Psychology Terms Practice Test (A2-C1) — Vocabulary Exercises with Answers

⏱ Time: 10:00 📝 Questions: 20 📊 Level: A2, B1, B2, C1 📚 Type: Vocabulary ⭐ XP: up to +25 (on pass)
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Preparing for an English exam? Practise Psychology Terms with 20 exercises at Level A2-C1. The questions test meaning, collocation, and word choice — the core vocabulary skills examined in IELTS, TOEFL, and Cambridge tests.

⏱ You have 10:00 to answer 20 questions. The timer only starts when you click Begin.

Q1  20
Q1 20

Question 1: A person's ___ is how they feel at a particular time.

Question 1 options
'Mood' means a temporary emotional state. 'Memory' refers to the ability to recall information. 'Mind' is the faculty of thinking. 'Motive' is a reason for doing something.
Q2 20

Question 2: What does the word 'behavior' mean?

Question 2 options
'Behavior' refers to the way a person acts or conducts themselves, especially toward others. It does not mean a feeling, a belief, or a personality type.
Q3 20

Question 3: In psychology, 'stress' refers to mental or emotional tension caused by difficult situations.

Question 3 options
True. 'Stress' is the psychological and physical response to demanding or threatening circumstances. It involves tension and strain.
Q4 20

Question 4: She has a terrible ___ of spiders.

Question 4 options
'Phobia' means an extreme or irrational fear of something specific. 'Trauma' is a deeply distressing experience. 'Habit' is a regular practice. 'Impulse' is a sudden urge.
Q5 20

Question 5: Which word is closest in meaning to 'anxiety'?

Question 5 options
'Worry' is the closest synonym to 'anxiety,' as both describe a feeling of unease or concern. 'Boredom' is lack of interest, 'anger' is strong displeasure, and 'pride' is satisfaction in achievements.
Q6 20

Question 6: The therapist helped the patient deal with childhood ___.

Question 6 options
'Trauma' refers to a deeply distressing or disturbing experience, often from the past. 'Reflex' is an automatic response. 'Stimulus' is something that provokes a reaction. 'Instinct' is an innate behavior pattern.
Q7 20

Question 7: Match each psychology term to its definition.

Question 7 options
empathy
perception
motivation
cognition
the ability to understand another person's feelings
the way we interpret information from our senses
the inner drive that pushes someone to take action
the mental process of gaining knowledge and understanding

Select an item on the left, then tap its match on the right.

'Empathy' is understanding another's feelings. 'Perception' is how we interpret sensory information. 'Motivation' is the drive to act. 'Cognition' is the mental process of acquiring knowledge.
Q8 20

Question 8: In psychology, your ___ is the image you have of yourself.

Question 8 options
'Self-esteem' refers to one's overall sense of personal value or self-worth, closely tied to self-image. 'Conscience' is the moral sense of right and wrong. 'Temperament' is one's natural disposition. 'Threshold' is the point at which a stimulus triggers a response.
Q9 20

Question 9: What does 'conditioning' mean in psychology?

Question 9 options
'Conditioning' is the process of training a person or animal to respond in a certain way to a particular stimulus through repeated exposure. It is not about relaxation, memory storage, or personality testing.
Q10 20

Question 10: The patient used ___ to avoid thinking about painful memories.

Question 10 options
'Repression' is a defense mechanism in which unwanted thoughts or memories are pushed out of conscious awareness. 'Projection' attributes one's own feelings to others. 'Regression' is reverting to earlier behavior. 'Sublimation' channels impulses into acceptable activities.
Q11 20

Question 11: In psychology, 'reinforcement' means punishing someone to stop a behavior.

Question 11 options
False. 'Reinforcement' means strengthening a behavior by following it with a desirable outcome (positive reinforcement) or by removing an unpleasant one (negative reinforcement). Punishment is a separate concept.
Q12 20

Question 12: Which word is closest in meaning to 'delusion'?

Question 12 options
'False belief' is the closest synonym to 'delusion,' which refers to a firmly held belief that contradicts reality. 'Nightmare' is a bad dream, 'obsession' is a persistent preoccupation, and 'hallucination' is a false sensory perception, not a belief.
Q13 20

Question 13: The study measured participants' ___ abilities, including memory, attention, and problem-solving.

Question 13 options
'Cognitive' relates to mental processes such as memory, attention, and reasoning. 'Emotional' pertains to feelings. 'Behavioral' pertains to actions. 'Sensory' pertains to the physical senses.
Q14 20

Question 14: A person who repeatedly blames others for their own shortcomings may be using ___.

Question 14 options
'Projection' is a defense mechanism where a person attributes their own unacceptable thoughts or feelings to someone else. 'Denial' is refusing to accept reality. 'Displacement' is redirecting emotions to a safer target. 'Rationalization' is creating logical excuses for irrational behavior.
Q15 20

Question 15: Sigmund Freud is known as the father of ___.

Question 15 options
'Psychoanalysis' is the therapeutic approach and theory developed by Sigmund Freud, focusing on the unconscious mind and early life experiences.
Q16 20

Question 16: The researcher observed a strong ___ between sleep deprivation and poor decision-making.

Question 16 options
'Correlation' means a statistical relationship between two variables. 'Diagnosis' is the identification of a condition. 'Prognosis' is a prediction about the course of a condition. 'Hypothesis' is a proposed explanation to be tested.
Q17 20

Question 17: Which sentence uses the psychology term INCORRECTLY?

Question 17 options
The sentence 'Her empathy for loud noises made her cover her ears' uses 'empathy' incorrectly. Empathy means the ability to understand and share the feelings of another person. The correct word here would be 'sensitivity.' The other sentences all use their psychology terms correctly: 'cognition' refers to mental processes of acquiring knowledge, 'phobia' means an irrational fear, and 'trauma' refers to a deeply distressing experience.
Q18 20

Question 18: In developmental psychology, ___ refers to the emotional bond formed between an infant and their caregiver.

Question 18 options
'Attachment' is the deep emotional connection between a child and caregiver, central to developmental psychology. 'Dependence' implies reliance without the emotional bonding aspect. 'Adaptation' means adjusting to new conditions. 'Assimilation' is incorporating new experiences into existing schemas.
Q19 20

Question 19: What does 'cognitive dissonance' mean?

Question 19 options
'Cognitive dissonance' is the mental discomfort experienced when holding two contradictory beliefs or when behavior conflicts with beliefs. It is not about memory loss, fear of change, or inability to make decisions.
Q20 20

Question 20: The tendency to seek out information that confirms one's existing beliefs is called ___ bias.

Question 20 options
'Confirmation' bias is the tendency to favor information that supports preexisting beliefs. 'Attribution' bias involves how we explain others' behavior. 'Hindsight' bias is believing you predicted an event after it happened. 'Implicit' bias refers to unconscious attitudes.