Study
WJEC AS-Level Psychology 601-5719-7
Psychology Past to Present — The Five Approaches
Topic overviewThe Biological Approach: assumptions of the approach and applying the assumptions to the formation of relationshipsThe Biological Approach: love chemicals, strengths and weaknessesBiological Therapy: Drug Therapy or Psychosurgery — how the approach is used in therapyBiological Therapy: Drug Therapy or Psychosurgery — effectiveness of the therapyClassic Evidence (Biological): Raine, Buchsbaum and LaCasse (1997) — methodology and findingsClassic Evidence (Biological): Raine, Buchsbaum and LaCasse (1997) — conclusionsThe Psychodynamic Approach: assumptions of the approachThe Psychodynamic Approach: personality, defence mechanisms and the formation of relationshipsThe Psychodynamic Approach: strengths and weaknesses of the approachPsychodynamic Therapy: Dream Analysis or Group Analysis Psychotherapy — how the approach is usedPsychodynamic Therapy: Dream Analysis or Group Analysis Psychotherapy — effectiveness of the therapyClassic Evidence (Psychodynamic): Bowlby (1944) — methodology, procedures and findingsClassic Evidence (Psychodynamic): Bowlby (1944) — conclusions, ethical issues and social implicationsThe Behaviourist Approach: assumptions of the approachThe Behaviourist Approach: applying the assumptions to relationships, strengths and weaknessesBehaviourist Therapy: Aversion Therapy or Systematic Desensitisation — how the approach is usedBehaviourist Therapy: Aversion Therapy or Systematic Desensitisation — effectiveness of the therapyClassic Evidence (Behaviourist): Watson and Rayner (1920) — methodology, procedures and findingsClassic Evidence (Behaviourist): Watson and Rayner (1920) — conclusionsThe Cognitive Approach: assumptions of the approach and applying the assumptions to the formation of relationshipsThe Cognitive Approach: strengths and weaknesses of the approachCognitive Therapy: Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or Rational Emotive Behaviour TherapyCognitive Therapy: Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (2)Classic Evidence (Cognitive): Loftus and Palmer (1974) — methodology, procedures and findingsClassic Evidence (Cognitive): Loftus and Palmer (1974) — conclusionsThe Positive Approach: assumptions of the approachThe Positive Approach: applying the assumptions to the formation of relationshipsThe Positive Approach: strengths and weaknesses of the approachPositive Therapy: Mindfulness or Quality of Life Therapy — how the approach is used in therapyPositive Therapy: Mindfulness or Quality of Life Therapy — assumptions in practice, effectiveness and ethicsClassic Evidence (Positive): Myers and Diener (1995) — methodology, procedures and findingsClassic Evidence (Positive): Myers and Diener (1995) — conclusionsComparison of the Five Approaches: biological approach and psychodynamic approachComparison of the Five Approaches: behaviourist approach, cognitive approach and positive approach
Contemporary Debates
Topic overviewHow to Explore a Contemporary DebateDebate: The Ethics of Neuroscience — what is at the core of the debateDebate: The Ethics of Neuroscience — arguments on each side of itDebate: The Mother as Primary Care-Giver of an Infant — what is at the core of the debateDebate: The Mother as Primary Care-Giver of an Infant — arguments on each side of itDebate: Using Conditioning Techniques to Control the Behaviour of ChildrenDebate: Using Conditioning Techniques to Control the Behaviour of Children — arguments on each sideDebate: Reliability of Eye-Witness Testimony (Including Children) — what is at the core of the debateDebate: Reliability of Eye-Witness Testimony (Including Children) — arguments on each side of itDebate: Relevance of Positive Psychology in Today's Society — what is at the core of the debateDebate: Relevance of Positive Psychology in Today's Society — arguments on each side of it
Principles of Research and Application of Research Methods
