OCR A Level Psychology
OCR A Level Psychology Areas, Perspectives and Debates Exam Questions
Free OCR A Level Psychology exam questions for Areas, Perspectives and Debates, with a mark scheme for every pack. Covers the five areas of psychology, the behaviourist and psychodynamic perspectives, and key debates linked to the core studies.
Areas, Perspectives and Debates exam questions
3 question packs of real past exam questions, each with its mark scheme. Do not stop after a few: answer as many as you can without notes, then mark every answer with the mark scheme. The more questions you do, the more quickly you will spot how examiners ask about each idea.
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About OCR A Level Psychology Areas, Perspectives and Debates
Areas, Perspectives and Debates is part of OCR A Level Psychology Paper 2, Psychological Themes through Core Studies. It asks you to step back from individual studies and think about psychology as a whole. You need to know the assumptions, strengths and weaknesses of the five areas (social, cognitive, developmental, biological and individual differences), the behaviourist and psychodynamic perspectives, and the key debates, such as nature and nurture and free will and determinism. Every point should be supported with examples from the core studies. Exam questions ask you to explain how a study reflects an area or debate and to evaluate areas and perspectives using the studies as evidence.
What you need to know
- Areas Social (behaviour influenced by others and situations), cognitive (internal mental processes), developmental (change over the lifespan), biological (brain, genes and hormones) and individual differences (how and why people differ).
- Behaviourist perspective Behaviour is learned through classical and operant conditioning and observation, with an emphasis on observable behaviour and the environment; Bandura et al. (1961) is a key example.
- Psychodynamic perspective Behaviour is driven by unconscious processes, early childhood experiences and the id, ego and superego; Freud (1909) Little Hans is the key example.
- Debates Nature/nurture, free will/determinism, reductionism/holism, individual/situational explanations, usefulness of research, ethical considerations, conducting socially sensitive research, and psychology as a science.
- Using the core studies For example Maguire et al. shows nurture changing the brain, Milgram shows situational explanations, and Sperry illustrates biological reductionism.
Common mistakes in Areas, Perspectives and Debates
- Describing an area without linking it to specific core studies.
- Confusing the individual/situational debate with nature/nurture.
- Saying a study belongs to only one debate; most studies can be used for several.
- Evaluating perspectives only by describing them, instead of discussing strengths and weaknesses with evidence.
- Treating 'usefulness' as obvious instead of explaining who the research is useful to and how.
Try three Areas, Perspectives and Debates exam-style questions
1. Explain how one core study supports the situational side of the individual/situational debate. (3 marks)
Show the mark scheme answer
Milgram (1963) found 65% of ordinary men obeyed to 450V; their behaviour was influenced by situational factors such as the experimenter's authority and the prestigious Yale setting; rather than individual characteristics, as most participants obeyed despite showing distress.
2. Outline one assumption of the psychodynamic perspective. (2 marks)
Show the mark scheme answer
Behaviour is influenced by unconscious mental processes; such as repressed desires and conflicts from early childhood that the person is not aware of, as shown in Freud's interpretation of Little Hans's phobia.
3. Explain one strength of the biological area, using a core study. (3 marks)
Show the mark scheme answer
The biological area uses scientific methods that produce objective data; for example Maguire et al. used MRI scans to measure hippocampal volume; so findings are less open to researcher interpretation than self-report data.
Areas, Perspectives and Debates FAQs
What does OCR A Level Psychology Areas, Perspectives and Debates cover?
It covers the five areas of psychology, the behaviourist and psychodynamic perspectives, and key debates such as nature/nurture, free will/determinism and psychology as a science, all applied to the core studies.
Which paper is Areas, Perspectives and Debates examined in?
It is examined on Paper 2, Psychological Themes through Core Studies.
How do I link debates to the core studies?
Build a grid with each core study down the side and each debate across the top, and note how each study supports or challenges each side of the debate.
