Approaches Flashcards
What are the behaviourist key assumptions?
- rejected vagueness of introspection ( only interested in what can be observed and measured)
- we are born as blank slates ‘tabula rasa’
- animals and humans learn in the same way
- environmental determinism (skinner argued free will is an illusion).
What is classical conditioning and who came up with it
Learning by association
Ivan Pavlov
In pavlova’s experiment what was the
UCS
NS
UCR
CR
UCS- food
NS- bell
UCR- drool
CR-bell
What is operant conditioning and who came up with it
Learning by consequence
Skinner
What is positive reinforcement
Receiving a reward when a certain behaviour is performed
What is negative reinforcement
When an animal avoids something unpleasant
What is punishment
An unpleasant consequence of behaviour
What does extrapolate
How far u can compare animal findings to humans
Name a strength of skinner’s experiment
Controlled study meaning it is reliable
Schedules of reinforcements
Continuous reinforcement
Partial reinforcement
Variable ratio reinforcement
Continuous- reinforced every time you do an action
Partial- predictable pattern
Variable- never known, is unpredictable.
Who came up with the social learning theory and in what year
Bandura in 1960s
Key assumptions of SLT
-agrees with behaviourist theories
- adds two important ideas: mediations processes
Observational learning
- learning occurs within a social context meaning
- not necessarily direct learning
What is vicarious reinforcement
Not directly experienced but occurs through observing someone else being reinforced for a behaviour
What is the role of mediational processes
Mental factors mediate in the learning process to determine a new response is acquired
What are each of the mediational processes
Attention- the individual notices someone in their environment
Retention- the individual remember what they have observed
Motor reproduction- the individual replicated the behaviour shown by the model
Motivation- the individual seeks to demonstrate the behaviour that they have observed
How many participants were there in banduras study
72 ppts- 36 girls 36 boys
How were the groups split
Randomly split into 3 groups of 24
1. Aggressive group- then split into gender
2. Non-aggressive- then split into gender
3. Non aggressive (controlled)
What was the independent variable in banduras study
Behaviour of models
What was the dependent variable
Reaction of children
What were the findings of bandura’s study
-children shown the aggressive model tended to be more aggressive towards the bobo doll
- boys acted and behaved like the male figure more than girls
Evaluation of the bobo doll experiment
Strengths:
- high level of control meaning high reliability
- exposed to same conditions (continuity)
Limitations:
- ecological validity- bobo doll isn’t a real person and designed to be hit
-artificial- setting was strange and exposed to unusual behaviour
-ethics- long term effects (4 months later they showed same behaviour)
Evaluation of the SLT
Strengths:
-acknowledges cognitive thoughts (included mediational processes) soft determinism
- can explain cultural differences
- practical application ( children can learn directly but especially vicariously)
Limitations
- controlled conditions
Artificial
Lacks ecological validity
Key assumptions of cognitive approach
- argues that the human mind can and should be investigated scientifically
- the goal of cognitive psychology is to learn about mental processes that occur inside the brain and and use them to explain behaviour
- processes are studied indirectly- cognitive psychologists make inferences
Features of the cognitive approach
- theoretical models- working memory model( baddeley and hitch)
Used to explain unobservable processes in a testable way
Often represented as a diagram that includes boxes and arrows - schemas
What is a schema
A mental framework of beliefs and expectations that influence cognitive processing that helps us organise and interpret information. They develop and evolve with experience and become more detailed.
What is cognitive neuroscience
The scientific study of biological structures that underpin cognitive processes
What did Burnett et al find
Found that when people feel guilty,several brain regions are active, including the medial prefrontal cortex -an area associated with social emotions
Evaluation of cognitive approach
Strengths:
- considers mental processes
- many applications- big influence on development of therapies
-uses scientific methods
Less deterministic- acknowledges free will
-high internal validity- controlled
Limitations:
- artificial situations- low external validity- memory tests involving lists of words
- roles of emotions are ignored
-fails to acknowledge individual differences
Machine reductionist
What type of determinism is the psychodynamic approach
Psychic determinism
What does the tripartite personality consist of
Superego- morality principle 5-6 years
ID- selfish, instant gratification from birth
EGO- mediator balancing them- employs defence mechanisms to alleviate guilt 2 years
What are the 5 stages of the psychosexual stages
- Oral 0-1 years
- Anal 1-3 years
- Phallic 3-5 years
- Latency
Genital
What does androcentric mean?
