AP Psychology

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*Just a heads up, the following list of resources contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, Fiveable will receive a small commission. This helps support our content creation and allows us to continue to make resources like this. Thank you for the support!


So you want a 5 on your AP Psych exam? Duh! Of course you do! Whether you want to study psychology in college or not at all, the credits you can earn from AP Psychology will come in handy. You’ll get credit for an intro to psychology course that can save you time with your general requirements and/or jump ahead to higher level psych classes.


Last year, only 21% of students that took the AP Psych exam scored a 5. You’ll need to surround yourself with the absolute best resources if you are headed toward a high score.



Although there are thousands of teacher websites and other free content across the internet, these five resources are proven to help students pass the exam with flying colors. Some of them are free, some cost as much as $40, but when you consider the amount of college credit you can earn, it’s a worthy investment to pass this exam.


 Kind of like tutoring, but in a group and all online. Every Tuesday night at 8pm, experienced teacher Megan Revello hosts a live review to discuss topics and write practice FRQs live. You can rewatch any of the live sessions as many times as you want!


The key feature that Fiveable has that you won’t find in any of the other listed resource is a live, real teacher to answer your questions whenever you have them. If you attend sessions live, you can submit questions for the teacher to discuss. The replay will get time-stamped with the answered questions, which makes it really easy to go back and review that answer



The cool thing about Fiveable is that even though the live reviews are at the core of this resource, there are several other key features like trivia games that members play live! There are thousands of members across the world and you can see how you stack up against them!


Cracking the AP Psychology Exam, Princeton Review

 For AP PSych, the Princeton Review prep book is a great resource because of the practice exams it includes. Although the content explanations are a bit long for a prep book, they are also written in a way that is easy to follow. 


 There are two full-length practice exams with answer keys that are incredibly useful to use. One of the best ways to study for AP Psych is to take as many practice multiple choice questions as you can because it’s 2/3 of your score on the exam.


There are test-taking strategies outlined in the beginning and we can’t stress enough how useful this is. Although you may be tempted to only focus on the content, it’s so important that you understand the skills so you can master the FRQs.


David Duez is a dedicated and experienced AP Psychology teacher from Texas. He has been building his website for years and it has become a massive resource for students around the world as they study for the exams. He is a page for each of the units and so many awesome materials embedded throughout.


Mr. Duez is a current AP Psych teacher and this site was primarily built for his own students, which is what makes it so helpful. There are videos, lectures, helpful links, and study guides throughout and it’s all hyper-focused on exactly what you need to know.


If you are self-studying for AP Psych, he has all of his agendas for class posted as well, so you can essentially follow along with his class!


 It’s an app! Actually, it’s a super useful app and super affordable ($4.99). There are tons of questions on here that cover all of the topics in a really straightforward way to help you study terms. These practice questions are not stimulus-based like the exam, but rather quick recall so you can play it a whole bunch of times.


 Vocabulary is such a big part of any AP exam and this app was created by teachers who truly understand the value of studying key terms. You can play the whole deck or focus just on a time period. Either way, if you play this a few times a week, you’ll be golden.


The entire app is designed as a massive trivia game for AP Psych students. there is a running leaderboard to see how you do against other students!


AMSCO Psychology: Preparing for the Advanced Placement Exam

 It’s a bit more than your average prep book, but way less than a textbook. A lot of teachers just use this as the textbook because it is so much more condensed in a good way! Each chapter is 10 pages or less and just gets to what’s important.


 It’s super easy to read and if you get it soon, you could definitely read the whole thing.


Every chapter has practice questions at the end, which are amazing! There are multiple-choice, short-answer, long-essay, and document-based questions that you can practice throughout. The only downside is the answer key is super secure and for teachers only, so you won’t have a quick way to check if you were right.

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???????? Bonus Resource: Facebook group for AP Psych students!

https://facebook.com/groups/appsychstudents


What resources do you use? Tweet us at 

5 AP Psych Resources for Students Who Want a 5 

If there was a holy trinity for AP study sites, Quizlet would most certainly be in it. Its easy to use interface combined with its multi-purpose functionality helps students of all different learning styles in endless subject areas. However, it can sometimes be challenging to find the best vocab sets. 

Fiveable’s AP Psych teachers & students have compiled the best quizlet study decks for each unit. The AP Psych exam is very vocabulary heavy, so make sure you take the time to learn these terms. 

Bookmark this page to use throughout the year!

