4.2.1 Approaches In Psychology

Question 1

origins of psychology - Wilhelm Wundt

Answer 1

• often called the ‘father of experimental psychology’
• he founded the first psychology lab in 1879
• he pioneered the technique of introspection, which involves examining one’s own thoughts, emotions and mental processes

Question 2

introspection

Answer 2

• wundt et al. used introspection to try and uncover what people were thinking and experiencing
• this involved asking ppts to describe their thoughts / experience when presented with a set of stimuli, and often their reaction time was recorded
• Wundt attempted to break these thoughts down into structures (reductionism)
• it allowed him to analyse the quality of sensations people experienced

Question 3

introspection - strengths

Answer 3

• although quite basic compared to modern psychological standards, he used scientific methods in his work - he gave ppts the same procedure and instructions, and tried to minimise the impact of extraneous variables by controlling the environment
• this helped move psychology away from philosophy, e.g. the work of Descartes and Locke, and move towards the scientific method, which influenced the beginnings of cognitive, biological and behavioural approaches

Question 4

introspection - limitations

Answer 4

• relies on people describing their thoughts and feelings which isn’t objective and can’t be measured
• this means he was unable to replicate his findings, so his work can be seen as unscientific and unreliable
• people’s accounts of their own experiences can’t be confirmed, so it’s unreliable
• doesn’t explain how the mind works

Question 5

the emergence of psychology as a science

Answer 5

• early behaviourists such as John B. Watson criticised introspection for its subjectivity and variations between people
• he suggested psychology should focus on studying observable behaviour
• so other behaviourists, e.g. Skinner, used scientific, highly controlled techniques such as lab techniques
• this was the dominant paradigm in the mid 20th century
• the cognitive approach became popular in the 1960s, and emphasised studying thought processes which can be indirectly tested in experiments
• the biological approach emerged in the 1980s, which can be studied through methods such as brain-scanning techniques

Question 6

learning approaches

Answer 6

• they measure and explain human behaviour as a result of environment and experience
• behaviourism and social learning theory are both learning approaches

Question 7

the behaviourist approach (behaviourism)

Answer 7

explains behaviour as a result of learning from experience, eg. via classical and operant conditioning

Question 8

behaviourism - basic assumptions

Answer 8

• we’re born with our mind as ‘tabula rasa’ (a blank state) and everything we do is learned from experience
• the study of the mind should focus on external behaviour, as it can be objectively measured and observed, rather than internal thought processes
• the same processes that govern human behaviour also govern the behaviour of animals, e.g. rats, dogs, etc. so experiments on animal behaviour can yield valid conclusions about human behaviour too

Question 9

classical conditioning

Answer 9

• explains behaviour as being learnt through association
• occurs when an association is made between a neutral stimulus and reflex response
• demonstrated by ivan pavlov

Question 10

ivan pavlov (1927) - classical conditioning

Answer 10

• he demonstrated how dogs could be conditioned to salivate (unconditioned response) to the sound of a bell (neutral stimulus) if that bell was repeatedly used when they were given food (unconditioned stimulus)
• the dogs learnt to associate the sound of the bell (conditioned stimulus) with food and so would produce saliva each time they heard it (conditioned response)

Question 11

operant conditioning

Answer 11

• explains how behaviours are learnt from and reinforced in response to consequences
• 4 types of consequences for behaviour;
• positive reinforcement; getting a pleasant stimulus (reward) to increase / maintain behaviour
• negative reinforcement; removing a negative stimulus to increase / maintain behaviour
• positive punishment; adding a negative stimulus to decrease behaviour
• negative punishment; removing a positive stimulus to decrease behaviour
• demonstrated by B.F. skinner

Question 12

skinner (1953) - operant conditioning

Answer 12

• suggested learning is an active process where humans and animals operate in their environment
• demonstrated how animals learn from the consequences of their actions by placing rats in boxes (a ‘Skinner’ box) one at a time until they learnt an action;
• in one variation, pressing the response lever released food, so rats quickly learnt this consequence and repeated the behaviour to get more food (positive reinforcement)
• in another variation, the rats learnt to avoid an electric shock by pressing the lever, so they quickly learnt to go straight to the response lever when put in a box (negative reinforcement)

