Psychology
AS / A2 Psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of behaviour and experience. Psychology appeals to students with different backgrounds and interests and can help students to gain a deeper understanding of themselves and others.
By the end of the AS course you should be able to answer all of these questions:
- Why do people find it hard to remember information when they have witnessed a crime?
- Can chimpanzees be taught to use language?
- Do children copy the violence they observe around them?
- Do autistic adults think differently?
- What causes phobias?
- Can we tell if someone is dreaming by looking at their eye lids?
- Why did Nazi death camp guards follow orders?
- Can psychiatrists tell the difference between the sane and the insane?
- Can some people have more than one personality?
- Do taxi drivers have better memory centres in their brains?
AS
In your AS (1st year) course you will look at 15 core studies from the history of psychology between 1909 and 2006 and carry out practical investigations of human behaviour through experiments, correlations, questionnaires and observations. You will have one examination in the January/February period of your AS year and one exam in the summer.
A2
In your A2 (2nd year) you will study Health and Clinical Psychology, Forensic Psychology and Approaches and Research Methods in Psychology.
Subject Combinations
Psychology combines well with Sociology, Biology and Health and Social Care, although any combination of subjects is possible.
Entry Requirements
If you are the kind of person who questions the strange things people do, can understand scientific evidence and can argue a case based on that evidence, then psychology is for you.
