ISC Psychology Previous Year Question Paper 2016 Solved for Class 12
Maximum Marks: 70
Time allowed: Three hours
- Candidates are allowed additional 15 minutes for only reading the paper. They must NOT start writing during this time.
- Answer Question 1 from Part I and five questions from Part II,
- The intended marks for questions or parts of questions are given in brackets [ ].
Part – I (20 Marks)
Answer all questions.
(Compulsory)
Question 1. [20]
Answer briefly all the question (i) to (xx) :
(i) What is meant by phobia ?
(ii) Who put forward the Two Factor Theory of Intelligence ?
(iii) What are projective techniques ?
(iv) Mention any two personality types put forward by Sheldon.
(v) What is primary cognitive appraisal of stress ?
(vi) Define personality, according to All port.
(vii) What are social norms ?
(viii) Explain the pre-conventional stage of morality.
(ix) What is meant by the term Counselling Psychology ?
(x) Mention one way to resist prejudice.
(xi) What is meant by the term person positivity bias ?
(xii) Mention any one characteristic of passive- aggressive personality disorder.
(xiii) Explain the term counter transference.
(xiv) What is meant by the term projection ?
(xv) Who put forward the theory of Cognitive development ?
(xvi) Explain self-actualization.
(xvii) What is meant by the term internals, according to Julian Rotter ?
(xviii) Explain the term mood disorder.
(xix) Mention any two central dimensions of personality according to Costa and McCrae.
(xx) State any one use of GATB.
Answer:
(i) Irrational fears of specific things causing intense emotional distress and interfering significantly with everyday activities.
(iii) Method used in the study of personality and social motives in which a subject is presented with a relatively ambiguous stimulus and asked to describe it in a meaningful way or to tell a story about it.
(v) Primary Cognitive appraisal – The evaluation of a situation whether it is threatening or not.
(vii) Social norms are standards of behavior agreed upon by group members which exert a powerful influence on social behavior or rules indicating how individuals are expected to behave in specific situations are called social norm.
(viii) As the first stage in moral development, preconventional morality is essentially the approach to right and wrong taken by children. Children often make moral decision based on how it will impact on them. Actions that lead to rewards are perceived as good or acceptable, once that lead to punishment are seen as bad or unacceptable/or example.
(ix) Counselling Psychology is a broad field of psychology that emphasizes helping and advising persons with various problems of day to day life, relating to education, occupation, career, mild mental problems like mild depression, marriage and marital problems, family related problems and professional problems etc.
(x) One way to resist prejudice is breaking the cycle to prejudice, Making positive value, reducing stereo type.
(xi) It is our tendency to evaluate individuals more positively than we evaluate groups, including the groups to which those individuals belong. Thus, we may have a prejudice against a group, we find that it applies to the group rather than to individual members of the group.
(xii) Specific characteristics of passive aggressive personality disorder include :
- Procrastinates
- Unreasonably criticize or scorns people in position of authority. (any one)
(xiii) Counter transference is a situation in which a therapist, during the course of therapy, develops positive or negative feelings toward the patient. These feelings may be the stirred up during therapy which the therapist directs toward the patient.
(xiv) The term projection is a defense mechanism in which conflict is dealt by ascribing one’s own anxiety – provoking motives to someone else; blaming others.
(xv) Jean Piaget put forward the theory of cognitive development.
(xvi) Self-actualization represents a concept derived from Humanistic psychological theory and specifically, from the theory created by Abraham Maslow self-actualization is the stage of personal development in which individuals reach their maximum potential/fullest potential or peak experience is called as self-actualization.
(xvii) According to Julian Rotter, individuals who believe that they exert considerable control over the outcomes they experience are called internals. Individuals with strong internal locus of control, believe events in their life derive primarily from their own actions.
(xviii) A psychological disorder in which the individuals experience swings in their emotional states that are more extreme and prolonged than most people.
Their highs are higher and lows are lower and they spend more time in these states than most people.
