Paper 1

Question 1

Define social influence

Answer 1

The process by which individuals and groups change each other’s attitudes and behaviours.

Question 2

Define compliance.

Answer 2

A person agrees in public with a group of people, but privately disagrees with the groups viewpoints or behaviour. They temporarily changed their views.

Question 3

Example of compliance.

Answer 3

a person may laugh at a joke that they don’t find funny just because their friends think it is

Question 4

Supporting evidence for compliance.

Answer 4

Asch’s study.

Question 5

Define identification.

Answer 5

When someone conforms to the demands of a given social role in society.
This conformity extends over several aspects of behaviour, but there’s no change in personal opinion.

Question 6

Example of identification.

Answer 6

Social roles, including a policeman, teacher or politicians.

Question 7

Supporting evidence for identification.

Answer 7

Zimbardo’s prison studies.

Question 8

Internalisation definition.

Answer 8

Publicly changing behaviour to fit in with the group and agreeing with their views in private. This is both an internal and external change in behaviour and is the deepest level of conformity as the groups beliefs become individuals beliefs.

Question 9

Example of internalisation.

Answer 9

Someone living with a vegetarian at university decides to become one as they agree with their friends viewpoints.

Question 10

Supporting evidence for internalisation.

Answer 10

Acsh’s study.

Question 11

How does informational social influence explain conformity?

Answer 11

The desire to be right. We conform as we are unsure about the situation and lack the knowledge, so we look to others who we believe have more information than us. This leads to internalisation.

Question 12

Example of informational social influence.

Answer 12

Going to a posh restaurant with different forks: you would look to someone else to see which fork to use first.

Question 13

Strength of informational social influence.

Answer 13

Supporting evidence: Students answer hard and easy maths questions and were shown incorrect responses. More conformities occured for the more difficult questions, especially among those who were already poor at maths. This shows we are more likely to agree with others when completing a difficult task and we are uncertain of the answer.

Question 14

Limitation of informational social influence.

Answer 14

Insko suggests that informational social influence and normative social influence are not exclusive, but operate together into order to produce conforming behaviour.

Question 15

How does normative social influence explain conformity?

Answer 15

The desire to be liked. We conform in order to fit in with the group because we don’t want to look foolish or be left out. This tends to lead to compliance, which is a change in public behaviour but not in private beliefs. This is only a temporary change.

Question 16

Example of normative social influence.

Answer 16

Someone feeling pressurised to smoke because the rest of their friends are.

Question 17

Strength of normative social influence.

Answer 17

In a study, adolescents who were told that the majority of people their age don’t smoke were less likely to start smoking than those who had not been given this message. This shows that people conform due to a desire to fit in and be the same as a group that is similar to themselves.

Question 18

Limitation of normative social influence.

Answer 18

There is conflicting evidence, as science and engineering students were less likely to agree with others who gave the wrong answer in Acsh’s line study. This shows that individual differences can affect whether people are affected by normative social influence.

Question 19

Procedures of Acsh’s original line study into conformity.

Answer 19

5 to 7 participants per group were presented with one standard line and three comparison lines. Participants were to say out loud which line matched the standard line. There was only one real participant per group, and the rest were confederates who gave the wrong answer on 12 out of 18 of the trials.

Question 20

Aim of Asch’s line study.

Answer 20

To investigate whether people would conform in situations where the answers were obvious.

Question 21

Findings of Acsh’s original study.

Answer 21

Participants conformed on 37% of the 12 critical trials. 74% of participants conformed at least once and 5% conformed on all trials. Participants said they conformed as they didn’t want the rest of the group to judge them.

Question 22

Conclusions of Acsh’s original line study.

Answer 22

People feel a strong pressure to be the same as others and will conform even when they know what they’re doing and saying is wrong. There’s considerable individual variation in how people respond to this pressure.

Question 23

Strength of line study.

Answer 23

There are practical applications as it helps understand the decision-making of jurors and why people engage in harmful behaviours such as smoking.

Question 24

Limitations of line study

Answer 24

Considerable ethical issues such as deception and psychological harm.

Question 25

What are the three variables that are found to affect conformity?

Answer 25

Group size, unanimity and task difficulty.

Question 26

Group size procedures

Answer 26

They changed the number of Confederates in the group.

Question 27

Group size findings.

Answer 27

When there is 2 Confederates, there was a 13% conformity rate. When there was three Confederates, there was a 32% conformity rate. And there was little increase inconformity rates for numbers above 3 Confederates.

Question 28

Group size conclusions.

Answer 28

A group of just three people is sufficient to exert conformity pressures on an individual and that a large majority is not necessary.

Question 29

Unanimity procedures.

Answer 29

One Confederate gives the right answer or a Confederate gives a different answer that’s also wrong.

Question 30

Unanimity findings.

Answer 30

when one Confederate gives the right answer the conformity rate was 5% and when one Confederate gives a different answer, the conformity rate was 9%.

Question 31

Unanimity conclusions.

Answer 31

A majority has influence due to its unanimity. In a group that isn’t unanimous, conformity pressures are lower and people are more likely to act individually.

Question 32

Task difficulty procedures.

Answer 32

They changed the comparison lines so it was harder to tell which was the correct line - made it look more similar to the standard lines.

Question 33

Task difficulty findings.

Answer 33

When the line lengths were more similar conformity increased

Question 34

Task difficulty conclusions.

Answer 34

If a situation is ambiguous or difficult. Then people begin to look to others for the correct answer and assume that others are correct.

Question 35

Zimbardo study procedures.

Answer 35

Converted Stanford University basement into a mock prison.
Volunteer sample deemed psychologically and physically sound were allocated prisoner or guards in a simulated prison environment for two weeks.
Prisoners were arrested at home, blindfolded, searched, deloused, given a uniform and number and had to obey the guards rules.
Guards given uniform, club, handcuffs, mirrored sunglasses and absolute power over prisoners.

Question 36

Zimbardo study findings.

Answer 36

Guards became increasingly brutal and aggressive, enjoying the power they had over the prisoners - eg: made prisoners clean a toilet with their bare hands
Within two days the prisoners rebelled but guards responded with severe behaviour
The prisoners became subdued, depressed, anxious and passive - mindlessly complied with guards’ orders
5 prisoners had to be released because they showed signs of psychological disturbance (these reactions began after only two days)
Zimbardo ended the study after 6 days rather than the intended 14.

Question 37

Zimbardo study conclusions.

Answer 37

People readily conform to the social role that they occupy, and behaviour is strongly influenced by social situations. People who behave badly aren’t always bad people.

Question 38

Strength of Zimbardo study.

Answer 38

Good control over extraneous variables. For example random allocations to roles. This shows that behaviour was not due to personality.

Question 39

Limitation of Zimbardo study.

Answer 39

Over exaggerates the power of social roles. for example, some guards behave differently -only a third was sadistic, some were fair and some helped the prisoners. This shows that people choose how to adopt social roles.

Question 40

Define obedience

Answer 40

This is a type of social influence where an individual follows an order from another person usually an authority figure.

Question 41

Milgram original study procedures.

Answer 41

The participant will assigned the teacher role and the Confederate was assigned the learner. Teacher and learner will put in separate rooms. The teacher was asked by an experimental to administer electric shocks, increasing from 15 to 450 volts each time the wrong answer was given.
If a participant didn’t want to administer shocks, the experimenter said please continue followed by. The experiment requires you to continue followed by. It is absolutely essential that you continue followed by. You have no choice but to continue.

Question 42

Milgram original study findings.

Answer 42

All participants shocked up to 300 volts, and 65% went to the full 450.
Throughout the study, participants showed signs of distress such as twitching, giggling nervously and sweating.

Question 43

Milgram original study conclusions.

Answer 43

People find it difficult to refuse orders from someone with a legitimate authority. When given ordered by authority figures, they enter an agentic state where they lose their moral values and responsibility for their actions.

Question 44

What situational variables can affect obedience?

Answer 44

Proximity, location and uniform.

Question 45

Proximity procedure.

Answer 45

Close proximity: teacher and learner was sat in the same room / teachers were forced to put the learners hand on a shock plate.
not close proximity: Researcher gave instructions over the phone.

Question 46

Proximity findings.

Answer 46

40% gave 450 volts when in the same room. 30% gave 450 volts went pressing the learners hand onto a shock plate and 20.5% gave 450 volts when the researcher was not in the room

Question 47

Proximity conclusions.

Answer 47

The closer the proximity, the lower the rate of obedience.

Question 48

Location procedure.

Answer 48

Milgram’s original study was done in a less impressive location than Yale University: A shabby office block.

Question 49

Location findings.

Answer 49

47.5% gave the 450 volts.

Question 50

Location Conclusions.

Answer 50

The more prestigious the location, the more confidence in legitimacy of authority so the higher the rate of obedience.

Question 51

Uniform procedures.

Answer 51

Three male actors dressed as a milkman, security guards or ordinary clothes asked members of the public to either pick up a bag, give money for parking, or stand on the other side of the bus stop where there was an no standing sign.

Question 52

Uniform findings.

Answer 52

76% obeyed the guard, 47% obeyed the milkman and only 30% obeyed the ordinary man.

Question 53

Uniform conclusion.

Answer 53

People are more likely to obey when instructed to by someone wearing in uniform, as it implies a sense of legitimate authority.

Question 54

Do Milgram’s findings accurately reflect how people respond to an authority figure?

Answer 54

No, because the participants did not believe that the shocks were real and because the behaviour of the participants would not be replicated in a situation outside of the laboratory setting.

Question 55

Milgram’s study supporting evidence.

Answer 55

A study by Sheridan and King involved participants giving a real electric shocks to puppies when ordered to by researcher. 77% obeyed, giving what they thought was a fatal shock. This shows high level of obedience when it is clear that the shocks were real.
Another study in the hospital found that 21 out of 22 nurses followed the orders of a bogus Dr, even if it went against hospital procedure and potentially put a patient at risk. This shows that Milgram’s findings demonstrate obedience to authority in everyday life.

Question 56

Two ethical issues raised by Milgram’s research.

Answer 56

Deception as participants believed they were shocking a real person and were unaware the learner was a Confederate.
Protection from harm as participants were exposed to extremely stressful situations with the potential to cause psychological harm. They were also visibly distressed as they were trembling, sweating, stuttering and biting lips.

Question 57

Legitimacy of authority.

Answer 57

People tend to obey others if they recognise their authority as morally right or legally based. This authority often comes from the backing of a social institution who have the ability to give punishments to people who do not obey

Question 58

Supporting evidence for legitimacy of authority.

Answer 58

In Milgram study, maximum levels of obedience were attributed to the authority of Yale University. This is because obedience levels fell in an office block.
Data of aviation accidents and near misses. In flight recorder evidence, excessive obedience was showing to the captains authority and staff were less likely to challenge risky actions.

Question 59

The authoritarian personality.

Answer 59

a personality that is disposed to favour obedience to authority and intolerance of outgroups and those lower in status

Question 60

Adorno’s research procedures.

Answer 60

2000 middle class white Americans completed several personality scales to investigate the attitudes to other racial groups.
They completed the F scale, which assesses tendency towards fascism and measures authoritarian personality.

Question 61

Adorno’s research findings.

