{"id":15529,"date":"2026-01-26T12:29:03","date_gmt":"2026-01-26T03:29:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/?p=15529"},"modified":"2026-01-26T12:29:04","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T03:29:04","slug":"is-an-essay-with-studies-better","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/2026\/01\/26\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\/","title":{"rendered":"Is an essay with studies better?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Do we need studies or not? This is an interesting dilemma in the new IB Psychology course. In my previous post, I wrote an example <a href=\"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/2026\/01\/26\/an-essay-without-studies-is-it-possible\/\">essay with no studies<\/a>. I found it difficult, but not impossible. It didn&#8217;t surprise me, however, that I found it hard to talk about the concept. The Big Six are all about research. Or maybe that&#8217;s just me. In this post, I&#8217;ll tackle the same question without the &#8220;no studies&#8221; shackles.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Question: <\/strong>In the context of <strong>health and well-being<\/strong>, discuss the concept of <strong>bias<\/strong> in relation to <strong>one or more<\/strong> biological explanations of <strong>one<\/strong> mental health disorder.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_15543\" style=\"width: 208px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/store.themantic-education.com\/collections\/chapter-6-depression\/products\/chapter-6-depression-bundle-2025-edition\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"attachment noopener wp-att-15543\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-15543\" class=\"wp-image-15543\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1.png?resize=198%2C279&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"279\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1-scaled.png?resize=727%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 727w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1-scaled.png?resize=213%2C300&amp;ssl=1 213w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1-scaled.png?resize=768%2C1082&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1-scaled.png?resize=1091%2C1536&amp;ssl=1 1091w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1-scaled.png?resize=1454%2C2048&amp;ssl=1 1454w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1-scaled.png?resize=100%2C141&amp;ssl=1 100w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1-scaled.png?resize=906%2C1276&amp;ssl=1 906w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1-scaled.png?resize=1200%2C1690&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1-scaled.png?w=1818&amp;ssl=1 1818w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/TSP-06-1-scaled.png?w=1572&amp;ssl=1 1572w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 198px) 100vw, 198px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-15543\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The content in this essay all comes from this unit on <a href=\"https:\/\/store.themantic-education.com\/collections\/chapter-6-depression\/products\/chapter-6-depression-bundle-2025-edition\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Depression for IB Psychology<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The Plan:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Intro<\/li>\n<li>BP 1: Monoamine and serotonin hypothesis<\/li>\n<li>BP: Publication bias and placebo effects (researcher bias)<\/li>\n<li>BP 3: 5-HTT Gene<\/li>\n<li>BP 4: Cultural bias<\/li>\n<li>BP 5: Diathesis-stress model and the Dunedin study<\/li>\n<li>BP 6: Bias &#8211; not sure yet?<\/li>\n<li>Conclusion<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"color: #993300;\">Edit: You&#8217;ll notice how the plan is different to the real essay. That&#8217;s because when I write these examples I do it under exam-like conditions. Fast plan, no heavy re-writes and minimal editing.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">The Essay<\/h2>\n<table style=\"width: 100%; border: 1px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px;\">\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th colspan=\"2\">\n<h3><em>In the context of <strong>health and well-being<\/strong>, discuss the concept of <strong>bias<\/strong> in relation to <strong>one or more <\/strong>biological explanations of one mental health disorder.<\/em><\/h3>\n<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 60%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px;\"><span style=\"font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;\">One mental health disorder that can be explained by biological factors is depression, or major depressive disorder (MDD). However, a variety of biases can distort what we know about depression and its biological causes, as will be discussed in this essay.<\/span><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 40%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px; background-color: #dddddd;\"><strong>Examiner-style annotations<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Simple intro that addresses the concept, the area of study and the context.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 60%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px;\">The first biological explanation of depression is the monoamine hypothesis. This originated in the 1950s after it was discovered that depression symptoms were a side-effect of some medications. Similarly, other medications reduced patients symptoms. For example, one drug was used to treat tuberculosis and it was found that patients had reduced depressive symptoms. These medications were monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) \u2013 they prevent the enzyme monoamine oxidase from breaking down neurotransmitters, which means they stay in the synaptic cleft longer. This increases the amount of monoamines (like dopamine and serotonin) to bind to receptors. Since these medications were shown to improve depression, it was suggested that low monoamine levels were the cause of depression.<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 40%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px; background-color: #dddddd;\">Biological explanation is summarised with specific terminology.