1. Summer Transition Work
AQA A Level Psychology
Summer Transition Work
Name: ____________________________

2. What is Psychology?
To give you an introduction to what psychology as a subject is, please visit this website: Read the information on the page and watch the video (it’s only two and a half minutes long!), then answer the questions below.
How does the video define psychology? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
What is introspection? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________
Why was it an unreliable method of investigation? ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________
Why is Wilhelm Wundt an important figure in the history of psychology? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________

3. Are you both within the normal range according to Miller?
Memory
George Miller had a theory that our short-term memory can hold 7 +/- 2 pieces of information. This could be names, numbers or even chunks of information such as dates.
Take it in turns to try the activity below with a relative or friend to see how much information you can both hold in your short-term memory.
Are you both within the normal range according to Miller?
Experimenter one: Use the numbers that are listed below for the experiment. Do not show them to the participant.
Choose who will be the participant and who will be the experimenter.
INSTRUCTIONS:
1) Ask if the participant is ready. Read out the lines of numbers one line at a time in a flat, steady voice. Do not speed up or slow down and do not repeat the line. Once you have read the line to them, say ‘GO’ and they must repeat it back to you instantly.
2) Do this with each of the 14 lines.
3) If they get every number correct and in the right order, put a tick next to that line. If they get it incorrect, put a cross.
4) Read the lists on the left first and then the ones on the right.

4. Memory
Which was the longest line that they got correct? Count how many digits are in that line.
According to Miller’s theory, the majority of people will remember a maximum of 5 to 9 digits… Did your participant fit into this trend?
If you want them to test you, let them use the digits below. (DON’T LOOK OTHERWISE IT WON’T WORK PROPERLY! )
Experimenter two: Carry out the experiment in exactly the same way as your partner just did, using the digits below.
What do you think this little test shows about our short-term memory?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Is our short-term memory able to hold a lot of information?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Can you think of any strengths or weaknesses of the procedure for the test?

5. Research Methods Lab Experiment Field Experiment Natural Experiment
The little test you have just carried out is an example of a lab experiment. Visit the link below to find out more about experiments, then fill in the table below.
Lab Experiment
What is it?
Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Field Experiment
Natural Experiment
Quasi Experiment

6. What will I be studying? Paper 1: Introductory Topics in Psychology:
The exam board for your Psychology course is AQA. You can find some more information about this by visiting the AQA website (
You will sit three external exams at the end of Year 13. Each exam is two hours long, worth 96 marks and counts as 33.3% of your overall grade.
Paper 1: Introductory Topics in Psychology:
This paper is designed to introduce you to some of the key and most influential topics in Psychology. This paper will be studied in year 12. The four topics are:
Social Influence
Memory
Attachment
Psychopathology.
Paper 2: Psychology in Context:
This paper is designed to enable you to apply concepts we have learned so far to real life; it will also be studied in year 12. The topics are:
Approaches
Biopsychology
Research Methods.
Paper 3 – Issues and Options in Psychology:
This paper is the most advanced of all and is only taught in year 13. This paper requires advanced extended writing skills to answer on a range of optional topics. Optional topics can vary, but this year they will be:
Issues and Debates
Relationships
Schizophrenia
Forensic Psychology.
Feel free to carry out some research over the summer into the above topics.
If you have any questions, please contact Mrs Jorgensen:
See you in September!