Answer 61

Those who scored highly on the F scale were dismissive of people they regarded as weak, conscious of their own status and the status of others. They respected and were submissive towards those of higher status. They had a rigid cognitive scale and there was a positive correlation between the authoritarian personality and prejudice.

Question 62

Conclusions from Adornos research study.

Answer 62

Having an authoritarian personality creates a tendency to be very obedient to authority.

Question 63

Features of the authoritarian personality.

Answer 63

Submissive to and have respect for authority figures.
Contempt of people with inferior social status.
Conventional attitudes towards sex, sexual orientation, gender roles and racial issues.
Believe countries need strong, forceful leaders to apply traditional values such as patriotism, religion and family.
They have fixed views of right and wrong and are uncomfortable with uncertainty.

Question 64

How does the authoritarian personality develop?

Answer 64

Individuals unable to express hostility towards their strict and critical parents displace the aggression and hostility onto safer, weaker targets such as ethnic minorities.

Question 65

Strength of the authoritarian personality.

Answer 65

Supporting evidence: Participants completed Milgram’s study in an immersive virtual environment where participants were aware that shocks and the learners reaction was simulated. There is a positive correlation between the score on a measure of authoritarian personality and the shocks they were prepared to give. This shows that obedience can be explained by authoritarian personalities.

Question 66

Limitation of authoritarian personality.

Answer 66

Some would argue that situational context is a more important in explaining obedience. Levels of obedience varies in relation to proximity, location, and presence of another disobedient Confederate. A dispositional explanation, such as authoritarian personality cannot account for these variations.

Question 67

Internal locus of control.

Answer 67

the perception that you control your own fate

Question 68

Are individuals with an internal locus of control more or less likely to resist social influence?

Answer 68

They are more likely to resist social influence.

Question 69

Why are people with an internal locus of control more likely to resist social influence?

Answer 69

They are less likely to rely on others as they feel responsible for their own actions.
They can with stand the discomfort of resisting pressure to conform / obey an authority figure and would feel more discomfort if they let someone else control their actions
They are more confident and have less of a need for social approval.

Question 70

External locus of control.

Answer 70

the perception that chance or outside forces beyond your personal control determine your fate.

Question 71

Are individuals with an external locus of control more or less likely to resist social influence?

Answer 71

They are less likely to resist social influence.

Question 72

Why are people with an external locus of control less likely to resist social influence?

Answer 72

They are more likely to rely on others. They can’t withstand the discomfort of resisting the pressure to conform or obey an authority figure. They are less confident and have more of a need for social approval.

Question 73

Supporting evidence for the idea that having an internal locus of control helps resist obedience.

Answer 73

Holland. Did a repeat of the Milgram study and found that 37% of those with an internal locus of control refused to carry on to the higher shock level, and only 23% of those with an external locus of control refused to continue until the end. This shows that having an internal locus of control helps individuals resist the pressure to obey authority.

Question 74

Challenging evidence for locus of control.

Answer 74

Twinge at Al analyse data from obedience studies over 40 years and found that people have become more likely to resist obedience and more external in their locus of control. If resistance to obedience was linked to locus of control, we’d expect to see the opposite. The shift in locus of control might reflect a changing society where it is clear that many things are out of our control.

Question 75

What has research shown about locus of control and conformity due to normative social influence?

Answer 75

Those with an internal locus of control were less likely to conform and want to be liked and accepted within a group compared to those with an external locus of control. This supports the idea that having an internal locus of control is linked to resisting conformity.

Question 76

What has research shown about locus of control and conformity due to informational social influence?

Answer 76

Locus of control doesn’t have any link with resisting conformity due to information or processes where people agree with the majority if they thought they were correct. This suggests that locus of control doesn’t always increase resistance to conformity, so it is only a partial explanation.

Question 77

How does social support help us resist conformity?

Answer 77

If there’s one person in the group who Is not also in agreement, it gives support to an individual who has a different opinion to the group. This occurs even if the opinion is not the same as the other individuals. The other person break some unanimity of the group and offer the potential for a different opinion. This legitimates ways of thinking that gives an individual confidence to act upon their own judgement.

Question 78

Supporting evidence for social support for a resistance of conformity.

Answer 78

In Asche’s research, conformity rates fell from 32% to 5% when one of the Confederates gave the right answer. Rates also fell to 9% when a Confederate gave a different, incorrect answer. For the strongest social support, the correct answer is given from the person in the first position in the group. If the dissenting Confederate began to agree with the others again, so did the participant. Conformity is dependent on having an ally who also resists.

Question 79

What do the findings from Asche’s research suggest about social support and resisting conformity?

Answer 79

Resistance to conformity is heavily dependent on having an ally in the group who also resists.

Question 80

Why does social support help us resist obedience?

Answer 80

Having social support through witnessing another person take a stand and refusing to obey can help an individual to resist the pressure to obey. The disobedient person can act as a role model, and having an ally can help an individual cope with the awkwardness involved in against the social conventions of obeying a person with legitimate authority.

Question 81

How is the explanation of social support and resistance of obedience supported by Milgram’s research?

Answer 81

One disobedient Confederate refused to continue with electric shocks. This caused obedience rates to fall from 65 to 10%, giving maximum voltage. This supports the social support explanation of resisting obedience.

Question 82

How is the social support explanation of resisting obedience supported by real life incidents?

Answer 82

A group of German women protested in Berlin against the Gestapo who were holding 2000 Jewish men prisoner. They were ordered to disperse and were threatened. The woman refused to obey and continue to make their demands. Being with other disobedient role models enabled the women to resist the pressure to obey where they would normally be reluctant to show dissent. This caused the men to be released.

Question 83

What are the three processes involved in minority influence?

Answer 83

Consistency, commitment and flexibility.

Question 84

What is consistency?

Answer 84

Unchanging interview is more likely to influence the majority. And all members of the minority must propose the same message.

Question 85

Example of consistency.

Answer 85

All members of an environmental group should not drive cars and should instead use public transport, cycle or walk.

Question 86

What supporting evidence is there for the role of consistency?

Answer 86

Moscovici study.

Question 87

What is commitment?

Answer 87

When the majority is confronted with someone with self-confidence and dedication to take a popular stand and refuses to back own, they may assume that he or she has a point. The use of dramatic and dangerous ways to draw attention to their views and demonstrate their commitment to the cause.

Question 88

Supporting evidence for the role of consistency.

Answer 88

Hogg and Vaughan. Minorities are likely to exert an influence on the majority if seeing is acting from a committed principle and if they’ve made a personal sacrifice.

Question 89

What is flexibility?

Answer 89

If a minority appears compromising, they are likely to be seen as less extreme, more moderate, cooperative and reasonable.

Question 90

Example of flexibility.

Answer 90

Environmentalist should acknowledge that some individuals living in remote and rural areas need a car to get to work.

Question 91

Supporting evidence for the role of flexibility

Answer 91

A simulated jury. Confederate one refused to alter his position and had no effect on the majority opinion, whereas Confederate 2 was prepared to shift a little towards the majority, was able to influence others to agree.

Question 92

Moscovici study procedures.

Answer 92

172 female participants were told they were taking part in a colour perception task. They were placed into groups of six and showing 36 slides with varying shades of blue. Participants had to say out loud the colour of each slide. Two out of 6 in the group were Confederates in condition 1. The Confederates said that all slides were green, but in condition to they said that 24 slides are green and 12 were blue.

Question 93

Findings of Moscovici study.

Answer 93

In the consistent condition, participants agreed on 8.2% of the trials, whereas in the inconsistent condition, participants agreed on 1.25% of the trials.

Question 94

Moscovici study conclusion.

Answer 94

A consistent minority is 6.95% more effective than an inconsistent minority. Consistency is an important factor in minority influence.

Question 95

How has Moscovici study been criticised for being artificial?

Answer 95

In real life, minorities are often very passionate about their views, unlike the Confederates from the study. Changing the majority’s viewpoints takes many years, whereas the study took place over a short period of time and the study can’t provide an accurate reflection of minority groups in the real world.

Question 96

What is social change?

Answer 96

Whole societies alter their attitudes and behaviour. The majority of people in a society adopt new ways of behaving and thinking.

Question 97

Two examples of where the minority has created social change.

Answer 97

Suffragettes and giving women the right to vote. And attitudes towards homosexuality.

Question 98

How does minority influence create social change?

Answer 98

1- drawing attention
2- consistency
3- deeper processing
4- augmentation principle
5- snowball effect
6- social cryptomnesia

Question 99

Challenging evidence for the role played by minority influence in creating social change.

Answer 99

Its majority influence that may create deeper processing if you do not share their views. This is because we like to believe that other people share our views and thinking the same ways as us. When we find out a majority believe something different, then we are forced to think long and hard about their arguments and reasoning. This means that a central element of the process of minority influence has been challenged and may be incorrect.

Question 100

One practical application of research into the role played by minority influence in creating social change.

Answer 100

If minorities want to create social change, they need to avoid behaving in ways that reinforce stereotypes that may be off putting for the majority.

Question 101

Give two everyday examples where conformity has created social change.

Answer 101

Reducing litter by putting everyone else does on bins. And signs saying most guests reuse their towels to decrease laundry demands in hotels.

Question 102

How does conformity create social change?

Answer 102

Due to normative social influence, people change their behaviour to fit in with others,

Question 103

Evidence that supports the role played by conformity in creating social change.

Answer 103

In Montana State University, a programme was used to bring about social change in young adults drinking and driving. The message was - most Montana young adults don’t drink and drive. This caused a 13% reduction in drinking and exposure to social norms led to a social change which supports the role of normative social influence in social change.

Question 104

Example of evidence that challenges the role played by conformity and creating social change.

Answer 104

In a similar campaign to the Montana State University programme on 14 college sites a postal survey campaign was implemented to reduce alcohol use in students. They compared perceptions of drinking norms and personal drinking behaviour at the time and three years after. They found there was no reduction in perceptions of student drinking and reports of drinking were the same.

Question 105

define the term duration

Answer 105

The length of time information can be held in memory

Question 106

Sensory register duration

Answer 106

up to 2 seconds - Sperling

Question 107

short term memory duration

Answer 107

18-30 seconds (Peterson & Peterson)

Question 108

long term memory duration

Answer 108

May last a lifetime - Bahrick

Question 109

define capacity

Answer 109

a measure of the amount of information that can be stored in memory

Question 110

define coding

Answer 110

the way information is modified/converted to when it is stored

Question 111

sensory register capacity

Answer 111

75% of data it is presented with (Peterson & Peterson)

Question 112

short term memory capacity

Answer 112

7 +/- 2 - Jacobs

Question 113

long term memory capacity

Answer 113

unlimited - no way of measuring

Question 114

sensory register coding

Answer 114

modality free

Question 115

short term memory coding

Answer 115

acoustic - conrad & baddeley

Question 116

long term memory coding

Answer 116

semantically - baddeley

Question 117

3 assumptions of the multistore model of memory

Answer 117

there are 3 separate stores- sensory register, ltm and stm
each store is unitary and cant be subdivided
information is transferred via rehearsal

Question 118

what is meant by rehearsal?

