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approaches Flashcards

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1
Q

what are the five different approaches in psychology?

A

biological, learning, cognitive, psychodynamic, humanistic

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2
Q

what is the definition of psychology?

A

the scientific study of the human mind and its functions, especially those affecting behaviour

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3
Q

what is the definition of science?

A

a means of acquiring knowledge through systematic and objective investigation

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4
Q

what is introspection?

A

the first systematic experimental attempt to study the mind by breaking up conscious awareness into basic structures, thoughts, images and sensations.

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5
Q

When did Wilhelm Wundt open the first institute?

A

Leipzig in Germany, in the 1870s.

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6
Q

What did Wilhelm Wundt do?

A
  1. Promoted the use of introspection.
  2. Paved the way for later controlled research and the study of mental processes.
  3. Looked at sensations and emotional reactions.
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7
Q

What were the four goals of his study?

A
  1. Description
  2. Explanation
  3. Prediction
  4. Change
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8
Q

Who criticised introspection and why?

A

Watson, as he thought it was too subjective. Measuring concepts can’t be seen and varied among individuals.

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9
Q

What did Watson establish?

A

The behaviourist approach, and along with it the emergence of psychology as a science. Focused on a scientific process involving lab experiments.

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10
Q

who founded the psychodynamic approach?

A

Sigmund Freud

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11
Q

What does Sigmund Freud argue?

A

that behaviour is due to psychological factors.

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12
Q

What drives our behaviour according to Freud?

A

the unconscious mind

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13
Q

What is the innate drive?

A

natural longing or instinct for something that drives our behaviour and personality

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14
Q

what does the iceberg model include?

A
  1. the conscious mind
  2. pre conscious mind
  3. unconscious mind
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15
Q

what is our unconscious mind thought to show through according to Freud?

A

dreams, Freudian slip, neurotic symptoms, creativity

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16
Q

what does our unconscious mind also contain?

A

threatening and disturbing memories that have been repressed.

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17
Q

what is the tripartite system?

A

three parts to our personality

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18
Q

what do all three parts of our personality demand?

A

gratification

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19
Q

What is the id?

A

•primitive part of our personality
•present at birth up until 18 months
•operates on the pleasure principle
•entirely selfish and demands gratification of its needs

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20
Q

what is the ego?

A

•develops between 18 months and 3 years
• mediates between the id and superego
•try’s to reduce conflict between demands of id and superego
• does this through defence mechanisms

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21
Q

what is the superego?

A

•internalised sense of right and wrong
• develops between 3 and 6 years and is formed at the end of the phallic stage
• operates on the morality principle
• represents the moral standards of the child’s same sex parent
• strives for the ego ideal which is determined by strict parenting

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22
Q

what do defence mechanisms do?

A

•distort reality to reduce anxiety
•this is because anxiety weakens the ego and means it cannot mediate between the id and superego

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23
Q

what are the three types of defence mechanism?

A
  1. Repression
  2. Denial
  3. Displacement
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24
Q

What is repression?

A

blocking of an unpleasant memory

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25
Q

what is denial?

A

refusal to accept reality

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26
Q

what is displacement?

A

redirecting of emotions from true source of distressing emotion into a substitute target.

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27
Q

what are psychosexual stages?

A

instincts that drive our unconscious mind

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28
Q

what is the oral stage?

A

•takes place from 0-1 years
•focus of pleasure is the mouth, mother’s breast is the object of desire

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29
Q

what is the anal stage?

A

•takes place 1-3 years
•focus of pleasure is the anus
•child gains pleasure from expelling and withholding faeces

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30
Q

what is the phallic stage?

A

•takes place 3-5 years
•focus of pleasure is the genital area

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31
Q

what is the oedipus complex?

A

little boys develop feelings towards their mother and a murderous hatred for their father.

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32
Q

what is the electra complex?

A

girls experience penis envy- they desire their father as the penis is the primary love object

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33
Q

what is the latency stage?

A

earlier conflicts are repressed

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34
Q

what is the genital stage?

A

sexual desires become conscious alongside the onset of puberty.

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35
Q

What are the two different explanations that behaviour is learnt?

A
  1. Social Learning Theory
  2. Behaviourism
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36
Q

What is reinforcement?

A

a consequence of behaviour that increases the likelihood of the behaviour being repeated. Can be positive or negative.

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37
Q

What is the behaviourist approach?

A

a way of explaining behaviour in terms of what is observable and in terms of learning

38
Q

What is operant conditioning?

A

a form of learning in which behaviour is shaped and maintained by its consequences

39
Q

What is classical condition?

A

Learning by association

40
Q

What does “tabular rasa” mean?

A

Humans are a tabular rasa- all behaviour is learned from experience

41
Q

What kind of experiments does the behaviourist approach use?

