8. comparing approaches

Question 1

VIEWS ON DEVELOPMENT

· In terms of child development, the psychodynamic approach presents the most coherent theory of development, tying its concepts and processes to specific

Answer 1

(psychosexual) stages that are determined by age. That said, Freud saw very little further development once a child enters the genital stage in the teen years.

Question 2

VIEWS ON DEVELOPMENT

· Stage theories within the cognitive approach have contributed to our understanding of child development. For example, as part of their intellectual development, children form

Answer 2

increasingly complex concepts (schema) as they get older.

Question 3

VIEWS ON DEVELOPMENT

Maturation is an important principle within the biological approach whereby

Answer 3

genetically determined changes in a child’s physiological status influence psychological and behavioural characteristics.

Question 4

VIEWS ON DEVELOPMENT

Humanistic psychologists see the development of the self as ongoing throughout life. However, childhood is a particularly important period and a child’s relationship with their parents

Answer 4

is important in terms of unconditional positive regard.

Question 5

VIEWS ON DEVELOPMENT

Finally, the behaviourist approach and social learning theory do not offer coherent stage theories of development but instead see the processes that underpin learning as

Answer 5

continuous, occurring at any age.

Question 6

NATURE VERSUS NURTURE

The debate about whether human behaviour is more influenced by inherited biological factors (nature) or by the environment and experience (nurture) has a long history in psychology.
The biological approach and the two learning approaches are

Answer 6

furthest apart in this respect.

Question 7

NATURE VERSUS NURTURE

Behaviourists characterised babies as ‘blank slates’ at birth and suggest that all behaviour comes about through

Answer 7

learned associations, reinforcement contingencies

Question 8

NATURE VERSUS NURTURE

in the case of social learning theory, behaviour comes through

Answer 8

observation and imitation.

Question 9

NATURE VERSUS NURTURE

In contrast, the biological approach argues from a position that behaviour is the result of

Answer 9

a genetic blueprint that we inherit from our parents (genotype), though the way it is expressed is influenced by the environment (phenotype).

Question 10

NATURE VERSUS NURTURE

· Freud thought that much of our behaviour was driven by

Answer 10

biological drives and instincts, but he also saw relationships with parents as playing a fundamental role in future development.

Question 11

NATURE VERSUS NURTURE

Similarly, humanistic psychologists regard

Answer 11

parents, friends and wider society as having a critical impact on the person’s self-concept.

Question 12

NATURE VERSUS NURTURE

· Finally, although cognitive psychologists would recognise that many of our information processing abilities and schema are innate, they are

Answer 12

constantly refined through experience.

Question 13

REDUCTIONISM

Reductionism refers to the belief that human behaviour can be most effectively explained by breaking it down into constituent parts. The opposing view is holism, that phenomena are best understood by looking at the interplay and interaction of many different factors.

Behaviourism is

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reductionist in the sense that it breaks up complex behaviour into stimulus-response units for ease of testing in the lab.

Question 14

REDUCTIONISM

· The biological approach is also

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reductionist in the way that it explains human behaviour and psychological states at the level of the gene or neuron.

Question 15

REDUCTIONISM

The psychodynamic approach reduces much of our behaviour to the influence of sexual drives and biological instincts, although Freud’s argument that personality is a dynamic interaction between the three parts of the personality is

Answer 15

often viewed as a more holistic explanation

Question 16

REDUCTIONISM

· The cognitive approach has been accused of machine reductionism by

Answer 16

presenting people as information processing systems and ignoring the influence of emotion on behaviour.

Question 17

REDUCTIONISM

· Like behaviourists, social learning theorists reduce complex learning to a handful of key processes (imitation, modelling, etc.) though they do at least place emphasis on

Answer 17

cognitive factors that mediate learning. and how these interact with external influences.

Question 18

REDUCTIONISM

Finally, and quite distinct from other approaches, is humanistic psychology, which formulates a holistic approach to understanding human behaviour. This involves

Answer 18

investigating all aspects of the individual, including the effects of interaction with others and wider society.

Question 19

DETERMINISM

Determinism proposes that all behaviour has an internal or external cause and is thus predictable.

The behaviourist approach sees all behaviour as

Answer 19

environmentally determined by external influences that we are unable to control (e.g. operant conditioning).

Question 20

DETERMINISM

The biological approach advocates a form of

Answer 20

genetic determinism in its assumption that much of our behaviour is directed by innate influences.

Question 21

DETERMINISM

Psychic determinism is a key feature of the psychodynamic approach -

Answer 21

so far as the unconscious forces that drive our behaviour are the ultimate cause of behaviour, and that these are simply rationalised by our conscious minds.

Question 22

DETERMINISM

Social learning theorists, like Bandura, put forward the notion of reciprocal determinism - the idea that

Answer 22

as well as being influenced by our environment, we also exert some influence upon it through the behaviours we choose to perform.

Question 22

DETERMINISM

· The cognitive approach suggests that we are the ‘choosers of our own thoughts and behaviours, yet these choices can only operate within the

Answer 22

limits of what we know and have experienced.

Question 23

DETERMINISM

Only humanistic psychology stands alone in its assertion that human beings have

Answer 23

free will and operate as active agents who determine their own development.

Question 24

EXPLANATION AND TREATMENT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS

· The behaviourist model sees abnormality as arising from maladaptive or faulty learning in the sense that inappropriate or destructive patterns of behaviour have been reinforced. Behaviour therapies, such as

Answer 24

systematic desensitisation, which aim to condition new, more healthy responses, have been applied successfully to the treatment of phobias.

Question 25

EXPLANATION AND TREATMENT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS

Cognitive therapy is much more effective and applicable, especially when combined with behaviour therapy as CBT (for example in the treatment of depression). It aims to

Answer 25

identify and eradicate faulty thinking which is assumed to be the root cause of maladaptive behaviour.

Question 25

EXPLANATION AND TREATMENT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS

· Freud saw anxiety disorders as emerging from unconscious conflict, childhood trauma and the overuse of defence mechanisms. Psychoanalysis has had some success as a therapy, but

Answer 25

it is not appropriate for everyone because it requires a considerable input from the patient in terms of time and also ability to talk about and reflect on emotions.

Question 26

EXPLANATION AND TREATMENT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS

Also effective is humanistic therapy (or counselling) based on Rogers’ philosophy that closing the gap between

Answer 26

the self-concept and the ideal self will increase self-esteem and stimulate personal growth.

Question 27

EXPLANATION AND TREATMENT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS

Finally, many would claim the biological approach has revolutionised the treatment of mental disorders through the development of

Answer 27

drug therapy which regulates chemical imbalances in the brain.

Question 28

EXPLANATION AND TREATMENT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISORDERS

Social learning theory has had relatively little application to treatment, but the principles of

Answer 28

modelling and observational learning have been used to explain how negative behaviours such as aggression may be learned through the influence of dysfunctional role models.