Answer 118

repetition over and over again
if this doesn’t occur, information is forgotten and lost from short term memory via decay

Question 119

example of rehearsal

Answer 119

using flashcards to repetitively revise content will ensure info is transferred to ltm

Question 120

how is information passed from the sensory register to stm

Answer 120

it must be paid attention to

Question 121

Peterson and Peterson researched…

Answer 121

short term memory duration

Question 122

Peterson and Peterson procedures

Answer 122

P’s given a nonsense triad (NTD), P’s count down in 3s for either 0,3,6,9,12,15 or 18s. P’s asked to recall triad they were given.

Question 123

Peterson and Peterson findings/conclusion

Answer 123

@ 3s: 80% correct recall, 30% @ 9s & 10% @ 18s.
some people can retain info for 30s (max STM duration)

Question 124

Jacobs researched…

Answer 124

short term memory capacity

Question 125

Jacobs procedure

Answer 125

letters/digits shown every 0.5s. P’s asked to recall them in correct order. Started @ items, more added 1 at a time until failure. repeated for an average digit span.

Question 126

Jacobs findings/conclusion

Answer 126

average digit span = 5-9 items

Question 127

Conrad researched…

Answer 127

short term memory coding

Question 128

Conrad procedures

Answer 128

P’s shown 6 random consonants & asked to write letters in order. List of letters were either acoustically similar (T,V,P) or different (F,J,R)

Question 129

Conrad findings

Answer 129

Acoustically similar letters were more difficult to recall - STM uses an acoustic code.

Question 130

Bahrick researched…

Answer 130

long term memory duration

Question 131

Bahrick procedure

Answer 131

yearbooks of 392 graduates (17-74yrs) traced. Time since graduation 2 weeks-57yrs. 130 pictures from each yearbook selected for either free recall of names, recognition of names, recognition of pictures, matching names to pictures & naming pictures.

Question 132

Bahrick findings

Answer 132

Free recall of names: 50% accuracy @ 3mth, 20% @ 40+yrs
Recognition of names, recognition of pictures & matching names to pictures: 85-90% accuracy for all
Naming pictures: 70% accuracy @ 3mth, 60% @ 15yr & 20% @ 40+yrs

Question 133

Bahrick conclusion

Answer 133

LTM may last a lifetime but access depends on how a person tries to remember. Recognition is superior to info recall.

Question 134

Baddeley research…

Answer 134

long term memory coding

Question 135

Baddeley procedure

Answer 135

70 young servicemen asked to recall 1 of 4 word lists in correct order. 1) acoustically similar 2) acoustically different 3) semantically similar 4) semantically different

Question 136

Baddeley findings/conclusions

Answer 136

No recall difference between acoustically similar & different
accuracy of semantic similar (55%) < accuracy of semantically different (85%)
LTM uses semantic code

Question 137

HM study aim

Answer 137

Scoville performed surgery on the then 27-year-old H.M. to cure him of his epileptic seizures.

Question 138

HM study method

Answer 138

Removal of hippocampus

Question 139

HM study results

Answer 139

Impaired memory: unable to produce long term memory - lost his memory for events that had happened after his surgery
STM unaffected

Question 140

HM study conclusion

Answer 140

Memory is not one unitary store as STM still functioned.

Question 141

supporting evidence for the ideal that stm and ltm are separate

Answer 141

HM case study, hippocampus removed, impared memory
HM no longer able to produce long term memories but short term was unaffected
supports theories that all stored are separate and different

Question 142

supporting evidence for idea that stm and ltm are different

Answer 142

Jacobs found stm capacity to be 5-9 items but ltm’s is thought to be unlimited
baddeley found stm codes accoustically but coding in ltm is scemantic
shows stores are different

Question 143

Multistore Model of Memory

Answer 143

a model proposing that information flows from our senses through three storage levels in memory: sensory, short-term, and long-term

Question 144

MSM practical applications

Answer 144

helps students revise - need to rehearse info
helps teaching - teachers regularly revisit topics to continue rehearsal
the ideas put forward have been useful in the real world

Question 145

evidence that ltm and stm aren’t unitary

Answer 145

consist of multiple components which are able to process different types of information: working memory model and tulvings divisions of ltm

Question 146

evidence that rehearsal is not always needed for transfer to ltm

Answer 146

we are sometimes able to remember unrehearsed memories but unable to recall rehearsed memories.
Hyde & Jenkins found no difference in the number of words recalled between group that rehearsed and group that didnt - shows rehearsal isnt as important as model claims

Question 147

episodic ltm

Answer 147

responsible for storing information about events (episodes) that we have personally experienced in our lives - places people and objects
requires conscious though - declarative

Question 148

episodic ltm example

Answer 148

memory of our first day at school

Question 149

episodic ltm location

Answer 149

hippocampus

Question 150

semantic ltm

Answer 150

responsible for storing knowledge of the world - meaning of words and general knowledge
conscious effort required to recall - declarative

Question 151

semantic memory example

Answer 151

london is the capital city of england

Question 152

semantic ltm location

Answer 152

temporal and frontal lobes

Question 153

procedural ltm

Answer 153

responsible for knowing how to do things (skills)
no conscious effort to remember - implicit

Question 154

procedural memory example

Answer 154

knowing how to ride a bike

Question 155

procedural ltm location

Answer 155

motor cortex and cerebellum

Question 156

difference between declarative and implicit memory

Answer 156

declarative require a conscious effort to be remembered (episodic and semantic)
implicit memories don’t require this effort (procedural)

Question 157

supporting evidence for types of LTM

Answer 157

brain scans show different parts of the brain are active when different ltm tasks are performed: episodic=hippocampus, semantic=temporal+frontal , procedural=cerebellum+motor cortex. this shows tulving was correct in suggesting different types of ltm

Question 158

case study supporting evidence for types of ltm

Answer 158

clive wearing - some procedural but impaired episodic
vicari et al - some impaired episodic but intact semantic

Question 159

types of ltm practical applications

Answer 159

helps healthcare professionals treat the elderly with cognitive decline. they are able to isolate specific types of LTM that are in decline and devise strategies to improve

Question 160

challenging evidence for types of ltm

Answer 160

challenges the distinction between episodic and semantic memory. episodic memories are needed to form semantic memories as we aquire knowledge from personal experiences - they together represent delarative memory
suggests only 2 types of ltm rather than 3 types

Question 161

limitation of types of ltm: use of case studies on brain damage patients

Answer 161

unique participants - may not be able to generalise to a healthy brain
cant say that people without brain damage have the same ltm divisions

Question 162

define reciprocity

Answer 162

Infant and caregiver perform turn taking behaviour like a two-way conversation

Question 163

reciprocity example

Answer 163

caregiver smiles at the Infant and infant responds by smiling back

Question 164

define interactional synchrony

Answer 164

caregiver and infant behaviour become synchronised in direct Response to each other

Question 165

Meltzoff and Moore procedure

Answer 165

controlled observation where an adult model displayed different facial expressions and hand movements. was this occurred the child was giving a dummy to prevent responses. when the dummy was removed the infants response was filmed and judged by an independent Observer.

Question 166

why is it difficult to draw firm conclusions about the role of caregiver interactions in attachments

Answer 166

an infants behaviour may not be deliberate as they can’t communicate to tell us whether it is or isn’t on purpose this means we can’t be certain that infants are engaging in caregiver infant interactions. can’t show cause and effect

Question 167

example of interactional synchrony

Answer 167

caregiver hums and infant rocks in time with caregiver hums and infant rocks in time with the tune

Question 168

how can it be argued that research into caregiver-infant interactions is scientific

Answer 168

there are often controlled procedures film from multiple angles this means fine behaviours can be observed and analysed to improve the accuracy of conclusions

Question 169

explain the procedures of schaffer and Emersons research

Answer 169

visited infants and their homes every month for a year and again at 18 months mother’s kept a diary detailing instances of social referencing strangers anxiety and separation anxiety

Question 170

Schaffer and Emerson research participants

Answer 170

60 babies from working-class families in Glasgow

Question 171

what are the four stages of attachment

Answer 171

asocial
indiscriminate
specific
multiple

Question 172

what are the key features of the asocial stage

Answer 172

they respond to humans and objects in the same way but have a preference for face and eyes

Question 173

when does the asocial stage occur

Answer 173

0 to 6 weeks

Question 174

what are the key features of the indiscriminate stage

Answer 174

prefer humans to objects are comforted easily by anyone and can distinguish between people

Question 175

when does the indiscriminate stage occur

Answer 175

6-weeks to 6 months

Question 176

when does the indiscriminate stage occur

Answer 176

6-weeks to 6 months

Question 177

key features of the specific stage

Answer 177

instant forms of specific attachment with a primary caregiver and shows separation anxiety when the primary caregiver isn’t present. infant is also not easily comforted by anyone other than the primary caregiver as they look for to them for Comfort and protection

Question 178

when does the specific stage occur

Answer 178

7 months +

Question 179

key features of multiple attachment stage

Answer 179

entrance forms attachments to multiple other people like siblings and grandparents

Question 180

when does the multiple attachment stage occur

Answer 180

at 10 to 11 months +

Question 181

schaffer and Emerson findings

Answer 181

most babies show attachment to a primary caregiver by 32 weeks and developed multiple attachments soon afterwards

Question 182

strengths of schaffer and Emersons research

Answer 182

high ecological validity due to infants being in their natural environments longitudinal design ensures that individual differences are eliminated

Question 183

weaknesses of Schaffer and Emerson study

Answer 183

can’t control extraneous variables due to it being a naturalistic observation the self-report could be affected by social desirability bias and is under generalizable to the population as only working class families from Glasgow were studied

Question 184

according to learning theory how does classical conditioning explain attachment

Answer 184

the caregiver (the Neutral stimulus) is associated with food (the unconditioned stimulus) the caregiver becomes the conditioned stimulus

Question 185

according to learning theory how does operant conditioning explain attachment

Answer 185

crying behaviour is reinforced positively for the infant and negatively for the caregiver

Question 186

weaknesses of learning theory as an explanation of attachment

Answer 186

Lorenz and Harlow showed that feeding is not the key to attachment in there animal studies it ignores other factors as it cannot account for the importance of sensitivity and interactional synchrony

Question 187

what does bowlby’s monotropic Theory suggest about attachment

Answer 187

that it is evolutionary

Question 188

what is the acronym associated with bowlby’s monotropic Theory

Answer 188

ASCMI

Question 189

in bowlby’s monotropic theory what is meant by adaptive

Answer 189

attachment increases chances of survival as having a caregiver means more protection this shows that the drive to form attachment is innate

Question 190

in bowlby’s monotropic theory what is meant by social releasers

Answer 190

behaviours that bring about Instinct of caregiving responses in adults such as smiling and crying this explains how attachments to infants are formed

Question 191

in bowlby’s monotropic theory what is meant by the critical period

Answer 191

from birth to 2.5 years old if an attachment doesn’t form in this time it will never form

Question 192

in bowlby’s monotropic theory what is meant by monotropy

Answer 192

the tendency to form one special attachment to The caregiver Who responds most sensitively to needs this primary attachment figure acts as a secure base for the infant

Question 193

in bowlby’s monotropic theory what is meant by the internal working model

Answer 193

a schema created for future relationships based on the first primary attachment

Question 194

what is the continuity hypothesis

Answer 194

emotionally secure infants who formed strong bonds will be emotionally secure confident adults

