Psychological Approaches and Applications — Pearson Alternative Academic Qualification Applied Science Revision
This subtopic explores the core psychological approaches including behavioural, social learning, cognitive, biological, psychodynamic and humanistic perspe
Topic Synopsis
This subtopic explores the core psychological approaches including behavioural, social learning, cognitive, biological, psychodynamic and humanistic perspectives. Learners will examine key assumptions, concepts and seminal research, applying these to explain real-world contemporary issues such as aggression, gender development and consumer behaviour. The unit develops critical evaluation skills essential for understanding the contribution of psychology to societal debates.
Key Concepts & Core Principles
- Research methods: Understand experimental, correlational, and observational designs, including their strengths and weaknesses, and how to select appropriate methods for different research questions.
- Ethical guidelines: Know the BPS Code of Ethics and Conduct, including informed consent, confidentiality, and debriefing, and apply these to hypothetical studies.
- Theories of behaviour: Compare and contrast key psychological approaches (e.g., biological, cognitive, social) and their applications in real-world settings like health promotion or criminal profiling.
- Data analysis: Interpret descriptive statistics (mean, median, mode, range) and inferential tests (e.g., chi-square, t-test) to draw conclusions from data, including understanding significance levels and probability.
- Application to vocational contexts: Evaluate how psychological principles are used in applied fields such as sports psychology (e.g., motivation techniques) or forensic psychology (e.g., eyewitness testimony reliability).
Exam Tips & Revision Strategies
- Use the PEE (Point, Evidence, Explain) structure to construct application paragraphs.
- When evaluating, ensure to link back to the specific contemporary issue to demonstrate relevance.
- When applying approaches to contemporary issues, select an issue that clearly maps onto the approach’s key assumptions to make evaluation more straightforward and convincing.
- Use the structure of assumption → concept/research → behaviour → evaluation to ensure all assessment objectives are addressed in extended responses.
- For top marks, go beyond single-approach explanations and consider how different approaches might complement or conflict when explaining the same issue, demonstrating critical thinking.
Common Misconceptions & Mistakes to Avoid
- Failing to distinguish between the behaviourist concepts of reinforcement and punishment.
- Describing an approach rather than applying it to the contemporary issue in the context of the question.
- Confusing the assumptions of different approaches, such as attributing an emphasis on unconscious processes to the cognitive rather than psychodynamic approach (note: if psychodynamic is taught).
- Describing a study or concept without explicitly linking it to the behaviour it is meant to explain, resulting in a descriptive rather than explanatory response.
- Providing only generic evaluation (e.g., 'it is reductionist') without contextualising the limitation to the specific contemporary issue being discussed.
Examiner Marking Points
- Award credit for correctly identifying the UCS, UCR, NS, CS, CR in a given scenario.
- Require explicit reference to a relevant contemporary issue (e.g., knife crime) when explaining an approach.
- Reward critical evaluation that considers both supporting and refuting evidence for a theory.
- Award credit for accurately recalling and defining key assumptions of at least two psychological approaches (e.g., the behaviourist emphasis on observable behaviour and conditioning).
- Award credit for clearly explaining how specific psychological concepts or research studies (e.g., Bandura’s Bobo doll experiment) link to behaviours such as aggression or conformity in a societal context.
- Award credit for applying and evaluating at least one approach to a contemporary issue (e.g., using the cognitive approach to explain anxiety in social media users), including strengths and limitations relevant to the chosen issue.