Question 13

behaviourism - strengths

Answer 13

• focuses on whats observable, measurable and repeatable which gives it scientific credibility
• has many practical applications, as it’s been used in several psychological contexts to produce desired results, e.g. the behaviourist treatment of phobias, including systematic desensitisation and flooding
• research support from pavlov and skinner

Question 14

behaviourism - limitations

Answer 14

• an overly simplistic (reductionist) explanation as it ignores the role of genetics or cognition in behaviour
• can’t explain behaviours which can’t be observed, e.g. memory as it happens internally
• also can’t explain behaviours where a reward is ignored or a punishment is sought, e.g. people who engage in self-harm
• humans are very different to animals, both physically and cognitively, so the conclusions drawn from pavlov and skinner’s research may not transfer to human psychology
• several ethical concerns, e.g. causing distress to animals by using them in experiments
• in humans, certain applications of behaviourism, e.g. making gambling machines, can be seen as ethically wrong

Question 15

social learning theory

Answer 15

explains behaviour as a result of learning from experience, but by observation of others’ behaviour

Question 16

social learning theory - basic assumptions

Answer 16

• suggests learning happens via mediational processes (ARRM)
• people imitate the behaviours modelled by the role models they identify with, e.g. those who have similar characteristics as them
• behaviour may be vicariously reinforced as seeing others receive a reward is enough to motivate the desire to imitate the behaviour to also receive the reward
• isn’t entirely behaviourist as it allows for the inclusion of cognitive factors in explaining behaviour, i.e. mediational processes

Question 17

mediational processes

Answer 17

• 4 cognitive mental factors (processes) which determine whether a new response is acquired and learning takes place;
• attention; to what extent the behaviour is observed
• retention; how well the observed behaviour is remembered
• reproduction; how able the observer is to imitate the behaviour
• motivation; the will to imitate the behaviour, i.e. depends if it was rewarded or punished

Question 18

albert bandura (1961) - bobo doll study

Answer 18

• he believed learning was conditioned through observation and imitation of others
• bobo doll study aims;
• to see if same-sex models had a higher influence on behaviour
• to examine the effect of the continual influence of the model on behaviour, i.e. if imitation continued even when the role model was no longer present
• procedure;
• 72 ppts - 36 boys and 36 girls aged 3-6
• put into groups and put in a room with an inflatable doll (Bobo) and observed an adult role model interact with it for 10 mins
• 3 groups were; aggressive (role model hits the doll with a hammer and shouts at it), non-aggressive (role model doesn’t hit or shout at it), or a control group (no role model)
• half the ppts had a same-sex role model and the other half had an opposite-sex role model * after 10 mins of observing the role model, ppts were taken to a room with toys, including a bobo doll, but were told they couldn’t play with them (to increase aggression arousal)
• after 2 mins, they were left to play with the toys for 20 minutes
• results;
• children who observed an aggressive role model were more likely to be aggressive
• boys were more physically aggressive and girls displayed more verbal aggression
• children were more likely to imitate the behaviour of the same-sex model
• conclusion;
• observing a role model showing aggressive behaviour may motivate a child to imitate that behaviour in a different setting, especially when they observe a role model of the same sex

Question 19

bandura’s bobo doll study - variations

Answer 19

• bandura et al. (1963) demonstrated vicarious reinforcement in a variation of his original experiment
• the model was either praised or punished for acting aggressively towards the doll
• children who saw the model praised for their aggression were more likely to imitate the behaviour

Question 20

social learning theory - strengths

Answer 20

• offers a more complete account than behaviourism, as it allows for cognitive factors in explaining behaviour
• bandura’s study was a well-controlled observational study with a clear independent variable, so this procedure can be repeated to test for reliability
• explains cultural differences, because if children learn behaviours by imitating those around them, it can explain the different behaviours between cultures - this is unlike the biological approach which may have difficulty explaining these variations as the biology is essentially the same but behaviours are different across cultures