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 60%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px;\">However, studies on this hypothesis might have suffered from researcher bias and the placebo effect. Early studies didn&#8217;t use randomised clinical trials. Instead they just gave participants the medication and measured their change in depressive symptoms. The placebo effect could have been biasing the participants responses &#8211; they might have felt better because they were expected to get better. Similarly, since there was no control group there might have been researcher bias &#8211; the researchers might have expected the drugs to work so they were unconsciously biased in their recording of depression symptoms. This can be avoided with a double-blind placebo controlled trial.<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 40%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px; background-color: #dddddd;\">Transitional phrase (However) links the bias to the area of study directly. The relevant bias is explained and linked to the content directly.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 60%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px;\">Interestingly, double-blind, placebo controlled trials have been run on selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors because serotonin is also hypothesised to be a biological cause of depression. From the monoamine hypothesis emerged the serotonin hypothesis &#8211; low levels of serotonin are thought to be the cause of depression. If that&#8217;s the case, then SSRIs which block reuptake and increase available serotonin in the synapse for binding should reduce depression. In order for these SSRIs to get prescribed they need to go through clinical trials. However, meta-analyses have shown that there&#8217;s weak evidence for the serotonin hypothesis of depression. So why are SSRIs still being prescribed? It could be because of publication bias. Research journals publish positive and significant results more than others. This means if a drug is tested in a study and there are no effects (or even worse it makes the depression worse) then these results are less likely to be published. This researcher bias may be why SSRIs continue to be prescribed despite a lack of evidence for the serotonin hypothesis.<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 40%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px; background-color: #dddddd;\">Another transition phrase keeps the points connected.\u00a0There&#8217;s a balance between summarising facts (using terminology to show knowledge) and then explaining the issue with bias.\u00a0The answer keeps redirecting to the explanation rather than going off topic with SSRIs.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 60%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px;\">A related biological explanation is genetics. Specifically, the 5-HTT gene (aka the serotonin transporter gene) has been identified as a risk for depression. This gene affects gene expression and the production of serotonin transporters \u2013 proteins on the presynaptic neuron that reabsorb serotonin from the synaptic cleft. There are two variants \u2013 the S variant (two short alleles) and the L variant (two long alleles), and some people are a combination SL (one short, one long). In Western people the S variant is the risk variant \u2013 people with this variant are more likely to be diagnosed than others. However, the opposite is true for East Asians \u2013 in those populations it\u2019s the people with the L variant who are at risk. This shows one reason why cultural bias is important to consider in biological explanations of disorders. If we only use our knowledge from one group and apply it around the world, this biased perspective might be incorrect. It also shows how cross-cultural replication of studies can reduce cultural bias from distorting our knowledge of biological explanations.<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 40%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px; background-color: #dddddd;\">Biological explanation provided in-depth.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Link with cultural bias is made explicit.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 60%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px;\">Depression probably isn\u2019t caused by biological factors alone. It\u2019s more likely due to a combination of environment plus biology, nature via nurture. This is where the diathesis-stress model is valuable. This model suggests that depression is caused by the combination of stress and existing vulnerabilities (like genetics or serotonin levels).<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 40%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px; background-color: #dddddd;\">This paragraph seems tacked on &#8211; because it is &#8211; ran out of time and oomph. Probably better without this paragraph.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 60%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px;\">In conclusion, the serotonin and genetic explanations for depression are two biological explanations that are closely related, but these hypotheses might suffer from a number of biases. The original research into monoamines didn&#8217;t control for placebo or researcher biases, while the serotonin hypothesis and SSRIs are probably affected by publication bias. Thankfully, cross-cultural studies comparing genetic risks for depression have shown that it&#8217;s important to replicate research in different cultures so our knowledge isn&#8217;t impacted by Western cultural biases. (732 words)<\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 40%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px; background-color: #dddddd;\">A detailed conclusion that shows the biological explanations but how and why they might be limited by specific biases.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 60%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px;\"><\/td>\n<td style=\"width: 40%; border: 0px solid #DDDDDD; padding: 10px; background-color: #dddddd;\"><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">The Mark<\/h2>\n<p>This essay shows the same level of knowledge of the area of study as my previous one. Where it differs is the development of the concept. More examples of biases throughout the essay elevates it to the top mark band. That&#8217;s because it better matches phrases in the rubric like &#8220;Links between the area of study and the concept are included <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">throughout<\/span> the response&#8221; and &#8220;knowledge and understanding of the area of study\/concept are <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">fully<\/span> explained.