detailed suggested answers to the 2013 vcaa vce...

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2013 VCE

Psychology VCAA Sample Examination Suggested Answers

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Detailed answers to the 2013 VCAA VCE Sample Psychology Examination Section A - Multiple Choice Questions


Question 1 Answer: C Divided attention is our ability to focus our awareness on more than one activity at a time, and this occurs when a process is so well learned that it becomes automatic. For Hillary knitting is an automatic process, allowing her to perform another activity (watching television) whilst for her granddaughter knitting is still a controlled process which does not allow her to divide her attention. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Concepts of normal waking consciousness and altered states of consciousness including daydreaming and alcohol-induced in terms of levels of awareness, content limitations, controlled and automatic processes http://www.alleydog.com/cognotes/attention.html#.UQHvAB119yI Question 2 Answer: C Petra’s stream of consciousness, in which thoughts develop from previous thoughts is typical of normal waking consciousness and is thus neither a distortion of cognition or an altered state of consciousness. The fact that Petra’s thoughts flowed from one to another is not typical of selective attention in which awareness is focused on only one thing. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Concepts of normal waking consciousness and altered states of consciousness http://www.alleydog.com/cognotes/attention.html#.UQHvAB119yI Question 3 Answer: D Both of the individuals sleep approximately 8-9 hours which precludes the options including an infant as they typically sleep longer and also have longer periods of REM. The number of wakings in graph 2 indicate that this is an elderly person, as does the increased amount of time in light sleep compared to graph 1. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Sleep as an altered state of consciousness: purpose of sleep, characteristics and patterns of the stages of sleep http://www.sleepdex.org/patterns.htm



Question 4 Answer: C The restorative theory of sleep states that sleep is a time of growth and renewal, and that REM sleep is particularly important in restoration and growth of brain processes. As adolescence is a time of rapid increase in neural connections, more time needs to be spent in REM sleep during this time. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Sleep as an altered state of consciousness: purpose of sleep http://psychology4a.com/sleep7.htm Question 5 Answer: B Wernicke’s area, located in the left temporal lobe, is responsible for giving meaning to speech. If this area is damaged meaning may thus be lacking from verbal descriptions. Because Mandy appears to have no trouble with pronunciation, Broca’s area has not been affected. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 The interaction between cognitive processes of the brain and its structure including: roles of the four lobes of the cerebral cortex http://psychology.about.com/od/windex/g/def_wernickesap.htm Question 6 Answer: D The restorative theory of sleep suggests that repair, restoration and growth occurs during sleep, and that nREM stages (especially the deeper stages 3 and 4) are important for bodily processes (as opposed to the brain) to be repaired and renewed. The physical exhaustion of the football would thus suggest increase in deeper sleep. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Sleep as an altered state of consciousness: purpose of sleep, characteristics and patterns of the stages of sleep http://psychology4a.com/sleep7.htm



Question 7 Answer: B A microsleep is an uncontrollable lapse into a brief burst of nREM sleep resulting from significant sleep deprivation. Microsleeps are fleeting and often unnoticed by the person undergoing them. Microsleeps do not show the lack of muscle tension undergone in REM, nor do they show K complexes (short burst low frequency, high amplitude) which are indicative of stage 2 sleep. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 The effects of total and partial sleep deprivation: sleep recovery patterns including amount of sleep required, REM rebound and microsleeps http://insomnia.ygoy.com/2010/08/12/what-is-micro-sleep/ http://www.psychlotron.org.uk/resources/sleep/aqa_a2_sleep_deprivationstudies.pdf Question 8 Answer: D Because prolonged total sleep deprivation can have both physiological and psychological effects, it is ethically unsound to submit participants to this in a research setting. Studies in this area often involve gaining data from participants who have submitted themselves to sleep deprivation – because of the lack of random sampling it is thus difficult to generalize these findings. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Research methods and ethical principles associated with the study of the brain and states of consciousness, sampling procedures in selection and allocation of participants http://www.psychlotron.org.uk/resources/sleep/aqa_a2_sleep_deprivationstudies.pdf Question 9 Answer: A Qualitative data is descriptive by nature, such as a description of how tired Jason felt during the day. Quantitative data is numerical in nature such as the readings from the device that recorded the amount of time Jason spent asleep Study Design Reference: Unit 3 and 4 research methodologies and ethical principles Techniques of qualitative and quantitative data collection http://explorable.com/quantitative-and-qualitative-research.html



Question 10 Answer: D The survival theory of sleep suggests that sleeping during periods of danger (e.g. darkness) may have an adaptive value in that it places organisms away from danger whilst simultaneously conserving energy. A criticism of this is that although the organism is inactive during this time, the loss of awareness that comes with sleep actually makes the organism more vulnerable to attack, and thus will not enhance survival. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Concepts of normal waking consciousness and altered states of consciousness including daydreaming and alcohol-induced in terms of levels of awareness, content limitations, controlled and automatic processes http://healthysleep.med.harvard.edu/healthy/matters/benefits-of-sleep/why-do-we-sleep Question 11 Answer: B The somatic nervous system is a division of the peripheral nervous system responsible for conveying motor messages to the musculature system for voluntary movements such as writing. The sympathetic nervous system is a part of the autonomic nervous system, and is thus not involved in voluntary movement. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 The interaction between cognitive processes of the brain and its structure including: roles of the central nervous system, peripheral nervous system (somatic and autonomic) http://www.alleydog.com/cognotes/attention.html#.UQHvAB119yI Question 12 Answer: A The autonomic nervous system is responsible for control of organs and glands and is primarily self regulating. Voluntary control of these organs and glands can be learned to a certain degree (e.g. biofeedback), but on the whole regulation is not dependent on voluntary control. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 The interaction between cognitive processes of the brain and its structure including: roles of the central nervous system, peripheral nervous system (somatic and autonomic) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOYOdJG0E0s



Question 13 Answer: D Gemma’s tumour is located in the left frontal lobe (as this is an underneath view of a brain). The frontal lobe is involved in paying attention, planning, emotional control and personality, and so the tumour may affect these functions. The tumour is not in the left temporal lobe, so she should still understand spoken language and she should have no trouble processing sensory stimuli from the left side of her body as this is controlled by the right hemisphere. Recognising faces etc. should not be affected as these are not controlled by the frontal lobe. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 The interaction between cognitive processes of the brain and its structure including: roles of the four lobes of the cerebral cortex http://www.neuroskills.com/brain-injury/frontal-lobes.php Question 14 Answer: B Visual information is processed in the occipital lobe. The human eye is structured such that for each eye, the information from the left visual field travels to the right occipital lobe, and information from the right visual field travels to the left occipital lobe. The right eye thus sends information to both left and right occipital lobes Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 The interaction between cognitive processes of the brain and its structure including: roles of the four lobes of the cerebral cortex http://www.macalester.edu/academics/psychology/whathap/ubnrp/aesthetics/theeye.html Question 15 Answer: C Recognition of emotions is considered typically to be carried out by the right hemisphere. Speech is a left hemisphere function, as is processing information (sensations) from the right side of the body. Evaluation of problems could be dependent on the type of problem (e.g. spatial would be a right hemisphere function, a linguistic puzzle would be left hemisphere), but the most correct answer is the recognition of emotions Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 The interaction between cognitive processes of the brain and its structure including: hemispheric specialisation: the cognitive and behavioural functions of the right and left hemispheres of the cerebral cortex http://emotion.caltech.edu/papers/Adolphs2002Recognizing.pdf



Question 16 Answer: B The parietal lobe has many roles including integrating information to make a single perception, and allowing a person to perceive their position in relation to the world around them. Damage to this will disrupt these functions and cause the person to ignore information on the opposite side to the damaged side. Because Sally is ignoring her left side, the damage is the right parietal lobe. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 The interaction between cognitive processes of the brain and its structure including: hemispheric specialisation: the cognitive and behavioural functions of the right and left hemispheres of the cerebral cortex http://www.acnr.co.uk/pdfs/volume4issue4/v4i4cognitive.pdf Question 17 Answer: A K complexes are brain wave patterns characterized by bursts of low frequency and high amplitude waves. These are characteristic of stage 2 sleep only. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Sleep as an altered state of consciousness: purpose of sleep, characteristics and patterns of the stages of sleep http://sleepdisorders.about.com/od/sleepdisorderevaluation/g/Definition-Of-K-Complex.htm Question 18 Answer: D The DSM is a categorical approach to classifying mental illness which does not use a dimensional/continuum approach. Classification of which illness a person is experiencing is based primarily around self report data which is subjective. People may intentionally or unintentionally miss disclosing certain relevant information, which may lead to misdiagnosis. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area of Study 2: Outcome 2 Systems of classification of mental conditions and disorders: underlying principles of classification http://noodleybean.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/the-pros-and-cons-of-self-report-data/



Question 19 Answer: B During times of stress both adrenaline and noradrenaline are released as a first response. Both are thus involved in sympathetic arousal. Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter widely involved in many functions of the body, but is not as significant as adrenaline and noradrenaline as a first response to a stressor Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area of Study 2: Outcome 2 Application of a biopsychosocial framework to understanding the relationship between stress and physical and mental wellbeing: physiological and psychological characteristics of responses to stress including flight-fight response http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC482184/ Question 20 Answer: B Sue is experiencing the positive form of stress known as eustress as the excitement and energy she is showing are indicative of a positive psychological response. Distress would not energise Sue, and would leave her feeling overwhelmed rather than excited. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Application of a biopsychosocial framework to understanding the relationship between stress and physical and mental wellbeing: physiological and psychological characteristics of responses to stress including flight-fight response, eustress and distress http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=15644 Question 21 Answer: C Social support involves receiving help from friends, family, peers or workmates. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Social, cultural and environmental factors that exacerbate and alleviate the stress response http://www.deancare.com/wellness/stress-management/stress-and-social-support/



