AP® practice test

Free AP® Psychology Practice Test (2026)

This is a set of 25 original practice questions that follow the official AP® Psychology course outline and its unit weights, each with a short explanation. Like the real multiple-choice section, most questions describe a short scenario and ask you to apply a concept.

  • 25 questions
  • 5 topics from the official outline
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The practice test

25 questions

Question 1 of 25Watching a stranger trip on the stairs, Leo thinks, “What a clumsy person,” without considering that the steps are wet. Which concept does this illustrate?
Question 2 of 25The tremors and difficulty starting movements seen in Parkinson’s disease are linked mainly to the loss of neurons that produce which neurotransmitter?
Question 3 of 25Right after hearing a list of 15 words once, Priya recalls the first few words best. Which effect explains her strong memory for the start of the list?
Question 4 of 25After eating shrimp that gave her food poisoning, Ana now feels nauseated whenever she smells shrimp. In this example of classical conditioning, what is the smell of shrimp?
Question 5 of 25Which shows the correct order of the stages in Hans Selye’s general adaptation syndrome?
Question 6 of 25After a stroke, a patient understands what people say but speaks slowly in short, broken phrases and struggles to find words. Damage to which area most likely explains this?
Question 7 of 25In a classic study, people who were paid only $1 to tell someone that a dull task was fun later rated the task as more enjoyable than people who were paid $20. Which theory best explains this?
Question 8 of 25Since getting a new phone number, Marco keeps forgetting his old one when a form asks for it. Which explanation of forgetting fits best?
Question 9 of 25Kai has a headache, takes a pain reliever, and the headache goes away. He now takes a pain reliever sooner whenever a headache starts. Which process has strengthened this behavior?
Question 10 of 25A man has felt excessive, hard-to-control worry about his job, health, money and family nearly every day for over a year, with tension and trouble sleeping, but no sudden attacks of intense fear. Which diagnosis do these symptoms fit best?
Question 11 of 25Twin studies estimate that the heritability of a trait in a certain population is 0.60. What does this mean?
Question 12 of 25An experienced pianist plays better than usual in front of a large audience, while a beginner makes more mistakes than usual in the same setting. Which concept explains both outcomes?
Question 13 of 25A researcher compares the memory of 20-year-olds, 50-year-olds and 80-year-olds, all tested in the same month. Which weakness is built into this design?
Question 14 of 25After seeing several news stories about plane crashes, Rosa decides that flying is more dangerous than driving, even though statistics show the opposite. Which mental shortcut is she using?
Question 15 of 25A therapist helps a depressed client notice automatic thoughts such as “I always fail,” examine the evidence for them, and replace them with more realistic ones. Which approach is the therapist using?
Question 16 of 25Which of these happens mainly during REM sleep?
Question 17 of 25A gambler keeps putting coins into a slot machine that pays off after an unpredictable number of plays. Which reinforcement schedule is this, and what pattern of behavior does it produce?
Question 18 of 25A coworker is described as organized, dependable and self-disciplined. Which of the Big Five personality traits do these words describe?
Question 19 of 25Reading a friend’s messy note, Sam correctly reads a smudged word because it is the only word that makes sense in the sentence. Which kind of processing is Sam relying on?
Question 20 of 25Two people carry similar genetic risk for depression, but only the one who goes through a series of severe losses develops it. Which model best explains this?
Question 21 of 25A 5-year-old watches juice poured from a short, wide glass into a tall, thin glass and insists the tall glass now holds more. According to Piaget, what does the child lack, and in what stage is the child?
Question 22 of 25According to the two-factor theory of emotion (Schachter and Singer), what produces an emotional experience?
Question 23 of 25A new aptitude test gives nearly the same scores when the same people retake it a month later, but the scores do not predict the students’ later grades at all. How should the test be described?
Question 24 of 25After a few minutes in a bakery, a customer no longer notices the smell of bread, even though the smell has not changed. What explains this?
Question 25 of 25Facing a big exam, Jordan makes a study schedule, joins a study group and asks the teacher about topics he finds confusing. What kind of coping is this?

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