Question 195

supporting evidence for the concept of monotropy

Answer 195

Emerson found that babies do form specific attachment to a primary attachment figure even though they have also from several other attachments within their families

Question 196

supporting evidence for social releasers

Answer 196

Brazelton et al found that when social releases were ignored babies were upset

Question 197

Evidence for the internal working model and continuity hypothesis

Answer 197

Harlow found that there were long lasting effects of the monkeys early attachment experiences for example they found it hard to socialise and make with other monkeys and some female Monkeys were abusive towards offspring

Question 198

how can the temperament hypothesis be used to criticise bowlby’s conclusion that the internal working model influences children’s relationships with others

Answer 198

it suggests that some infants are born trusting in friendly which is the reason they became a securely attached infants and forms secure relationships in the future

Question 199

in Kern’s study what type of attachment results in the best quality friendship

Answer 199

secure

Question 200

in Kerns study what type of attachment often creates friendship difficulties

Answer 200

insecure

Question 201

what is one limitation of using a correlation in Kerns’ research

Answer 201

you can’t identify the cause and effect so you don’t know where the attachment type affected the quality of Peer relationships this lowers the validity of the conclusions

Question 202

how old were the children involved in Myron-Wilson and Smith studies

Answer 202

7 to 11 years old

Question 203

in Myron-Wilson and Smith studies, what type were least likely to be involved in bullying

Answer 203

secure attachment

Question 204

in Myron-Wilson and Smith studies what attachment type were most likely to be victims of bullying

Answer 204

insecure avoidant

Question 205

in Myron-Wilson and Smith studies what attachment type where most likely to be bullies

Answer 205

insecure-resistant

Question 206

limitation of using a questionnaire in Myron-Wilson and Smith study

Answer 206

data could be influenced by social desirability bias or demand characteristics which leads to inaccurate results and hence inaccurate conclusions

Question 207

what did the strange situation measure

Answer 207

attachment quality

Question 208

strange situation procedure

Answer 208

100 middle class American mother and babies took part in a controlled observation each infant was observed with its mother in especially arranged room with play materials as a series of events took place the infants were assessed on proximity seeking exploration and secure base stranger and separation anxiety and response to reunion

Question 209

strange situation findings

Answer 209

infants showed consistent patterns of attachment behaviour

Question 210

what are the three types of attachment identified by Ainsworth

secure avoidant and resistant

209 / 448

Answer 210

secure
avoidant
resistant

Question 211

secure attachment characteristics

Answer 211

This attachment type is willing to explore, but also seeks proximity to the caregiver. They show moderate separation anxiety and stranger anxiety.

Question 212

insecure avoidant characteristics

Answer 212

they avoid intimacy with caregiver and others are happy to explore without a caregiver and had little or no distress when the caregiver was not present as well as little or no pleasure upon the caregivers return

Question 213

insecure resistant characteristics

Answer 213

they seek and resist intimacy with caregiver and show extreme distress when caregiver leaves and with the stranger when the caregiver Returns the infant is angry at the caregiver but still wants comfort

Question 214

strengths of the strange situation

Answer 214

high interobserver reliability practical applications in situations where are insecure attachment begin to form between infants and caregivers interventions and can be put in place

Question 215

weaknesses of the strange situation

Answer 215

it is culture bound as attachment behaviour may have different meanings in different cultures so the strange situation may be measuring different things there is challenging evidence as later studies of attachment using the strange situation showed that another type of attachment may have been overlooked using it over observation may have influenced the mother’s behaviour which would in turn affect the infants behaviour making results inaccurate.

Question 216

Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg procedure

Answer 216

a meta-analysis of 32 strange situation studies from 8 different countries where findings from each study were analysed

Question 217

Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenberg findings

Answer 217

there was more variation within countries and between countries secure was the most common attachment type in all countries avoidant was the next most common attachment type in all countries except Japan and Israel

Question 218

cultural variation study conclusion

Answer 218

it appears that attachment is innate and universal and secure attachment is the norm however cultural practises affect the rates of attachment types

Question 219

why do we see cross cultural variations in attachment

Answer 219

different countries look after children differently for example independence is considered important in Germany and his emphasise whereas in Japan the mother does everything for her children and rarely leaves them alone

Question 220

strengths of Van Ijzendoorn study

Answer 220

it has a large sample size to reduce the impact of anomalous results to improve internal validity

Question 221

weaknesses of Van Ijzendoorn study

Answer 221

it claims to be investigating cultural variations in attachment where is really comparing the percentage of attachment types in different countries the method of assessment is biased as research using the strange situation in poses of the USA test on other cultures

Question 222

what is deprivation

Answer 222

separation from attachment figure for long periods of time which leads to a loss of attachment

Question 223

examples of where deprivation may occur

Answer 223

an infant going into hospital a caregiver going into work or losing contact due to a divorce

Question 224

what did Bowlby mean by the critical period irreversibility and continuous care in the context of deprivation

Answer 224

separation will only cause deprivation if it occurs in the critical period deprivation will be irreversible if the child doesn’t form another attachment within the critical period as attachment can’t form after these points mother should provide continuous care a good standard of food and physical care along with emotional care

Question 225

according to Bowlby what are the effects of deprivation

Answer 225

long term emotional and social development issues delinquency affectionless psychopathy and low IQ

Question 226

procedure of bowlby’s 44 thieves research

Answer 226

2 groups of 44 5 to 16 year olds. in the first Group all Thieves and 14 out of these 44 were affectionless Psychopaths. in the second group all children were emotionally disturbed that hadn’t committed any antisocial acts. the children and parents were interviewed about their early lives

Question 227

bowlby’s 44 thieves research findings

Answer 227

12 of the 14 affectionless Psychopath had experienced long separation from their mother five of the 30 thieves experience separation and only 4% of the other children had done so

Question 228

bowlby’s 44 thieves research conclusion

Answer 228

early separation from Mother are associated with social and emotional development problems deprivation of emotional care can lead to emotionless psychopathy

Question 229

strengths of bowlby’s theory of maternal deprivation

Answer 229

the 44 thieves study supported bowlby’s Theory and and research produced practical applications for example parents were allowed to stay overnight in in a hospital to prevent emotional deprivation to promote a quicker recovery for infants

Question 230

weaknesses of bowlby’s theory for maternal deprivation

Answer 230

Rata suggest the negative effect of Separation depend more upon the reasons for being parted with the caregiver rather than Just The Separation alone ratta also claim that bowlby’s Theory failed to distinguish between the effects of deprivation and privation

Question 231

what did McCarthy study

Answer 231

friendships and romantic relationships

Question 232

what type of attachment did McCarthy find resulted in the best friendships and romantic relationships

Answer 232

secure

Question 233

what type of attachment did McCarthy find resulted in problems maintaining friendships

Answer 233

insecure-resistant

Question 234

what attachment type did McCarthy find resulted in problems with intimacy in romantic relationships

Answer 234

insecure avoidant

Question 235

what is a limitation of McCarthy study

Answer 235

it assumes that adults have very little free will which suggest that in securely attached infants will definitely form and healthy future relationships this shows that this study is socially sensitive

Question 236

what did hazan and shaver study

Answer 236

romantic relationships

Question 237

what type of correlation did hazan and shaver find between attachment type and love experiences

Answer 237

positive

Question 238

how did the love experiences and romantic relationships of securely attached participants differ from insecurely attached participants in hazan and shavers research

Answer 238

they were more positive happy and trusting

Question 239

what type of correlation did hazan and shaver find between the internal working model and attachment type

Answer 239

positive

Question 240

describe the findings of one study that challenges the findings obtained by hazan and shaver

Answer 240

study assessed infancy attachment and quality of friendships and romantic relationships there is a weak 0.1 correlation which is less confident about hazan and shavers conclusions

Question 241

what is meant by institutional care

Answer 241

being brought up in a children’s home on an orphanage rather than within a family

Question 242

rutters Romanian orphan study procedure

Answer 242

a natural experiment where 165 Romanian children who spent their lives in orphanages before being adopted by British families were compared to a control group of British orphans adopted in the UK around the same time they were assessed on the physical and cognitive development at ages 4 6 11 and 15

Question 243

rutters Romanian orphan study findings

Answer 243

at the time of adoption the Romanian development was less as children was smaller weighed less and were cognitively impaired children who were adopted before the age of 6-months caught up with the British group physically and cognitively however children adopted after 6-months showed signs of disinhibited attachment

Question 244

disinhibited attachment

Answer 244

attention-seeking behaviour towards all adults

Question 245

effects of institutional care

Answer 245

disinhibited attachment emotional and social problems physical underdevelopment and cognitive impairment

Question 246

strengths of rutters research

Answer 246

has a real life application as both institutional care and adoption practise have been improved using these findings and there was few extraneous variables as the orphans had fewer negative influences before institutionalisation

Question 247

weaknesses of rutters study

Answer 247

you can’t generalise findings to better institution as the conditions in the Romanian orphanages were so bad

Question 248

explain the argument that multiple attachments are not important

Answer 248

Bowlby said that a single primary attachment relationship is vital for the Healthy psychological development of a child this is mainly the role of the mother and the father’s role was instead to support the mother financially and to provide emotional support through love and companionship to create an atmosphere for the baby to thrive in

Question 249

explain the view that multiple attachments are both possible and beneficial

Answer 249

schaffer and Emerson show that many babies have multiple attachment by 10 months old another study investigated the benefit of being attached to a grandparent when a mother had depression as mothers with depression have less engaging interactions with the children the stronger the attachment to the grandchild to a grandparent the less likely the child of a depressed mother is to experience depression in adulthood

Question 250

explain the view that Father’s are not necessary

Answer 250

schaffer and Emerson found that Fathers were less likely to be the primary attachment figures due to social factors which discourage men from being nurturing insensitive va and biological factors due to a lack of oestrogen so many less caregiving behaviour and are less sensitive to infant cues

Question 251

research that supports the view that Father’s are not necessary

Answer 251

Hardy states that fathers are less able to detect low levels of infant distress so so I’ll just less important and capable of providing sensitive nurturing attachments

Question 252

research that challenges the view that Father’s are not necessary

Answer 252

Grossman found that Father’s are more physically active and provide challenging situations to encourage problem-solving and communication which suggests that Father’s have a more play and stimulation based role than nurturing

Question 253

why is it not possible to draw firm conclusions about role of the Father

Answer 253

some studies show that fathers have a nurturing role and the some suggest they have a different role this therefore makes it hard to draw firm conclusions on the role of the Father

Question 254

The working memory model

Answer 254

An explanation of the memory used when working on a task. Each store is qualitatively different.

Question 255

How is the working memory model different from the multi store model of memory?

Answer 255

The working memory model is only an explanation of short term memory, whereas the multi store model is a model for all memory. The working memory model suggests that short term memory is further divided and not unitary.

Question 256

Central executive role

Answer 256

Direction controls attention. It is involved in planning and decision making. Passes info onto other components and can takeover from an overloaded component for a short period of time.

Question 257

Capacity of central executive.

Answer 257

Very limited as it can’t attend to many things at once.

Question 258

Coding of central executive.

Answer 258

Modality free

Question 259

Phonological loop role.

Answer 259

Process is auditory and speech information.

Question 260

What are the two subgroups of the phonological loop?

Answer 260

The phonological store and the articulatory rehearsal system.

