What do I need to know or be able to do before taking this course? You do not need to have previously studied Psychology, although an interest in understanding human behaviour is vital. Psychology Alevel involves aspects of mathematics and biology, as well as some complex theoretical perspectives and issues. What will I learn on this course? • To be aware of and understanding of psychological theories, research, case studies and methods used to collect data • To explore topics which reflect current contemporary issues such as memory, child development, relationships, aggression and mental illness • To explore the different areas of psychology, and in particular cognitive, social and physiological psychology • To participate in and conduct psychological investigations such as experiments, observations and interviews • To analyse and interpret your own or second-hand data and evaluate the findings • To be aware of the ethical issues in psychology, particularly in the field of research What kind of student is this course suitable for? This course will appeal to students who • enjoy exploring issues dealing with how and why people behave in certain ways • want to find out more about the link between people’s behaviour and their environment • enjoy planning and carrying out investigations to look for any patterns and explanation in the behaviour of children and adults What topics does the Advanced Level Course offer? 1. Social influence – students study types and explanations of conformity including internalisation, identification and compliance; explanations for obedience, and resistance to social influence 2. Memory – students are introduced to the multi-store model of memory, short and long term memory, working memory model and explanations for forgetting and accuracy of eye-witness testimony 3. Attachment – the includes caregiver-infant interactions in humans, multiple attachments, animal studies of attachment, explanations of attachment, learning theory and the concepts of a critical period and internal working model, Bowlby’s theory of maternal deprivation and the influence of early attachment on adult relationships 4. Psychopathology – includes abnormality, deviation from social norms, statistical deviations from ideal mental health; behavioural, emotional and cognitive characteristics of phobias; cognitive approach to explaining and treating depression; and biological approaches to treating OCD, and drug therapy 5. Research Methods – includes the study of methods and techniques used to conduct psychological research and apply this to student-led research. 6. Approaches in Psychology – studying well-known theories which make up the foundation of psychology and understanding human behaviour. Approaches include the study on Freud’s Psychodynamic approach, Classical and Operant conditioning and the biological approach to explaining human behaviour 7. Biopsychology – introduces students to research which has established a connection between the brain, body and behaviour 8. Issues and Debates – looks at the problems faced when interpreting and developing psychological theory including the tendency for research to have gender and cultural biases. 9. Schizophrenia – understanding the characteristics as well as biological and environmental causes of schizophrenia. Students will also explore the use of drug and cognitive therapies to treating schizophrenia and assessing their usefulness and ethics 10. Relationships– includes theories on why and how human relationships are formed and how the infant-caregiver relationship later moulds all future relationships. Students will further study the breakdown of relationships and psychological impacts related to this 11. Forensic psychology– understanding the psychological, biological and social basis of crime and deviance. Students will also explore well known methods used to solve crime in the US and UK followed by the assessment of how crime is dealt with in the US and UK and the psychological impacts of these methods. Students will apply knowledge to well known cases in forensic psychology. How can I develop my full range of skills by doing this course? As well as covering advanced level study of Psychology this course will enable you to develop some Key Skills, which will be essential to you whatever you go on to do afterwards. The Key Skills you can develop during this course are: Communication Taking part in discussions on issues such as the value of eye-witness testimony; preparing written documents for your practical work; using reference materials from books, CD-ROM and the Internet. Application of number Planning to collect results from experiments and presenting them in a suitable format; carrying out calculations on the data collected in experiments; interpreting the results from experiments and seeing how this relates to your plan. Information technology Using word processing software to present written reports and prepare presentations; planning and designing a spreadsheet to support your experiments, being able to select a suitable graphical format to show trends and patterns in your data. Problem solving Planning a psychological investigation to look at short and long term memory; trying out different questionnaires to find out information on attitudes in the work place. Working with others Planning an investigation into the effects of day care which involves all members of the group; the production of a poster to explain the findings from a survey on local attitudes to re-cycling. Improving own learning and performance Working out a timetable with targets to improve your data handling skills; monitoring the marks awarded for written reports. What could I go on to do at the end of my course? • Follow a degree course in psychology, social science, psychiatry, nursing, advertising or management, criminology, business and human resources. These are a small selection of courses with direct links. UCAS handbooks would give you further guidance. • Enter a Higher National course in related programmes. • Seek employment in the area of human resources, care sector, criminal justice system, education, management or advertising.