AQA A-Level Psychology (2025 Specification)
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Paper 1: Introductory topics in Psychology
4.1.1 Social influence
4.1.1 - Conformity and Asch’s researchWhy do people sometimes copy a group in public yet privately disagree, while at other times the group changes what they genuinely believe? This lesson distinguishes compliance from internalisation, connects them to normative and informational social influence, and uses Asch's line studies to exam...
4.1.1 - Explanations for obedienceWhy might an ordinary person follow an authority figure's order even while feeling uneasy? You will connect agentic state and legitimacy of authority to Milgram's situational variables, then compare these explanations with the Authoritarian Personality. The evidence invites a careful judgement: s...
4.1.1 - Resistance to social influenceResisting a majority or authority can become easier when another person models independence, but support is only part of the explanation. This lesson examines how social support changes conformity and obedience, how internal and external locus of control shape perceived agency, and what research...
4.1.1 - Minority influenceSmall groups sometimes shift a majority even when they lack status or numbers. You will explore how consistency makes a minority's position noticeable, how commitment signals confidence, and why flexibility can prevent the message from seeming rigid. Moscovici's colour-judgement study and researc...
4.1.2 Memory
4.1.2 - The multi-store model of memoryThe multi-store model treats memory as movement through distinct stores rather than as one undivided capacity. You will trace information from sensory registers to short-term and long-term memory, considering coding, capacity and duration at each stage and the role of attention and rehearsal. Evi...
4.1.2 - The working memory modelHolding a phone number, following spoken directions and imagining a route do not place identical demands on short-term memory. This lesson uses the working memory model to separate the central executive, phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad and episodic buffer. You will use dual-task evidenc...
4.1.2 - Explanations for forgettingForgetting does not always mean a memory has disappeared. You will compare interference, where competing information disrupts recall, with retrieval failure, where the right cue is absent. Research on proactive and retroactive interference, context-dependent memory and state-dependent memory will...
4.1.2 - Eyewitness accuracy and the cognitive interviewEyewitnesses can be sincere and still be inaccurate because memory is reconstructed after an event. This lesson examines leading questions, post-event discussion and anxiety, using research to distinguish altered reporting from possible changes to memory itself. You will also study the cognitive...
4.1.3 Attachment
4.1.3 - Animal studies of attachmentAnimal studies let psychologists separate feeding from comfort and observe early bonding under controlled conditions, but their meaning depends on the species and procedure. You will compare Lorenz's work on imprinting with Harlow's studies of contact comfort and later social development. The les...
4.1.3 - Explanations of attachmentWhy does an infant become strongly attached to particular caregivers? You will compare learning theory's emphasis on association and reinforcement with Bowlby's evolutionary account of monotropy, social releasers and a critical period, alongside the less rigid sensitive-period interpretation. Res...
4.1.3 - The Strange Situation, attachment types and cultural variationThe Strange Situation turns brief separations and reunions into a structured way of observing attachment behaviour. You will learn how proximity seeking, exploration, stranger anxiety and reunion responses support classifications of secure, insecure-avoidant and insecure-resistant attachment. Cro...
4.1.3 - Maternal deprivation and institutionalisationEarly separation is not automatically deprivation, and deprivation is not the same as privation. This lesson clarifies Bowlby's maternal deprivation hypothesis, including the proposed critical period and effects on intellectual and emotional development, then tests it against research on institut...
4.1.3 - Early attachment and later relationshipsEarly attachment may shape expectations about trust, closeness and the self, but continuity across life is neither simple nor certain. You will apply the internal working model to childhood friendships, adult romantic relationships and later parenting, using longitudinal and correlational evidenc...
4.1.4 Clinical Psychology and Mental Health
4.1.4 - Definitions in mental healthThere is no single test that cleanly separates mental health from disorder in every person and culture. This lesson compares deviation from ideal mental health, deviation from social and cultural norms, failure to function adequately and statistical infrequency. You will apply each definition to...
