Psychology

Psychology

Psychology studies how the human mind works. It ranges widely over the nature of thought and memory, the development of our emotions and relationships, the role of the brain, the influence of genes and upbringing, and the study of clinical psychology (mental disorders and their treatment). Ever wondered why some people become criminals, why you remember some things and not others, or why we are so willing to conform to social expectations? At A Level, you are required not just to study the theories, but understand experiments and their results. For this, it is important to note that you will need to be able to understand and analyse data using maths, esp. statistics and graphs. The course also covers questions of how psychological research should be done, and alternative theories of how to explain the mind and behaviour.

Why choose it?

It offers an exploration of the human mind and how best to study and explain it. The course is counted as a science by many universities, although it combines elements of natural science, social science and the humanities. As a result, it works naturally with a very wide range of other A level subjects. It will help you to develop critical thinking and communication skills, understand analysis, and to think more independently. Students often go on to study psychology, English, sociology, business, education, sports science and law at university.

Representative core areas of study

The following topics are compulsory areas of study in the AQA syllabus.

• Social Influence: why and how people are influenced either through conforming or obedience and how minority groups can impact the group behaviour.
• Memory: how memory works and different models of memory used in psychology. We will also look at how and why memory is not accurate and how this can affect eyewitness testimonies.
• Attachment: caregiver and infant interactions, how this affects the child’s personality and the impact on future relationships.
• Clinical psychology: definitions, treatments and approaches to mental health, includingphobia, depression and OCD.
• Approaches in Psychology: tracing the origins and history of Psychology; understanding the main approaches used within the discipline.
• Biopsychology: exploring the nervous system, neuroscience and brain scans, why we sleep and the fight, flight, freeze response.
• Research methods: understanding how psychology is investigated (including experimental methods, data analysis, design, ethics and statistics).

One option from each category below will be studied. At present, we study Gender, Schizophrenia and Forensic Psychology, but this may change in the future.

• Option 1: Relationships, Gender or Cognition and Development
• Option 2: Schizophrenia, Eating behaviour or Stress
• Option 3: Aggression, Forensic Psychology or Addiction

In relation all these areas, and the optional topics listed above, students will study diverse research methods, such as experiment, observation, and self-report; the nature of psychology as a scientific method; and how to handle and interpret data.