MCAT PSYCHOLOGY EXAM 2025
QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS
LATEST UPDATE
A post office receives lots of incoming mail, organizes it, and then sends it out to
various locations. Which part of
the brain is a lot like a post office?
D. thalamus
a. basal ganglia
c. cerebellum
b. hypothalamus
D
Neurons are able to communicate when
A. neurotransmitters cross the synapse and bind with receptors on the
postsynaptic
dendrite.
b. electric signals jump across the synapse to the adjacent neuron.
c. terminal buttons plug into receptor sites on adjacent dendrites.
d. chemicals released into the synapse are converted to neurotransmitters that
bind with
receptors.
A
Mario is highly afraid of spiders. Which part of the brain would be activated if he
were to enter a room that had a
lot of spiders?
B. amygdala
a. hippocampus
c. thalamus
d. hypothalamus
B.
Regarding the factors potentially influencing behavior, which of the following
statements is true?
d. Behavior reflects an interaction between genetics and the environment.
a. Behavior mainly stems from environmental causes.
,b. Behavior is generated mainly by the endocrine system.
c. Behavior overwhelmingly reflects genetics.
D.
If you study in the same room in which you take an exam, you will probably do
better on the exam than if you had
studied elsewhere. This outcome occurs because of ________ memory.
A. context-dependent
c. episodic
b. semantic
d. state-dependent
A.
Gestalt theory is based on the idea that
c. the whole is different from the sum of its parts.
a. the environment affects behavior.
b. science should be used to understand therapy.
d. social situations influence behavior.
c.
Because of which of the following can you see different colors?
cones
One part of the neuron covers and protects it somewhat like bark that covers the
trunk of a tree. In a neuron this
protective covering is called
the myelin sheath.
When wild Arctic wolves hunt, their efforts are only sometimes reinforced
because finding food is difficult. The
fact that the wolves are only sometimes reinforced for hunting is an example of
________ reinforcement.
d. partial
a. continuous
c. fixed ratio
b. fixed interval
d.
Harry is reading the textbook for his astronomy class and is trying to relate the
material to his own life
experiences. According to the levels of processing model, Harry is more likely to
remember the information over
the long term because he is using
,c. deep processing.
a. reconsolidation.
b. shallow processing.
d. spreading activation.
C.
If a researcher wants to be able to generalize about a population using data
pulled from a sample, it is best to use
b random sample.
a. experience sampling.
c. a convenience sample.
d. a descriptive study.
b.
Michael is observing the people in his dorm and listing any behaviors that
indicate learning. Which of the
following should be included on Michael's list?
A Greg, who often whines until someone goes to the dining hall with him
b. Matt, who always forgets his keys in his room
c. Dan, who bumps into a door when he has the flu
d. Bill, who sometimes falls asleep while watching TV
A.
What are the two cues that allow you to determine where a sound is coming
from?
b. the time when the sound arrives in each ear and the intensity of the sound
wave
a. the time when the sound arrives in each ear and the pitch of the sound wave
c. the frequency of the sound wave and the pitch of the sound wave
d. the intensity of the sound wave and the pitch of the sound wave
b.
Because psychologists generally use college students (who are considered a
"W.E.I.R.D. population) as research
participants, the research does NOT involve
b. random sampling
a. convenience sampling.
c. confounds.
d. random assignment
, b.
Arthur randomly assigns participants to two groups and compares the group that
receives a treatment with the
group that receives no treatment. The group that gets no treatment is the
________ group.
c. control
a. experimental
b. confound
d. variable
c.
The Acme Chemical Company has some employees who work in a production
plant and some who work in a
sales office. The plant workers get paid every Friday; however, the office workers
get paid for every fifth sale that
they make. The plant workers are paid on a ________ schedule, whereas the
office workers are paid on a
________ schedule.
fixed interval; fixed ratio
a. variable ratio; fixed interval
b. fixed ratio; variable interval
d. variable interval; variable ratio
At a football game, you cannot help but feel excited whenever your team scores a
touchdown. Because this is an
unlearned response, in terms of classical conditioning, it would be called a(n)
A. unconditioned response.
c. conditioned response.
b. unconditioned stimulus.
d. conditioned stimulus
.A
When Billy's upstairs neighbor wakes up early to take a shower, Billy is typically
awakened when the water
starts, but then he gets used to the noise and goes back to sleep. In this example,
Billy is showing learning through
d. habituation.
a. modeling.
QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS
LATEST UPDATE
A post office receives lots of incoming mail, organizes it, and then sends it out to
various locations. Which part of
the brain is a lot like a post office?
D. thalamus
a. basal ganglia
c. cerebellum
b. hypothalamus
D
Neurons are able to communicate when
A. neurotransmitters cross the synapse and bind with receptors on the
postsynaptic
dendrite.
b. electric signals jump across the synapse to the adjacent neuron.
c. terminal buttons plug into receptor sites on adjacent dendrites.
d. chemicals released into the synapse are converted to neurotransmitters that
bind with
receptors.
A
Mario is highly afraid of spiders. Which part of the brain would be activated if he
were to enter a room that had a
lot of spiders?
B. amygdala
a. hippocampus
c. thalamus
d. hypothalamus
B.
Regarding the factors potentially influencing behavior, which of the following
statements is true?
d. Behavior reflects an interaction between genetics and the environment.
a. Behavior mainly stems from environmental causes.
,b. Behavior is generated mainly by the endocrine system.
c. Behavior overwhelmingly reflects genetics.
D.
If you study in the same room in which you take an exam, you will probably do
better on the exam than if you had
studied elsewhere. This outcome occurs because of ________ memory.
A. context-dependent
c. episodic
b. semantic
d. state-dependent
A.
Gestalt theory is based on the idea that
c. the whole is different from the sum of its parts.
a. the environment affects behavior.
b. science should be used to understand therapy.
d. social situations influence behavior.
c.
Because of which of the following can you see different colors?
cones
One part of the neuron covers and protects it somewhat like bark that covers the
trunk of a tree. In a neuron this
protective covering is called
the myelin sheath.
When wild Arctic wolves hunt, their efforts are only sometimes reinforced
because finding food is difficult. The
fact that the wolves are only sometimes reinforced for hunting is an example of
________ reinforcement.
d. partial
a. continuous
c. fixed ratio
b. fixed interval
d.
Harry is reading the textbook for his astronomy class and is trying to relate the
material to his own life
experiences. According to the levels of processing model, Harry is more likely to
remember the information over
the long term because he is using
,c. deep processing.
a. reconsolidation.
b. shallow processing.
d. spreading activation.
C.
If a researcher wants to be able to generalize about a population using data
pulled from a sample, it is best to use
b random sample.
a. experience sampling.
c. a convenience sample.
d. a descriptive study.
b.
Michael is observing the people in his dorm and listing any behaviors that
indicate learning. Which of the
following should be included on Michael's list?
A Greg, who often whines until someone goes to the dining hall with him
b. Matt, who always forgets his keys in his room
c. Dan, who bumps into a door when he has the flu
d. Bill, who sometimes falls asleep while watching TV
A.
What are the two cues that allow you to determine where a sound is coming
from?
b. the time when the sound arrives in each ear and the intensity of the sound
wave
a. the time when the sound arrives in each ear and the pitch of the sound wave
c. the frequency of the sound wave and the pitch of the sound wave
d. the intensity of the sound wave and the pitch of the sound wave
b.
Because psychologists generally use college students (who are considered a
"W.E.I.R.D. population) as research
participants, the research does NOT involve
b. random sampling
a. convenience sampling.
c. confounds.
d. random assignment
, b.
Arthur randomly assigns participants to two groups and compares the group that
receives a treatment with the
group that receives no treatment. The group that gets no treatment is the
________ group.
c. control
a. experimental
b. confound
d. variable
c.
The Acme Chemical Company has some employees who work in a production
plant and some who work in a
sales office. The plant workers get paid every Friday; however, the office workers
get paid for every fifth sale that
they make. The plant workers are paid on a ________ schedule, whereas the
office workers are paid on a
________ schedule.
fixed interval; fixed ratio
a. variable ratio; fixed interval
b. fixed ratio; variable interval
d. variable interval; variable ratio
At a football game, you cannot help but feel excited whenever your team scores a
touchdown. Because this is an
unlearned response, in terms of classical conditioning, it would be called a(n)
A. unconditioned response.
c. conditioned response.
b. unconditioned stimulus.
d. conditioned stimulus
.A
When Billy's upstairs neighbor wakes up early to take a shower, Billy is typically
awakened when the water
starts, but then he gets used to the noise and goes back to sleep. In this example,
Billy is showing learning through
d. habituation.
a. modeling.