(xix) The two central dimensions of a personality according to Costa and McCrae are :
Extra version : A dimension ranging from energetic, enthusiastic, sociable and talkative at one end to retiring, sober, reserved, silent and cautions at the other.
Agreeableness : A dimension ranging from good-natured, cooperative, trusting and helping at one end to irritable, suspicious and uncooperative at the other.
(xx) General Aptitude Test Battery : GATB is a range of aptitude tests,
- They are the backbones of the guidance services.
- They can be safely used for the purpose of educational and vocational selection (Any one)
Part – II (50 Marks)
Section – A
Answer any two questions
Question 2.
(a) Describe Stern berg’s Triarchic Theory of Intelligence. [5]
(b) Explain how Stanford Binet test can be used to measure intelligence. [5]
Answer:
(a) Theorist-Robert Stern berg.
Triarchic theory – He gave three basic types of intelligence.
Componential or Analytical: The ability to think critically and analytically, people high on this type, scores well on standard academic tests or prove to be excellent students. Example – professors, teachers are high on this one.
Experiential or Creative : Insight and ability to formulate new ideas, people high on this type excel on zeroing in on what information is crucial in a given situation and/or combining seemingly unrelated facts. Example any inventions like minting coins, printing press.
Contextual or Practical : They have high adaptive sense or are street smart. They are adaptable at solving problems of every day life. Example – carrying the baby on the back while doing work.
(b) The Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales is an individually administered intelligence test that was revised from the original Binet-Simon scale by Lewis M. Terman, a psychologist in Stanford University. It is a cognitive ability intelligence test that is used to diagnose developmental or intellectual deficiencies in young children. The test measures five factors and consists of both verbal and non-verbal subtests. The five factors being tested are knowledge, quantitative reasoning, visual- spatial processing working memory and fluid reasoning.
The MA/CA ratio yields the Intelligence Quotient (IQ), a concept proposed by psychologist William Stern in 1912. If two children both obtain an MA of 5 years on an intelligence test, but one child is 4 years and the other is 6, obviously the younger child is developing intellectually at a much faster rate. To express this fact in the form of IQ’s, we take the ratio of MA to CA and multiply by 100 to eliminate decimals.
Thus, the bright child mentioned above earns an IQ of 125 and the slower child earns an IQ of 83. If the individual’s MA or CA are equal and the IQ of 100 was obtained. This is considered to be an average score. IQ above 100 indicated that the person’s intellectual age was greater than his/her CA. Numbers below 100 indicated that individual was less intelligent than his/her peers.
Uses : School placement, determined presence of learning disability or development delay, tracking intellectual development included in neuro psychological testing to assess the brain function of individual with neurological impairment.
Question 3.
(a) What is meant by achievement test ? Discuss any four uses of achievement test. [5]
(b) Explain the basic concepts of Karen Homey’s theory of personality. [5]
Answer 3.
(a) Achievement refers to what a person has acquired or achieved after the specific training or instructions have been imparted to him.
Achievement test is also known as proficiency test, in which one measures the extent to which the person has acquired or achieved certain information on proficiency as a function of instruction or training.
The four uses of achievement test are:
1. Achievement tests are an effective way to check any weakness in the instructions or even slackness on the part of the examine. If weakness is found in the instructor, the instructor or the teacher may be asked to improve his instructions so that it may include the subsequent instructions.
2. It is also effective in the formulation of education boards and provides a very easy means of critical examination of the content and method of instruction.
3. It also helps in adapting the instruction to the individual need of the learner. The performance on the achievement test directly reveals the need for further guidance to be given to each learner and accordingly the instruction can be modified to suit the individual’s need.
4. Special achievement tests meant for measuring the achievement of the pupils in some selective areas may conveniently be grouped into two distinct groups. The diagnostic test and standardized end of course examinations. The diagnostic tests are the test whose primary function is to identify the educationally retarded pupils and to suggest remedial programmes. Such tests are available in special areas like in reading skills and mathematical skills.
