Lesson Idea: Brain dumping on psychology

Travis DixonCognitive Psychology

  Aim: There are a few purposes for this activity, which are outlined below. I do this activity in Unit 1: Topic 1: Introduction to Psychology. Activity: On the very first day of IB Psychology, I always give students a blank A3 piece of paper that just has the word “psychology” in the very middle (here’s the document: Brain Dump Psychology). Before …

Key Study: Decision Making, Iowa Gambling and the vmPFC (Bechara et al., 2000).

Travis DixonBiological Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Criminology

Context Before reading about this study it’s important to recap the dual processing model of judgement and decision making. According to Kahneman (and others) we have two systems of processing information. System one is fast and unconscious, while system two is slower and considers more factors. The system of processing we use will affect our judgement, which in turn will …

Sample SAQs: Memory Reliability

Travis DixonAssessment (IB), Cognitive Psychology, Revision and Exam Preparation

Here are two versions of the same sample answer from this year’s (May, 2017) IB Psychology exam. The question was: Describe one study investigating memory reliability. The annotated short answer response (SAQ) shows you the answer, plus my comments as to why I think this is a mediocre response. Then we have this second excellent annotated example SAQ, which does a better …

Key Study: Moral Dilemmas – The Trolley and the Footbridge

Travis DixonBiological Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Criminology

Note: This was in a first draft of our textbook IB Psychology: A Student’s Guide but was later removed because of it’s complexity in nature, and the fact that it doesn’t thread as well as other studies on system one and two decision making. Morality and Decision Making The prefrontal cortex plays a crucial role in executive functions, also known as …

Key Study: Moral judgement and the prefrontal cortex (Ciaramelli, et al)

Travis DixonBiological Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Criminology

This study helps to explain how dysfunction in the prefrontal cortex might make people more susceptible to violent and/or impulsive behaviours. Similar to the VHIS, Ciaramelli et al investigated the differences between moral judgements in people with damage to their prefrontal cortex and healthy controls. Their study cites existing research that suggests people with damage to their PFC have “high levels of …

An Introduction to Brain Imaging

Travis DixonBiological Psychology, Cognitive Psychology

Discuss the use of brain imaging technologies in investigating the relationship between biological factors and behaviour. Three of the important brain imaging technologies you should know about are: MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) fMRI (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) PET (Positron Emission Tomography) Discuss the use of, means you can write about a range of issues relating to the use of technology. For example …