AQA A LEVEL PSYCHOLOGY EXAMINATION
PREP STUDY GUIDE LATEST UPDATED
PRACTICE SOLUTION VERIFIED 100 PERCENT
◉ Outline introspection and problems with it. Answer: Introspection
is a psychological method to analyse someones thoughts and feelings
internally, this was done as there were no brain scans or computers at
the time and thus they used this technique of presenting a stimuli and
asking how they felt after seeing it.
Problems with it include how it does not explain how the mind works
it simply relies on peoples subjective thoughts. Secondly it doesn't
provide data that can be used with certain reliability.
◉ What are the 5 factors that need to be looked at when deciding
whether psychology is a science. Answer: Objectivity
Control
Predictability
Hypothesis Testing
Replication
◉ Evaluate the strengths and limitations to a scientific approach in
psychology. Answer: :) - Due to its reliance on objectivity and
scientific methods knowledge acquired is more than just the passive
acceptance of facts
,:) - Because scientific methods believe in determinism they are able to
establish the causes of behaviour through the use of methods that are
replicable
:) - If scientific methods no longer fit the facts then they can easily be
refined or abandoned meaning that scientific knowledge is self
corrective
:( - Be focusing on objectivity and control in experiments they tend to
be too unrealistic and we lack an insight into natural behaviour
:( - A lot of psychological behaviour is unobservable and thus cannot
be measured with much accuracy meaning that the gap between actual
data and theories put forward is quite large
:( - Not all psychologists believe that human behaviour can be viewed
scientifically as it is not subject to laws and regularities that science
implies
◉ The first worldwide accepted approach was behaviourism, outline
this. Answer: Behaviourism, also known as learning theory, started in
the early 1900's by Watson who believed that psychological research
before this wasn't scientific enough.
There are three assumptions behaviourism makes:
1) All behaviour is learnt (exception of inborn reflexes)
2) Animals and humans learn in the same way
3) The minds is irrelevant
◉ Outline Pavlov's classical conditioning. Answer: Pavlov was
studying dogs salivation however during his studies he found that
, dogs would end up salivating before there was any food, the direction
of his studies changed and outlined classical conditioning.
He eventually ended up ringing a bell before giving the dogs food and
then he would ring a bell and give no food, the dogs still salivated.
The food is the UCS and salivation is the UCR. The bell had become
the CS and salivation the CR.
This process of learning can be applied to human development.
Comfort for the baby is an UCS that produces happiness, the UCR.
The babies mother will talk to it while she feeds it and changes its
nappies etc. and thus the baby hears its mothers voice every time it is
made happy. The sound of the mothers voice is matched with the UCS
and therefore becomes a CS, eventually the sound of the mothers
voice alone will make the baby happy. The CS now causes the CR.
◉ Outline the several principles of classical conditioning. Answer:
Generalisation - stimuli similar to CS produces the CR
Discrimination - when stimuli similar to CS does not produce the CR
Extinction - when the CR isn't produced after the CS
Spontaneous recovery - when a previously extinct CR is produced in
response to the CS
High order conditioning - when a new CS produces the CR because
the animal associates it with the original CS
◉ Outline Skinners operant conditioning. Answer: Skinner studies
how animals can learn from consequences of their own actions.
Consequences involve either:
Positive reinforcement where something desirable is obtained or
negative reinforcement where something undesirable is removed.
PREP STUDY GUIDE LATEST UPDATED
PRACTICE SOLUTION VERIFIED 100 PERCENT
◉ Outline introspection and problems with it. Answer: Introspection
is a psychological method to analyse someones thoughts and feelings
internally, this was done as there were no brain scans or computers at
the time and thus they used this technique of presenting a stimuli and
asking how they felt after seeing it.
Problems with it include how it does not explain how the mind works
it simply relies on peoples subjective thoughts. Secondly it doesn't
provide data that can be used with certain reliability.
◉ What are the 5 factors that need to be looked at when deciding
whether psychology is a science. Answer: Objectivity
Control
Predictability
Hypothesis Testing
Replication
◉ Evaluate the strengths and limitations to a scientific approach in
psychology. Answer: :) - Due to its reliance on objectivity and
scientific methods knowledge acquired is more than just the passive
acceptance of facts
,:) - Because scientific methods believe in determinism they are able to
establish the causes of behaviour through the use of methods that are
replicable
:) - If scientific methods no longer fit the facts then they can easily be
refined or abandoned meaning that scientific knowledge is self
corrective
:( - Be focusing on objectivity and control in experiments they tend to
be too unrealistic and we lack an insight into natural behaviour
:( - A lot of psychological behaviour is unobservable and thus cannot
be measured with much accuracy meaning that the gap between actual
data and theories put forward is quite large
:( - Not all psychologists believe that human behaviour can be viewed
scientifically as it is not subject to laws and regularities that science
implies
◉ The first worldwide accepted approach was behaviourism, outline
this. Answer: Behaviourism, also known as learning theory, started in
the early 1900's by Watson who believed that psychological research
before this wasn't scientific enough.
There are three assumptions behaviourism makes:
1) All behaviour is learnt (exception of inborn reflexes)
2) Animals and humans learn in the same way
3) The minds is irrelevant
◉ Outline Pavlov's classical conditioning. Answer: Pavlov was
studying dogs salivation however during his studies he found that
, dogs would end up salivating before there was any food, the direction
of his studies changed and outlined classical conditioning.
He eventually ended up ringing a bell before giving the dogs food and
then he would ring a bell and give no food, the dogs still salivated.
The food is the UCS and salivation is the UCR. The bell had become
the CS and salivation the CR.
This process of learning can be applied to human development.
Comfort for the baby is an UCS that produces happiness, the UCR.
The babies mother will talk to it while she feeds it and changes its
nappies etc. and thus the baby hears its mothers voice every time it is
made happy. The sound of the mothers voice is matched with the UCS
and therefore becomes a CS, eventually the sound of the mothers
voice alone will make the baby happy. The CS now causes the CR.
◉ Outline the several principles of classical conditioning. Answer:
Generalisation - stimuli similar to CS produces the CR
Discrimination - when stimuli similar to CS does not produce the CR
Extinction - when the CR isn't produced after the CS
Spontaneous recovery - when a previously extinct CR is produced in
response to the CS
High order conditioning - when a new CS produces the CR because
the animal associates it with the original CS
◉ Outline Skinners operant conditioning. Answer: Skinner studies
how animals can learn from consequences of their own actions.
Consequences involve either:
Positive reinforcement where something desirable is obtained or
negative reinforcement where something undesirable is removed.