The standard end course examinations are the series of the achievement tests for different subjects taught at either schools or college level. Since these are the coordinated series of the achievement test in different subjects they provide one system of comparable norms for all tests and thus a direct comparison of scores obtained in different subjects by the same tastee is possible.
So far as jobs are concerned, results of various achievement test indicated whether after education a person has been able to achieve in certain areas which are required for a particular job. A lot of human energy and resource can be saved if people are selected for jobs, promoted and transferred on the basis of their scores in achievement test/ vocational selection.
(b) Karen Homey argued that “Penis envy” was not a normal development in females but rather an unusual and pathological occurrence. She also countered that some of her male patients envied women their capacity for pregnancy, child birth, motherhood, breast development and suckling. Two major components of her person psychology were the notion of basic anxiety and basic hostility.
Basic Anxiety : It is what arises in childhood when the child feels helpless in a threatening world. Children leam that they are relatively weak and powerless, dependent on their parents for safety and satisfaction. Having and reliable parents can create a feeling of security and erratic indifferent or rejecting parents may sharpens the child’s sense of helplessness and vulnerability.
Basic hostility : It is what usually accompanies basic anxiety and grows out of resentment over the parental behavior that leads to anxiety in the first place. Because hostility cannot be expressed directly to parents, it is typically repressed, which only increases the child’s anxiety. Children dependent on their parents, anxious because their parents and unable to express their true feelings directly depend on the three modes of social behavior.
First mode: Moving towards others, involves excessive compliance/ passive.
Second mode : Moving against others, involves pursuit of satisfaction through ascendance and domination of others/ aggression.
Third mode : Moving away from others – is self-protection by withdrawal.
Homey believed that normal people use all three modes of social interaction at times but in a relatively balanced and flexible manner, adjusting their approach to situational demands. Neurotic people, she urged, allow one approach to dominate their social interactions and thus rigidly gets them into trouble.
Question 4,
(a) Discuss Sigmund Freud’s view about the structure of personality. [4]
(b) Explain MMPI as a tool to assess personality. [6]
Answer:
(a) The structure of personality : Freud suggested that personality consists largely of three parts the Id, the ego and the super ego. The id consists of all our primitive, innate urges. These include various bodily needs, sexual, desire and aggressive impulses. According to Freud, the id is totally unconscious and operative in accordance with what he termed the pleasure principle. It demands immediate, total gratification and in . not capable of consideration the potential costs of seeking this goal.
The second structure of personality is the ego. The ego’s task is to hold the id in check until conditions allow for satisfaction of its impulses. Thus, the ego operates in accordance with the reality principle. It takes into account external conditions and the consequences of various action and directs behavior so as to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. The ego is partly conscious but not entirely; thus, some of its actions – for example, its eternal struggle with the id – are outside our conscious knowledge or understanding.
The final aspect of personality described by Freud is the Super ego. It too seeks to control satisfaction of id impulses, but, in contrast to the ego, it is concerned with morality – with whether various ways that could potentially satisfy id impulses are right or wrong. The super ego permits us to gratify such impulses only when it is morally correct to do so – not simply when it is safe or feasible, as required by ego. So, for example, it would be the super ego, not the ego, that would prevent a stock broker from altering a computer program and thereby transferring funds from his clients’ accounts into his own account, even though he knew he could get away with this action.
Freud feel that this constant struggle among id, ego and super ego plays a key role in personality and in many psychological disorders. Moreover, he suggested that the struggle was often visible in everyday behavior in what have come to be known as Freudian Slips errors in speech that in fact betray unconscious thoughts or impulses.
(b) The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) developed in 1930. Current version MMPI – 2 (567 items).
- Contains 10 clinical scales and several validity scales.
- Clinical scales relate to various psychological disorders and its associated personality validity scales determine whether the respondent is faking the answer.
Depending on the scores it can be identified as relatively high or low on a particular personality trait.
