AP Psychology Unit 3 Summary

Overview

These notes cover AP Psychology Unit 3: major themes and methods in development, physical, cognitive, language, and social-emotional development, plus learning from behavioral and social learning perspectives.

Themes & Methods in Developmental Psychology (Unit 3.1)

• Major debates:

  • Stability vs change: whether traits like temperament or intelligence remain consistent or shift over time.
  • Nature vs nurture: relative influence of genes versus environment on development.
  • Continuous vs discontinuous: whether development is gradual or happens in distinct stages.

• Research designs:

  • Cross-sectional: different age groups studied at one time; quick age comparisons, no individual change over time.
  • Longitudinal: same individuals followed over years; shows how people change, but time- and resource-intensive.

Physical Development Across the Lifespan (Unit 3.2)

Prenatal Development: Influencing Factors

• Teratogens: drugs, alcohol, chemicals that enter mother’s body and harm fetus; can cause birth defects and brain problems.
• Maternal illness: infections (e.g., rubella) can damage baby’s hearing, vision, or heart.
• Genetic mutations: DNA changes before birth; can cause Down syndrome and other disorders.
• Hormonal factors: hormone imbalances in the mother can disrupt fetal growth.
• Environmental factors: pollution, radiation, maternal stress; can harm growth and later health or behavior.

Physical Development in Infancy & Childhood

• Motor coordination:

  • Fine motor skills: small hand movements (grasping, drawing, buttoning); begin around 3–4 months, more complex by age 2–3.
  • Gross motor skills: large muscle movements (rolling, crawling, walking, running); roll 4–6 months, crawl 6–10 months, walk ~12 months, run/climb by 2–3 years.

• Infant reflexes:

  • Automatic survival responses present at or soon after birth.
  • Example: rooting reflex – turn toward touch on cheek to find nipple; indicates normal nervous system development.

• Depth perception:

  • Visual cliff: glass-covered drop-off; 6‑month‑old babies hesitate at “cliff,” showing depth perception and fear of falling.

• Critical and sensitive periods:

  • Critical period: experiences must occur for normal development.
    • Early visual input (birth–3 months) needed for normal vision processing.
    • Before age 1, babies must form attachment with caregiver for healthy bonding.
  • Sensitive period: best time for learning; later learning possible but harder.
    • Birth–3: especially good at learning native language sounds.
    • 2–7: rapid vocabulary growth and grammar.
    • 3–8: fast fine motor development (writing, drawing).
    • 4–10: easier to learn second language fluently.
    • 5–12: quicker learning of musical or athletic skills.

• Imprinting (non-human):

  • In birds like ducks/geese: strong attachment to first moving object seen after hatching.
  • Occurs within hours; promotes safety and staying close to caregiver.

Physical Development in Adolescence

• Puberty:

  • Transition from child to adult body; body hair, deeper voice in boys, breast development in girls, emotional and thinking changes.
  • Adolescent growth spurt: rapid height/weight gain; girls ~10–12, boys ~12–14, lasts several years.

• Sex characteristics:

  • Primary sex characteristics: directly involved in reproduction.
    • Girls: start menstruation (menarche).
    • Boys: begin producing sperm (spermarche).
  • Secondary sex characteristics: not directly reproductive (voice change, breasts, body hair).

Physical Development in Adulthood

• Early adulthood:

  • Peak strength, speed, and health in 20s and early 30s; growth levels off.

• Later adulthood:

  • Gradual physical decline: slower movement and reaction time, less flexibility, reduced vision and hearing sharpness.
  • Menopause: end of menstruation and fertility, typically late 40s–early 50s.

Sex & Gender in Development (Unit 3.3)

• Sex:

  • Biological traits: chromosomes, hormones, reproductive organs.
  • Influence physical traits: height, muscle mass, voice depth, timing of puberty; females typically enter puberty earlier, males gain more muscle.

• Gender:

  • Socially defined roles, behaviors, expectations; about identity and expression, varies across cultures and time.

• Gender schema theory:

  • Children form mental categories (schemas) of “male” and “female.”
  • Use schemas to guide behavior, attention, and interpretation of the world.