A

lab experiments to gain more control and objectivity in their research

42
Q

Who was classical conditioning first demonstrated by?

A

Pavlov

43
Q

What did Pavlov do?

A

revealed that dogs could be conditioned to salivate at the sound of a bell, if the sound was repeatedly presented at the time they were given food

44
Q

What does Pavlov’s findings prove?

A

a neutral stimulus produced a conditioned response through association

45
Q

Who was operant conditioning investigated by?

A

Skinner

46
Q

What was Skinner’s box?

A

Conducted research with rats and pigeons

47
Q

What was positive reinforcement in Skinner’s box?

A

Rewarding the rat with a food pellet every time they pressed a lever

48
Q

What was negative reinforcement in Skinner’s box?

A

electrocuting the floor. the floor would not give electric shocks if the the lever was pressed.

49
Q

What is SLT?

A

a way of explaining behaviour that includes both direct and indirect reinforcement

50
Q

How does SLT work?

A

•there must be a role model for an observer to watch
•role models provide examples of behaviour that can be observed and later reproduced through imitation
•imitation is dependent on the reinforcement that the model receives

51
Q

What is vicarious reinforcement?

A

Reinforcement is not experienced directly by the individual themselves, but occurs through someone else being reinforced/ punished for their behaviour

52
Q

What is the internal mediation process?

A
  1. Pay attention to the behaviour
  2. They just retain the behaviour
  3. The behaviour must be able to be reproduced by the observer
  4. They must be motivated to perform the behaviour which is based on vicarious reinforcement
53
Q

What is motor reproduction?

A

the ability of the observer to perform the behaviour

54
Q

What is attention?

A

the extent to which we notice certain behaviours

55
Q

What is retention?

A

how well a behaviour is remembered

56
Q

How do role models relate to SLT?

A

•the individual needs to identify with the role model
•must feel as though they are similar to that person and want to be like them

57
Q

Who supports SLT?

A

Bandura’s Research (1961)

58
Q

What was the aim of Bandura’s Research?

A

How much watching violence affects aggression

59
Q

What were the methods used by Bandura?

A

72 small children aged 3-5 watched a confederate beat up a Bobo doll. There was also a control group where the confederate demonstrated gentle play.

60
Q

What were the results of Bandura’s Research?

A

Every child that watched the aggressive play also beat up the doll and copied the behaviour demonstrated by the adult.

61
Q

What was the conclusion of Bandura’s Research?

A

We can be influenced by others behaviour.

62
Q

What are similarities of SLT and Behaviourism?

A

•both are approaches
•both acknowledge learning comes via experience
•both believe learning can happen directly

63
Q

What are the differences of SLT and Behaviourism?

A

•SLT recognises that the learner plays an active role in their learning
•Behaviourism assumes that the learner simply responds passively to the environment
•SLT recognises a difference between acquisition and performance of behaviour
•Behaviourism argues that performance and learning are the same thing
•SLT recognises that behaviours can become fixed
•If behaviourism were correct, our behaviour would constantly change to new reinforcement
•SLT recognises that reinforcement is an indirect process
•SLT research only involves measurement of observable human behaviour
•Behaviourism does not need to use only humans and focuses attention on other animals

64
Q

What are strengths of the behaviourist approach?

A

•scientific aspect
•provides explanations for a range of behaviours e.g phobias
•approach can be applied to behavioural problems

65
Q

How did Pavlov investigate classical conditioning?

A

•unconditioned stimulus creates unconditioned response
•neutral stimulus paired with unconditioned stimulus creates conditioned stimulus
•conditioned stimulus creates conditioned response

66
Q

what is the mediational process?

A

•attention
•retention
•motor reproduction
•motivation (role model)

67
Q

what is the role of the unconscious according to the psychodynamic approach?

A

•driving force behind our behaviour
•unconscious protects the conscious self from trauma
•traumatic memories drives behaviour
•defence mechanisms
•underlying unconscious drive is sexual

68
Q

What are strengths of social learning theory?

A

•a comprehensive explanation- this is because it recognises the role of mediational processes. Earlier learning theories such as behaviourism were criticised for failing to acknowledge the role of these processes, particularly in human learning. SLT therefore provided a less reductionist view of behaviour.

69
Q

what is the cognitive approach?

A

focuses on how our thoughts, perceptions and attention impact behaviour

70
Q

what are assumptions of the cognitive approach?

A

•internal mental processes can, and should be, studied scientifically
•mind actively processes information from our senses
•mediational processes happen between stimulus and response
•humans are information processors and therefore resemble computers

71
Q

what is the role of schema?

