AP Psychology Exam (Key Terms) Knowledge test Exam
Toolkit Questions and Verified solution 2025/2026
Neuron - correct answer nerve cell; basic building block of the nervous
system
Sensory neurons - correct answer neurons that carry incoming information
from the sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord
Motor neurons - correct answer neurons that carry outgoing information
from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands
Interneurons - correct answer neurons within the brain and spinal cord that
communicate internally and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor
outputs
Dendrite - correct answer the bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that
receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body
Axon - correct answer the extension of a neuron, ending in branching
terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles
or glands
Action potential - correct answer a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge
that travels down an axon
Threshold - correct answer the level of stimulation required to trigger a
neural impulse
,Myelin sheath - correct answer a layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing
the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed of
neural impulses as the impulse hops from one node to the next
Synapse - correct answer the junction between the axon tip of the sending
neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at
this junction
Neurotransmitters - correct answer chemical messengers that cross the
synaptic gaps between neurons, thereby influencing whether that neuron will
generate a neural impulse
Reuptake - correct answer a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the sending
neuron
Endorphins - correct answer "morphine within" --natural, opiatelike
neurotransmitters linked to pain control (relief) and to pleasure
Nervous system - correct answer the body's speedy, electrochemical
communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and
central nervous systems
Central nervous system (CNS) - correct answer the brain and spinal cord
Peripheral nervous system (PNS) - correct answer the sensory and motor
neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body
Nerves - correct answer bundled axons that form neural "cables"
connecting the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sense
organs
,Somatic nervous system - correct answer the division of the peripheral
nervous system that controls the body's skeletal muscles. AKA skeletal
nervous system
Autonomic nervous system - correct answer the part of the peripheral
nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal
organs (such as the heart)
Sympathetic nervous system - correct answer the division of the autonomic
nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful
situations
Parasympathetic nervous system - correct answer the division of the
autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy
Reflex - correct answer a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus,
such as the knee-jerk response
Endocrine system - correct answer the body's "slow" chemical
communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the
bloodstream
Hormones - correct answer chemical messengers that are manufactured by
the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues
Adrenal glands - correct answer a pair of endocrine glands that sit just
above the kidneys and secrete hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine)
that help arouse the body in times of stress
, Pituitary gland - correct answer the endocrine system's most influential
gland. Regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands. Under the
influence of the hypothalamus
Serotonin - correct answer neurotransmitter that functions in mood, sleep,
and hunger
Dopamine - correct answer neurotransmitter that functions in movement
and pleasure
Acetylcholine - correct answer neurotransmitter that functions in memory
Norepinephrine - correct answer neurotransmitter that functions in energy
and adrenaline
GABA - correct answer neurotransmitter that functions in calming down
Agonists - correct answer drugs that mimic neurotransmitters and make the
neuron fire. They fit onto dendrites and the dendrite believes that the drug is a
neurotransmitter and decides to fire
Antagonists - correct answer drugs that bind onto receptor sites on a
neuron and keep it from firing
Reuptake inhibitor - correct answer drugs that work by binding on to the
axon terminal branches not letting the axon terminal to suck up the excess
neurotransmitter left over in the synapse, causing an excess of that
neurotransmitter (e.g. Cocaine)
Toolkit Questions and Verified solution 2025/2026
Neuron - correct answer nerve cell; basic building block of the nervous
system
Sensory neurons - correct answer neurons that carry incoming information
from the sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord
Motor neurons - correct answer neurons that carry outgoing information
from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands
Interneurons - correct answer neurons within the brain and spinal cord that
communicate internally and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor
outputs
Dendrite - correct answer the bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that
receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body
Axon - correct answer the extension of a neuron, ending in branching
terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles
or glands
Action potential - correct answer a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge
that travels down an axon
Threshold - correct answer the level of stimulation required to trigger a
neural impulse
,Myelin sheath - correct answer a layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing
the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed of
neural impulses as the impulse hops from one node to the next
Synapse - correct answer the junction between the axon tip of the sending
neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at
this junction
Neurotransmitters - correct answer chemical messengers that cross the
synaptic gaps between neurons, thereby influencing whether that neuron will
generate a neural impulse
Reuptake - correct answer a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the sending
neuron
Endorphins - correct answer "morphine within" --natural, opiatelike
neurotransmitters linked to pain control (relief) and to pleasure
Nervous system - correct answer the body's speedy, electrochemical
communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and
central nervous systems
Central nervous system (CNS) - correct answer the brain and spinal cord
Peripheral nervous system (PNS) - correct answer the sensory and motor
neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body
Nerves - correct answer bundled axons that form neural "cables"
connecting the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sense
organs
,Somatic nervous system - correct answer the division of the peripheral
nervous system that controls the body's skeletal muscles. AKA skeletal
nervous system
Autonomic nervous system - correct answer the part of the peripheral
nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal
organs (such as the heart)
Sympathetic nervous system - correct answer the division of the autonomic
nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful
situations
Parasympathetic nervous system - correct answer the division of the
autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy
Reflex - correct answer a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus,
such as the knee-jerk response
Endocrine system - correct answer the body's "slow" chemical
communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the
bloodstream
Hormones - correct answer chemical messengers that are manufactured by
the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues
Adrenal glands - correct answer a pair of endocrine glands that sit just
above the kidneys and secrete hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine)
that help arouse the body in times of stress
, Pituitary gland - correct answer the endocrine system's most influential
gland. Regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands. Under the
influence of the hypothalamus
Serotonin - correct answer neurotransmitter that functions in mood, sleep,
and hunger
Dopamine - correct answer neurotransmitter that functions in movement
and pleasure
Acetylcholine - correct answer neurotransmitter that functions in memory
Norepinephrine - correct answer neurotransmitter that functions in energy
and adrenaline
GABA - correct answer neurotransmitter that functions in calming down
Agonists - correct answer drugs that mimic neurotransmitters and make the
neuron fire. They fit onto dendrites and the dendrite believes that the drug is a
neurotransmitter and decides to fire
Antagonists - correct answer drugs that bind onto receptor sites on a
neuron and keep it from firing
Reuptake inhibitor - correct answer drugs that work by binding on to the
axon terminal branches not letting the axon terminal to suck up the excess
neurotransmitter left over in the synapse, causing an excess of that
neurotransmitter (e.g. Cocaine)