Catch a live review this week for AP Psych! 

unit 1 key terms (10-14%): scientific foundations of psychology

AP Psychology Unit 1 revolves around the different branches/approaches of psychology, important figures in the field of psychology, and the scientific processes and methods used to develop ethical research. This first unit is a foundation for the rest of the course, so you’ll want to make sure you are super familiar with these 79 key terms.

Unit 1 AP Psychology (Scientific Foundations of Psychology) by Erica_Roberts270

 – A psychological approach based around experimentation and scientific studies.

 – Focuses on the celebratory aspects of individuals, such as personal growth and potential for improvement. One of the more optimistic approaches.

 – Analyzes the different levels of consciousness and the components of the personality (id, ego, and superego) to determine how they affect aspects of behavior.

 – Uses introspection to discover structural elements behind the human mind and thought.

 – The foundation of knowledge should revolve around experience opposed to theories. 

 – Each part of the brain serves a function to fulfill primary desires such as reproduction and survival. If it has no function, it adapts or becomes extinct.

unit 2 key terms (8-10%): biological basis of behavior

The second unit of AP Psychology introduces the biological approach of psychology through the brain’s structure and chemistry. A good quizlet for this unit will have visuals due to the large amount of brain anatomy. 

 – A chemical substance released by neurons to send signals to various parts of the body. Transmitted by neurons, hence the name.

 – The brain has the ability to change and is molded by damage, experience, trauma, and aging.

 – Connects the left and right brain hemisphere, permitting communication between the two. These fibers can be cut during surgery, resulting in a split brain.

 – A nerve cell capable of communicating and transferring information to other parts of the body. An important part of the nervous system. 

unit 3 key terms (6-8%): sensation & perception

In unit 3, the key focuses are sensation and perception. Sensations are the responses to certain stimuli, while perception is our interpretations of what we experience with the 5 senses. 

Remember that despite this unit being worth less on the AP exam than others, it still has several important key terms that you must know.

AP Psychology Sensation and Perception by Alejandro_Lozano1

 – Oftentimes, we may not pay attention to a conversation (auditory stimuli) until we hear our names. Ties into selective attention.

 – Lowest level of stimulation necessary for the detection of a stimulus half of the time.

 – Processing the “raw” information collected from a stimulus before the brain’s analysis.

 – Interpretation is made only after the brain connects the stimulus to existing information.

Unit 4 is all about something that all students should have plenty of experience with: learning! This unit is not only important because of the AP Psychology exam, but also because it can be applied to real world situations to assist in learning.

AP Psychology Learning by Kelly_Taylor182

 (UR/CR) – The response to stimuli, which can either be naturally occurring (unconditioned), or learned (conditioned).

 (US/CS) – A stimulus that naturally provokes a response (unconditioned), or one that has gone through conditioning to provoke an unnatural response.

 (NS) – During conditioning, the NS and US are combined to provoke a UR. Eventually, the NS is associated with the US and becomes a CS.

 – Demonstrated by Ivan Pavlov’s famous dog experiment. The US leads to a UR, and the NS leads to no response. Conditioning occurs, which results in the NS and US provoking a UR. The NS becomes a CS, provoking the CR.

 – Positive and negative reinforcement both serve the purpose of increasing behavior, but through different methods. Positive stimuli is presented in positive reinforcement, while negative stimuli is increased or decreased depending on the intended result in negative reinforcement.

 – Discovered by Martin Seligman during his famous 

experiment using dogs, animals can be conditioned into complete helplessness.

unit 5 key terms (13-17%): cognitive psychology

Weighted at a staggering 13-17% of questions on the multiple choice section, learning about cognitive psychology is of utmost importance for the AP Psychology exam. Cognition is a mental process used to acquire and comprehend knowledge. This is done through sensations, perceptions, and empirical data.

 – Incorrect information is capable of influencing memories and even creating false (implanted) memories.

 – Events related to an individual’s life. Can be remembered by thinking of your life in terms of episodes.

 – Specific details about something, the 

 – A memory you’re unaware of due to habituation.

 – The categorization of information for ease of memory. Phone numbers are chunked into groups of 3, 3, and 4 which affect memorization.

