AP® Psychology 2024 Free-Response Questions Set 1 - 2 Questions - Time 50 minutes

Sep 20, 2026

AP® Psychology 2024 Free-Response Questions Set 1 contains Section II with two short-answer essay questions to be completed in 50 minutes. Students must support answers with critical analysis and appropriate psychological terminology rather than simple fact listing. Question 1 uses a developmental scenario involving assimilation, egocentrism, egocentrism-related interactions, and avoidant attachment, plus additional terms such as serial position effect and cognitive concepts. Question 2 applies experimental design analysis to an encoding and recall hypothesis using color of printed materials.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages4

Reading Time10 min

AccessFree to download

PSYCHOLOGY

SECTION II

Question 1

Part A

Part B

Question 2

Part A

Part B

2024 AP® Psychology Free-Response Questions Set 1 © 2024 College Board. College Board, Advanced Placement, AP, AP Central, and the acorn logo are registered trademarks of College Board. Visit College Board on the web: [collegeboard.org](collegeboard.org). [AP Central is the official online home for the AP Program: apcentral.collegeboard.org](AP Central is the official online home for the AP Program: apcentral.collegeboard.org). AP® Psychology 2024 Free-Response Questions PSYCHOLOGY SECTION II Time—50 minutes 2 Questions Directions: You have 50 minutes to answer BOTH of the following questions. It is not enough to answer a question by merely listing facts. You should present a cogent argument based on your critical analysis of the questions posed, using appropriate psychological terminology. You may plan your answers in this orange booklet, but no credit will be given for anything written in this booklet. You will only earn credit for what you write in the separate Free Response booklet. 1. Gavin’s parents took him to his favorite science museum, and he explored all of the exhibits. One of the interactive exhibits featured glass marbles. He grabbed a large marble and tried to bounce it on the ground. Atone point during the visit, he became separated from his parents, and it took a few minutes for them to find him. Later that night, he drew a colorful picture of the exhibits at the museum. The next day, Gavin brought his picture with him to preschool. While his grandmother drove, Gavin talked to her about the picture. Part A • Explain how Jean Piaget’s concept of assimilation could relate to Gavin’s experience with the glass marble. • Explain how egocentrism could relate to how Gavin interacted with his grandmother in the car. • Explain how avoidant attachment could relate to Gavin when he was separated from his parents. Part B Explain how each of the following terms could relate to Gavin in this scenario. • Serial position effect • Motor cortex • Cognitive map • Cones in the retina Begin your response to this question at the top of a new page in the separate Free Response booklet and fill in the appropriate circle at the top of each page to indicate the question number. © 2024 College Board. Visit College Board on the web: [collegeboard.org](collegeboard.org). 2 GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGE. 2. Professor Gonzalez hypothesizes that students will remember more information from his detailed course description if it is printed on yellow paper than if it is printed on standard white paper. To test this hypothesis, he put the names of all his students into a bowl, then drew out names to assign them to two different groups. He gave one group of the students in his class a course description printed on white paper, and gave the other group of students a course description printed on yellow paper. Students were instructed to thoroughly read the description outside of class in preparation for their next class. In the next class, he gave all students a ten-question quiz asking them about the information found on the course description. Professor Gonzalez then compared the number of correct answers for each group of students. The statistically significant results are depicted in the graph. Part A • State the operational definition of the dependent variable. • Identify the experimental group. • In addition to the manipulation of an independent variable, identify the procedure Professor Gonzalez used to make this study a true experiment. • Explain how the data as presented in the graph do or do not support Professor Gonzalez’s hypothesis. Part B Explain how each of the following might relate to a student’s performance on any quiz. • Context-dependent memory • Yerkes-Dodson law • Low level of the Big Five trait of conscientiousness Begin your response to this question at the top of a new page in the separate Free Response booklet and fill in the appropriate circle at the top

FAQs

How should students approach these free-response questions?

Students have 50 minutes to answer both questions and must present cogent arguments based on critical analysis using appropriate psychological terminology, not just list facts.

What psychological concepts are tested in Question 1?

Question 1 asks students to apply Piaget’s assimilation, egocentrism, and avoidant attachment to a scenario, then connect additional terms such as the serial position effect, motor cortex, cognitive map, and cones in the retina.

What does Question 2 require students to analyze about the study?

Question 2 requires identifying the dependent variable operational definition, the experimental group, procedures that make the study a true experiment, and whether the graph’s data support the hypothesis, plus links to memory performance theories.

Sep 20, 2026

Uploaded by Arica Lee