• Gender socialization:

  • Learning gender roles via family, peers, media.
  • Families: different toys, chores, and encouraged behaviors for boys vs girls.
  • Peers: reward gender-conforming behavior; tease or discourage deviations.
  • Media: portray stereotypical characters children often imitate.

Cognitive Development Across the Lifespan (Unit 3.4)

Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

• Processes of learning:

  • Assimilation: fitting new information into existing schemas (calling a zebra a “horse”).
  • Accommodation: changing schemas to fit new information (creating separate “zebra” category).

• Development:

  • Feels continuous through ongoing assimilation/accommodation.
  • Also discontinuous through qualitatively different stages of thinking.

Piaget’s Stages

• Egocentrism: difficulty seeing from others’ perspectives.
• Animism: belief objects have feelings or thoughts.
• Reversibility: understanding processes can be reversed (addition/subtraction).
• Theory of mind: understanding others have separate thoughts, beliefs, desires.

Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory

• Emphasis:

  • Social and cultural interactions shape thinking more than independent exploration.

• Scaffolding (Bruner):

  • Temporary support from a more skilled person (hints, questions, breaking tasks).
  • Support gradually removed as child masters task.

• Zone of proximal development (ZPD) (Vygotsky):

  • Range between what child can do alone and what they can do with help.
  • Ideal difficulty: not too easy or too hard when assisted.

Cognitive Development in Adulthood

• Crystallized intelligence:

  • Use of accumulated knowledge, skills, experience (facts, vocabulary).
  • Stays strong or improves with age due to long-term learning.

• Fluid intelligence:

  • Quick thinking, novel problem-solving, adapting without prior knowledge.
  • Tends to decline with age as processing speed and working memory slow.

• Dementia:

  • Age-related cognitive disorder.
  • Symptoms: memory loss, confusion, language problems, poor decision-making, difficulty with daily tasks.

Communication & Language Development (Unit 3.5)

What Is Language?

• Definition:

  • Shared system of arbitrary symbols, rule-governed, generative.

• Arbitrary symbols:

  • Word sounds do not naturally match the objects (e.g., “dog” sound has no natural link to dog).

• Basic language units:

  • Phonemes: smallest units of sound (d‑o‑g).
  • Morphemes: smallest units with meaning (dog = 1; dogs = dog + s = 2).
  • Semantics: meanings of words and phrases.

• Grammar:

  • Rules for forming words and sentences; includes:
    • Tense changes (walk → walked).
    • Plural formation (add “s”).

• Syntax:

  • Rules for word order in sentences (“The cat chased the mouse,” not “Chased the mouse the cat”).

• Generativity:

  • Finite words and rules can create infinite sentences and ideas.

Stages of Language Development

Language Learning Errors

• Overgeneralization:
  • Applying a rule too broadly (e.g., “runned” instead of “ran”).
  • Shows active rule learning, even when irregular forms are wrong.

Social-Emotional Development (Unit 3.6)

Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory

• Emphasizes that development is shaped by multiple interacting environmental layers.

Parenting Styles

Attachment Styles

• Secure attachment:

  • Caregiver is consistent, comforting, dependable.
  • Child explores freely, returns for support; later shows trust and healthier relationships.

• Insecure attachment:

  • Caregiver inconsistent, unresponsive, or frightening.

  • More difficulty with trust, emotion regulation, close relationships.

  • Avoidant:

    • Caregiver often ignores or rejects needs.
    • Child hides feelings, avoids seeking comfort; appears very independent but struggles emotionally.

  • Anxious:

    • Caregiver sometimes responsive, sometimes not.
    • Child becomes clingy, worried, overly dependent.

  • Disorganized:

    • Caregiver is both comfort and fear (e.g., abuse, trauma).
    • Child shows confusion, unpredictable or fearful behavior, difficulty forming stable relationships.

Related Concepts: Temperament, Separation Anxiety, Comfort vs Food

• Temperament:

  • Inborn style of reacting (calm, active, sensitive).
  • Affects ease of attachment; sensitive babies may need more comfort to feel secure.

• Separation anxiety:

  • Distress when caregiver leaves or around strangers.
  • Begins around 8–12 months; indicates attachment to caregiver as safety source.