 – Echoic is auditory (think of echoing) and can be stored for 3-4 seconds. Iconic is visual (computer icons) and only able to be stored for 1/10th of a second. Haptic involves the sense of smell, and is stored for up to 2 seconds.

unit 6 key terms (7-9%): developmental psychology

Within the arguments of nature vs nurture in psychology, unit 6 focuses on the developmental aspect of psychology. Nature involves the biological and genetic aspects of a child, while nurture provokes discussions of attachment styles, external influences, and parenting styles.

 – Authoritarian parents have a “my way or the highway” outlook on parenting, with high demands/expectations and low freedom due to the controlling nature. Authoritarian parenting is linked to lower self-esteem and higher reliance on authority figures.

 – Not to be confused with authoritarian (think libertarian and authoritarian to remember), discipline and love are both high, but the foundational structure involves the rules and democratic approach. The parents have a say, but the children can also comment (unlike permissive or authoritarian parenting).

 – The parent has little to no interaction with the child. There is no give and take in this kind of relationship, just apathy and nearly unlimited freedom. Also called neglectful parenting.

 – The dynamic in permissive parenting is that a parent gives plenty of freedom while expecting very little in return. Freedom and love are high, while discipline is often low.

 – A modified version of Freud’s psychosexual theory created by Erik Erikson. Each stage serves as a challenge for an individual to put conflicting ideas to rest. Check out our Unit 6 Guide for more information!

 – An experiment performed by Mary Ainsworth with the purpose of determining attachment style. The mother, the child, and a stranger are in a room, alternating who stays and goes. The baby’s reaction is an indicator of attachment style.

 – Invented by Jean Piaget. Consists of the sensorimotor stage (0-2), preoperational stage (2-7), concrete operational stage (7-11), and the formal operational stage (12+). Check out our Unit 6 Guide for more information!

unit 7 key terms (11-15%): motivation, emotion, & personality

In unit 7, some psychological approaches and concepts previously mentioned return. Theories about motivation, emotion, and personality take up the bulk of this unit. 

Motivation, Emotion, and Personality by M_burbach

 – You can remember these traits with the acronym OCEAN. Openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.

 – Another acronym! Remember RRDDP. Regression, repression, denial, displacement, and projection.

 – An internal motivator, such as love.

 – An external motivator, such as scoring well on a test.

 – Where a person is located in life based on the needs they have fulfilled. 

unit 8 key terms (12-16%): clinical psychology

When most people think of psychology, they tend to think of clinical psychology, which is the focus of unit 8. Clinical psychology involves the treatment, diagnosis, approaches, and classification of psychological disorders. 

AP Psych Unit 8 – Clinical Psychology by Kelly_MSSH

There are many disorders and terms to discuss in this unit, but here are just a few key ones:

 – Extreme mood fluctuation between depressive symptoms and manic symptoms. Several types of Bipolar Disorder exist. 

 – Used to classify psychological disorders, created by the American Psychiatric Association. 

 (OCD) – Repetitive thoughts and actions are present and often uncontrollable. OCD is an anxiety disorder. 

 – Often characterized by delusions, auditory and visual hallucinations, and disorganized patterns of behavior, speech, and thought. 

 – Divided into three different clusters; A, B, and C.

Note: Different disorders manifest in a variety of ways depending on the individual and present symptoms. Find more in-depth information in our Unit 8 Review.

unit 9 key terms (8-10%): social psychology

Social psychology serves the purpose of showing how human behavior is influenced by various social settings. This unit consists of several popular experiments demonstrating various psychological phenomena.

 AP Psychology – Social Psychology by Scott_Melcher

A few of the psychological phenomena discovered through experiments are the following:

 – People tend to think and behave in similar ways when they’re within a group setting. 

 – If more people are present during a situation, they are less likely to intervene. 

 – If a person agrees to a small favor, a person is more likely to agree to a larger favor later. 

Hopefully, these decks can help you study for your tests and ultimately, the AP exam. The best feature about Quizlet is how you can play games and use the flashcards wherever you are. When you are studying, you can always duplicate a deck and customize to your own needs.

Best AP Psych Quizlet Decks by Unit 


Unit 8 of AP Psychology (also known as the clinical psychology unit) covers 12-16% of the AP exam’s material. In this unit, you will learn about the evaluation, treatment, and classification of psychological disorders.


👉 

Explore all the AP Psych review guides, slides, and videos. 

Psychological disorders are diagnosed using criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) by licensed psychologists and/or psychiatrists. The DSM was created and is updated by the American Psychiatric Association (APA). The most recent edition of the DSM is the DSM-5, released in 2013.

