storage
 Retrieval
Page 5 – Advanced Placement Psychology Syllabus

 Forgetting
 Memory Construction
 Improving Memory
Chapter 10: Thinking and Language
 Thinking
 Language
 Thinking and Language
 Animal Thinking and Language
Chapter 11: Intelligence
 What Is Intelligence?
 Assessing Intelligence
 The Dynamics of Intelligence
 Genetic and Environmental Influences on Intelligence
Chapter 12: Motivation and Work
 Perspectives on Motivation
 Hunger
 Sexual Motivation
 The Need to Belong
 Motivation at Work
Chapter 13: Emotion
 Theories of Emotion
 Embodied Emotion
 Expressed Emotion
 Experienced Emotion
Chapter 14: Stress and Health
 Stress and Illness
 Promoting Health
Chapter 15: Personality
 Psychoanalytic Perspective
 Humanistic Perspective
 Trait Perspective
 Social-Cognitive Perspective
 Exploring the Self
Chapter 16: Psychological Disorders
 Perspectives on Psychological Disorders
 Anxiety Disorders
 Mood Disorders
 Schizophrenia
 Personality Disorders
 Rates of Psychological Disorders
Chapter 17: Therapy
 Psychological Therapies
 Evaluating Psychotherapies
 Biomedical Therapies
 Preventing Psychological Disorders
Page 6 – Advanced Placement Psychology Syllabus

Chapter 18: Social Psychology

 Social Thinking
 Social Influence
 Social Relations
NAME: __________________________________________________________
DATE: __________________________________________________________

NAME OF YOUR THEORIST: _______________________________________

DUE DATE: First Day of Class in August

Advanced Placement Psychology Summer Project

Mrs. Lambdin – Room S205
Please research the theorist that is assigned to you, and follow the rubric below
to learn, and hopefully start the semester with a good grade! Please type your
report, double-space, and use Arial 12 point font or Times New Roman 14
point font. The report should be at least three full typewritten pages (at least
four pages including a full page with the bibliography). You should have at least
three sources.

Please make a copy for me, and a copy for yourself before the first day of school!
You should also create an outline on note cards for your speech. Please prove
to me that you are a serious Advanced Placement student who is ready for a
college course! ☺

I. Research the theorist assigned to you, and include the following criteria in
your written report. Organize your type-written report in the order that is
mentioned below.

Personal biographic data 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

of theorist

Professional background 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
of theorist

Clear, detailed explanation

of theory or contribution 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Correct grammar and

spelling in report 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Directions followed 0 1 2 3 4 5
Page 2 - Advanced Placement Psychology Summer Project

II. Please include a bibliography on a separate page at the end of your

report. Cite sources within your report. Please refer to the school website
to refresh your memory on the correct way of creating a bibliography and
citing sources.

Bibliography 0 1 2 3 4 5

Sources cited 0 1 2 3 4 5

III. Create a tangible visual that will aid you in giving an effective oral
presentation. Your visual can be a poster with a picture of the theorist
with facts, a chart with facts, a mobile, a video creatively demonstrating
the theory and/or contribution, a self-created book, or something else that
is helpful to aid you in your speech. The number one fear is glossophobia,
and one way of getting over the fear of public speaking is to create a
visual that your audience will look at while you are speaking!

Creativity 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Relates to speech 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
and is used during
speech

IV. The oral presentation needs to be delivered in a professional manner.

Note cards with an outline may be used. Practice! Practice! Practice!