Question 22 Answer: D Meditation is a technique for reducing physiological and psychological arousal. It works by intentionally stopping the usual flow of thoughts by replacing them with a simple, relaxing and focused thought. Meditation will reduce sympathetic nervous system activity and decrease cortisol in the bloodstream by reducing arousal. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Strategies for coping with stress including biofeedback, meditation/relaxation, physical exercise, social support http://meditations-uk.com/information/benefits_of_meditation.html Question 23 Answer: B The flight-fight response is a response initiated by the sympathetic NS which allows an individual to deal with a threat. Typical features of this response include increased heart rate, increased perspiration and decreased salivation. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Physiological and psychological characteristics of responses to stress including flight-fight response http://www.youngdiggers.com.au/fight-or-flight Question 24 Answer: C The flight fight response is activated by the sympathetic nervous system, which is a component of the autonomic nervous system. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Physiological and psychological characteristics of responses to stress including flight-fight response http://www.sympatheticnervoussystem.net/



Question 25 Answer: C Shanna’s heart beating faster is a physiological response to a stressor, as opposed to a psychological response which would entail some form of thought or behaviour. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Physiological and psychological characteristics of responses to stress including flight-fight response http://stress.lovetoknow.com/Physiological_Responses_to_Stress Question 26 Answer: A Flooding is a form of therapy involving the application of classical conditioning principles. The aim is to extinguish the stress/fear response and allow a relaxation response to occur. Shanna is being exposed to flooding as she is being exposed to her fear stimulus for a long period of time and is directly experiencing a highly feared stimulus (being shut in an enclosure with dogs). Flooding is distinctly different from graduated exposure which would involve a Shanna being exposed to dogs in a gradual fashion with low levels of contact being increased to higher levels. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Applications of classical conditioning: graduated exposure, aversion therapy, flooding http://bestpractice.bmj.com/best-practice/monograph/693/treatment/step-by-step.html Question 27 Answer: B Shanna’s fear at dogs is a conditioned response. The aim of the treatment is to cause this conditioned response to become extinguished. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Classical conditioning as informed by Ivan Pavlov: roles of neutral, unconditioned, conditioned stimuli; unconditioned and conditioned responses http://www.sparknotes.com/psychology/psych101/learning/section1.rhtml



Question 28 Answer: B One of the main criticisms of Lazarus and Folkman’s model is that the nature of the stress response is subjective and therefore it is difficult to test experimentally. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Psychological determinants of the stress response; strengths and limitations of Richard Lazarus and Susan Folkman’s Transactional Model of Stress and Coping http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8FEMHCRowM Question 29 Answer: A Allostatic load refers to the wear and tear on the body caused by repeated demands on the body to adapt to stressors and the change associated with them. During this time of increased allostatic load Britt would actually be more susceptible to colds and other viruses, and both the level of cortisol and adrenaline in her bloodstream would increase. . Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Allostasis (stability through change brought about by the brain’s regulation of the body’s response to stress) as a model that integrates biological, psychological and social factors that explain an individual’s response to stress http://www.macses.ucsf.edu/research/allostatic/allostatic.php Question 30 Answer: D Secondary appraisal is the consideration of options to help cope with a stressor, which Britt’s mother has shown in her investigation of courses to increase her skills. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Psychological determinants of the stress response: strengths and limitations of Richard Lazarus and Susan Folkman’s Transactional Model of Stress and Coping http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/444154_2



Question 31 Answer: A Social factors may both alleviate (reduce) and exacerbate (worsen) the stress response. In this instance being isolated from easy contact with his friends is a social factor which is responsible for creating a stress response. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Social, cultural and environmental factors that exacerbate and alleviate the stress response http://www.deancare.com/wellness/stress-management/stress-and-social-support/ Question 32 Answer: D Because Rebecca is unable to carry out her normal day-to-day functions (going to school or going out with friends), the functional approach best describes the abnormality Rebecca is showing in this case study. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Concepts of normality, and differentiation of mental health from mental illness http://quizlet.com/13554092/psychology-normality-mental-health-and-mental-illness-flash-cards/ Question 33 Answer: C A person’s fear of spiders is a learned behaviour, often learned through classical conditioning. A baby crawling is a behaviour based on mature, a spider spinning a web is a fixed action pattern and pulling a hand away from a hot object is a reflex. As such these other options are all unlearned Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Behaviours not dependent on learning including reflex action, fixed action patterns and behaviours due to physical growth and development (maturation) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crWPuzaEQ3A



Question 34 Answer: C As learning occurs the neurons which represent this learning in the brain undergo structural and functional changes. This results in a strengthening of the synapse (neural connection) so that the likelihood of one neuron causing another neuron to fire increases. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Neural mechanisms of learning including developmental plasticity and adaptive plasticity of the brain http://balleinelab.psych.ucla.edu/pdf/Wickens%2B%2B2003CONB.pdf Question 35 Answer: D Context dependent cues are cues from the external environment which are encoded at the same time a memory is formed, and which can then act as retrieval cues. In this instance the study is a context dependent cue which helps retrieve memory of the German words she learned in the study Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Manipulation and improvement of memory – use of context dependent cues and state dependent cues http://www.distancelearningcentre.com/access/materials/cog_psych/memory_ Question 36 Answer: D Experience expectant learning is a form of learning in which the brain is expecting to be exposed to some form of particular environmental stimulus in order for the learning to occur – it appears that the brain of our species is hard wired to learn these particular behaviours once the appropriate environmental stimulus occurs. Learning a primary or first language is an example of this. Experience dependent learning is learning additional behaviours which are unique to the individual. Although the brain is not hard wired to learn these behaviours, we are still able to due to experience dependent learning. Learning a second language is an example of experience dependent learning – although the brain is not expecting this stimulus, it is still able to respond to the stimulus and form neural pathways as a basis of learning. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Neural mechanisms of learning including developmental plasticity and adaptive plasticity of the brain: changes to the brain in response to learning and experience; timing of experiences http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3038480



Question 37 Answer: B Although there is no precise cut off age for developmental plasticity, it is agreed that developmental plasticity is largely a child/adolescent phenomena and will thus diminish as Meredith ages. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Neural mechanisms of learning including developmental plasticity and adaptive plasticity of the brain: changes to the brain in response to learning and experience; timing of experiences http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/plast.html

Question 38 Answer: C Spot is learning a basic, reflexive response (fear) through the continual pairing of an unconditioned stimulus (the injection) and a neutral stimulus (Dr. Brown). This is thus classical conditioning Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Applications and comparisons, of learning theories: classical conditioning as informed by Ivan Pavlov http://psychology.about.com/od/cindex/g/condstim.htm Question 39 Answer: C Before learning had occurred (i.e. before Spot’s first visit) the sight of Dr. Brown was a neutral stimulus (would elicit no response from Spot). Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Applications and comparisons, of learning theories: classical conditioning as informed by Ivan Pavlov http://psychology.about.com/od/cindex/g/condstim.htm



Question 40 Answer: D Both operant and classical conditioning can produce stimulus generalization and stimulus discrimination. Operant conditioning is usually voluntary responses, but classical conditioning is always reflexive, involuntary responses. Operant conditioning requires reinforcement after the desired response, but classical conditioning requires reinforcement (the UCS) before the response. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Applications and comparisons, of learning theories: classical conditioning as informed by Ivan Pavlov http://psychology.about.com/od/behavioralpsychology/a/classical-vs-operant-conditioning.htm Question 41 Answer: C Trial and error learning is when an individual makes many random attempts until the correct behaviour is performed. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Applications and comparisons of learning theories: trial and error learning http://www.preservearticles.com/201102033839/understanding-the-theory-of-trial-and-error-learning-process-from-psychological-point-of-view.html Question 42 Answer: B Proactive interference is when older information (the old locker code) stops retrieval of newer information (the new locker code). If Emma was trying to remember her old locker code but could only think of her new locker code this would be retroactive interference. Study Design Reference: Unit 3Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Strengths and limitations of theories of forgetting: interference theory http://www.alleydog.com/glossary/definition.php?term=Proactive%20Interference



Question 43 Answer: Answer: B Response cost can involve the removal of a pleasant stimulus (taking away the play with basketballs and footballs) in order to decrease the likelihood a behaviour (talking during quiet work time) will happen again. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Three phase model of operant conditioning as informed by B.F. Skinner: positive and negative reinforcement, response cost, punishment http://www.intropsych.com/ch05_conditioning/response_cost.html Question 44 Answer: B A token economy has been set up where items of little intrinsic worth (the stars) are used to reward behaviour. These items may then be exchanged for something of worth (lolly or chocolate bar). Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Applications of operant conditioning: shaping, token economies http://www.behavioradvisor.com/Tokens.html Question 45 Answer: A Bandura’s experiments illustrated a number of the steps of observational learning. A number of his experiments showed the importance of reinforcement of the model, illustrating that the learner pays attention to the model’s behaviour and its consequences. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Applications and comparisons of learning theories: observational learning (modelling) process in terms of the role of attention, retention, reproduction, motivation, reinforcement as informed by Albert Bandura’s social learning theory http://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/bandura.htm



