GRE Psychology Syllabus

One of the GRE Subject tests offered is the Psychology test. It consists of about 205 multiple-choice questions. Each question in the test provides five alternative options out of which the test seeker has to choose one option that is the correct answer or closest to the correct answer. Few questions are asked by a description of an experiment or a graph. The questions in the test edition are taken from the knowledge gained in courses offered at the undergraduate level. A question may require recalling factual information, analyzing relationships, applying principles, drawing conclusions from data and evaluating a research design.

The Psychology Test yields two subscores in addition to the total score of 200-990. Although the test offers only two subscores, there are questions in three content categories:

1. Experimental or natural science oriented (about 40 percent of the questions).
2. General (about 17 percent of the questions).
3. Social or social science oriented (about 43 percent of the questions).

Detailed Syllabus

SOCIAL SUBSCORE — 43%

1. Clinical and Abnormal (12-14%)
   1. Stress, Conflict, Coping
   2. Diagnostic Systems
   3. Assessment
   4. Causes and Development of Disorders
   5. Neurophysiological Factors
   6. Treatment of Disorders
   7. Epidemiology
   8. Theories, Applications, and Issues
   9. Prevention
   10. Health Psychology
   11. Culture and Gender Issues
2. Personality (3-5%)
   1. Theories
   2. Structure
   3. Assessment
   4. Personality and Behavior
   5. Applications and Issues
3. Lifespan Development (Childhood, Adolescence, Aging) (12-14%)
   1. Nature-Nurture
   2. Physical and Motor
   3. Perception and Cognition
   4. Language
   5. Intelligence
   6. Social and Personality
   7. Emotion
   8. Socialization, Family and Cultural Influences
   9. Theories, Applications, and Issues
4. Social (12-14%)
   1. Social Perception, Cognition, Attribution, Beliefs
   2. Attitudes and Behavior
   3. Social Comparison, Self
   4. Emotion, Affect and Motivation
   5. Conformity, Influence, and Persuasion
   6. Interpersonal Attraction and Close Relationships
   7. Group and Intergroup Processes
   8. Cultural and Gender Influences
   9. Evolutionary Psychology, Altruism, and Aggression
   10. Theories, Applications, and Issues

EXPERIMENTAL SUBSCORE — 40%

1. Learning (3-5%)
   1. Classical Conditioning
   2. Instrumental Conditioning
   3. Observational Learning, Modeling
   4. Theories, Applications, and Issues
2. Language (3-4%)
   1. Units (phonemes, morphemes, phrases)
   2. Syntax
   3. Meaning
   4. Verbal and Nonverbal Communication
   5. Bilingualism
   6. Theories, Applications, and Issues.
   7. Speech Perception and Processing
   8. Reading Processes
3. Thinking (4-6%)
   1. Representation (Categorization, Imagery, Schemas, Scripts)
   2. Problem Solving
   3. Judgment and Decision-making Processes
   4. Planning, Metacognition
   5. Intelligence
   6. Theories, Applications, and Issues
4. Memory (7-9%)
   1. Working Memory
   2. Long-term Memory
   3. Theories, Applications, and Issues
   4. Types of Memory
   5. Memory Systems and Processes
5. Sensation and Perception (5-7%)
   1. Psychophysics, Signal Detection
   2. Attention
   3. Perceptual Organization
   4. Gustation
   5. Olfaction
   6. Vision
   7. Audition
   8. Somatosenses
   9. Vestibular and Kinesthetic Senses
   10. Theories, Applications, and Issues
6. Physiological/Behavioral Neuroscience (12-14%)
   1. Neurons
   2. Sensory Structures and Processes
   3. Motor Structures and Functions
   4. Central Structures and Processes
   5. Neuromodulators and Drugs
   6. Hormonal Factors
   7. Comparative and Ethology
   8. States of Consciousness
   9. Motivation, Arousal, Emotion
   10. Cognitive Neuroscience
   11. Theories, Applications, and Issues

OTHER AREAS — 17%

1. General (4-6%)
   1. History
   2. Industrial-Organizational
   3. Educational
2. Measurement and Methodology (11-13%)
   1. Psychometrics, Test Construction, Reliability, Validity
   2. Research Designs
   3. Statistical Procedures
   4. Scientific Method and the Evaluation of Evidence
   5. Ethics and Legal Issues
   6. Analysis and Interpretation of Findings

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