IB Diploma · Psychology
IB Psychology (SL & HL) revision, marked like an examiner
Built for the new 2027 guide — every concept, content area and context, with adaptive practice for the open-ended application questions. Answer a question and get a mark against the official rubric, plus the precise next steps to reach the band above.
New guide
What’s changed for first exams in 2027
The IB Psychology guide was rewritten for first teaching in 2025. The old core-plus-options course is gone, and the exams now reward applying ideas to unseen situations rather than reciting studies.
No more choosing an option like abnormal or developmental psychology.
- Every student studies all four contexts
- Health and well-being, human development, human relationships, learning and cognition
- Each context comes with a class practical
A conceptual spine that cuts across every topic you study.
- Bias, causality, change, measurement, perspective, responsibility
- Questions pair a concept with a context
- Topics can no longer be revised in isolation
Higher Level content is rebuilt around three modern themes.
- The role of culture, motivation and technology
- Data analysis and interpretation for everyone
- Paper 3 is now data analysis from a resource booklet
The biggest change is how you are asked, not just what you study.
- Unseen scenarios and stimulus material
- Application and evaluation over recall
- Pre-learned essays no longer fit the question
How Markaroo helps
Adaptive practice for the open-ended questions
You cannot revise an unseen scenario in advance — you can only get better at responding to one. Markaroo keeps generating fresh application questions, marks what you write, and chooses what you see next from what your last answer showed.
What you'll study
The full IB Psychology syllabus
Six ideas applied across every content area and context.
- Bias
- Causality
- Change
- Measurement
- Perspective
- Responsibility
The three approaches, and research methodology.
- Biological approach
- Cognitive approach
- Sociocultural approach
- Research methodology
Four real-world settings, each with a class practical.
- Health and well-being
- Human development
- Human relationships
- Learning and cognition
Data analysis for everyone; culture, motivation and technology at HL.
- Data analysis and interpretation
- The role of culture
- The role of motivation
- The role of technology
Assessment
How IB Psychology is examined
| Paper | Assesses |
|---|---|
| Paper 1 (35 marks) | Integrating concepts, content and contexts |
| Paper 2 (35 marks) | Applying concepts and content to research contexts, including your class practical |
| Paper 3 (30 marks, HL only) | Data analysis and interpretation, from a resource booklet |
SL students sit Papers 1 and 2. HL students sit all three, and cover all 18 topics instead of 15.
Questions
IB Psychology on Markaroo
What topics are covered in IB Psychology?
IB Psychology is organised into four sections. Concepts covers six ideas — bias, causality, change, measurement, perspective and responsibility — applied across the whole syllabus. Content covers the biological, cognitive and sociocultural approaches, plus research methodology. Contexts covers four real-world settings: health and well-being, human development, human relationships, and learning and cognition. Extensions covers data analysis and interpretation, plus (at HL only) the role of culture, motivation and technology.
What's the difference between SL and HL in IB Psychology?
Standard Level covers 15 of the 18 topics and is examined on Paper 1 and Paper 2. Higher Level covers all 18 topics, adding the three HL-only extensions — the role of culture, motivation and technology — and sits a third paper, Paper 3, on data analysis and interpretation.
What has changed in the 2027 IB Psychology syllabus?
The new guide, first taught from 2025 with first exams in 2027, replaces the old core-plus-options structure with four sections: concepts, content, contexts and extensions. The optional units are gone — every student now studies all four contexts, and six concepts (bias, causality, change, measurement, perspective and responsibility) run through the whole course. Higher Level swaps the old options extensions for the role of culture, motivation and technology, and Paper 3 becomes data analysis and interpretation from a resource booklet. Assessment is more application-led: instead of reproducing memorised studies, you answer open-ended questions on unseen scenarios, using a concept and a context together — which is exactly what Markaroo’s adaptive practice is built to rehearse.
How is IB Psychology assessed?
Paper 1 (35 marks) integrates concepts, content and contexts. Paper 2 (35 marks) applies concepts and content to research contexts, including the class practical your teacher ran. Paper 3 (30 marks, HL only) is data analysis and interpretation, working from a resource booklet of real sources.
Is there a free plan for IB Psychology on Markaroo?
Yes. The free plan includes your coach, a technique profile, a live predicted grade, quizzes, exam practice, flashcards, revision notes and guided lessons, plus practice of up to 2 long-form questions a month, with no card required. Plus removes the monthly limits and adds unlimited AI essay marking and the rewrite loop for £2 a month, starting with a 7-day free trial.
How accurate is Markaroo's AI marking for IB Psychology?
Markaroo marks full long-form Psychology answers against the official IB rubric for the question's format, returning a mark and the precise next steps to reach the band above. The same marking technology is used by teachers at Tonbridge School to mark real student essays.
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