OCR A-Level Psychology: Developmental area core studies overview

What the developmental area demands

The developmental area asks how experience shapes children's behaviour and how psychological processes such as moral reasoning mature with age. 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 developmental area and applying debates such as nature-nurture and cultural bias.

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

External influences on children's behaviour

Bandura, Ross and Ross (1961) is the classic: children who watched an aggressive model imitated its specific acts, more so for boys and with a same-sex model, supporting social learning theory. Chaney et al. (2004) is the contemporary: the Funhaler, a spacer with toys that reward correct breathing, raised young children's asthma-medication compliance (about 81 per cent versus 59 per cent), applying operant conditioning.

Moral development

Kohlberg (1968) is the classic: a longitudinal and cross-cultural study using moral dilemmas found an invariant sequence of three levels and six stages, with higher reasoning rising with age. Lee et al. (1997) is the contemporary: comparing Chinese and Canadian children found a shared view of anti-social lies but a growing cultural difference over modest lies about good deeds.

Check your knowledge

1. State the design used by Bandura, Ross and Ross. (1 mark)
2. Explain how the Funhaler uses operant conditioning. (2 marks)
3. Name Kohlberg's three levels of moral reasoning. (3 marks)
4. State the main cultural difference Lee et al. found. (2 marks)