4.1.4 - Characteristics of phobias, depression and OCDDescribing a mental health condition requires more than naming one visible behaviour. You will distinguish the behavioural, emotional and cognitive characteristics of phobias, depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder, then apply the categories to realistic descriptions without diagnosing from...
4.1.4 - Behavioural explanations and treatments for phobiasBehavioural psychologists explain phobias as fears that can be learned and maintained, which also suggests routes for treatment. You will use classical conditioning to explain acquisition and operant conditioning to explain avoidance, then compare systematic desensitisation with flooding. Evidenc...
4.1.4 - Cognitive explanations and CBT for depressionThe cognitive approach asks how persistent patterns of interpretation can contribute to depression. You will compare Beck's negative triad and Ellis's ABC model, then follow how cognitive behaviour therapy identifies and challenges unhelpful beliefs. Research on effectiveness and relapse provides...
4.1.4 - Biological explanations and drug therapy for OCDOCD can be investigated through inherited vulnerability, neural systems and the effects of medication, but no single gene or brain circuit explains every case. You will examine candidate genes, polygenic risk, serotonin and brain areas linked to worry and habit, then evaluate selective serotonin...
Paper 2: Psychology in context
4.2.1 Approaches in Psychology
4.2.1 - Learning approachesLearning approaches explain behaviour through experience and observation rather than hidden mental structures or inherited traits alone. You will connect Pavlov's classical conditioning, Skinner's operant conditioning and Bandura's social learning theory to different routes by which behaviour cha...
4.2.1 - The cognitive approachMental processes cannot be observed directly, so cognitive psychologists infer them from behaviour and model how information is represented and transformed. This lesson examines schema, models, and the use of controlled experiments to investigate memory, attention and decision-making. You will ev...
4.2.1 - The biological approachThe biological approach traces behaviour to genes, evolution, nervous-system structures and neurochemistry. You will distinguish genotype from phenotype, examine how natural selection can shape behavioural tendencies, and explore how neurotransmitters and cognitive neuroscience link mind to brain...
4.2.1 - The psychodynamic approachFreud's psychodynamic approach explains behaviour through unconscious conflict, early experience and the changing balance between id, ego and superego. You will apply defence mechanisms and psychosexual stages, then consider how case evidence supports or challenges the account. Evaluation focuses...
4.2.1 - Humanistic PsychologyHumanistic psychology begins with conscious experience, personal meaning and the capacity for growth rather than treating behaviour as fully determined. You will explore free will, self-actualisation, Maslow's hierarchy of needs, Rogers's ideas of congruence and conditions of worth. The lesson al...
4.2.1 - Comparison of approachesPsychological approaches often explain the same behaviour at different levels and with different assumptions about choice, evidence and change. You will compare learning, cognitive, biological, psychodynamic and humanistic accounts through determinism, nature and nurture, reductionism, scientific...
4.2.2 Biopsychology
4.2.2 - The divisions of the nervous systemThe nervous system carries information from the body to the brain and spinal cord, then carries commands back to muscles and organs. Learn how its central, peripheral, somatic and autonomic divisions work together, and why an automatic movement is not necessarily an autonomic response.
4.2.2 - Neurons and synaptic transmissionNeural communication depends on specialised cells carrying impulses in the correct direction and passing signals across tiny gaps. You will compare sensory, relay and motor neurons, linking dendrons, cell bodies, axons and terminals to their roles in a response pathway. The lesson then follows sy...
4.2.2 - The function of the endocrine systemHormonal messages use the bloodstream to influence target tissues, often more slowly and for longer than neural impulses. This lesson traces how glands release hormones into the bloodstream, how target cells respond, and how the pituitary coordinates other glands. You will apply the roles of the...
4.2.2 - The fight or flight response including the role of adrenalineA perceived threat can trigger rapid neural and hormonal changes before deliberate thought is complete. You will follow the fight-or-flight sequence through the hypothalamus, sympathetic nervous system, adrenal medulla and adrenaline, explaining effects on heart rate, breathing, glucose and diges...
