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How To Write Aqa Psychology Essays For 16 Marker Questions
Advice on how to answer essays, including key terms in questions and how to meet the assessment criteria.
Date : 13/02/2020
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Uploaded by : Rachel
Uploaded on : 13/02/2020
Subject : Psychology
How To Write AQA Psychology
Essays for 16 Marker QuestionsTo achieve the highest grade possible in your
A-level it's vital that you score as highly as possible in these long essays. Whereas it's fairly easy to score full marks on
shorter questions (1-6 marks) it is far more difficult to score full marks on
these long essay questions.The longest and highest-value questions you might
be asked by AQA in the A-level are 16-mark essay questions which you should
spend 20-25 minutes on.Types of Essay QuestionsThere are 2 type of essay question and you will
usually be asked to answer both types for each exam:1. Discuss or outline and evaluate
questions straightforward essays where you describe and evaluate theory and
research. There
are 6 marks for AO1 (describe) skills and 10 marks for AO3 (evaluate) skills. If you could normally write 3 sides in 25 minutes
1 side should be AO1 the other 2 should be AO3.2. Context questions - you'll be asked to
read a short passage about behaviour in a real-life situation and relate
psychological theory/research to this behaviour/situation.There
are 6 marks for AO1 (describe) skills, 6 marks for AO3 (evaluate) skills and 4
marks for AO2 skills (linking knowledge to the context of the question). To score well you must relate psychological
theory/research to the behaviour/situation described. How Common are Essay Questions?Although the new A-level has only been running for
a couple of years we can see what AQA are likely to ask in terms of how often
and what type of essay questions will come up.Paper 1:
Out of the 4 topics (Memory, Social Influence, Attachment, Psychopathology) you
will usually be asked 1 discuss 16-mark question and 1 context 16-mark
question. Paper 2:
Out of the 2 topics (Approaches and Biopsychology) you will usually be asked 1
discuss 16-mark question. You will then usually be asked 1 design a study
question in the Research Methods section.Paper
3: Out of the 4 topics (Issue
Debates and whatever 3 options you ve studied) you will usually be asked 1
discuss 16-mark question and 1 context 16-mark question.How to Score AO3 MarksAO3 skills require you to analyse, interpret and
evaluate scientific information, ideas and evidence.Whereas AO1 skills of describing psychological
theory and research are fairly straight-forward, AO3 skills are rather more
complex. AQA Examiner's Reports repeat year-after-year that:1. Students find AO3 skills more difficult than AO1
skills.2. Students score worse on AO3 skills than AO1
skills and are often poor at demonstrating them.3.
Students tend to write too much on AO1 material and not enough on AO3 material.
The following are examples of ways in which you can
score AO3 skills. You only need to demonstrate some of these in an essay not
all of them.There are many ways you can critically evaluate:
Methodological Evaluation of Research
Is the theory you are discussing supported by valid
research evidence. After describing a theory go on to describe a piece of
research evidence and say, X's study supports/refutes this theory... What are the strengths and limitations of the
research method used: e.g. lab experiment, correlation study, interview, etc.
For example, Bandura's Bobo Doll studies are laboratory experiments and,
therefore, criticisable on the grounds of lacking ecological validity: i.e. the
violence the children witnessed was on television and was against a doll not a
human. To gain marks for criticising study's methodologies the criticism must
be contextualised: i.e. say why this is a problem in this particular study. Has the IV and DV been operationalised in a valid
way?Are there problems with ecological validity, demand
characteristics, investigator bias or social desirability bias?Does the sample used have population validity and
can findings be generalised?NOTE.
To gain marks for criticising a study's methodology the criticism must be
contextualised: i.e. explain why this is a problem in this particular study.
You should also explain what implications your criticism has for the theory you
are evaluating. The value of a study ultimately rests on whether it provides
significant evidence for or against a theory and whether the findings can be
applied to real life behaviour.NOTE.
Research studies can score marks as either knowledge (AO1) or evaluation (AO3).
If you describe the procedures and findings of a study, this shows knowledge.
If you comment on what the studies shows, and how it supports or challenges a
theory, this shows evaluation.
Compare
or contrast different theories -
Outline
how the theories are similar and how they differ. This could be two (or more)
theories of psychopathology / memory / child development etc. Also try to
communicate the value of the theory / study.
Debates or perspectives -
Explain the theory/study in relation to the
position it takes on issues and debates (paper 3) such as nature vs. nurture,
reductionism vs. holism, determinism vs. free will, nomothetic vs. idiographic
approaches. For example, biological explanations of mental
disorders take a nature perspective and can be criticised for being
reductionist.You can also state what approach in psychology the
theory/study relates to: biological, behavioural, cognitive, psychodynamic or
humanistic.