Question 46 Answer: B Because reinforcement in this scenario is based on time (rather than number of responses) this is an interval based schedule. As the reinforcement comes at a set, predictable time the schedule of reinforcement is fixed interval. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Three phase model of operant conditioning as informed by B.F. Skinner: positive and negative reinforcement, response cost, punishment and schedules of reinforcement http://www.psychology.uiowa.edu/faculty/wasserman/glossary/schedules.html Question 47 Answer: B Maurice, as a typical elderly person may have slight memory loss, but is unlikely to experience large memory losses. Procedural memories would actually be the least likely memory system to be affected and his performance on recognition tests would be largely unaffected. Study Design Reference: Unit 3Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Mechanism of memory formation: memory decline over the lifespan http://www.helpguide.org/life/prevent_memory_loss.htm

Question 48 Answer: A Free recall is when an individual attempts to retrieve information with no cues to assist in retrieval. This lack of cues makes this method of retrieval the least sensitive. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Manipulation and improvement of memory: measures of retention including the relative sensitivity of recall, recognition and relearning ftp://grey.colorado.edu/pub/oreilly/teach/introcog/icog_mem_retrieve.pdf



Question 49 Answer: C Short term memories are not consolidated. Long term memories are consolidated, and if they are declarative memories (knowing that) the hippocampus plays a major role in their consolidation. The amygdala is the structure which consolidates procedural memories and adds emotional content to memories. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Mechanism of memory formation – role of the temporal lobe including the hippocampus and amygdala http://www.news-medical.net/health/Hippocampus-Functions.aspx Question 50 Answer: A Implicit memory is our non-conscious memory of things that are often hard to verbalise, for example a procedure or an emotion. The amygdala is involved in storage of these memories, and so damage to this would affect these type of memories. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Mechanism of memory formation – role of the temporal lobe including the hippocampus and amygdala http://web.mst.edu/~rhall/neuroscience/06_complex_learning/explicit_implicit.pdf Question 51 Answer: D Short term memory is a storage area for information received from both sensory memory and long term memory. Information attended to in sensory memory and retrieved from long term memory will enter short term memory and be encoded whilst it is being processed. Short term memories capacity is limited. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Models for explaining human memory: Atkinson-Shiffrin’s multi store model of memory http://www.simplypsychology.org/multi-store.html



Question 52 Answer: C The central executive is considered to be the component of working memory responsible for decision making. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Models for explaining human memory: Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch’s model of working memory: central executive, phonological loop, visuo-spatial sketchpad, episodic buffer http://www.simplypsychology.org/working%20memory.html Question 53 Answer: A Consolidation theory suggests that when a long term memory is formed from a short term memory a physical (neuronal) trace is formed in the brain. This process is said to take time, and if this process is interrupted (e.g. by a knock on the head) there may be a failure of consolidation. Grace would thus not remember the events which had not been consolidated as the memory trace has actually not formed. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Mechanism of memory formation: consolidation theory http://www.psypress.co.uk/ek5/resources/demo_ch06-sc-05.asp Question 54 Answer: D An acrostic is a mnemonic device which uses the first letter of each item to be remembered to start a word within a sentence. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Manipulation and improvement of memory: mnemonic devices including acronyms, acrostics and narrative chaining http://faculty.bucks.edu/specpop/mnemonics.htm



Question 55 Answer: B An acronym is a pronounceable word made up of the first letter of each item which needs to be remembered. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Manipulation and improvement of memory: mnemonic devices including acronyms, acrostics and narrative chaining http://faculty.bucks.edu/specpop/mnemonics.htm Question 56 Answer: C Social learning theory suggests that when we learn by observing others, the first thing we need to do is pay attention to the model’s behaviour and its consequences. Amelia has noticed Edward receive a chocolate bar and be rewarded for it, and so this has initiated the process of observational learning in Amelia. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Applications and comparisons of learning theories: observational learning (modelling) process in terms of the role of attention, retention, reproduction, motivation, reinforcement as informed by Albert Bandura’s social learning theory http://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/bandura.htm Question 57 Answer: D Ebbignhaus’s forgetting curve shows forgetting is rapid at first (in the first hour over half of the information is lost) but then slows. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Strengths and limitations of theories of forgetting- forgetting curve as informed by the work of Hermann Ebbinghaus http://www.elearningcouncil.com/content/overcoming-ebbinghaus-curve-how-soon-we-forget



Question 58 Answer: B According to Craik and Lockhart, encoding information based on how it appears (upper or lower case) is structural encoding, on how it sounds (pairing with a rhyming word) is phonemic and on the meaning of the words (placing words into meaningful sentences) is semantic encoding. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Models for explaining human memory – levels of processing as informed by Fergus Craik and Robert Lockhart http://www.simplypsychology.org/levelsofprocessing.html Question 59 Answer: B When attempting to recall information from a list it is most often found that recall is better for information at the start and end of a list than it is for information in the middle of a list. This is the serial position effect. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Models for explaining human memory: serial position effect and chunking http://www.simplypsychology.org/primacy-recency.html Question 60 Answer: D The reason Richard can still hear the ringing is that his echoic memory (auditory sensory memory) is still retaining a brief memory of the sound. Because echoic memory lasts for approximately 3 seconds, Richard could still theoretically hear this alarm for up to 3 seconds after he had turned it off. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Models for explain human memory: Atkinson-Shiffrin’s multi store model of memory http://www.intropsych.com/ch06_memory/echoic_memory.html



Question 61 Answer: B Semantic memory is a type of declarative memory which functions to store general factual knowledge such as what the country of New Zealand looks like in an atlas. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Organisation of long term memory including declarative (episodic and semantic) and procedural memory http://www.human-memory.net/types_episodic.html Question 62 Answer: A Debriefing occurs at the completion of a study and so will not include information about procedures and expectations which should come before the study begins. Debriefing may contain information about a participant’s own results, but should never contain information about the individual results of other participants, as this would breach the ethical principle of confidentiality. Study Design Reference: Research methods and ethical principles http://www.simplypsychology.org/Ethics.html Question 63 Answer: A A single blind experiment is when the participants do not know whether they are in the experimental group or the control group. In this experiment the participants did not know if they were drinking the herb (experimental group) or plain water (control group). This will control for the placebo effect, which is the effect of expectations on a participant’s response Study Design Reference: Research methods and ethics Experimental research: single and double blind procedures http://www.alleydog.com/glossary/definition.php?term=Single-Blind%20Research%20Method



Question 64 Answer: A As the results were significant, it is highly likely that the results were due to the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable. As this was not a repeated measures design order effects and counterbalancing are not relevant. Study Design Reference: Research methods and ethics Statistics: interpretation of p-values and conclusions http://www.sparknotes.com/psychology/psych101/researchmethods/section5.rhtml Question 65 Answer: C Experimenter expectations can affect results in all experimental designs. Any of the experimental designs (including the independent groups of this question) can be conducted double blind so that neither the participants nor the experimenter knows who is in the control or experimental group. This will then control for the placebo and experimenter effect. Study Design Reference: Research method and ethics Experimental research: single and double blind procedures http://www.alleydog.com/cognotes/attention.html#.UQHvAB119yI

End of detailed answers to Section A – Multiple Choice Questions 2013 VCAA VCE Sample Psychology Examination



Detailed answers to the 2013 VCAA VCE Sample Psychology Examination Section B – Short Answer Questions


Question 1 EMG – detects records and amplifies electrical activity of the muscles of the body. Would show reduced electrical activity. Video monitoring – would show that person is extremely relaxed/completely still due to lack of muscle tension in the body. If zoomed in, may show fluttering of eyelids indicating rapid eye movement. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHonyCHsZLc Question 2 Can be many different options, but need to show three things -1. What the study actually did with the patient, 2.what the patient could or couldn’t do, and 3. what this showed about a brain structures role (example follows below) Sperry and Gazzaniga found that if an image is presented to the right hemisphere (left visual field) of a split brain patient, they could not name what the image was of. This showed that language is a left hemisphere function. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 The interaction between cognitive processes of the brain and its structure, split brain studies including the work of Roger Sperry and Michael Gazzaniga http://www.nature.com/news/the-split-brain-a-tale-of-two-halves-1.10213



Question 3 a. A self report in this study gives quantitative data which is easy to summarise and analyse. Or a self report allows a large amount of data to be collected quickly and cheaply. b. Random allocation will help ensure that the experimental group and control group are not biased in a particular way – that participant characteristics are evenly distributed. (note this will not ensure this advantage, but will help towards it) c. Chronic sleep deprivation can lead to

• Depression • Anxiety • High blood pressure • Weight gain

(any other relevant answer) Study Design Reference: Research method and ethics Random allocation of participants to groups: control and experimental groups Techniques of qualitative and quantitative data collection: self reports The effects of total and partial sleep deprivation http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/important-sleep-habits Question 4 Tom may have an altered sense of time, whereas in NWC there is a real sense of time. Tom may be showing inappropriate emotional responses, whereas in NWC emotions are appropriate for the situation. Tom may have reduced control over the content of his thoughts, whereas in NWC Tom would be able to limit the content Tom may have altered perceptions (e.g. blurred vision), whereas in NWC perceptions are based in reality. Tom may have reduced memory functions, whereas in NWC his memory would function normally Tom may have less ability to carry out controlled or automatic functions, whereas in NWC he would normal ability in these areas Note: When a difference is asked for you must show both parts of the comparison e.g., it would not be enough to simply say “Tom may have an altered sense of time” . Also note, do not refer to physiological differences such as heart rate etc. as question asks for psychological differences Study Design Reference: Unit 3. Area of Study 1: Outcome 1 Concepts of normal waking consciousness and altered states of consciousness including daydreaming and alcohol induced http://sccpsy101.com/home/chapter-2/section-2/



