Approaches Flashcards
Define psychology
The scientific study of the mind, behaviour and experience
Define science
A means of acquiring knowledge through systematic and objective investigation. Aims to discover general laws
Define introspection
The first systematic experimental attempt to study the mind by breaking up conscious awareness into basic structures of thoughts, images and sensations
Define behaviourist approach
A way of explaining behaviour in terms of what is observable and in terms of learning
Define classical conditioning
Learning by association. Occurs when two stimuli are repeatedly paired together. The neutral stimulus eventually produces the same response that was first produced by the unconditioned stimulus alone
Define operant conditioning
A form of learning in which behaviour is shaped and maintained by its consequences. Positive and negative reinforcement and punishment
Define positive reinforcement
Receiving a reward when a certain behaviour is performed (increases the likelihood of behaviour repeating)
Define negative reinforcement
When you avoid something unpleasant and the outcome is a positive experience
Define social learning theory
A way of explaining behaviour that includes both direct and indirect reinforcement - combining learning theory with the role of cognitive processes
Define imitation
Copying the behaviour of others
Define identification
A desire to be associated with a particular person or group often because they posses desirable characteristics
Define modelling
Imitating the behaviour of a role model
Define vicarious reinforcement
Reinforcement which is not directly experienced but occurs through observing someone else being reinforced
Define mediational processes
Cognitive factors that influence learning and come between stimulus and response.
- attention
- retention
- reproduction
- motivation
Define cognitive approach
How our mental processes (thoughts, perceptions and attention) affect behaviour
Define internal mental processes
‘Private’ operations of the mind such as perception and attention that mediate between stimulus and response
Define inference
The process whereby cognitive psychologists draw conclusions about the way mental processes operate on the basis of observations
Define schema
A mental framework of beliefs and expectations that influence cognitive processing (developed from experience)
Define cognitive neuroscience
The scientific study of those biological structures that underpin cognitive processes
Define biological approach
A perspective that emphasises the importance of physical processes in the body such as genes and neural function
Define genes
They make up chromosomes and consist of DNA which codes the physical features
Define genotype
The particular set of genes that a person possesses
Define phenotype
The characteristics of an individual determined by both genes and the environment
Define evolution
The changes in inherited characteristics in a biological population over successive generations