Topic overviewSocial Psychology Context Study: Milgram (1963) — methodology and proceduresSocial Psychology Context Study: Milgram (1963) — findings, ethical issues and social implicationsDevelopmental Psychology Context Study: Kohlberg (1968) — methodology, procedures and findingsDevelopmental Psychology Context Study: Kohlberg (1968) — conclusionsDeciding on a Research Question: aim of the research and null hypothesesDeciding on a Research Question: variables, operationalisation and extraneous variablesMethodologies: experiments, quasi-experiments and participant observationsMethodologies: non-participant observation, content analysis and interviewsMethodologies: correlational studies, case studies and self-reportsLocation of Research: conducting research in a laboratory and in the fieldLocation of Research: conducting research on-lineParticipants and Sampling: target populations, sampling frames and opportunity samplingParticipants and Sampling: systematic sampling, stratified sampling and quota samplingParticipants and Sampling: self-selected sampling and observational sampling techniquesExperimental Design: independent groups and repeated measuresExperimental Design: matched pairsLevels of Measurement: nominal data and ordinal dataLevels of Measurement: interval data and ratio dataGraphical Representation: bar charts and histogramsGraphical Representation: scatter diagrams and choosing a display for the level of measurementDescriptive Statistics: the mean, the median and the modeDescriptive Statistics: the range, the standard deviation and choosing a measureReliabilityValidity: internal validity and external validityValidity: specific validity issues and ways of dealing with issues of validityEthics in Psychological Research: confidentiality, deception, protection from harm and risk to valuesEthics in Psychological Research: valid consent, working with vulnerable individuals and ways of dealing with ethical issuesApplication of Research Methods to a Novel Scenario (AS): identifying the method and the variablesApplication of Research Methods to a Novel Scenario (AS): judging the reliability, validity and ethics
Mathematical Requirements for Psychology (Appendix A: AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4)
Topic overviewArithmetic and Numerical Computation: standard form and significant figuresArithmetic and Numerical Computation: estimating and checking a resultHandling Data: means, medians, modes and ranges, percentages and percentage changeHandling Data: reading a table of data and orders of magnitudeAlgebraGraphs: plotting and labelling a graph, gradients and interceptsGraphs: reading a value off a curve and choosing the right form of graph
Mathematical Requirements for Psychology (Appendix A: AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4)
- 7 subtopics
- 20 things to know
- AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4
What Mathematical Requirements for Psychology (Appendix A: AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4) covers
The mathematical requirements are assessed on AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4 of WJEC Psychology rather than in a unit of their own. 86 recall questions across 7 subtopics.
Where it is assessed
AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4
The mathematical requirements, assessed in both units.
Check the WJEC specification ↗The 7 subtopics
Each one has its own page. WJEC AS Psychology students sit this topic in the first year.
- Arithmetic and Numerical Computation: standard form and significant figuresRecall questions on standard form and significant figures.Open →
- Arithmetic and Numerical Computation: estimating and checking a resultRecall questions on estimating a result and checking a result.Open →
- Handling Data: means, medians, modes and ranges, percentages and percentage changeRecall questions on means, medians, modes, ranges, percentages and percentage change.Open →
- Handling Data: reading a table of data and orders of magnitudeRecall questions on reading a table of data and orders of magnitude.Open →
- AlgebraTwenty recall questions on Algebra.Open →
- Graphs: plotting and labelling a graph, gradients and interceptsRecall questions on plotting a graph, labelling a graph, gradients and intercepts.Open →
- Graphs: reading a value off a curve and choosing the right form of graphRecall questions on reading a value off a curve and choosing the right form of graph.Open →
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
Your recallNot started
Numbers
What do the symbols ≤ and ≥ mean, and how is ≤ used when reporting the outcome of a statistical test?
Key term
In Spearman's formula, what does n stand for, and what happens to the coefficient as ∑d² gets larger?
Key term
A researcher has the mean score for each of three experimental conditions. Which form of display is appropriate, and why?
Study
Which is the longer response time, 6.3 × 10⁻³ s or 8.1 × 10⁻⁴ s?