Question 5 Mental health there is no dysfunction in cognitions, behaviours and emotions, mental illness has dysfunction in one or more of these areas or Mental health is associated with a sense of wellbeing, mental illness there is a lack of a sense of well being or Mental health has no ongoing element of distress, mental illness has an ongoing aspect of distress or Mental illnesses will usually benefit from some form of help/intervention, mental health does not require this Study Design Reference: Unit 4. Area of study 2: Outcome 2 Concepts of normality and differentiation of mental health from mental illness http://www.mentalhealth.asn.au/home/item/111.html Question 6 A dimensional approach allows the severity of the symptoms to be considered whereas a categorical approach does not A dimensional approach reduces the stigma which comes from labeling, whereas a categorical approach labels a person with a mental illness which can increase stigma. A dimensional approach allows for a more tailored treatment plan than a categorical approach which does not cater for individual differences in symptoms Study Design Reference: Unit 4. Area of Study 2: Outcome 2 Systems of classification of mental conditions and disorders: underlying principles of classification, strengths and limitations of discrete categorical (DSM-IV and ICD-10_ and dimensional (graded and transitional) approaches to classification of mental disorders http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=569



Question 7 a. Stella and Audrey have appraised the situation different. Stella has had a negative psychological response to the stressor and sees the competition as a threat and this is causing distress. Audrey has had a positive psychological response to the stressor and sees the competition as a challenge and this is causing eustress. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area of Study 2: Outcome 2 Psychological determinants of the stress response; strengths and limitations of Richard Lazarus and Susan Folkman’s Transactional Model of Stress and Coping. http://explorable.com/stress-and-cognitive-appraisal b. Stella would be attached to some form of electronic device which would give her information about the state of a physiological response (e.g. heart rate). She would learn a technique for reducing this physiological response (e.g. meditation), using the feedback from the device to learn if her technique is successful. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area of Study 2: Outcome 2 Strategies for coping with stress including biofeedback, meditation/relaxation, physical exercise, social support http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/biofeedback-000349.htm Question 8 a. A biopsychosocial framework is an approach which views physical and mental health as influenced by biological, psychological and social factors and their interaction. b. A biopsychosocial framework means health professionals now consider the interaction of a number of factors rather than purely biological or biomedical factors as important in health and wellbeing. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area of Study 2: Outcome 2 Use of a biopsychosocial framework (the interaction and integration of biological, psychological and transitional) as an approach to considering physical and mental health http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/education/md/prospective-students/curriculum/documents/biopsychosocial-model-approach.pdf



Question 9 a. Adam may have difficulty

• locating things in relation to his own body • with sensations of touch, pressure or pain from the right side of his body • discerning left from right • knowing the position of his body in space • integrating information from various senses

b. Adaptive plasticity is a change in brain neuron structure and function as a result of the experience of learning something new, or as a result of brain injury. c. The neurons which have been undamaged may reroute or show bushing/sprouting and take on the role which the damaged neurons previously controlled. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area of study 1: Outcome 1 Roles of the four lobes of the cerebral cortex in the control of motor, somatosensory, visual and auditory processing in humans; primary cortex and association areas. Unit 4 Area of study 1: Outcome 1 Neural mechanism of learning including developmental plasticity and adaptive plasticity http://www.neuroskills.com/brain-injury/parietal-lobes.php http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/plast.html Question 10 Informed consent – it is not apparent that Albert’s mother was truly informed of the exact role that Albert would have in the study, any risks entailed with the study and of her right to withdraw him at any time. Withdrawal rights – Albert’s mother may not have been told that she could take Albert from the study at any time if she was unhappy with what was going on in the study Voluntary participation – because Albert’s mother worked for Watson, there may have been undue pressure to place Albert into the study No long lasting harm – the fact that a fear of certain objects was created violates the principle that there should be no psychological or physiological harm happen to an individual within a study. Debriefing – sessions after the study should have been used to minimize the impact the study had on Albert Beneficence – the harm that this study did to Albert is a greater consideration than the knowledge gained by this study Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Research methods and ethical principles associated with the study of learning http://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/03/little-albert.aspx



Question 11 The three phase model of operant condition suggests there is a discriminative stimulus (e.g. being in a supermarket near the lollies), a behaviour (throwing a tantrum) and then a consequence (punishing the tantrum will reduce the frequency of the tantrums). Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Three phase model of operant conditioning as informed by B.F. skinner http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/behavior/operant.html Question 12 Attention: Jodie needs to ensure her daughter notices what she is doing, perhaps by making it look fun Retention: Jodie needs make sure her daughter remembers each step, perhaps by repeating herself a few times. Reproduction: Jodie needs to make sure this is a recipe her daughter has the capability to follow – it should not be too difficult Motivation: Jodie must make sure her daughter has reason to want to cook – perhaps letting her make her favourite cake. Reinforcement: Jodie should reward her daughter when she shows the right behaviour, perhaps with praise Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Observational learning (modelling) processes in terms of the role of attention, retention, reproduction, motivation, reinforcement as informed by Albert Bandura’s social learning theory http://general-psychology.weebly.com/can-we-learn-through-observation.html Question 13 a. Classical conditioning b. Zoe will be exposed to her feared stimulus of cats by creating a hierarchy of fear associated with the conditioned stimulus (cats). The aim is to allow Zoe to experience each level of the hierarchy until each level does not produce the conditioned response of fear . Ultimately Zoe will be able to encounter any variation of the conditioned stimulus without the conditioned response. Zoe may have a relaxation technique taught to her to practice as she is exposed to each level of the conditioned stimulus. Study Design Reference: Unit 4 Area Of Study 1: Outcome 1 Applications of classical conditioning: graduated exposure, aversion therapy, flooding http://nursingplanet.com/pn/behaviour_therapy.html



Question 14 a. That the probability results occurred by chance is 3 % (3 in 100) b. That leading questions cause false recollections of memory in eyewitness testimony c. Loftus showed that memory is reconstructed by incorporating experiences which occur subsequent to the episode. The leading questions experienced by group A caused an over estimation of the red gang’s aggressive acts Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Effect of misleading questions on eye-witness testimonies including the reconstructive nature of memory informed by the work of Elizabeth Loftus http://www.simplypsychology.org/loftus-palmer.html#sthash.L91Hx61H.dpbs Question 15 Decay theory would suggest that the physical trace which forms a memory in the brain has been lost as Olga has not retrieved the memory for a long time. Motivated forgetting theory would suggest that Olga has not brought the memory to conscious awareness because it is too painful in some way Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Strengths and limitations of theories of forgetting: motivated forgetting as informed by the work of Sigmund Freud including repression and suppression, decay theory http://psychology.learnhub.com/lesson/4680-memory-101-the-science-of-forgetting Question 16 Semantic network theory suggests that a retrieval cue activates a particular area of the network. Once a particular area of the network is activated the links between nodes allow other related concepts to be retrieved. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Organisation of long-term memory including declarative (episodic and semantic) and procedural memory, and semantic network theory http://psychology.about.com/od/cognitivepsychology/a/memory.htm



Question 17 a. A build up of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles will be causing neuron death in particular areas of the brain, causing brain areas to become dysfunctional. There will be brain shrinkage in some areas due to cell death caused by build up of abnormal proteins causing dysfunction. b. frontal lobe Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 1, 2: Outcome 1, 2 Roles of the four lobes of the cerebral cortex Amnesia resulting from brain trauma and neurodegernative diseases including dementia and Alzheimer’s disease http://www.alz.org/braintour/alzheimers_changes.asp Question 18

a. image reproduced from: http://www.daviddarling.info/images/neuron_labeled_diagram.jpgb. b. The dendrites of the neuron may protrude/bush out so that the connection to other neurons (synapse) is strengthened. Axon terminals may develop so that neurotransmitters are released more efficiently so the synapse is strengthened. Study Design Reference: Unit 3 Area Of Study 2: Outcome 2 Mechanism of memory formation: the neuron in memory formation including the role for axons, dendrites, synapses and neurotransmitters http://www.human-memory.net/brain_neurons.html

Detailed answers to the 2013 VCAA VCE Sample Psychology Examination Section C – Research Scenario


Question 1 Dependent variable – number of words that had been paired with each cue word recalled Independent variable – whether the cue words which were read out were paired with a related word or an unrelated word Question 2 Repeated measures Question 3 Informed consent is an procedure which occurs research which ensures the participant understands and acknowledges their role in the study, their rights and any risks involved. Informed consent is important as it protects the individual and their rights Question 4 It was hypothesised that “people will recall more words from a studied list if the words are paired with words that are related in meaning”. The results of the study allow us to support the hypothesis. Mean number of correctly recalled words was 25 out of 30 for the condition in which the word pairs were related, and 17 out of 30 for the condition in which the word pairs were unrelated. This difference between the groups was significant (p=.02) and so we can support the hypothesis. These findings allow us to support the semantic network theory of memory which suggests that memories are stored at nodes related by meaningful links, and that closely related concepts are stored closer together. When studying words which are related in meaning this would fit easily in with our organisation of these words in our long term memory as semantic network suggests these words would be stored close together prior to the task. Unrelated words would be situated further apart from each other in the semantic network, and so trying to retrieve them would not activate strong links in the semantic network. This research was carried out using the repeated measures design. Because this design can cause an order effect to occur, counterbalancing was carried out in which half the participants carried out related pairs followed by unrelated pairs, whereas the other half of the participants carried out unrelated pairs followed by unrelated pairs. This counterbalancing controls for the order effect in which participation in one condition may affect participation in the second condition.