Question 261

What does the phonological store do?

Answer 261

Stores words that you have heard.

Question 262

What does the articulatory rehearsal system do?

Answer 262

Maintains the rehearsal of words.

Question 263

Coding of the phonological loop

Answer 263

acoustic

Question 264

Capacity of the phonological loop.

Answer 264

2 seconds

Question 265

Visuo spatial sketchpad role.

Answer 265

Processes visual and spatial information.

Question 266

What are the two subdivisions of visuo spatial sketchpad?

Answer 266

The visual cache and the inner scribe.

Question 267

Visual cache role

Answer 267

Stores and processes information associated with objects such as shapes and colours.

Question 268

Inner scribe role

Answer 268

Stores and processes information about the arrangement of objects.

Question 269

Coding of the visuospatial sketch pad.

Answer 269

Visual.

Question 270

Capacity of the visuospatial sketch pad.

Answer 270

Three to four objects.

Question 271

Episodic buffer function.

Answer 271

Combines the working memory info with information from long term memory.

Question 272

Coding of the episodic buffer.

Answer 272

Modality free

Question 273

Capacity of the episodic buffer.

Answer 273

Four chunks of information.

Question 274

Use the working memory model to explain why we can do a verbal and visual task at the same time, but not two verbal or two visual tasks.

Answer 274

Verbal and visual tasks use different components of working memory model it so can be performed simultaneously as each has the capacity for one task. Each component can’t perform two tasks at once as it only has the capacity for 1.

Question 275

Supporting evidence for the working memory model. Dual tasks.

Answer 275

Robbins et al. If participants have to use the same component to complete two different tasks, performances in pairs. This is because each component has a limited capacity and exceeding this capacity leads to poor performance over the tasks. The working memory model provides an accurate account for the short term memory as it can explain and predict the performance of participants, which gives us confidence that the short term memory is subdivided.

Question 276

Supporting evidence for working memory model. Brain damage, patients.

Answer 276

Case study on KF. Suffered brain damage affecting the short term memory. KF struggled with auditory tasks but could do visual tasks. This shows that the phonological loop was damaged, but the other components were intact, which confirms that each component is separate.

Question 277

Supporting evidence for a working memory model. Brain imaging studies.

Answer 277

Participant show activity in Wernicke’s area when tasks use the phonological store. Participants show activity in Broca’s area when use the articulatory rehearsal system. This is evidence for the subdivisions of the phonological loop. Verbal memories are located in the left atmosphere and spatial memories are located in the right hemisphere. This gives evidence for the subdivisions of the visuospatial sketch pad.

Question 278

Practical applications of the working model of memory. practical

Answer 278

Helps understand dyslexia and teaching. Dyslexia involves problems in the phonological loop and the central executive. This helps educationalists target working memory model and help students. Therefore, the theory is useful in everyday life.

Question 279

Limitations of working memory model. Challenge the use of brain damage patient studies.

Answer 279

Brain injury leads to lots of cognitive difficulties, which explains why some people may struggle with memory tasks. It is hard to generalise findings to those who don’t have brain damage. Therefore the theory may be based on flawed evidence and we must question the extent to which the theory can be supported.

Question 280

Limitations of the working memory model. Challenge views of the central executive.

Answer 280

The central executive is considered to be the most important part of the model, but knowledge of its functions is limited and its description is too vague.
Some believe that there are several components of the central executive. Patient EVR had a cerebral tumour removed and performed well on reasoning tests but poorly on everyday decision making. Both of these tasks require the central executive. This shows that central to executive is more likely to be more complex than stated by the working memory model.

Question 281

Term interference in the context of forgetting

Answer 281

Interference is forgetting that occurs when one memory is blocked by another. This blocking / distortion causes forgetting. This occurs when content is very similar, for example old and new phone numbers.

Question 282

Proactive interference.

Answer 282

When an older memory interferes with a new one, so the new information is forgotten.

Question 283

Example of proactive interference.

Answer 283

A teacher has learned so many names in the past, she has trouble remembering the names of her current class.

Question 284

Retroactive interference.

Answer 284

New a memory interferes with an older one, so older information is forgotten.

Question 285

Retroactive interference example.

Answer 285

A teacher has had to learn a new class of names, so forgets the names of her old class.

Question 286

Describe what is meant by a cue in the context of memory.

Answer 286

A cure is something that acts as a reminder. Memories can’t be recalled because the correct cues aren’t present.

Question 287

List three types of cues.

Answer 287

Meaningful links, context cues, and state cues.

Question 288

meaningful links study

Answer 288

Tulving and Pearlstone (1966) gave participants a list of 48 words to learn, organised into 12 categories of four words each.
In one condition, the lists of words were given a category heading, such as ‘fruit’, followed by the names of the items, for example, banana, apple, pear, orange.
Participants were told that they only needed to recall the items and not the headings.
Participants who weren’t given the headings as cues recalled fewer words than those given the cued headings.

Question 289

context dependent forgetting

Answer 289

Forgetting is likely to occur when trying to recall information from a different context. For example, a different room, different weather, different temperature will different smells.

Question 290

State dependent forgetting.

Answer 290

Forget is likely to occur when trying to recall information when in a different state. For example, emotional state (happy/sad), drunk/sober, and alert/tired.

Question 291

Supporting evidence for interference theory - McGeoch & McDonald

Answer 291

Investigate the effect of similarity of material and retroactive interference. Three groups learned fully a list of 10 words. Had a 10 minute interval and then learned list be. In Group one, words in list B had the same meanings list A. In Group two list B was nonsense syllables and in Group three list B was numbers. All participants were asked to recall List A again. Group One was 12% accurate, Group 2 was 26% accurate and group Three was 37% accurate. This means that all groups experience forgetting and the interferences is at its highest when information is similar.

Question 292

Supporting evidence for proactive interference. Underwood.

Answer 292

Investigated proactive interference using meta analysis. He found that when participants were asked to learn a list of unrelated words, overall recall of new info declines with each successive list learned. If there was more than 10 lists, p’s recalled 20% of the last list that they learned. If there was only one list, they were called 70% of this list. This means that as you learn more, you can forget more which is an example of proactive interference. Each list makes it more difficult to learn subsequent lists.

Question 293

Strength of interference theory use of lab experiments.

Answer 293

High control over extraneous variables, which increases confidence in drawing conclusions about cause and effect. Shows that interference is an accurate explanation of forgetting.

Question 294

Limitation of interference theory. Use of lab experiments.

Answer 294

Studies used meaningless stimulus materials, such as nonsense syllables, and asked participants to learn and recall information over short periods of time. This is rarely encountered in everyday life, so it renders these supporting evidence invalid, and it lacks ecological validity.

Question 295

Practical applications of interference theory.

Answer 295

Can be used in advertising people exposed to ads from competing brands in a short space of time. In order to reduce interference, the advert should be shown multiple times a day.

Question 296

Challenging evidence for interference theory.

Answer 296

It isn’t a complete explanation as it can only explain everyday forgetting but not all forgetting

Question 297

supporting evidence for context dependent forgetting

Answer 297

Godden and Baddeley (1975) discovered that when divers learnt material underwater, they recalled the information better when tested underwater than when on dry land. Recall is 40% lower when the environmental context of learning and recall are different.
This supports the theory of context-dependent memory.

Question 298

Supporting evidence for state dependent forgetting.

Answer 298

Goodwin asked participants to learn material when either drunk or sober.
Recall was found to be more difficult if the state in which the learner learnt the material differed from that in which it was tested.
For example, participants performed better on a test when drunk if they had learned the material whilst drunk.

Question 299

Practical applications of cue dependant forgetting.

Answer 299

Help students with revision. Students should make their revision space more similar to the example and make meaningful links and cues when revising.
In the cognitive interview, recall can be improved by recreating the context of the crime, giving support with the importance of retrieval failure as an explanation for forgetting.

Question 300

Limitation of retrieval failure.

Answer 300

Can only explain some forgetting. It can’t explain why forgetting continues to happen when the encoded cues are available at time of recall. In real life, retrieval failure due to absence of cues doesn’t actually explain much of forgetting.

Question 301

Limitation of. retrieval theory. Lacks falsifiability.

Answer 301

It is impossible to empirically test the ideas proposed, as we can’t measure that the queue has been encoded at the same time of learning. This means it is not open to scientific inquiry and doesn’t meet the criteria for a science.

Question 302

What is meant by misleading information?

Answer 302

Any information that leads you to into giving a particular response rather than an accurate response.

Question 303

What are the two examples of misleading information?

Answer 303

Leading questions and post event discussion.

Question 304

leading questions.

Answer 304

a question that prompts or encourages the desired answer.

Question 305

Post event discussion.

Answer 305

A potential source of misleading information where witnesses discuss what they saw afterwards. This has the potential to influence memory.

Question 306

Study into the influence of leading questions. Loftus and Palmer, 1974.

Answer 306

45 students were shown films of car accidents and were asked to answer a series of questions. One critical question was about estimating the speed of the car. The phrasing of the question differed. About how fast were the cars going when they (contacted / Hit / bumped / collided / smashed) into each other?
The findings were the estimates vary depending on the verb to use. When the verb smash was used, the estimate was an average of 41 miles an hour, whereas when contacted was used, the average was 32 miles an hour. This suggests that the wording of the question can affect an eyewitness response.

Question 307

Study into the influence of post event discussion. Gabbert et al.

Answer 307

Participants were studied in pairs. Each pair watched a video of the same crime but each member of the pair saw it from a different viewpoint so members saw different aspects. Participants discussed what they had seen and were individually tested on their recall. They found that 71% of participants incorrectly reported aspects of the crime scene that they hadn’t seen but had discussed. This shows that eye witnesses go along with each other as they think others are correct or in order to gain social approval.

Question 308

Why can we be unsure about the role of misleading information on the accuracy of eye witness testimony.

Answer 308

Use of lab experiments: Low external validity, so have little relation to a real court scenario. Participants in research may be more likely to anticipate truthful information from the experimenters. Eye witnesses in court cases may anticipate being subject to leading arguments - guilt and innocence is advocated, so they attempt to avoid being misled. Fabrics paraments also lack mundane realism, as watching a video is arguably less emotionally arousing than witnessing real incidents. Some research suggests that emotional arousal can increase and improve the accuracy of eyewitness testimony.
We cannot be certain whether the misleading information actually influences the memory trace itself: Demand characteristics may be driving the change in recall as participants. His behaviour may be affected by how they perceive the experimental purpose. This means that experiments have low internal validity.

Question 309

What is meant by anxiety?

Answer 309

A state of emotional and physical arousal. Emotional change include worrying thoughts and feelings of tension. Physical changes include increased heart rate and sweatiness.

Question 310

Why is anxiety so important to EWT?

Answer 310

When we witness these crimes and accidents, we experience physiological and psychological changes due to anxiety, which could affect what we later remember. This could make eyewitness testimony better or worse.

Question 311

Why might anxiety decrease the accuracy of eyewitness testimony?

Answer 311

Create physiological arousal in the body (fight or flight response) which prevents us from paying attention to important cues so recall is worse. We are also subject to weapon focus, where we are more likely to focus our attention on a weapon rather than the face of a criminal.

Question 312

Explain the reason why anxiety may increase the accuracy of eyewitness testimony.

