Psychology AS revision - Stress and Workplace theories

Psychology AS revision Stress Who conducted the 1997 study to assess the relationship between control, stress and illness in the workplace? Marmot et al (1997) the researches surveyed over 7,000 london-based civil servants and obtained information about their employment grades, level of responsibility, perceived level of control and support received etc. when the civil servants were followed up 5 years later and their medical histories checked, the researchers discovered that those individuals on a lower pay grade, who felt like they had less control over their work were more likely to suffer from cardiovascular disorders. In fact, individuals on the lowest pay grade were four times more likely to suffer from fatal heart attacks than those on the highest. The researchers concluded that believing you have little control over your work induces stress and causes illness. This study is based on correlational research, therefore we cannot confidently infer that a perceived lack of control at work is the cause of illness; instead we only know for sure that they are somehow linked. Indeed, smoking was found to be common along those who got sick, so perhaps there is a link between a perceived lack of control and smoking (and then an obvious and proven link between smoking and heart disease) that caused the above correlation. Furthermore, since this survey was conducted on office

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Psychology
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Describe and evaluate the Cognitive Approach

Describe and evaluate the Cognitive Approach ________________ The cognitive approach in psychology focuses on the internal mental processes of an individual. The word cognition refers to the process by which the sensory input is transformed, reduced, elaborated, stored, recovered and used; this definition was from Ulric Neisser. This approach was very dominated in the 1950’s onwards. This was because of the modern research on human performance and attention during the 2nd world war, developments in computer science, artificial intelligence and the growing interest in linguistics. This approach is different from other approached in different ways. On way is that the approach adopts the use of scientific, experimental methods to measure mental processes rejecting the psychodynamic use of introspection. Another difference is that the approach advocates the importance of mental processes such as beliefs, desires and motivation in determining behaviour unlike the behaviourist approach. Cognitive psychologists focus mainly on the internal mental processes like memory. Interest is taken in how individuals can learn to solve problem and the mental processes that exist between stimulus and response. A certain model of this is the information processing approach. The information processing approach can be compared to a computer in terms of the mind the software and the brain

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Psychology
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Outline and evaluate attempts to define abnormality

Outline and evaluate attempts to define abnormality Before psychologists can address an issue they have to name it, characterize it or be clear on what exactly it is that they’re dealing with. When it comes to ‘abnormalities’, psychologists have been quite indecisive throughout history, as it is subjective to judgement, however it seems that a combination of characteristics and taking into consideration differences of situations, brings it a step closer to forming a true definition of the term ‘abnormality’. One of the attempts to define and thereby recognize and treat abnormality is looking for ‘deviation from social norms’, meaning someone who doesn’t follow the set standard behaviour that is socially and morally acceptable by society. Even though this definition allows quick diagnosis, it varies according to time in history, context or circumstance and degree of deviation. Therefore identification of abnormal behaviour using this classification is not always accurate and this may lead to wrong treatment. A more extreme but somewhat more realistic and practical explanation is that ‘failing to function adequately’, as in not being adaptive or being unable to cope with the state of affairs. However, this approach to defining abnormality has also been criticised as it depends on subjective assessments, is effected by cultural relativism and it

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Psychology
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What is procrastination? Why do we procrastinate? How do we procrastinate? How can we stop procrastinating?

What is procrastination? Why do we procrastinate? How do we procrastinate? How can we stop procrastinating? Why is it more serious than we seem to think? Procrastination refers to the act of placing lower priority things above high priority things, to basically avoid doing the high priority action. It is the very common act of simply putting off important tasks! "I'll do it later..." - that, is procrastination at its best! Guess what I am doing now? Procrastinating! How? Well, I really should be doing my assignment, and preparing for my exams, but it seems like such a big and daunting task that I have somehow found my way onto the internet and managed to convince myself that informing others about this devil called procrastination is much more important. Who am I kidding? It is quite shocking actually, just how many times I have procrastinated just today. Instead of getting out of bed this morning, I reached under my pillow and told myself I would just read one chapter, then get out of bed.. "there's no rush" I said. What happened?... Yes, I finished the whole book. By the time I dragged myself out of bed it was 11.30am. By that time, it's just a little too late for breakfast, yet a little too early for lunch. So what did I do? I decided that it would be silly to start my work before lunch, now it was so close, so I may as well wait until about 12 to have lunch, then start

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Psychology
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Are gender differences fact or fiction? Discuss with respect to at least two distinct measures or traits.

‘Are gender differences fact or fiction?’ Discuss with respect to at least two distinct measures or traits. There are several ways in which to answer this question, but I will begin the essay by defining the question. Gender differences that are fact are defined as being proven by science; these could be research and experiments that have been performed, to get results about sexes. Differences that are fiction are basically ideas that are made up in our minds, you could say that they are constructed and these could be for several reasons, e.g. media and social groups. The majority of people believe gender differences to be fiction as they may be influenced by social background. There are several gender differences within masculinity and femininity within family and friends. We should note that these differences are increasing with age as children’s intellectual biases are being exaggerated and intensified by gendered cultures within a social community. Parents treat their children the way they would expect a boy or girl to be, so the children adopt and learn this concept. Traditional education creates an image on family’s gender roles. Children would see their parents in ‘separated worlds’, for example a mother could be seen as doing the laundry or cooking and taking care of the child, and their farther as working or fixing things. Changing traditional gender

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Psychology
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Discuss at least one biological explanation of depression

