Core and Classic Studies

What this unit covers

This unit sits in the Research Methods and Assessment strand of Psychology. It collects resources on single studies: who took part, what the researchers aimed to do, how they did it, what they found and how it can be evaluated. Many of the resources mention A-level Psychology, GCSE Psychology or IB Psychology.

Where to start

Begin with the mind maps, because they break a study into short, clear steps. The Dement and Kleitman (1954) map covers the sample, with its adult males and females, and asks why only some participants were studied intensively. The Blakemore and Cooper (1970) map starts from laboratory-raised kittens kept in darkness. The Chaney et al (2004) map notes a sample of 32 children, and the Casey Case Study map describes the marshmallow task.

A sensible order

1. Pick one study and read its mind map from aim to conclusion.
2. Work through a matching flashcard deck, such as Langer and Rodin or Chaney et al. (2004) - Funhaler Study.
3. Take a quiz, for example Bocchiaro 2012 or Langer & Rodin, to see what you missed.
4. Go back to the map for the gaps.

Linking studies together

Some decks look across studies instead of at one. One flashcard deck asks how far a contemporary study changes our understanding of a key theme, pairing Milgram with Bocchiaro et al., Piliavin et al. with Levine et al., and Loftus and Palmer with Grant et al. Another matches each core study to its area of psychology and key theme. The mind map Core Studies - All 15 Participant Samples is handy for comparing samples side by side.

Make it your own

Once you have used what is here, pick a study you find tricky and build your own map or deck of flashcards to test yourself again later.