MMPI-2 is designed to measure many aspects of personality related to psychological disorders :
A set of statements is true or false about themselves in extent to whether they agree or disagree with various sentences which of a pair of activities they prefer. The subject has to classify these questions into three categories – True, False and Can’t say.
This inventory is used with adults who are 18 and above. The current inventory has 567 items all in true or false format and takes one or two hours to complete depending on their reading level. The chief criterion of validity was the prediction of clinical cases against the diagnosis of a hospital staff. There are four unusual scores obtained in addition to the diagnostic classification. These four are ‘validity scores’ (F), a Tie score’ (L), a ‘questions score’ and a K-score.
Section – B
Answer any three questions.
Question 5.
(a) Discuss the Formal Operational Stage as given by Piaget. [5]
(b) Explain the relative contribution of heredity and environment in the context of a child’s development. [5]
Answer 5.
(a) Formal Operational Stage as suggested by Piaget : At about the age of twelve Piaget suggested, most children enter the final stage of cognitive development – the stage of formal operations, During this period, major features of adult thought make their appearance. While children in the earlier stage of concrete operations can think logically, they can do so only about concrete events and objects. In contrast, those who have reached the stage of formal operations can think abstractly; they can deal not only with the real or concrete but with possibilities – events or relationships that do not exist, but can be imagined.
Hypothetical thinking : With formal operations, boys and girls moved from the actual world to the hypothetical world. They can still think about the way things are, but they become much more skilled at thinking about how things might be if certain changes took place. Such thinking allows adolescents to judge the ‘reasonableness’ of a purely hypothetical line of reasoning.
Deduction and induction : Hypothetical and abstract thinking make sophisticated deduction and induction possible. Deduction is reasoning from abstract, general principles to specific hypothesis that follow from these principles. Induction thinking is the complementary process of observing a number of specific events or instances and inferring an abstract general principle to explain those instances. The two processes can be seen in the adolescents reasoning about nature, science and even social problems.
Inter-propositional logic : The formal operations involve the ability to judge whether propositions are logically connected to one another, regardless of whether the propositions are true. This is called inter propositional logic.
Reflective thinking : This allows the formal operational person to be his or her own critic, to evaluate a process, idea of solution from the perspective of an outsider and to find errors or weak spots in it. The reflective thinker can then sharpen plans, arguments or points of view-making them more effective, more powerful.
(b) According to Pinter (1931) ‘The potency of environment is not merely so great as commonly supposed. A child’s abilities are determined by his ancestors and all that the environment can do is to give the opportunity for the development of his potentialities”. We can claim our calculations agree perfectly with the hypothesis that intelligence is inherited in the same way as physical characteristics are inherited.
Thus heredity is more important than environment in growth and development. Several experiment findings also emphasize importance of heredity in individual differences. Pearson (1904) found a remarkable resemblance among members of the same family in color of eyes, ratio of width and length of head and the physical traits which are by and large affected by environmental influences. Interestingly, he noted that the effect of heredity upon mental characteristics is the same as upon physical characteristics.
Contribution of Environment to child’s development: The effect of changed environment upon mental traits – two studies concluded by Chicago University group headed by Freeman (1925) and Stanford University group headed by Burks (1928) are notable. Both these investigations emphasized some what different methods, through the purpose was same i.e., to study the influence of home environment upon the development of mental traits in children. Freeman agrees with Burk’s view that heredity is a force in the determination of mental ability by the side of which all other forces are dwarfed in comparison. Both the studies agree upon the influence of heredity in shaping mental ability.
Both the groups show a general agreement on the role of environment in the development of individual intelligence. But the Chicago group seems to give greater emphasis to environment than to heredity. Watson has strongly emphasized the importance of environment in the development of human personality. If an individual’s abilities, efficiency and traits of personality would have bears exclusively influenced by genetic factors, environment, training and learning would have no value. Similarly, if training and education is considered as a sole factor influencing personality differences then favorable environmental opportunities are everything and potentialities and gifted qualities have no implications for personality development.