Eye contact and posture 0 1 2 3 4 5

Volume 0 1 2 3 4 5

Report information 0 1 2 3 4 5
 Advanced Placement Psychology Names to Know

Theorist Student Assigned to Theorist

Adler, Alfred
Asch, Solomon
Bandura, Albert
Binet, Alfred
Broca, Paul
Calkins, Mary
Cattell, Raymond
Dement, William
Durkheim, Emile
Erikson, Erik
Festinger, Leon
Frankl, Viktor
Freud, Anna
Freud, Sigmund
Fromm, Erich
Garcia, John
Gardner, Howard
Geisel, Theodor
Gilligan, Carol
Hall, G. Stanley
Harlow, Harry
Horney, Karen
James, William
Jung, Carl
Kohlberg, Lawrence
LaBerge, Stephen
Loftus, Elizabeth
Maslow, Abraham
Mead, Margaret
Milgram, Stanley
Pavlov, Ivan
Piaget, Jean
Rescorla, Robert
Rogers, Carl
Ross, Elizabeth Kubler
Schachter, Stanley
Seligman, Martin
Sheldon, William
Skinner, BF
Sperling, George
Sperry, Roger
Sternberg, Robert
Thorndike, Edward
Tolman, Edward
Washburn, Margaret Floyd
Watson, John
Westheimer, Ruth
Wundt, Wilhelm
Zimbardo, Philip
 Advanced Placement Psychology Names to Know

Adler, Alfred – inferiority complex

Asch, Solomon – social psychologist, normative influence, conformity
Bandura, Albert – social learning theory, BoBo Doll, reciprocal
determinism
Binet, Alfred – developed first intelligence test
Broca, Paul – studied brain’s role in language
Calkins, Mary – first woman president of the American Psychological
Association
Cattell, Raymond – crystallized intelligence and fluid intelligence; 16
factors of personality
Dement, William – sleep disorders
Durkheim, Emile – French sociologist; social facts
Ellis, Albert – rational-emotive therapy (RET)
Erikson, Erik – psychosocial stages
Festinger, Leon – social psychology; cognitive dissonance
Frankl, Viktor – WWII Holocaust survivor; prisoner of war; existentialism
Freud, Anna – “to be normal during the adolescent period is by itself abnormal”
Freud, Sigmund – psychodynamic principles of motivation; psychoanalysis;
psychosexual development; unconscious; Interpretation of Dreams; eros
and thanatos; id, ego, and superego; defense mechanisms
Fromm, Erich – psychoanalyst who linked personality types with socioeconomic
and political structures
Garcia, John – first to document taste-aversion learning in the
laboratory
Gardner, Howard – multiple intelligences
Geisel, Theodor – Dr. Seuss
Gilligan, Carol – moral judgments (added women and broadened
Kohlberg’s theory)
Hall, G. Stanley – founded the American Psychological Association; storm-and-
stress theory
Harlow, Harry – contact comfort with macaque monkeys
Horney, Karen – “womb envy, not penis envy”, humanistic, real-self in caring
environment
James, William – wrote The Principles of Psychology (1850-1950);
human instincts; James-Lange theory of emotion
Jung, Carl – collective unconscious, archetypes, analytic psychology
Kohlberg, Lawrence – moral development theory by studying moral
reasoning
LaBerge, Stephen – lucid dreaming
Loftus, Elizabeth – eyewitness information; postevent information
Maslow, Abraham – humanist psychologist, hierarchy of needs
Mead, Margaret – cultural anthropologist; argued that storm-and-stress theory is
not applicable to many non-Western cultures
Milgram, Stanley – obedience research surrounding situational power over
individual behavior
Pavlov, Ivan – physiologist who studied digestion; classical
conditioning getting Russian dogs to salivate to sound of a bell
Piaget, Jean – stages of cognitive development
Rescorla, Robert – classical conditioning (added to Pavlov’s theory)
Rogers, Carl – humanistic, unconditional positive regard
Ross, Elizabeth Kubler – death and dying
Schachter, Stanley – obesity and eating patterns
Seligman, Martin – studied ways in which people’s explanatory style
affects activity and passivity, whether they persist or give up easily, take
risks, or play it safe
Sheldon, William – body types and personality
Skinner, BF – behaviorism where environmental consequences exert
a powerful effect on behavior; operant conditioning
Sperling, George – iconic memory, whole-report procedure and partial-report
procedure
Sperry, Roger – separated hemispheres of epileptic patients
Sternberg, Robert – triarchic theory of intelligence; analytical
intelligence
Thorndike, Edward – American cats and puzzle boxes; relationship between
behavior and its consequences as law of effect
Tolman, Edward – cognitive maps in maze learning using rats
Washburn, Margaret Floyd – first woman to receive a PhD in
psychology; The Animal Mind textbook
Watson, John – founded the school of psychology known as
behaviorism; argued that psychological research
should seek the laws that govern observable behavior
Westheimer, Ruth – sociologist who talks about human sexuality
Wundt, Wilhelm – 1879 founded first formal laboratory devoted to experimental
psychology
Zimbardo, Philip – professional social psychologist at Stanford University with
more than 250 professional articles and chapters and 50 books to his
credit; APA presented him with the Ernest Hilgard Award for lifetime
contributions to general psychology; trade books on shyness and
Discovering Psychology video series; President of APA and Western
Psychological Association
Timeline of Modern Psychology
From Kendra Van Wagner,Your Guide to Psychology.