Answer 312

Anxiety triggers the fight or flight response, which can increase alertness, improve memory as we are more aware of cues in the situation and it would be a survival advantage to clearly report threats to our safety.

Question 313

Study that found that anxiety decreased accuracy of eyewitness testimony.

Answer 313

Johnson and Scott. A participant is sat in a room waiting to take part in a study hears an argument in the next room. In the low anxiety condition, a man with a pen. and grease on his hands walks in. In the high anxiety condition, there is an argument, broken glass, and a man with paper knife covered in blood walks in. Participants were shown 50 photos and asked to identify the man: in the low anxiety condition. 49% were accurate, but in the high anxiety conditions, 33% were accurate.

Question 314

Study that found that anxiety increased the accuracy of eyewitness testimony.

Answer 314

Yuille & Cutshall: 13 witnesses to an attempted theft from a gun shop in Vancouver, Canada in which at the shopkeeper shot and killed the thief were interviewed. Four months later, the witnesses accounts remained highly accurate and the most distressed witnesses were often most accurate. They were not affected by misleading information and this shows that anxiety may help create more accurate memories.

Question 315

Problems with Johnson and Scotts lab experiment.

Answer 315

Had poor ecological validity and control, so it is difficult to draw firm conclusions.

Question 316

Problems with Yuille & Cutshall’s natural experiment.

Answer 316

low control over variables and had a poor cause and effect. Meaning is difficult to draw firm conclusions.

Question 317

Limitation of the idea that anxiety can worsen Recall.

Answer 317

Poor recall is due to surprise and not anxiety. Pickel arranged for participants to watch a thief enter hairdressing salon carrying: A) scissors=High threat, low surprise. B) a handgun=High Threat, high surprise. C) a wallet=low threat loo surprise. D) a raw chicken=low threat high surprise. participants were worse, identifying the thief with the high surprise items rather than the high threat. This questions weapon focus studies.

Question 318

Practical application on the role of anxiety.

Answer 318

In the cognitive interview, witnesses are encouraged to be as relaxed as possible in a calming environment in order to increase recall.

Question 319

Techniques involved in the cognitive interview.

Answer 319

Context reinstatement. Report everything, perspective change and change the order.

Question 320

What is context reinstatement?

Answer 320

The witness is encouraged to mentally recreate an image of a situation/ shown pictures of / be taken back to the scene of the crime. They are asked to include details of the environment such as weather and other witnesses and their emotional state.

Question 321

Why is context reinstatement important?

Answer 321

Details recalled may act as cues to trigger more recall. This is based on the encoding specificity principle.

Question 322

What is meant by report everything?

Answer 322

Witnesses are asked to recall all the details about an event, even if they are saving a seemingly trivial and irrelevant.

Question 323

Why is the report everything stage important?

Answer 323

It may highlight something that has been overlooked and also removes the influence of leading questions so there is no memory contamination.

Question 324

What is the change perspective stage?

Answer 324

Witnesses are asked to mentally recreate a situation from different points of view, for example describing what another witness would have seen.

Question 325

Why is the change perspective stage so important?

Answer 325

It promotes a more holistic approach to the event, which may enhance recall. As well as creating additional context and state cues.

Question 326

What is the change order stage?

Answer 326

Witnesses are asked to recall this same event in a different chronological order.

Question 327

Was the change order stage important?

Answer 327

It verifies accuracy and also removes the narrative that is created by schemas.

Question 328

Geiselman et al. Cognitive interview study.

Answer 328

Participants were shown the police training film of violent crime. They were interviewed 48 hours later using either copies of interview or standard interview. There was no difference in the amount of incorrect information recalled. However, in the standard interview less information in total was recalled, whereas in the cognitive interview more accurate information was recalled. This shows that cognitive interview is an effective tool in increasing the quality and quantity of recall.

Question 329

Criticism of the cognitive interview time consuming.

Answer 329

Impacts on the cost of using the cognitive interview and training required to deliver it. Police forces may not have the time or money to invest in training.

Question 330

Criticism of the cognitive interview. Difficult to compare.

Answer 330

Different forces use different techniques with different clients. This means it is difficult to make comparisons between data, and you can’t draw firm conclusions on effectiveness.

Question 331

Strength of the cognitive interview. Flexible.

Answer 331

Can be modified to suit different witnesses. For example, children don’t use the change perspective stage.

Question 332

Conflicting evidence for the cognitive interviews.

Answer 332

Kohnken - whilst correct info is increased, so does the amount of incorrect info. Using the cognitive interview, there was a 61% increase in incorrect recall record. Police need to be careful when looking at cognitive interview results and should treat information with caution.

Question 333

limitation: Not all elements of the cognitive interview are suitable for all the cases.

Answer 333

Change perspective techniques shouldn’t be used with young children until they have passed egocentrism

Question 334

What are the 4 definitions of abnormality?

1. Deviation from social norms
2. Failure to function adequately
3. Statistical infrequency
4. Deviation from ideal mental health

Answer 334

1. Deviation from social norms
2. Failure to function adequately
3. Statistical infrequency
4. Deviation from ideal mental health

Question 335

Statistical infrequency.

Answer 335

A persons trait, thinking or behaviour is classified as abnormal if it is rare or statistically unusual. Those who are abnormal further away from the mean, median and mode, they will be more than two standard deviations away.

Question 336

Limitation of statistical infrequency. Doesn’t account for the behaviours that are desirable in a society

Answer 336

For example, some unusual behaviours is desirable, such as a high IQ score. This means that the definition makes it difficult to distinguish between normal and abnormal.

Question 337

Limitation of statistical infrequency. Doesn’t account for behaviours are undesirable in society.

Answer 337

Some abnormal behaviours are not statistically rare. For example, 37% of teenage females report feeling depressed. This definition cannot distinguish between normal and abnormal behaviours in a society and it can make it difficult to help people who need support.

Question 338

Limitation of statistical infrequency. The cut off point, the abnormality and normality is unclear.

Answer 338

How far from an average does a behaviour have to be? Some people may believe that the cut off point is different, so this definition is used differently by different people. Therefore it lacks consistency. This definition doesn’t give much detail about the behaviours we are trying to understand.

Question 339

Deviation from social norms.

Answer 339

A social norm is an unwritten rule that ties behaviour in place. The definition states that if we breach these norms then we are deemed abnormal. This means a person is thinking or behaviour is abnormal if it violates the unwritten rules about what’s accepted or expected in a particular social group.

Question 340

Limitation in. Deviation from social norms. The definition doesn’t account for acts of choice.

Answer 340

Some people may want to deviate from social norms, such as wearing unusual clothing, being part of minority religions or living in a commune

Question 341

Limitation of deviation from social norms. Lacks temporal validity and is culturally biassed.

Answer 341

For example, social norms can change overtime in place. For example. Opinions on homosexuality or having children outside of marriage have changed overtime. Personal space distances, or how we respect the dead depends on where you are in the world. This means the definition cannot be applied in a universal or permanent manner making it difficult to use.

Question 342

Limitation of deviation from social norms.It has been open to abuse by political regimes.

Answer 342

There have been instances where individuals who did not follow the norms of society, for example. Opposing communism were deemed mad and were institutionalised. Therefore, this definition must be used with care, and we must be vigilant that it is not used as a form of social control.

Question 343

Failure to function adequately.

Answer 343

A person is that normal if they are unable to cope with the demands of everyday life and experience distress as a result, they may be unable to perform behaviours necessary for day-to-day living, for example, self-care, holding down a job, interacting meaningfully with others and making themselves understood.

Question 344

Rosenhan and Seligman’s signs of not coping

Answer 344

Suffering personal distress, maladaptiveness vividness and unconventionality. Irrationality/ comprehensibility causes observer discomfort and violates moral or social standards.

Question 345

Limitation of the failure to function adequately. Sets the bar too low.

Answer 345

Criteria are too easy to meet for being abnormal, which means that definition may be inaccurately defining people as abnormal.

Question 346

Limitation of failures function adequately. Assumes failing to function is always abnormal

Answer 346

Sometimes it is entirely normal for someone to fail to function. For example, during bereavement or exam periods. As a result, this definition may be inaccurately defining someone as abnormal, as they may simply responding normally to abnormal circumstances.

Question 347

Limitation of failure to function adequately.

Answer 347

It fails to make clear how much we need to fail to function in order to be abnormal.

Question 348

Limitation of failure to function adequately. Ethnocentric.

Answer 348

The criteria is based on Western capitalist norms and may not be relevant to non Western cultures, so it isn’t a universal definition that could be applied.

Question 349

Deviation from ideal mental health.

Answer 349

Rather than defining what is abnormal, we define what is normal, and anything that deviates from this is regarded as abnormal. This is a more positive view of defining abnormality.

Question 350

Jahoda’s characteristics of ideal mental health

Answer 350

Positive view of yourself. Self actualization. Autonomy and independence. Accurate perception of reality. Resistance to stress. Environmental mastery.

Question 351

Limitation of ideal mental health. Sets the bar too high.

Answer 351

represents an idealised set of expectations that is too hard to meet. This means it defines too many people as abnormal and not enough people as normal.

Question 352

Limitation of deviation from ideal mental health.

Answer 352

It fails to state clearly how many of the criteria we need to be lacking in order to be abnormal. Therefore, we can argue that this definition does not go far enough in defining abnormality.

Question 353

Limitation of deviating from ideal mental health. Ethnocentric.

Answer 353

Some criteria such as self actualization of very ethnocentric. So it may not be possible for us to use this definition and non Western cultures.

Question 354

Limitation of all definitions of abnormality.

Answer 354

The idea that what is considered to be normal in one culture may be abnormal in another culture. This is cultural relativism. This is a problem for those trying to define abnormal, as the definitions cannot be applied universally.

Question 355

What is a phobia?

Answer 355

A phobia is an extreme, irrational fear leading to intense anxiety and avoidance of an object or situation.

Question 356

phobia emotional characteristics

Answer 356

A phobia produces fear/ anxiety that is marked, persistent, excessive and unreasonable.

Question 357

phobia behavioural characteristics

Answer 357

Fear will usually lead to avoidance of the feared object. This avoidance of the feared situation interferes with the person’s normal life.

Question 358

phobia cognitive characteristics

Answer 358

Cognitive characteristics relate to thought processes. In the case of phobias the person is thinking is irrational although generally the person recognizes that their fear is excessive or unreasonable
Selective attention

Question 359

behavioural explanation of phobias

Answer 359

The behavioural approach believes that all Phobias are Learned.

Question 360

two-process model

Answer 360

phobias are (1) acquired (started) through classical conditioning and (2) maintained (kept going) through operant conditioning.

Question 361

phobia acquisition via classical conditioning

Answer 361

Classical conditioning involves learning to associate something with which we initially had no fear (NS), with something that already triggers a fear response (UCS), from a reflex response.

Question 362

example of phobia acquisition

Answer 362

*Loud Noise (UCS) =Fear (UCR) (starts as a reflex response)
*Loud Noise (UCS) + Spider (NS) = Fear (UCR) (repeated exposure…)
*Spider (CS)= Fear (CR)

Question 363

maintenance of phobias

Answer 363

Operant conditioning suggests that phobias are maintained through reinforcement.
*Positive reinforcement - the fear response can be rewarded by attention from family and friends.
*Negative reinforcement - avoiding a feared object means we don’t feel anxious - so we continue to avoid it.

