Unit 0: Scientific Practices in  Psychology
Psychology has evolved markedly since its inception as a discipline in 1879 . There have been significant changes in the theories that psychologists use to explain behavior and mental processes . In addition, the methodology of psychological research has expanded to include a diversity of approaches to data gathering .  Which forms of research are appropriate for the study of different behaviors? How do psychologists draw appropriate conclusions about behavior from research? How do psychologists analyze and interpret quantitative data?  How do psychologists distinguish the purposes of descriptive statistics and inferential statistics?  How do psychologists make ethical decisions about researching behavior with human and animal subjects?  Stay tuned!  

Objectives:
  • Explore the historical roots and major theoretical approaches to psychology
  • Understand various research methods (experiments, correlational studies, surveys, case studies)
  • Learn about ethics in psychological research
  • Analyze data using descriptive statistics (mean, median, mode, standard deviation) and inferential statistics
  • Interpret data and draw conclusions from graphs and experiments
Science Practices Focused: Concept application, research design, data analysis, and argumentation
(Integrated across the exam)

The 8 Psychological Approaches

Different contemporary psychologists look at human behavior from different perspectives.  The contemporary psychological perspectives can be placed into eight categories. Ahead of the AP exam, be sure to review these psychological perspectives:

1. Humanist Perspective
2. Psychodynamic Perspective
3. Biopsychology (or Neuroscience) Perspective
4. Evolutionary (or Darwinian) Perspective
5. Behavioral Perspective
6. Cognitive Perspective
7. Social-Cultural (or Sociocultural) Perspective
8. Biopsychosocial Perspective

Resources
Past, Present, and Promise-DISCOVERING PSYCHOLOGY​
Intro to Psychology - Crash Course Psychology #1 (video)





​College Board Expects Students To:
  • Apply psychological perspectives, theories, concepts, and research findings to a scenario.
  • Explain how cultural norms, expectations, and circumstances, as well as cognitive biases apply to behavior and mental processes. 
  • Determine the type of research design(s) used in a given study. 
  • Evaluate the appropriate use of research design elements in experimental methodology.
  • Evaluate the appropriate use of research design elements in non-experimental methodologies.
  • Evaluate whether a psychological research scenario followed appropriate ethical procedures.
  • Identify psychology-related concepts in descriptions or representations of data.
  • Calculate and interpret measures of central tendency, variation, and percentile rank in a given data set.
  • Interpret quantitative or qualitative inferential data from a given table, graph, chart, figure, or diagram.
  • Propose a defensible claim.
  • Provide reasoning that is grounded in scientifically derived evidence to support, refute, or modify an established or provided claim, policy, or norm. 

Science Practices: Thinking Like a Psychologist

The science practices and skills are central to the study and practice of
psychology. Students should develop and apply the described skills on
a regular basis over the span of the course.
■ Concept Application
♦ Apply psychological perspectives, theories, concepts, and
research findings.
■ Research Methods and Design
♦ Evaluate qualitative and quantitative research methods and
study designs.
■ Data Interpretation
♦ Evaluate qualitative and quantitative research methods and
study designs.
■ Argumentation
♦ Develop and justify psychological arguments using evidence.

 Research Methods in Psychology​

Research methods concepts you learn in this unit will be incorporated throughout the rest of the course.  On the AP Exam, you will be asked to apply research methods to answer multiple-choice questions from each unit and in the free-response questions.
  • Differentiate types of research (e.g., experiments, correlational studies, survey research, naturalistic observations, and case studies) with regard to purpose, strengths, and weaknesses.
  • Describe how research design drives the reasonable conclusions that can be drawn (e.g., experiments are useful for determining cause and effect; the use of experimental controls reduces alternative explanations).
  • Identify independent, dependent, confounding, and control variables in experimental designs.
  • Distinguish between random assignment of participants to conditions in experiments and random selection of participants, primarily in correlational studies and surveys.
  • Predict the validity of behavioral explanations based on the quality of research design (e.g., confounding variables limit confidence in research conclusions).
  • Distinguish the purposes of descriptive statistics and inferential statistics.
  • Apply basic descriptive statistical concepts, including interpreting and constructing graphs and calculating simple descriptive statistics (e.g., measures of central tendency, standard deviation).
  • Discuss the value of reliance on operational definitions and measurement in behavioral research.
  • Identify how ethical issues inform and constrain research practices.
  • Describe how ethical and legal guidelines (e.g., those provided by the American Psychological Association, federal regulations, local institutional review boards) protect research participants and promote sound ethical practice.
Resources
Understanding Research-DISCOVERING PSYCHOLOGY
Psychological Research - Crash Course Psychology #2 (video)
​​Mr. Sinns Videos-Unit 0