A level biology _ module 8 exam fully solved & updated

two mothers are talking about their respective children Ben and Dido. one of the children has Turner's syndrome and the other has Kleinfelter's syndrome. Ben's mum says 'he had problems at school, and there were physical differences too.' Dido's mum says, 'she did better at schoolwork in some ways than other children. but physically, there will always be noticeable differences.' referring to the comments about Ben and Dido, outline Turner's syndrome and Kleinfleter's syndrome - answer-Kleinfelter's syndrome affects males in which an individual's genotype has an extra X chromosome. it is characterised by the 'physical differences' Ben suffers from such as tall thin physique, small infertile testes and enlarged breasts and psychological characteristics such as poorly developed language skills and reading ability which could be why Ben 'has problems at school too.' Turner's syndrome affects women with only one X chromosome. people with Turner's often have a higher than average reading ability possibly explaining why Dido 'did better at schoolwork than other children' but physically sufferers don't develop breasts, have a broad chest and have a webbed neck so 'physically, there will always be a noticeable difference' as her mother said researchers wished to study the link between androgyny and psychological health. they surveyed a stratified sample of 100 18-year-olds from four different schools. some schools had a large number of students and others had a smaller number of students students. the students were asked to rate themselves on an androgyny and then answered a series of questions. the questions focused on students' self-esteem and how they felt about their relationships with others discuss Bem's research into androgyny. refer to the likely findings of the study above in your answer - answer-androgyny is displaying a balance of masculine and feminine characteristics in one's personality androgyny is measured by the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) - Bem's scale presents 20 characteristics that would commonly 'masculine,' 20 that would be typically 'feminine' and a further 20 neutral characteristics respondents are required to rate themselves on a seven point rating scale for each item. scores are then classified on the basis of two dimensions - masculinity-femininity and androgynous-undifferentiated evaluation: the scale would appear to be valid and reliable, association between androgyny and psychological well being and oversimplifies a simple complex because a stratifies sample was taken, it should be representative meaning that its likely there will be an even distribution of the different androgyny levels outline and briefly discuss Freud's theory of the Oedipus complex as an explanation for gender development in boys - answer-the Oedipus complex is Freud's explanation of how a boy resolves his love for his mother and feelings of rivalry towards his father by identifying with his father. boys adopt the attitudes and values of their father meaning they take on their parents gender identity (internalisation) e.g. Little Hans - a 5y/o boy with a morbid fear of being bitten by a horse. his fear appeared to have stemmed from an incident when he'd seen a horse collapse and die in the street. however, Freud's interpretation was that Hans' fear of being bitten by a horse represented his fear of castration. Freud suggested that Hans had transferred his fear of his father onto horses via the unconscious defence mechanism of displacement evaluation: research doesn't support the Oedipus complex, inadequate account of female development and what about non-nuclear families? describe and evaluate Kohlberg's explanation for gender development - answer-is based on the idea that a child's understanding of gender becomes more sophisticated with age. understanding of gender runs parallel to intellectual development as the child matures biologically. gender development is thought to progress through three stages stage 1: gender identity - acquired around age 2. the child recognises that they are a boy or a girl and possesses the ability to label others as such stage 2: gender stability - happens around age 4. the child understands that their own gender is fixed and they will be male or female when they are older stage 3: gender constancy - usually reached by age 6 or 7. the child realises that gender is consistent over time and situations, they begin to identify with people of their own gender and start to behave in gender-appropriate ways imitation of role models - at 6/7 years old, children begin to seek out gender-appropriate role models to identify with and imitate evaluation: evidence supporting the sequence of stages, constancy not supported and methodological issues which two of the following statements best describe the effects of tolerance? A) tolerance arises when you have taken the drug for some time B) tolerance decreases the desire for the drug C) tolerance is when you feel bad effects if you stop taking the drug D) tolerance means that more of the drug is needed to have an affect E) tolerance means that you need the drug in order to feel normal - answer-A and D Bertie is talking about his addiction to chocolate Bertie says, 'I can't stop eating chocolate. I just need more and more. eating chocolate gives me such a great feeling. I comfy on the sofa then stuff myself with chocolate till I feel all warm and happy. I'm spending so much money on chocolate, I don't know what to do.' explain how covert sensitisation could be used to treat Bertie's addiction - answer-covert sensitisation is a form of aversion therapy based on classical conditioning. instead of experiencing an unpleasant stimulus, the patient imagines it the client is encouraged to relax and then the therapist reads from a script encouraging the client to imagine an aversive situation. towards the end of the session the client will