Question 364

supporting evidence for behavioural explanation of phobias - litlle Albert

Answer 364

Watson and Raynor (1920):
*They deliberately created a phobia in a normal, healthy 11 month-old boy
*They gave him a phobia of white rats by associating the fear of a loud noise with the presence of a rat
*This was the process of classical conditioning.
This gives us confidence that the claims made by the theory are correct

Question 365

strength of phobias explanation: Classical Conditioning and Generalisation also gives us further confidence that the theory is correct

Answer 365

If a slightly different conditional stimulus (CS) is presented and the conditional response still occurs, then the response has been generalised.
E.g Watson and Raynor found that a white fur coat and white beards also created the fear response in Little Albert.
His fear of white rats had been generalised to similar objects.

Question 366

criticism of the behavioural explanation of phobias: Not all research supports the idea that we must have experienced an unpleasant event with the phobic object

Answer 366

Munjack (1984) only 50% of people with driving phobia had frightening experience in a car
Thus, we do not have to experience the phobic object
If there are research findings that do NOT support the claims made by a theory then we lose confidence that the theory is correct

Question 367

criticism of the behavioural explanation of phobias: reductionist

Answer 367

It cannot explain the evidence that suggests many people share the same phobias
e.g. snakes, spiders, heights.
It is believed that an alternative cause is evolution. We are biologically prepared to fear things that could be a danger, for survival purposes.
This is a weakness as the explanation is only a partial explanation of phobias, not being able to explain the influence of evolution.

Question 368

Strength of the behavioural explanation of phobias: practical applications

Answer 368

Systematic desensitisation and flooding have been useful therapies, based on unlearning, for treating phobic patients
McGrath found that 75% of those with a phobia were successfully treated with SD. Therefore, the theory has been useful in developing ways to ‘unlearn’ a phobia.

Question 369

Behavioural therapies for phobias

Answer 369

exposure therapies based on unlearning: flooding and systematic desensitisation.

Question 370

systematic desensitisation

Answer 370

This therapy aims to get rid of phobias gradually through classical conditioning by replacing fear with relaxation (counterconditioning). If the sufferer can learn to be relaxed in the presence of the phobia then they will be cured.

Question 371

Reciprocal Inhibition

Answer 371

The idea that we cannot experience 2 incompatible emotional states at the same time (anxiety and relaxation)

Question 372

systematic desensitisation stages

Answer 372

1: The client learns deep RELAXATION TECHNIQUES (breathing exercises, visualising peaceful scene)
2: The client and therapist together draw up an anxiety hierarchy, ranking situations from the least frightening situation (lowest) to the most frightening.(highest)
3: GRADUAL EXPOSURE - The client practises the relaxation technique they learned in step one, whilst being gradually exposed to each step in the hierarchy. Client is encouraged to use relaxation techniques during exposure. Only when comfortable with one stage will they progress to the next. Treatment is successful when the patient can stay relaxed around the object of their phobia.

Question 373

fear hierarchy example

Answer 373

step one might be looking at a picture of a small spider, going right up to holding a big spider in their hands.

Question 374

methods of exposure to phobic stimulus

Answer 374

1. In Vitro- where the client imagines
2. In Vivo- Where the client is actually exposed to the phobic stimulus in real life

Question 375

evidence to suggest that SD is effective

Answer 375

Gilroy (2003) found that SD was an effective treatment for spider (specific) phobias which seemed to last 33 months later
McGrath (1990) 75% of people were successfully treated with SD

Question 376

Not all elements of SD are effective

Answer 376

in vitro seems to be less effective than in vivo exposure
In vitro relies on the client’s ability to be able to imagine the fearful situation. Some people cannot create a vivid image and thus systematic desensitization is not always effective (there are individual differences).

Question 377

The effectiveness of SD might be short term

Answer 377

It may not have long term benefits
Craske and Barlow found that 50% of patients relapsed after 6 months
This might limit how effective it is

Question 378

Evidence to suggest SD is an appropriate therapy

Answer 378

It is suitable for a wide-range of patients (e.g. those with learning difficulties) unlike other therapies. (so it appropriate for many patients)
It is more ethical than flooding therapy(The progressive structure of systematic desensitization allows the patient to control the steps he/she must make until fear is overcome. This means it is less likely to low DROP OUT rates, meaning more people who access this will be helped. (appropriate for sensitive patients)

Question 379

SD may not be an appropriate treatment

Answer 379

It may not be possible to expose a client to their feared object/ situation if it is abstract
i.e. if someone is phobic of death / zombies then we cannot expose a client to this to unlearn a fear
This is a weakness because it may not be possible to treat ALL phobias with SD

Question 380

SD does not treat deeper underlying causes

Answer 380

Wolpe (1973)- it only treats the surface symptoms and thus ignores the underlying psychological / emotional issues- this might lead to symptom substitution (the symptoms come back in another form)
This again might mean that SD is not appropriate at dealing with deep seated phobias

Question 381

SD requires commitment

Answer 381

It takes a lot of commitment and motivation which may not be appropriate with some abnormalities. In such cases drugs may be a more appropriate choice.
This might limit its appropriateness

Question 382

Flooding

Answer 382

*Flooding involves immediate exposure to a person’s phobia without any gradual build-up.
The person will become very anxious, but they are not allowed to escape or avoid their phobia.
Their anxiety cannot rise forever, at some point it has to reduce.
They then quickly learn to be calm in the presence of their phobic object

Question 383

flooding example

Answer 383

someone with a phobia of spiders might have a large spider crawl over them for an extended period.

Question 384

flooding is effective

Answer 384

Choy & Kaplin both found that it is effective and long lasting when compared with SD
(65% of patients improved after one session & very effective if clients can stick it through to the end!)
Can last up to 4 years!

Question 385

Flooding isn’t effective

Answer 385

not effective for phobias which are not specific or concrete (death phobia)

Question 386

Flooding is not appropriate

Answer 386

Not appropriate for those with heart conditions
Not appropriate for children as too distressing
The distressing nature of this means that it may not be appropriate for many clients as the thought is so traumatic that many drop out prior to starting the treatment

Question 387

Main assumptions of the cognitive approach to depression

Answer 387

All Depression is caused by our thinking patterns.
People’s negative or distorted thoughts cause negative or distorted behaviours.
Therapy should be concerned with altering the way in which a client thinks to make them more rational.

Question 388

Cognitive theorists involved in depression

Answer 388

Ellis & Beck

Question 389

Ellis’s ABC Model of Depression description.

Answer 389

explains how irrational thinking affects us. Depression arises as a result of beliefs we have about events in our lives

Question 390

the ABC model

Answer 390

A - Activating event: Something happens to you
B - Beliefs: You have a belief about this event
C - Consequence: you have an emotional response to this belief
The crucial thing about this theory is that an event must come before the faulty belief.

Question 391

What is the difference between Ellis and Beck?

Answer 391

That Ellis is arguing that an event occurs before the belief- it is the external event that triggers the irrational thought i.e. I have failed one psych test- I cant do this at all!
Beck suggested that we don’t always need an activating event for depression to occur…sometimes thoughts are automatically negative
so not all depression has to stem from an activating event

Question 392

Beck’s Negative Triad

Answer 392

Beck identified three forms of automatic negative thinking that were responsible for depression: negative views of the world, the self and the future.

Question 393

where do automatic negative thoughts must stem from?

Answer 393

These occur due to the development of negative schemas in childhood
This means that we develop a negative framework for processing all information
This leads to automatic cognitive errors, such as;
Overgeneralisation- making sweeping generalisations
Catastrophizing- making a mountain out of a molehill
Selective perception- only paying attention to and remembering those things that support the negative schema

Question 394

Supporting evidence for cognitive explanation of depression

Answer 394

There is evidence that depression is associated with negative thinking.
Grazioli and Terry (2000) assessed 65 pregnant women for cognitive vulnerability and depression before and after giving birth. Women judged high in cognitive vulnerability were more likely to suffer post-natal depression. This shows that negative / distorted thinking occurs before depression

Question 395

limitation for cognitive explanation of depression - doesn’t explain all depression

Answer 395

Bipolar depression includes periods of mania
Other types of depression involve anger
The cognitive approach cannot explain these symptoms- only the negative thinking and mood. It may therefore only be a partial account of depression

Question 396

limitation for cognitive explanation of depression - poor cause and effect

Answer 396

The cognitive approach is not effective at telling us whether the negative thinking caused depression or whether negative thinking is caused by being depressed. This means that it does not have a clear ‘direction of causality’

Question 397

limitation for cognitive explanation of depression - Slightly limited in it’s ability to account for biological evidence

Answer 397

Does not fully account for the wealth of evidence that suggests that depression is biological.
i.e. low levels of serotonin (which is why SSRI’s are given)
Or that depression might be more social i.e living in inner cities
(on the other hand it does account for some social factors, some biological factors and thinking)

Question 398

Practical applications for cognitive explanation of depression

Answer 398

Therapy based on the cognitive approach has been very effective in treating depression, aiming to alter client’s thinking patterns.
CBT had the second highest rating for success out of 10 therapies (this means that it has positive implications for the economy e.g. more people able to work and pay taxes, less sick pay)
This provides strong support for the cognitive approach.

Question 399

Main goal of CBT

Answer 399

to challenge & change negative and irrational thoughts.
This therapy is collaborative, talking based and practical
Seek to alter distorted thinking patterns, to make them more rational and to alleviate the symptoms of depression

Question 400

CBT step 1

Answer 400

Identifying Irrational Thoughts:
To try to identify the negative automatic thoughts or the A B C (activating events triggering distortions, faulty beliefs and consequences of having beliefs)
This is called ‘thought catching’ and is achieved with the following techniques:
*Verbal discussions
*Homework assignments (Beck)
*Thought diaries (Beck)

Question 401

CBT step 2

400 / 448

Answer 401

Challenging Irrational Thoughts using the ABCDE model (Ellis)
Ellis then suggested that during stage 2, D & E would occur:
D: dispute these beliefs through 3 different methods (logical, empirical and pragmatic disputation)
E: Try to establish whether this is having a positive effect on the client

Question 402

Logical disputing

Answer 402

getting the client to realise that their self-defeating beliefs are not logical. E.g. does this thinking make sense?

Question 403

Empirical disputing

Answer 403

getting the client to realise that their self-defeating beliefs are not realistic E.g. where is the evidence that this belief is accurate?

Question 404

pragmatic disputing

Answer 404

Getting the client to realise that their self-defeating beliefs are not useful E.g. how is this belief likely to help me?

Question 405

CBT stage 3

Answer 405

Practising new thoughts and behaviours
2 techniques to achieve this are:
1) Role Play: therapist and client can practise implementing new ways of thinking together in small steps using make believe scenarios
2) Behavioural activation: they might also set goals to try and engage in behaviours that they used to enjoy i.e. exercise or social activities
this will take a lot of commitment and effort

Question 406

CBT is effective

Answer 406

327 adolescents suffering from depression- CBT compared with drug therapy for treatment.
Approx 80% of pps responded well to both- this suggests that CBT is just as good as drug therapy! (This was even more effective when the 2 therapies were combined)
Smith and Glass (1977) did a meta-analysis of therapies and found that CBT had the second highest success rate out of 10 different therapies (second to SD).

