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Edexcel A-Level Psychology Study Companion (2025)

The Edexcel A-Level Psychology Study Companion (2025) provides concise notes on foundations, research methods, and applied psychology topics. Key areas include social, cognitive, biological, and learning theories, along with methods of study, data handling, and ethical considerations. It also covers clinical, criminological, and child psychology, highlighting key studies and debates in the field.

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21 views

Edexcel A-Level Psychology Study Companion (2025)

The Edexcel A-Level Psychology Study Companion (2025) provides concise notes on foundations, research methods, and applied psychology topics. Key areas include social, cognitive, biological, and learning theories, along with methods of study, data handling, and ethical considerations. It also covers clinical, criminological, and child psychology, highlighting key studies and debates in the field.

Uploaded by

gamersunite1004
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Edexcel A-Level Psychology Study

Companion (2025)
Subtitle: Concise Notes for Edexcel 9PS0 – Foundations, Research, and Applied Topics​

Date: February 20, 2025

Part 1: Foundations of Psychology

1. Social Psychology

●​ Obedience: Following directives from authority.​

○​ Milgram (1963): 65% gave maximum shocks due to orders.


○​ ​
Insight: Authority shapes actions.
○​ ​
Critique: Controlled but ethically questionable.
●​ ​

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Prejudice: Attitudes toward groups.​

○​ Sherif (1954): Robbers Cave – Competition fuels bias.


○​ ​
Insight: Conflict drives division.
○​ ​
Critique: Real-world setting; hard to replicate.
●​ ​

​
2. Cognitive Psychology

●​ Memory Models:
○​ Multi-Store (Atkinson & Shiffrin): Input → STM (limited) → LTM (vast).​

■​ Support: Serial position effect.


■​ ​
Critique: Overly basic; ignores processing depth.
○​ ​

○​ ​
Reconstructive (Bartlett, 1932): Memory reshaped by schemas.​

■​ Support: “War of the Ghosts” distortions.


■​ ​
Critique: Insightful; lacks precision.
○​ ​

●​ ​

3. Biological Psychology

●​ Brain and Behavior:


○​ Raine et al. (1997): Murderers’ brains show prefrontal deficits.​

■​ Insight: Biology ties to aggression.


■​ ​
Critique: Correlational; ethical limits.
○​ ​

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Hormones: Testosterone linked to dominance.​

○​ Support: Animal studies (e.g., Mazur).


○​ ​
Critique: Human complexity ignored.
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4. Learning Theories

●​ Classical Conditioning: Pavlov – Stimulus pairing (e.g., bell → salivation).​

○​ Critique: Simple; excludes cognition.


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Operant Conditioning: Skinner – Rewards/punishments shape behavior.​

○​ Critique: Lab-strong; overlooks free will.


●​ ​

Part 2: Research in Psychology

1. Methods of Study

●​ Experiments: Lab (e.g., Milgram), Field (e.g., Sherif).​

○​ Pros/Cons: Lab (reliable, artificial); Field (natural, messy).


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●​ ​
Surveys: Self-reported data (e.g., attitudes).​

○​ Pros/Cons: Broad reach; bias risk.


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Observations: Watching behavior (e.g., Bandura’s aggression).
​

2. Data Handling

●​ Stats Basics: Central tendency (mean, etc.), dispersion (range).


●​ ​
Tests: Pearson’s r (correlation), t-test (differences).
●​ ​
Reliability: Consistency (e.g., test-retest).

3. Ethical Considerations

●​ Principles: Informed consent, no harm, debriefing.


●​ ​
*Issues: Milgram (stress), Raine (stigmatization).

Part 3: Applied Psychology Topics

1. Clinical Psychology

●​ Disorders:
○​ Schizophrenia: Hallucinations (positive), apathy (negative).​

■​ Study: Rosenhan (1973) – Faking insanity misled diagnosis.


○​ ​

○​ ​
Depression: Low mood, cognitive bias.
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Explanations: Dopamine (schizophrenia); Beck’s triad (depression).
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Therapies: Drugs (e.g., antipsychotics); CBT.
●​ ​
Analysis: Drugs fast; therapy deeper.

2. Option 1: Criminological Psychology

●​ Causes:
○​ Biological: Raine – Brain abnormalities.
○​ ​
Social: Bandura – Learned violence (Bobo doll).
●​ ​

●​ ​
*Application: Token economy in prisons (reinforcement).
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*Analysis: Practical; partial explanation.

3. Option 2: Child Psychology

●​ Development:
○​ Piaget: Stages (e.g., concrete operational).
○​ ​
Study: Ainsworth – Attachment types (Strange Situation).
●​ ​

●​ ​
*Application: Parenting styles impact (e.g., Baumrind).
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*Analysis: Structured; culture-specific.

Key Issues and Debates


●​ Genes vs. Environment: Raine (nature) vs. Sherif (nurture).
●​ ​
Simplification vs. Complexity: Biological (narrow) vs. cognitive (broad).
●​ ​
Ethics vs. Insight: Milgram (harmful) vs. knowledge gained.
●​ ​
Scientific Value: Lab rigor vs. real-life messiness.

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