4.2.2 - Ways of studying the brainDifferent brain methods answer different questions: activity, electrical timing, anatomy or the effects of damage. You will compare fMRI, EEG, event-related potentials and post-mortem examination, learning what each measures and the kind of inference it permits. Evaluation focuses on spatial and...
4.2.2 - Brain localisation, lateralisation, plasticity and recoverySome brain functions are concentrated in specialised areas, yet experience and injury can reorganise the networks that support them. You will locate motor, somatosensory, visual, auditory and language functions, examine hemispheric lateralisation through split-brain research, and explain neuropla...
4.2.3 Research methods
4.2.3 - Experimental method and types of experimentIf a class recalls more words with music playing, did the music help, or did that class have an easier list? Experiments use comparisons to investigate such questions. This lesson explains laboratory, field, natural and quasi-experiments and how the actual manipulation, allocation and controls af...
4.2.3 - Types of observationObservation turns behaviour into evidence without relying solely on what participants say, but every design choice affects validity and ethics. You will distinguish naturalistic from controlled, covert from overt, and participant from non-participant observation. The lesson develops comparison an...
4.2.3 - Questionnaires and interviewsSelf-report methods give access to beliefs and experiences that cannot be observed directly, but wording and interaction can shape the answers. You will compare open and closed questionnaire items with structured and unstructured interviews, considering depth, standardisation, response bias and i...
4.2.3 - CorrelationsCorrelations show whether two measured variables vary together, not whether one produces the other. You will interpret positive, negative and zero relationships, distinguish correlation from experiment, and identify when a scatter pattern supports a prediction. Evaluation centres on third variabl...
4.2.3 - Content analysisContent analysis converts communication, images or recorded behaviour into systematic evidence. This lesson follows the method from selecting material and defining units of analysis to creating coding categories and recording frequencies or themes. You will evaluate how operational definitions, s...
4.2.3 - Case studiesAn intensive case study can reveal a rare condition or life history in depth when an experiment would be impossible or unethical. You will examine how researchers combine interviews, tests, observations and records, and how such evidence can generate hypotheses or challenge existing models. Evalu...
4.2.3.1 Scientific processes
4.2.3.1 - AimsAn aim states what a study intends to investigate. Learn to write focused aims, distinguish them from predictions, and choose wording that fits experimental, correlational or exploratory research.
4.2.3.1 - HypothesesA hypothesis converts an aim into a prediction that can be tested against data. You will write directional and non-directional experimental and correlational hypotheses, operationalising variables so another researcher could recognise the predicted outcome. The lesson emphasises choosing directio...
4.2.3.1 - SamplingPsychologists usually study a sample but want conclusions to apply to a wider target population. You will compare random, systematic, stratified, opportunity and volunteer sampling, following the actual recruitment procedure for each rather than relying on labels. Evaluation asks how access, self...
4.2.3.1 - Pilot studies and the aims of pilotingA pilot study is a small rehearsal used to discover problems before the main research consumes time, participants and data. You will examine how piloting can improve instructions, question wording, timing, equipment, behavioural categories and operational definitions. The key skill is to link a d...
4.2.3.1 - Experimental designsExperimental design decides who completes each condition, and that choice changes both the source of error and the analysis. You will compare repeated measures, independent groups and matched pairs, considering participant variables, order effects, attrition and resources. Applying the designs to...
4.2.3.1 - Observational designA count of playground behaviour is useful only if we know what was counted and when the observer looked. Learn to define observable categories, use event and time sampling, and judge what each recording system can tell us.
4.2.3.1 - Questionnaire and interview designThe way a question is written can change the answer. Learn to construct clear questionnaire items and interview schedules, choose open or closed responses, and use a pilot to find problems before interpreting people’s answers.
4.2.3.1 - VariablesTo test whether noise affects memory, we must decide what noise people hear, how memory is scored and what else could change that score. Learn to identify variable roles, define them precisely and recognise alternative explanations for a result.
4.2.3.1 - ControlIf two groups differ in both caffeine intake and testing time, which difference explains their reaction times? Learn how random allocation, randomisation, counterbalancing, standardisation and control groups make comparisons easier to interpret, and what each control leaves unresolved.