Major Events in the History of Psychology

1878 --Stanley Hall becomes the first American to earn a Ph.D. in psychology. Hall
eventually founds the American Psychological Association.

1879 –Wilhelm Wundt founds the first psychology lab in Leipzig, Germany. The event is
considered the starting point of psychology as a separate science.

1881 --Wundt forms the professional journal Philosophische Studien (Philosophical

Studies)

1886 –Sigmund Freud begins providing therapy to patients in Vienna, Austria.

1888--J. McKeen Cattell becomes the first professor of psychology at the University of
Pennsylvania.

1890 --J. M. Cattell publishes Mental Tests and Measurements, the beginning of the
practice of psychological assessment.

--William James publishes Principles of Psychology.

--Sir Francis Galton creates correlation technique to better understand relationships

between variable in intelligence studies.

1892 --G. Stanley Hall forms the American Psychological Association (APA), which
initially has just 42 members.

--Wundt’s student Edward B. Titchener moves to America.

1894 --Margaret Floy Washburn completes her training under Tichener.

1895 --Alfred Binet forms the first psychology lab devoted to psychodiagnosis.

1898 --Edward Thorndike develops the Law of Effect.

1900 –Sigmund Freud publishes Interpretation of Dreams.

1901 --The British Psychological Society is formed.

1905 --Mary Whiton Calkins is elected the first woman president of the American
Psychological Association.

--Alfred Binet publishes the intelligence test New Methods for the Diagnosis of the
Intellectual Level of Subnormals.

1906 --Ivan Pavlov publishes his findings on classical conditioning.

--Morton Prince founds the Journal of Abnormal Psychology.

1907 –Carl Jung publishes The Psychology of Dementia Praecox.

1909 --Calkins publishes A First Book in Psychology.

1912 --Edward Thorndike publishes Animal Intelligence. The article leads to the
development of the theory of operant conditioning.

--Max Wertheimer publishes Experimental Studies of the Perception of Movement,

leading to the devolpment of Gestalt Psychology.

1913 –Carl Jung begins to depart from Freudian views and develops his own theories,
which are eventually known as analytical psychology.

--John Watson publishes Psychology as the Behaviorist Views It. The work helped
establish behaviorism, which viewed human behavior arising from conditioned
responses.

1915 –Sigmund Freud publishes work on repression.

1917 -- Then president of the APA, Robert Yerkes writes the Alpha and Beta Tests for
the Army to test intelligence.

1919 -- John B. Watson publishes Psychology, From the Standpoint of a Behaviorist.

1920 --John Watson and Rosalie Rayner publish research the classical conditioning of
fear with their subject, Little Albert.

1925 --Gestal Psychology is brought to America with the publication of Wolfgang

Kohler’s Perception: An Introduction to the Gestalt Theory.

1932 --Jean Piaget becomes the foremost cognitive theorist with the publication of his
work The Moral Judgment of Children.

1935 --Henry Murray publishes the Thematic Appreception Test (TAT).

1942 --Carl Rogers developed client-centered therapy and publishes Counseling and
Psychotherapy. His approach encourages respect and positive regard for patients.

1952 --The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders is published.