Detailed answers to the 2013 VCAA VCE Sample Psychology Examination Section C – Research Scenario


Alternative questions research scenario. Question 1 The population is “people” Question 2 From the results obtained we can conclude that the hypothesis is supported, that related pairs of words will create a higher recall than unrelated word pairs. Question 3 The results cannot really be generalized to the populations. The sample size is small, and consists only of university students so does not represent the population Question 4 Dr. Nicholls used the repeated measures design. This design has the advantage over both matched pairs and independent groups that it fully controls for participant related extraneous variables. Because the same people are used in experimental and control conditions, this means that any variation in participants in these two conditions does not exist, and this allows us to eliminate this potential confounding variable. The order effect when participating in one condition affects participation in the next condition has been controlled by counterbalancing (half participants did experimental then control, half did control then experimental) Independent groups has the advantage of being perhaps quicker to carry out, but would not control participant related variables to a large degree. Matched pairs will match participants, but only on select variables. Matched pairs also has the disadvantage of requiring a pre-testing component which adds to the complexity and cost of the study. On the whole I agree that this was the most suitable design, as the inbuilt counterbalancing controlled the main problem inherent in repeated measures design.

End of detailed answers to the 2013 VCAA VCE Sample Psychology Examination



VCE Psychology 2013–2016Written examination

Examination specifi cations

Overall conditionsThe Psychology examination will be sat at a time and date to be set annually by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority.There will be 15 minutes reading time and 2 hours 30 minutes writing time. VCAA examination rules will apply.Details of these rules are published annually in the VCE and VCAL Administrative Handbook.The examination will be marked by a panel appointed by the VCAA.The examination will contribute 60 per cent to the Study Score.

ContentAll outcomes of Units 3 and 4 will be assessed in the examination. All of the key knowledge that underpins the outcomes in Units 3 and 4, including research methodologies and ethical principles, and the underlying principles related to elements of a biopsychosocial framework, and the set of key skills listed on page 13 of the study design are examinable, except• details related to the study of a specifi c mental disorder (one of: specifi c phobia, major depression,

gambling or schizophrenia).The examination will assess a representative sample of the key knowledge that underpins the outcomes of each unit.The assessment of the key skills that underpin all units of the VCE Psychology Study Design 2013–2016 will be integrated within questions assessing the key knowledge.Each outcome will be approximately equally weighted.

FormatThe examination will be presented in a question and answer book and will consist of three sections.Section A will consist of 65 multiple-choice questions worth 1 mark each.Section B will consist of short answer questions. Students will be required to provide answers to Section B within the spaces allocated in the examination paper. Section B will be worth 60 marks.Section C will involve a research scenario. The research scenario may relate to one or more of the areas of study. Within Section C there will be some short answer questions relating to the scenario and one extended response question. Section C will be worth 15 marks.The examination will be worth a total of 140 marks.The number of lines provided after each question, together with the number of marks allocated, will indicate the appropriate length of the response. However, if students require more space they may continue their answers in the space provided at the end of the book.

Approved materials and equipmentStudents are permitted to bring into the examination room: pens, pencils, highlighters, erasers, sharpeners and rulers.

© VICTORIAN CURRICULUM AND ASSESSMENT AUTHORITY 2012

November 2012

VCE Psychology (Specifi cations and sample) – November 2012 2

CriteriaThe extended response question in Section C will be marked according to the following criteria.• identify and describe the key terms/theories/issues• explain the relevant terms/theories/issues and make connections between psychological concepts/theories

and data and research• use appropriate examples/evidence/data to support the response• interpret and analyse the issues/data/information• evaluate issues/data/information and draw appropriate conclusions

AdviceIn the VCE Psychology Study Design 2013–2016, research methodologies and ethical principles are integrated throughout all areas of study. In Sections A and B, questions may relate to one or more areas of study. There may also be questions about research methodologies and ethical principles. Section C will focus on research methodologies and ethical principles. The research scenario may also relate to one or more of the areas of study.The weightings of questions in the examination will refl ect approximately the weightings in the outcomes in the study design, although the examination paper will not be organised according to areas of study.Section C: The research scenario will consist of some short answer questions and one extended response question. The extended response question in Section C will draw on students’ knowledge of research and research skills.The extended response question may • be a research question directly related to the content of one or more than one area of study that asks

students to draw on examples from their study of Psychology, and from experiments and case studies they have studied

• relate to case studies and/or research and/or experiments as well as the content of one or more than one area of study

• require students to comment on experimental design or to write up the results of a case study/experiment or to write an extended response to a question/case study/experiment. Where unfamiliar material is used, students will be expected to apply key knowledge and skills, and research methodologies and ethical principles to answer the question.

In the examination, students will be expected to have an understanding of tests of statistical signifi cance. They will be expected to understand the signifi cance of p values and mean, median and mode, and to draw conclusions and make generalised fi ndings when these statistics are given. Students will not be expected to calculate any statistics in the examination.In the following sample examination, there are two examples of the types of questions that could be included in Section C. The second example is on the last page, after the sample examination. These examples are provided to demonstrate the different styles of extended response questions. Students will not be given a choice of questions in Section C.

Figures

Words

STUDENT NUMBER Letter

S A M P L E

SUPERVISOR TO ATTACH PROCESSING LABEL HEREVictorian Certifi cate of EducationYear

PSYCHOLOGYWritten examination

Day Date Reading time: *.** ** to *.** ** (15 minutes) Writing time: *.** ** to *.** ** (2 hours 30 minutes)

QUESTION AND ANSWER BOOKStructure of book

Section Number ofquestions

Number of questionsto be answered

Number ofmarks

ABC

65184

65184

656015

Total 140

• Students are permitted to bring into the examination room: pens, pencils, highlighters, erasers, sharpeners and rulers.

• Students are NOT permitted to bring into the examination room: blank sheets of paper and/or white out liquid/tape.

• No calculator is allowed in this examination.

Materials supplied• Question and answer book of 34 pages.• Answer sheet for multiple-choice questions.• Additional space is available at the end of the book if you need extra paper to complete an answer.

Instructions• Write your student number in the space provided above on this page.• Check that your name and student number as printed on your answer sheet for multiple-choice

questions are correct, and sign your name in the space provided to verify this.

• All written responses must be in English.

At the end of the examination• Place the answer sheet for multiple-choice questions inside the front cover of this book.

Students are NOT permitted to bring mobile phones and/or any other unauthorised electronic devices into the examination room.

© VICTORIAN CURRICULUM AND ASSESSMENT AUTHORITY 2012

November 2012

PSYCH EXAM (SAMPLE) 2 November 2012

SECTION A – continued

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SECTION A – Multiple-choice questions

Instructions for Section AAnswer all questions in pencil on the answer sheet provided for multiple-choice questions.Choose the response that is correct or that best answers the question.A correct answer scores 1, an incorrect answer scores 0.Marks will not be deducted for incorrect answers.No marks will be given if more than one answer is completed for any question.

Question 1 Hillary has been knitting for 20 years. She is able to knit quickly and accurately while she watches television. Her granddaughter, who is just learning how to knit, makes many mistakes if she tries to knit and watch television at the same time.This is becauseA. Hillary is in an altered state of consciousness when she is knitting.B. knitting is a controlled process for Hillary and an automatic process for her granddaughter.C. Hillary is able to divide her attention, while her granddaughter is unable to divide her attention.D. Hillary is able to use selective attention to knit, while her granddaughter needs to use divided

attention.

Question 2Petra was about to perform in the school musical. While she waited to go on stage, various thoughts were active in her mind, such as whether she would remember her lines, whether the sound system was working properly, if her boyfriend was in the audience and how hot she was feeling.Petra’s state of consciousness is best described asA. selective attention.B. a distortion of cognition.C. normal waking consciousness.D. an altered state of consciousness.

November 2012 3 PSYCH EXAM (SAMPLE)

SECTION A – continuedTURN OVER

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AUse the following graphs to answer Questions 3 and 4.

The following graphs show the typical sleep cycles for two distinct age groups.

Graph 1

Graph 2

1

4

3

2sleepstage

1

REM

awake

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9time (hour)

1

4

3

2sleepstage

1

REM

awake

2 3 4 5time (hour)

6 7 8 9

Question 3The typical sleep cycles represented in graphs 1 and 2, in order, areA. infant, adolescent.B. infant, elderly person.C. elderly person, infant.D. adolescent, elderly person.

Question 4According to the restorative theory of sleep, the sleeper in graph 1 spends more time in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep than the sleeper in graph 2 becauseA. they are experiencing REM rebound.B. their sleep/wake cycle has shifted forward due to their age.C. neural connections in the brain are strengthened during sleep.D. experiencing more deep sleep at night enhances the chance of survival.



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Question 5Mandy fell off her bicycle and suffered some mild brain damage. Doctors tested her and found that Mandy could pronounce the word ‘accident’ but she was unable to give a meaningful verbal description of her accident.The doctors were most likely to conclude that the part of Mandy’s brain affected was A. Broca’s area.B. Wernicke’s area.C. the parietal lobe.D. the occipital lobe.