4.2.3.1 - Demand characteristics and investigator effectsA participant who guesses the expected result may try harder; a researcher expecting improvement may score generously. Learn how demand characteristics and investigator effects alter evidence, how they overlap and how to choose a practical control for each source of bias.
4.2.3.1 - Ethics in psychological researchUseful findings do not justify treating people as a means to an end. Learn to recognise ethical problems before, during and after research, apply BPS guidance, and judge whether a safeguard addresses the actual risk rather than merely looking reassuring.
4.2.3.1 - Peer reviewA convincing research claim needs more than its author's confidence. Follow how expert reviewers check a paper or funding proposal, how criticism can improve research, and why passing review still leaves a claim open to challenge.
4.2.3.1 - Economic implications of psychological researchA treatment or workplace policy can change how people feel and how resources are used. Trace the route from psychological findings to costs, productivity and public spending, then judge what evidence would justify an economic claim.
4.2.3.1 - ReliabilityReliable evidence is consistent across occasions, items, observers or repeated procedures, depending on the method being used. You will distinguish test-retest and inter-observer reliability, interpret agreement and correlation, and propose changes that make measurement more standardised. Evaluat...
4.2.3.1 - ValidityA score can be consistent while measuring the wrong thing. Learn how researchers gather evidence about face, concurrent, ecological and temporal validity, then choose changes that target the actual weakness in a study.
4.2.3.1 - Features of sciencePsychology is scientific when claims are exposed to evidence, replication and the possibility of being wrong. You will examine objectivity, empirical methods, replicability, falsifiability, theory construction and hypothesis testing, then explore paradigms and paradigm shifts. Applying these feat...
4.2.3.1 - Reporting psychological investigationsA scientific report lets another person follow the research and question its conclusions. Learn what belongs in the abstract, introduction, method, results, discussion and references, with particular care over the boundary between a finding and its explanation.
4.2.3.2 Data handling and analysis
4.2.3.2 - Quantitative and qualitative dataNumbers can show patterns efficiently, while words can preserve meaning and context that a score may miss. You will distinguish quantitative from qualitative data, identify how each can arise from different methods, and compare analysis, replication and depth. The lesson also considers mixed-meth...
4.2.3.2 - Primary and secondary data, including meta-analysisThe value of data depends partly on who collected it, for what purpose and under which definitions. You will compare primary data gathered for a current study with secondary sources produced earlier, then examine meta-analysis as a systematic way of combining quantitative findings. Evaluation cov...
4.2.3.2 - Descriptive statisticsDescriptive statistics compress a set of scores without explaining why the pattern occurred. You will calculate and interpret the mean, median and mode, calculate and compare range and standard deviation, work with ratios and percentages, use numerical notation and estimates, and identify positiv...
4.2.3.2 - Presentation and display of quantitative dataTables and graphs make numerical patterns visible, but the correct display depends on what the values represent. You will construct and interpret tables, bar charts, histograms and scattergrams, distinguishing separated categories from continuous intervals and relationships. Evaluation focuses on...
4.2.3.2 - DistributionsA distribution reveals where scores cluster, how widely they vary and whether a tail pulls the pattern away from symmetry. You will distinguish normal, positive and negative skew, then predict the relative positions of mean, median and mode. Applying these features will help you interpret psychol...
4.2.3.2 - Interpreting correlation coefficientsA correlation coefficient condenses both direction and strength into a value from -1 to +1. You will interpret the sign, magnitude and context of coefficients, distinguish strong negative relationships from weak positive ones, and translate values into careful conclusions. The lesson keeps associ...
4.2.3.2 - Levels of measurementThe same psychological construct can produce nominal categories, ordinal ranks or interval measurements depending on how it is operationalised. You will classify data by what comparisons the numbers genuinely permit, then explain how level of measurement affects summaries and statistical tests. A...
4.2.3.2 - Coding in content analysisCoding turns complex communication into analysable categories, so the quality of the findings depends on the rules used to classify each unit. You will define units of analysis, build mutually clear categories, record frequencies and test agreement between coders. The lesson also examines how a c...
