Psychology Paper 1: 2018

Section A - Social influence

1. Which of the following terms best matches the statements below? Choose one term that
matches each statement and write A, B, C, D or E in the box next to it. Use each letter
once only.
A Identification
B Informational social influence
C Normative social influence
D Compliance
E Internalisation

1.1 Publically changing behaviour whilst maintaining a different private view. D

1.2 Group pressure leading to a desire to fit in with the group. C
1.3 When a person lacks knowledge of how to behave and looks to the group for guidance. B
1.4 Conforming to the behaviour of a role model. E A

2. Briefly outline and evaluate the findings of any one study of social influence. (4)
Asch (1951) line judgement study showed that 32% of the participants conformed to the majority
group with 75% conforming at least once during the experiment. The methodology behind these
findings were very controlled and reliable due to laboratory setting and manipulation of
variables. However, the findings have been questioned to be invalid because they came from
123 male participants all of similar age and life experience which limits the generalizability of
these findings because how do we know that females and older/younger people will conform in
the same way.

3. Read the item and then answer the question that follows.
Two psychology students were discussing the topic of social influence. ‘I find it fascinating how
some people are able to resist social influence’, said Jack. ‘It must be the result of having a
confident personality.’ ‘I disagree’, replied Sarah. ‘I think resisting social influence depends
much more on the presence of others.’
Discuss two explanations of resistance to social influence. As part of your discussion, refer to
the views expressed by Jack and Sarah in the conversation above. (16)
-Social support= when you're in the presence of a non conformer who doesn’t go along with the
majority group. This makes you more likely to resist social influence because it provides an
alternative behaviour which could make you more confident to not go along with the group. This
links to Sarah's views because if you are in the presence of a non confermer you will resist
social influence more.

-Locus of control= this is how much control you have over your actions. Having an internal locus
of control means that you believe you have direct control over your actions and make you brown
decisions. This makes you more likely to resist social influence because you are independent
and confident enough to perform behaviours which no one is doing and not follow the group.
This links to Jack’s view because people with an internal locus of control are more likely to have
a confident personality. However, people you may lack confidence in themselves may have an
external locus of control meaning that the control of their behaviours is down to outside factors
which they can’t control. This makes them more likely to follow the group and not to act as a
minority or alone.

+Asch replicated his line judgment study however manipulated one of his variables to add a
non-conformer to the group, decreasing it’s unamity. The findings showed that conformity rates
were reduced by 25% demonstrating that having more social support makes you more likely to
resist social influence. This adds validity to the explanation and shows that being in the
presence of a non conformer decreases conformity suggesting that Sarah's argument is better.
commentary on two explanations of resistance to social influence
use of evidence to support/illustrate the influence of the explanations chosen, eg specific
studies of defiance/non-conformity and/or variations of Asch`s and/or Milgram`s basic
experiments that demonstrated increased resistance
use of real-world examples to illustrate the explanations
other social psychological concepts/processes used to support discussion of the explanations,
eg influence of social support may be explained by reduced normative pressure, minority
influence
comparison/analysis of the relative power of the explanations
discussion/analysis of different forms of resistance, eg independent behaviour vs
anti-conformity.

Section B - Memory

4. Read the item and then answer the questions that follow.
An experiment was carried out to test the effects of learning similar and dissimilar information on
participants’ ability to remember.
In Stage 1 of the experiment, 10 participants in Group A, the ‘similar’ condition, were given a list
of 20 place names in the UK. They were given two minutes to learn the list. 10 different
participants in Group B, the ‘dissimilar’ condition, were given the same list of 20 place names in
the UK. They were also given two minutes to learn the list.
In Stage 2 of the experiment, participants in Group A were given a different list of 20 more place
names in the UK, and were given a further two minutes to learn it. Participants in Group B were
given a list of 20 boys’ names, and were given a further two minutes to learn it.
In Stage 3 of the experiment, all participants were given five minutes to recall as many of the 20
place names in the UK, from the list in Stage 1, as they could.

