Obviously, you need to answer 4 questions from 2 sections. You need to answer them well, describe and evaluate research and studies, and show the examiners what you know.
Sometimes though, the mark schemes are less than clear about how to reach that top band (the As and A*s). Here are some generic tips I've found in the mark schemes that are important in getting as close to full marks as you can:
January 2013
- Relevant research should be applied to part a)
- Must address “how” if the question asks for this
- “Discussion” may involve a comparison and
following/challenging a viewpoint
- Detail is beneficial in part a)
- Usefulness, application, ecological validity, reductionism,
reliability and ethics are all good evaluation points for interviewing
witnesses
- A good way to “assess strengths and weaknesses” is to
discuss whether or not an apparent “weakness” may actually be desirable or
necessary in order to fulfil a function
June 2012
- Responses should be clear, precise and explicit
- To what extent implies a degree of judgement is necessary
- Responses should directly answer the question rather than
simply describing research when this is not asked for. Research can be used to
illustrate responses but this should be linked to the question.
- Usefulness can be examined in terms of validity,
reliability, ethnocentrism, etc.
- Stronger answers with regards to treatments will be
contextualised
- Comparison invites similarities as well as differences
- Reliability can be affected by mood, interviewee, social
desirability bias, lying and misjudgement
Happy Thursday guys! Hope your revision is going well; here's some past paper questions from last year's paper to keep you going. I'll be doing these over the next day and a half, so if you've got a query, leave a comment!
Forensic Psychology
1. TURNING TO CRIME
(a) Describe how social cognition can explain
criminal behaviour (10)
(b) Evaluate the validity of research into cognitive explanations of criminal
behaviour (15)
2. MAKING A CASE
(a) Describe how top-down typology is used to
create a profile (10)
(b) Assess the usefulness of qualitative and quantitative data when creating a
profile (15)
4. AFTER A GUILTY VERDICT
(a) How can probation serve as an alternative to
imprisonment? (10)(b) Evaluate limitations of research into
alternatives to imprisonment (15)
Health and Clinical Psychology6. STRESS
(a) Describe self-report as a method of
measuring stress (10)
(b) Compare different measures of stress (15)
7. DYSFUNCTIONAL BEHAVIOUR
(a) How has dysfunctional behaviour been
defined? (10)
(b) To what extent may diagnoses of dysfunctional behaviour be considered
ethnocentric? (15)
8. DISORDERS
(a) Outline a cognitive behavioural therapy as a
treatment for one disorder (10)
(b) Assess the effectiveness of treatments of one disorder (15)
