§-Psychology syllabus
WA · SCSA← Psychology
Psychology syllabus, dot point by dot point
Every dot point in the WA Psychology syllabus, with a focused answer for each. Click any dot point for a worked explainer, past exam questions and links to related points.
Unit 3
Module overview →How are attitudes structured and changed, and how does cognitive dissonance drive behaviour?
Describe the tri-component model of attitudes, attitude-behaviour consistency, and Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance
How do we explain the causes of our own and others' behaviour, and what biases distort these judgements?
Explain attribution theory, including internal and external attributions, and the fundamental attribution error, actor-observer bias and self-serving bias
How do the nervous system, neurotransmitters and the stress response shape human behaviour?
Explain the structure and function of the nervous system, the role of neurotransmitters, and the biological stress response
How does the brain change in response to experience, learning and injury through neuroplasticity?
Explain neuroplasticity, including developmental and adaptive plasticity, and how experience and injury reshape neural connections
How does classical conditioning explain learning through the association of stimuli?
Explain classical conditioning, including the key processes and stimuli, and apply it to examples such as Pavlov's dogs and Little Albert
Why does inconsistency between attitudes and behaviour create discomfort, and how do we reduce it?
Explain Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance, including the conditions that produce dissonance and the strategies used to reduce it
Why do we forget, and how reliable is memory, especially eyewitness testimony?
Explain theories of forgetting and the reconstructive nature of memory, including the reliability of eyewitness testimony with reference to Loftus
How do classical conditioning, operant conditioning and observational learning explain behaviour and memory?
Compare theories of learning including classical conditioning, operant conditioning and observational learning, and outline models of memory
How do models of memory explain the way information is encoded, stored and retrieved?
Describe and compare the Atkinson-Shiffrin multi-store model and the working memory model, including encoding, storage and retrieval
How does observational learning explain behaviour acquired by watching and imitating models?
Explain observational learning and social learning theory, including the four mediational processes, with reference to Bandura's Bobo doll study
How does operant conditioning explain voluntary behaviour through its consequences?
Explain operant conditioning, including reinforcement, punishment, shaping and schedules of reinforcement, with reference to Skinner
How do psychologists design valid, reliable and ethical investigations of behaviour?
Apply research methods including experimental design, variables, sampling, validity, reliability and the interpretation of descriptive and inferential statistics.
How are the major structures of the brain organised, and what does hemispheric specialisation reveal about the localisation of function?
Describe the major structures of the brain and the lobes of the cerebral cortex, and explain hemispheric specialisation and localisation of function
Unit 4
Module overview →How do early attachments form between infants and caregivers, and why do they matter for development?
Explain attachment theory and attachment styles, with reference to the work of Bowlby, Ainsworth and Harlow
Why do people change their behaviour to match a group, and what factors increase conformity?
Explain conformity, including normative and informational social influence, and the factors affecting it, with reference to Asch's line study
How does culture shape behaviour, and how do individualist and collectivist cultures differ?
Explain cross-cultural psychology, including individualism and collectivism, and the difference between etic and emic approaches to research
How do culture and group membership shape identity, prejudice and intergroup relations?
Explain the influence of culture on behaviour, social identity, prejudice, discrimination and strategies to reduce intergroup conflict.
How do cognitive, emotional and moral capacities develop across the lifespan?
Explain theories of development including Piaget's cognitive stages, attachment, and Erikson's psychosocial stages, with reference to nature and nurture.
How does personality develop across the lifespan, and how do nature and nurture interact in development?
Describe Erikson's psychosocial stages of development and explain the nature-nurture interaction, including evidence from twin studies
How does being part of a group change individual behaviour through processes like social loafing, deindividuation and group polarisation?
Explain group processes including social loafing, deindividuation, group polarisation and groupthink, and their effects on individual behaviour
Why do ordinary people obey authority figures even when ordered to harm others?
Explain obedience to authority and the factors that influence it, with reference to Milgram's experiments and their ethical evaluation
How does children's thinking develop through Piaget's stages of cognitive development?
Describe Piaget's stages of cognitive development and key concepts such as schemas, assimilation, accommodation, object permanence and conservation
What causes prejudice and discrimination between groups, and how can intergroup conflict be reduced?
Explain prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination, social identity theory, and strategies to reduce intergroup conflict, with reference to Tajfel, Sherif and Allport
What makes people help others, and why do bystanders often fail to help in an emergency?
Explain prosocial behaviour and the bystander effect, including the factors that increase or decrease helping, with reference to Latane and Darley
What ethical principles and research practices must guide psychological investigations?
Apply ethical principles and research methods to psychological investigations, including informed consent, confidentiality, debriefing and the role of ethics committees.
How do groups and authority influence conformity, obedience and helping behaviour?
Explain social influence including conformity, obedience, group processes, prosocial and antisocial behaviour, using key studies.