Approaches Flashcards
give a recap of the origins of psychology
17th-19th century- psychology was more philosophical ‘experimental philosophy’
1879: Wundt made first lab for psychology
1900s: Freud made psychodynamic approach and psychoanalysis
1913: John B Watson and BF Skinner make behaviourist approach
1950s: Rogers and Maslow make the humanist approach
1960s: cognitive revolution makes cognitive approach
1960s: Bandura makes social learning theory
1980s: biological approach becomes more established
what did Wundt do?
- opened first lab for psychology in 1879
- moved psychology from its philosophical roots to controlled research
- created introspection
what was introspection?
- first experimental attempt to study the mind and describe the nature of human consciousness
. broke conscious awareness into: thoughts, images and sensations - conducted in controlled setting
. ppts were given the same stimuli (ticking metronome) and were asked to record their thoughts, images and sensations. standardised instructions were given to all colleagues which allowed procedure to be repeated
evaluate introspection
+controlled experiment
. can conclude causation
+: positive implications
. moved psychology from its philosophical roots, leading it to be more scientific
outline the assumptions of the behaviourist approach
- behaviour is learned from experience with the exceptions of instincts and reflexes
- animals and humans learn in the same way
- try to maintain objectivity in their research by only looking at observable behaviour
. rely on lab experiments
explain the key words ‘unconditioned stimulus’ ‘unconditioned response’ ‘neutral stimulus’ ‘conditioned stimulus’ ‘conditioned response’
UCS: causes UCR
UCR: involuntary response
NS: initially doesn’t cause target response
CS: NS becomes CS when repeatedly paired with a UCS
CS: stimulus that will cause a specific response
CR: trained response through association
describe the process of classical conditioning using Pavlov’s experiment on a dog
- learning by association (occurs when 2 stimuli are regularly paired together)
UCS (food) -> UCR (salivating)
NS (bell) -> no response
UCS(food)+NS(bell) -> UCR
(salivation)
. dog now associates bell with food, so bell becomes CS
CS (bell) -> CR (salivation)
. the dog thinks thy will get food with the bell, so they salivate in response to the bell.
explain the key words ‘reinforcement’ ‘positive reinforcement’ ‘negative reinforcement’ and punishment’
- reinforcement: consequence of behaviour that increases the likelihood of that behaviour being repeated
- positive reinforcement: rewarding behaviour to make it more likely
- negative reinforcement: removal of something unpleasant when desired behaviour is shown
- punishment: negative consequence to behaviour, making the behaviour less likely
explain operant conditioning using Skinner’s experiment on rats
- operant conditioning: belief that behaviour is shaped and maintained by its consequences
. Skinner studies rats to prove this
RAT 1: positive reinforcement
. every time rat pulled a lever, it got food, making it more likely for rat to pull lever
RAT 2: negative reinforcement
.rat was continuously shocked until it pulled the lever which stopped the shock (makes it more likely to pull to lever to avoid being shocked)
RAT 3: punishment
. every time the rat pulled the lever it was shocked making it less likely to pull it.
AO3 for the behaviourist approach
+: controlled research of the behaviourist approach
. it only focuses on observable behaviour
e.g., looking at the animal’s response to certain stimuli and how it changes
. this makes its conclusions more objective than e.g., conclusions in the psychodynamic approach.
- : extrapolation is bad since humans have higher cognition and intelligence than animals
so conclusions cannot be generalised (not applicable). low population validity.
-: deterministic
. follows environmental determinism (we are passive responders to the environment with no conscious insight)
. this may be socially sensitive when considering moral culpability.
. is aggression just a conditioned response to certain stimuli?
-: fully on the ‘nurture’ side of the nature vs nurture debate.
behaviourist approach suggests that all behaviour is learnt, however there is research suggesting biological causes of behaviour as well, for example , intelligence is thought to be 0.5 on hereditability coefficient. it suggests that an interactionist approach would be a more accurate explanation of behaviour.
