OCR A2 Psychology: G544: Approaches and Research Methods - Monday 17th June 2013

Can someone please help me with Section B question B? because I feel like I am writing way too much detail for it. Does anyone know exactly what part of the studies we have to include to get 8/8

You say why it studies the approach (or topic) asked by the question
E.g: Describe two cognitive approach studies, say why it studies the cognitive approach, then state the aim and outline the procedure, I don't think you need statistics but as long as you include the key steps you'll be fine. Then for findings and conclusions, state a main finding of the study, and then give the overall conclusion

Here's one I got 8/8 for through my teacher.

One example of a study with high ecological validity would be the study by Piliavin. This was a field experiment that looked at the effect of different cultured victims, in different conditions, on the likelihood of someone helping the victim. Victims were either black or white, in smart or rough clothes, they were also either "Ill" or "drunk". They had to feign collapsing on a subway to try and see if people would help them. It was found that ill people were helped the most, along with smart businessmen. Concluding that the condition of the victim has an effect on helping behaviour. This has high ecological validity because it was conducted without participant knowledge, and so was just part of their everyday lives, making it extremely realistic.
Another example of high ecological validity is in Keating et al, this study was where a mass media campaign was published in Nigeria and the aim was to look at it's effect on behaviour towards contraception and HIV prevention. It was asked whether they heard it on the radio, read it in the news or in health booklets, or saw it on TV. It was found that people had increased knowledge on HIV but no change in behaviour took place. Concluding that as well as a campaign, practical advice is needed. This has high ecological validity because media campaigns are around us all the time. The only artificiality of the situation was people asking about behaviours, people were not forced to change and so could continue living as normal, meaning the study maintained mundane realism.

I'm stressing out revising for this exam cause I just don't have time to revise everything! So far i've revised Individual Differences and Behaviourist Perspective! I need to revise Psychodynamic but don't know if its worth revising Physiological or Developmental?


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Seconded. That really confuses me too! I hope to briefly summarise the study and put some findings. I wouldn't go into much detail.

Are you revising over everything in section B or do you think an approach/perspective could come up? regardless of what happened in the Jan paper?

Do you think its likely that an approach will definitely come up in section B this time because in Jan 2 issues/debates came up so would it be risky revising just the approaches/perspectives?

I *think* it's best to revise the two perspectives, particularly behaviourist because I think that may come up. But I'm really struggling on psychodynamic. I don't have much studies for it.

I'm not really going over the debates - I'm going over the main ones such as free will and nurture, but I'm mainly focusing on approaches and section A. Good luck

Well they last asked an approach obviously in June 2012 and it is slightly risky, but i can't be bothered revising physiological/developmental! I'm just gonna revise Behaviourist/Psychodynamic/Individual Differences and revise Reductionism and Determinism and go over Case Studies and Observations that's all


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Oh ok so do you think I should revise approaches/perspectives and then the main debates but leave out issues such as ecological validity and ethics?

Do you know what you would write if they asked us to conduct a correlational study in Section A, I really hope that they don't ask for a correlation that would be my worst nightmare.

Oh for the psychodynamic perspective you could use Thigpen & cleckley; use of projective tests, which presume the existence of an unconscious mind. Freud and his study on Little Hans where you can link the perspective to the oedipus complex and the psychosexual stages. Then for A2 you could use Kohlberg and his moral development stages which stem from freud's idea of how personality is shaped by learning what is right from wrong

Does anyone know if on Section B, for d) questions, do you have to use the same 2 studies for both the similarity and difference or can you use like 4 different studies?

Does anyone know if on Section B, for d) questions, do you have to use the same 2 studies for both the similarity and difference or can you use like 4 different studies?

I think you can use different study if it's asking you to compare approach/debate.

I.e. compare lab and field.

Difference - lab has low ecological validity - Loftus Weapon Focus, Field has high ecological validity - Fisher
Similarity - they both have an IV manipulated - Bruce (lab), Meichenbaum (field) o.O