4.1 What is the most appropriate measure of central tendency for calculating the average of the
scores, from Table 1, in each of the two groups? Justify your answer. (2)
Mean average because it takes in all scores with both groups and neither groups have any
rogue scores meaning that the average will not be affected and be accurate.
4.2 Calculate the measure of central tendency you have identified in your answer to question
04.1 for Group A and Group B. Show your calculations for each group.(4)
A=5.6
B=12.5

4.3 In Stage 3 of the experiment, several participants in Group A, the ‘similar’ condition, recalled
words from the Stage 2 list rather than the Stage 1 list. Use your knowledge of forgetting to
explain why this may have occurred. (2)
This could be down to retroactive interference because in both stage 1 and 2 they needed to
recall places in the UK meaning the information is very similar. This means that the new
information which the participants had learnt in stage 2 interfered with the old information that
they had learnt in stage 1 causing them to forget the old information in the long term memory
and only remember the stage 2 places.

5. Describe and evaluate the working memory model of memory. (16)

Baddely and Hitch (1974)
Central executive- processes information via sensory organs and receives demands of attention
for the information from the two slave systems. It has very limited capacity and quickly passes
information to two slave systems. Also responsible for initiating rehearsal processes, rejecting
irrelevant information, retrieving information from LTM and coordinating activities.
Visuo-spatial sketchpad- visual and spatial information. The duration is only a fraction of a
second, the capacity depends on different factors but it is suggested it's 3 or 4 items. Logie
proposed that it can be divided into the visual cache (form and colour) and inner scribe (spatial
and movement)
Articulatory phonological loop- auditory information and preserves the order of information. It
has limited capacity and temporarily stores information and is thought to be used when new
words are learnt. Capacity suggested that it can hold 7+-2 items. It is divided into the
phonological store (temporarily holds information like the inner ear for a matter of seconds) and
the articulatory process (rehearsal process which rehearses information, inner voice)
Episodic buffer- this holds information form the long term memory which is waiting to be used,
puts information into chronological order, slave systems. Binds information together to form
integrated episodes. Controlled by the CE.
Long term memory- where information goes after rehearsal, capacity and duration is both
unlimited
Two slave systems- allows dual task processes such as listening to music whilst doing work
+KF, Shallice and Warrington- KF suffered brain damage which damaged his STM. His accident
mainly affected his verbal processes and his visual process were barely affected suggesting the
separate slave systems which the WMM has.
+MSM of memory doesn’t have this and is limited. Can be used to explain dual task processes
which include multiple performing tasks with processes visual and verbal information and MSM
can’t do that. It is a better memory model.
-originated from case studies of brain damaged patients, how reliable is this? Limits it
generalisability, brain traumas are very unique and specific to one person due to the brains
complexity
-lab experiments

Section C - Attachment

6. Name three stages in the development of attachments identified by Schaffer. (3)

Asocial, pre attachment, discriminate attachment, (also have indiscriminate, multiple)

7. Read the item and then answer the question that follows.
A nursery school worker and her manager were chatting at the end of the day. ‘How did the new
toddlers settle in today?’ asked the manager. ‘They behaved very differently’, replied the nursery
school worker. ‘Max was distressed when his mother left but was happy to see her at the end of
the day.’ ‘Jessica arrived clinging to her mother and I could not calm her down when her mother
left.’ ‘William barely seemed to notice when his mother left and did not even look up when she
returned to collect him.’
Name the attachment type demonstrated by each of the children in the conversation above by
writing the attachment type next to the name below. (3)

Jessica= C
Max= B
William= A

8. Briefly evaluate learning theory as an explanation of attachment. (4)

The learning theory for explanation for attachment is too simplistic. Attachments can be complex
and emotional and conditioning is too reductionist to explain this. For example, there is too
much emphasis on food which is seen in a study by Fox where the infant's mother was still their
primary caregiver and first attachment even though the infant's metapelet did most of the
feeding. This evidence shows us that attachment is based on more factors other than the infants
need for food but involves aspects like comfort and security also.
strengths: plausible and scientific as founded in established theory, ie likely that association
between the provision of needs and the person providing those needs can lead to strong
attachments; reinforcers clearly delineated
limitations: reductionist – the focus on basic processes (S-R links, reinforcement) too simplistic
to explain complex attachment behaviours; environmentally deterministic such that early
learning determines later attachment behaviours; theory founded in animal research and
problems of inferring on the basis of animal studies

