Approaches Flashcards
1
Q
What was the emergence of psychology as a science?
A
- Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920), the ‘Father of Psychology’, moved psychology away from its philosophical roots and towards controlled research.
- Set up the first psychology laboratory in Liepzig, Germany in the 1870s and published one of the first books on psychology.
- Developed instrospection used in highly controlled studies: these paved the way for controlled research and the study of mental processes.
2
Q
What are 2 strengths and 1 weakness of the emergence of psychology as a science?
A
Strengths:
- Wundt was the first psychologist to focus on physiological processes rather than philosophical or biological processes.
- Identified that higher mental processes (learning, language, emotion, etc.) were difficult to study, encouraging others to find ways to do so such as using brain scanning techniques.
Weakness:
- Many argue that early behaviourists like Pavlov made a greater contribution than Wundt, producing reliable and generalisable findings.
3
Q
What is introspection?
A
- Instrospection is Wundt’s scientific method to study mental processes.
- It is a systematic analysis of our own conscious experiences of stimuli examined in terms of its component parts.
- With sufficient training, an individual’s conscious mental processes can be objectively reported by the individual as they occured.
- An example includes Wundt asking people to focus on a metronome and encourage them to look inwards and reflect on the sensations, feelings and images that came to mind.
4
Q
What are 2 strengths and 1 weakness of introspection?
A
Strengths:
- Introspection could be seen as the frontrunner to the cognitive approach.
- Introspection is still used in modern psychological research and in areas such as therapy and studying emotional states.
Weaknesses:
- Studying with introspection may not be valid, as several aspects of our mind are outside of our conscious awareness, and therefore cannot be reported by an individual.
5
Q
What are the assumptions of the behaviourist approach?
A
- Concerned with observable behaviour that can be objectively and scientifically measured.
- All behaviour is learnt from the environment and can be reduced to a stimulus-response association.
- There is little difference in the learning that takes place in humans and animals, therefore, research can be carried out on animals.
6
Q
What is classical conditioning?
A
- Part of the behaviourist approach.
- Explains how behaviour is learnt through association
The process of classical conditioning is:
- An unconditioned stimulus leads to an unconditioned response.
- A neutral stimulus leads to a neutral response.
- The neutral stimulus was paired with the unconditioned stimulus until the individual associats them with each other.
- The conditioned stimulus leads to a conditioned response, which is the same as the unconditioned response.
7
Q
What was Pavlov’s research into classical conditioning?
A
Pavlov tested classical conditioning on dogs:
- An unconditioned stimulus (food) leads to an unconditioned response (salivating).
- A neutral stimulus (bell) led to a neutral response (nothing).
- The neutral stimulus was paired with the unconditioned stimulus until the dog associated them with each other.
- The conditioned stimulus (bell) led to a conditioned response (salivating).
8
Q
What is operant conditioning?
A
- Part of the behaviourist approach.
- Explains how behaviours are maintained through consequence.
- Reinforcement makes the behaviour more likely to happen. Positive reinforcement is when the behaviour is repeated because the outcome is pleasant. Negative reinforcement is when the behaviour is repeated because the outcome for not doing it is unpleasant.
- Punishment makes the behaviour less likely to happen. Positive punishment is when behaviour is not repeated because something unpleasant is added. Negative reinforcement is when a behaviour is not repeated because something something pleasant is removed.
9
Q
What was Skinner’s research into operant conditioning?
A
- The Skinner Box: a cage with speakers, lights, a lever, a door and a floor which could be electrified. Rats would be placed inside of the box and free to roam around.
- Positive reinforcement: The rat might pull a lever which would drop food, and then continue to press the lever in order to continue getting food (repeated behaviour for a pleasant outcome).
- Negative reinforcement: The floor might become electrified and the rat learns that pulling a lever stops the floor from being electrified. They would then continue pressing this lever to avoid the shock (repeated behaviour to avoid a negative outcome).
10
Q
What are 3 strengths of the behaviourist approach?
A
- Enhanced the scientific status of psychology by using strict scientific methods, objectivity and verifiable findings.
- Developed laws and principles to enable psychologists to predict and control behaviour.
- Lead to several useful treatments such as systematic desenitisation and token economy.
11
Q
What are 3 weaknesses of the behaviourist approach?
A
- Research into the behaviourist approach uses animals, which may be difficult to generalise to humans due to cognitive factors and emotional states in humans.
