AQA Psychology 16 marker

This Psychology AQA psychodynamic 16 marker was marked 4/16 in my alevel psychology examination. I think it’s wrong and i’m just looking for someone to also confirm so i can get a remark. I’ve never got below an A* so seeing 4/16 was a massive shock.

Here is the examination

Freuds psychodynamic theory assumes that all behaviour is governed by the subconscious. she proposed a theory of personalities; the id (the subconscious desires, id is selfish and deviant), the superego (the selfless, guilty personality) and the ego (the mediator between the id and the ego) Freud also proposed the psychosexual stages, if an individual experiences trauma in this stage they may may become stuck here. The payxhosexual stages include oral, anal, phallic, genital and latency. He additionally stated that when trauma occurs the mind has coping mechanisms that enable us to deal with the trauma. athese include displacement, denial and repression. Thea Oepedial and electra complex are further additions to this approach. The oepedial xomplex states that a man desires his mother but fears his father (castration anxiety) so displaces the desire onto another woman who is like his mother.

A weakness of the psychodynamic approach is that many of the theories (eg. Oepedial complex) are based on case studies. An example of this is Freuds research into ‘Little Hans’ who displaced his fear of castration to a horse. This use of case studies limits the Freudian approach as it lacks generalisability to an entire population. This means that the external validity is limited. However- this psychological research may also strengthen the explanation as there is research support.

Furthermore, another weakness is that the psychodynamic approach rely on falsifiable theories. This means that we cannot prove that the theories are wrong for example- psychosexual stages. Therefore the scientific credibility of this approach is limited and may limit the view and reputation of the view of psychology as a science. Therefore this reduces psychology’s reputation- particularly due to the popularity of the freudian approach and usage within media.

However, a strength is that there are real world applications. For example- in therapy psychoanalysis is still used today. This is a strength as freudian theories are still utilised to help people heal from repressed traumas and feel better which may have encouraged people to get back into work. This ultimately improves work productivity and benefits the economy.

A final limitation is that the psychodynamic approach is deterministic. An example is that Freud suggests that if an individual is stuck within the anal stage- then they will become either- extremely lazy/ dirty or extremely obsessive and may show symptoms of OCD. This view strips indivuals from their autonomy and free will and can ultimately be seen as socially sensitive as it suggests that people cannot change their lives if they have had a poor upbringing.

Reply 1

_Shannon.k.s_

Hi!

I'm a Psychology a-level tutor and am also in my 4th year of Psychology BSc rn. I also took psych a-level and got an A* and icl this does seem like a really low mark for the quality, especially as the mark scheme awards 6 marks for A01 (knowledge) and 10 marks for A03 (evaluation) and you've definitely hit many of the points for both.

However, it could also depend exactly on what the question asked but even then I doubt you'd only get 4, especially as you said you never get below A*.

If you're able to send the question through I could probably give you a better idea of your mark but either way I think this would warrant a re-mark.

Reply 2

ashleigh grattan

Original post

by _Shannon.k.s_

Hi!
I'm a Psychology a-level tutor and am also in my 4th year of Psychology BSc rn. I also took psych a-level and got an A* and icl this does seem like a really low mark for the quality, especially as the mark scheme awards 6 marks for A01 (knowledge) and 10 marks for A03 (evaluation) and you've definitely hit many of the points for both.
However, it could also depend exactly on what the question asked but even then I doubt you'd only get 4, especially as you said you never get below A*.
If you're able to send the question through I could probably give you a better idea of your mark but either way I think this would warrant a re-mark.

Hiya! The question was ‘describe and evaluate the psychodynamic approach in psychology’ If you were to mark how many marks do you recon i’d get? On all my 16 markers on that paper were extremely low and i’m not sure if it’s a marking error as i typically get 13-14/16 and they were like 4-6 marks which has put me at a B which was extremely devistating to see on the day😭

Reply 3

_Shannon.k.s_

Original post

by ashleigh grattan

Hi,

Yeah i'm sorry I know it must've been hard to see on your results day but don't worry! I'm pretty sure this is a marking error, and if your other questions are similar I think it would definitely be worth getting a remark.

If this were one of my student's essays i would probably give it a 12/16 (could be higher but just trying to be as realistic as possible). Of course, some markers are very strict but i doubt you'd be far off this anyway.

I'll give you a breakdown of why this should be the average mark (and just show how 4 doesn't make sense):

A01 (out of 6):

Strengths:

•

Identified the role of the unconscious mind in governing behaviour.

•

Accurately outlined the tripartite personality (id, ego, superego).

•

Mentioned the psychosexual stages and idea of fixation.

•

Recognised defence mechanisms (displacement, denial, repression).

•

Included the Oedipus/Electra complex as part of Freud’s theory.

•

Used examples (oral/anal stage outcomes, castration anxiety).

Weaknesses:

•

Called Freud “she” at the start. (whilst this is pretty obviously a mistype, a strict marker might use this to lower the grade, joint with other "little mistakes").

•

“Ego is the mediator between the id and the ego” (should be between id and superego) - this would probably result in a step towards losing (or not completing) a mark.

•

Id described as “selfish and deviant” (better = primitive, pleasure principle) - this could be seen as "over-simplified" but i doubt it when presented on its own.

•

Very little explanation of each of the psychosexual stages, mainly only stated each.

•

Lots of typos (“payxhosexual,” “Oepedial,” “athese”) might make it look less precise.

•

Marking wise I would probably give this a 4 or 5 but this shouldn't be getting lower than a 3.

A01 (out of 10):

Strengths:

•

Gave four separate evaluation points (case studies, unfalsifiability, real-world application, determinism).

•

Supported case study criticism with specific example (Little Hans).

•

Used chains of reasoning (e.g. case studies → lack generalisability → low external validity).

•

Real-world application mentioned (psychoanalysis still used today).

•

Determinism point is well explained, linking to autonomy, free will, and social sensitivity.

•

Acknowledged that case studies can also be seen as a strength (rich detail/support).

Weaknesses:

•

Some evaluation points lack research support (e.g. therapy → economy claim is stretched; could mention evidence like effectiveness of psychoanalysis instead).

•

Unfalsifiability point is a little underdeveloped (you could contrast with more scientific approaches (e.g. behaviourism, cognitive psychology).

•

Very slight wording errors: “rely on falsifiable theories” (should be “unfalsifiable”).

•

Evaluation sometimes repeats ideas rather than developing them in depth.

•

Spelling/grammar issues could reduce clarity and academic tone.

•

Marking wise I would probably give this a 6 or 7 (could be higher depending on marker but wanna keep this realistic).

•

Overall, there is no way this ao3 should be getting lower than 5 marks.

Based on all of this, your essay shouldn't be getting lower than 8 marks as this would already be a "harsh mark". I would probably give this 12/16 (as there still needs some development) but I can't really see any way this would get a 4, so i definitely think you should get a remark, especially as the other 16 markers might be wrong too, and if they are, it would probably be enough to get you to an A.