A

•a schema is a cognitive framework that helps organise and interpret information in the brain
•schemas are learned through experience and help individuals understand to respond to objects appropriately
•as a result cognitive processes can be influenced by a persons expectations or beliefs

72
Q

what schema are babies born with?

A

simple motor schema for innate behaviours

73
Q

pros and cons of schemas

A

•allow us to make shortcuts when interpreting large amounts of information
•prevents us becoming overwhelmed by external stimuli
•can lead to perceptual errors and stereotypes as we make assumptions about people based on incomplete information

74
Q

who created cognitive neuroscience?

A

•formally formed in Massachusetts Institute of technology in 1956
•coined by George Miller and Michael Gazzaniga in the 1970s
•fusion of the cognitive approach and biology

75
Q

strengths and limitations of cognitive psychology

A

strengths:
•employs highly controlled and rigorous methods, has established a credible scientific basis
•been used to explain how faulty thinking processes cause illnesses such as depression and lead to succession treatments such as Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
•less deterministic than other approaches- recognises that our cognitive system can only
operate within the limits of what we know
limitations:
•approach has been criticised for being too reductionist-machine reductionism ignores the influence of human emotion and motivation and how this may affect ability to process info
•difficult to apply the research from this approach to everyday life -occasionally suffers from being too abstract or theoretical in nature

76
Q

what are strengths of cognitive neuroscience?

A

•demonstrates the role of experience in shaping the brain. For example, brain scans have demonstrated brain plasticity. This is the process where the brain changes and adapts as a result of new experiences. This shows us that biology is not destiny. Therefore, cognitive neuroscience is less deterministic than other approaches.
•Another strength is that it provides a neurobiological basis of certain psychological disorders. For example, it has demonstrated the role of the parahippocampal gyrus in OCD. This is a part of the brain associated with processing unpleasant emotions, which brain scans have shown to be abnormally shaped in OCD patients. This finding has resulted in the development of new therapeutics and removing blame and stigma for individuals suffering with OCD.

77
Q

what is the biological approach?

A

a perspective that emphasises the importance of physical processes in the body such as genetic inheritance

78
Q

what are the assumptions of the biological approach?

A

•everything that is psychological is first biological
•understanding of the brains structure and function can explain our thoughts and behaviour
•the mind lives in the brain
•contrasts the cognitive approach which believes that mental processes of the mind are separate from the physical brain

79
Q

what is a genotype?

A

the particular set of genes that a person possesses

80
Q

what is a phenotype?

A

the characteristics of an individual determined by both the genes and the environment

81
Q

what do genotypes and phenotypes show about human behaviour?

A

it depends upon an interaction between inherited factors and the environment

82
Q

what are genes?

A

genes make up chromosomes which codes the features of an organisms

83
Q

what are twin studies?

A

used to determine the likelihood that certain traits have a genetic basis

84
Q

what are concordance rates?

A

a statistical measure that describes the proportion of pairs of individuals that share an attribute given one already possesses it

85
Q

what percentage of DNA do MZ twins share?

A

100%

86
Q

what percentage of DNA do DZ twins share?

A

50%

87
Q

what percentage of DNA do siblings share?

A

50%

88
Q

what is evolution?

A

the changes in inherited characteristics in a biological population over successive generations

89
Q

what is natural selection?

A

the main principle of this theory is that any genetically determined behaviour that enhances an individuals survival will continue in future generations

90
Q

what are strengths of the biological approach?

A

•biological approach uses scientific methods. The approach uses experimental methods as its main method of investigation which involves highly controlled and sophisticated imaging and recording techniques, including PET scans and fMRIs. Experimental studies are easy to replicate, thus adding to the validity of the original findings.
•biological approach has been successful in developing treatments for psychological disorders. Research into the role of neurotransmitter imbalances in depression has led to the development in drug treatments which correct this imbalance.

91
Q

what are limitations of the biological approach?

A

•it is reductionist. It explains behaviour by breaking it down into genes, hormones and neurotransmitters but ignores cognitive and environmental factors. For example, the biological approach explains OCD through low levels of serotonin only. However, there are other factors that can contribute to OCD and the biological approach does not consider these other factors.
•The biological approach often implies casual conclusions when their findings are based on correlations. This approach often explains the cause of mental illness such as OCD through a defiance in certain neurotransmitters in the brain, reaching this conclusion because drugs that increase/ decrease a neurotransmitter reduce symptoms in the sufferer. However, discovering an association between two factors does not mean one causes the other.
•It is highly deterministic. It sees human behaviour as governed by internal, biological causes over which we have no control. This means that individuals are not in control of their behaviour and have no free will to make any decisions. This has implications for the legal system and wider society as one of the rules of the law is that offenders are seen as legally and morally responsible for their actions. This discovery of a “criminal gene” would complicate this principle.

psychology (6 decks)

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