Key term
A results table gives category totals in standard form. Why are they usually converted to decimal form before a pie chart is constructed from them?
Numbers
Mean recall rises from 8 words in the control condition to 11 words in the experimental condition. What is the percentage increase?
Evaluation
A test returns p = 0.03 in a study using the 0.05 level of significance. Is the result significant?
Key term
A participant gives 51 correct responses out of 60 on a categorisation task. What percentage is correct?
Key term
460 participants obtain a combined total of 9200 points on a memory test. What is the mean score per participant?
Key term
A Mann Whitney U test gives an observed value of 14, and the critical value at the 0.05 level is 23. Is the result significant?
Key term
Which display is used for two continuous variables measured on the same participants in a correlational investigation?
Numbers
A pie chart has a 40% category and a 15% category. Calculate the sector angle of each.
Key term
How would you recognise no correlation from a scatter diagram?
Key term
A reaction-time study records a mean latency of 0.0042 s. What is this in standard form?
Numbers
12% of a sample of 250 participants withdrew before the study finished. How many participants was that?
Key term
A correlation coefficient is calculated as −0.71638. What is it to two significant figures, and to three?
Key term
A Chi-squared test gives an observed value of 7.82 against a critical value of 3.84. Is the result significant?
Key term
A test returns p = 0.07 in a study using the 0.05 level. How is the relationship written in symbols, and is the result significant?
Key term
On a scatter diagram, which variable belongs on which axis?
Take Mathematical Requirements for Psychology (Appendix A: AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4) further
The same content, four other ways.
Commonly confused
Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.
Positive correlation vs Negative correlation
Positive correlation: association where both variables tend to change in the same direction. Negative correlation: association where variables tend to change in opposite directions.
Questions from this topic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
A reaction-time study records a mean latency of 0.0042 s. What is this in standard form?
Model answer
The mean latency is 4.2 × 10⁻³ s.
- 2
A results table gives a participant's detection threshold as 3.5 × 10⁻² s. What is this in decimal form?
Model answer
The threshold is 0.035 s.
- 3
A content analysis logged 1.25 × 10³ codable utterances. How many utterances is that in decimal form?
Model answer
It is 1250 utterances.
- 4
A researcher screens 48 000 archived records in a secondary-data study. How is that number written in standard form?
Model answer
The researcher screens 4.8 × 10⁴ records.
- 5
Which is the longer response time, 6.3 × 10⁻³ s or 8.1 × 10⁻⁴ s?
Model answer
6.3 × 10⁻³ s is longer, because it equals 0.0063 s whereas 8.1 × 10⁻⁴ s equals only 0.00081 s.
- 6
State the rule a number must follow to be correctly written in standard form as a × 10ⁿ.
Model answer
The value of a must be at least 1 and less than 10, and n must be an integer, which may be positive, negative or zero.
What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material.
Mathematical Requirements for Psychology (Appendix A: AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4) revision questions
- Is Mathematical Requirements for Psychology (Appendix A: AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4) examined at AS in WJEC Psychology?
- Yes. It sits in AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4, which you take in the first year, so it is on the AS paper as well as counting towards the full A level.
- What does Mathematical Requirements for Psychology (Appendix A: AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4) cover in WJEC AS-Level Psychology?
- 7 subtopics: arithmetic and numerical computation: standard form and significant figures, arithmetic and numerical computation: estimating and checking a result, handling data: means, medians, modes and ranges, percentages and percentage change, handling data: reading a table of data and orders of magnitude, algebra, graphs: plotting and labelling a graph, gradients and intercepts and graphs: reading a value off a curve and choosing the right form of graph. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.
- How is Mathematical Requirements for Psychology (Appendix A: AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4) organised?
- By the WJEC 601-5719-7 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.
Every question in Mathematical Requirements for Psychology (Appendix A: AS Unit 2 and A2 Unit 4), 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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