Question 21

social learning theory - limitations

Answer 21

• the bobo doll experiments also support a biological approach, as bandura et al. found that boys show more aggression than girls, suggesting biological factors, e.g. testosterone levels, also play an important role in explaining behaviour
• bobo doll experiments were conducted in an unfamiliar (lab) setting, so children may have been behaving in the way they thought they were expected to by copying the role model - because it was just a doll it’s unclear whether the children would model aggressive behaviour in a real-life scenario
• bandura’s study only shows short-term effects of observed aggression, making it hard to see long-term effects
• ethical issues in bandura’s study; young children being exposed to an aggressive adult is problematic

Question 22

the cognitive approach

Answer 22

• explains behaviour as a result of cognitive processes such as thoughts, beliefs and perceptions

Question 23

the cognitive approach - basic assumptions

Answer 23

• inner mental processes can and should be studied in a scientific way
• although a person’s inner mental processes can’t be observed, they can be inferred from their external behaviour
• mental processes can be modelled like a computer program; inputs (e.g. sense data) get processed in the mind (like a computer program) to produce outputs (i.e. behaviour)
• to help explain them, the mental processes can be broken down into theoretical models, i.e. diagrams and flow charts, e.g. the MSM in memory explains how info flows through various components for processing
• whereas behaviourism only focuses on the inputs and outputs, the cognitive approach acknowledges the mental process in-between

Question 24

schemas

Answer 24

• mental shortcuts (frameworks) which help to organise info and understand the world
• a key part of the cognitive approach
• they’re formed from experience - we form them and use them to interpret the past, categorise info in the present, and predict the future
• people have different schemas as they have different experiences
• this also means that culture has an impact on schemas, as different cultures have different experiences
• schemas can also develop over time, i.e. they can become more detailed
• however, once a schema is formed, it’s hard to change it as people tend to be biased towards info that fits the pre-existing schema and often ignore contradictory info

Question 25

examples of schemas

Answer 25

• self-schema; about appearance / personality, e.g. ‘i’m tall’
• stereotypes / generalisations; e.g. ‘snakes are dangerous’
• social roles; e.g. ‘police catch criminals’
• motor schema; e.g. how to walk

Question 26

bartlett (1932) - schemas study

Answer 26

• english ppts were asked to read the ‘War of Ghosts’ which is a Native American folk tale
• it was an unfamiliar story including unusual names, ideas and objects
• when asked to recall the story, ppts changed it to fit their cultural schema by westernising some details, e.g. ‘canoes’ became ‘boats’, or they left out unfamiliar elements
• he concluded that memory is affected by schema, particularly cultural schema which overlays the original event or message

Question 27

cognitive neuroscience

Answer 27

• the study of the relationship between brain activity and mental processes, i.e. how cognition is produced by the interaction of neural mechanisms, chemistry and brain structure
• new technology, e.g. fMRI and PET scans, have been able to identify correlations between certain types of brain activity and certain types of mental processes
• more recently, computer-generated models have also been designed to read the brain

Question 28

cognitive neuroscience - research support

Answer 28

• Braver et al. (1997) observed that greater working memory load is correlated with a greater prefrontal cortex, suggesting the underlying biological basis for working memory is situated in that area of the brain
• Tulving et al. (1994) showed that the different types of LTM may be located on opposite sides of the prefrontal cortex

Question 29

the cognitive approach - strengths

Answer 29

• acknowledges mental processes which are obvious to be a determining factor in behaviour, unlike behaviourism
• uses rigorous experimental methods based on observable data to infer details of inner mental processes, increasing its scientific credibility
• therapies based on this approach have been proven to produce positive results, e.g. many studies have shown CBT to reduce symptoms of depression
• cognitive neuroscience has real-world applications, e.g. in medicine and health, and it uses objective, scientific methods such as MRI scans which increases reliability

