In the study by Perry et al. (personal space), there were four types of 'approaching figure'. One of these figures was a friend.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (Feb/Mar 2025). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [1] Stranger/authority/ball.
2. [2] The ability to understand the emotional state of someone else (1 mark) by imagining what it would be like to be in that situation (1 mark).
3. Do accept 'seeing it from another person's perspective/in their shoes' for the 2nd mark.
4. [2] Oxytocin affects the amount of personal space a person feels they need in relation to how empathic they are.
5. Oxytocin and empathy interact differently depending on the individual, for example, a person with low empathy level requires increased personal space in response to oxytocin.
6. The administration of oxytocin enhances social cues in different ways and is dependent on the empathy levels of a person.
7. If a person has high levels of empathy and oxytocin then they will be more likely to want closer interpersonal distances [and reverse argument for low].
8. Oxytocin affects the amount of personal space a person needs.
9. The idea of social salience was supported.
10. The administration of oxytocin enhances social cues in different ways.
11. People with high empathy require less personal space/people with low empathy require more personal space.
12. There are other creditworthy conclusions, including ones based around the familiarity of a person affecting levels of personal space.