01
Classical & Operant Conditioning
Pavlovian learning, conditioned and unconditioned responses, reinforcement, punishment, reinforcement schedules, fear learning, behaviour change and ethical responsibility.
Unit Purpose
This unit examines how learning, memory and decision making develop through the interaction of cognitive, biological, sociocultural and Indigenous perspectives. Students apply psychological evidence and evaluate models and studies. The unit also contributes the experimental method to the four Class Practicals completed across the course in preparation for Paper 2.
Curriculum Journey
02
Social Learning
Attention, retention, reproduction and motivation; modelling, behaviour change, Bandura's Bobo doll study, the Food Dudes intervention and links to mirror neurons.
03
Introduction to Memory
Short and long term memory; semantic, episodic, procedural, perceptual and emotional memory; the engram, autobiographical memory, facial recognition and prosopagnosia.
04
Multi Store Memory Model
Atkinson and Shiffrin's model, sensory memory, short term memory, long term memory, attention, rehearsal, capacity, duration, serial position effects, HM and Clive Wearing.
05
Working Memory Model
The phonological loop, visuospatial processing and central executive; dual task research, articulatory suppression, cognitive load, multitasking and Landry and Bartling.
06
Schema Theory
Schemas, cognitive scripts, schema activation, reconstructive memory, Anderson and Pichert, theoretical constructs, construct validity and evidence from neuroscience.
07
Culture & Memory
Indigenous knowledge systems, spatial memory and songlines; emic and etic approaches, cultural bias and WEIRD sampling through Kearins, Kulkofsky, Rogoff and Waddell, and Cole and Scribner.
08
Environmental Effects on Memory
Cognitive load, digital technology, the Google effect, cognitive offloading, social media, memory and attention through Sparrow et al., contrasting perspectives and, at HL, graph analysis.
09
Biology & Memory
Neurotransmission, acetylcholine, memory consolidation and localisation of function through Rogers and Kesner, Antonova et al., fMRI evidence, nicotine, Alzheimer's disease and ethical evaluation.
10
Improving Memory
Memory palaces, mnemonic strategies, spaced repetition, Indigenous memory methods, Reser et al. and comparison of biological, cognitive and sociocultural perspectives.
11
Dual Process Model
System 1 and System 2 thinking, automatic and analytical processing, the cognitive miser, intuitive errors, decision making, reductionism and soft determinism.
12
Cognitive Biases
Confirmation and anchoring biases, applied decision making, survey based demonstrations, experimental design, causality and statistical analysis.
Skills Developed
Theory & Perspectives
Explain and apply learning theories, memory models and cognitive processes while comparing biological, cognitive, sociocultural and Indigenous perspectives.
Research Design & Ethics
Identify variables, experimental designs, sampling methods and controls, then plan ethical research with informed consent, confidentiality, debriefing and protection from harm.
Evidence Evaluation
Analyse studies through bias, causality, change, measurement, perspective and responsibility, with attention to validity, reliability, generalisability and cultural relevance.
Data & Statistics
Interpret graphs, descriptive statistics and inferential tests, including statistical significance and the Mann Whitney U test, to draw evidence based conclusions.
Application & Comparison
Apply psychology to behaviour change, memory improvement, education, technology and everyday decisions, and compare different ways of investigating the same question.
Exam Communication
Construct concept based Paper 1 responses, document and evaluate the Learning & Cognition experiment for Paper 2, compare research methods, propose an alternative design and, at HL, interpret source based data.
Assessment Connections
Aligned with the IB Psychology assessment model for first assessment in 2027.
Paper 1: Concepts, Content & Contexts
Students explain and apply learning, memory and decision making content, evaluate research and construct concept based responses. Mock Paper 1 work is embedded in the conditioning and improving memory topics.
Paper 2: Applying Research Methods
Paper 2 draws on the four Class Practicals completed across the course. Learning & Cognition contributes the true or quasi experiment. Students describe its method, link a concept, compare methods and propose an alternative design; they also evaluate an unseen study using two or more concepts.
Paper 3: Data Analysis & Interpretation
The Environmental Effects HL extension develops source, graph and statistical interpretation alongside methodological and cultural evaluation of research findings.
Unit Activities
Learning & Cognition Experiment
Students conduct a true or quasi experiment with at least five participants. Possible areas include reconstructive memory, analytic and holistic attention, anchoring bias, or music and memory. Students manage ethics, record the method and findings, and evaluate the experiment for Paper 2.
Fear, Behaviour Change & Conditioning
Students complete a responsibility worksheet using Watson and Rayner and Meyer and Chesser, apply conditioning terminology, and respond to a mock Paper 1 task.
Bobo Doll & Food Dudes Analysis
Students analyse Bandura's Bobo doll study and the Food Dudes intervention through variables, design, controls, bias, causality, measurement, responsibility and behaviour change.
Earliest Memories & Memory Types
Students reflect on and represent their earliest memory, complete a memory types worksheet, and explore facial recognition, prosopagnosia and the fusiform face area.
Serial Position & Memory Case Studies
Students conduct a serial position and reconstructive memory demonstration, graph the results, compare HM with Clive Wearing, and complete the HM dialogue and content quiz.
Dual Tasking & Working Memory
Bounce and Brain and See and Speak demonstrations lead into Landry and Bartling methodology analysis and an ethical research plan about phone use while driving.
Schema Activation & Data Analysis
Students apply schemas to the Woolworths fire case, complete an Anderson and Pichert role based activity, and calculate the mean, standard deviation and Mann Whitney U before graphing results.
Culture, Indigenous Knowledge & Memory
Students link concepts to cross-cultural studies, explore transactional and communal Indigenous memory, redesign a study beyond WEIRD sampling, and compare emic and etic approaches.
Google Effect, Technology & Graph Analysis
Students evaluate Sparrow et al., debate phone use, compare Nicholas Carr's perspectives and apply cognitive load. HL students also interpret and critique eight technology and learning graphs.
Chemical Messengers & Localisation
Neurotransmission and Rogers and Kesner worksheets, Antonova evaluation, a nicotine and Alzheimer's claim-evidence-question task, and ethics cost-benefit analysis connect biology to memory.
Memory Improvement Strategies
Students test a memory palace, compare spaced repetition and Indigenous approaches, analyse Reser et al., evaluate perspectives, and complete mock Paper 1 work.
Dual Processing & Decision Making
Reasoning demonstrations and an everyday laptop purchase task develop application of System 1 and System 2 thinking before Paper 1 explanation and application practice.
Confirmation & Anchoring Bias
Students complete a rule testing task and an anchoring survey demonstration, calculate the Mann Whitney U, and critique the design, measurement and causal claims.