A Level General Studies OCR

This subject is broken down into 40 topics in 4 modules:

  1. Culture and Society 10 topics
  2. Scientific Domain 10 topics
  3. Humanities and Social Sciences 10 topics
  4. Mathematical and Logical Reasoning 10 topics
Study this subject in the Adapt App →
  • 4
    modules
  • 40
    topics
  • 16,704
    words of revision content
  • 2+
    hours of audio lessons

This page was last modified on 28 September 2024.

A preview of A Level General Studies OCR in the Adapt app

Adapt is a revision planning app with full content coverage and unlimited past paper questions for 1,200+ GCSE and A Level subjects.

Study this subject in the Adapt app →

General Studies

Culture and Society

Social structures and processes

🤓 Study

📖 Quiz

Play audio lesson

Social structures and processes

Society and Structure

  • Societies consist of a complex network of structures such as families, schools, governments, and businesses. These structures shape the way societies function and influence individual behaviour.
  • The structures of societies are interdependent and interconnected, with changes in one potentially influencing changes in others.
  • Additionally, social structures are dynamic, constantly evolving as societies develop and change over time.

Social Processes

  • Social processes are the ways in which individuals and groups interact and communicate within a society and the patterns of behaviour that develop as a result.
  • Social processes include cooperation, the process of working together to the same end, and conflict, the process of disagreement or competition.
  • There are also social processes of change, such as social mobility, which refers to the movements of individuals, families, or other categories of people within or between social strata in a society.

Power, Status and Role

  • Power refers to the ability of an individual or group to influence others and effect change. There are various sources of power including control of resources, social relationships, institutional roles, and knowledge and skills.
  • Status is the social position that a person occupies within a social structure. It is often determined by factors such as wealth, profession, or education level.
  • A Role is a set of expectations about the behaviours and attitudes that people should exhibit in a particular social position.

Institutions

  • Institutions are structures of a society necessary for the survival of a society, such as the family, education, government, and religion.
  • They maintain the order and coherence of social life by providing established patterns for behaviour.
  • Institutions have a normative function, producing standards and rules, and a sanctioning function, enhancing conformity to these standards.

Individual and Society

  • The relationship between individual and society is a key element of sociology. An individual’s choices and behaviours are influenced by the society they live in and, conversely, individuals shape and change society.
  • This interaction leads to a simultaneous process of individualization: individuals becoming independent from broad social identities, and social integration: individuals fitting into existing social structures.

Remember, understanding the key constructs of social structures and processes is essential for understanding the wider societal issues covered in the Culture and Society section.

Course material for General Studies, module Culture and Society, topic Social structures and processes

General Studies

Humanities and Social Sciences

Understanding human geography

🤓 Study

📖 Quiz

Play audio lesson

Understanding human geography

Understanding Human Geography

Fundamentals of Human Geography

  • Human Geography part of geography that focuses on people, their cultures, activities and behaviours in their geographical environments
  • Studies spatial aspects of human existence and interrelationships between people and their environments
  • Investigates patterns and processes that shape human understanding, use, and modification of earth's surface

Population Geography

  • Examines spatial variations among human populations
  • Topics include population density, distribution, migration, birth and death rates
  • Studies factors influencing population distributions on local to global scales, like political or economic conditions

Cultural Geography

  • Explores the impacts human culture has on a place, such as architectural styles, religion or language
  • Evaluates how culture shapes social norms, behaviours, and community experiences
  • Discusses how cultures interrelate with the natural world

Urban Geography

  • Investigates towns and cities, their structure, spatial patterns and processes of urbanisation
  • Includes study of urban populations in terms of size, density, composition, and spatial distribution
  • Analyses urbanism as a way of life, including quality of life and social, economic and political organization within cities

Economic Geography

  • Deals with how people earn a living, differences in economic activities across regions and economic interdependence of countries
  • Discusses the location, distribution and spatial organization of economic activities
  • Explores the globalization of economies and its environmental impacts

Political Geography

  • Concentrates on spatial distribution of political phenomena, understanding of state, territoriality, and international relations
  • Analyses political systems and theories associated with space, policies and their impacts, and the spatial expressions of political power
  • Covers studies of international political issues, geopolitics and the political geography of war and peace

Social Geography

  • Considers social phenomena in spatial perspective and their expression in landscapes
  • Examines socio-spatial differences including inequalities related to wealth, status, race, gender, etc.
  • Studies spatial social structures, concepts of community, neighbourhood, and residential segregation

Environmental Geography

  • Focuses on interactions between humans and their environments, including physical landscapes and natural resources
  • Examines local-global environmental interactions, sustainability, consumption, and environmental change
  • Studies environmental policies and how they influence decisions regarding land and resource use.

Understanding Human Geography is paramount for a comprehensive grasp of the spatial and temporal patterns of people, cultures, economies, and political systems, and the complex relationship between humans and their environments.

Course material for General Studies, module Humanities and Social Sciences, topic Understanding human geography

Can I trust Adapt’s expertise?

Adapt is already used by over 600,000 students and trusted by over 3,000 schools. Our exam-specific content and assessments are meticulously crafted by expert teachers and examiners.

Find out more about the Adapt app →

Planner

An always up-to-date revision timetable.

A personalised, flexible revision timetable that stays up-to-date automatically.

Content

All the exam resources, in one place.

Over 20,000 topics broken down into manageable lessons with teacher-written, exam-specific lessons.

Assessment

Past-paper questions, with instant feedback.

Unlimited past paper questions with instant examiner feedback on how to improve.

Progress

Track progress, together.

Progress tracking to stay motivated, with real-time updates to the Parent Portal.

Download the app today to start revising for free.