AS Main Assumptions

Tip: Memorize these word for word! They’re straight from the syllabus, and this ensures you get full marks for questions asking you to “state a main assumption of the biological approach,” for example.

Biological
1. Behavior, cognitions and emotions can be explained in terms of the working of the brain and the effect of hormones, genetics and evolution.
2. Similarities and differences between people can be understood in terms of biological factors and their interaction with other factors.

Cognitive
1. Information is processed through the same route in all humans: input – process – output, in a similar way to how information is processed by a computer.
2. People have individual differences in their cognitive processing such as with attention, language, thinking and memory. These processes can also help to explain behavior and emotion.

Learning
1. We all begin life as a blank slate. Experiences and interactions with the environment shape our behavior and these changes are directly observable.
2. We learn through the processes of operant conditioning, classical conditioning and social learning. This can be understood using the stimulus-response mode.

Social
1. Behavior, cognitions and emotions are influenced by social contexts, social environments and groups.
2, Behavior, cognitions and emotions are influenced by the actual, implied or imagined presence of others.