OCR GCSE Psychology key terms

A procedure in which neither participants nor the researchers interacting with them know which experimental condition each participant is in.

In Freud’s theory, the process that disguises the hidden meaning of a dream through symbols, making its content less disturbing.

An offence involving illegal drugs, such as unlawful possession or supply.

The extent to which research findings can be generalised to real-life settings.

An inability to view a situation from another person's perspective.

Processing information by connecting it to meaning rather than simply repeating it, helping it enter long-term memory.

The form in which information is represented in memory, such as by its sound or meaning.

An internal biological clock that regulates a biological rhythm.

Long-term memory for personally experienced events, including their context in time and place.

An approximate result, often calculated by rounding numbers to convenient values before carrying out the calculation.

A principle or standard that guides how psychologists should treat people and make responsible decisions in research or practice.

The proposed contribution of a characteristic or behaviour to survival and reproduction over generations.

An external cue, such as light, that helps synchronise a biological rhythm with the environment.

A belief about what is likely to happen or what something is likely to be like, which can influence interpretation and recall.

The way participants are organised in relation to the conditions of an experiment.

An influence of the researcher’s expectations or beliefs on the procedure, data or interpretation that makes a particular outcome more likely.

Believing that outcomes depend mainly on forces outside one’s control, such as luck, fate or other people.

The consistency of a measure from one use to another.

A variable other than the independent variable that could influence the dependent variable.

A personality dimension involving sociability, outgoing behaviour and a tendency to seek stimulation. Also spelt ‘extroversion’.

Envy experienced after viewing other people’s personal information on Facebook.

An experiment conducted in an everyday setting in which the researcher manipulates the independent variable.

The belief that intelligence and ability are largely unchangeable.

A number representing a part of a whole, written as a numerator divided by a denominator.

The capacity to choose how to act, including choosing to resist social pressure.

The number of times a particular value or category occurs in a dataset.

A table showing how often each value, category or interval occurs in a dataset.

The front region of the cerebrum, involved in planning, decision-making and retrieving stored memories.