It seems more reasonable to say that both nature and nurture, heredity and environment have important roles to pay in the development of human being. But their relative importance differs in the development of various traits of personality.
Similarly, environment has the upper hand in the development of personality traits like sociability, amiability, honest, dominance, submission, introversion-extroversion, interests and several others socially desirable, undesirable traits. Regarding the mental activities, there are sufficient evidences to believe that heredity factors determine the potential level of physiological limit of development which an individual achieves at the maximum. Within this limit, the environment factors influence the level of development that really occurs.
Hence, neither nature nor nurture alone can explain one’s personality development. Heredity and Environment cooperatively and coordinately help in the growth and development of child’s behavior and personality.
Question 6.
(a) Explain the distress cycle. [5]
(b) Discuss briefly any five ways in which health of an individual can be affected by stress. [5]
Answer:
(a) Psychological distress is a general term used to describe unpleasant feelings or emotions that impact your level of functioning. In other words, it is psychological discomfort that interferes with your activitive of daily living. Psychological distress can result in negative views of the environment, others, and the self. Sadness, anxiety, distraction, and symptoms of mental illness are manifestations of psychological distress.
(b) Ways in which health of an individual can be affected by stress : Stress has been implicated in the occurrence of heart disease, high blood pressure, hardening the arteries, ulcers and even diabetes. It interferes with efficient operation of our immune system, this elaborate internal mechanism through which our bodies recognize and destroy potentially harmful substances and intruders, such as bacteria, viruses and cancerous cells. Prolonged exposure to stress seem to disrupt this system.
Studies of the effect of stress on animals and humans suggest that a variety of stressors, including disruptions in interpersonal relationships, loneliness, academic pressure, daily hassles and the lack of social support, can interfere with our immune systems. Persons who are divorced or separated from their spouses often experience reduced functioning in certain aspects of their immune system, compared to individuals who are happily married.
Diabetes : When stressed, the blood sugar level rises. Stress hormone like cortisol and epinephrine are released as they raise blood sugar to help boost energy when it is needed the most. Both physical and emotional stress can prompt and increase these hormones resulting in an increase in blood sugar.
Ulcer and High Blood Pressure (Hyper-tension) : Stress causes psycho-physiological (mind-body) illness. This illness which include certain forms of hypertension, ulcers and headaches, are not caused by known physical disorders. Instead, the culprit is stress. In people with reactive temperaments chronic stress produces various changes. If there is prolonged resentment, anger or anxiety may stimulate an excess of digestive acids that eats away parts of the lining of the stomach or small intestine, creating ulcers. Another person under stress may retain excess sodium and fluids which together with construct the arteries cell walls, contributes to increased blood pressure.
Stress and cancer : Several investigators report that people are at risk for cancer a year or so after experiencing depression, helplessness or bereavement. Cancer occur more often than usual among those who are widows, divorced or separated. Alan Justice notes that stress does not create cancer cells, rather it affects their growth by weakening the body naturally defuses against a few proliferating malignant cells.
Stress and heart attack : Friedman and Raseman measured the blood cholesterol level and clotting speed of 40 US tax accountants from January to March, both of these coronary warning indicators more completely normal. Then, as the accountants began scrambling to finish their tax returns before April 15th filing deadline, their cholesterol and clotting measures rose to dangerous levels in May and June with the deadlines past the measures returned to normal. The researches launch had paid off. Stress predicted heart attack risk. Type A people more prone to heart attacks. They smoke more, sleep less and drink milk and more caffeinated drinks. All contribute to coronary risk.
Question 7.
(a) Discuss the biological, psychological and socialcultural perspectives of viewing abnormal behavior. [5]
(b) Explain the main features of Client Centered Therapy. [5]
Answer:
(a) The biological model emphasized the role of the nervous system in mental disorder. This approach seeks to understand such disorders in terms of malfunctioning of portions of the brain imbalances in various neuro-transmitters and genetic factors. Disorder of CNS, ANS or endocrine system, either inherited or caused by some excess destruction of brain tissue.
