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Unit 1

1.8 MC Answers and Review

8 min read•november 27, 2021

Dalia Savy

AP Psychology 🧠

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Answers and Review for Multiple Choice Practice on Scientific Foundations

Image Courtesy of Wikipedia.

Soloman Asch's experiment investigated the extent to which one would conform to a group's ideas.

⛔STOP!⛔ Before you look at the answers make sure you gave this practice quiz a try so you can assess your understanding of the concepts covered in unit 1. Click here for the practice questions: AP Psychology Unit 1 Multiple Choice Questions.

Facts about the test: The AP Psychology exam has 100 multiple choice questions and you will be given 1 hour and 10 minutes to complete the section. That means it should take you around 11 minutes to complete 15 questions.

*The following questions were not written by CollegeBoard and although they cover information outlined in the AP Psychology Course and Exam Description, the formatting on the exam may be different.

1. In an experimental study of the effects of listening to music on learning, listening to music would be the _____ variable?

A. Dependent

B. Independent

C. Experimental

D. Correlational

Answer: The independent variable is the factor that is manipulated in an experiment. In this case, researchers would want to know whether listening to music while studying would enhance or interfere with learning. Learning would be the dependent variable.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.3: The Experimental Method

2. In 2001, Andrea Yates, a Houston housewife, drowned her five children in the bathtub. Some who studied her case concluded that her psychotic break was in part due to her being isolated from extended family and that her husband was unsupportive with childcare and household duties. This conclusion best illustrates a _____ perspective.

A. Psychodynamic

B. Behavioral

C. Biological

D. Social-Cultural

Answer: The social-cultural approach looks to how cultural, societal and family/group expectations and situations affect our behavior and thinking. In this case, Andrea was solely responsible for caring for her children. Without a support network, the stress of raising the children may have taken her to the breaking point. Had she had help, perhaps she would have been better able to cope and succumbed to mental illness.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.1: The Historical Progression of Psychology

3. Russell has been diagnosed with alcohol use disorder. His therapist believes this is largely due to his lack of problem-solving skills and his inability to think through the consequences of his drinking. HIs therapist analyzing his behavior the lens of the __________ perspective.

A. Cognitive

B. Biological

C. Behavioral

D. Social-Cultural

Answer: The cognitive approach focuses on our mental processes when trying to understand behavior. These mental processes include what we think and how we think. In this case, the therapist believes Russell lacks good problem-solving and decision-making skills that lead him to abuse alcohol. It is likely this therapist would use cognitive-behavior therapy to help Russell improve his skills, as well as to learn more constructive coping mechanisms.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.1: The Historical Progression of Psychology

4. Joaquin has a tennis match tomorrow and insists his father launder his "lucky" socks. He is convinced that his winning streak is related to the fact that he has worn the same socks all season. Joaquin's thinking illustrates which of the following concepts?

A. Illusory Correlation

B. Hindsight Bias

C. Overconfidence

D. Naturalistic Observation

Answer: An illusory correlation is perceiving a relationship between two variables when none exists. It is the basis of many of our superstitions and results from us paying more attention and remembering instances that confirm our belief than those that disconfirm it.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.3: The Experimental Method

5. If psychologists discovered that students who participate in more extracurricular activities have higher GPAs, this would indicate that extracurricular involvement and grades are

A. Independent Variables

B. Learned Behaviors

C. Positively Correlated

D. Negatively Correlated

Answer: A correlation is a measure of how two factors vary together. A correlation is said to be positive if the two factors move in the same direction, that is, as one increases the other increases. A correlation is said to be negative if they move in an inverse direction, that is, as one increases, the other decreases. In this example, students' GPA increases as their participation in extracurriculars increases and is, therefore, a positive correlation.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.5: Statistical Analysis in Psychology

6. In order to understand gender differences in play, researchers visited city parks with playsets and collected data on the activities boys and girls displayed on the playground. This is an example of the use of a research method known as

A. The Case Study

B. Naturalistic Observation

C. The Double-Blind Procedure

D. Correlational Study

Answer: Naturalistic observation is when a researcher observes a subject's behavior without intervention and preferably without the subjects knowing they are being watched. This kind of research happens in a natural setting, in this case, a park, rather than the highly artificial setting of a research lab.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.2: Research Methods in Psychology

7. After the results of the presidential election, your friend tells you that she "knew it all along." What psychological concept does this illustrate?