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_15542\" style=\"width: 539px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/2026\/01\/26\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\/img_0696\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-15542\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-15542\" class=\" wp-image-15542\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/IMG_0696.jpg?resize=529%2C706&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"529\" height=\"706\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/IMG_0696.jpg?resize=768%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/IMG_0696.jpg?resize=225%2C300&amp;ssl=1 225w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/IMG_0696.jpg?resize=100%2C133&amp;ssl=1 100w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/IMG_0696.jpg?w=800&amp;ssl=1 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 529px) 100vw, 529px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-15542\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">I would score this essay in the top mark band.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The essay is 200 words longer. This extra detail is all from defining different types of biases and linking them to the topic. Is this that much extra content to cover? I&#8217;d hope not for students aiming for a 7. Remember they also need to discuss concepts in Paper 2, both for the practicals and the unseen study. Knowing terms like publication bias and cultural bias will be helpful for these exams.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>The Problem?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The above essay includes a lot of quite nuanced and esoteric knowledge about depression. Would most IB Psych students be able to replicate that essay? Probably not. Many would, but not most. I like to make exemplars and templates that nearly every student could adapt if they just work hard enough. So&#8230;let me write another example essay since it&#8217;s Monday afternoon and I love doing it so much. In my next essay I&#8217;ll put my money where my mouth is &#8211; I&#8217;ve been encouraging teachers to consider using <a href=\"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/2025\/02\/06\/tips-for-teaching-concepts-in-ib-psychology\/\">hypothetical research scenarios<\/a> in their teaching. Let&#8217;s put them in an essay and see what happens.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_15549\" style=\"width: 312px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/store.themantic-education.com\/collections\/ib-psychology-a-students-guide\/products\/ib-psychology-a-student-s-guide-course-bundle-2025-edition?variant=49171587563713\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-15549\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-15549\" class=\"wp-image-15549\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/Bundle-Image.jpg?resize=302%2C406&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"302\" height=\"406\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/Bundle-Image.jpg?resize=762%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 762w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/Bundle-Image.jpg?resize=223%2C300&amp;ssl=1 223w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/Bundle-Image.jpg?resize=768%2C1032&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/Bundle-Image.jpg?resize=100%2C134&amp;ssl=1 100w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/Bundle-Image.jpg?w=826&amp;ssl=1 826w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 302px) 100vw, 302px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-15549\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Download <a href=\"https:\/\/store.themantic-education.com\/collections\/ib-psychology-a-students-guide\/products\/ib-psychology-a-student-s-guide-course-bundle-2025-edition?variant=49171587563713\">every lesson plan you&#8217;ll ever need<\/a> for IB Psychology<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Do we need studies or not? This is an interesting dilemma in the new IB Psychology course. In my previous post, I wrote an example essay with no studies. I found it difficult, but not impossible. It didn&#8217;t surprise me, however, that I found it hard to talk about the concept. The Big Six are all about research. Or maybe &#8230; <\/p>\n<div><a href=\"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/2026\/01\/26\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\/\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":15544,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rs_blank_template":"","rs_page_bg_color":"","slide_template_v7":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4,5,197],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15529","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-abnormal-psychology","category-assessment-ib","category-biological-psychology","category-example-exam-answers"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Is an essay with studies better? | The IB Psychology Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/2026\/01\/26\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is an essay with studies better? | The IB Psychology Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Do we need studies or not? This is an interesting dilemma in the new IB Psychology course. In my previous post, I wrote an example essay with no studies. I found it difficult, but not impossible. It didn&#8217;t surprise me, however, that I found it hard to talk about the concept. The Big Six are all about research. Or maybe ... Read More\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/2026\/01\/26\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The IB Psychology Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/facebook.com\/themanticeducation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-01-26T03:29:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-01-26T03:29:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/01\/527146bd-6c4a-4d6f-9b6b-9addeabd79a3.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Travis Dixon\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Travis Dixon\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Travis Dixon\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/de20f76afd22df7d71e141ab515c0827\"},\"headline\":\"Is an essay with studies better?