AS Psychology
OCR Unit G542: Core Studies
Self Assessment and Revision checklist
The Core Studies
For each study you need to know the background, aim, participants,
procedure, results, conclusions, evaluation points and
changes/improvements to the study with implications of these changes.
Section A and B of the exam.
Confident
Almost
Not at all
Confident
Almost
Not at all
Social (could also use for behaviourist)
Milgram (1963) Obedience
Social (could also use for behaviourist)
Piliavin et al (1969) The Subway Samaritan
Social (could also use for behaviourist)
Reicher and Haslam (2006) BBC Prison Study
Cognitive
Loftus and Palmer (1974) Eyewitness Testimony
Cognitive
Baron-Cohen et al (1997) Adults with Autism and Theory of Mind
Cognitive (could also use for behaviourist)
Savage-Rumbaugh et al (1986) Ape Language
Developmental
Samuel and Bryant (1984) Conservation
Developmental (also use for behaviourist)
Bandura, Ross and Ross (1961) Imitating Aggression
Developmental (also use for psychodynamic)
Freud (1909) Little Hans
Individual Differences
Rosenhan (1973) On Being Sane in Insane Places
Individual Differences (also use for psychodynamic)
Thigpen and Cleckley (1954) The Three Faces of Eve
Individual Differences (could also use for behaviourist)
Griffiths (1994) Cognitive Bias in Gambling
Physiological
Maguire et al (2000) Taxi Drivers’ Brains
Physiological
Dement and Kleitman (1957) REM Sleep and Dreaming
Physiological
Sperry (1968) Split Brains
You also need to know the following for each of the approaches
and perspectives:
What the approach is, Assumptions; how it can explain a behaviour;
similarities and differences between the studies; and strengths and
weaknesses of the approach/perspective. Section C of the exam.
Social
Cognitive
Developmental
Individual Differences
Physiological
Behaviourist
Psychodynamic
You also need to know the following for each of these issues for
the Sect B of the exam and be able to discuss them in relation to
the core studies:
Confident
Almost
Not at all
Confident
Almost
Not at all
Ethics
Procedure
Sample
Types of data/how the data was collected/evaluate
Ecological Validity
Reliability
Changes/implications
You also need to know the following for each of the research
methods and use the core studies to support:
similarities and differences between the studies; and strengths and
weaknesses of the approach/perspective. Section C of the exam.
Experiments
Self-Report
Observations
Correlations
Case Studies
Longitudinal
Snapshot