Paper 2 · Psychology · Code 04

UGC NET Paper 2 — Psychology (04)

Psychology (subject code 04) is the subject paper (Paper 2) for candidates in this subject. It carries 100 questions for 200 marks (+2 per correct answer, no negative marking), attempted together with Paper 1 in the single 180-minute combined session. The syllabus below is the verified official syllabus, organised unit-wise; chapters and practice questions appear as they are published, and nothing is marked complete before it exists.

100 questions

200 marks · +2 per correct · No negative marking · Paper 2 within the 180-min combined session

10 units · 55 topics

Full syllabus below, with topic summaries

40 practice questions · 55 premium chapters

Easy 10 · Medium 20 · Hard 10 — all original practice; verified PYQs live separately in the PYQ Library

Syllabus

Complete syllabus — all units and topics

Topic summaries are the unit study material already published on NETSaathi. Weightage badges are platform estimates from past-question frequency — they are not NTA guarantees.

Unit 1: Emergence of Psychology

मनोविज्ञान का उद्भव · 4 bank questions · 5 premium chapters

Psychological thought in Eastern systems — Psychological thought in some major Eastern systems: Bhagavad Gita, Buddhism, Sufism and Integral Yoga.Medium
Academic psychology in India — Academic psychology in India: pre-independence era, post-independence era, 1970s: the move to addressing social issues, 1980s: indigenization, 1990s: paradigmatic concerns, disciplinary identity crisis, 2000s: emergence of Indian psychology in academia; issues: the colonial encounter, post colonialism and psychology, lack of distinct disciplinary identity.High weightage
Western schools and founding paths — Western: Greek heritage, medieval period and modern period; structuralism, functionalism, psychoanalytical, Gestalt, behaviorism, humanistic-existential, transpersonal, cognitive revolution, multiculturalism; four founding paths of academic psychology: Wundt, Freud, James, Dilthey.High weightage
Knowledge paradigms and controversies — Issues: crisis in psychology due to strict adherence to experimental-analytical paradigm (logical empiricism), Indic influences on modern psychology; essential aspects of knowledge paradigms: ontology, epistemology, and methodology; paradigms of Western psychology: positivism, post-positivism, critical perspective, social constructionism, existential phenomenology, and co-operative enquiry; paradigmatic controversies.Medium
Indian paradigms on psychological knowledge — Significant Indian paradigms on psychological knowledge: Yoga, Bhagavad Gita, Buddhism, Sufism, and Integral Yoga; science and spirituality (avidya and vidya); the primacy of self-knowledge in Indian psychology.Medium

Psychological thought in Eastern systems → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Academic psychology in India → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Western schools and founding paths → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Knowledge paradigms and controversies → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Indian paradigms on psychological knowledge → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

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Unit 2: Research Methodology and Statistics

शोध पद्धति और सांख्यिकी · 4 bank questions · 6 premium chapters

Research: meaning, problems, variables, ethics — Research: meaning, purpose, and dimensions; research problems, variables and operational definitions, hypothesis, sampling; ethics in conducting and reporting research.High weightage
Paradigms and methods of research — Paradigms of research: quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods approach; methods of research: observation, survey (interview, questionnaires), experimental, quasi-experimental, field studies, cross-cultural studies, phenomenology, grounded theory, focus groups, narratives, case studies, ethnography.High weightage
Statistics: central tendency, dispersion, NPC, tests — Statistics in psychology: measures of central tendency and dispersion; normal probability curve; parametric (t-test) and non-parametric tests (sign test, Wilcoxon signed rank test, Mann-Whitney test, Kruskal-Wallis test, Friedman); power analysis, effect size.High weightage
Correlational analysis and regression — Correlational analysis: correlation (product moment, rank order), partial correlation, multiple correlation; special correlation methods: biserial, point biserial, tetrachoric, phi coefficient; regression: simple linear regression, multiple regression.Medium
Factor analysis — Factor analysis: assumptions, methods, rotation and interpretation.Medium
Experimental designs — Experimental designs: ANOVA (one-way, factorial), randomized block designs, repeated measures design, Latin square, cohort studies, time series, MANOVA, ANCOVA; single-subject designs.High weightage

Research: meaning, problems, variables, ethics → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Paradigms and methods of research → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Statistics: central tendency, dispersion, NPC, tests → premium chapter · free preview · ~14 min

Correlational analysis and regression → premium chapter · free preview · ~14 min

Factor analysis → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Experimental designs → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

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Unit 3: Psychological Testing

मनोवैज्ञानिक परीक्षण · 4 bank questions · 5 premium chapters

Types of tests and test construction — Types of tests; test construction: item writing, item analysis.High weightage
Test standardisation: reliability, validity, norms — Test standardisation: reliability, validity and norms.High weightage
Areas of testing — Areas of testing: intelligence, creativity, neuropsychological tests, aptitude, personality assessment, interest inventories.Medium
Attitude scales — Attitude scales: semantic differential, Staples, Likert scale.Medium
Computer-based testing and applications — Computer-based psychological testing; applications of psychological testing in various settings: clinical, organizational and business, education, counseling, military; career guidance.Medium

