NCERT Class 12 Psychology Notes (Chapters 1–7) – Comprehensive Board Exam Preparation Guide

Chapter 1: Variations in Psychological Attributes

1. Introduction - Psychology studies individual differences in psychological attributes like intelligence,

personality, interest, aptitude, values, etc. - These differences help in understanding behavior and
customizing education and employment.

2. Intelligence - Definition (Wechsler): “The global and aggregate capacity to act purposefully, think
rationally, and deal effectively with the environment.”

3. Theories of Intelligence

A. Psychometric Theories - Emphasize measurement through standardized tests.

1. Spearman’s Two-Factor Theory

2. g (general factor): Common to all tasks

3. s (specific factor): Specific to particular tasks

4. Thurstone’s Primary Mental Abilities

5. Identified 7 abilities (e.g., verbal comprehension, numerical ability)

6. Guilford’s Structure of Intellect Model

7. 3 dimensions: Operations × Contents × Products = 150 factors

B. Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences - Proposed 8 types: 1. Linguistic 2. Logical-Mathematical 3.

Spatial 4. Musical 5. Bodily-Kinaesthetic 6. Interpersonal 7. Intrapersonal 8. Naturalistic

C. Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory - 3 components: 1. Analytical 2. Creative 3. Practical intelligence

D. PASS Model (Planning, Attention, Simultaneous, Successive) - Based on Luria’s neurological

framework

4. Individual Differences in Intelligence - IQ (Intelligence Quotient): Mental age / Chronological age × 100
- IQ scores: - Average: 90–110 - Above average: 110–120 - Gifted: 130 and above - Intellectually disabled:
Below 70

5. Culture and Intelligence - Culture influences the definition, structure, and expression of intelligence. -
Culture-fair tests aim to reduce bias (e.g., Raven’s Progressive Matrices)

6. Emotional Intelligence (EI) - Salovey and Mayer: Ability to perceive, understand, and manage emotions -
Components: - Emotional awareness - Self-regulation - Empathy - Social skills

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7. Special Abilities - Aptitude: Specific ability to learn a skill - Interest: Preference for activities - Creativity:
Ability to generate novel ideas - Guilford: Divergent vs convergent thinking - Characteristics: Originality,
fluency, flexibility, elaboration

Chapter 2: Self and Personality

1. Concept of Self - Personal identity: Traits and values unique to a person - Social identity: Group
affiliations - Components: - Self-concept: Beliefs about oneself - Self-esteem: Evaluation of oneself - Self-
efficacy: Belief in one’s competence (Bandura) - Self-regulation: Controlling behavior for goals

2. Personality - Enduring patterns of thinking, feeling, and behavior

3. Theories of Personality

A. Type Theories - Hippocrates: Four humors - Sheldon: Endomorph, mesomorph, ectomorph - Jung:
Introvert vs Extrovert

B. Trait Theories - Allport: Cardinal, central, secondary traits - Cattell: 16 personality factors - Eysenck:
Extraversion, neuroticism, psychoticism - Big Five (OCEAN): 1. Openness 2. Conscientiousness 3.
Extraversion 4. Agreeableness 5. Neuroticism

C. Psychodynamic Theories - Freud: - Id, Ego, Superego - Defense mechanisms: Repression, projection,
denial, etc. - Psychosexual stages: Oral, Anal, Phallic, Latency, Genital

D. Humanistic Theories - Rogers: - Self-concept and ideal self - Conditions for growth: Empathy,
genuineness, unconditional positive regard - Maslow: - Hierarchy of needs ending in self-actualization

4. Assessment of Personality - Self-report inventories: MMPI, 16PF - Projective techniques: Rorschach,

TAT - Behavioral analysis - Interviews

Chapter 3: Meeting Life Challenges

1. Stress - Eustress vs Distress - Types: Physical, psychological (frustration, conflict, pressure)

2. Models of Stress - GAS (Hans Selye): Alarm → Resistance → Exhaustion - Cognitive Appraisal (Lazarus):
- Primary appraisal: Is it threatening? - Secondary appraisal: Can I cope?

3. Effects of Stress - Physical: Illness, headaches - Emotional: Anxiety, depression - Cognitive: Poor decision
making - Behavioral: Sleep issues, withdrawal

4. Coping Strategies - Task-oriented, Emotion-oriented, Avoidance-oriented - Life skills: Time management,

assertiveness - Relaxation: Meditation, deep breathing - Social support

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Chapter 4: Psychological Disorders

1. Concepts - Abnormality: Deviant, distressing, dysfunctional - Classification: DSM-5, ICD-11

2. Disorders - Anxiety: GAD, phobias, panic, OCD - Somatoform: Somatization, conversion, hypochondriasis
- Dissociative: Amnesia, fugue, DID - Mood: Depression, bipolar - Schizophrenia: Hallucinations, delusions -
Developmental: Autism, ADHD

3. Causes - Biological, Psychological, Sociocultural

4. Treatment - Biological: Drugs, ECT - Psychodynamic: Uncover unconscious conflict - Behavioral:

Desensitization, aversion - Cognitive: Correct irrational thoughts - Humanistic: Empathy, growth - Group/
family therapy

Chapter 5: Therapeutic Approaches

1. Goals - Reduce distress, promote growth

2. Types - Psychodynamic: Freud’s methods - Behavior: Conditioning techniques - Cognitive: - Beck’s

cognitive therapy - REBT (Ellis): ABC model - Humanistic: Rogers’ client-centered therapy - Biomedical:
Medications, ECT - Alternative: Yoga, meditation

3. Effective Therapy Factors - Therapeutic alliance - Empathy and trust - Client motivation

Chapter 6: Attitude and Social Cognition

1. Attitude Components - Affective, Behavioral, Cognitive

2. Formation - Classical/operant conditioning - Modeling - Socialization

3. Change and Persuasion - Source, message, target - Cognitive Dissonance (Festinger): Conflict between
beliefs and behavior

4. Prejudice - Causes: Stereotypes, learning, competition - Reduction: Contact, cooperation, empathy

5. Social Cognition - Attribution: - Dispositional vs Situational - Fundamental Attribution Error - Self-serving

bias

Chapter 7: Social Influence and Group Processes

1. Nature of Groups - Types: Primary, Secondary - Structure: Roles, norms, status

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2. Social Influence - Conformity (Asch): Yielding to group - Compliance: Agreeing to request - Obedience
(Milgram): Following authority

3. Cooperation vs Competition - Social facilitation vs inhibition - Social loafing - Group polarization

4. Leadership - Styles: Authoritarian, Democratic, Laissez-faire

5. Conflict Resolution - Methods: Negotiation, mediation, superordinate goals

This comprehensive guide covers all seven chapters with detailed explanations, perfect for board exams.
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