1954 --Abraham Maslow publishes Motivation and Personality, describing his theory of
a hierarchy of needs. He also helps found humanistic psychology.

1963 --Alfred Bandura first describes the concept of observational learning to explain
personality development.

1974 --Stanley Milgram publishes Obedience to Authority.

1980 --The DSM-III is published.

1994 --The DSM-IV is published.

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 AP Psychology
Mrs. Lambdin – Room S205

Prologue: The Story of Psychology – pages 1-17

I. Psychology’s Roots – page 2

A. Objective 1: Define Psychology
1. psychology is the scientific study of behavior and mental
processes
a. behavior is anything an organism does – observing and recording
b. mental processes are internal, subjective experiences we perceive
from behavior
B. Psychology is a science because it is a way of asking and answering
questions
1. psychology is a way to try to describe and explain human nature
a. theories are encouraged
2. psychology helps people think smarter when describing and explaining
the events of lives

II. Prescientific Psychology – pages 2-3

A. Objective 2: Trace psychology’s prescientific roots, from early
understanding of mind and body to the beginnings of modern science
1. early thinkers wondered how our bodies relate to our minds, how
much is from genes and/or experience
2. Buddha wondered how sensations and perceptions combine to form
ideas
3. Confucius stressed power of ideas and an educated mind
4. Hebrews linked mind and emotion to the body; people thought with
their hearts and felt with their bowels
5. Socrates and Plato said that the mind is separable from the body,
and the mind continues after death and knowledge is born within us
6. Aristotle observed that the soul is not separable from the body;
knowledge is not born within us; knowledge comes from experiences
stored in our memories; Aristotle used logic
7. Rene’ Descartes agreed with Socrates and Plato; mind and body
communicate; nerve paths are important and enable reflexes;
Treatise of Man proposed hydraulics of reflex
8. Francis Bacon was interested in experiments, experiences, and
common sense judgment; interested in failure of superstition
9. John Locke – An Essay Concerning Human Understanding; mind at
birth is a blank slate (tabula rasa) on which experience writes;
helped form modern empiricism - view that knowledge originates
in experience and science should rely on observation and
experimentation
Prologue: The Story of Psychology – page 2

III. Psychological Science is Born – pages 3 – 6

A. Objective 3: Explain how the early psychologist’s sought to understand
the mind’s structure and functions, and identify some of the leading
psychologists who worked in these areas
1. Wilhelm Wundt – 1879 in Leipzig, Germany created an experimental
apparatus that measured the time lag between people’s hearing a ball
hit a platform and pressing a telegraphy key; therefore, he created first
psychological lab at the University of Leipzig
B. Thinking About the Mind’s Structure
1. Wundt’s student Edward Bradford Titchener introduced
structuralism, an early school of psychology that used
introspection to explore the elemental structure of the human
mind
a. goal was to discover elements of the mind
b. engaged people in self-reflective introspection, training to report
experiences as they looked at a something, smelled a scent,
listened to objects, or tasted something
C. Thinking About the Mind’s Functions
1. William James encouraged explorations of down-to-earth
emotions, memories, will power, habits, and moment-to-moment
streams of consciousness; considered evolved functions of
thoughts and feelings
2. William James was a functionalist, school of psychology that
focused on how mental and behavioral processes function –
how they enable the organism to adapt, survive, and flourish
a. greatest legacy was his teaching and writing
3. Mentored Mary Calkins
a. Mary Calkins finished all requirements for a Harvard Ph.D. but
Harvard denied her the degree; she became a memory
researcher and APA’s first female president in 1905
4. Because Harvard would not give Mary Calkins her Ph.D. because
of being female, Margaret Floy Washburn was given the honor of
first woman to receive a psychology Ph.D.
a. wrote influential book The Animal Mind and became second
female APA president in 1921
Prologue: The Story of Psychology – page 3