- Neurotransmitter and abnormal imbalance in brain, imbalance of neurotransmitter.
- Genetic vulnerability, depression, schizo-phrenia and alcoholism only manifest in later life. Teen or adulthood temperament.
- Chromosomal abnormalities – Down’s Syndrome.
It is seen that many mental disorders show a high degree of concordance among close relatives. If one family members develops a disorder, other are at increased risk for developing it too. The biological model has becomes increasingly influential in recent years as advances in neuroscience have revealed more and more about the role of various portion of the brain in many aspects of behavior, and as techniques for observing the functioning of the brain (e.g. magnetic resonance imaging, PET scans.) have improved.
Psychological factors too can be important. The psychological perspective emphasizes the role of basic psychological process in the occurrence of mental disorders. For instance, many psychologists believe that learning plays a key role in many disorders. An example, phobias, or excessive fears of objects or situations.
The psychological perspective also emphasized the role of cognitive factors in mental disorders. For instance, many theories of depression suggest that long lasting negative feelings often stem firm faulty patterns of thoughts. The psychological perspective also takes account of unconscious forces and conflicts within individuals the factors also vividly emphasized by Freud and his followers.
Social cultural factors do play a role in mental disorder. Psychologists and other mental health professionals believe that they do, and print to the important role of such social variable as poverty, unemployment, inferior education and prejudice, as potential causes of at least some mental disorders. In other words, the socio-cultural perspective emphasizes the fact that external factors such as negative environments, a disadvantaged position in society and cultural tradition can play a role in mental disorders. Rapid technological advancements may increase stress.
(b) The most influential humanistic approach in client centered therapy developed by Carl Rogers. Rogers strongly rejected Freud’s view that mental disorders stem from conflicts over the expression of primitive instinctive urges. On the contrary, he argued such problems arise mainly because clients efforts to attain self-actualization, growth and development are thwarted early in life by judgments and ideas imposed by other people.
According to Rogers, these judgments lead individuals to acquire what he terms unrealistic condition of worth. That is they learn that they must be something other than what they really are, in order to be loved and accepted to be worthwhile as a person.
It focuses on eliminating such unrealistic conditions of worth through evaluation of a psychological climate in which clients feel valued as persons. Client centered therapists often show unconditional positive regard or unconditional acceptance, of the client and his or her feelings, a high level of empathetic understanding and accurate reflection of the clients feelings and perception. In this warm, caring environment, freed from threat of rejection, individuals can come to understand their own feelings and accept even previously unwanted aspects of their own personalities.
As a result, they come to see themselves as unique human beings with many desirable characteristics. To an extent, such changes occur, Rogers suggests, many mental disorders disappear and individuals can resume their normal progress towards self-fulfillment.
Question 8.
(a) Explain Mil gram’s Experiment on Obedience. [5]
(b) Describe the process through which people try to understand the reasons for others behavior. [5]
Answer 8.
(a) Mil gram’s Experiment on Obedience : Obedience refers to situations in which the agent has the legitimate right to influence the Focal Person (FP) and the FP has the obligation to obey. Such reciprocal role relationships are most clearly demonstrated when the agent has a higher status than the FP and the roles are part of a social system in which a higher status clearly defines influence over a lower status, such as ranks in the military.
Subject of Mil gram’s experiments were men who responded to newspaper ads and were paid $4.50 for coming to the laboratory. The situation was described as a learning experiment in which one person, the teacher, would shock another person, the learner, after each mistake while learning a list of paired words.
On the basis of a rigged drawing, the subject was always assigned the role of teacher, while male confederate of the experimenter was assigned the role of learner.
The learner was strapped into an electric chair, while the real subject was taken into another room where the electric shock apparatus was located. Actually, no shocks were administered, but the elaborate equipment led the subject to believe he would be administering painful shocks to the learner. The shock apparatus contained 30 switches indicating levels of shock from 15 to 450 volts, with labels such as Single shock, Moderate shock, danger, severe shock, and finally ‘XXX’. The teacher was to shock the learner for each mistake made in learning, and the level of shock was to increase one increment with each error. As the experiment progressed, the learner responded appropriately, with occasional mistakes.