9. Read the item and then answer the question that follows.
A group of researchers used ‘event sampling’ to observe children’s friendships over a period of
three weeks at break times and lunchtimes during the school day.
Explain what is meant by ‘event sampling’. (2)

This is where a researcher will observe the number of times a certain behaviour occurs in a
period of time.
Researcher identifies specific event relevant to investigation, e.g. kids playing
10. The investigation in question 09 is an example of a ‘naturalistic observation’.
Briefly discuss how observational research might be improved by conducting observations in a
controlled environment. (4)

In a controlled environment observations will be more accurate and reliable. This is because
there are less distractions and extraneous variables which could affect the researchers
observations. This allows them to purely focus on the observations at hand and it is more that
you will record all behaviours in a controlled environment due the group being in one place all at
the same time.
E.g. the space which the children are in may effect if they decide to play or not
exclusion of extraneous variables allows for greater inference about cause and effect •
exclusion of extraneous variables means researcher can replicate the observation to check for
reliability of the effect

11. Discuss research into the influence of early attachment on adult relationships. (8)
Haven and Shaver conducted a study on how ealy attachments can affect people's romantic
relationships in adulthood. A limitation of this research is that the sample included ages from 14
years old which can be argued is not representative when researching adult relationships. Even
though 14 years old would have experienced early attachment they may not have experienced
mature adult relationships or adult life unlike some other participants. This makes the research
lack generalisability due to the data collected being from teenagers and not from ‘adults’. Its
methodology allowed them to gather lots of data due to it being a questionnaire sent out.
However, questionnaires may have been very objective and do not allow the participants to
elaborate and participants could also make false answers and lie because it is easier to do so
because it is not real life. It was also retrospective meaning that the participants needed to give
answers on how their attachments were in the past which could have made their answers
questionable because they may not remember everything from their childhood. This makes the
research insensitive to each of the participants' individual needs and it could invalid as how they
can fully trust the answers the participants wrote. Furthermore, life events may be more
influential than early attachments of adult relationships. For example, work life may mean that
you don’t have time for a romantic relationship and when you do you have little time to spend
together resulting in a bad relationship.
BOWLBY- NEED A01 AND A03

Section D - Psychopathology

12. Which two of the following are examples of Jahoda’s criteria for ‘ideal mental health’? Shade
two boxes only.
For each answer completely fill in the circle alongside the appropriate answer. (2)
A Dependence on others
B Environmental mastery
C Lack of inhibition
D Maladaptiveness
E Resistance to stress
13. Read the item and then answer the question that follows.
The following article appeared in a magazine: Hoarding disorder – A ‘new’ mental illness Most
of us are able to throw away the things we don’t need on a daily basis. Approximately 1 in 1000
people, however, suffer from hoarding disorder, defined as ‘a difficulty parting with items and
possessions, which leads to severe anxiety and extreme clutter that affects living or work
spaces’.
Apart from ‘deviation from ideal mental health’, outline three definitions of abnormality. Refer to
the article above in your answer. (6)

Statistical infrequency is the deviation from statistical norms meaning you display a behaviour
which is numerically abnormal and rare. This is seen in the article as 1 in 1000 have hoarding
disorder so therefore the 1 person is the statistical infrequency. Deviations social norms is
where a person does not abide by the unwritten rules formed by society. Here a person with
hoarding disorder is abnormal due to not being able to keep their work space organised but has
extreme clutter. It is a social norm to keep your workspace clean and tidy so you maintain
professionalism. Failure to function adequately is when a person performs abnormal behaviour
meaning they can no longer cope with everyday demands. This is seen in hoarding disorder
because the cluttered workspace and anxiety means that they cannot work and live sufficiently
which is the majority of people’s everyday life.
deviation from social norms – ‘most of us are able to throw away the things we don`t need on a
daily basis…’ • failure to function adequately – ‘difficulty parting with items and
possessions…leads to severe anxiety’ OR ‘affects living or work spaces’.