Question 30

the cognitive approach - limitations

Answer 30

• overly reductive as analogies between the mind and a computer are limited, i.e. computers lack human emotion which has a significant effect on processing and isn’t accounted for in computer-models
• questions of ecological / external validity as many theories based on this approach, e.g. the WMM, are based on lab studies which may lack mundane realism, e.g. Baddeley’s (1996) test of the capacity of the central executive is an unusual task that one wouldn’t normally perform in real life
• cognitive neuroscience uses tech such as MRI scans, which aren’t always 100% reliable due to user-errors
• could be accused of machine reductionism; humans are too complex and unpredictable to be likened to an inanimate object

Question 31

the biological approach

Answer 31

• explains behaviour as a result of biological factors, such as genetics, biological structures, and neurochemistry

Question 32

the biological approach - basic assumptions

Answer 32

• psychological processes are, at first, biological processes
• the mind is the brain, unlike the cognitive approach which treats them separately

Question 33

biological structures and neurochemistry

Answer 33

• biological structures and neurochemistry play a role in behaviour, e.g;
• endocrine system; adrenaline as part of the fight or flight response
• reflex arc; instant response to a stimulus
• synapses; generates signals which increase / decrease cellular activity
• nervous system; helps parts of the body communicate and guides everyday activity
• the brain; has different regions which perform different tasks

Question 34

genetics

Answer 34

• believes that certain behavioural tendencies are determined by genetics
• each individual is typically born with 23 chromosome pairs which they get from their biological parents, which form our DNA which carry instructions for our characteristics

Question 35

genotype and phenotype

Answer 35

• genetic effects can be divided into genotype and phenotype;
• genotype; your actual genes, which are decided at conception and consist of around 100,000 genes that can’t be changed, e.g. eye colour, hair colour, etc. and similarly, you may be born with the SLC1A1 gene which is linked to OCD
• phenotype; the expression of your genes in response to the environment, i.e. even though your genotype can’t change, the way it’s expressed can vary, e.g. a person with tall genes may end up short if they grow up in a malnourished environment, and similarly, a person with a genetic tendency towards OCD can use psychotherapy to overcome these genes and not exhibit OCD behaviours

Question 36

twin studies

Answer 36

• to investigate genetic influence, twin studies are used and concordance rates are analysed to show the extent to which twins share the same characteristics
• identical twins; monozygotic (MZ)
• fraternal twins; dizygotic (DZ)
• if a trait is genetic, it’s expected that all identical (MZ) twins would share them as they share 100% of genetics

Question 37

evolution and behaviour

Answer 37

• refers to changes in inherited characteristics over generations (adaptation)
• Darwin explains it via his theory of natural selection; any genetically determined behaviour which has an evolutionary advantage (increases a species survival) will be passed down to future generations so they don’t die out
• e.g. intelligence and aggression are believed to be adaptive psychological traits as they enhance human survival
• e.g. Bowlby’s monotropic theory of attachment suggests babies evolve to develop an attachment to one person (usually their mother) as it increases an infant’s survival rate because a baby that doesn’t develop an attachment will be left to fend for itself and probably die

Question 38

the biological approach - strengths

Answer 38

• focuses on observable and measurable phenomena, such as hormone levels, brain structures and genes, which can be measured using new tech, e.g. fMRI scans and using rigorous scientific methods
• practical applications as it’s proven successful in treating mental disorders, e.g. SSRIs are highly effective for treating OCD
• supporting evidence as concordance rates for behaviours and psychological disorders are often higher among MZ twins

Question 39

the biological approach - weaknesses

Answer 39

• overly reductive as it ignores other factors such as the environment, e.g. two people with the same genes are likely to behave differently if raised in a different context, so genetics can only go so far in explaining human behaviour
• deterministic as it explains behaviour as a result of pre-determined genetics and biological structures, ignoring free will, which is a simplistic view and raises moral and legal issues
• conflicting evidence as concordance rates are much lower than 100%, suggesting other factors besides genetics are needed to fully explain behaviour

