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Paper 1: Foundations in Psychology - Biological psychology

3 dot points across 3 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How do the brain, neurotransmitters, hormones and genes shape human behaviour?

Biological psychology: the structure and function of the brain and neurons, neurotransmitters and synaptic transmission, the influence of hormones, genes and evolution, and key biological studies.
An Edexcel A-Level Psychology answer to biological psychology, covering brain structure and localisation, neurons and synaptic transmission, neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin, hormones and the endocrine system, genes, evolution, GRAVE evaluation and the named biological studies.
14 min answer →

What biological factors explain human aggression, and how do they interact with learning?

Biopsychology and aggression: brain structures, neurotransmitters, hormones and genes in aggression, evolutionary and learning explanations, and the named aggression studies.
An Edexcel A-Level Psychology answer to the biological basis of aggression, covering the amygdala and limbic system, serotonin and testosterone, the MAOA gene, evolutionary explanations, social learning, GRAVE evaluation and named aggression studies such as Raine.
14 min answer →

How is behaviour learned through association, consequences and observation?

Learning theories: classical conditioning, operant conditioning, social learning theory, and their application to explaining and treating behaviour, with key learning studies.
An Edexcel A-Level Psychology answer to learning theories, covering Pavlov's classical conditioning, Skinner's operant conditioning, Bandura's social learning theory, applications such as systematic desensitisation and token economies, GRAVE evaluation and named learning studies.
14 min answer →