Somatic Symptom Disorder and other somatic disorders are identified by the presence of physical symptoms that impair normal functioning. No medical condition can be diagnosed due to the symptoms being created by thoughts, feelings, and behaviors related to the disorder. An example of a somatic disorder is anorexia nervosa. While an individual may not be overweight, their perception is caused by unrealistic thoughts and behaviors.

The cause of Neurocognitive Disorder is any non-psychiatric medical disease that decreases mental functioning. These conditions can be categorized as breathing conditions, infections, degenerative diseases, brain trauma, cardiovascular disorders, and substance-abuse disorders.

A broad spectrum of disorders exists under the anxiety disorder category. A common misconception involves the classification of obsessive-compulsive disorders and trauma-based disorders, which are considered to be anxiety disorders. For the AP exam, you should have an understanding of the following anxiety disorders.

 – Constant, exaggerated anxiety over most potential conflicts.

 – A prominent fear of social interactions and their consequences that leads to purposeful avoidance.

 – Anxiety is caused by consistent triggers associated with a past traumatic event.

 – Panic attacks and anxiety frequently occur. Panic attacks are characterized by an increased heart rate, hyperventilation, sweating, and shaking.

 – Characterized by obsessions and compulsions that interfere with daily life and functioning.

 – A strong, constant fear caused by a particular object or act.


Anxiety disorders are often influenced by stress, genetics, trauma, substance use, existing health conditions, and unbalanced levels of GABA and serotonin.



Mood disorders are disruptive, major changes in mood that impair daily functioning. These changes in mood can be rooted in depression, mania, or both. Here’s a list of several mood disorders you should be aware of.

 – High energy, minimal sleep, impulsive behaviors, restlessness.

 – Depressive and manic symptoms are both present.

 – Characterized by lethargy, isolation, disordered eating and sleeping patterns, suicidal thoughts and/or behaviors, and low interest in previously enjoyed activities. Low serotonin is a main contributing factor.

 – Depression present during certain seasons, most commonly fall and winter. Sunlight, serotonin, and melatonin are positively correlated, meaning that the amount of light present can affect neurotransmitters and sleep cycles.

 – A mild form of depression that lasts longer than two years.


Mood disorders are primarily influenced by chemical imbalance of neurotransmitters, but can also be influenced by environmental and genetic factors.




Typically caused by abnormal brain development or brain damage, neurodevelopmental disorders include the following:

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

 – Characterized by hyperactivity, impulsivity, and/or an ability to focus. One or more must be present for a diagnosis to be considered.

 – Unusual behavior, speech, interests, thoughts, and interactions are prominent features of ASD. Social cues may be difficult to understand, and behavior is often repetitive.


Dyslexia, dyscalculia, disgraphia, and stuttering are all learning disabilities, but are still considered neurodevelopmental disorders.


Not only psychologically damaging, eating disorders can also be deadly due to the inconsistent, unhealthy patterns of eating. Eating disorders vary, but are mostly centered around anxiety or aversion to food, often due to body image issues, previous experiences of food, or the physical properties (texture, taste, smell etc.) of food.


 – Delusions and anxiety regarding excessive weight are present leading to unhealthy methods of weight loss such as starvation. Despite being underweight, delusions continue.

 – Binge eating is present alongside cyclical patterns of purging food in an attempt to lose weight. This condition is extremely damaging to the throat and teeth due to the frequent purging.

 – Described as a loss of control regarding food portions resulting in overeating.


Other eating disorders not covered on the exam exist such as Avoidant Resistant Food Intake Disorder (ARFID)



A psychotic episode is an episode where an individual loses touch with reality, often by experiencing auditory and/or delusions and hallucinations that cannot be distinguished between real and false. These sensations may be false information from the senses, or unrealistic beliefs such as a person being watched constantly, having powers (or similar delusions of grandeur), etc.

The most well-known psychotic disorder is schizophrenia, which has both positive and negative symptoms. A positive symptom is a behavior added due to schizophrenia, while a negative symptom is a behavior that is no longer possible to do, or that is impaired. Delusions can be erotomanic, grandiose, jealous, persecutory, somatic, or mixed, as well as both possible and unlikely or impossible. Thoughts and speech are often disorganized and difficult for

People with schizophrenia likely have an excess of dopamine, high activity in the amygdala and thalamus, and low activity in the frontal lobe. Risk factors and triggers of schizophrenia include genetics, stress, biological abnormalities, abuse, or substance use.

