Explain what is meant by the term encoding. (2 marks)

Encoding is the way in which information is stored/processed into memory e.g. acoustic, visual, semantic.

Briefly outline the phonological loop and the visuo-spatial sketchpad. (2+2 marks).

• The phonological loop is a limited capacity, temporary storage system for holding verbal information. It is divided into two stores: The Phonological store (inner ear) and articulatory control system (inner voice).
• The visuo-spatial sketchpad is a limited capacity, temporary memory system for holding visual and spatial information. It is divided into two stores: The inner scribe and the visual cache

Outline one strength and one limitation of the working memory. (2+2 marks).

Strength: supporting research such as dual task studies or evidence from brain scans.

WMM gives better account than MSM especially in relation to STM.

Limitations: Little known about how central executive works or research from Damasio on EVR to suggest that it is not a unitary store.

LTM is not fully explained by WMM.

List all 4 features of the cognitive interview (4 marks).

Report Everything

Change Perspective

Change Order

Mental reinstatement of the orginal context

Name a suitable revision technique a student could use to learn Bowlby's theory and how they could use it. (4 marks)

Method of loci= Student could imagine a familiar route (e.g. around their house) and could drop pieces of information to be remembered at landmarks e.g. a pair of jeans to represent genetic in the bedroom. When they wanted to recall the information they would re-trace their steps around the route.

Outline what research has shown about the effect of misleading information on the accuracy of EWT. (4 marks)

Loftus and Palmer APFC in brief.

Describe what research has shown about age of witness and eyewitness testimony. (4 marks)

Any study which is recognisable e.g. Anastasi & Rhodes: young and middle aged participants were more accurate than older participants.

Yarmey: no difference in the ability of older participants to recall physical characteristics of a young oman.

Parker and Caranza: primary and college students showed mock crime slides. Children more likely to identify but less accurate.

Outline one study that has investigated the effect of anxiety on eyewitness testimony. (4 marks).

Must be recognisable study.

Yuille and Cutshill: witnesses who had been most distressed at time of shooting gave more accurate account five months later.

Christianson and Hubinette: real witnesses questioned. Those who had been directly threatened more accurate in recall and remembered more details than onlookers.

Loftus et al: weapon focus effect, attention draw towards weapon and away from others face.

etc.

Outline Bowbly's theory of attachment. (6 marks)

Genetic

Adaptive

Secure Base

Social Releasers

Sensitive period

Monotropy and hierarchy

Internal working model

Continuity hypothesis

All must be identified and explained in brief.

Explain the difference between Sam (secure) and Dan (insecure-resistant) behaviour when their mother returns? (2 marks)

• Sam approaches his mother and is easily comforted/is happy.
• Dan may go to his mother but then reject her.

Explain what is meant by the terms insitutional care and privation. (2+2 marks).

• Institutional care refers to situations where children spend part of their childhood in a hospital, an orphanage or a residential children’s home, not cared for by their family. Candidates may use examples such as Hodges and Tizard or Rutter as part of their explanation.
• Privation refers to situations where children do not form an attachment with anyone during the sensitive period. Candidates may use examples such as Hodges & Tizard or Curtiss’s study of Genie as part of their explanation.

Apart from ethical issues, explain one or more limitations of using the strange situation to assess the type of attachment in young children. (4 marks)

• Cultural differences eg Children in Germany are encouraged to be independent and may therefore appear to show insecure avoidant attachment while infants in Japan are rarely separated from their mothers and may therefore appear insecure resistant. (Imposed etic).
• Effects of being in day care eg children who are used to being separated from their mother may show characteristics of insecure attachment.
• Lack of ecological validity. The children are in an unfamiliar environment so may act differently.

Outline the learning theory as an explanation of attachment. (6 marks)

The process of classical and operant conditioning must apply to attachment. If it doesn't then 0 marks.

Outline one quality of high quality day care. (2 marks)

• Low staff turnover
• High staff to child ratio
• Key worker
• Staff training
• Regulation e.g. ofsted

Elaboration needed for full 2 marks.

Suggest two operationalised behavioural categories a psychologist could use in an observation of aggressive behaviour. ( 2 marks)

Punching, hitting, use of swear words, biting etc.

Outline one study investigating the effect of day care on aggression or socialisation. (4 marks).

Reasonable account of Shea, NICHD or EPPE.

Findings must relate to aggression and not peer relations.

Outline research investigating the effect of day care on peer relations. (4 marks)

Reasonable account of Andersson, Clarke-Stewart et al, DiLalla.

Findings must relate to peer relations and not aggression.

Name one measure of dispersion (1 mark).

• Range
• Semi-interquartile range
• Interquartile range
• Standard deviation
• Variance

What is a limitation of volunteer sampling (2 marks).

Biased/not representative as some people are more likely to volunteer than others so findings cannot be generalised to others.

Identify two ethical issues and explain how to deal with one. (1+1+2 marks)

Right to withdraw - use of briefing and de-brief

Confidentiality - use of numbers of fake names, not publishing names or pictures.

Deception - ethical committe, presumptive consent and de-brief.

Informed consent - presumptive consent, briefing participants.

Explain the purpose of using a pilot study. (4 marks)

Could be used to check specifics of an experiment e.g how long participants have to carry out the task. The changes can be made accordingly.

Could be used to check that participants understand the instructions and what they are required to do. These again could be altered before the actual study.

Could be used to ask a few participants about their experience taking part.

Explain how a researcher could use content analysis to analyse the content of diaries written by mothers of children who are about to start day care (4 marks).

• Create a checklist or categories that they will be looking for, e.g crying, hitting, screaming, then read through the diaries and tally the amount of times you see the behaviour then compare these behaviours before and after day care.
• Alternatively the researchers may not have any set categories and they could read the diaries and they may realise that categories are starting to occur.