4.2.3.3 Inferential testing
4.2.3.3 - The sign testInferential tests help decide whether an observed pattern is unlikely to have arisen by chance under a null hypothesis. This lesson introduces the logic through the sign test, where paired differences are reduced to plus and minus signs and ties are removed. You will calculate the test statistic,...
4.2.3.3 - Probability and significanceStatistical significance compares an obtained result with what would be expected if the null hypothesis were true. You will interpret probability levels, use critical-value tables and apply decision rules that depend on whether a test statistic must be equal to or beyond a threshold. The lesson a...
4.2.3.3 - Choosing a statistical testChoosing a statistical test is a structured decision about the research question, design and level of measurement. You will use these three features to distinguish tests of difference from association and related from unrelated data, then select among the tests required for AQA Psychology. Applyi...
Paper 3 Section A: Issues and debates (compulsory)
4.3.1 Issues and debates in Psychology
4.3.1 - Gender and cultural biasPsychological findings can look universal while reflecting the gender or culture of the researchers, participants and concepts used. You will distinguish alpha and beta bias, androcentrism, ethnocentrism and cultural relativism, then examine how biased assumptions affect theory and application. E...
4.3.1 - Free will and determinismCan behaviour be chosen freely if it has biological, environmental or unconscious causes? This lesson distinguishes hard and soft determinism, applies biological, environmental and psychic forms, and examines psychology's scientific emphasis on causal explanation. You will evaluate evidence, resp...
4.3.1 - The nature–nurture debateNature and nurture are difficult to separate because inherited dispositions develop within physical and social environments. You will examine genetic, learning and interactionist explanations across psychology, using twin, adoption and developmental evidence with care. Epigenetics and neural plas...
4.3.1 - Holism and reductionismPsychological explanations can focus on molecules, neural circuits, learned responses, thoughts, relationships or whole social systems. You will distinguish holism from reductionism, locate biological and environmental reductionism within levels of explanation, and compare what each approach make...
4.3.1 - Idiographic and nomothetic investigationPsychology can seek the detailed meaning of one person's experience or general laws that apply across populations. You will compare idiographic case-based investigation with nomothetic classification, measurement and hypothesis testing, linking each to qualitative and quantitative evidence. The l...
4.3.1 - Social sensitivity in researchResearch becomes socially sensitive when its questions or conclusions can affect participants or the groups they represent beyond the study itself. You will apply Sieber and Stanley's concerns about implications, uses and validity to examples involving diagnosis, gender, culture, intelligence and...
Paper 3 Section B: Option 1 (choose one topic)
4.3.2 Relationships
4.3.2 - Factors affecting attraction in romantic relationshipsWhy does one acquaintance become a romantic possibility while another does not? This lesson in the optional Relationships topic explains how sharing personal information, physical attractiveness and social filters can affect attraction. You will distinguish first impressions from partner choice a...
4.3.2 - Theories of romantic relationshipsA person can feel dissatisfied yet remain committed, or enjoy a relationship yet think it unfair. This lesson in the optional Relationships topic separates those outcomes using social exchange theory, equity theory and Rusbult's investment model. Duck's phase model then describes how relationship...
4.3.2 - Online relationshipsA text conversation can make it easier to reveal a worry, hide a fact or get to know someone before seeing their appearance. This lesson in the optional Relationships topic explains online self-disclosure, deception and absence of gating. The effects depend on the communication features and peopl...
4.3.2 - Parasocial relationshipsA performer can feel familiar even though they do not know the person watching. This lesson in the optional Relationships topic explains one-sided bonds, the three levels of parasocial involvement, and the absorption-addiction and attachment explanations. You will use evidence carefully to distin...
4.3.3 Gender
4.3.3 - Chromosomes, hormones and diversity in sex developmentBiological sex development involves chromosomes, genes, gonads, hormones and tissue responses rather than a single switch. You will examine typical patterns and the roles of testosterone, oestrogen and oxytocin, then use androgen insensitivity syndrome, Klinefelter's syndrome and Turner syndrome...
