Technologies & Patient Care (DP IB Psychology): Revision Note

Here is an example of a Paper 3 source and a 6-mark SAQ using technology (HL extension) in the Health & Wellbeing context:

Source 3

Technology has an increasingly important role to play in the future of healthcare. It can prevent illness, aid diagnosis, inform management and support a patient’s general wellbeing. The question arises: are people able to use technology to take more control over their health and wellbeing?

The NHS in England has commissioned research into people’s behaviours, attitudes and beliefs about the role that health technologies play in their own healthcare, along with expectations about the future of healthcare.

A survey was conducted of over 1,000 adults in the UK and interviews with people who have long-term conditions (i.e., frequent contact with healthcare systems). The survey found that people feel responsible for their health and wellbeing, and they have the desire to improve it – but what holds them back is that they lack the confidence, tools and technologies to take control as much as they would like.

The findings also showed that people wish to use technology as part of their healthcare, but they also want to maintain face-to-face contact with their doctor or other healthcare worker. 72% of participants said they would use technology (e.g., an app) to avoid having to go to hospital, with a similar percentage saying they would use technology to monitor their health and share information and data with their doctors.

Many individuals are not confident about using technology, particularly older patients, leading to the fear that they may miss out on healthcare due to a lack of access to technology.

Q3. To what extent are the findings in source 3 transferable to other populations or contexts?

[6 marks]

Model answer:

A sample of 1,000 adults from the UK is not necessarily a large or representative sample. The focus of the research, however, draws from issues that are likely to affect most people, i.e., accessing healthcare (increasingly so as they age), which increases their transferability. To this extent the findings are generalisable, as almost every person accesses some form of healthcare at some point in their life.

The findings are less transferable across cultures, particularly cultures which are collectivist and may rely on traditional forms of healthcare rather than a government body such as the NHS. This is particularly true for rural populations who may have no or limited access to technology and who may prefer face-to-face contact with a healthcare practitioner.

Guidance

• The command term “To what extent” requires you to express a view/judgement on the merit, validity, or success of an argument or concept, supported by relevant evidence

• Points made about transferability could include:

  • How easily the findings can be transferred/generalised to other populations or situations/contexts

  • How easily understood or relatable the concepts, ideas and experiences covered in the data are to most people

  • How relevant the research appears to a modern audience/population

  • How well the researcher has explained their use of materials, procedure, method, data analysis, etc.