At several points as the shock level increased, the learner would cry out because of the shock was getting painful, or he could be heard kicking the wall. At 300 volts, he stopped giving answers, while the teacher was instructed by the experimenter to continue increasing the level of shock. If the subject showed any reluctance, the experimenter prodded him to continue, saying it was necessary or required by the experiment. Obedience was measured by the amount of shock the subject was willing to administer to the learner.
Before conducting this experiment, Mil gram described it to several groups of people, all of whom predicted that very few, if any, of the subjects would follow the experimenter’s commands and give shocks up to 450 volts. Contrary to expectations, however, 26 of his 40 subjects (65 percent) continued to give shocks up to the 450 volt level, even though they believed they were hurting another person and showed signs of a great deal of tension-trembling, stuttering, nervous laughter. ’
Why do people show high levels of obedience in these laboratory studies because in many tragic real-life situations too several factors seem to play a role. First, the experimenter began by explaining that he is not the participant, would be responsible for the learner’s well-being. Second, the experimenter possessed clear signs of authority; and in most societies, individuals learn that persons holding authority are to be obeyed (Bushman, 1984, 1988) Third, the experimenters commands were gradual in nature.
He did not request that participants jump to the 450 volt shock immediately; rather he moved towards this request one step at a time. In sum, several factors probably contributed to the high levels of obedience observed in Mil gram’s research and related studies. To gather, these factors produced a powerful force – one that most persons found difficult to resist.
This does not imply that the commands of authority figures cannot be defied. Important factors include clear evidence that the persons in authority are pursuing purely selfish goals (saks, 1992), feelings of increased person responsible for the outcome produced on the part on the part of those who disobey (Hamilton, 1978) and exposure to disobedient models – persons who led others by taking the first, dangerous steps (e.g. Rochat and Modigliani, 1995). When such conditions exist, persons in authority may lose their capacity to command, and may quickly find themselves on the outside looking in.
(b) Attribution : The process through which we seek to determine the causes behind other’s behavior is known as attribution. We examine others behavior for clues as to the causes behind what they say and do, then reach our decision. The kind of information we consider depends on the specific question we want to answer. For instance, one basic issue is: Did another person’s actions stem from internal causes (e.g, their own traits, intentions, or motives) or from external causes (e.g. luck or factors beyond their control in a given situation). To answer this question, we often focus on information about
- Consensus – whether other people behave in the same way as the person we’re considering;
- Consistency – whether this person behaves in the same manner over the time; and
- Distinctiveness – whether this person behaves in the same way in different situations.
If very few people act like this person (consensus is low), this person have behaved in the same way over time (consistency is high), and this person behaves in much the same manner in many situations (distinctiveness is slowly), we conclude that the behavior stems from internal causes.
This is the kind of person the individual is and will probably remain. For instance, we would probably draw this conclusion about a student who got up and criticized a professor harshly in class if no other student did this, if this student criticized the professor on other occasions, and if this student also criticized other professors, waiter persons in restaurants and so on. In contrast, if all three factors (consensus, consistency and distinctiveness) are high, we are more likely to conclude that people behave as they do because of external causes – for instance, that they may have no choice, (Kelly, 1972). We’d reach this conclusion if many other students also criticized the professor, if this student criticized the same professor on other occasions and if the student did not criticize other professors.
Question 9.
Write notes on any two of the following :[5 x 2]
(a) Role of psychology in facilitating learning in schools.
(b) Career counselling.
(c) How does the knowledge of psychology help in preventing crime ?
Answer:
(a) Five ways to facilitate learning are:
- To provide opportunities to students to discover, develop and improve their interest and abilities.
- To arrange for remedial work when required.
- To help students to develop good study habits.
- To make students aware of the need of educational planning.
