Approaches Flashcards
the origins of psychology: what were Rene Descarte’s beliefs about the body and the mind?
“I think therefore I am”
belief that the body and the mind were separate. this influenced psychology because psychology is the study of the mind, so without this view, investigations into the brain would not exist.
the origins of psychology: what were John Locke’s beliefs about empiricism?
people are born as “Tabula Rasa” - blank slate
empiricism is the study of experiences and how they contribute to an individual’s personality and behaviours.
this has influenced psychology because it specifically influences the behaviourist approach to psychology. must study behaviour in a way that can be measured and observed.
the origins of psychology: what were Charles Darwin’s beliefs about evolution?
“survival of the fittest”
the mind is evolving and adapting from one period of time to another. the strongest adaptations survive while others die out. individual differences are a result of varying adaptations.
this has influenced psychology because it suggests that adaptation to survive can explain behaviour e.g. aggression. it influences biological psychology and genes study of human behaviour.
the origins of psychology: the growth of psychology as a science: Wundt - father of psychology/introspection
first to study the structure of the mind in labs to increase the validity of studies.
conducted a study into intropsection: recording and verbalising conscious thoughts.
the origins of psychology: the growth of psychology as a science: Freud - founding father of psychoanalysis
Argues that physical and psychological problems can be explained through the conflict of the mind.
He was the first to state that psychological illnesses should be treated psychologically.
the origins of psychology: the growth of psychology as a science: Skinner - conditioning theory
argued that the mind shouldn’t be studied as it cannot be measured, and we should use scientific methods to understand behaviours.
the origins of psychology: the growth of psychology as a science: Rogers and Maslow - Humanism and Holism
they developed the humanistic approach - hierarchy of needs.
we need to look at the present situation, and we are in control of our own behaviour.
the origins of psychology: the growth of psychology as a science: 1960’s cognitive revolution
- humans are linked to computers: input= keyboard vs senses, output= printing vs behaviour
- focus on the brain being like the processes of a computer
- scientific approach
the origins of psychology: the growth of psychology as a science: 1970’s social psychology
- lots of studies conducted on PPs in a group e.g. asch, zimbardo, milgram
- studies are massively unethical, but told us lots about human behaviour
- influential, but cannot be replicated.
the origins of psychology: the growth of psychology as a science: 1980’s biological psychology
- technology advances means that people become interested in the internal workings of the mind e.g., the structure of the brain and the role of hormones
- bio psych is still developing today
the origins of psychology: the growth of psychology as a science: 21st century cognitive neuroscience
- influenced by cognitive psychology and biopsych.
- can create images of the brain to identify the active areas.
- before an input after an individual response
behaviour = output
the origins of psychology: evaluation
- Wundt’s methods are unrealiable: open to researcher bias. introspective results were not reproducible by other researchers.
- introspection is not particularly accurate: social desirability, PPs were not unaware of factors that had been influential in their choice of a consumer item.
behaviourist approach: background to behaviourism
The behaviourist approach emerged at the beginning of the 20th century and became the dominant approach in Psychology for half of that century. It is also credited with being the driving force in the development of psychology as a scientific discipline. The behaviourist approach is only interested in studying behaviour that can be observed and measured. It isn’t concerned with investigating the mental processes of the mind. Early behaviourists, such as Watson, rejected introspection as it involved too many concepts that were vague and difficult to measure. As a result, behaviourists tried to maintain more control and objectivity within their research and relied on lab experiments as the best way to achieve these. Following Darwin, behaviourists suggested that all species’ basic processes that govern learning are the same. This meant that animals could replace humans as experimental subjects in behaviourist research.
behaviourist approach: basic assumptions of behaviourism
Behaviourism is primarily concerned with observable behaviour, as opposed to internal events - thinking and emotions.
psychology is a science so behaviour must be measured in highly controlled environments to establish cause and effect.
when born, our minds are a blank slate so there is no genetic influence on behaviour - John Locke.
there is little difference between the learning that takes place in humans and that in other animals. therefore research can be carried out on animals as well as humans.
behaviour is a result of stimulus-response.
all behaviour is learnt from the environment. we learn new behaviour through classical or operant conditioning.
behaviourist approach: Pavlov’s dogs - classical conditioning
before conditioning:
food - UCS, salivation - UCR
bell = no response
during conditioning:
bell and food - UCS
salivation - UCR
After conditioning:
bell - CS
salivation - CR.
the dog has learnt to associate the bell with the food.
behaviourist approach: what are the principles of operant conditioning?
Operant conditioning is when an animal or human learns to consistently perform or stop a behaviour based on whether it has received a reward or punishment for that behaviour.
Behaviourist approach: operant conditioning - Skinner’s rats
In the experiment, a hungry rat was placed in a sealed box. At first, no food pellets were released, but then the food dispenser was connected, and the rat discovered that pressing the lever would cause a food pellet to be released—positive reinforcement.
Behaviourist approach: operant conditioning - what is positive reinforcement?
receiving a reward when a certain behaviour is performed, making this behaviour more likely to reoccur because of the positive consequences.
Behaviourist approach: operant conditioning - what is negative reinforcement?
increases the likelihood of a certain behaviour occurring because it involves the removal of, or escaping from, unpleasant consequences. the behaviour is more likely to reoccur because of avoidance of negative consequences.
Behaviourist approach: operant conditioning - what is punishment?
this is an unpleasant consequence of behaviour. the behaviour is less likely to reoccur because of negative consequences.
Behaviourist approach: evaluation - strengths
one strength of the behaviourist approach is that it has practical applications. this means that the findings can be seen throughout the real world. this is a strength because it shows it is relevant to the real world, therefore the behaviourist approach has high ecological validity. an example of this is Pavlov’s dogs.