imagine a scene in which they 'turn their back' on their addiction in bertie's case, covert sensitisation could be used to overcome his chocolate addiction as pairing the idea of eating chocolate with a digusting thought or experience will put him off it, causing his to quite eating chocolate describe how brain neurochemistry is involved in nicotine addiction - answer-the desensitisation hypothesis - the nicotonic receptor can bind with both ACh and nicotine. when nicotine molecules bind with nicotonic receptors the neuron becomes stimulated. immediately after this, the nicotonic receptors shut down and temporarily cannot respond to neurotransmitters so the number of active receptors is said to be downregulated. this leads to desensitisation of the neuron nicotine consumption releases dopamine which creates rewarding and pleasurable effects the nicotine regulation model - when smokers go without nicotine for a prolonged period of time (e.g. overnight), the drug is metabolised and disappears from the body. this allows more ACh receptors to become functional and neurons to become sensitised. this creates acute withdrawal symptoms like anxiety and agitation - this explains how addiction is maintained repetition of this process overtime creates chronic desensitisation of the nicotonic receptors which can only be overcome by increasing intake evaluation: supporting research evidence, real-life applications and a limited explanation researchers studied the role of learning in gambling. using a computer programme, they manipulated the predictability of 'wins' on different machines. for example, some machines were set to pay out after 2 minutes of play and others, on average, after every 10th bet. the researchers found a link between gambling behaviour and the setting of the machine. they also found that on certain machines, people would carry on betting for a long time after the last win describe learning theory as applied to gambling. refer to the study above in your answer - answer-vicarious reinforcement - doing something because of the way you have seen other people be rewarded for it direct positive and negative reinforcement partial reinforcement - when a behaviour is reinforced only some of the time it occurs variable reinforcement - a type of partial reinforcement in which a behaviour is reinforced after an unpredictable period of time or number of responses cue reactivity - things that will trigger craving and arousal evaluation: support from research evidence, lack of explanatory power and individual differences study: describe and evaluate cognitive theory as an explanation for gambling addiction - answer-expectancy theory - expectations about the future benefits and costs of their behaviour cognitive biases - distortions of attention, memory and thinking which arise because of how we process info about the world research into cognitive biases - Griffiths (1994) used the thinking aloud method to see if there were differences in the cognitive processes of regular slot machine gamblers compares to occasional users found no difference in winning but regulars made more irrational verbalisations and were more prone to an illusion of control and believed themselves to be more skilled self-efficacy - expectations that we have the ability to behave in a way that achieves a desired outcome. can abstain relapse evaluation: research support, explains automatic behaviour and individual differences which of the following best describes situations where disinhibition leads to overeating? A) when environmental cues trigger a loss of control B) when it would seem rude not to eat what you're given C) when you are so hungry you cannot stop eating D) when you do not care what other people think of you - answer-A below are four evaluative statements about the boundary model of obesity. which statement is true? A) the model ignores the role of cognition in behaviour B) the model only explains the behaviour of restrained eaters C) the model takes account of biological factors in eating behaviour D) the model takes no account of the effect of motivation on eating behaviour - answer-B Charlene wants to be skinny like a super model. she is dieting, eating very few calories. she has tried dieting before but always puts the weight back on afterwards. she thinks about food all the time and rewards herself occasionally by eating a giant pizza with chips explain why Charlene's dieting might not be successful - answer-by 'dieting,' Charlene is restraining her eating. she's making a conscious effort to eat few calories which is causing a weight loss but because she is starving herself, she's always thinking about food which will lead to disinhibiton. she then breaks her diet and eats a large amount of food which piles on calories very quickly, in this case 'a giant pizza with fries,' meaning that overall no weight has been lost and weight may have even been gained Mia has been diagnosed with anorexia nervosa. she describes her family background to her therapist: 'mum worries about me constantly and i worry about her. she's always asking me if i'm ok. she spends all her time thinking about me and wants to know everything i do. she even listens to me when i'm on the phone. we go shopping together and swap clothes and make-up. but, it has always been the same, and we never argue at our house.' describe the family systems theory explanation for anorexia nervosa and explain how Mia's experiences can be linked to family systems theory - answer-family systems theory is a psychodynamic explanation that views dysfunctional family interaction as a major factor in the development and maintenance of anorexia nervosa. the four main features of a typical anorexic family are enmeshment, overprotectiveness, rigidity and conflict avoidance. enmeshment - where members of the family are over-involved and over-protective. their self identities are bound up with each other. roles are poorly defined and there is little