AP Psychology Practice Exam (Myers 2e text)

The Big Five model suggests that people can be rated along the dimensions of conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism, openness, and extraversion. This theory is best associated with which of the following?

• Trait theory

• Psychodynamic theory

• The cognitive approach

• The humanistic approach

• The biological approach

Warren has a bacterial infection that has affected the ability of the rods in his eyes to function correctly. This should have the greatest impact on which of the following?

• Visual clarity

• Peripheral vision

• Color vision

• Hearing high-frequency sounds

• Hearing low-frequency sounds

Seeking out information that supports our previously held beliefs, while discounting information that questions those beliefs, is an obstacle to problem solving known as

• functional fixedness.

• a logical fallacy.

• overconfidence.

• mental set.

• confirmation bias.

Joe is taking a new job on the night shift next week. His supervisors have informed him that initially he may have some problems with his level of alertness and his memory as he adjusts to his new schedule. Joe’s supervisors are sharing with Joe their knowledge of

• circadian rhythms.

• REM sleep.

• sleep spindles.

• the social clock.

• NREM sleep.

A researcher who is trying to determine how social-cultural changes might be correlated with the incidence of bipolar disorder would be most interested in which of the following?

• The brain changes in a person with bipolar disorder as measured by a PET scan

• Scientific measures of the heritability of the disorder

• The correlation between rates of poverty and cases of the disorder

• Neurotransmitter levels in patients diagnosed with the disorder

• The number of close biological relatives who also suffer from mood disorders

Zeina cocked her head to the side immediately when she heard the fire truck’s siren. Turning her head enabled each ear to detect a slightly different intensity of sound, thus enabling her to determine the siren’s

• timbre.

• pitch.

• frequency.

• location.

• tone.

A police officer who asks a witness to recall details about someone suspected of a crime would be asking the witness to

• listen to recordings of several voices to determine if the suspect’s voice is detected.

• select the suspect from a visual lineup of several similar people.

• describe the suspect’s physical qualities to a police sketch artist.

• determine if the suspect’s motive for the shooting seems believable.

• imagine a scenario in which the suspect could have acted in self-defense.

People diagnosed with OCD suffer from compulsions. Which of the following is a compulsion?

• Renee persistently thinks about the possible death of her loved ones.

• Eric frequently worries that there may be germs on his hands.

• Brianna has an ongoing worry that she might have left the oven on at home.

• Stefan often feels great anxiety if things are not in exact order in his room.

• Tyrik flips the light switch on and off seven times each time he walks in the front door.

When a person performs a heroic act solely for public praise, she is on which developmental level according to Lawrence Kohlberg?

• Preconventional

• Postconventional

• Conventional

• Concrete operational

• Formal operational

The bus driver was surprised when her first passenger asked her to turn the music down, because she thought the volume was fine. When the passenger said something, though, the driver realized the sound was too loud. The bus driver’s initial indifference to the volume can best be understood because

• the volume was below her absolute threshold.

• the driver had a decreased ability to determine the music’s pitch.

• the just noticeable difference of the music was too great.

• the driver had adapted to the volume of the music.

• the driver was using bottom-up processing instead of top-down processing.