• Comfort vs food (Harlow):

  • Baby monkeys chose soft cloth “mother” over wire “mother” providing food.
  • Shows comfort and security more central to attachment than feeding alone.

Peer Relationships

• Childhood:

  • Parallel play: young children play side by side, little direct interaction.
  • Pretend play: acting out roles (superheroes, animals, house); builds cooperation, imagination, empathy.

• Adolescence:

  • Increased time with peers and concern about peer opinions.

  • Adolescent egocentrism: intense self-focus and concern about how others see them.

  • Imaginary audience:

    • Belief everyone is watching and judging them.
    • Example: thinking everyone noticed and laughed after tripping.

  • Personal fable:

    • Belief experiences and feelings are unique and incomparable.
    • Example: thinking “no one has ever felt this heartbroken,” or “nothing bad can happen to me.”

Adult Social Lives

• Social clock:

  • Cultural timetable for major life events (school completion, job, marriage, children).
  • Being “on” or “off” this clock affects self-view and others’ judgments.

• Emerging adulthood:

  • Period from late teens to mid‑20s in some cultures.
  • Identity exploration in work, relationships, and roles before full adult commitments.

• Adult relationships:

  • Include romantic partners, close friends, chosen families.
  • Healthy ones are based on mutual support, love, respect, and reciprocity.

• Adult attachment styles:

  • Childhood attachment patterns influence adult trust and closeness.
  • Secure childhood attachment often leads to easier, stable adult relationships.
  • Insecure attachment can lead to fear of abandonment, trust issues, or difficulty with intimacy; change is still possible.

Erikson’s Psychosocial Stages

• Shows social-emotional growth continues across entire lifespan.

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

• Harmful childhood events:
  • Abuse, neglect, domestic violence, substance problems at home.
  • Can impair later relationships, trust, emotional safety, and coping.
  • Cultural differences influence which experiences are seen as most harmful.

Marcia’s Identity Status Theory

• Identity develops through exploration and integration of multiple domains:
  • Racial/ethnic identity: connection to cultural background.
  • Gender identity: understanding and expression of gender.
  • Sexual orientation: who one is attracted to.
  • Religious identity: spiritual beliefs.
  • Occupational identity: desired work or career.
  • Familial identity: roles in family, type of family desired.
• “Possible selves” help in planning, goal setting, and shaping future choices.

Behavioral Perspective on Learning & Development (Units 3.7–3.9)

• Focus:
  • Learning from observable experiences only; does not consider cognitive or social-emotional processes.
• Three main forms:
  • Classical conditioning.
  • Operant conditioning.
  • Social learning theory (bridges behavior and cognition).

Classical Conditioning (Unit 3.7)

• Overall:
  • Learning by association between two stimuli over time.
  • Example: lullaby before bed leads to feeling sleepy upon hearing lullaby.

Core Terms in Classical Conditioning

• Extinction:

  • CR weakens when CS repeatedly appears without US (bell without food; dog stops drooling).

• Spontaneous recovery:

  • Temporary return of extinguished CR after a rest (dog drools again at bell after a pause).

• Stimulus discrimination:

  • Learning to respond only to specific stimulus, not similar ones (drooling only to high-pitched bell).

• Stimulus generalization:

  • Responding to stimuli similar to original CS (dog drools to phone ring sounding like bell).

• Higher-order conditioning:

  • New neutral stimulus becomes CS by pairing with existing CS (light → bell → food; light eventually elicits drooling).

• Counterconditioning:

  • Replace unwanted response with desired one by new pairing (pair feared dog with candy to reduce fear).

• Taste aversion:

  • Avoiding food linked to sickness, even if food not real cause (flu after spaghetti → later nausea at spaghetti).

• One-trial learning:

  • Strong association formed after a single exposure (often in taste aversion).

• Biological preparedness:

  • Some associations learned more easily due to evolutionary survival value (fears of snakes/spiders easier than of spoons).

• Habituation:

  • Reduced response to repeated, harmless stimulus (stop noticing plane noise near new house).