\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-26T03:29:03+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-26T03:29:04+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1407,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/3\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/527146bd-6c4a-4d6f-9b6b-9addeabd79a3.png?fit=800%2C800&ssl=1\",\"articleSection\":[\"Abnormal Psychology\",\"Assessment (IB)\",\"Biological Psychology\",\"Example Exam Answers\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/\",\"name\":\"Is an essay with studies better? | The IB Psychology Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/3\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/527146bd-6c4a-4d6f-9b6b-9addeabd79a3.png?fit=800%2C800&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-26T03:29:03+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-26T03:29:04+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/26\\\/is-an-essay-with-studies-better\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/3\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/527146bd-6c4a-4d6f-9b6b-9addeabd79a3.png?fit=800%2C800&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.themantic-education.com\\\/ibpsych\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/3\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/527146bd-6c4a-4d6f-9b6b-9addeabd79a3.png?fit=800%2C800&ssl=1\",\"width\":800,\"height\":800,\"caption\":\"Is it better to have studies in a Paper 1 essay? 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This list contains past exam questions and some written with our best guess as to what the probable exam questions may look like. You could watch this as a video here. READ MORE\u00a0\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Health Psychology&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Health Psychology","link":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/category\/health-psychology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/06\/Untitled-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/06\/Untitled-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/06\/Untitled-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/06\/Untitled-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2021\/06\/Untitled-1.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":12022,"url":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/2019\/04\/27\/exam-question-bank-paper-2-abnormal-psychology\/","url_meta":{"origin":15529,"position":3},"title":"Exam Question Bank: Paper 2: Abnormal Psychology","author":"Travis Dixon","date":"04\/27\/2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Disclaimer: These questions are not IB \"official\" questions and are written with our best guess as to what the probable exam questions may look like. Not every\u00a0possible question is covered but rather a wide sample of questions has been asked so you can get an idea of the types of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Abnormal Psychology&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Abnormal Psychology","link":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/category\/abnormal-psychology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2019\/04\/bigstock-Huge-Armored-Door-In-The-Banki-285200929-1-1.jpg?fit=900%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2019\/04\/bigstock-Huge-Armored-Door-In-The-Banki-285200929-1-1.jpg?fit=900%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2019\/04\/bigstock-Huge-Armored-Door-In-The-Banki-285200929-1-1.jpg?fit=900%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2019\/04\/bigstock-Huge-Armored-Door-In-The-Banki-285200929-1-1.jpg?fit=900%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13154,"url":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/2020\/07\/31\/exam-topics-in-ib-psychology-paper-two-overview\/","url_meta":{"origin":15529,"position":4},"title":"Exam Topics in IB Psychology Paper Two &#8211; Overview","author":"Travis Dixon","date":"07\/31\/2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The most important thing to know when studying for the IB Psychology exams are the topics. The IB Guide published by the IB has these listed. Unfortunately, the guide is a bit confusing in its layout and it's not easy to see quickly and easily what the topics are. That's\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Assessment (IB)&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Assessment (IB)","link":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/category\/assessment-ib\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/07\/paper-1230085_1920-2-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C848&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/07\/paper-1230085_1920-2-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C848&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/07\/paper-1230085_1920-2-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C848&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/07\/paper-1230085_1920-2-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C848&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/07\/paper-1230085_1920-2-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C848&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1315,"url":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/2016\/10\/24\/past-exam-papers\/","url_meta":{"origin":15529,"position":5},"title":"IB Psychology Past Exam Papers","author":"Travis Dixon","date":"10\/24\/2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Updated, July 2020 Past Psych specimen papers are available on the IB OCC website. If you're a student, your teacher will be able to access these. You can also purchase these from the IB Online Store.\u00a0 See examples of Past Paper One questions in this video See examples of Past\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Assessment (IB)&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Assessment (IB)","link":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/category\/assessment-ib\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2017\/09\/bigstock-125246900.jpg?fit=900%2C599&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2017\/09\/bigstock-125246900.jpg?fit=900%2C599&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2017\/09\/bigstock-125246900.jpg?fit=900%2C599&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2017\/09\/bigstock-125246900.jpg?fit=900%2C599&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15529","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15529"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15529\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15553,"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15529\/revisions\/15553"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15544"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15529"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15529"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themantic-education.com\/ibpsych\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15529"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}