- Environmentally reductionist: stimulus-response associations cannot help to explain complex human behaviours.
- Environmentally deterministic: behaviourist approach claims human behaviour is entirely due to environment and not a person’s free will on how to behave.
12
Q
What is the assumption made by social learning theory?
A
- Assumes behaviour is learned through experience, specifically through observation and imitation within a social context.
13
Q
What is social learning theory?
What are the 5 processes involved with social learning theory?
A
Social learning theory is an explanation for how behaviour is learnt through observation and imitation within a certain context. The process involved include:
- Modelling: A model carries out the behaviour to be learnt. A model may be a teacher, parent or peer.
- Imitation: Behaviour is learnt by copying the behaviour that is modelled by others.
- Identification: We imitate the behaviour of a model who we admire or is similar to us in some way. Observers must feel as though if they performed the same behaviour as the model, the consequence of this behaviour would be the same for them as the model.
- Vicarious Reinforcement: Individuals observe the behaviour of others and the reward/punishment they recieve. People may not perform learnt behaviours if they learn that the behaviour can be punished.
- Mediational Processes: The observer pays attention to the model, whilst capable of retention (remembering that it has been modelled), then be motivated to perform the same behaviour (such as through the belief that they will get the same result). Then, the observer must be physically and psychologically able to reproduce the behavour.
Attention, Retention, Motivation, Motor Reproduction.
14
Q
What was Bandura’s (1961) research into social learning theory?
A
- Study involved 36 male and 36 female children aged 3-7 years old.
- Children observed a model (either same sex or not) who either acted aggressively or non aggresively with a bobo doll.
- After, the children were made to feel frustrated by being denied attractive toys, then taken to a room with a bobo doll.
- 33% of children who heard and observed verbal aggression repeated the behaviour, 0% of children who didn’t hear verbal aggression acted aggressively.
- Boys were generally more aggressive than girls, and imitation was greater when the model was the same gender as the observer.
15
Q
What is a strength of social learning theory?
A
Social learning theory recognises the importance of both behavioural and cognitive factors, unlike the behaviourist approach.
16
Q
What are 3 weaknesses of social learning theory?
A
- Mediational factors have to be inferred, therefore we cannot measure the extent of their influence.
- Does not take into account cause and effect - deviants may seek out other deviants rather than learn to become deviant through them.
- Cannot explain abstract notions like justice, unlike aggression which is more simple.
17
Q
What are the assumptions of the cognitive approach?
A
- Psychology should be the study of internal mental processes
- Schema is important
- Making inferences about cognitive processes is appropriate
- The use of models of explanation
- The possibility of combining cognitive processes and biological structures.
18
Q
What is meant by making inferences?
A
- Making inferences refers to going beyond the immediate evidence to make assumptions about mental processes that cannot be directly observed.
19
Q
What are theoretical models in cognitive psychology?
A
- Simplified representations based on current research evidence.
- Pictorial and contain boxes and arrows which indicates cause and effect in mental processes.
- Often incomplete and need to be updated, for example, working memory model had a 4th component added later on.
20
Q
What are computer models in cognitive psychology?
A
- Computer models use computers as an analogy.
- States that information is inputted through the senses, coded into memory and combined with previously stored information.
- Often used to explain memory; LTM is a hard disk, working memory is RAM, which is cleared and reset when a task is carried out.
21
Q
What is the role of schema in cognitive psychology?
A
- Schema are mental representations of experience, knowledge and understanding to help organise and interpret information in the brain.
- Examples include how to act in different settings or in different roles.
- They are useful in helping us predict what may happen based on previous experiences. They also enable us to process vast amounts of information rapidly and avoid being overwhelmed by environmental stimuli.
- May distort our interpretation of sensory information and lead to perceptual errors. Negative schema can have negative impact on mental health.
22
Q
What is cognitive neuroscience?
A
- Cognitive neuroscience is the scientific study of neurological structures, mechanisms, processes and chemistry which are responsible for our thinking processes.
- Applications of this include PET scans and fMRIs, used to locate different types of memory in different areas of the brain, leading to more effective treatments for memory disorders.
23
Q
What are 2 strengths of the cognitive approach?
A
- Emphasises scientific methods like laboratory experiments, allowing for high levels of control (despite lack of ecological validity).
- Used to explain the development of negative schema, helping understanding and treatment of illnesses like depression (negative triad, CBT)
