A Level: Psychology

Course summary

You will be introduced to six core areas of psychology during Year 1 and then cover these in greater depth in Year 2. The areas of study are: Social Psychology: you will research the influence of others on your everyday behaviour. Topics include why you conform to others and those in positions of authority and how your personality influences obedience. Cognitive Psychology: involves investigating how the human memory works. This includes learning about why we forget and factors that affect the accuracy of eyewitness testimonies. Developmental Psychology: looks into changes that take place over our life time, especially childhood. You will learn about how early attachments impact on your later relationships. Approaches in Psychology: you will debate whether our behaviour is made up from our social environment or whether it is the result of our biological makeup or cognitive processing. Psychopathology: this topic identifies the different ways of diagnosing and treating OCD, depression and phobias. Research Methods: you will review the variety of scientific methods and techniques used in psychological research, such as experimental designs and sampling techniques. You will handle and analyse data. How will success help me to continue with my education or secure a good career? This course lays an appropriate foundation for further studies in psychology or related subjects in higher education, such as criminology and consumer psychology (advertising). In addition, psychology is a respected subject and, as it impacts our everyday lives, is unique in its nature.