Which core studies are in the OCR cognitive area?

The cognitive area has two themes, each with a classic and a contemporary study. Memory uses Loftus and Palmer (1974) on leading questions and Grant et al. (1998) on context-dependent memory. Attention uses Moray (1959) on dichotic listening and Simons and Chabris (1999) on inattentional blindness (the invisible gorilla).

What does the cognitive area assume?

The cognitive area assumes the mind works like an information processor, taking in, storing, manipulating and retrieving information through internal mental processes such as memory and attention. These processes cannot be seen directly, so they are inferred from controlled experiments, which is why all four cognitive studies are tightly controlled lab work.

What did Loftus and Palmer find about leading questions?

Loftus and Palmer (1974) found that the verb in a question changed memory of a filmed accident: speed estimates rose with stronger verbs (from about 31.8 mph for 'contacted' to 40.5 mph for 'smashed'), and the 'smashed' group were over twice as likely to falsely recall broken glass. They concluded memory is reconstructive, integrating post-event information.

What is inattentional blindness?

Inattentional blindness is failing to consciously perceive an obvious, unexpected object that is in full view because attention is focused elsewhere. Simons and Chabris (1999) found about 46 per cent of viewers counting basketball passes failed to notice a person in a gorilla suit walk through the scene, showing perception depends on where attention is directed.

How is the cognitive area assessed?

It is assessed on Component 2 (Psychological themes through core studies), a 2-hour, 105-mark paper worth 35 per cent. Questions ask you to describe and evaluate the studies, place them in the cognitive area, apply the perspectives, and apply debates such as reductionism, usefulness and psychology as a science.

EnglandPsychology

OCR A-Level Psychology: Cognitive area core studies overview

A complete OCR A-Level Psychology guide to the cognitive area of Component 2: the four core studies (Loftus and Palmer, Grant, Moray, Simons and Chabris), the memory and attention themes, the view of the mind as an information processor, and how the area is examined on the core studies paper.

Generated by Claude Opus 4.813 min readH567Updated 2026-06-02

Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed

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What the cognitive area demands
Memory
Attention
Check your knowledge

What the cognitive area demands

The cognitive area asks how the mind processes information, focusing on memory and attention. OCR examines it on Component 2 and rewards precise knowledge of the four core studies, the ability to evaluate them, and the skill of placing them in the cognitive area and applying the debates, especially usefulness and psychology as a science.

This guide covers each core study in order, then the exam patterns, with matching dot-point pages for practice.

Memory

Loftus and Palmer (1974) is the classic: two lab experiments showed leading questions distort memory of a filmed accident (speed estimates rose with the verb, and the "smashed" group falsely recalled broken glass), supporting reconstructive memory. Grant et al. (1998) is the contemporary: a lab experiment showed recall was better when learning and testing conditions matched (silent-silent or noisy-noisy), supporting context-dependent memory and giving practical revision advice.

Attention

Moray (1959) is the classic: dichotic-listening experiments found participants recalled almost nothing of the unattended message, but about a third detected their own name, supporting filtering while pointing to attenuation theory. Simons and Chabris (1999) is the contemporary: about 46 per cent of viewers counting basketball passes missed a person in a gorilla suit, demonstrating sustained inattentional blindness.

Check your knowledge

State the design used by Loftus and Palmer. (1 mark)
Explain what context-dependent memory means. (2 marks)
State what proportion of Moray's participants detected their own name in the rejected ear. (1 mark)
Explain what Simons and Chabris demonstrated. (2 marks)

Sources & how we know this

OCR Level 3 Advanced GCE in Psychology (H567) specification — OCR (2015)