Operant Conditioning (Unit 3.8)

• Overall:
  • Learning based on consequences of behavior (rewards and punishments).
  • Classical conditioning: “what predicts what”; operant conditioning: “what follows what.”

Law of Effect

• Behaviors followed by satisfying outcomes become more likely.
• Behaviors followed by unpleasant outcomes become less likely.

Reinforcement vs Punishment; Positive vs Negative

• Reinforcement: always aims to increase behavior.
• Punishment: always aims to decrease behavior.
• “Positive” = adding; “negative” = taking away.

Reinforcers

• Reinforcer:

  • Anything that makes behavior more likely to occur again.

• Primary reinforcer:

  • Naturally rewarding; no learning needed (food, water, warmth).

• Secondary reinforcer:

  • Gains value by association with primary reinforcers (money, praise, stickers, game points).

Discrimination & Generalization in Operant Context

• Reinforcement discrimination:

  • Learning that a behavior is rewarded in some situations but not others (raising hand works in class, not at dinner).

• Reinforcement generalization:

  • Behavior rewarded in one setting appears in similar settings even without reward (saying “please” at home and then elsewhere).

Shaping & Related Concepts

• Shaping:

  • Teaching new behavior by reinforcing small steps (successive approximations) toward the final behavior.
  • Example: reinforcing “b,” then “bana,” then “banana.”

• Successive approximations:

  • Intermediate behaviors increasingly close to desired final response.

• Instinctive drift:

  • Tendency for learned behavior to revert to biological instincts (dog returns to chasing rather than sitting still).

• Superstitious behavior:

  • Behavior repeated because person wrongly believes it caused an outcome (lucky shirt on test day).

• Learned helplessness:

  • Giving up because actions seem unable to influence outcomes.
  • Example: child stops trying in math after repeated failures.

Reinforcement Schedules

• Continuous reinforcement:

  • Reward every time behavior occurs (treat every sit).
  • Fast learning but quick extinction when rewards stop.

• Partial (intermittent) reinforcement:

  • Reward only some of the time.
  • Slower learning but more resistant to extinction.

Social Learning Theory (Unit 3.9)

• Overall:
  • People learn by observing and imitating others, not just through direct rewards or punishments.

Key Terms

• Vicarious conditioning:

  • Learning by seeing what happens to others.
  • Vicarious reinforcement: observing someone else being rewarded increases your similar behavior.
  • Vicarious punishment: observing others punished decreases your similar behavior.

• Modeling:

  • Imitating behavior of a “model.”
  • More likely when model is similar to observer, admired, or successful/socially accepted.

• Insight learning:

  • Sudden solution appears without trial-and-error or imitation (light-bulb moment).
  • Example: chimp suddenly stacking boxes to reach banana.

• Latent learning:

  • Learning that occurs without reinforcement and is not shown until needed.
  • Example: knowing school layout without trying, then using it when needed.

• Cognitive maps:

  • Mental representations of physical spaces.
  • Formed by moving through environment; help navigation without explicit instruction.

Key Terms & Definitions

• Stability vs change: whether core traits remain the same or alter across lifespan.
• Nature vs nurture: genes vs environment in shaping development.
• Continuity vs discontinuity: gradual change vs stage-like jumps.
• Critical period: narrow window when experiences must occur for typical development.
• Sensitive period: best time to learn; learning still possible later, but harder.
• Object permanence: understanding objects exist when unseen.
• Egocentrism: difficulty considering others’ perspectives.
• Conservation: quantity stays same despite changes in shape or appearance.
• Crystallized intelligence: accumulated knowledge and skills.
• Fluid intelligence: flexible, fast problem-solving in new situations.
• Phoneme: smallest sound unit in a language.
• Morpheme: smallest meaningful unit in language.
• Semantics: meaning of words and phrases.
• Syntax: rules for word order in sentences.
• Teratogen: harmful prenatal agent causing developmental problems.
• Attachment: emotional bond between child and caregiver.
• Social clock: cultural timeline for major life milestones.
• Identity achievement/diffusion/foreclosure/moratorium: Marcia’s four identity statuses.
• Classical conditioning: learning by associating two stimuli.
• Operant conditioning: learning via consequences of behavior.
• Reinforcement: consequence that increases behavior.
• Punishment: consequence that decreases behavior.
• Habituation: decreasing response to repeated, harmless stimulus.
• Modeling: learning by imitating others’ behavior.
• Latent learning: hidden learning not shown until useful.