14. Read the item and then answer the question that follows.
Kirsty is in her twenties and has had a phobia of balloons since one burst near her face when
she was a little girl. Loud noises such as ‘banging’ and ‘popping’ cause Kirsty extreme anxiety,
and she avoids situations such as birthday parties and weddings, where there might be
balloons.
Suggest how the behavioural approach might be used to explain Kirsty’s phobia of balloons. (4)

Classical conditioning can be used to explain how Kirsty acquisitioned her phobia. It can be
explained through the neutral stimulus of balloons is shown with the unconditioned stimulus of
the loud bang which causes the unconditioned response of giving her anxiety. Kirsty then
associated the balloon and loud bang together forming a conditioned stimulus of balloons
causing the conditioned response of anxiety. Operant condition can explain how Kirsty has
maintained her phobia of balloons into her twenties. Kirsty avoids situations which may involve
balloons which will negatively reinforce her phobia due to putting herself into a less stressful
environment rather than the anxiety provoking one of a birthday party with balloons.
Kirsty’s phobia has developed through classical conditioning – she has formed an
association between the neutral stimulus (balloon) and the response of fear
the conditioned response is triggered every time she sees a balloon (or hears similar noises)
her phobia has generalised to situations where balloons might be present, such as parties
and weddings, and to similar noises, ‘banging’ and ‘popping’
her phobia is maintained through operant conditioning – the relief she feels when avoiding
balloons becomes reinforcing.

15. Read the item and then answer the questions that follow.
Twenty depressed patients were treated using cognitive behavioural therapy. Over the course of
the six-week treatment, each patient’s mood was monitored every week using a self-report
mood scale (where a score of 20 = extremely positive mood and a score of 0 = extremely
negative mood). Each week they also completed a quality of sleep questionnaire which was
scored from 10 = excellent sleep to 0 = very poor sleep. At the end of the study the researchers
correlated each patient’s final mood score with his or her final sleep score.
The results are shown in Figure 1 below.
Figure 1: Scattergram to show the relationship between final mood scores and final sleep
scores for 20 patients at the end of therapy

15.1 Outline the type of relationship shown in Figure 1 above and suggest why it would not be
appropriate for the researchers to conclude that better sleep improves mood. (2)

Positive correlation
It would not be appropriate because sleep is not the only factor which could improve mood,
other factors such as exercise can also boost mood.
It would not be appropriate because correlation only shows a relationship between the two
variables, not cause.

15.2 Outline one way in which the researchers should have dealt with ethical issues in this
study. (2)

Before the participants take part in the experiment they should complete an informed consent
form which tells them fully the aims for the experiment so they know what their role is in it.

15.3 The sleep questionnaire used by the researchers had not been checked to see whether or
not it was a reliable measure of sleep quality.
Explain how this study could be modified by checking the sleep questionnaire for test-retest
reliability. (4)

It would boost reliability because if both tests shared similar results it would mean that the
results are more representative for people.
the same participants would complete the sleep questionnaire on more than one occasion •
each participants’ scores from the first occasion should be correlated with his/her results from
the later occasion to be shown on a scattergraph to describe the correlation, with scores from
the first test plotted on one axis and the scores from the second test plotted on the other axis •
the strength of the correlation should then be assessed using either a Spearman’s rho test (or a
Pearson’s r test) • the degree of reliability is then determined by comparing the correlation with
the statistical table to determine the extent of correlation – there should be a (strong) positive
correlation between the two sets of scores.
16. Outline cognitive behaviour therapy as a treatment for depression. (4)

general rationale of therapy – to challenge negative thought/negative triad

identification of negative thoughts – ‘thought catching’
hypothesis testing; patient as ‘scientist’ • data gathering through ‘homework’, eg diary keeping •
reinforcement of positive thoughts; cognitive restructuring
rational confrontation as in Ellis’s REBT