4.3.3 - Gender identities and the Bem Sex Role InventoryGender identity describes a person's sense of gender and cannot be inferred from appearance, chromosomes or a questionnaire score. You will distinguish binary, non-binary and gender-fluid identities, then examine how the Bem Sex Role Inventory measures culturally defined masculine, feminine and a...
4.3.3 - Biological explanations of gender developmentBiological explanations of gender development examine how chromosomes and prenatal or later hormones may influence behaviour and identity-related traits. You will study typical developmental pathways and evidence from congenital adrenal hyperplasia and related variations, distinguishing associati...
4.3.3 - Cognitive explanations of gender developmentCognitive explanations ask how children actively organise information about gender rather than merely copy models. You will compare Kohlberg's stages of gender identity, stability and constancy with Martin and Halverson's gender schema theory, then apply both to attention, memory and behaviour. E...
4.3.3 - Social learning, culture and mediaChildren encounter gendered behaviour through family, peers, culture and media, but observation becomes learning through attention, identification and expected consequences. You will apply modelling, imitation, direct reinforcement and vicarious reinforcement to gender development, then examine c...
4.3.3 - Gender incongruenceGender incongruence concerns a marked and persistent difference between experienced gender and assigned sex, but explanation must not imply that gender diversity itself is a defect. You will examine biological accounts involving genes, hormones and brain evidence alongside social or cultural expl...
4.3.4 Cognition and development
4.3.4 - Piaget's theory of cognitive developmentPiaget described children as active constructors of knowledge who adapt schemas through assimilation, accommodation and equilibration. You will follow his stages from sensorimotor thought to formal operations, applying object permanence, conservation, egocentrism and class inclusion. Research evi...
4.3.4 - Vygotsky's theory of cognitive developmentVygotsky placed social interaction and cultural tools at the centre of cognitive development. You will explain the zone of proximal development and scaffolding, showing how a more knowledgeable other can support performance that the learner cannot yet manage alone. Evidence from collaborative lea...
4.3.4 - Baillargeon's explanation of infant abilitiesInfants may understand more about objects than their limited actions and speech can reveal. You will examine Baillargeon's physical reasoning system and violation-of-expectation research, where longer looking at an impossible event is treated as evidence of surprise. Evaluation asks whether looki...
4.3.4 - The development of social cognitionSocial cognition allows children to understand perspectives, beliefs and intentions that differ from their own. You will trace Selman's levels of perspective-taking, theory of mind and false-belief tasks through the Sally-Anne study, then examine the proposed role of the mirror neuron system. Evi...
Paper 3 Section C: Option 2 (choose one topic)
4.3.5 Schizophrenia
4.3.5 - Symptoms and issues in diagnosisSchizophrenia is identified through patterns of symptoms rather than one defining sign. You will distinguish hallucinations and delusions from avolition and speech poverty, then examine how co-morbidity, symptom overlap, culture and gender complicate diagnosis. Evaluation will focus on how these...
4.3.5 - Biological explanations for schizophreniaBiological explanations treat schizophrenia as arising from interacting vulnerabilities rather than one damaged gene or a uniform excess of dopamine. You will examine polygenic inheritance, the revised dopamine hypothesis and neural correlates linked to particular symptoms. Twin, molecular and br...
4.3.5 - Psychological explanations for schizophreniaPsychological accounts explain schizophrenia through family communication, emotional climate and disruptions to attention or thought processing. You will distinguish historical family theories from expressed emotion and cognitive explanations involving metarepresentation and central control. Eval...
4.3.5 - Drug therapy for schizophreniaAntipsychotic drugs aim to reduce symptoms by altering neurotransmitter activity, but symptom management is not the same as removing a cause. You will compare typical and atypical antipsychotics, including their actions, benefits and side effects. Clinical evidence will help you evaluate effectiv...
