What is covered in OCR Psychology memory and sleep and dreaming?

These are two Component 02 cognitive topics. Memory covers the structure of memory (the multi-store model and reconstructive memory), the factors affecting accuracy (interference, cues, false memories, leading information), amnesia (anterograde and retrograde) and eyewitness testimony, with the core studies Wilson et al. (2008) on Clive Wearing and Braun et al. (2002) on advertising and false memory. Sleep and dreaming covers the stages of sleep, circadian rhythms, theories of sleep (restoration and evolutionary) and dreaming (Freud and activation-synthesis), sleep disorders and sleep hygiene, with the core studies Freud (1918) on the Wolf Man and Williams et al. (1992) on dreaming.

Which exam paper assesses memory and sleep and dreaming in OCR Psychology J203?

Both topics are assessed on J203/02 (Studies and applications in psychology 2), alongside social influence. The paper is 1 hour 30 minutes, worth 90 marks and 50 percent of the GCSE, and it also includes a research methods task using a novel research source. Questions range from multiple choice to extended responses up to 13 marks.

What are the core studies for memory and for sleep and dreaming?

For memory, the classic study is Wilson et al. (2008), the case of Clive Wearing, who lost the ability to form new memories yet kept his musical skills and love for his wife; the contemporary study is Braun et al. (2002), which created false memories of meeting Bugs Bunny at Disney using misleading adverts. For sleep and dreaming, the classic study is Freud (1918) on the Wolf Man's dream, interpreted for unconscious meaning, and the contemporary study is Williams et al. (1992), a scientific, cognitive study of dreaming.

How should I revise memory and sleep and dreaming?

For memory, learn the multi-store model (capacity and duration of each store), reconstructive memory and schemas, the factors affecting accuracy, the two types of amnesia and why eyewitness testimony is unreliable. For sleep, learn the stages and circadian rhythm, the restoration and evolutionary theories, Freud's and activation-synthesis theories of dreaming, and sleep disorders and hygiene. Learn all four core studies in full and practise applying ideas to scenarios using OCR command words.

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OCR GCSE Psychology: Memory and sleep and dreaming overview (J203)

An overview of the memory and sleep and dreaming topics in OCR GCSE Psychology (J203), mapping the structure of memory, the factors affecting memory and amnesia, the features, functions and theories of sleep and dreaming, sleep disorders, and the core studies Wilson et al. (2008), Braun et al. (2002), Freud (1918) and Williams et al. (1992), and how they are examined on Paper 2.

Generated by Claude Opus 4.89 min readJ203 Memory; Sleep and dreamingUpdated 2026-06-02

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The memory content
The sleep and dreaming content
How these topics are examined
How to study these topics
For the official specification

Memory and Sleep and dreaming are two of the three topics on Component 02 (Studies and applications in psychology 2) of OCR GCSE Psychology (specification J203). Both are cognitive topics: memory asks how we store and recall information and why it goes wrong, while sleep and dreaming asks why we sleep and dream. This page maps both topics and links to a focused answer page for each part.

The memory content

The structure of memory: The multi-store model (sensory, short-term and long-term memory, with encoding, capacity and duration) and reconstructive memory. See The structure of memory.
Factors affecting memory: Interference, context and cues, false memories and leading information, amnesia (anterograde and retrograde) and eyewitness testimony. See Factors affecting memory.
The memory core studies: Wilson et al. (2008) on a patient with severe amnesia, and Braun et al. (2002) on advertising and false memory. See Core studies: Wilson and Braun.

The sleep and dreaming content

Functions and theories of sleep. The stages of sleep, circadian rhythms, the restoration and evolutionary theories, and theories of dreaming (Freud and activation-synthesis). See Functions and theories of sleep.

Sleep disorders and the sleep core studies. Insomnia and narcolepsy, sleep hygiene, and the core studies Freud (1918) on the Wolf Man and Williams et al. (1992) on dreaming. See Sleep disorders and treatment.

How these topics are examined

Both topics are assessed on the second paper (J203/02), which is 1 hour 30 minutes, worth 90 marks and 50 percent of the GCSE, shared with social influence. Questions include multiple choice, short structured items, research methods (using a novel source) and extended responses up to 13 marks. Expect to describe and evaluate the models and theories, recall all four core studies precisely, and apply ideas (such as why eyewitness testimony is unreliable, or how to treat insomnia) to scenarios.

How to study these topics

Memory structure: learn the multi-store model (capacity and duration) and reconstructive memory with schemas.
Memory accuracy: learn the factors, the two amnesias, and why eyewitness testimony is unreliable.
Sleep: learn the stages, circadian rhythm, and the restoration and evolutionary theories.
Dreaming: contrast Freud's theory with activation-synthesis.
Learn all four core studies in full and practise applying ideas to scenarios.

For the official specification

OCR publishes the full specification, past papers and mark schemes at ocr.org.uk. Always revise from the current specification and OCR's own past papers, because question style is board-specific.

Sources & how we know this

OCR GCSE (9-1) Psychology J203 specification — OCR (2017)