Question 6David, a professional footballer, is physically exhausted after playing in all four quarters of the Grand Final.According to the restorative theory of sleep, in which stages of sleep would David be most likely to spend more time in the two nights of sleep following the Grand Final?A. REMB. non-rapid eye movement (NREM) stage 1C. non-rapid eye movement (NREM) stages 1 and 3D. non-rapid eye movement (NREM) stages 3 and 4

Question 7Someone experiencing a microsleep is likely to have A. an awareness of the microsleep occuring.B. experienced signifi cant sleep deprivation.C. no evident muscle tension in an electromyograph (EMG) reading.D. a short burst of low-frequency and high-amplitude waves on an electroencephalograph (EEG).

Question 8Researchers have found it diffi cult to generalise the results of studies on humans that investigate prolonged total sleep deprivation becauseA. these studies often rely only on self report.B. an EEG cannot tell if someone has a microsleep.C. the effects of total sleep deprivation are not reversible.D. studying sleep deprivation often depends on convenience sampling.



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AQuestion 9Jason was taking part in a study of the sleep patterns of adolescents. From the ages of 11 to 24, he was required to keep a sleep diary for one month each year. In the sleep diary, he described how tired he felt during the day. In the same month, he also wore an electronic device that recorded the amount of time he spent asleep.The researcher was collectingA. qualitative and quantitative data.B. only quantitative data.C. only qualitative data.D. experimental data.

Question 10One criticism of the survival theory of sleep is that it does not explain whyA. survival is enhanced by the organism being inactive in dangerous surroundings.B. REM sleep is important for the organism’s survival.C. energy needs to be conserved during sleep. D. sleep involves a loss of awareness.

Question 11The action of writing is controlled byA. the muscular nervous system.B. the somatic nervous system.C. the autonomic nervous system.D. the sympathetic nervous system.

Question 12Your heart keeps beating even though you may be unconscious because the autonomic nervous system is A. self-regulating and not dependent on voluntary control by the brain.B. self-regulating and not dependent on involuntary control by the brain. C. mainly controlled by the motor cortex. D. mainly controlled by the cerebral cortex.



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Question 13Gemma has been diagnosed with a brain tumour in a particular area of her cerebral cortex, as shown below.

human brain viewed from above

eyestumour

This tumour is most likely to cause Gemma to have diffi culty A. understanding spoken language.B. recognising faces, songs, people and pictures.C. processing sensory stimuli on the left side of her body.D. with attention, planning and emotional control, and experience changes to her personality.

Question 14Visual information received by the right eye is processed in the A. parietal lobe of the right and left hemispheres.B. occipital lobe of the right and left hemispheres.C. occipital lobe of the left hemisphere only.D. parietal lobe of the left hemisphere only.

Question 15For most people, a function that is performed mainly by the right hemisphere is A. controlling speech. B. evaluating problems.C. recognising emotions.D. receiving and processing sensations from the right side of the body.

Question 16Sally sustained a serious brain injury and, since then, has been ignoring objects and information in the left side of her world, a condition known as spatial neglect. The area of her brain most likely affected is theA. right frontal lobe.B. right parietal lobe.C. left primary visual cortex.D. left primary somatosensory cortex.



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AQuestion 17You are having your sleep patterns monitored in a sleep laboratory. Over a fi ve-minute span, your EEG reading shows occasional bursts of low-frequency, high-amplitude waves. You are likely to be inA. stage 2 sleep.B. REM sleep.C. NREM stage 1 sleep.D. NREM stages 3 and 4 sleep.

Question 18One criticism of the approach to classifying mental illness that is adopted by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is that itA. involves measuring symptoms along a continuum.B. relies on objective physiological measures of wellbeing instead of subjective feelings.C. is a dimensional approach to classifying mental disorders and does not use categories to classify

mental disorders.D. is based on symptoms reported by the person, but the person might not disclose subjective feelings,

such as anxiety, unhappiness or distress.

Question 19When a person fi rst experiences a stressorA. acetylcholine is released.B. adrenaline and noradrenaline are released.C. the parasympathetic nervous system increases the person’s heart rate.D. the sympathetic nervous system causes the person’s pupils to constrict.



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Use the following information to answer Questions 20–22.Sue was very excited when she received her VCE results because they were good enough to allow her to do the course she had always wanted to do. She spent the summer holidays feeling very excited about starting university; she chose all her subjects and planned her timetable. However, when she started at university, she found it much harder than she had expected. In addition to attending classes, there were many assignments and lots of reading. She also had to work part-time to earn some money to support herself. Halfway through the semester, she developed a persistent cold and had diffi culty sleeping because she was worried that she would not pass her subjects.

Question 20During the summer holidays, she experiencedA. distress.B. eustress.C. allostasis.D. adaptive plasticity.

Question 21Sue decided to talk to her older sister and seek advice about how to balance her time, given all of her commitments.Seeking advice from her sister is an example ofA. eustress.B. allostasis.C. social support.D. cultural support.

Question 22Sue also decided to seek help from a counsellor. The counsellor suggested that meditation would be a useful technique for Sue to use to help manage her stress.The use of meditation helps to alleviate Sue’s stress byA. increasing her allostatic load.B. activating her sympathetic nervous system.C. increasing the amount of cortisol in her bloodstream.D. reducing her level of physiological and psychological arousal.



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AUse the following information to answer Questions 23–27.

Shanna has an intense fear of dogs. Shanna feels stressed whenever she sees a dog. Her heart beats faster, she feels sweaty, her mouth feels dry and she runs away from the dog. To overcome her fear of dogs, Shanna seeks the advice of a clinical psychologist.

Question 23Shanna’s reaction to dogs is called A. stimulus discrimination.B. the fi ght-fl ight response.C. the fl ee-confront response. D. a parasympathetic nervous system response.

Question 24Shanna’s reaction to dogs is activated by theA. somatic nervous system.B. autonomic nervous system.C. sympathetic nervous system.D. parasympathetic nervous system.

Question 25Shanna’s heart beating faster is an example ofA. an allostatic factor.B. an environmental factor.C. a physiological response.D. a psychological response.

Question 26To treat Shanna, the psychologist could arrange for her to spend time with dogs at the Lost Dogs’ Home. Shanna would have to stay in the enclosure and watch the dogs for a long period of time (rather than run away). The aim would be to replace Shanna’s stress response with a learned relaxation response. This approach is known asA. fl ooding.B. aversion therapy.C. graduated exposure.D. spontaneous recovery.

Question 27 For Shanna’s treatment to be successful, she would need to stay in the enclosure with the dogs untilA. the dogs wag their tails.B. the conditioned response is extinguished.C. the conditioned stimulus is no longer present.D. there are at least eight pairings of the unconditioned stimulus and the conditioned stimulus.



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Question 28 Lazarus and Folkman’s Transactional Model of Stress and Coping is diffi cult to test experimentally because the stress response A. is objective.B. is subjective.C. is caused by external events.D. can differ between individuals.

Use the following information to answer Questions 29 and 30.Britt has a part-time job working in a pizza shop. She fi nds working in the pizza shop stressful as she has to stand for long periods of time and is in a high-pressure environment. Recently, Britt’s mother lost her job, so Britt has increased the number of hours she is working at the pizza shop to help her mother pay the rent and bills.

Question 29When Britt increased the number of hours she was working at the pizza shop, it could be expected thatA. Britt’s allostatic load would increase.B. Britt would be less susceptible to colds and other viruses.C. the level of cortisol in Britt’s bloodstream would decrease.D. the level of adrenaline in Britt’s bloodstream would decrease.

Question 30Britt’s mother decided to investigate what courses she could take to increase her skills and the likelihood of obtaining another job.Investigating available courses is an example ofA. distress.B. eustress.C. primary appraisal.D. secondary appraisal.

Question 31 One night, Simon came home later than the time he had agreed with his parents. As punishment, Simon’s parents confi scated his mobile phone for a month. Simon experienced considerable stress during this time, because he was out of contact with his friends. The factor responsible for this stress wasA. social.B. cultural.C. biological.D. psychological.



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AQuestion 32In the past three months, Rebecca has become increasingly anxious. Initially, she was anxious only when she went out of her local area. Now, she becomes anxious if she leaves her house. She is unable to go to school or go out with her friends. Which approach to describing normality/abnormality best describes this case study?A. cultural approachB. statistical approachC. historical approachD. functional approach

Question 33Which of the following behaviours is a learned behaviour?A. a baby crawlingB. a spider spinning a webC. a person’s fear of spidersD. pulling your hand away after touching a hot object

Use the following information to answer Questions 34 and 35.Rachelle is travelling to Germany in six months’ time. She has just begun learning to speak German. Each night she practises speaking German words. She fi nds that she remembers more German words if she practises in the study – the same room in which she has her lessons.

Question 34Learning German by practising speaking German words will likely result in A. the slowing down of the transmission of neurotransmitters between synapses. B. the speeding up of the transmission of electrical impulses along dendrites. C. the strengthening of neural connections.D. retroactive interference.

Question 35The improvement in Rachelle’s memory of German words when she practises in the same room where she has her lessons is best explained byA. suppression.B. state-dependent cues.C. developmental plasticity.D. context-dependent cues.



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Use the following information to answer Questions 36 and 37.Meredith was born into an English-speaking family and acquired the English language in the usual way. No other languages were spoken in the home. When Meredith started high school, she studied Italian as a second language.

Question 36In terms of the timing of experiences for learning and brain development, Meredith learning to speak English as her fi rst language and then Italian as a second language at high schoolA. both refl ect experience-expectant learning to the same degree.B. both refl ect experience-dependent learning to the same degree.C. refl ect experience-dependent and experience-expectant learning, respectively.D. refl ect experience-expectant and experience-dependent learning, respectively.

