AP® Psychology
Syllabus
Course Essential Questions
- How can psychology be applied to our everyday lives?
- How does the application of psychological principles and scientific skills help us explain human behavior and mental processes?
- How does psychology help us understand why individuals behave the way they do?
- How do psychologists use research evidence to construct and validate arguments?
Course Learning Objectives
- Apply psychological perspectives, theories, concepts, and research findings to explain human behavior.
- Evaluate qualitative and quantitative research methods and study designs.
- Evaluate representations of psychological concepts in quantitative and qualitative research, including tables, graphs, charts, figures, and diagrams.
- Develop and justify psychological arguments using evidence.
Introductory Unit (Weeks 1-3)
Week 1: The Need for Psychological Science
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Identify the type of research design(s) used in a given study
- Provide reasoning that is grounded in scientifically derived evidence to support, refute, or modify an established or provided claim, policy, or norm.
- Explain why scientific research is an essential foundation of psychology.
- Generate questions about human behavior.
Week 2: The Scientific Method and Description
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Identify operational definitions of variables in research scenarios to determine how well the definitions allow for the study to be replicated.
- Identify the hypothesis of a research scenario, including whether the hypothesis is falsifiable.
- Apply psychological perspectives, theories, concepts, and research findings to a scenario.
- Evaluate survey techniques and wording.
- Propose a defensible claim.
Week 3: Research Design and Ethics in Everyday Life
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain the relationship between heredity and environment in shaping behavior and mental processes.
- Evaluate whether a psychological research scenario followed appropriate ethical procedures
- Evaluate whether the results of a correlational study have a directionality problem or third variable problem that demonstrates that correlation does not equal causation
- Interpret quantitative or qualitative inferential data
- Experimental methodology involves the use of independent variable(s) and random assignment to groups.
- Identify the independent variable(s), dependent variable(s), and/or confounding variables in a research scenario
- Evaluate whether a psychological research scenario followed appropriate ethical procedures
- Calculate and interpret measures of central tendency, variation, and percentile rank in a given data set
Unit 1: Biological Basis of Behavior (Weeks 4-7)
Unit Level Essential Questions:
- Why do we learn biology in a psychology course?
- How does knowledge of the connection between biological systems and mental processes help us live healthier lives?
- How much of who you are is determined by what’s in your brain?
Week 4: Genetics and The Nervous System
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain the relationship between heredity and environment in shaping behavior and mental processes.
- Differentiate among the subsystems of the human nervous system and their functions.
- Explain how the structures and functions of typical neurons in the central nervous system affect behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how the basic process of neural transmission is related to behavior and mental processes.
- Differentiate how different psychoactive drugs affect behavior and mental processes.
Week 5: The Brain
Weekly Learning Objective
- Identify the structure and functions of the brain.
- Explain how the structures and functions of the brain apply to behavior and mental processes.
Week 6: Sleep and Consciousness
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how the sleep/wake cycle affects behavior and mental processes throughout the day and night.
Week 7: Sleep
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how the process of sensation is related to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how the structures and functions of the visual sensory system relate to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how the structures and functions of the auditory sensory system relate to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how the structures and functions of the chemical sensory systems relate to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how the structures and functions of the touch sensory system relate to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how the structures and functions of the pain sensory system relate to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how the structures and functions that maintain balance (vestibular) and body movement (kinesthetic) relate to behavior and mental processes.
Week 8: Review and Assessment Week (Units 1 & 2)
Unit 2: Cognition (Weeks 9-13)
Unit Level Essential Questions:
- Can you always trust your senses?
- Why don’t people always make good decisions?
- What strategies do you use to help you remember important things?
- Why aren’t our memories recorded by the brain exactly how we experienced them?
Week 9: Perception
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how internal and external factors influence perception.
- Explain how visual perceptual processes produce correct or incorrect interpretations of stimuli.
Week 10: Thinking, Problem-Solving, Judgements, and Decision Making
- Explain how psychological concepts and theories account for thinking, problem-solving, judgment, and decision-making.
Week 11: Encoding and Storing Memories
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how the types, structures, and processes of memory work.
- Explain how different encoding processes work to get information into memory.
Week 12: Forgetting and Retrieving Memories
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how memory storage processes retain information in memory.
- Explain how memory retrieval processes get information out of memory.
- Explain possible reasons why memory failure or errors may occur.
Week 13: Intelligence and Achievement
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how modern and historical theories describe intelligence.
- Identify the ways intelligence is measured.
- Evaluate how systemic issues relate to the quantitative and qualitative uses of intelligence assessments.
- Compare how academic achievement is measured and experienced as compared to intelligence.
Unit 3: Development and Learning (Weeks 14-18)
Unit Level Essential Questions:
- Are you the same person now as you were when you were 10 years old?
- Do you think you will be the same person in 10 years as you are now?
- How do parents know if their baby is hungry?
- How can you unlearn a bad habit and replace it with a new, better one?
Week 14: Psychological Development Across the Lifespan
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Apply physical development before birth to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how physical development in infancy and childhood apply to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how physical development in adolescence applies to behavior and mental processes.
