ISC Class 12 Psychology Syllabus 2024-25

CISCE has released the Latest Updated Syllabus of the New Academic Session 2024-25, for class 12.

Class 12th Syllabus has been released by CISCE. It’s very important for both Teachers and Students to understand the changes and strictly follow the topics covered in each subject under each stream for Class 12th.

We have also updated Oswal Publishers Books as per the Latest Paper Pattern prescribed by Board for each Subject Curriculum.

Students can directly access the ISC Psychology Syllabus for Class 12 of the academic year 2024-25 by clicking on the link below.

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Table Of Contents−

▪ ISC Psychology Class 12 Latest Syllabus 2024-25
▪ 2023-24 Reduced Syllabus

ISC Psychology Class 12 Latest Syllabus 2024-25

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There will be two papers in the subject:

Paper I - Theory: 3 hours …70 marks

Paper II- Practical Work: …30 marks

Paper - I (Theory) –

70 Marks

1. Intelligence and Ability

(i) Intelligence: what is meant by intelligence - theories regarding the nature of intelligence; how intelligence is measured - the concept of IQ, intelligence tests – Individual Tests, Group Tests. Levels of intelligence and associated characteristics. Emotional Intelligence and Emotional Quotient (EQ).

Intelligence: definition of intelligence (David Wechsler); what is meant by intelligence - theories regarding the nature of intelligence; Theories of Intelligence: Two Factor Theory – Charles Spearman; Primary Mental Abilities – L.L.Thurstone (seven factors); Raymond Cattell – Fluid and Crystallised Intelligence; Guilford’s Structure of Intellect Model (180 factors).Triarchic Theory – Sternberg; Theory of Multiple Intelligence – Howard Gardner (eight intelligences). How intelligence is measured - the concept of IQ; Intelligence Tests – Individual Tests – only
definitions of mental age, chronological age, intelligence quotient and formula of IQ. Wechsler-III, Group Test – Raven’s Progressive Matrices. Test details (Aim, brief description, administration and scoring) should be included; Levels of intelligence and associated characteristics (from gifted to below average- mild, moderate, severe,
profound). Emotional Intelligence and Emotional Quotient (EQ) - Characteristics of Emotionally Intelligent Persons (in brief).

(ii) Aptitude, Achievement and Interest: meaning of these terms. Reason for their assessment and means of assessment (different tools/ tests) used.

What is meant by Aptitude - when aptitude needs to be assessed - the GATB (General Aptitude Test Battery); meaning and usefulness of Achievement tests; Why Interest is measured.

2. Personality

(i) What is meant by Personality.

Definition of personality – Allport.

Personality related terms: Temperament, Trait, Disposition, Character, Habit, Values, Concept of self (definitions only).

(ii) Theories of Personality: Type Theories, Psychoanalytic Theory - Freud’s structure of personality; psycho-sexual stages of development; Post Freudians (in brief); Humanistic - Rogers and Maslow; Traits - Allport, Cattell; Social/Behavioural Learning - Bandura.

Type Theory: Sheldon, Hippocrates, Friedman, Psychoanalytic Theory of Personality: Freud's levels of consciousness, structure of personality - Id, Ego and Superego; principles on which they function; Psychosexual stages of development and fixation; Post Freudians: Erik Erikson, Horney; Humanistic theories of Rogers (concept of fully functioning persons) and Maslow (self actualization). Traits: Allport (central, secondary and cardinal traits), Cattell (source and surface traits). The fivefactor model of Costa and McCrae. Social Cognitive Theory of A.Bandura (Identification and explanation of concepts in each theoretical framework).

(iii) How personality is assessed: reports, inventories (MMPI), projective techniques - Rorschach Inkblot Test and Thematic Apperception Test, Behavioural Analysis.

The use of Self Reports - inventories/ questionnaires in assessing Personality - an understanding of the MMPI (Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory); what is meant by Projective Techniques - how the Rorschach Inkblot and TAT (Thematic Apperception Test) are used (Test details should include procedure, scoring and interpretation).

Behavioural Analysis: Interview, Observation, Nomination, Behavioural ratings, Situational tests (in brief).

3. Lifespan Development

(i) Meaning of Development, growth and maturation.

Why is the study of lifespan development important? Determinants – interaction of heredity and environment, context of development – Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological System Theory.

(ii) Infancy- motor, cognitive development, socio-emotional development.

Motor development- definition of Motor milestone; reflexes- rooting, moro, grasping, babinski (only definitions).

Cognitive development – Piaget’s Sensory Motor Stage; socio-emotional development – emergence of attachment: definition; Mary Ainsworth’s strange situation test- four patterns of attachment.

(iii) Childhood - motor, cognitive development, socio-emotional development.

Motor development- Gross motor and fine motor skills (definitions only); cognitive development – Piaget’s Theory (Preoperational and Concrete).

Emergence of self – gender awareness, gender identity, stability, consistency (definitions only). Moral development – Kohlberg’s perspective Experiment on Moral Dilemma – pre-conventional, conventional and post conventional morality.

(iv) Adolescence - physical changes, cognitive development, socio-emotional development; some major concerns.

Physical changes at puberty (in brief); Cognitive development – Piaget’s Formal Operational Stage; Socio-emotional development - forming an identity, socioemotional development according to Erik Erikson’s ego-identity vs role diffusion and gender role stereotype (in brief) ; some major concerns – meaning of delinquency (causes only), substance abuse – meaning of substance abuse (drugs in general and alcohol), symptoms of drug abuse and alcoholism; eating disorders - bulimia, anorexia- (meaning and symptoms).

4. Stress and Stress Management

(i) Meaning of stress - its basic nature.