4.3.5 - CBT and family therapy for schizophreniaPsychological therapies can help people manage experiences and reduce relapse without claiming that symptoms are simply imagined. You will examine how CBT for psychosis tests interpretations and develops coping strategies, and how family therapy changes communication, stress and expressed emotion...
4.3.5 - Interactionism and schizophreniaThe diathesis-stress model explains schizophrenia as the outcome of vulnerability interacting with environmental stress rather than either factor acting alone. You will compare original and modern versions of diathesis, examine evidence for gene-environment interaction, and connect explanation to...
4.3.6 Eating behaviour
4.3.6 - Explanations for food preferencesWhy can sweetness appeal early in life, while favourite meals differ across families and cultures? Food preferences combine evolved approach and avoidance tendencies with learning. This lesson belongs to the optional Eating behaviour topic in Paper 3, Section C.
4.3.6 - Neural and hormonal control of eating behaviourThe brain combines signals about meals and stored energy to influence hunger and fullness. Follow the hypothalamus, ghrelin and leptin through this system, then assess what the research can establish. This lesson belongs to the optional Eating behaviour topic in Paper 3, Section C.
4.3.6 - Biological explanations for anorexia nervosaInherited vulnerability and brain systems may influence the development or maintenance of anorexia nervosa. Learn how genetic and neural evidence supports these accounts, and why a biological association is not an individual diagnosis of cause. This lesson belongs to the optional Eating behaviour...
4.3.6 - Psychological explanations for anorexia nervosaFamily relationships, observed rewards and patterns of thought offer different psychological explanations for anorexia nervosa. Compare their mechanisms and evidence while distinguishing risk, maintenance and cause. This lesson belongs to the optional Eating behaviour topic in Paper 3, Section C.
4.3.6 - Biological explanations for obesityGenetic differences and brain systems can affect appetite, satiety, reward and energy regulation. Explore these biological explanations for obesity without treating vulnerability as destiny. This lesson belongs to the optional Eating behaviour topic in Paper 3, Section C.
4.3.6 - Psychological explanations for obesityWhy might a small breach of a strict food rule lead someone to eat more than intended? Restraint theory, disinhibition and the boundary model offer connected explanations, with important limits. This lesson belongs to the optional Eating behaviour topic in Paper 3, Section C.
4.3.7 Stress
4.3.7 - The physiology of stressStress responses mobilise the body through fast and slow systems that are adaptive in the short term but costly when repeatedly activated. You will trace the sympathomedullary pathway, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal system and cortisol, then examine Selye's general adaptation syndrome. Evalua...
4.3.7 - The role of stress in illnessStress can influence health through immune, cardiovascular and behavioural pathways, but an association does not mean stress is the sole cause of illness. You will examine immunosuppression and cardiovascular disorders using laboratory, longitudinal and naturalistic evidence. Evaluation focuses o...
4.3.7 - Sources of stressMajor life changes, repeated daily hassles and pressures at work differ in scale but can each challenge coping resources. You will compare life-event measures with hassles research and examine how workload and control shape workplace stress. Evidence will help you evaluate self-report bias, rever...
4.3.7 - Measuring stressStress has subjective, behavioural and physiological features, so different measures may not agree. You will compare the Social Readjustment Rating Scale, the Hassles and Uplifts Scale and skin conductance response, learning what each records and how scores are produced. Evaluation considers reli...
4.3.7 - Individual differences in stressThe same demand can produce different stress responses because personality, appraisal and coping resources vary. You will compare Type A, B and C behaviour patterns and examine hardiness through commitment, challenge and control. Research evidence supports evaluation of measurement, health links,...
4.3.7 - Managing and coping with stressStress management can target physiological arousal, patterns of appraisal or practical coping skills. You will compare drug therapy, stress inoculation therapy and biofeedback, explaining the mechanism and procedure of each. You will also examine gender differences in coping and how instrumental,...
Paper 3 Section D: Option 3 (choose one topic)
4.3.8 Aggression
4.3.8 - Biological mechanisms in aggressionBiological mechanisms can change the probability of aggression without making violent behaviour inevitable. You will examine limbic and prefrontal systems, serotonin, testosterone and genetic evidence, linking each mechanism to inhibition, threat or reward. Studies of hormones, twins, genes and b...