IV. Psychological Science Develops – pages 6 – 7

A. Objective 4: Describe the evolution of psychology as defined from the
1920’s through today
B. Psychology developed from fields of philosophy and biology –
“Magellans of the Mind”
1. Wundt was philosopher and physiologist
2. James was an American philosopher
3. Ivan Pavlov was a Russian physiologist
4. Freud was an Austrian physician
5. Jean Piaget was a Swiss biologist
C. Until 1920’s psychology was defined as science of mental life
D. From 1920’s until 1960’s redefined psychology as scientific study of
observable behavior
1. behaviorists said science is rooted in observation, such as Watson
and Skinner
E. Humanistic Psychology
1. emphasized the growth potential of healthy people; used
personalized methods to study personality in hopes of fostering
personal growth
2. Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow emphasized importance of
current environmental influences on our growth potential, and
importance of meeting our needs for love and acceptance
3. In 1960’s cognitive revolution supported ideas developed by earlier
psychologists, such as importance of internal thought processes
a. expanded ideas to explore scientifically the ways we perceive,
process, and remember information
b. cognitive neuroscience, the study of interaction of thought
processes and brain function
4. Psychology defined today is scientific study of behavior and
mental processes

V. Contemporary Psychology – page 8

A. International Union of Psychological Science has 69 member nations
B. APA has more than 160,000 members
C. China had 5 universities with psychology departments in 1985; by 2000
China had 50
D. Psychology is growing and globalizing
Prologue: The Story of Psychology – page 4

VI. Psychology’s Big Debate – pages 9 – 10

A. Objective 5: Summarize the nature-nurture debate in psychology, and
describe the principle of natural selection
B. Nature-Nurture issue is long standing controversy over the relative
contributions that genes and experience or environment make to the
development of psychological traits and behaviors
C. Natural selection is the principle by Charles Darwin that those
contributing to reproduction and survival will most likely be passed
on to succeeding generations
1. Darwin believed nature selects those that best enable an organism to
survive and reproduce in a particular environment

VII. Psychology’s Three Main Levels of Analysis – pages 10-12

A. Objective 6: Identify the three main levels of analysis in the
biopsychosocial approach, and explain why psychology’s varied
perspectives are complementary
B. Levels of analysis are the differing complementary views from
biological to psychological to social-cultural for analyzing any
given phenomenon
1. all three levels are related
C. Biopsychosocial approach is an integrated perspective that incorporates
biological, psychological, and social-cultural levels of analysis – page
10 chart!
1. Biological influences such as; genetic predispositions, genetic
mutations, natural selection of adaptive physiology and behaviors,
genes responding to the environment
2. Psychological influences such as; learned fears and other
learned expectations, emotional responses, cognitive processing
and perceptual interpretation
3. Social-cultural influences such as; presence of others, cultural,
societal, and family expectations, peer and other group influences,
compelling models such as the media
D. Psychology’s Current Perspectives – page 11 chart!
1. Neuroscience, evolutionary, behavior genetics, psychodynamic,
behavioral, cognitive, social-cultural
E. Psychology helps the understanding of why people think, feel, and act
as they do

VIII. Psychology’s Subfields – pages 12 – 14

A. Objective 7: Identify some of psychology’s subfields, and explain the
difference between clinical psychology and psychiatry
B. Psychology is a collection of diverse subfields
C. Psychology is a meeting ground for different disciplines and has wide-
ranging interests
Prologue: The Story of Psychology – page 5

D. Some psychologists conduct basic research, which is pure science

that aims to increase the scientific knowledge base
E. Applied research is the scientific study that aims to solve practical
problems
F. Counseling psychologists assist people with problems in living and
in achieving greater well-being
G. Clinical psychology is a branch of psychology that studies,
assesses, and treats people with psychological disorders
H. Psychiatrists provide medical (for example, drug) treatments, as
well as psychological therapy
I. “Knowledge has modified attitudes, and, through them behavior”