Strain and Eustress; Types of stresspsychological, physical and environmental; Stress as a process - stressors (negative and positive events); results of overload; the stages of GAS or the General Adaptation Syndrome (Selye's model). Cognitive appraisal of stress – primary and secondary

(ii) Common causes of stress.

External/situational: major life events, minor hassles of everyday life, work-related causes, the physical environment.

Internal/dispositional: Personality variablestraits and types.

(iii) Effects of stress on health and performance.

Upsets the internal mechanism and balance - immune system affected, hypertension, heart problems, ulcers, diabetes, asthma (each effect to be briefly explained). Relation between stress and performance - burnout.

(iv) Stress management - ineffective and effective strategies of handling stress.

Coping with stress: Ineffective strategies - defence mechanisms - rationalization, projection, reaction formation, regression, repression displacement, sublimation (each to be briefly explained); Effective strategies: relaxation training- bio feedback, massage, progressive muscle relaxation and meditation (in brief) and yoga- yama, niyama, asana, pranayama and pratyahara (definitions only).

Promoting positive health and well-being: Exercise, Diet, Self-Care, Life Skills, Assertiveness, Rational thinking, improving relationships, overcoming unhelpful habits, Social support, Stress Resistant Personality, Positive thinking and positive attitude.

5. Psychological Disorders and Psychotherapy

(i) Meaning of “Abnormal behaviour” - biological, psychological and socio - cultural perspectives. Principles of classification of psychological disorders with reference to DSM IV.

Common features of abnormal behaviourdeviance, distress, dysfunction, danger.

Different views of "abnormal" behaviour - the statistical stand - the biological/medical approach - the psychodynamic perspective - the sociocultural dimension; why classification of disorders is necessary - an understanding of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – IV (brief explanation of each Axis).

(ii) Characteristics of some psychological, behavioural and developmental disorders: Anxiety - generalised, phobic, obsessivecompulsive; Mood - bi-polar, depression; Personality disorders - anti-social, avoidant, dependent (causes and symptoms of all).

What is meant by anxiety - different forms of anxiety disorders: generalised (GAD), phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorders; Mood disorders- characteristics of severe depression, manic-depressive or bipolar disorder; personality disorders - anti-social, avoidant, dependent (causes and symptoms only).

Neurodevelopmental and anxiety disorders in childhood: Neurodevelopmental disorders - Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum DisorderAutism (definitions and symptoms only); Anxiety- Separation Anxiety Disorder in childhood (definitions and symptoms only).

(iii) Schizophrenia - meaning; main types; characteristics.

Basic nature of Schizophrenia: symptomspositive and negative. Main typescharacteristics of Disorganized, Catatonic and Paranoid Schizophrenia (symptoms).

(iv) Psychotherapy - Psychoanalysis; Clientcentred; Behavioural, Social Rehabilitation.

What is meant by Psychotherapy - central features of psychodynamic therapies - free association, dream analysis, resistance, transference and counter transference (explain briefly). The principles on which client centred therapy has been developed. Behavioural therapies based on classical conditioning (flooding and systematic desensitization) and operant conditioning (shaping and token economy) and modelling (explain briefly), Psychosocial rehabilitation. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, A.Ellis’ Rational Emotive Therapy (explain briefly).

6. Social Thought and Social Behaviour

(i) Social Perception - attribution or the process through which people try to understand the reasons for others’ behaviour.

How people determine whether others' behaviour is a result of internal causes or external factors - H. Kelley’s Attribution Theory (attribution); biases in forming judgments. Explain with examples each of the following biases - self-serving bias, the false consensus effect, automatic vigilance, counterfactual thinking.

(ii) Social Influence- how people try to change others’ behaviour; social norms; conformity and obedience - factors affecting them.

Social Influence- Meaning and characteristics of a group; types of groupsformal and informal, primary and secondary and in-group and out-group, formation of a group, influence of group on individuals; Meaning of social norms - why people conform to social norms and why they digress; factors affecting Conformity and Obedience. Asch's study on conformity; why and when people obey others - Milgram's experiment.

7. Attitudes

(i) Meaning of “Attitude” - how attitudes are formed and changed.

What are attitudes - the components of attitude; the process of forming attitudes - how attitudes change: persuasion and cognitive dissonance.

(ii) Prejudice – meaning of “prejudice” and discrimination; the origins of prejudice; how to combat prejudice.

An understanding of the meaning of prejudice and how it works in the form of discrimination - causes of prejudice: social learning, realistic competition, social categorization and stereotyping; ways in which prejudice can be resisted.

8. Psychology in relation to the Environment and Social concerns

Meaning and nature of counselling; characteristics of a good counsellor, communication skills; Environmental effect on human behaviour; Promoting Pro-environmental behaviour; Adverse effects of poverty and deprivation. Measures to reduce poverty.

(i) Meaning and nature of counsellingelements of counselling, characteristics of a good counsellor- authenticity, positive regard, empathy, communication skillsparaphrasing, attention, listening, speaking, body language, role of culture in listening; counsellor’s psychological testing skills.

(ii) Environmental effect on human behaviourinfluences on perception, emotion, occupation, living style and attitude. Human influence on the environmentinfluences of noise, pollution, crowding and natural disasters; post-traumatic stress disorder.

(iii) Promoting Pro-environmental behaviourreduction of -pollution, noise, nonbiodegradable consumer goods, plastics; garbage management, laws relating to construction that violates environmental design, planting trees.

(iv) Adverse effects of poverty and deprivation on personality, motivation, social behaviour, cognitive processes, and mental health. Major causes of poverty. Measures to reduce poverty.

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