Question 40

the psychodynamic approach

Answer 40

• explains behaviour as a result of unconscious processes

Question 41

the psychodynamic approach - basic assumptions

Answer 41

• the mind consists of multiple parts; the conscious mind, the pre-conscious mind, and the unconscious mind
• the unconscious mind includes biological instincts that have a significant influence on behaviour but can’t be consciously accessed
• behaviour is explained as a result of conflicts between these different aspects of the mind
• early childhood experiences shape us as adults; failure to resolve conflicts in childhood can lead to psychological problems as an adult

Question 42

the role of the unconscious

Answer 42

• the mind is like an iceberg with the vast majority of it being below the surface of what we’re consciously aware of
• freud proposed 3 levels of consciousness, arranged vertically in a hierarchy;
• conscious; what we’re directly aware of
• pre-conscious; memories, thoughts and beliefs we’re not directly aware of but we can access when making an effort to do so
• unconscious; everything else, including biological drives, instincts, desires, repressed memories, fears, etc. that can’t be accessed (at least not without psychoanalytic therapy)
• unconscious thoughts can often bubble to the surface, e.g. in dreams and ‘Freudian’ slips of the tongue

Question 43

the structure of personality

Answer 43

• freud proposed a tripartite structure of personality;
• id; the primitive, biological part of personality which is present from birth and operates on the pleasure principle, demanding gratification of its needs
• ego; the part which mediates between the id and superego, developed at around 1-3 years old and operates on the reality principle
• superego; the moral part which develops at around 3-5 years old and operates on the morality principle, punishing the ego through guilt
• freud stated that for a healthy personality, there had to be a balance between those 3 parts of the mind
• improper balance can cause mental disorders, e.g. if the id is more dominant, the person can become impulsive and uncontrollable, but if the superego is more dominant, they may become incredibly moralistic and judgemental

Question 44

defence mechanisms

Answer 44

• unconscious mechanisms used by the ego to help it balance the conflicting demands of the id and superego
• they include;
• repression; hiding an unpleasant / undesirable thought (e.g. sexual urges) or memory (e.g. childhood abuse) from the conscious mind
• denial; rejecting and refusing to accept the reality of an unpleasant situation
• displacement; redirecting emotions from the actual target to a substitute

Question 45

psychosexual stages

Answer 45

• freud says children go through 5 psychosexual stages to become well-adjusted adults
• during each stage, the child goes through conflict which they must resolve to move to the next stage successfully
• if a conflict is not resolved, it can result in adult fixation
• the 5 stages;
• oral; 0-1 years; the mouth is the focus of pleasure
• anal; 1-3 years; the anus is the focus of pleasure
• phallic; 3-6 years; the genital area is the focus of pleasure (but not to the level experienced by adults) and conflict can arise and cause the oedipus or electra complex
• latency; 5 years-puberty; earlier conflicts become repressed
• genital; puberty onwards; the genitals are the focus of pleasure and sexual desires become conscious

Question 46

oedipus complex

Answer 46

• boys desire closeness with their mum
• they see their father as a rival who they want to eliminate
• they fear that father will castrate them (castration anxiety)
• this reduces the threat and the boy identifies with his father, internalises male characteristics and comes out of the oedipus complex

Question 47

electra complex

Answer 47

• girls desire closeness with their father
• they experience penis envy as they believe they’ve already been castrated
• they fear losing their mother’s love
• to reduce anxiety, girls identify with their mother, internalise female characteristics and come out of the electra complex

Question 48

the psychodynamic approach - strengths

Answer 48

• freud’s work has some explanatory power, e.g. his theories were among the first to explain how childhood experiences influence adult personality, which is now a common idea to many other psychological theories, e.g. the double bind explanation of schizophrenia
• practical applications as it yielded the treatment form known as psychoanalysis, which involves accessing and interpreting the unconscious mind, e.g. via dream analysis, and there’s some evidence that psychoanalysis can successfully treat mild neuroses

