IB Psychology HL · 2021 to 2025
Unit 1: Concepts
27 past paper questions from 20 papers across 9 exam sessions. See what repeats, then practise the same skills with AI marking.
Original Exam Vault questions with AI markscheme feedback for this topic.
HL archive · 2021 to 2025
Unit 1: Concepts
Latest exam session: May 2025
- questions
- 27
- questions
- papers
- 20
- papers
- exam sessions
- 9
- exam sessions
- micro-topics
- 5
Topics in Unit 1: Concepts
In syllabus order. The ring is the share of the marks each one carries.
1.1
Bias
4% of marks18 of the 410 marks across the 33 Psychology HL papers analysed (4%) were on this topic. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 2 questions
1.4
Measurement
12% of marks49 of the 410 marks across the 33 Psychology HL papers analysed (12%) were on this topic. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 4 questions
1.6
Responsibility
84% of marks343 of the 410 marks across the 33 Psychology HL papers analysed (84%) were on this topic. A past-paper pattern, not a guarantee for your next paper. · 21 questions
Exam pattern
How often each micro-topic has been examined, year by year. Each label is explained under the grid.
Does it repeat?
Top 4 of 5 micro-topics for the next sitting. Numbers are questions per year.
fewermore
| Micro-topic | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2Ethical treatment of participants, 2021: 2 questions | 5Ethical treatment of participants, 2022: 5 questions | 4Ethical treatment of participants, 2023: 4 questions | 4Ethical treatment of participants, 2024: 4 questions | 5Ethical treatment of participants, 2025: 5 questions | |
| ·Reducing bias, 2021: 0 questions | ·Reducing bias, 2022: 0 questions | ·Reducing bias, 2023: 0 questions | 2Reducing bias, 2024: 2 questions | ·Reducing bias, 2025: 0 questions | |
| ·Validity, 2021: 0 questions | ·Validity, 2022: 0 questions | 2Validity, 2023: 2 questions | ·Validity, 2024: 0 questions | 1Validity, 2025: 1 question | |
| ·Reliability, 2021: 0 questions | ·Reliability, 2022: 0 questions | ·Reliability, 2023: 0 questions | 1Reliability, 2024: 1 question | ·Reliability, 2025: 0 questions |
1 more micro-topics with a free account
- Frequently testedin at least a quarter of all papers, and still appearing in the last two years
- Occasionalin about one paper in ten
- Less commonin fewer than one paper in fifteen
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Questions on Unit 1: Concepts, by exam session
Which papers asked about Unit 1: Concepts, and which question numbers. Open a paper to see them highlighted.
May 2025
6 questions across 5 papers
November 2024
2 questions across 1 paper
May 2024
5 questions across 4 papers
November 2023
4 questions across 3 papers
May 2023
2 questions across 1 paper
November 2022
4 questions across 2 papers
May 2022
2 questions across 2 papers
November 2021
1 question across 1 paper
May 2021
1 question across 1 paper
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Frequently asked questions
Short answers about this page.
Which Psychology HL exam sessions are covered for Unit 1: Concepts?
9 exam sessions from 2021 to 2025, the latest May 2025. Every Paper 1, 2 and 3 in every timezone is read and classified in full, which gives 20 papers in this archive.
Which Unit 1: Concepts topic comes up most?
Ethical treatment of participants (1.6.1): in 55% of papers, last seen May 25 P3. Usually "discuss", worth about 17.8 marks in a paper that includes it.
Can I see the original question and mark scheme?
No. The wording belongs to the IB. You get the citation, the marks, the command term and the skill tested, plus our own matched practice questions with worked answers and AI marking.
What do "banker", "due" and "rising" mean?
Banker: examined in at least one sitting in four and still appearing. Due: regular before, but absent for the last two exam sessions. Rising: clearly more common in the last two years. Our classification of real papers, not an IB statistic.
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More Psychology HL exam preparation
Every question, by paper
What each Psychology HL paper tests across all its sittings: the marks by unit and the micro-topics it keeps coming back to.
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Predicted questions
The question types most likely in the next Psychology HL sitting, built from this same archive.
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Formula booklet, explained
Every formula you are given in the exam, with when to use it and the traps around it.
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Mock exams
Full Psychology HL papers under timed conditions, marked by AI against IB criteria.
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All IB past papers
Every subject we have classified by topic, with the same exam-pattern analysis.
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