Personality disorders are complex, difficult to treat disorders that impair daily functioning due to unusual behavioral patterns. 10 personality disorders exist within 3 different categories known as clusters. Most personality disorders are only diagnosed after turning 18 due to controversy regarding development of the personality.


Cluster A personality disorders contain eccentric and unusual characteristics and behaviors. Individuals may be detached from reality.



Schizoid Personality Disorder – Social detachment is present due to a lack of many emotions. Little pleasure or desire to form relationships occurs as well.

Paranoid Personality Disorder (PPD) – Constantly suspicious of others with a near inability to trust due to constant fear. Fears can be related to relationships, possessions, and motives.

Schizotypal Personality Disorder – Individuals are commonly seen as eccentric in their thoughts, behaviors, or speech. Delusions may occur leading the individual to believe they have powers, or that another person is untrustworthy. This in combination with the disorganized thought and speech patterns shows overlap with schizophrenia.

A lack of emotional regulation and an unrealistic perspective of self and others is present within cluster B personalities.

 – Characterized by a disregard for others through manipulation or violation of other individuals without any remorse. Early childhood signs of ASPD include bed-wetting, arson, and intentional harm done to animals.

 – Emotions rapidly shift regarding self and others. Individuals with BPD see the world in black and white extremes with very little or no moral gray areas. Behavior may be impulsive or reckless as a result of the emotional swings.

 – People with HPD strive to be the center of attention and to get approval from others. To achieve this goal, behaviors may be sexual, dramatic, or influenced heavily by the desires of others.

 – NPD is extremely difficult to treat due to the tendency to blame issues on other people. If criticized, people with NPD may become sensitive and defensive. The main goal for these individuals is often to get ahead in life, resulting in little to no empathy or remorse for others.

High levels of fear and anxiety drive individuals with cluster C personality disorders.

 – Characterized by low self-esteem, fear of rejection, and fear of judgement. As a result, any social activity is avoided out of fear.

 – Anxiety occurs when a perceived risk of abandonment, isolation, rejection, and/or criticism is present.

Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder (OCPD)

 – OCPD (not to be confused with OCD) is a condition where anxiety is caused by obsessive thoughts of perfection where the individual is unable to realize a problem exists. Compulsions occur during attempts to achieve perfection.

AP Psychology Exam Prep 2020

browse by unit

Live Cram Sessions 2020

Free Reviews 2020

Unit 1: Scientific Foundations of Psychology

Unit 2: Biological Bases of Behavior

Unit 3: Sensation and Perception

Unit 4: Learning

Unit 5: Cognitive Psychology

Unit 6: Developmental Psychology

Unit 7: Motivation, Emotion, & Personality

Unit 8: Clinical Psychology

Unit 9: Social Psychology

Course Overview

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)

Free Response Questions (FRQ)

Blogs

discussions

creators

John Mohl

Jenni MacLean

Allison Powell

Megan Revello

Mary Valdez

Kris Clancy

Darin Roodman

Dalia Savy

Anika Allen

Ashley Rossi

Emily Pedrazzi

Sadiyya Holsey

John Le

Sumi Vora

Victoria Kendall

Madeline Shober

Skyler Basco

Michael Sandler

AP Psychology Exam Prep 2020

browse by unit

Live Cram Sessions 2020﻿

Free Reviews 2020﻿

Unit 1: Scientific Foundations of Psychology﻿

Unit 2: Biological Bases of Behavior﻿

Unit 3: Sensation and Perception﻿

Unit 4: Learning﻿

Unit 5: Cognitive Psychology﻿

Unit 6: Developmental Psychology﻿

Unit 7: Motivation, Emotion, & Personality﻿

Unit 8: Clinical Psychology﻿

Unit 9: Social Psychology﻿

Course Overview﻿

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)﻿

Free Response Questions (FRQ)﻿

Blogs﻿

discussions

creators

John Mohl﻿

Jenni MacLean﻿

Allison Powell﻿

Megan Revello﻿

Mary Valdez﻿

Kris Clancy﻿

Darin Roodman﻿

Dalia Savy﻿

Anika Allen﻿

Ashley Rossi﻿

Emily Pedrazzi﻿

Sadiyya Holsey﻿

John Le﻿

Sumi Vora﻿

Victoria Kendall﻿

Madeline Shober﻿

Skyler Basco﻿

Michael Sandler﻿