Question 37In terms of brain plasticity, it is likely that Meredith’s developmental plasticity will A. increase with age.B. diminish with age.C. remain constant over her life span.D. enable her to acquire any language she is exposed to across her life span.

Use the following information to answer Questions 38 and 39.When Spot was a puppy, he was taken to the vet several times to get his injections. Dr Brown gave the injections each time and, each time, Spot experienced pain. Since then, each time Spot is taken to the vet and sees Dr Brown, he becomes fearful and trembles.

Question 38The type of learning experienced by Spot is best described as A. operant conditioning.B. classical conditioning.C. observational learning.D. trial-and-error learning.

Question 39At Spot’s fi rst visit to get an injection, the sight of Dr Brown was the A. operant.B. response.C. neutral stimulus.D. conditioned stimulus.



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AQuestion 40Which of the following statements is correct for both classical conditioning and operant conditioning?A. both require reinforcement to be given before the desired responseB. both require reinforcement to be given each time after the desired responseC. both involve only voluntary responsesD. both can produce stimulus generalisation and stimulus discrimination

Use the following information to answer Questions 41 and 42.

Question 41Emma has forgotten the code to the lock on her locker. She tries several different number combinations randomly, hoping one will be the right one to unlock the padlock.This behaviour is most likely an example of A. graduated exposure. B. motivated forgetting.C. trial-and-error learning.D. stimulus generalisation.

Question 42Emma is unable to remember her current locker code because she confuses it with her old locker code.Emma is experiencingA. retroactive interference. B. proactive interference.C. anterograde amnesia.D. retrograde amnesia.



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Use the following information to answer Questions 43 and 44.To encourage his noisy Year 3 students to work quietly in class, Mr Soros set up the following system with them. • Students caught talking during quiet work time would not be allowed to play with basketballs or footballs during

the following play time.• Students who worked quietly would receive a star beside their names on a chart.• Students who earned ten stars could exchange them for a lolly or chocolate bar of their choice.

Question 43Not allowing students to play with basketballs and footballs during the following play time is an example of A. punishment.B. response cost.C. positive reinforcement.D. negative reinforcement.

Question 44Allowing students to exchange ten stars for a lolly or chocolate bar of their choice is an example of A. shaping.B. a token economy.C. graduated exposure.D. fi xed interval schedule of reinforcement.

Question 45Bandura’s experiments with observational learning in children indicate thatA. those children who watched an aggressive model being reinforced were more likely to behave

aggressively than those who watched an aggressive model being punished.B. those children who watched an aggressive model being punished were more likely to behave

aggressively than those who watched an aggressive model being reinforced.C. those children who watched an aggressive model being reinforced were less likely to behave

aggressively than those who watched an aggressive model being punished.D. children are more likely to learn through observational learning than operant conditioning.

Question 46John’s mother says that each time his bedroom is tidy at the end of the week, he will receive an extra dollar in his weekend spending money.Which schedule of reinforcement is John’s mother using to encourage John to keep his room tidy?A. fi xed ratioB. fi xed intervalC. variable ratioD. variable interval



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AQuestion 47Maurice is a healthy 80-year-old who is not suffering from brain disease or injury.As Maurice gets older, he isA. unlikely to learn new material.B. unlikely to experience large memory losses.C. likely to forget some procedural memories only.D. likely to perform worse on recognition tests, compared with recall tests.

Question 48 Which of the following is the least sensitive measure of retention?A. free recallB. recognitionC. relearningD. cued recall

Question 49The hippocampus is required for the consolidation ofA. short-term memories.B. procedural memories.C. long-term declarative memories.D. the emotional aspects of memories.

Question 50David, a 23-year-old university student, suffered a brain injury and sustained damage to his amygdala.David is most likely to experience diffi culty withA. implicit memory.B. explicit memory.C. sensory memory.D. semantic memory.

Question 51Which of the following statements about short-term memory is most accurate?A. short-term memory holds all incoming information for around 30 minutes.B. short-term memory only holds information transferred from sensory memory. C. short-term memory holds all sensory information until it is encoded into long-term memory.D. short-term memory holds a limited amount of encoded information while it is being processed.



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Question 52Ethan is deciding whether to catch the bus or walk to school.According to Baddeley and Hitch’s model of working memory, the subsystem mainly responsible for Ethan’s decision-making isA. the visuospatial sketchpad.B. the phonological loop.C. the central executive.D. the episodic buffer.

Question 53Grace tripped and hit her head on a metal post. She was unconscious for a few minutes and when she recovered she could not remember anything that had occurred in the 15 minutes before she fell.This can best be explained byA. a failure of consolidation.B. retroactive interference.C. proactive interference.D. anterograde amnesia.

Use the following information to answer Questions 54–56.Mrs Jones wanted to help her students learn the order of the planets from the Sun. She teaches two science classes. She asked class A to construct a sentence using the fi rst letter of each planet. Class B was shown how to take the fi rst letter of each planet to make a word that could be pronounced.

Question 54Which mnemonic device did Mrs Jones teach class A?A. narrative chainingB. acronymC. chunkingD. acrostic

Question 55Which mnemonic device did Mrs Jones teach class B?A. narrative chainingB. acronymC. chunkingD. acrostic



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AQuestion 56Mrs Jones found that her students were not making any effort to learn the order of the planets. She decided to give a chocolate bar to any student who could recall the order of the planets correctly. Amelia saw Edward receive a chocolate bar and this motivated her to learn the order.Amelia’s behaviour is a result ofA. operant conditioning.B. classical conditioning.C. observational learning.D. trial-and-error learning.

Question 57Ebbinghaus is known for his work on the features of the forgetting curve.When Ebbinghaus tested the ability to recall nonsense syllables, he found that the rate of forgetting wasA. steady for the fi rst two days followed by little decline after that.B. slow for the fi rst 8 hours followed by a rapid decline for two days.C. slow for the fi rst 20 minutes followed by a rapid decline for two days.D. rapid for the fi rst 30 minutes, then slowing with little decline after two days.

Use the following information to answer Questions 58 and 59.Dr Unglik conducted a study on the effectiveness of different types of encoding. Participants were divided into three groups. Each group was presented with the same list of 20 words in a fi xed order and was given 90 seconds to memorise the words using one of the following encoding strategies.Group 1 memorised words by remembering whether each of the words was written in upper or lower case.Group 2 memorised the words by pairing each word with a rhyming word.Group 3 memorised the words by placing them in meaningful sentences.Immediately following the 90-second study period, Dr Unglik asked the participants to use free recall to say the words they could remember from the word list.

Question 58According to Craik and Lockhart’s levels of processing model of memory, the type of encoding for each of the groups in Dr Unglik’s study wasA. Group 1: phonemic (acoustic); Group 2: structural (visual); Group 3: semantic.B. Group 1: structural (visual); Group 2: phonemic (acoustic); Group 3: semantic.C. Group 1: semantic; Group 2: phonemic (acoustic); Group 3: elaborative.D. Group 1: phonemic (acoustic); Group 2: elaborative; Group 3: semantic.

Question 59Dr Unglik plotted recall performance for each word according to the order in which it had been presented in the study list. The most likely result of Dr Unglik’s study was that for all three groups he found that the word recall wasA. the same for words at the start, in the middle and at the end of the study list.B. better for words at the start and at the end of the study list than for those in the middle.C. better for words at the end of the study list than for words at the start and in the middle.D. better for words at the start of the study list than for words in the middle and at the end.



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Question 60 Richard has just switched off his alarm clock yet he can still hear the sound of it ringing.This effect is due toA. episodic memory.B. working memory.C. iconic memory.D. echoic memory.

Question 61Alanah is looking through her atlas for a suitable outline map of New Zealand to trace.Her ability to recognise New Zealand is a function of herA. echoic memory.B. semantic memory.C. episodic memory.D. procedural memory.

Question 62In an experiment, debriefi ng of participants most likely includes information aboutA. each participant’s own results in the study.B. the individual results of other participants in the study.C. the number of hours participants will be expected to participate.D. the procedures that will be required of participants during the experiment.

November 2012 19 PSYCH EXAM (SAMPLE)N

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Use the following information to answer Questions 63–65.Dr Goode conducted an experiment to investigate the claim that a particular herb helps people to focus their attention. She used an independent-groups design experiment with randomly allocated participants. The participants were not told whether they had been allocated to the experimental group or the control group.She began with a test of attention (attention test A) to establish a baseline measure for all participants. Then, for the experiment, all participants were given a drink of water in identical cups. The drinks given to the experimental group also contained the herb, which was both odourless and tasteless.Finally, all participants sat a different version of the attention test (attention test B).The results of attention test B indicated that the experimental group had improved its ability to focus attention compared to the initial baseline measure, but the control group had not. The results were statistically signifi cant.

Question 63Dr Goode used a single blind procedure to control for A. placebo effects.B. practice effects. C. individual differences.D. experimenter expectations.

Question 64It is likely that the results of this experiment were due to A. the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable.B. the effect of the dependent variable on the independent variable. C. lack of counterbalancing. D. the order effect.

Question 65To control for experimenter expectations, Dr Goode could have used A. a repeated measures experimental design.B. an independent-groups experimental design with counterbalancing.C. an independent-groups experimental design with a double blind procedure.D. a matched-participants experimental design with a single blind procedure.

END OF SECTION A


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SECTION B – continued

Question 1 (4 marks)You are conducting research in a sleep laboratory, investigating how much time the average adult spends in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. In order to detect whether a person is in REM sleep, you could use an electromyograph (EMG) and a video monitoring device.Explain how each device may indicate that the person is in REM sleep.

