Edexcel A-Level Psychology guide FAQ (9PS0)
Guide overview All 8 topics Sample questions Papers and weighting Look inside Questions and answers
Edexcel A-Level Psychology: questions and answers
Specification 9PS0. Two sets, because students and parents ask different things.
For students
I only do one of the applied options. Is the rest wasted?
No. Paper 2 is clinical psychology, which is compulsory, plus one of criminological, child and health psychology chosen by your school.
All three are in the guide as separate topics. Work yours and skip the other two.
What is Paper 3 actually on?
It sets no new content. It examines psychological skills: methods, the analysis and interpretation of data, the named studies, and the issues and debates. All of that is carried inside the eight topics, which is where the guide asks it.
How much maths is there?
A significant amount, and it is examined on all three papers. Measures of central tendency and dispersion, levels of measurement, the choice of statistical test, significance and critical values, and the calculations themselves.
Are the classic studies in it?
Yes, each with the detail the mark scheme wants: the aim, the method, the sample, the procedure, the findings, the conclusions and the criticisms.
How long does one session take?
About twenty minutes for one subtopic, all three steps. Topics run from 292 to 442 questions, so work by subtopic and the size of the topic stops mattering.
Can I do it in my head instead of writing?
Write. The marks are for naming the study, the sample and the finding, and step 2 is where a vague version gets replaced. The method page sets out the evidence.
When should I start?
9PS0 is linear, so all three papers are sat at the end of Year 13. The four foundation topics are taught first and are examined on Paper 1 and Paper 3.
Do I still need past papers?
Yes. Past papers train applying psychology to a novel source, evaluating your own suggestions, and the extended responses. Pearson publishes them free.
For parents
What is this, in plain terms?
A PDF of 2,738 exam-style questions covering the whole of Edexcel A-Level Psychology including all three applied options, with the answers printed after each topic.
My child says they only do one of the three options.
That is correct. Paper 2 has clinical psychology plus one applied option chosen by the school from three, so all three are in the guide and two are skipped.
How do I check it is the right course?
The specification code is on the exam timetable. Edexcel A-Level Psychology is 9PS0.
How do I know if it is being used properly?
There should be handwritten answers on paper and three passes over the same questions, and two scores per session to compare.
My child revises for hours and the grades have not moved.
Rereading and highlighting are the two most common revision activities and Dunlosky and colleagues rated both low utility in their 2013 review of ten techniques. Psychology exposes this quickly, because a study recalled vaguely scores almost nothing.
How much is it compared with a textbook?
£8.00 for the whole specification including all three applied options. An endorsed Edexcel A-Level Psychology textbook is usually £30 to £40 and covers one year.
How much time does the whole course take?
194 subtopics at roughly twenty minutes each is about 65 hours for everything, and closer to 51 once the two unused options are skipped.
Edexcel A-Level Psychology Active Recall Guide
2,738 questions with their answers, 194 subtopics, one file.