Types of tests and test construction → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Test standardisation: reliability, validity, norms → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Areas of testing → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Attitude scales → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Computer-based testing and applications → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

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Unit 4: Biological Basis of Behaviour

व्यवहार का जैविक आधार · 4 bank questions · 7 premium chapters

Sensory systems — Sensory systems: general and specific sensations, receptors and processes.Medium
Neurons and neurotransmitters — Neurons: structure, functions, types, neural impulse, synaptic transmission; neurotransmitters.High weightage
Central and peripheral nervous systems — The central and peripheral nervous systems: structure and functions; neuroplasticity.High weightage
Methods of physiological psychology — Methods of physiological psychology: invasive methods (anatomical methods, degeneration techniques, lesion techniques, chemical methods, microelectrode studies); non-invasive methods (EEG, scanning methods).Medium
Muscular and glandular system — Muscular and glandular system: types and functions.Medium
Biological basis of motivation and emotion — Biological basis of motivation: hunger, thirst, sleep and sex; biological basis of emotion: the limbic system, hormonal regulation of behavior.Medium
Genetics and behaviour — Genetics and behavior: chromosomal anomalies; nature-nurture controversy (twin studies and adoption studies).Medium

Sensory systems → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Neurons and neurotransmitters → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Central and peripheral nervous systems → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Methods of physiological psychology → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Muscular and glandular system → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Biological basis of motivation and emotion → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Genetics and behaviour → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

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Unit 5: Attention, Perception, Learning, Memory and Forgetting

अवधान, प्रत्यक्षण, अधिगम, स्मृति और विस्मृति · 4 bank questions · 6 premium chapters

Attention: forms and models — Attention: forms of attention, models of attention.Medium
Perception: approaches, organisation, constancy — Perception: approaches to the study of perception (Gestalt and physiological approaches); perceptual organization: Gestalt, figure and ground, law of organization; perceptual constancy: size, shape, and color; illusions; perception of form, depth and movement; role of motivation and learning in perception.High weightage
Signal detection and information processing — Signal detection theory: assumptions and applications; subliminal perception and related factors, information processing approach to perception, culture and perception, perceptual styles, pattern recognition, ecological perspective on perception.Medium
Learning: theories and conditioning — Learning process: fundamental theories: Thorndike, Guthrie, Hull; classical conditioning: procedure, phenomena and related issues; instrumental learning: phenomena, paradigms and theoretical issues; reinforcement: basic variables and schedules; behaviour modification and its applications; cognitive approaches in learning: latent learning, observational learning.High weightage
Verbal and discrimination learning — Verbal learning and discrimination learning; recent trends in learning: neurophysiology of learning.Medium
Memory and forgetting — Memory processes: encoding, storage, retrieval; stages of memory: sensory memory, short-term memory (working memory), long-term memory (declarative: episodic and semantic; procedural); theories of forgetting: interference, retrieval failure, decay, motivated forgetting.High weightage

Attention: forms and models → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Perception: approaches, organisation, constancy → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Signal detection and information processing → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Learning: theories and conditioning → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Verbal and discrimination learning → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Memory and forgetting → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

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Unit 6: Thinking, Intelligence and Creativity

चिंतन, बुद्धि और सृजनात्मकता · 4 bank questions · 6 premium chapters

Theoretical perspectives on thought — Theoretical perspectives on thought processes: associationism, Gestalt, information processing, feature integration model.Medium
Concept formation, reasoning, language and thought — Concept formation: rules, types, and strategies; role of concepts in thinking; types of reasoning; language and thought.High weightage
Problem solving and decision-making — Problem solving: type, strategies, and obstacles; decision-making: types and models.Medium
Metacognition — Metacognition: metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive regulation.Medium
Intelligence: major theories — Intelligence: Spearman, Thurstone, Jensen, Cattell, Gardner, Sternberg, Goleman, Das, Kar and Parrila.High weightage
Creativity — Creativity: Torrance, Getzels and Jackson, Guilford, Wallach and Kogan; relationship between intelligence and creativity.Medium

Theoretical perspectives on thought → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Concept formation, reasoning, language and thought → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Problem solving and decision-making → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Metacognition → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Intelligence: major theories → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Creativity → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

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Unit 7: Personality, Motivation, Emotion, Stress and Coping

व्यक्तित्व, अभिप्रेरणा, संवेग, तनाव और सामना · 4 bank questions · 6 premium chapters

