Practice Flashcards
What is biological change?
Track your progress — Sign up free to save your progress and get smart review reminders based on spaced repetition.
All Flashcards in Topic 1.3
Below are all 30 flashcards for this topic. Sign up free to track your progress and get personalized review schedules.
1.3.110 cards
What is biological change?
Changes in the brain and body over time — from maturation, experience, hormones or injury.
What is maturation?
The gradual development of the brain and body on a rough biological timetable.
What is neuroplasticity?
The brain reshaping its connections in response to experience (e.g. practice).
Give an example of hormonal biological change.
The hormone surge at puberty, which reshapes body, brain and mood.
How can the brain change after injury?
Through plasticity, healthy areas can slowly take over some functions of the damaged area.
Gradual vs sudden biological change?
Maturation and practice are gradual; a hormone surge or brain injury can change behaviour suddenly.
Why is biological change linked to the concept of change?
It is a main engine of how and why behaviour changes over time.
Two biological changes behind a teen improving at a skill?
Neuroplasticity (practice strengthens pathways) and maturation (planning regions develop).
A memory line for biological change?
A brain is a builder, not a statue.
Which concept is this?
Change — one of the six core concepts.
1.3.210 cards
What is behavioural change?
A lasting change in what someone does, driven by learning and experience.
How does learning change behaviour?
Through conditioning — linking cues and outcomes (classical and operant).
What is habit formation?
Repeating an action in the same situation until it becomes automatic.
What is behaviour modification?
Deliberately using rewards and consequences to change behaviour.
Give an example of behaviour modification.
A sticker chart that rewards a child each time they tidy up.
Why is behavioural change 'hopeful'?
Because behaviour is learned, it can be re-learned — the basis of many therapies.
Name a therapy based on behavioural change.
Gradual exposure for phobias, or replacing cues and rewards to break a habit.
Behavioural vs biological change?
Behavioural = learning reshapes what you do; biological = the brain/body itself changes.
Three routes to behavioural change?
Learning (conditioning), habit formation, and behaviour modification.
Which concept is this?
Change — one of the six core concepts.
1.3.310 cards
What does it take to show a behaviour has changed?
Measuring the same behaviour at more than one time point and comparing.
What is a before-and-after design?
Measure a behaviour, do something, then measure again to see if it shifted.
What is a repeated-measures design?
Testing the same people several times so each person is their own comparison.
What is a longitudinal study?
Following the same people over months or years, measuring repeatedly.
What is a practice effect?
Improving on a test simply because you have taken it before, not from real change.
Why add a control group when measuring change?
To rule out changes everyone experiences (season, ageing, events).
What is regression to the mean?
Extreme scores drifting back toward average on a retest, with no real change.
Three checks before trusting a change?
Consistent (reliable) measure, a comparison group, and a change big enough to matter.
Why is a single measurement not enough?
Change can only be shown by comparing the same behaviour across time.
Which concept is this?
Change — one of the six core concepts.
Topic 1.3 study notes
Full notes & explanations for Change
Psychology exam skills
Paper structures, command terms & tips
Want smart review reminders?
Sign up free to track your progress. Our spaced repetition algorithm will tell you exactly which cards to review and when.
Start Free