Question 49

the psychodynamic approach - limitations

Answer 49

• unscientific, as it doesn’t focus on observable or measurable techniques as unconscious concepts aren’t even observable by the individual themselves
• freud’s theories were primarily based on individual case studies, so the results derived may not be able to be generalised
• reductionist as it ignores other explanations such as biological ones, e.g. there are physical differences in the neurochemistry and brain structures of OCD patients and people without it, so treating these physical causes is more likely to be effective for many psychological disorders

Question 50

humanistic psychology

Answer 50

• rejects scientific and objective explanations as it argues that human experience is subjective and humans have free will to choose their behaviour

Question 51

humanistic psychology - basic assumptions

Answer 51

• emphasises the freewill of individuals
• each individual is unique, so psychology should focus on the experience of each individuals rather than trying to identify general rules of human behaviour
• rather than focusing on one aspect of a person, e.g. biological factors or childhood experiences, humans should be viewed holistically

Question 52

free will

Answer 52

• the view that humans are able to make choices for themselves without being controlled by the influences of biology or the environment
• humans are self-determining; active agents who make their own choices and determine their own development

Question 53

self-actualisation

Answer 53

• fulfilling your potential by developing your abilities and skills and enjoying doing so
• it will differ between people as each human is different

Question 54

maslow’s (1943) hierarchy of needs

Answer 54

• maslow’s view of self-actualisation involves satisfying 5 levels in a hierarchy of needs
• from the bottom to the top of the triangle, the 5 levels are;
• physiological needs; necessities to live, e.g. food, water, rent
• safety needs; e.g. shelter, security, safety
• social needs; e.g. having friends, romantic relationships, etc.
• esteem needs; accomplishment, e.g. having a job you’re good at
• self-actualisation; the final stage which involves the ultimate feeling of well-being and satisfaction and fulfilling your full potential by constantly striving towards and achieving worthy goals
• the 4 lower levels are deficiency needs and self-actualisation is a growth need
• maslow gave examples of self-actualised people, e.g. einstein, but he believed only 1% of people truly achieve self-actualisation
• everyone may have an innate desire for self-actualisation, but only 1% can achieve it due to personality factors, circumstances, etc.

Question 55

carl rogers and self-actualisation

Answer 55

• he claimed that self-actualisation requires positive self-regard (i.e. a positive opinion of yourself)
• personal growth is only achieved when both self-concept (how you see yourself) and the ideal self (the version you want to be) are congruent (broadly in line with one another)
• if the gap between these is too wide, the individual will suffer from incongruence, and self-actualisation won’t be possible as the individual will suffer from negative feelings of self-worth

Question 56

carl rogers - counselling psychology

Answer 56

• he developed client-centred therapy (counselling) to reduce the gap between the self-concept and the ideal self
• he claimed that children whose parents imposed conditions of worth on them are less likely to have positive self-regard but those with parents who have unconditional positive regard for them are more easily able to achieve self-actualisation
• he saw his role as a therapist as being able to provide the unconditional positive regard the client hasn’t received in childhood in an attempt to increase congruence between their self-concept and ideal self, increase their feelings of self-worth, and ultimately help them to self-actualise
• the therapist should also be genuine, i.e. they shouldn’t hide behind a professional facade that is incongruent with their real personality, and empathetic by actively trying to understand and appreciate the client’s perspective

Question 57

humanistic psychology - strengths

Answer 57

• practical applications as it’s yielded therapies such as counselling techniques which are commonly used and have helped many people improve their lives
• maslow’s hierarchy of needs has also been influential within the business world to explain and help improve motivation within the workplace
• less restrictive as free will plays a huge part in this approach
• holistic as it takes the whole individual into account, rather than reducing their behaviours to cause and effect responses
• higher realism, as it’s based on real-life experience and context, rather than artificial and unrealistic lab experiments