Male-centred
What were the two complexes of gender development and who came up with them
Oedipus and electra complex
Freud
What does the phallic stage consist of
Desire mothers- castration anxiety- identify and internalise fathers moral and behaviour
What does the electra complex consist of
Girls experience penis envy- have a hatred for mothers because they believed they had their penis cut off at birth- develops a desire for their father - turns desire to wanting a baby.
Outline the little hand study
Freud supported his concept of the Oedipus complex with this study
Hans was a five year old boy who developed a phobia of horses after seeing one collapse
Freud suggested that Han’s phobia was a form of displacement in which his repressed fear of his father was transferred into horses
Horses were merely a symbolic representation of hans real unconscious fear- the fear of castration his father
What are the defence mechanisms
Repression- forcing a distressing memory out of the conscious mind
Denial- refusing to acknowledge some aspect of reality
Displacement- transferring feelings from true source of distressing emotion onto a substitute target
Which part of the tripartite system uses the defence mechanism
Used by the EGO to help us balance conflicting demands of the ID and the superego
They r unconscious
Evaluation of the psychodynamic approach
Strengths:
- huge influence in psych
Change the way mental health was seen
-provided theories- gender, the role of the unconscious
- detailed and carefully recorded observations
- practical applications
Limitations:
-Has low scientific rigour
Relied on case studies that can’t be generalised and highly subjective
- not culture/ gender inclusive
Believed feminism was failed masculinity
- doesn’t embrace free will- believes our unconscious controls our actions
- can’t be falsified
Can’t be tested as it’s the unconscious
What does rogers say about Freud
That Freud dealt with the ‘sick half’ of psychology
Key assumptions of humanistic approach
- fully believes in free will
- resist the influence of overiding forces- determinism
- study the whole person rather than a part
- focuses on individual (idiographic approach)
- measures view points and perspective openly and subjectively.
Name Maslow’s hierarchy of needs from bottom to top
Physiological needs
Safety needs
Belonging and loving needs
Self-esteem needs
Self-actualisation
What is self actualisation
The desire to grow psychologically and fulfil one’s full potential- becoming what you are capable of
What is the self- concept
How you see yourself now
What is the idea self
What you want to be
What is a congruent
When your self-concept and ideal self closely match
What did rogers suggest
If you have lots of unconditional love regard you increase self-esteem meaning the closer your congruence
What are the features of rogerian counselling
-clients set the agender
-non-directive
-effective therapist should provide genuineness empathy and unconditional positive regard
-aim to increase a persons feeling of self worth
Evaluation of humanistic approach
Strengths:
- holistic
Puts the person back in psychology
-positive stance to behaviour
Journey of personal growth
Limitations
- holistic
Not scientific
-Untestable- self-actualisation
- limited practical applications
Used for mid types of mental health disorders e.g anxiety
Rogerian counselling wouldn’t work on severe types
-culturally biased
Maslow white American male hugely westernised principles would other cultures place the same amount of emphasis on these needs
Key assumptions of biological approach and what year
-1980s
-everything psychological is at first biological
- investigates how biological structures and processes within the body impacts on behaviour
-genes affect behaviour and influence individual differences
Psychologists should study the brain, nervous system and other biological systems
-beloved the mind lives in the brain- contrast to the cognitive approach which sees the mind seperate from the physical brain
What is a genotype
The genetic make up of an individual. A collection of inherited genetic material that is passed from generation
What is a phenotype
The observable characteristics of an individual. This is a consequence of the interaction of the genotype with the environment
What did Darwin argue
That over time organisms become adapted to their environment through biological evolution
What is evolution
Any change in the heritable traits within a popular within a population across generations
Evaluation of biological approach
Strengths:
-scientific approach
Psychs scientific credibility
High internal ecological validity
Low external ecological validity
-practical applications
Drug therapy
Limitations:
- hard deterministic
-biological underestimates the environmental influence
- too difficult to assess the influence of nature nurture
-correlation
Doesn’t take into account the cause effect
Can’t establish cause and effect