Action Items / Next Steps

• Complete the Unit 3 study guide while reviewing these notes.
• Use flashcards for all bolded/key terms, focusing on definitions and examples.
• Practice identifying and labeling classical and operant conditioning elements in new scenarios.
• Apply social, cognitive, and learning theories to sample FRQs and multiple-choice questions.

Certainly! Here's a list of important definitions with one clear example for each:

Developmental Psychology Key Ideas

Major Themes

• Stability vs Change: Do traits stay the same or change?
  Example: A shy baby remains shy as a teenager.
• Nature vs Nurture: Genes vs environment influence.
  Example: A child is intelligent because of their parents’ genes or because they have great teachers.
• Continuous vs Discontinuous: Gradual growth or stages.
  Example: Learning to walk happens gradually; learning to talk happens in stages.

Research Methods

• Cross-sectional: Study different ages at once.
  Example: Comparing memory skills between 5-year-olds and 10-year-olds today.
• Longitudinal: Study same people over time.
  Example: Following a group of kids from age 5 to 15 to see how their behavior changes.

Physical Development

Prenatal

• Teratogens: Harmful substances affecting fetus.
  Example: Drinking alcohol causing fetal alcohol syndrome.

Infancy & Childhood

• Gross motor skills: Big movements.
  Example: A baby crawling at 7 months.
• Fine motor skills: Small movements.
  Example: A toddler using a spoon at age 2.
• Reflexes: Automatic baby responses.
  Example: Rooting reflex where baby turns head to cheek touch.
• Depth perception: Ability to judge distance.
  Example: Babies hesitate when placed near the “visual cliff.”
• Critical periods: Timing when experiences must happen.
  Example: Babies need light exposure early for normal vision.

Adolescence

• Puberty: Body changes to adult form.
  Example: Girl starts menstruation around 12 years old.
• Primary sex characteristics: Reproductive organs develop.
  Example: Boys start producing sperm.
• Secondary sex characteristics: Other physical changes.
  Example: Voice deepening in boys.

Adulthood

• Strength peaks and then declines.
  Example: 25-year-old has more strength than 60-year-old.
• Menopause ends fertility in women.
  Example: Woman stops menstruating around age 50.

Sex & Gender

• Sex: Biological differences.
  Example: Male vs female chromosomes.
• Gender: Social roles and expectations.
  Example: Boys are often encouraged to play sports, girls to play with dolls.
• Gender schema: Mental categories of “boy” and “girl.”
  Example: A child associates blue with boys and pink with girls.
• Gender socialization: Learning gender roles.
  Example: Parents buy trucks for boys and dresses for girls.

Cognitive Development

Piaget’s Stages

• Sensorimotor: Learning via senses.
  Example: Baby realizes toy exists even when covered (object permanence).

• Preoperational: Using symbols but egocentric.
  Example: Child thinks everyone sees the world like they do.

• Concrete operational: Logical thinking about real objects.
  Example: Child understands water amount stays same in different shaped cups.

• Formal operational: Abstract thinking.
  Example: Teen reasons about fairness and justice.

• Assimilation: Fitting new info into old ideas.
  Example: Calling a zebra a “horse” because it has four legs.

• Accommodation: Changing ideas for new info.
  Example: Learning zebra is different from horse.

Vygotsky’s Theory

• Scaffolding: Support during learning.
  Example: Teacher guides child in puzzle, then lets child do the rest alone.
• Zone of proximal development: Tasks child can do with help.
  Example: Child can solve math problems with help but not alone.

Adults

• Crystallized intelligence: Knowledge from experience.
  Example: Older adult knows many facts.
• Fluid intelligence: Quick problem-solving.
  Example: Younger adult solves new puzzles faster.

Language Development

• Phonemes: Smallest sound units.
  Example: The “d” sound in “dog.”

• Morphemes: Smallest units with meaning.
  Example: “Dog” is 1 morpheme; “dogs” is 2 (dog + s).