4.3.8 - Ethological and evolutionary explanations of aggressionAggression can be analysed as species-typical behaviour triggered by cues or as a strategy shaped by reproductive pressures. You will examine innate releasing mechanisms, fixed action patterns and ethological evidence, then apply evolutionary accounts to sexual jealousy, mate retention and bullyi...
4.3.8 - Social psychological explanations of aggressionSocial psychological explanations trace aggression to blocked goals, observed models and changes in self-awareness within groups. You will compare frustration-aggression theory, social learning theory and de-individuation, applying each to realistic behaviour. Experimental and field evidence will...
4.3.8 - Aggression in prisonsPrison aggression may reflect characteristics imported by individuals, conditions created by the institution, or an interaction between both. You will compare the importation and deprivation models, connecting gang affiliation, history and identity with crowding, loss of autonomy and institutiona...
4.3.8 - Media influences on aggressionResearch on television, films and computer games asks whether exposure changes aggressive thoughts, feelings or behaviour and for how long. You will examine experimental, correlational and longitudinal evidence, then explain desensitisation, disinhibition and cognitive priming. Evaluation focuses...
4.3.9 Forensic Psychology
4.3.9 - Offender profilingForensic psychology is one of the optional Option 3 topics. Offender profiling uses crime information to prioritise enquiries, but a profile cannot identify a guilty person by itself. This lesson compares fixed offender types with behavioural and geographical patterns, showing how investigators t...
4.3.9 - Biological explanations of offending behaviourBiological explanations of offending examine inherited vulnerability, neurotransmission and brain systems involved in inhibition and decision-making. You will interpret twin and candidate-gene evidence, gene-environment interaction and findings about prefrontal function. Evaluation keeps diagnosi...
4.3.9 - Psychological explanations of offending behaviourPsychological accounts explain offending through personality traits, moral reasoning, biased interpretations and attitudes learned from close associates. You will compare Eysenck's criminal personality, Kohlberg-linked moral development, cognitive distortions such as hostile attribution and minim...
4.3.9 - Dealing with offending behaviourResponses to offending can punish, manage risk, change learned behaviour or repair harm, and these aims do not always align. You will examine custodial sentencing and its psychological effects, token economies, anger management and restorative justice. Evidence on later offending, institutional b...
4.3.10 Addiction
4.3.10 - Describing addictionAddiction is more than frequent use or enjoyment: it involves patterns such as dependence, tolerance and withdrawal that affect control and daily life. You will distinguish physical from psychological dependence and apply the core features without assuming they appear identically in substances an...
4.3.10 - Risk factors in the development of addictionRisk factors change the probability of addiction but do not identify a single cause or destiny. You will examine genetic vulnerability, personality, family influence and local social context, considering how access, modelling, stress and impulsivity may interact. Twin, adoption and correlational...
4.3.10 - Explanations for nicotine addictionNicotine addiction can be maintained by both brain changes and learned cues linked to nicotine use. You will trace dopamine reward, tolerance, withdrawal and negative reinforcement, then explain how places, people and routines acquire cue reactivity. Evidence from laboratory and treatment researc...
4.3.10 - Explanations for gambling addictionGambling can persist despite losses because intermittent reinforcement and distorted beliefs keep the next reward psychologically powerful. You will apply partial and variable reinforcement schedules, near misses, gambler's fallacy and illusion of control. Experimental and real-world evidence sup...
4.3.10 - Reducing addictionTreatments for addiction can reduce withdrawal, change learned associations or challenge the thoughts and coping routines maintaining use. You will compare drug therapy, aversion therapy, covert sensitisation and cognitive behaviour therapy, linking each procedure to its proposed mechanism. Evide...
4.3.10 - Prochaska’s six-stage modelBehaviour change is often a process with setbacks rather than a single decision. You will apply Prochaska's stages from precontemplation and contemplation through preparation, action, maintenance and termination, while treating relapse as information about the process rather than automatic failur...