A. Hindsight Bias

B. Overconfidence

C. The Placebo Effect

D. Applied Research

Answer: Hindsight bias is sometimes called the "I knew it all along" bias. It refers to the phenomenon when someone believes that they could have foreseen something AFTER they learned the outcome.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.3: The Experimental Method

8. Li Wei is curious to learn whether students in his high school would be supportive of changing the start time to 9:00 AM. He puts all 600 names in a box and pulls out 100 who will be asked to complete a survey to share their opinion. Which method is Li Wei using to select his subjects?

A. Random Assignment

B. Random Sample

C. Survey

D. Interview

Answer: A random sample is a sample that fairly represents a population because everyone has an equal chance of being chosen to participate. In this case, Li Wei has included all of the students at his high school in the box; the 100 he picks will fairly represent the student body in terms of race, gender, ability, etc.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.2: Research Methods in Psychology

9. A group of friends go shopping together at the mall and spend $43, $47, $36, $32, $55, and $32, respectively. The mode of the group's expenditures is

A. 32

B. 28

C. 23

D. 36

Answer: The mode is the most frequently occuring number in a distribution. Two of the friends spent $32; the dollar amount for each of the others was unique.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.5: Statistical Analysis in Psychology

10. Mr. Burton collected data on the test scores of his US history class and discovered there was a skewed distribution. Which of the following would be the best measures of central tendency?

A. Standard Deviation

B. Mean

C. Mode

D. Median

Answer: A skewed distribution occurs when a few outliers pull the direction of the mean in one direction or another. In this case, the median will be a better measure than the mean (average) because it will be more representative of central tendency of the data set.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.5: Statistical Analysis in Psychology

11. In the famous study by John Watson, Little Albert was conditioned to fear white furry objects. Unfortunately, Mr Watson never bothered to uncondition Albert and so it is likely this fear continued throughout his life. Which ethical principle was violated in this case?

A. Informed Consent

B. Confidentiality

C. Protect From Harm

D. Debrief

Answer: The American Psychological Association code of ethics requires that all of the answers listed be followed in experimental research. In the case of Little Albert, John Watson did not protect the boy from harm or discomfort. He intentionally frightened the boy, and created a fear that would have long-standing, if not permanent, consequences.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.6: Ethnical Guidelines in Psychology

12. In a study of the effects of caffeine on anxiety, anxiety was operationally defined as a self-rated score from 1-10. Specifying exactly how anxiety will be assessed is important for

A. Replication

B. Debriefing

C. Plotting Correlation

D. Determining Cause and Effect

Answer: Replication is an important aspect of the scientific method. It is essentially repeating an experiment with different subjects to see whether the findings can be reproduced. To do so, the experimenters must use very precise statements of the exact procedures they used.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.3: The Experimental Method

13. Maria has collected data on the number of shoes each of her classmates owns and their height. If she wants to see the relationship between these two variables represented graphically, she should construct a

A. Bar Graph

B. Scatterplot

C. Normal Curve

D. Standard Deviation

Answer: A scatterplot is a cluster of dots in which the values of two variables are plotted along an x and y-axis. The slope of the dots indicates the direction of the relationship between the two variables, and the amount of scatter indicates how strong the relationship is.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.5: Statistical Analysis in Psychology

14. Dr. Ward has been hired by the XYZ Corporation to investigate which factors will have the greatest influence on their workers' productivity. Dr. Ward is most likely a ______ psychologist.

A. Clinical

B. Human Factor

C. Personality

D. Industrial-Organizational

Answer: Industrial-organizational psychologists study the people within work environments. In addition to looking for ways to increase productivity, they may also study how to improve employee morale, recruiting and selection of employees, and job satisfaction.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.1: The Historical Progression of Psychology

15. In a study of how effective a study strategy was for students in an AP psychology class, it was discovered that group study sessions were more effective than when students studied alone. The students in the group study group were all girls; the students in the study alone group were all boys. In this example, the gender of the subjects would be

A. A Confounding Variable

B. The Independent Variable

C. The Dependent Variable

D. A False Generalization

Answer: A confounding variable is a factor, other than the independent variable, that may explain the results. In this case, the differences found between the two groups may be more due to gender than to the study strategy. In a carefully controlled research design, the subjects would be assigned randomly to the two situations rather than separated by gender--or any other factor.

📄 Study AP Psychology, Unit 1.3: The Experimental Method

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🔎Unit 1 – Scientific Foundations of Psychology

1.0Unit 1 Overview: Scientific Foundations of Psychology

1.1Introducing Psychology

1.2Research Methods in Psychology

1.3Defining Psychological Science: The Experimental Method

1.4Selecting a Research Method