• Semantics: Meaning of words.
  Example: Understanding “dog” means a type of animal.

• Syntax: Rules for word order.
  Example: “The cat chased the mouse” is correct, not “Chased the mouse the cat.”

• Generativity: Creating new sentences.
  Example: Saying “The big dog barked loudly” even if never heard it before.

• Language stages:

  • Cooing: Baby says “oo” or “ah.”
  • Babbling: Baby says “baba” or “dada.”
  • One-word: Toddler says “milk” to mean “I want milk.”
  • Telegraphic speech: Toddler says “go park” instead of full sentence.

• Overgeneralization: Applying rules too broadly.
  Example: Saying “runned” instead of “ran.”

Social-Emotional Development

Bronfenbrenner’s Systems

• Microsystem: Immediate environment (family, school).
  Example: Parent and teacher interaction impacts child.
• Mesosystem: Connections between microsystems.
  Example: Communication between family and school.
• Exosystem: Indirect environment affecting child.
  Example: Parent’s stressful job affects home life.
• Macrosystem: Cultural values and laws.
  Example: Society’s views on parenting styles.
• Chronosystem: Time and life events.
  Example: Moving to a new city or pandemic impact a child.

Parenting Styles

• Authoritative: Warm and strict.
  Example: Parent sets rules and listens to child.
• Authoritarian: Strict, less warm.
  Example: Parent demands obedience without explanation.
• Permissive: Warm but few rules.
  Example: Parent says “yes” to most requests.
• Uninvolved: Low warmth and control.
  Example: Parent neglects child’s needs.

Attachment Styles

• Secure: Reliable caregiver.
  Example: Child feels safe exploring and returns for comfort.
• Avoidant: Caregiver ignores child.
  Example: Child avoids closeness with others.
• Anxious: Caregiver inconsistent.
  Example: Child is clingy and worried.
• Disorganized: Caregiver is frightening.
  Example: Child shows confused, fear-based behavior.

Peer Relationships

• Parallel play: Kids play side-by-side, not together.
  Example: Two toddlers playing with blocks separately.
• Pretend play: Imaginary roles.
  Example: Children act like superheroes.
• Adolescent egocentrism: Teens focus on self-awareness.
  • Imaginary audience: Feeling everyone is watching.
    Example: Teen thinks everyone notices a pimple.
  • Personal fable: Teens feel unique.
    Example: “No one has ever felt this sad.”

Erikson’s Stages

• Trust vs Mistrust: Babies learn to trust caregivers.
  Example: Baby smiles when comforted.
• Identity vs Role Confusion: Teens explore who they are.
  Example: Teen tries different hobbies to find identity.

Marcia’s Identity Status

• Identity achievement: Explored options, made choices.
  Example: Choosing a college major after research.
• Identity foreclosure: Committed without exploring.
  Example: Following family career without question.
• Identity moratorium: Exploring, not yet decided.
  Example: Trying different clubs but unsure what fits.
• Identity diffusion: Not exploring or committed.
  Example: Unsure or uninterested in future plans.

Learning Perspectives

Classical Conditioning

• Example: Dog hears bell then gets food → dog drools at bell.

Operant Conditioning

• Positive reinforcement: Adding pleasant reward to increase behavior.
  Example: Getting candy for cleaning room.
• Negative reinforcement: Removing unpleasant stimulus to increase behavior.
  Example: Stopping loud noise when buckling seatbelt.
• Positive punishment: Adding unpleasant consequence to decrease behavior.
  Example: Extra chores for bad behavior.
• Negative punishment: Removing pleasant item to decrease behavior.
  Example: Taking phone away for staying out late.

Social Learning Theory

• Modeling: Learning by copying.
  Example: Child copies sibling’s polite manners.
• Vicarious conditioning: Learning by watching others’ rewards or punishments.
  Example: Student sees classmate praised and tries same behavior.
• Insight learning: Suddenly solving problem without trial-and-error.
  Example: Chimp stacking boxes to reach banana.
• Latent learning: Learning not shown until needed.
  Example: Child learns school layout by walking, then uses it when late.

If you'd like, I can focus on examples for a specific section or simplify further!