MATSEC IM Psychology cheat sheet

Psychology (Intermediate Level, MATSEC syllabus content)

• Research methods: an independent variable is manipulated by the experimenter; the dependent variable is measured. Extraneous variables must be controlled to protect validity.

• Correlational studies measure the strength and direction of a relationship between two variables but cannot establish causation; a correlation coefficient ranges from -1 to +1.

• Reliability means consistency of measurement across occasions or raters; validity means the method measures what it claims to measure. A test can be reliable without being valid, but not valid without being reliable.

• Sampling: random sampling reduces bias in selection; opportunity sampling uses whoever is available and tends to be less representative; volunteer sampling may attract a biased self-selected group.

• Ethical guidelines in human research include informed consent, right to withdraw, confidentiality, protection from harm, and debriefing at the end of the study.

• Classical conditioning (Pavlov): a neutral stimulus paired repeatedly with an unconditioned stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus eliciting a conditioned response; extinction occurs when the pairing stops.

• Operant conditioning (Skinner): behaviour is shaped by consequences; positive reinforcement adds a pleasant stimulus, negative reinforcement removes an unpleasant one, and punishment decreases behaviour.

• Social learning theory (Bandura): learning occurs through observation and imitation of models; the four mediational processes are attention, retention, motor reproduction, and motivation.

• Memory (Atkinson-Shiffrin): information passes through sensory memory, short-term memory (limited capacity, about 7 items, short duration), and long-term memory (unlimited capacity, long duration).