Question 407

CBT effectiveness may depend on the therapist

Answer 407

As much as 15% of the difference in effectiveness might be to do with the therapist NOT the therapy
This is a problem because the techniques should work regardless of who is doing the therapy!

Question 408

CBT isn’t always appropriate

Answer 408

It requires a significant amount of commitment and motivation from the client, especially with homework. This may be difficult for sufferers of depression
CBT may take a relatively long time to complete. Ellis claimed that clients would need on average 27 sessions to complete the treatment. This means it may not be appropriate for those who need a quick fix.

Question 409

CBT not appropriate for all clients

Answer 409

As they need to have the ability to rationalise and talk about their thoughts and feelings. For severe depression, this could prove difficult for people who cannot verbalise their thoughts, or who are not willing to.

Question 410

CBT may be appropriate

Answer 410

CBT does not have significant physical side effects such as drugs (SSRI’s)
This means that it might be appropriate for lots of different types of clients, who are not put off by insomnia, weight gain etc.

Question 411

How do therapies help save money?

Answer 411

Ensuring that people are able to work: This means that they are contributing to the economy by paying taxes and National Insurance. It also means that the Gov do not have to pay sick pay to these people.
Therapies also help to take the burden off the NHS as people no longer need to stay in hospital for long periods of time, so this means it costs less money.

Question 412

Behavioural characteristics of depression

Answer 412

Change in activity level; sufferers of depression often experience a reduction in energy and constantly feel tired.
Disturbances with their sleeping pattern, with some sufferers sleeping significantly more, while others experience insomnia, an inability to sleep.
Changes in appetite, which cause significant weight changes. Some sufferers will eat less and lose weight, while others will eat more and gain weight.

Question 413

Emotional characteristics of depression

Answer 413

depressed mood, feelings of worthlessness and lack of interest or pleasure in all activities.
some sufferers experience anger, which can be directed at themselves, or others. Anger can also lead to self-harming behaviours

Question 414

Cognitive characteristics of depression

Answer 414

diminished ability to concentrate and tend to focus on the negative.
difficulty paying or maintaining attention and are often slower in responding to, or making decisions.
Focus on the negative aspects of a situation, while ignoring the positives and Recurrent thoughts of self-harm, death or suicide.

Question 415

What is OCD

Answer 415

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
*2 core elements to this disorder:
*Obsessional thoughts - internal
*Compulsive behaviours - external

Question 416

OCD Emotional Characteristics

Answer 416

Anxiety
Stress
Shame
Guilt
Embarrassment
Reduction of anxiety when compulsions are performed

Question 417

OCD Cognitive characteristics

Answer 417

Obsessions: irrational beliefs or persistent recurring thoughts - catastrophic thinking such as: my family is in danger and might get trapped in a house fire’
These are referred to as intrusive thoughts

Question 418

OCD behavioural characteristics

Answer 418

Compulsions: performing a repetitive action to reduce anxiety such as: switching plug sockets six times.
Avoidance of situations that can trigger anxiety

Question 419

Genetic research on OCD

Answer 419

Genetic research attempts to establish whether the tendency to develop OCD is hereditary. It focuses on families including twin studies

Question 420

candidate gene

Answer 420

When geneticists identify a gene thought to be responsible for a behaviour

Question 421

OCD candidate genes

Answer 421

COMT & SERT
They both have an influence on neurotransmitters

Question 422

COMT Gene

Answer 422

controls the production on an enzyme that regulates dopamine. Explains why higher dopamine levels are found in OCD sufferers

Question 423

SERT Gene

Answer 423

A mutation of this gene (which is implicated in the breakdown of serotonin) is found in families who live with OCD

Question 424

Twin studies

Answer 424

The genetic contribution of an illness is tested using TWIN STUDIES
Taking one set of Monozygotic twins and one set of Dizygotic twins
They measure the number of times the twin without the disorder also gets it. This is expressed in a percentage called a concordance rate.

Question 425

Supporting evidence for genetic explanation of OCD - Twin studies

Answer 425

Nestadt (2010) reviewed twin studies using a meta analysis, and found 68% of identical twins showed concordance for OCD compared to 31% in non-identical twins.

Question 426

Limitations of evidence into genetic explanation of OCD: problems with twin studies which makes it difficult to draw conclusions

Answer 426

The concordance rate for MZ twins is never 100%
It is difficult to separate the effects of nature and nurture. MZ twins may be treated more similarly than DZ twins, which may partly account for their higher concordance rates (so it might not be genetic!)

Question 427

Limitations of genetic explanation of OCD: Searching for one candidate gene is reductionist (oversimplified)

Answer 427

The complexity of the disorder means that it is likely that OCD is polygenic… more than one gene is contributing e.g. Taylor (2013) found that up to 230 different genes may be involved!
More research is required to establish the genetic contribution to OCD

Question 428

Limitations of genetic explanation of OCD: There’s a better explanation for OCD

Answer 428

The Diathesis-Stress model
Suggests some people inherit a vulnerability to disorders such as OCD, but this must be coupled with environmental life experiences i.e. stress, for the disorder to develop.
Genes + Environment = OCD

Question 429

Neural explanations of OCD

Answer 429

Low serotonin levels
Biological structures - the worry circuit

Question 430

OCD due to Low levels of Serotonin (neurochemistry)

Answer 430

OCD may be caused by low levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin.
The disruption of serotonin has a knock-on effect on regulating the levels of other neurotransmitters, such as GABA, and dopamine.
This is based on the findings that OCD can be relieved by using anti-depressant drugs, especially those which increase levels of serotonin in the brain. (SSRI’s)

Question 431

Strengths of serotonin explanation of OCD

Answer 431

Evidence based on drug therapy seems to support the notion that serotonin plays a role in OCD
Zohar et al (1996) found that drugs which increase serotonin have been beneficial for up to 60% of patients with OCD.
This supports the idea that low levels of serotonin may be associated with OCD.(and why it might be comorbid with depression!)

Question 432

limitation of serotonin explanation of OCD

Answer 432

Studies have found only 50-60% improvement of OCD symptoms when using medication, suggesting other factors may be involved
*Just because serotonin reduces symptoms of OCD doesn’t necessarily mean the symptoms were caused by lack of serotonin. In the same way aspirin may cure a headache, but this doesn’t mean the headache was caused by lack of aspirin. This is called the Treatment Aetiology Fallacy

Question 433

Treatment Aetiology Fallacy

Answer 433

the mistaken belief that the effectiveness of a form of treatment indicates the cause of a disorder.
eg: Just because serotonin reduces symptoms of OCD doesn’t necessarily mean the symptoms were caused by lack of serotonin.

Question 434

OCD due to damage to the basal ganglia (worry circuit)

Answer 434

An area of the basal ganglia(in the frontal lobe) named the Caudate Nucleus may be damaged. This disrupts the transmission of information about worrying events
The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) sends signals to the thalamus about worrying things. These are normally supressed by the caudate nucleus
When the caudate nucleus is damaged, it fails to suppress minor worry signals and the thalamus is alerted. This sends signals back to the OFC, acting as a worry circuit.

Question 435

limitation of worry circuit explanation of OCD

Answer 435

The relationship between OCD and parts of the brain is inconsistent. Brain scan studies have not identified basal ganglia impairments in all OCD sufferers and some people with impairments in the basal ganglia show no sign of OCD. This lack of consistency means that we cannot be confident about the role of the caudate nucleus in all OCD cases.

Question 436

General issues with the biological explanation of OCD

Answer 436

Problems determining cause and effect- does the biology cause OCD or does OCD cause the biology to change?

Question 437

Strengths of serotonin explanation of OCD: practical application

Answer 437

The idea that serotonin is the cause of OCD has led to drug therapy
SSRI’s have been used to treat OCD. These increase the level of serotonin at the synapse - Zohar et al (1996) found that drugs which increase serotonin have been beneficial for up to 60% of patients with OCD.

Question 438

Reuptake

Answer 438

Once a neurotransmitter has been released and diffused across the synapse, any leftover is taken back up to the vesicle for storage.

Question 439

Excitatory Neurotransmitter

Answer 439

neurotransmitter that causes the receiving cell to fire

Question 440

Inhibitory Neurotransmitter:

Answer 440

neurotransmitter that causes the receiving cell to stop firing

Question 441

Biological drug therapies for OCD

Answer 441

based on the notion that OCD is caused by chemical imbalances, so these need to be altered through drugs.
Two Antidepressants - SSRI’s and Tricyclics
One Anti - Anxiety drug i.e. Benzodiazepines

Question 442

SSRI’s

Answer 442

The standard treatment used for OCD is SSRI’s (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) eg fluoxetine.
These block the re-uptake of serotonin in the brain.
This enables serotonin to remain active at the synapse where it continues to stimulate the post-synaptic neuron, reducing the symptoms of anxiety.

Question 443

Benzodiazepines

Answer 443

Slow down activity of the CNS- creating feelings of calm.
They enhance the activity of GABA which is an inhibitory neurotransmitter.
BZ’s bind with GABA receptors on the post synaptic neuron,
increasing the flow of chloride ions.
This means that the post synaptic neuron is less responsive to NT’s that are excitatory (it blocks excitatory neurotransmitters so it has an inhibitory effect)

Question 444

Tricyclics

Answer 444

Tricyclics (an older type of anti-depressant) block the reuptake of both serotonin and noradrenaline back into the presynaptic neuron’s vesicles.
more side effects than SSRI’s

Question 445

There is evidence for the effectiveness of drugs in the treatment of OCD.

Answer 445

Soomro (2009) reviewed 17 studies of the use of SSRI’s with OCD and found them to be more effective than placebos in reducing the symptoms of OCD up to 3 months after treatment i.e. in the short term.
Zohar - 60% of patients reported an improvement in symptoms
Other research has found that benzodiazepines are more effective than placebos in treating OCD

Question 446

not all evidence suggests that drugs are effective for treating OCD

Answer 446

Zohar - only 60% of patients improve, 40% do not! There are obviously individual differences in how effective drugs are for OCD- they are not effective for everyone.

Question 447

drugs may not be appropriate for treating OCD: do not treat the underlying cause

Answer 447

Drugs are not a permanent cure. Once the person stops taking the drug, their symptoms may reappear. (Relapse rates are thought to be as high as 90%. )
Therefore drugs do not provide a permanent (or even long term) ‘cure’ for the disorder- it may not be appropriate to administer drugs to a patient without offering other therapies in conjunction

Question 448

drugs may be appropriate for treating OCD: fast, less commitment

Answer 448

Drugs might be more appropriate as they are fast acting and require much less commitment and motivation than other forms of therapy
Such forms of therapy require people to develop insight which can be very difficult. In such cases, drugs can be more appropriate (they are appropriate for people who are unable or unwilling to develop insight)

Question 449

drugs may not be appropriate for treating OCD: negative side effects

Answer 449

SSRI’s = nausea, headaches, insomnia
Benzodiazepines = aggression, memory impairment and addictive (4 wk max)
Tricyclics-weight gain, drowsiness, blurred vision
Might dissuade people from starting treatment in the first place/ create high drop out rates!