← Psychology syllabus

United StatesPsychology

Unit 1: Biological Bases of Behavior

6 dot points across 6 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How do heredity and environment interact to shape behavior and mental processes?

Topic 1.1 Interaction of Heredity and Environment: explain how the interaction of nature and nurture, studied through twin, family, and adoption research, shapes psychological traits.
A focused answer to AP Psychology Topic 1.1, covering the nature-nurture interaction, heritability, the evolutionary perspective, and how twin, family, and adoption studies let psychologists separate genetic from environmental influences on behavior.
11 min answer →

How is the nervous system organized, and how do its divisions and the endocrine system control behavior?

Topic 1.2 Overview of the Nervous System: describe the organization of the central and peripheral nervous systems, the somatic and autonomic divisions, and the role of the endocrine system.
A focused answer to AP Psychology Topic 1.2, mapping the central and peripheral nervous systems, the somatic and autonomic divisions, the sympathetic and parasympathetic branches, and how the endocrine system and hormones complement neural communication.
11 min answer →

How do our sensory systems detect and transmit information about the world to the brain?

Topic 1.6 Sensation: explain transduction, sensory thresholds and adaptation, and how the visual, auditory, and other sensory systems detect and encode stimuli.
A focused answer to AP Psychology Topic 1.6, covering transduction, absolute and difference thresholds, Weber's law, signal detection, sensory adaptation, and how vision, hearing, and the other senses turn physical stimuli into neural signals.
12 min answer →

Why do we sleep and dream, and how are sleep cycles and disorders explained?

Topic 1.5 Sleep: describe the stages of sleep and the sleep cycle, the role of circadian rhythms, theories of why we sleep and dream, and major sleep disorders.
A focused answer to AP Psychology Topic 1.5, covering circadian rhythms, the NREM and REM stages of the sleep cycle, theories of why we sleep and dream, REM rebound, and the major sleep disorders such as insomnia, narcolepsy, and sleep apnea.
11 min answer →

How do the structures of the brain control behavior, and how do psychologists study and measure them?

Topic 1.4 The Brain: identify the major structures of the brain and their functions, explain hemispheric specialization and plasticity, and describe the tools used to study the brain.
A focused answer to AP Psychology Topic 1.4, mapping the brainstem, limbic system, and cerebral cortex and their functions, explaining the lobes, hemispheric specialization, split-brain findings, neuroplasticity, and the EEG, fMRI, and lesion methods used to study the brain.
13 min answer →

How do neurons communicate, and how do neurotransmitters and drugs affect that communication?

Topic 1.3 The Neuron and Neural Firing: explain the structure of the neuron, the action potential, synaptic transmission, and how neurotransmitters and drugs influence neural communication.
A focused answer to AP Psychology Topic 1.3, explaining neuron structure, the resting and action potential, the all-or-none and refractory principles, synaptic transmission, major neurotransmitters, and how agonists and antagonists alter neural communication.
12 min answer →