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GCSE
PSYCHOLOGY
Specification
For teaching from September 2017 onwards
For exams in 2019 onwards
Version 1.1 14 October 2021
2 Specification at a glance
This qualification is linear. Linear means that students will sit all their exams at the end of the course.
2.1 Subject content
Cognition and behaviour (page 9)
- Memory (page 9)
- Perception (page 10)
- Development (page 11)
- Research methods (page 11) Social context and behaviour (page 13)
- Social influence (page 14)
- Language, thought and communication (page 14)
- Brain and neuropsychology (page 15)
- Psychological problems (page 16)
2.2 Assessments
Paper 1: Cognition and behaviour What's assessed
- Memory
- Perception
- Development
- Research methods Students will be expected to draw on knowledge and understanding of the entire course of study to show a deeper understanding of these topics. How it's assessed
- Written exam: 1 hour 45 minutes
- 100 marks
- 50% of GCSE Questions
- Section A: multiple choice, short answer and extended writing (25 marks)
- Section B: multiple choice, short answer and extended writing (25 marks)
- Section C: multiple choice, short answer and extended writing (25 marks)
- Section D: multiple choice, short answer and extended writing (25 marks) AQA GCSE Psychology 8182. GCSE exams June 2019 onwards. Version 1.1 14 October 2021
3 Subject content
3.1 Cognition and behaviour
Students will be expected to:
- demonstrate knowledge and understanding of psychological ideas, processes, procedures and theories in relation to the specified Paper 1 content
- apply psychological knowledge and understanding of the specified Paper 1 content in a range of contexts
- analyse and evaluate psychological ideas, information, processes and procedures in relation to the specified Paper 1 content and make judgements, draw conclusions and produce developments or refinements of psychological procedures based on their reasoning and synthesis of skills
- evaluate therapies and treatments including in terms of their appropriateness and effectiveness
- show how psychological knowledge and ideas change over time and how these inform our understanding of behaviour
- demonstrate the contribution of psychology to an understanding of individual, social and cultural diversity
- develop an understanding of the interrelationships between the core areas of psychology
- show how the studies for topics relate to the associated theory. Knowledge and understanding of research methods (see 3.1.4 Research methods (page 11)), practical research skills and mathematical skills (see Appendix A: mathematical requirements (page 25)) will be assessed across all topic areas in Paper 1. These skills should be developed by studying the specification content and through ethical, practical research activities, involving:
- designing research
- conducting research
- analysing and interpreting data. By carrying out practical research activities, students will manage associated risks and use information and communication technology (ICT).
3.1.1 Memory
Content Additional information Processes of memory: encoding (input) storage and retrieval (output) Different types of memory: episodic memory, semantic memory and procedural memory. How memories are encoded and stored. AQA GCSE Psychology 8182. GCSE exams June 2019 onwards. Version 1.1 14 October 2021
Content Additional information Structures of memory The multi-store model of memory: sensory, short term and long term. Features of each store: coding, capacity, duration. Primacy and recency effects in recall: the effects of serial position. Murdock’s serial position curve study. Memory as an active process The Theory of Reconstructive Memory, including the concept of ‘effort after meaning’. Bartlett’s War of the Ghosts study. Factors affecting the accuracy of memory, including interference, context and false memories.
3.1.2 Perception
Content Additional information Sensation and perception The difference between sensation and perception. Visual cues and constancies Monocular depth cues: height in plane, relative size, occlusion and linear perspective. Binocular depth cues: retinal disparity, convergence. Gibson's direct theory of perception – the influence of nature The real world presents sufficient information for direct perception without inference. Role of motion parallax in everyday perception. Visual illusions Explanations for visual illusions: ambiguity, misinterpreted depth cues, fiction, size constancy. Examples of visual illusions: the Ponzo, the Müller- Lyer, Rubin’s vase, the Ames Room, the Kanizsa triangle and the Necker cube. Gregory's constructivist theory of perception – the influence of nurture Perception uses inferences from visual cues and past experience to construct a model of reality. Factors affecting perception Perceptual set and the effects of the following factors affecting perception: culture, motivation, emotion, expectation. The Gilchrist and Nesberg study of motivation and the Bruner and Minturn study of perceptual set.
Content Additional information Designing research Quantitative and qualitative methods:
- the experimental method (experimental designs, independent groups, repeated measures, matched pairs, including strengths and weaknesses of each experimental design)
- laboratory experiments
- field and natural experiments
- interviews
- questionnaires
- case studies
- observation studies (including categories of behaviour and interobserver reliability). Strengths and weaknesses of each research method and types of research for which they are suitable. Correlation An understanding of association between two variables and the use of scatter diagrams to show possible correlational relationships. The strengths and weaknesses of correlations. Computation of formulae is not required. Research procedures The use of standardised procedures, instructions to participants, randomisation, allocation to conditions, counterbalancing and extraneous variables (including explaining the effect of extraneous variables and how to control for them). Planning and conducting research How research should be planned, taking into consideration the reliability and/or validity of:
- sampling methods
- experimental designs
- quantitative and qualitative methods. Ethical considerations Students should demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
- ethical issues in psychological research as outlined in the British Psychological Society guidelines
- ways of dealing with each of these issues.
