Key term
AQA A-Level Psychology 7182
Social Influence
Memory
Attachment
Topic overviewCaregiver-infant interactions: reciprocity and interactional synchronySchaffer's stages of attachmentMultiple attachments and the role of the fatherAnimal studies of attachmentExplanations of attachmentAinsworth's Strange Situation and types of attachmentBowlby's theory of maternal deprivation and effects of institutionalisationInfluence of early attachment on relationshipsCultural variations in attachment
Approaches in Psychology
Biopsychology
Topic overviewDivisions of the nervous systemStructure and function of neurons and synaptic transmissionThe endocrine systemThe fight or flight responseWays of studying the brainLocalisation of function and hemispheric lateralisationPlasticity and functional recovery of the brain after traumaBiological rhythms: circadian, infradian and ultradian
Clinical Psychology and Mental Health
Research Methods
Scientific Processes
Topic overviewAims and hypothesesSamplingPilot studiesExperimental designsObservational designQuestionnaire construction and design of interviewsVariablesControlDemand characteristics and investigator effectsEthicsPeer reviewImplications of psychological research for the economyReliabilityValidityFeatures of scienceReporting psychological investigations
Quantitative and Qualitative Data
Topic overviewQuantitative and qualitative data; the distinction between qualitative and quantitative data collection techniquesPrimary and secondary data, including meta-analysisDescriptive statistics: measures of central tendency and measures of dispersionPresentation and display of quantitative data: graphs, tables, scattergrams, bar chartsDistributions: normal and skewed distributionsIntroduction to statistical testing; the sign test
Data Handling and Analysis
Inferential Testing
Issues and Debates in Psychology
RelationshipsOption 1
GenderOption 1
Cognition and DevelopmentOption 1
SchizophreniaOption 2
Eating BehaviourOption 2
StressOption 2
AggressionOption 3
Forensic PsychologyOption 3
AddictionOption 3
Explanations for Nicotine AddictionOption 3
Relationships
- 5 subtopics
- 23 things to know
- Paper 3
- Paper 3, one topic chosen from the first option block
What Relationships covers
Relationships is an optional topic for Paper 3. It covers what draws people together, the theories that explain why relationships are maintained or end, and two forms of relationship that fall outside the face-to-face case: those formed online and those held with someone who does not know the person exists.
The 5 subtopics
Each one has its own page.
- Factors affecting attraction in romantic relationshipsSelf-disclosure, physical attractiveness and the halo effect, and filter theory with the three filters a potential partner passes through.Open →
- Evolutionary explanations for partner preferencesSexual selection and anisogamy as explanations for partner preferences, intrasexual and intersexual selection, Buss's cross-cultural survey and Clark and Hatfield's study, and the social and same-sex challenges to the evolutionary account.Open →
- Theories of romantic relationshipsSocial exchange theory and the standards a relationship is judged against, equity theory, and the factors that predict commitment in Rusbult's investment model.Open →
- Online relationshipsHow self-disclosure online differs from disclosure face-to-face, why absence of gating allows relationships to form, and the limits deception places on them.Open →
- Parasocial relationshipsThe three levels of parasocial relationship, the absorption addiction model of celebrity worship, the attachment explanation, and the limitations of the research.Open →
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
Your recallNot started
Key term
Why does physical attractiveness matter when a romantic relationship forms?
Key term
Which bias makes attractive people seem to have other good qualities?
Process
What is filter theory, and what are its three filters?
Process
What type of relationship do evolutionary explanations of partner preferences struggle to explain?
Process
According to evolutionary explanations, what do males look for in a partner?
Key term
What is intersexual selection?
Key term
What does social exchange theory say maintains a relationship?
Key term
Against which two standards is a relationship judged in social exchange theory?
Key term
What does equity theory say determines satisfaction in a relationship?
Who and when
Which three factors predict commitment in Rusbult's investment model?
Process
Name and describe the phases of Duck's model of relationship breakdown.
Study
What did Le and Agnew's meta-analysis show about the investment model?
Evaluation
Give two criticisms of the economic theories of romantic relationships.
Evaluation
What is the main limitation of Duck's phase model?
Process
How does self-disclosure online differ from disclosure face-to-face?
Key term
Why can online relationships form between people who might never meet otherwise?
Who and when
Why can online communication become more intimate than talking in person?
Evaluation
What limitation does deception create for relationships formed online?
Key term
What is a parasocial relationship, and what three levels does it take?
Key term
Which model explains celebrity worship as compensation for what a life lacks?
Key term
How does attachment theory explain who forms parasocial relationships?
Evaluation
Give one limitation of research into parasocial relationships.
Take Relationships further
The same content, four other ways.
Commonly confused
Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.
Comparison level vs Comparison level for alternatives
Comparison level: the standard set by past experiences and general expectations. Comparison level for alternatives: the outcomes another possible partner or being alone would offer.
Similarity in attitudes vs Complementarity
Similarity in attitudes: sharing values and beliefs, which weighs most in the early stages. Complementarity: having traits the other partner lacks, weighing more later on.
Intrinsic investment vs Extrinsic investment
Intrinsic investment: resources put directly into the relationship, such as time, effort and emotion. Extrinsic investment: resources that become attached to the relationship, such as shared friends and children.
Questions from this topic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
Name three factors affecting attraction in romantic relationships.
Model answer
Self-disclosure, physical attractiveness, and the filtering of a field of available partners.
- 2
What is self-disclosure?
Model answer
Revealing personal information about oneself to another person.
- 3
How does self-disclosure affect attraction?
Model answer
Gradual, reciprocated self-disclosure increases intimacy and strengthens attraction.
- 4
Why is reciprocity of self-disclosure important?
Model answer
Attraction increases when self-disclosure is balanced and returned by both partners.
- 5
Why is physical attractiveness important in attraction?
Model answer
It is a key initial factor, and features judged attractive, such as symmetry, may signal health and genetic fitness.
- 6
What is the halo effect?
Model answer
The assumption that physically attractive people also possess other desirable personality traits.
What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material.
Relationships revision questions
- What does Relationships cover in AQA A-Level Psychology?
- 5 subtopics: factors affecting attraction in romantic relationships, evolutionary explanations for partner preferences, theories of romantic relationships, online relationships and parasocial relationships. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.
- How is Relationships organised?
- By the AQA 7182 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.
Every question in Relationships, on a schedule.
Attempt a question from memory, write the correct version, then attempt it again. Levo records the jump between your first attempt and your last, and brings each question back on the day you are due to forget it.
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