EMG

video monitoring

Question 2 (3 marks)Describe one fi nding of Sperry and Gazzaniga’s split brain studies and explain how it has contributed to our understanding of the interaction between cognitive processes and the structure of the brain.

SECTION B – Short answer questions

Instructions for Section BAnswer all questions in the spaces provided. Write using black or blue pen.


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SECTION B – continuedTURN OVER

Question 3 (3 marks)A researcher wanted to investigate whether chronic sleep deprivation causes stress. In particular, she planned to test whether reduced sleep would result in a signifi cant increase in stress levels at the end of 12 months.The researcher planned to select 100 healthy participants between the ages of 18 and 40, and record their stress levels on a self-report rating scale. She allocated them randomly to either the experimental group or to the control group.The experimental group would have their sleep time reduced to fi ve hours per night while the control group would maintain a sleep time of seven to ten hours per night.a. Identify one advantage of using the self-report rating scale as a method of data collection in this

study. 1 mark

b. What was the benefi t of the researcher using random allocation? 1 mark

c. Identify one other possible effect of chronic sleep deprivation at the end of this study. 1 mark

Question 4 (2 marks)After a night of heavy drinking at a party, Tom is in an alcohol-induced state of consciousness. A personal breathalyser showed his blood alcohol level to be extremely high. Name and describe two psychological characteristics that Tom is likely to experience in this state. Your answer must identify how these characteristics differ from normal waking consciousness.

1.

2.


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SECTION B – Question 7 – continued

Question 5 (2 marks)Describe two characteristics that differentiate mental health from mental illness.

Question 6 (2 marks)Describe one advantage of using a dimensional approach to classify mental disorders compared with using a categorical approach.

Question 7 (7 marks)Stella and Audrey are both 17 years old. They are both preparing to compete in an interstate athletics competition. Stella is feeling overwhelmed by the demands involved in training and preparing for the competition, and has had diffi culty sleeping. Audrey, however, is enjoying all the preparation and is fi nding the training challenging but manageable.a. In terms of primary appraisal in Lazarus and Folkman’s Transactional Model of Stress and Coping,

explain why Stella and Audrey have evaluated their situations differently. 4 marks


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b. Explain how biofeedback could help Stella to reduce her level of stress. 3 marks

Question 8 (4 marks)a. What is a biopsychosocial framework? 2 marks

b. Explain how biopsychosocial frameworks have changed the way health professionals consider health and wellbeing. 2 marks


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Question 9 (3 marks)Adam fell off a ladder while climbing onto the roof of his house. Brain scans showed damage to the left parietal lobe of his brain.a. Describe one diffi culty that Adam might experience as a result of the damage to his left parietal lobe. 1 mark

b. Adam’s doctors explained to his family that adaptive plasticity might occur after some time. i. What is adaptive plasticity? 1 mark

ii. How might adaptive plasticity affect Adam? 1 mark

Question 10 (2 marks)John Watson’s ‘Little Albert’ experiment was famous for advancing our understanding of classical conditioning in humans and also for the ethical issues it raised.Describe two ethical principles that the original study would breach if it were carried out today.


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Question 11 (3 marks)With reference to the three-phase model of operant conditioning, explain how a parent may reduce the frequency of a child’s tantrums.

Question 12 (5 marks)Jodie wants her daughter to learn how to cook.Describe how Jodie could teach her daughter cooking skills using all the elements of observational learning.


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Question 13 (3 marks)Zoe wants to become a veterinary nurse, but she has a fear of cats. She sees a psychologist, who recommends using a therapy called graduated exposure to learn to overcome her fear.a. What kind of learning is involved in graduated exposure? 1 mark

b. With reference to psychological terms, explain the process of graduated exposure that might be used to assist Zoe. 2 marks


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Question 14 (5 marks)A researcher was interested in exploring the potential for eyewitness testimonies to be manipulated through leading questioning. To investigate this issue, he had two groups (group A and group B), each with 50 participants, watch a fi lm showing a fi ght between two gangs. One gang was dressed in blue and the other in red. The fi lm showed an equal number of aggressive acts committed by the red and blue gangs.After watching the fi lm, participants in group A were asked a series of leading questions, such as ‘Why do you think the red gang was more aggressive than the blue gang?’ Group B was asked neutral questions, such as ‘What do you remember about the fi ght?’ After the questions had been completed, the researcher asked participants in both groups to estimate the number of aggressive acts performed by each gang. The signifi cance level for the research was set at p < 0.05.The results showed that participants in group A, on average, estimated that the red gang committed more aggressive acts than the blue gang, whereas those in group B, on average, estimated an equal number of aggressive acts committed by both gangs. A statistical test comparing the mean difference estimates for groups A and B indicated that p = 0.03.a. What is meant by p = 0.03? 1 mark

b. What conclusion could the researcher draw from these results? 2 marks

c. How would Loftus’s research into the manipulation of eyewitness accounts help to explain these results? 2 marks


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Question 15 (4 marks)Olga is a happy, active and healthy 70-year-old woman. At a school reunion, an old friend asks if she can remember an incident that occurred at Olga’s 21st birthday party. However, Olga is unable to remember the event.Explain why Olga may have forgotten this incident in terms of both decay theory and motivated forgetting theory.

decay theory

motivated forgetting theory

Question 16 (2 marks)According to the semantic network theory, how is information retrieved from long-term memory?


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END OF SECTION BTURN OVER

Question 17 (3 marks)Max has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.a. Identify and explain one change that could be occurring in Max’s brain. 2 marks

b. Max’s family have noticed changes to his personality. Which lobe of the brain is likely to be affected? 1 mark

Question 18 (3 marks)a. Draw and label a neuron in the box below. 2 marks

b. Describe one change that occurs to a neuron when a new memory is formed. 1 mark


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SECTION C – continued

Dr Nicholls is a psychologist interested in how the organisation of concepts in semantic memory might affect the recall of learned information. She predicts that people will recall more words from a studied list if the words are paired with words that are related in meaning.To investigate this issue, Dr Nicholls designed a memory experiment in which all participants were presented with the same list of 60 pairs of words to learn.Half of the word pairs in the study list were related in meaning (for example, cat–dog, nurse–doctor, apple–orange) and the other half were unrelated in meaning (for example, paper–shirt, window–butter, tree–hammer).After studying the pairs of words, the participants were presented with the fi rst word from each pair as a cue and were required to recall the second word.Dr Nicholls determined that the results would be signifi cant if the p value obtained was less than 0.05.Twenty fi rst-year university students volunteered to participate in the experiment.The experiment consisted of a study phase and a test phase.Study phase – All participants were asked to read aloud each of the 60 word pairs in the study list. • Half of the participants studied the 30 related word pairs fi rst, followed by the unrelated word pairs.• Half of the participants studied the 30 unrelated word pairs fi rst, followed by the related word pairs.Test phase – The test phase immediately followed the study phase.Participants were presented with the fi rst word from each of the 60 word pairs as a cue for recall. Their task was to recall the word that had been paired with each cue word.The results of Dr Nicholls’s study are presented in the fi gure below. She conducted a statistical test to determine whether the difference between the means for the two experimental conditions was signifi cant and found that p = 0.02.

Number of words recalled in the cued recall task

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

related pairs unrelated pairsrelatedness of word pairs

number ofcorrectly recalled

words/30

SECTION C – Research scenario

Instructions for Section CAnswer the questions in the spaces provided. Write using black or blue pen.Your responses may include diagrams, charts and tables.


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SECTION C – Question 4 – continuedTURN OVER

Question 1 (2 marks)Operationalise the dependent and independent variables in this experiment.

dependent variable

independent variable

Question 2 (1 mark)What experimental design did Dr Nicholls use?

Question 3 (2 marks)What is informed consent and why is it important in psychological research?

Question 4 (10 marks)Construct a discussion containing• the conclusion(s) based on the hypothesis (or hypotheses)• the implications of the conclusion(s) for one theory of memory• a description of the weaknesses of this experimental design and procedures to eliminate these.


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END OF SECTION C


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TURN OVER

Extra space for responses

Clearly number all responses in this space.


END OF QUESTION AND ANSWER BOOK


TURN OVER

The following is an example of an alternative set of questions based on the scenario on page 30 of the sample examination.

Question 1 (1 mark)Identify the population in this study.

Question 2 (2 marks)What conclusions could be drawn from these results?

Question 3 (2 marks)To what extent can Dr Nicholls’s fi ndings be generalised to the population?

Question 4 (10 marks)Dr Nicholls felt that her research design was the most suitable to use in this study.Explain whether you agree or disagree with Dr Nicholls. In your answer you should• identify the experimental research design that Dr Nicholls used• discuss the strengths and limitations of Dr Nicholls’s experimental research design compared with two

other experimental research designs.

Answers to multiple-choice questions

Question Answer Question Answer Question Answer

1 C 26 A 51 D

2 C 27 B 52 C

3 D 28 B 53 A

4 C 29 A 54 D

5 B 30 D 55 B

6 D 31 A 56 C

7 B 32 D 57 D

8 D 33 C 58 B

9 A 34 C 59 B

10 D 35 D 60 D

11 B 36 D 61 B

12 A 37 B 62 A

13 D 38 B 63 A

14 B 39 C 64 A

15 C 40 D 65 C

16 B 41 C

17 A 42 A

18 D 43 B

19 B 44 B

20 B 45 A

21 C 46 B

22 D 47 B

23 B 48 A

24 C 49 C

25 C 50 A

detailed suggested answers to the 2013 vcaa vce...

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