Personality: determinants and approaches — Determinants of personality: biological and socio-cultural; approaches to the study of personality: psychoanalytical, neo-Freudian, social learning, trait and type, cognitive, humanistic, existential, transpersonal psychology.High weightage
Other personality theories — Other theories: Rotter’s locus of control, Seligman’s explanatory styles, Kohlberg’s theory of moral development.Medium
Motivation: concepts and approaches — Basic motivational concepts: instincts, needs, drives, arousal, incentives, motivational cycle; approaches to the study of motivation: psychoanalytical, ethological, S-R cognitive, humanistic.High weightage
Exploratory behaviour and achievement motives — Exploratory behavior and curiosity, Zuckerman’s sensation seeking, achievement, affiliation and power, motivational competence, self-regulation, flow.Medium
Emotions: correlates and theories — Emotions: physiological correlates; theories of emotions: James-Lange, Cannon-Bard, Schachter and Singer, Lazarus, Lindsley; emotion regulation.High weightage
Conflicts, stress and coping — Conflicts: sources and types; stress and coping: concept, models, type A, B, C, D behaviors, stress management strategies (biofeedback, music therapy, breathing exercises, progressive muscular relaxation, guided imagery, mindfulness, meditation, yogasana, stress inoculation training).High weightage

Personality: determinants and approaches → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Other personality theories → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Motivation: concepts and approaches → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Exploratory behaviour and achievement motives → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Emotions: correlates and theories → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Conflicts, stress and coping → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

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Unit 8: Social Psychology

सामाजिक मनोविज्ञान · 4 bank questions · 5 premium chapters

Nature, scope and perspectives — Nature, scope and history of social psychology; traditional theoretical perspectives: field theory, cognitive dissonance, sociobiology, psychodynamic approaches, social cognition.Medium
Social perception, attitudes and prosocial behaviour — Social perception (communication, attributions); attitude and its change within cultural context; prosocial behavior.High weightage
Group and social influence — Group and social influence: social facilitation, social loafing; social influence: conformity, peer pressure, persuasion, compliance, obedience, social power, reactance; aggression; group dynamics, leadership style and effectiveness.High weightage
Theories of intergroup relations — Theories of intergroup relations: minimal group experiment and social identity theory, relative deprivation theory, realistic conflict theory, balance theories, equity theory, social exchange theory.Medium
Applied social psychology — Applied social psychology: health, environment and law; personal space, crowding, and territoriality.Medium

Nature, scope and perspectives → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Social perception, attitudes and prosocial behaviour → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Group and social influence → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Theories of intergroup relations → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Applied social psychology → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

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Unit 9: Human Development and Interventions

मानव विकास और हस्तक्षेप · 4 bank questions · 4 premium chapters

Developmental processes and theories — Developmental processes: nature, principles, factors in development, stages of development, successful aging; theories of development: psychoanalytical, behavioristic, and cognitive.High weightage
Aspects of development — Various aspects of development: sensory-motor, cognitive, language, emotional, social and moral.Medium
Psychopathology and psychotherapies — Psychopathology: concept, mental status examination, classification, causes; psychotherapies: psychoanalysis, person-centered, Gestalt, existential, acceptance commitment therapy, behavior therapy, REBT, CBT, MBCT, play therapy, positive psychotherapy, transactional analysis, dialectic behavior therapy, art therapy, performing art therapy, family therapy.High weightage
Educational applications and counselling — Applications of theories of motivation and learning in school; factors in educational achievement; teacher effectiveness; guidance in schools: needs, organizational set up and techniques; counselling: process, skills, and techniques.Medium

Developmental processes and theories → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Aspects of development → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Psychopathology and psychotherapies → premium chapter · free preview · ~14 min

Educational applications and counselling → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

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Unit 10: Emerging Areas

उभरते क्षेत्र · 4 bank questions · 5 premium chapters

Gender, poverty, disability and migration — Issues of gender, poverty, disability, and migration: cultural bias and discrimination, stigma, marginalization, and social suffering; child abuse and domestic violence.Medium
Peace psychology — Peace psychology: violence, non-violence, conflict resolution at macro level, role of media in conflict resolution.Medium
Wellbeing and self-growth — Wellbeing and self-growth: types of wellbeing (hedonic and eudemonic), character strengths, resilience and post-traumatic growth.Medium
Health psychology — Health: health promoting and health compromising behaviors, life style and chronic diseases (diabetes, hypertension, coronary heart disease), psychoneuroimmunology (cancer, HIV/AIDS).High weightage
Psychology and technology interface — Psychology and technology interface: digital learning; digital etiquette: cyber bullying; cyber pornography: consumption, implications; parental mediation of digital usage.Medium

Gender, poverty, disability and migration → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Peace psychology → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Wellbeing and self-growth → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

Health psychology → premium chapter · free preview · ~13 min

Psychology and technology interface → premium chapter · free preview · ~12 min

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Study material