- Apply physical development in adulthood applies to behavior and mental processes.
- Describe how sex and gender influence socialization and other aspects of development
Week 15: Cognitive Development Across the Lifespan
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Apply theories of cognitive development to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how key components of language and communication apply to behavior and mental processes.
- Describe how language develops in humans.
Week 16: Emotional Development Across the Lifespan
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how social development relates to behavior and mental processes.
- Identify elements of psychological research.
- Interpret data to explain human behavior.
Week 17: Classical and Operant Conditioning
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how classical conditioning applies to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how operant conditioning applies to behavior and mental processes.
- Identify elements of psychological research
Week 18: Social Learning
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how operant conditioning applies to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how social learning applies to behavior and mental processes.
2. Explain how cognitive factors in learning apply to behavior and mental processes.
Week 19: Review and Assessment Week (Units 3 & 4)
Unit 4: Social Psychology and Personality (Weeks 20-24)
Unit Level Essential Questions:
- Do people act the same when they are alone versus when they are in a group?
- How do expectations, biases, and attitudes affect our relationships with ourselves and others?
- Why do you do what you do? Is your “why” determined by your personal choices or what you are rewarded to do?
Week 20: Psychology of Social Situations
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how attribution theory applies to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how stereotypes and implicit attitudes contribute to the behaviors and mental processes of prejudice and discrimination.
- Explain how belief perseverance and cognitive dissonance apply to attitude formation and change.
Week 21: The Behavior of the Group
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how the social situation affects behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how being in a group can affect an individual’s behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how prosocial behavior affects behavior and mental processes.
Week 22: Personality
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how the psychodynamic theory of personality defines and assesses personality.
- Explain how the humanistic theory of personality defines and assesses personality.
- Explain how the social- cognitive theory of personality defines and assesses personality.
- Explain how trait theories of personality define and assess personality.
Week 23: Motivation
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how locus of control (internal and external) applies to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how theories about motivation apply to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how eating and belongingness motivate behavior and mental processes.
Week 24: Theories of Emotion
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how theories of emotion apply to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how social norms and experiences influence the expression of emotions.
Unit 5: Mental and Physical Health (Weeks 25-29)
Unit Essential Questions:
- How do psychologists define “normal” behavior, thinking, and acting?
- How can we apply health, positive, and clinical psychology principles to change our lives, organizations, and communities in positive ways?
- Where can someone find help if they think they or someone they care about is experiencing a psychological illness?
Week 25: Health Psychology
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how health psychology addresses issues of physical health and wellness as they apply to behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how stress applies to behavior and mental processes, and how people cope.
- Explain how reactions to stress apply to behavior and mental processes.
Week 26: Positive Psychology
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Explain how positive psychology approaches the study of behavior and mental processes.
- Explain how positive subjective experiences apply to behavior and mental processes.
- Identify psychology related concepts in descriptions or representations of data.
- Evaluate the appropriate use of research design elements in experimental methodology
Week 27: Causes of Psychological Disorders
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Describe the approaches used to define behaviors and mental processes as psychological disorders.
- Explain how psychological perspectives define psychological disorders.
- Evaluate the appropriate use of research design elements in experimental methodology.
Week 28: Anxiety and Dissociative Disorders
- Describe the symptoms and possible causes of selected neurodevelopmental disorders.
- Describe the symptoms and possible causes of selected obsessive-compulsive disorders and related disorders.
- Describe the symptoms and possible causes of selected dissociative disorders.
- Explain how cultural norms, expectations, and circumstances, as well as cognitive biases apply to behavior and mental processes.
Week 29: Depressive and Schizophrenic Disorders
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Describe the symptoms and possible causes of selected schizophrenic spectrum disorders.
- Describe the symptoms and possible causes of selected bipolar disorders.
- Describe the symptoms and possible causes of selected anxiety disorders.
- Interpret quantitative or qualitative inferential data from a given table, graph, chart, figure, or diagram.
Week 30: Treatment of Psychological Disorders
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Describe research and trends in the treatment of psychological disorders
- Describe ethical principles in the treatment of psychological disorders
- Describe techniques used in treatment of psychological therapies.
- Explain how group therapy is different from individual therapy.
- Describe effective uses of hypnosis.
- Describe interventions derived from the biological perspective.
- Apply psychological perspectives, theories, concepts, and research to a scenario
Unit 6: AP Practice Exam and Review (Weeks 31-33)
Week 31: AP Practice Exam
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Discuss challenges encountered this year
- Study for the AP Practice Exam
- Prepare for the "real" AP Exam
- Complete a full-length AP Practice Exam
Week 32: AP Practice Exam Reflection
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Discuss the challenges you encountered when taking the AP Practice Exam and share strategies for answering questions
- Review and reflect on your performance on the AP Practice Exam
Week 33: Course Reflection and Wrap Up
Weekly Learning Objectives
- Discuss your achievements and challenges throughout the course
- Share feedback on the course with VHS