What
are the ethical issues of the research? -
Does
a study involve ethical issues such as deception, lack of consent,
psychological or physical harm, etc.Some
theories/studies are regarded as socially sensitivity in that findings suggest
that a particular group are in some way inferior. Might such findings fuel
discrimination? Research
conducted on animals may raise issues to do with protection from harm and/or
generalisability to humans (e.g. Harlow's research into attachment).
Gender/culture/historical bias -
Theory and research is often criticised for being
based on or biased towards males and/or European culture (for example, the
psychodynamic approach). Sometimes, research is criticised for being irrelevant
to modern society as it was conducted a long time ago when cultural norms were
different (e.g. Asch's research into conformity). Is the theory / study ethnocentric? Psychology is
predominantly a white, Euro-American enterprise. In some texts, over 90% of
studies have US participants, who are predominantly white and middle class.
Does the theory or study being discussed judge other cultures by Western
standards? If research is biased towards men or women, it does
not provide a clear view of the behaviour that has been studied. A dominantly
male perspective is known as an androcentric bias.
Social Sensitivity-
Do
the findings suggest that a particular group are in some way inferior? Might
such findings fuel discrimination?
Real world applications -
What implications does the theory/study have for
behaviour in the real world and what uses could it be put to in the real world?
For example, research into the effects of infants
response to separation from attachment figures when in hospital changed the way
in which hospitals operate parental visiting hours.The PEC SystemIt is very important to elaborate on your
evaluation. Don`t just write a shopping list of brief (one or two sentence)
evaluation points. Instead make sure you expand on your points, remember,
quality of evaluation is most important than quantity.When you are writing an evaluation paragraph use
the PEC system.
Make
your Point.
Explain how and why the point is relevant.
Discuss
the Consequences / implications of the theory or study. Are they
positive or negative?
For Example(Point) It is argued that psychoanalytic
therapy is only of benefit to an articulate, intelligent, affluent minority.(Explain) Because psychoanalytic therapy
involves talking and gaining insight, and is costly and time-consuming, it is
argued that it is only of benefit to an articulate, intelligent, affluent
minority. Evidence suggests psychoanalytic therapy works best if the client is
motivated and has a positive attitude.(Consequences)
A depressed client's apathy, flat emotional state and lack of motivation limit
the appropriateness of psychoanalytic therapy for depression. Furthermore, the
levels of dependency of depressed clients mean that transference is more likely
to develop.How to Answer Context QuestionsThese questions are basically the same as Discuss
questions (i.e. you need to describe and evaluate) but you also need to try to
make 4 good links to the context at some point during your essay. It's easiest to show how to do this using an
example. Polly always checks what her friends are going to
wear before she gets ready to go out because she does not like to be the odd
one out. Jed watches his colleagues carefully when he starts a new job so that
he can work out where to put his things and how long to take for lunch. Discuss two explanations for conformity. Refer to
Polly and Jed in your discussion. (Total 16 marks)
6 marks for knowledge (AO1) of informational and normative
social influence.
6 marks for evaluation/analysis/discussion (AO3) of
informational and normative social influence.
4 marks for application (AO2) i.e. how research can be
related to Polly and Jed. As you go through the essay when you come across
a point which relates to either of them simply say:
Normative
social influence relates to Polly always checking what her friends are wearing
as she wants to be approved of and liked by the group and fears disapproval and
embarrassment if she thinks she's not dressed like the rest of her friends ,
etc.Try and relate material back to Polly 2 times and
Jed 2 times. For example, expand on the points: Polly (i) checks what her
friends are wearing , (ii) doesn't like to be the odd one out Jed (i)
watches his colleagues carefully, (iii) so that he can work out where to put
things and how long to take for lunch (both of which relate to informational
social influence). Rob is a sixth-form student who has
started hearing voices in his head. The voices come often, are usually
threatening and make Rob feel frightened. The voices are making it difficult
for Rob to complete his homework properly and he is worried about how this may
affect his chances of going to university. Rob has not told anyone about his experiences, but
his parents and teachers have noticed that he appears distracted, anxious and
untidy. Outline and evaluate failure to function adequately
and deviation from ideal mental health as definitions of abnormality. Refer to
the experiences of Rob in your answer. (Total 16 marks)
6 marks for knowledge of these 2 definitions of abnormality (AO1).
6 marks for evaluation/discussion of these 2 definitions of
abnormality (AO3).
4 marks for application i.e. how definitions and evaluation of
these definitions can be related to Rob's behaviour (AO2).
As you go through the essay relate relevant
material to Rob's behaviour. Try and do this at least twice for each
definition. For example: Rob's
difficulty in completing homework fit with the failure to function adequately
definition of abnormality as his emotional state and experiences are starting
to interfere with his ability to work . Other points you could expand on include: (i) he is
hearing voices Deviation from Ideal Mental Health he does not have an
accurate perception of reality (ii) he is anxious Deviation from Ideal
Mental Health he does not have positive attitudes to the self (iii) he is
untidy Failure to Function Adequately his experiences mean he cannot
longer look after/care for himself.
This resource was uploaded by: Rachel