Psychology Course Content

Students will gain an understanding of other people, moral behaviour and thoughts, as well as cultural differences and similarities.  You will also learn to critically understand the explanations for human behaviour, appreciate the variety and complexity of the human mind and human relationships.

In addition, you will learn to describe and evaluate a range of research methods and their relevance within psychology, together with developing skills around written and verbal communication, interpretation, analysis and evaluation.

Structure and content
Students will study three components over two years:

Component 1 - Introductory Topics in Psychology

• Social influence - Why do we conform, why do we obey, how do we resist social pressures.
• Memory - How does your memory work, eyewitness testimony and how to improve your memory.
• Attachment - Why do we form attachments, how and when do we form attachments.
• Psychopathology - What is abnormality, how phobias, depression and OCD are explained.

Component 2

• Psychology in Context
• Approaches in psychology, origins of psychology.
• Biopsychology - The nervous system and the functions of neurotransmitters and hormones. 
• Research Methods - What methods does psychology use to study behaviour, the advantages and disadvantages.

Component 3

• Issues and Options in Psychology
• Issues and debates in psychology – including gender bias, culture bias, nature versus nurture, free will versus determinism.
• Relationships - How do relationships form, maintain and break down.
• Schizophrenia - What causes schizophrenia, how do we treat it.
• Aggression - A look into why people are aggressive, prison behaviour and whether criminals are born or made.