3.1.4.1 Data handling Content Additional information Quantitative and qualitative data The difference between quantitative and qualitative data. Primary and secondary data The difference between primary and secondary data. Computation Recognise and use expressions in decimal and standard form: use ratios, fractions and percentages, estimate results, find arithmetic means and use an appropriate number of significant figures. Descriptive statistics Understand and calculate mean, median, mode and range. Interpretation and display of quantitative data Construct and interpret frequency tables and diagrams, bar charts, histograms and scatter diagrams for correlation. Normal distributions The characteristics of normal distribution. 3.2 Social context and behaviour Students will be expected to:
- demonstrate knowledge and understanding of psychological ideas, processes, procedures and theories in relation to the specified Paper 2 content
- apply psychological knowledge and understanding of the specified Paper 2 content in a range of contexts
- analyse and evaluate psychological ideas, information, processes and procedures in relation to the specified Paper 2 content and make judgements, draw conclusions and produce developments or refinements of psychological procedures based on their reasoning and synthesis of skills
- evaluate therapies and treatments including in terms of their appropriateness and effectiveness
- show how psychological knowledge and ideas change over time and how these inform our understanding of behaviour
- demonstrate the contribution of psychology to an understanding of individual, social and cultural diversity
- develop an understanding of the interrelationships between the core areas of psychology
- show how the studies for topics relate to the associated theory. Knowledge and understanding of research methods (see 3.1.4 Research methods (page 11)), practical research skills and mathematical skills (see Appendix A: mathematical requirements (page 25)) will be assessed across all topic areas in Paper 2. These skills should be developed by studying the specification content and through ethical, practical research activities, involving:
- designing research
- conducting research
- analysing and interpreting data. AQA GCSE Psychology 8182. GCSE exams June 2019 onwards. Version 1.1 14 October 2021
Content Additional information Non-verbal communication Definitions of non-verbal communication and verbal communication. Functions of eye contact including regulating flow of conversation, signaling attraction and expressing emotion. Body language including open and closed posture, postural echo and touch. Personal space including cultural, status and gender differences. Explanations of non-verbal behaviour Darwin’s evolutionary theory of non-verbal communication as evolved and adaptive. Evidence that non-verbal behaviour is innate, eg in neonates and the sensory deprived. Evidence that non-verbal behaviour is learned. Yuki’s study of emoticons.
3.2.3 Brain and neuropsychology
Content Additional information Structure and function of the nervous system The divisions of the human nervous system: central and peripheral (somatic and autonomic), basic functions of these divisions. The autonomic nervous system and the fight or flight response. The James-Lange theory of emotion. Neuron structure and function Sensory, relay and motor neurons. Synaptic transmission: release and reuptake of neurotransmitters. Excitation and inhibition. An understanding of how these processes interact. Hebb's theory of learning and neuronal growth. Structure and function of the brain Brain structure: frontal lobe, temporal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital lobe and cerebellum. Basic function of these structures. Localisation of function in the brain: motor, somatosensory, visual, auditory and language areas. Penfield’s study of the interpretive cortex. AQA GCSE Psychology 8182. GCSE exams June 2019 onwards. Version 1.1 14 October 2021
Content Additional information An introduction to neuropsychology (^) Cognitive neuroscience: how the structure and function of the brain relate to behaviour and cognition. The use of scanning techniques to identify brain functioning: CT, PET and fMRI scans. Tulving's 'gold' memory study. A basic understanding of how neurological damage, eg stroke or injury can affect motor abilities and behaviour.
3.2.4 Psychological problems
Content Additional information An introduction to mental health How the incidence of significant mental health problems changes over time Characteristics of mental health, eg positive engagement with society, effective coping with challenges. Cultural variations in beliefs about mental health problems. Increased challenges of modern living, eg isolation. Increased recognition of the nature of mental health problems and lessening of social stigma. Effects of significant mental health problems on individuals and society Individual effects, eg damage to relationships, difficulties coping with day to day life, negative impact on physical wellbeing. Social effects, eg need for more social care, increased crime rates, implications for the economy. Characteristics of clinical depression Differences between unipolar depression, bipolar depression and sadness. The use of International Classification of Diseases in diagnosing unipolar depression: number and severity of symptoms including low mood, reduced energy levels, changes in sleep patterns and appetite levels, decrease in self-confidence.