Question 58

humanistic psychology - limitations

Answer 58

• unscientific as it doesn’t produce quantifiable or replicable data, so it’s hard to objectively test the claims of this approach
• science also involves general theories that explain behaviour, but this approach is idiographic as it sees everyone as unique, so rejects attempts to generalise behaviour in this way
• focuses entirely on an individual achieving their full potential, but more collectivist cultures emphasise the common good and may prefer to focus on achieving community / societal potential rather than individual self-actualisation

Question 59

comparison of approaches - explanation of mental disorders

Answer 59

• behaviourist approach; caused by stimulus-response conditioning
• SLT; caused by observation and imitation of inappropriate role models whom they identify with
• cognitive approach; faulty schemas lead to a negative outlook on life
• biological approach; caused by internal biological factors e.g. COMT and SERT genes in OCD
• humanist psychology; caused by a lack of unconditional positive regard in childhood due to conditions of worth imposed by parents which leads to an inability to self-actualise

Question 60

comparison of approaches - free will vs determinism

Answer 60

• behaviourist approach; environmental determinism - behaviour is controlled by stimulus-response conditioning
• SLT; soft determinism - behaviour is controlled by environmental forces, but humans have personal responsibilities and free choice
• cognitive approach; soft determinism - behaviour is controlled by past experiences (schemas), but people are encouraged to change their thoughts with cognitive therapy
• biological approach; biological determinism - behaviour is controlled by internal biological factors, e.g. genes, hormones, etc.
• psychodynamic approach; psychic determinism - behaviour is determined by unconscious drives and early childhood experiences
• humanistic approach; free will - as humans have control of their own environment and are capable of change

Question 61

comparison of approaches - nature vs nurture

Answer 61

• behaviourist approach; nurture - humans are born as a blank state (tabula rasa) and behaviour is learnt
• SLT; nurture - behaviour is learnt via classical and operant conditioning
• cognitive approach; nature and nurture - behaviour is the product of info processing and is modified by experience
• biological approach; nature - behaviour is the result of innate biological factors
• psychodynamic approach; mostly nature - behaviour is the product of innate drives but is shaped by early childhood experiences
• humanistic approach; mostly nurture - behaviour is shaped by the environment as humans strive to achieve actualisation

Question 62

comparison of approaches - holism vs reductionism

Answer 62

• behaviourist approach; environmental reductionism - behaviour is broken down into simple stimulus-response associations
• SLT; shares elements from the behaviourist and cognitive approach
• cognitive approach; environmental reductionism - behaviour is investigated in terms of isolated variables, e.g. STM and LTM
• biological approach; biological reductionism - behaviour is broken down into biological structures and processes
• psychodynamic approach; reductionism and holism - behaviour is reduced to innate drives whilst taking account of multiple aspects of human behaviour
• humanistic approach; holism - focuses on understanding all aspects of human experience

Question 63

comparison of approaches - idiographic vs nomothetic

Answer 63

• behaviourist approach; nomothetic - creates universal laws as behaviour is a result of stimulus-response associations
• SLT; nomothetic - attempts to establish general laws of behaviour, such as vicarious reinforcement
• cognitive approach; nomothetic - attempts to establish general laws of cognitive processing, but utilises an idiographic approach with case studies
• biological approach; nomothetic - creates universal laws using human physiological explanations
• psychodynamic approach; nomothetic and idiographic - attempts to establish general laws in relation to innate drives, while considering unique experiences during childhood
• humanistic approach; idiographic - focuses on the subjective human experience and makes no attempt to create general laws

Question 64

comparison of approaches - scientific

Answer 64

• behaviourist approach; scientific - utilises the scientific method of investigation and embraces animal research and lab studies
• SLT; mostly scientific - but takes account of mediational processes
• cognitive approach; mostly scientific - however, researchers are unable to directly observe cognitive processes
• biological approach; scientific - promotes the empirical method of investigation
• psychodynamic approach; not scientific - examines many concepts and theories which can’t be empirically tested so it relies on subjective info
• humanistic approach; not scientific - rejects the scientific method and is therefore unable to provide empirical evidence