privacy - 'she spends all her time thinking about me' 'she listens to me when i'm on the phone' overprotectiveness - where family members are constantly involved in protecting each other from external threats - 'mum worries about me constantly and i worry about her' rigidity- interactions within the family are extremely inflexible - 'it has always been the same' conflict avoidance - where families avoid conflict and take whatever steps necessary to prevent it or suppress it - 'we never argue at our house' briefly discuss two limitations of the family systems theory explanation for anorexia nervosa - answer-there is inconsistent evidence - Aragona (2011) found that there were no more enmeshed or rigid in 'typical anorexic families' than in non-eating disorder families is it cause or effect? or both? - not clear discuss one or more biological explanations for anorexia nervosa - answer-genetic explanations - anorexia runs in families, candidate genes and genome-wide association studies evaluation of genetic explanations: limitations of twin studies and gene studies neural explanations - neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin evaluation of neural explanations: supporting evidence and interactions with other neurotransmitters cultural relativism, ethnocentrism, holism and universality are four concepts relevant to issues and debates in psychology definitions: A) appreciating that behaviour varies between cultures B) believing that some behaviours are the same for all cultures C) considering all aspects of an experience, inc culture D) emphasising the importance of the behaviour on one's own culture E) understanding that whole cultures have the same experience which definitions (A-E) best describe cultural relativism, ethnocentrism, holism and universality - answer-cultural relativism - A ethnocentrism - D holism - C universality - B which two of the following are examples of ethnocentrism? when a Chinese researcher: A) assumes findings from research in other countries also apply to people in China B) chooses to carry out research with people from China rather than with people from other countries C) expects people from other countries to behave in the same way as people from China D) thinks that people from China are superior to people from other countries E) treats people from China in the same way that she treats people from other countries - answer-B and D suggest two ways in which researchers might reduce cultural bias in their research - answer-use a sample of people from a variety of cultures use local norm groups ensure assessors are culturally aware avoid sweeping generalisations and do research on the specific cultures being studied Jonny is 25 years old. he is a very anxious person. colleagues tease him at work because he chews his pen all the time and spends hours tidying his desk. he finds it difficult to make friends and has never had a girlfriend. use your knowledge of psychic determinism to explain Jonny's behaviour - answer-psychic determinism is the belief that behaviour is caused by unconscious conflicts that we cannot control. in Jonny's case, something unconscious may be triggering his anxiety causing him to chew his pen and tidy his desk a lot. psychic determinism suggests that its something, possibly biological, that is out of his control causing him to act this way and possibly why he struggles to make friends and/or find a girlfriend what is a 'nomothetic approach?' suggest one limitation of a nomothetic approach - answer-the nomothetic approach attempts to study human behaviour through the development of general principles and universal laws. a limitation of this approach may be that when using the nomothetic approach to study people you can 'lose the whole person' because indivdualism isn't focused on a psychology student carried out a study of excitement at a theme park. she measured the heart rate of people waiting in the queue for a roller coaster. the students tutor said 'using heart rate as a measure of excitement is an example of biological reductionism.' explain why measuring heart rate in this situation could be an example of biological reductionism - answer-biological reductionism is a form of reductionism which attempts to explain social and psychological phenomena at a lower biological level. in this case, excitement is a complex behaviour that has many aspects measured by heart rate which is a narrow, biological factor outline two non-biological ways of measuring excitement that the student could also use in this situation - answer-use a rating scale of one's own excitement carry out a questionnaire of the participants overall attitude and feelings towards the ride discuss the nature-nurture debate in psychology - answer-the nature-nurture debate is concerned with the extent to which aspects of behaviour are a product of inherited or acquired characteristics people who would argue for nature argue that human characteristics, and even some aspects of knowledge, are innate as a result of heredity. on the other hand nurture is believed to be as a result of the 'the environment' the interactionist approach - the idea that nature and nurture are linked to such an extent that it does not make sense to separate the two, so researchers instead study how they interact and influence each other diathesis stress model - models of mental illness which emphasise the interaction of nature and nurture tend to be most persuasive. this model suggests that psychopathology is caused by a biological or genetic vulnerability (the diathesis) which is only expressed when couples with a biological or environmental 'trigger' (the stressor) epigenetics - a change in our genetic activity without changing our genetic code. it is a process that happens throughout life and is caused by interaction with the environment evaluation: implications of nativism and empiricism, shared and unshared environments, constructivism and genotype-environment interaction