Charlotte Phillips Discuss at least one biological explanation of depression. Refer to empirical evidence in your answer. (12 marks) One biological explanation of depression is the biochemical explanation, which states that low levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin in the brain can cause a person to suffer from depression. Serotonin can affect sleep patterns, hunger, energy levels and activity. Teuting et al found out that lower levels of compound that is produced by the breakdown of serotonin and adrenalin was found in the urine of depressed people compared to non-depressed people. This empirical evidence suggests that low levels of serotonin and adrenalin are present in depressed people which shows support for the biochemical explanation of depression. However, a limitation of the biochemical explanation is that no cause or effect can be established as it cannot be proven if low levels of serotonin cause depression or if depression causes low levels of serotonin this suggests that low levels of serotonin may be an effect of depression rather than a cause. A strength of the biochemical explanation is that the use of SSRIs as a successful treatment supports the explanation because SSRI’s increase the levels of serotonin which limits depression meaning that low levels of serotonin must be the cause in order for the SSRI’s to be successful. A farther strength is that

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Psychology
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Compare and Contrast the five main perspectives in psychology

In this assignment I will be describing the five major theoretical approaches to psychology. These are; Behaviorism, Biological, Cognitive, Humanist and Psychoanalytical. I will then attempt to compare and contrast them, and its practical application in modern psychology. The biological approach focuses on the biological underpinnings of behavior and the effects of evolution and genetics. The premise is that behavior and mental processes can be explained by understanding human physiology and anatomy. Biological psychologists focus mostly on the brain and the nervous system. It implies the use of biology as a means of describing and explaining psychological functioning. They believe our behaviour is linked to the processes in our physiological make-up. The functions of the brain, nervous and hormonal systems are key to their research. The origins of this approach can be traced back to the Greek physician Galen, who believed that the levels of such fluids as blood and bile affected our temperament and personality. As our understanding of the brain and associated systems continues to evolve so will the ideas and theories of this paradigm. One aspect of this approach is the notion of Reductionism (also used by Behaviourists). This is where area of research is broken down into basic forms or units. From the biological perspective it sees nerve activity, muscle movements and

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Psychology Notes - What are the ethical research practices in psychology? and What is learning?

CRITICAL THINKING Critical Thinking Paper Judith King University of Alaska Learning Unit 2: Research Methods Select: What are the ethical research practices in psychology? The basis of ethical research in psychology first and foremost is that the volunteer patient expects that no harm, either physical or psychological, will come to them as a participant of the research. The guidelines are outlined in our text as follows: . The rights and well-being of participants must be weighed against the study’s value to science. 2. Participants must be allowed to make an informed decision about participation. 3. Deception must be justified. 4. Participants may withdraw from the study at any time. 5. 5. Participants must be protected from risks or told explicitly of risks. 6. Investigators must debrief participants, telling the true nature of the study and expectations of results. 7. Data must remain confidential. 8. If for any reason a study results in undesirable consequences for the participant, the researcher is responsible for detecting and removing, or correcting, these consequences. (Ciccarelli & White, 2011) Collect: Informed Consent One of the most important components of ethical research in psychology is informed consent. I consider informed consent to be one of the most important components. On the APA’s website,

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Psychology
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The purpose of this essay will be to describe and compare the following perspectives of psychology: Psychoanalytical, Humanistic, Cognitive and Behavioural

David Wilson The Perspectives of Psychology Assignment 1 The purpose of this essay will be to describe and compare the following perspectives of psychology: Psychoanalytical, Humanistic, Cognitive and Behavioural within our society. This will then allow us to have a greater understanding of the theories of human behaviour, by analysing their similarities and opposing views of their approaches, using the correct terminology. And then moving on to compare three of the theoretical theories. While a few different schools of thought dominated the early years of psychology, the number of topics studied by psychologists has grown dramatically since the 1960’s.Today few psychologists identify to a particular school of thought. While you may find some pure behaviourists or psychoanalysts, the majority of psychologists instead think of their work according to their speciality area and perspective. Every area in psychology can be looked at in a number of different ways as follows. (Elliott A, 2002, psychoanalytical theory) The Psychoanalytical Theory was founded by Austrian Neurologist Sigmund Freud (1916-1917) He believed that people could be cured by making conscious their unconscious thoughts and motives thus gaining insight. This view of psychology and human behaviour emphasizes the role of the

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  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Psychology
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Discuss two or more biological therapies for schizophrenia

Discuss two or more biological therapies for schizophrenia (9 + 16) Biological therapies for schizophrenia come in two forms: antipsychotic medication, and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). Considering the eclectic nature of schizophrenia as a disorder, the debate over appropriate and effective treatment is heated, and many psychologists are still unclear over which is the ideal method for tackling the disorder. Antipsychotic medications are commonly divided into two categories: conventional and atypical. Conventional antipsychotics bind to dopamine receptors but do not stimulate them, blocking the way for displaced dopamine to cause a chemical imbalance in a schizophrenic's biology. By reducing the effects of dopamine, positive symptoms such as hallucinations can be reduced, in line with the view of the dopamine hypothesis. Whilst atypical antipsychotics also act on the dopamine system, it is debated whether the drugs' ability to reduce negative symptoms such as avolition stems from a varying way of dealing with the dopamine system, or, alternatively, the additional effect of blocking serotonin. Kapur and Remington suggested in 2001 that whilst conventional antipsychotics block dopamine receptors long-term, atypical medication does so temporarily, before dissociating to allow normal transmission of the chemical. The differing ways in which the drugs work is central to the

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