IX. Your study of Psychology – pages 15 -16

A. Objective 8: State five effective study techniques
1. Distribute study time
a. spaced practice promotes better retention
2. Listen actively in class
a. write things down
3. Over learn
a. over learning improves retention
b. do not miss class
c. reread notes and chapters
4. Focus on big ideas
a. take a step back and see the big picture
b. think critically – it makes you smarter
5. Be a smart test-taker
a. read essay first and jot down ideas
b. complete multiple-choice questions
c. jot down ideas for essay as you take the multiple-choice part
d. reread essay and rethink essay before writing it
e. proofread work!
YOUR NAME:

AP Psychology Discussion/Debate Topics

Mrs. Lambdin – Room S205
Attached are thought-provoking questions that I created for you to go along
with each chapter in our textbook, Psychology, 8th edition by David Myers. A
major part of psychology is to build your critical thinking skills; therefore, you will
do some introspection and then research the topic further to become more
educated on the topic.

You will coordinate your facts with others in a group to decide how you want
to structure a discussion or debate. There are several objectives, and you will be
graded on these goals as you lead the discussion/debate. These skills will be
needed in college, so please take them seriously, but also have fun! The needed
skills are as follows:

1. Introspection
2. Research
3. Collaboration in groups
4. Leadership and encouragement of others
5. Coordination

Since being prepared is key to a discussion/debate, you will create an outline

for your side. The outline should integrate facts that will be used during the
discussion/debate to aid your memory during the discussion/debate. You will
also be required to cite sources in the outline. Please orally identify these
sources during your discussion/debate to be more credible when you speak.
Your outline is due 2 days before your scheduled discussion/debate.
Please remember to give me a copy, which you will NOT get back, and
make a copy for each of your peers on your side of the discussion/debate!

I will grade you individually during your discussion/debate (rubric attached),

and you will also get a grade from your group members to help alleviate social
loafing within your group. No one likes a social loafer, so please work hard for
yourself and for the sake of your peers!

Names of people in your group:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
After each group name, please rate each person from a 1 to a 10 on how
well you think they performed on the above-mentioned italicized skills.
This is not a popularity contest – please be honest! ☺
 Rubric for AP Psychology Discussion/Debate Topics

Your Name: _____________________________________________

Chapter # and question: ___________________________________________

Please state your brief stance on the question: _______________________

Criteria Possible Score Your Score

Well developed outline and

submitted 2 days ahead of time 20

Evidence of research 10

Cited sources (including textbook) 5

Collaboration with peers 5

Leadership 5

Spoke clearly 5

Well modulated voice 5

Interesting discussion with valid

points 25

Coordination of discussion/debate 10

Preparedness 10______________________________

Total Amount of Points 100 /100

 AP Psychology Discussion/Debate Topics
Chapter 1 – Is it ethical to experiment on animals?

Chapter 2 – Do most people make decisions analytically or emotionally? (Ex. Do

you choose a mate with your mind or your heart?)

Chapter 3 – Which is more important in shaping people, nature or nurture?

Chapter 4 – Are females naturally predisposed to be empathetic?

Chapter 5 – Which sense is most important to humans?

Chapter 6 – Is there extrasensory perception?

Chapter 7 – Do female’s moods change across their menstrual cycle?

Chapter 8 – Does viewing televised aggression or playing aggressive video

games influence people to become aggressive themselves?

Chapter 9 – Which study and memory strategy in chapter 9 works best?

Chapter 10 – Is being overconfident good?

Chapter 11 – Which one of Gardner’s eight intelligences is most beneficial?

Chapter 12 – Which leadership style is better, task or social?

Chapter 13 – Does your physiological arousal precede or follow your emotional

experience?

Chapter 14 – Should employers have the option of not hiring someone because
they are obese?

Chapter 15 – Are Sigmund Freud’s theories relevant to today?

Chapter 16 – Should people with psychological disorders who committed a crime

be imprisoned?

Chapter 17 – Should an adolescent be forced to take an antidepressant drug if a

psychiatrist prescribes it?

Chapter 18 – Should social loafers be ostracized when working with a group?

