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MCAT Psychology & Sociology Notes

Topic-wise MCAT Psychology and Sociology notes aligned with the AAMC content outline, sensation and perception, learning and memory, cognition, emotion and stress, personality, identity, social behavior, social structure and the biological basis of behavior. High-yield coverage for the Psychological, Social, and Biological Foundations of Behavior section, which makes up roughly 25% of the MCAT.

Organized by the AAMC content outline: chapters are grouped under the Psych/Soc foundational concepts (FC6 to FC10), and each card shows its AAMC content categories. Every page covers concept summaries, key definitions and theorists, common exam traps, and 5 worked MCQs.

FC6: Perceiving, Thinking and Reacting (6A to 6C)

Sensation, perception, cognition, memory, emotion and stress.

Sensation and Perception

AAMC 6A · AAMC 6A · thresholds, transduction, signal detection, Gestalt

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Cognition, Consciousness & Language

AAMC 6B · AAMC 6B · problem solving, heuristics, sleep, language theories

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Learning and Memory

AAMC 6B, 7C · AAMC 6B, 7C · classical & operant conditioning, memory stages, forgetting

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Motivation, Emotion & Stress

AAMC 6C, 7A · AAMC 6C, 7A · drive theory, Maslow, emotion theories, GAS

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Vision, Hearing and the Other Senses

AAMC 6A · eye and visual pathway, ear and pitch coding, pain, smell, balance

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Attention, Problem Solving and Intelligence

AAMC 6B · attention models, decision biases, theories of intelligence, IQ testing

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Emotion and the Stress Response

AAMC 6C · emotion theories compared, amygdala, HPA axis, appraisal, coping

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FC7: Behavior and Behavior Change (7A to 7C)

Biological bases of behavior, personality, disorders, social influence and learning.

Biological Basis of Behavior

AAMC 7A, 6B · AAMC 7A, 6B · neurons, brain regions, endocrine, nervous system

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Personality & Psychological Disorders

AAMC 7A · AAMC 7A · Big Five, Freud, DSM disorders, biomedical approach

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Attitudes and Social Behavior

AAMC 7B, 7C, 8B · AAMC 7B, 7C, 8B · attribution, conformity, obedience, group processes

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Behavioral Genetics and Development

AAMC 7A · twin and adoption studies, heritability, epigenetics, temperament

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Conformity, Obedience and Deviance

AAMC 7B · Asch, Milgram, research ethics, norms, deviance theories

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Attitude and Behavior Change

AAMC 7C · habituation, behavior therapy, dissonance, ELM, health behavior models

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FC8: Self and Others (8A to 8C)

Identity, social thinking and social interaction.

Identity and Self

AAMC 8A, 7B · AAMC 8A, 7B · self-concept, Erikson, Kohlberg, socialization

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Social Interaction & Thinking

AAMC 8B, 8C · AAMC 8B, 8C · self-presentation, stigma, prejudice, discrimination

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Identity Development Theories

AAMC 8A · Freud, Erikson, Marcia, Kohlberg, Gilligan, Mead, Vygotsky

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Social Perception and Prejudice

AAMC 8B · Kelley's covariation model, stereotype threat, origins of prejudice

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Aggression, Altruism and Attachment

AAMC 8C · bureaucracy, attachment styles, aggression, altruism, kin selection

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FC9 and FC10: Society, Demographics and Inequality (9A, 9B, 10A)

Social structure, demographics and social stratification.

Social Structure & Demographics

AAMC 9A, 9B, 10A · AAMC 9A, 9B, 10A · institutions, stratification, culture, demographic shifts

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Social Theory and Social Institutions

AAMC 9A · paradigms applied, education, family, religion, medicine

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Demographics and Social Change

AAMC 9B · demographic rates, pyramids, social movements, globalization

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Social Inequality and Health Disparities

AAMC 10A · spatial inequality, capital, health disparities, epidemiology

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How to use these notes

  1. Read the chapter notes to build the concept layer.
  2. Take a timed practice test on the chapter to validate recall under pressure.
  3. Review wrong answers and re-read the relevant subtopic section in the notes.
  4. Once comfortable, attempt full-length mocks on Practice Test.