If you are aiming to achieve a B grade and you need some support with essay skills, this is the resource for you!
Goal: “Get 10-12 marks consistently.”
Every evaluation paragraph answers three questions:
What? A limitation is… Why? This matters because… So what? Therefore…
Utilise our memory tools: GRAVER = Research, SAUNDERS = Theory, CLIMATE = TREATMENTS/METHODS
Sentence Starters for PEECCs:
Point:
A strength/limitation of ______ is ______.
Evidence
This is supported by/challenged by ______ who found ______.
Explain
This means that ______.
Consequence
This matters because ______.
Therefore ______.
Challenge
However, it could be argued that ______.
This makes the criticism/strength seem more or less convincing______
Model:
Point A strength of Bowlby’s theory is that it has supporting research evidence.
Evidence: Hazan and Shaver found that people with secure childhood attachments tended to have secure adult relationships.
Explain: This supports Bowlby’s idea of an internal working model because attachment experiences appear to influence later relationships.
Consequence: Therefore, the theory is more likely to be a valid explanation of attachment development.
Challenge: However, this evidence is correlational and therefore cannot prove that early attachment causes later relationship behaviour.
What is the difference between an Explain and a Consequence???
Supporting research
- Explain: This supports the (state theory e.g. the MSM) because…
- Consequence: Consequently, because the theory is supported by evidence the confidence in the theory increases.
Alternative explanation
- Explain: This provides an alternative explanation because… (outline something that the alternate explanation considers, but the original theory you are evaluating doesn’t)
- Consequence: As a consequence, because there is an alternative explanation this suggests that (state theory e.g. the MSM) cannot provide a full explanation on its own.
Usefulness
- Explain: This shows that the (state theory e.g. the MSM) is useful because…
- Consequence: As a consequence, the (state theory e.g. the MSM) has led to the… (explain the benefit that the useful application causes, could be something from CLIMATE)
Debates such as Reductionism/Holism/Idiographic/Nomothetic/Determinism/Freewill
- Explain: This is reductionist because…
- Consequence: Because the (state theory e.g. the MSM) is reductionist this is weakness because (e.g. being reductionist means that we can never truly capture an understand behaviour fully because it underestimates how other factors can work together to influence behaviour)
How can I use this resource?
Focus on one AO3 paragraph at a time
- Monday: Write one research support paragraph.
- Tuesday: Write one limitation paragraph.
- Wednesday: Improve yesterday’s paragraph.
Do this once a week and the quality of your answers will improve dramatically.
Use colour coding or sign post your PEECCs.
Once you have written a PEECC, highlight each part with a different colour, or sign post each part of your PEECC before each part.
Ask yourself, “what does this prove?”
After every sentence of AO3, ask: “What does this prove?” Example: Bowlby’s theory has research support from Hazan and Shaver. What does this prove? It suggests early attachment influences later relationships. What does this prove? Therefore, the internal working model may be a valid explanation.
This forces evaluation to become analytical rather than descriptive.
