Paper 2 — Social Context and Behaviour

AQA GCSE Psychology Paper 2 covers how our social environment influences behaviour, how the brain shapes psychology, and what happens when mental processes go wrong.

Topics in Paper 2

Code	Topic
P2.S	Social influence — conformity, obedience, prosocial and antisocial behaviour
P2.L	Language, thought and communication — Sapir-Whorf, Piaget, non-verbal communication
P2.B	Brain and neuropsychology — structure and function; brain scanning; neuropsychology
P2.PS	Psychological problems — mental health; depression; addiction; treatment

Core themes

Social influence explores how other people and situations shape our behaviour — from small acts of conformity to extreme obedience like that demonstrated in Milgram's famous studies.

Language and thought examines the relationship between language and cognition — does language shape thought, or does thought shape language?

Neuropsychology bridges biology and psychology — how does the physical brain produce psychological experience? Brain scanning technologies allow us to observe the living brain.

Psychological problems covers mental health: what is mental illness, how is it classified, and what treatments work?

Exam structure (Paper 2)

• 1 hour 45 minutes
• 96 marks total
• Same format as Paper 1: short-answer + extended-response + applied questions

Revision approach

• Know key studies (Milgram, Bandura, Asch, Baddeley — and how to apply them)
• Understand both biological and psychological explanations for behaviour
• Practice ethical evaluation — many Paper 2 studies raise significant ethical concerns
• Be able to compare treatments for mental health conditions