-: environmentally reductionist
breaks behaviour down into constituent environmental component of stimulus response
this oversimplified view calls into question how the behaviourist response would explain more complex human behaviour like psychopathology or SZ
+ : despite this it has application to real life
.SYSTEMATIC DESENSITAZATION uses CC to cure phobias through counter conditioning
what are the assumptions of Social Learning Theory?
- development of the behaviourist approach
- people learn through observation and imitation (learning from social surroundings)
- SLT is an explanation of behaviour that involves direct and indirect reinforcement
what is imitation?
copying the behaviour of others
what is identification?
when the observer associates themselves with a role model and wants to be like the role model
what is modelling?
ROLE MODEL’S POV
demonstration of specific behaviour that might be imitated by an observer
OBSERVER’S POV
imitating behaviour of the role model
what is vicarious reinforcement?
- reinforcement which is not directly experienced
. your own behaviour is reinforced by observing the consequences of someone else’s actions - e.g., you see someone be rewarded for picking up litter. they undergo positive reinforcement, but your behaviour is vicariously reinforced and you are more likely to pick up litter, in hopes for the same consequence.
describe mediational processes and its role in SLT
- SLT is the bridge between the behaviourist approach and the cognitive approach
. it focuses on how mental factors are involved in learning
. these mental processes mediate in learning processes to determine whether a new response is required
- ATTENTION: the extent to which we notice certain behaviour
- RETENTION: how well the behaviour is remembered
- MOTOR REPRODUCTION: the ability of the observer to imitate observed behaviour
- MOTIVATION: the will to preform observed behaviour (usually determined on whether the behaviour is punished or rewarded)
1-2: learning the behaviour 3-4 repeating the behaviour
APFC for Bandura’s Bobo doll experiment
AIM: to investigate whether exposure to real life aggressive model increases aggression in children
PROCEDURE: 72 kids (1/2 boys 1/2 girls) all between the age of 3-5 years were chosen
. children would watch an aggressive or non aggressive role model of the same or opposite sex to themselves
. child was placed in 1 corner and there was a range of toys in the other corner
. AGGRESSIVE ROLE MODEL: played with a toy then act aggressively to Bobo doll
NON-AGGRESSIVE: kept playing with tinker toy
. after, the child has ‘free play’ (could play with any of the toys) and was observed for 20 mins
RESULTS: children with an aggressive role model showed more direct imitation than kids with non-aggressive role model
. watching an aggressive role model had larger effect on boys then girls (boys imitated the aggressive role model better)
. imitation levels were larger with same sex role model
CONCLUSION: a child can learn aggressive behaviour through observation
AO3 for SLT
+: supporting research from Bandura
. controlled lab study with high internal validity, increases overall validity of explanation by showing importance of role models and observation
. similar to behaviourist approach.
-: experiment had sample of only young children
. children (especially 3-5) are more impressionable than adults or even older kids. this means they are more likely to imitate the behaviour of a role model
. low population validity- and perhaps adult’s behaviour is not as influenced by the actions of a role model as they have built their own morals
. behaviourist approach also has issues of generalisability.
t= supporting research may overstate the importance of role models and imitation in behaviour.
+ soft determinism
. emphasises the role of motivation before deciding behaviour
. although certain mediational process (like reproduction) make it more or less likely to repeat behaviour, we still have the free will to choose
SLT aligns with judicial systems that hold people personally responsible for actions unlike e.g., biological approach.
+: explains cultural differences in behaviour
. emphasises the influence of social surroundings in learning.
