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
It's not strictly in the syllabus, but if you can fit this seamlessly into an exam question on diagnosing dysfunctional behaviour or disorders, then no doubt the examiner will be impressed.
If you've got a spare ten minutes, check out this article from the New Scientist on opposition to the DSM-V, and why the National Institute of Mental Health has withdrawn its support to the publication of the DSM-V. If not, read my very much condensed summary below.
The DSM-V is due out later this month (May 2013), replacing the current DSM-IV that's been around since the mid-1990s. Essentially, there's been a lot of complaints about the amount of reliance, by both the medical profession and researchers alike, on a psychiatry "bible".
The main issue is that it's purely symptomatic - it ignores the biological nature of disorders.
Those who advocate psychology as a science want the biological and physical aspects of psychological disorders to be taken into account so that subjectivity isn't such an issue. They use the comparison of being diagnosed with physical illnesses such as cancer on the basis of self-report alone, rather than being screened and tested. (Though, note that not all "physical" illnesses can be tested for, such as IBS).
Some of the more radical people want the DSM completely scrapped in favour of a biological approach to diagnosis, such as depression being diagnosed on the basis of serotonin, or schizophrenia after dopamine levels have been analysed. Others merely want both symptoms and biology to play a part in diagnosis.
Whatever you think is the right decision, including this in your G543 paper would show your interest in the subject, and could be a valuable evaluation point which makes the examiners stand up and take note.
People revise in different ways, but here are some tried-and-tested methods that have worked for me and may work for you:
The best, most reliable way to revise and to check your progress is to do past papers. Obviously, this step is only applicable once you've learned your studies and theories, but it's the best way to test how much you really know. Start with your notes beside you, and looking every so often to check you're writing the correct material, regardless of how long it takes. Once you've done that a few times with different questions, try to reduce how many times you look at the answers and highlight bits you keep forgetting and focus on learning these. Gradually, you need to be able to write the answers in the time limit (15-20 mins per 15 mark question, and 10 mins for the 10 mark questions) and then check your answers against the mark scheme.
For those of us who learn by writing it out:
- Flashcards (name of study and topic on one side, details - sample, method, results conclusion and main evaluation points - on the back). Test yourself, or get anyone you can to test you.
- Plan out how you'd answer questions. It's virtually impossible to do EVERY past paper question, and often the most difficult part isn't writing it; it's knowing what to write and being able to think of the points (especially for part b) questions) instantaneously. Bullet point what you would write for each kind of question, such as for validity you could write about internal validity, population validity and ecological validity.
- Keep rewriting your notes. This may not work for everyone, but personally I find that if I keep writing out my studies and theories, trying to remember all the details and getting it condensed into the best format I can, then I won't forget it when it comes to the exam.
Visual learners:
- make posters about each topic, sub-topic and study; include pictures, bubble-writing, little symbols, anything you like to make sure you remember it.
- play Pictionary with the studies! Grab a friend who's taking the same exam, and all you have to do is take it in turns drawing clues about a study and get the other to guess what study it is (bonus points for every detail about the study each of you can recall!). For example, to guess Fisher et al's CIT study you could draw a police officer, Florida (or an American flag), a burglar, a desk, etc.
- give each study in a section a different colour/font combination, and whenever you revise it make sure you stick with that combination as colour aids memory and recall. But make sure it's readable!
Other tips on revising:
- Try listening to music. Make a playlist of music you like, but won't get distracted by. This might be classical or instrumental, but I like listening to music with lyrics so long as it's not too loud. When I was doing my Core Studies paper, I made a playlist with one song per study and I'd try to remember everything I can about the study when its song was on. It'd work for this unit too and is a pretty fun way to revise a lot all at once. Just don't spend too long finding a song for the study. Relevant ones work best for me, such as Memories by Panic! at the Disco for Loftus et al's weapon focus study or Old Grey Face by Twin Atlantic for Bruce et al's facial recognition study.
- Move about. This includes physical exercise at least every couple of days (preferably a walk or more everyday), as well as working in different environments. Being cooped up in your room at the desk for hours on end isn't healthy and you'll start to get really bored. Try working in the kitchen one day, the dining room another, your sofa, outside, in the library... literally anywhere for a change of scenery when you're struggling to concentrate.
- Talk to people. I don't find study groups helpful as I prefer independent revision, but when you're struggling, real people are a lot more reassuring and helpful than searching through the internet for hours on end just getting stressed out. Check here for why social support is definitely good for you!
- Try different modes of revising. Revising gets boring; after all, you're looking at the same information for hours on end. So try to make it somewhat interesting by combining visual methods, note-making, flashcards and past paper questions.
- Make up your own practice questions. This'll get your brain working, help you to practice and even means you can target specific areas of weakness. For example, if you struggle with reliability, write yourself a reliability question on every topic. You never know, it might come up.
- Take breaks. I'm rubbish at this, because I tend to work at something until I'm utterly shattered but so much research has shown our concentration lapses sometime after half an hour of work. I'd suggest working periods of 50 minutes followed by a ten minute break, and then every couple of hours, take an hour break. During your breaks, make sure you get a drink, maybe a snack, and leave your work area. Even just wandering around your living room is better than surfing the internet at the laptop you'll be staring at all afternoon as it'll keep you energised.
Good luck, let me know if you have any tips for me to add!