 AP Psychology Discussion/Debate Topics

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 1 Is it ethical to experiment on animals?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 2 Do most people make decisions analytically or emotionally? (Ex.
Do you choose a mate with your mind or your heart?)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 3 Which is more important in shaping people, nature or nurture?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 4 Are females naturally predisposed to be empathetic?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 5 Which sense is most important to humans?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 6 Is there extrasensory perception?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 AP Psychology Discussion/Debate Topics

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 7 Do female’s moods change across their menstrual cycle?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 8 Does viewing televised aggression or playing aggressive video
games influence people to become aggressive themselves?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 9 Which study and memory strategy in chapter 9 works best?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 10 Is being overconfident good?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 11 Which one of Gardner’s eight intelligences is most beneficial?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 12 Which leadership style is better, task or social?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 AP Psychology Discussion/Debate Topics

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 13 Does your physiological arousal precede or follow your emotional
experience?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 14 Should employers have the option of not hiring someone because
they are obese?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 15 Are Sigmund Freud’s theories relevant to today?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 16 Should people with psychological disorders who committed a
crime be imprisoned?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 17 Should an adolescent be forced to take an antidepressant drug if a
psychiatrist prescribes it?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 18 Should social loafers be ostracized when working with a group?
 Due Date of Outline:
Due Date of Game:

AP Psychology Chapters 12, 13, 14, 17, 18 Group Assignment

Names in Group: _________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

Everyone will be broken into groups and will be assigned one of the above
last chapters in our textbook. Your group is responsible for outlining the
chapter in detail with inclusion of all vocabulary words with clear
definitions in the outline. I will make copies of your outline for all the
members in the class, so please do an outstanding job!

Each group will design a game for the class to play by using the knowledge
that you learned in your assigned chapter. Some examples of games are
when we played BINGO in class, when you made games using your
vocabulary words, and when I had you play MindTrap. The criteria are as
follows:

Criteria Possible Points Group Points

Detailed outline with all objectives 20

Clear definitions in outline 15

Neatness of outline 10

Clear description of how to play your game 5

Well-defined rules for the game 5

Creativity 10

Enthusiasm 5

Accommodations for Everyone to Play 10

Learning Experience for Everyone 20

TOTAL POINTS 100

 AP Psychology Chapters 12, 13, 14, 17, 18
Classes Rating on Advanced Placement Psychology Game

Chapter and Title

Chapter 12 – “Motivation and Work”

Chapter 13 – “Emotion”

Chapter 14 – “Stress and Health”

Chapter 17 – “Therapy”

Chapter 18 – “Social Psychology”

Please circle the above chapter that you just observed by your hard-
working AP Psychology classmates. Please write the number 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5
with 1 representing not good at all, 3 mediocre, and 5 being awesome.
Please honestly rate the group on the following criteria:

Fun Game to Play Score:

Creativity Score:

Learning Experience in Game Score:

Knowledge Used in Game Score:

Work Put into Game Score:

Game You Would Like to Play Again Score:

________________________________________________________________

Total Score Earned:

Group Grade:
Advanced Placement Psychology Names to Know

Adler, Alfred
Asch, Solomon
Bandura, Albert
Binet, Alfred
Broca, Paul
Calkins, Mary
Cattell, Raymond
Dement, William
Durkheim, Emile
Erikson, Erik
Festinger, Leon
Frankl, Viktor
Freud, Anna
Freud, Sigmund
Fromm, Erich
Garcia, John
Gardner, Howard
Geisel, Theodor
Gilligan, Carol
Hall, G. Stanley
Harlow, Harry
Horney, Karen
James, William
Jung, Carl
Kohlberg, Lawrence
LaBerge, Stephen
Loftus, Elizabeth
Maslow, Abraham
Mead, Margaret
Milgram, Stanley
Pavlov, Ivan
Piaget, Jean
Rescorla, Robert
Rogers, Carl
Ross, Elizabeth Kubler
Schachter, Stanley
Seligman, Martin
Sheldon, William
Skinner, BF
Sperling, George
Sperry, Roger
Sternberg, Robert
Thorndike, Edward
Tolman, Edward
Washburn, Margaret Floyd
Watson, John
Westheimer, Ruth
Wundt, Wilhelm
Zimbardo, Philip