. reduces chances of imposed etic as it recognises not all behaviour will be universal
+: more complex explanation than other learning approaches
. BA suggests that people only learn from their own past actions
.SLT is more accurate, as it recognises that all humans and animals store info about other’s behaviour, and use it to make judgements on when to perform their own actions (e.g., a deer who sees another deer getting attacked when drinking water is unlikely to go and drink water at that point as well)
. more comprehensive explanation by recognising role of mediational processes
-: still is entirely on nurture side of nature/nurture debate
. ignores biological differences despite there being evidence of the influence of them
e.g., Bandura’s study found that boys more accurately imitated aggressive behaviour than girls. this could be that they have more testosterone which makes them more predisposed to aggressive behaviour.
outline the main assumptions of the cognitive approach
- developed in 1960s when people thought the behaviourist approach didn’t take into account mental processes
- explains behaviour by looking at internal mental processes: PERCEPTION, LANGUAGE, ATTENTION, MEMORY
- compares the mind to a computer in terms of input and output
- we cannot see mental processes so they infer that certain behaviour is caused by certain cognitions.
what is the role of a schema in the cognitive approach?
- SCHEMA: framework of beliefs and expectations (developed through experience) that influence cognitive processing
eg: schema for a chair is something you sit on - our schema gets more detailed and sophisticated as we get older
- helps us process lots of information quickly (like a “mental shortcut”) that prevents you getting overwhelmed by environmental stimuli.
- ROLE IN COGNITIVE APPROACH: cognitive processing can be affected by preconceived ideas, beliefs or experiences.
research supporting schemas
BUGELSKI AND ALAMPAY (1962)
- ambiguous drawing of ‘rat man’
- they could 2 groups of ps. a sequence of pictures
. group 1: sequence of human faces
. group 2: sequence of animals
- group 1 saw the man in drawing first
- group 2 saw rat in drawing first
how does the cognitive approach use theoretical and computer models?
- it uses theoretical and computer models to help them understand internal mental processes
- COMPUTER MODELS: mind is directly compared to computer models
. humans are treated as information processors and behaviour is explained in terms of output
. this would practically involve programming a computer to see if instructions produce a similar output to humans - INFORMATION PROCESSING APPROACH: info flows through the cognitive system in stages: input, storage, retrieval (based on the way a computer functions)
how has cognitive neuroscience emerged as a result of the cognitive approach?
COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE: study of the brain on internal mental processes
. involves mapping areas of the brain to specific cognitive functions
- development of fMRI and PET scans mean scientists are able to systematically observe and describe neurological basis of mental processes
eg. Tulving (1994) could show that different types of long term memory (episodic and semantic) may be located on opposite sides of the pre frontal cortex
AO3 for cognitive approach
+: research supporting schemas.
. Bugelski and Alampay- perception influenced by expectations and past experience
+: cognitive approach has practical applications
. knowledge on the existence of schemas was then developed into research on dysfunctional schemas
. Beck found that negative self schema could leads to depression
. this is then a main focus in CBT- challenged negative schemas
. positive implication.
-: research on cognitive approach has lacked objectivity in the past
. can only infer mental processes from the behaviour they observe
. approach considered too theoretical- subjective
. results may not be accurate
+ : cognitive revolution led to scientific and objective methods
. cognitive psychologists use controlled and rigorous methods of study to infer cognitive processes at work
eg. brain scans
. produces reliable and objective results
. allows 2 fields (biology and cognitive psychology) to come together (cognitive neuroscience)
. establishes a credible, scientific status
+ : less determinist than others
. based on soft determinism (recognises that our cognitive system can only operate within certain limits but we are free to think before responding to a stimulus)
. considers people’s though processes (people can response differently and behaviour is not predetermined)
. contrasts behaviourism which suggests we are passive responders to the environment and lack free will
. CA is more reasonable and in line with our sense of free will
- : based on MACHINE REDUCTIONISM
. minimises differences between human and machine
. some similarities (eg. input, output, storage system)
. BUT, influence of human emotion and motivation on cognitive system is ignored in CA (UNLIKE SLT and mediational processes)
eg. human memory can be affected by emotional factors like to influence of anxiety on eyewitnesses
. oversimplifies human cognitive processing so cannot fully explain behaviour