- To give information about higher education and stimulate them to consider this carefully.
(b) Career counseling:
Career counselling is the process of helping the candidates to select a course of study that may help them to get into job or make them employable. A career counselor helps candidates to get into a career that is suited to their aptitude, personality, interest and skills. So it is the process of making an effective correlation between the internal psychology of a candidate with the external factors of employ ability and other courses.
Career counselors work with people from various walks of life, such as adolescents seeking to explore career options, or experienced professionals contemplating a career change. Career counselors typically have a background in vocational psychology or industrial/organisational psychology.
Career Testing : An objective form of career counselling is through an aptitude test, or a career test. Career testing is now usually done online and provides insightful and objective information about which jobs may be suitable for the test taker based on combination of their interests, values and skills. Career tests usually provide a list of recommended jobs that match the test takers attributes with host of people with similar personalities who enjoy are successful at their jobs. There are various ways to test an individual for which field he is suitable, psychometric testing being one among them.
Psychometric Testing : Different test companies have their own methods of testing. Usually, there are multiple sets of questions relating to personality type, how the test taker would handle aspects of work and home life, what his or her goals are for the future and his or her strengths and weaknesses. Currently more than 500 tests of personality of different types are in use. These tests have now become very scientific, refined and comprehensive compared to earlier tests.
Intelligence Tests : Various intelligence tests are applied to detect one’s intelligence. While, average intelligent and intelligent persons can be selected for any common job, below average intelligent persons are advised to take up repetitive and jobs requiring less skills. Besides these main tests there are other testes like achievement tests, general aptitude tests, special aptitude tests and various types of special ability tests. Tests are essential for any selection, recruitment, counselling, training and even at the time of promotion.
A general answer tracing the testing of a student (aptitude, personality, intelligence, ability and achievement); Explaining test results and achievability of goals; handling the admission process to courses (prerequisites for a course, presentation at interviews etc.) and finally finding the right for the student.
(c) In a legal sense, person of 21 years and above convicted by the court of law for violating the provisions of IPS and CPC is labelled a criminal in our country and the illegal act for which he is convicted is known as crime. Any behavious like pick-pocketing, gambling, burglary, robbery, theft, dacoity, rape, kidnapping and abduction attempts at suicide, murder, riots, destroying another’s property, sexual assault, prostitution, cheating, counterfeiting, failure to deposit taxes and revenue, etc. are termed criminal behaviour. Prevention : The remedy for criminal behaviour demands preventive measures.
The preventive measures involve improve-ment of social factors and environmental conditions that are responsible for the germination and perpetuation of criminal behaviour. The problem is a gigantic one and needs the cooperation of parents, members of the family, neighbourhood, community, school or college authorities, religious heads, police and government officials responsible for the social and psychological environment of the inhabitants of a society.
The following measures may be fruitful in the prevention task:
Since today’s delinquents are tomorrow’s criminals, maximum efforts should be made for the prevention, control and treatment of the identified delinquents.
There is great need for social reforms and breaking social and caste barriers.
The task narrowing the gulf between the rich and the poor, linguistic groups and religious sects should be given priority.
The importance of moral values should be inculcated. There should be an end to the crisis of character threatening the existence of the moral base and legal codes of our society.
The system of education and national planning need re-thinking and re-modification for minimising economic difficulties of our youth and adults.
The problem of unemployment has to be checked and the professional dissatisfaction as well as frustration effecting the vast population of the younger generation should be curbed.
Attempts should be made to minimize undesirable influence of literature, films and other mass media.
The parents, elders, government authorities, social, religious, educational and political leaders should be such that they become ideals of socially desirable behavior.
The society should feel the necessity of providing social and legal justice to its citizens. In case of environmental deprivations and hazards of life, the affected individual should be helped, protected and rehabilitated. Thus, there is a need for modifying the environmental conditions so that one does not fall victim to social and emotional maladjustment or lured by the criminals and drifted by instinctive behavior to commit crimes.