Another strength of the behaviourist approach is that it is a scientific approach. this means that the findings can be proven. this a strength because you can identify how one thing causes another while controlling extrenous variables. you can identify a correlation between stimulus and response. an example of this is Skinner’s rats.
Behaviourist approach: evaluation - weaknesses
one weakness of the behaviourist approach is anthropomorphism. this is the study of animals which is generalised to humans. this is a weakness as it doesn’t account for individual differences in humans. an example of this is Pavlov’s dogs.
another weakness of the behaviourist approach is that it is deterministic. this means that behaviour is predictable, and can be controlled. this is a weakness because it fails to consider human thoughts and actions, and only considers observable behaviour. an example of this is stickers as a reward.
Social learning theory: what are the assumptions of the social learning theory?
Social learning theory is a way of explaining behaviour that includes both direct and indirect reinforcement, combining learning theory with the role of cognitive factors.
Bandura agrees with the behaviourists that much of our behaviour is learned from experience.
However his social learning theory proposed a different way in which people learn: through observation and imitation of others within a social context, thus social learning.
SLT suggested that learning occurs directly, through classical and operant conditioning, but also indirectly
Social learning theory: what are the 5 key concepts of social learning theory?
Imitation
Identification
Modelling
Vicarious reinforcement
The role of mediational processes
Social learning theory; what is imitation?
This is the term used to describe when an individual observes a behaviour from a role model and copies it, the imitation is more appropriate than copying as the behaviour is often not able to be copied, exactly, it is a simulation.
Social learning theory: what is identification
People are more likely to imitate the behaviour of people with whom they identify, role models. This is called modelling. A person becomes a role model if they are seen to possess similar characteristics to the observer and/or are attractive and have high status. Role models may not be physically present in the environment, and this has important implications for the influence of the media on behaviour.
Social learning theory: what is modelling
When someone is influential on someone is some way, they are referred to as a model. If the individual then imitates that persons behaviour, it is called modelling the behaviour. This term is only used when referring to behaviour that is imitated.
Social learning theory: what vicarious reinforcement?
This is the term used to describe the reinforcement the observer sees the model receiving. They do not receive the reward themselves, they see someone else get it. A reinforcement, such as reward, makes a behaviour more likely to happen again.
When it is vicarious, the person learns by observing the consequences of another persons behaviour e.g a younger sister observing an older sister being rewarded for a particular behaviour so is more likely to repeat that behaviour herself.
Social learning theory: what is the role of mediational processes?
SLT is often described as the ‘bridge’ between traditional learning theory and the cognitive approach. This is because it focuses on how mental factors are involved in learning. these mental factors mediate in the learning processes to determine whether a new response is acquired. We do not automatically observe the behaviour of a model and imitate it. There is some thought prior to imitation and this consideration is called mediational processes, this occurs between observing the behaviour and imitating it or not.
Social learning theory: 4 mediational processes
Attention: for a behaviour to be imitated it has to grab out attention. We observe many behaviours on a daily basis and many of these are not noteworthy. Attention is therefore extremely important in whether a behaviour has an influence in others imitating it.
Retention: this behaviour may be noticed, but it is not always remembered which obviously prevents imitation. It is important that a memory of the behaviour is formed to be performed later by the observer. Much of social learning is not immediate so this process is especially vital in those cases. Even if the behaviour is reproduced shortly after seeing it, there needs to be a memory to refer to.
Reproduction: we see much behaviour on a daily basis that we would like to imitate but this is not always possible. We are limited by our physical ability and for that reason, even if we wish to reproduce the behaviour, we can’t. This influences our decisions whether to try and imitate it or not.
Motivation: the rewards and punishment that follow a behaviour will be considered by the observer. If the rewards outweigh the costs this behaviour will be more likely to be imitated by the observer. If the vicarious reinforcement is not seen to be important enough to the observer then they will not imitate the behaviour.
social learning theory: different forms of behaviourism
since the start of behaviourism, there have been several developments from the original ideas. there are therefore now several perspectives within behaviourism. neobehaviourism is a more recent modified form of behaviourism, one of the most prominent forms being social learning theory as advanced by Bandura. one of the most important assumptions made by social earning is that learning occurs through observation and does not need to a consequence of direct experience. social learning theory takes account of cognitive factors in learning (the roles of ambition, emotion, perceptions, and expectations in influencing behaviour) so it spans both the behaviourist and cognitive approaches.
social learning theory: what are the main principles of social learning theory?
children learn aggression by observing other people and imitating their behaviour. people who are observed are called models, and they are likely to be people the child sees as similar to themselves, or powerful, or who are rewarded for their aggression.
social learning theory: Bandura’s bobo doll study
bandura conducted a series of experiments to study how children learned to behave aggressively. in bandura’s basic procedure, children saw an adult behave aggressively, both verbally and physically toward a large inflatable doll. the children then had the chance to play with a range of toys and observers assessed their behaviour. the observers found that children who saw an aggressive model reproduced more of the aggressive acts than children who saw a non-aggressive model. another finding is that children showed significantly more imitation of a same-sex model, and boys performed more acts of aggression than girls.
social learning theory: evaluation
many of Bandura’s ideas were developed through observation of young children’s behaviour in lab settings. lab studies can be criticised for their artificial nature where PPs may respond to demand characteristics. it has been suggested that because the main purpose of the study was to strike the Bobo doll, the children were simply behaving in a way that they thought was expected. therefore, the research may tell us little about how children learn aggression in everyday life, as it lacks ecological validity.
Bandura makes little reference to the impact of biological factors on social learning. one consistent finding in the Bobo doll experiments was that boys were often more aggressive than girls. this may be explained through hormonal factors such as differences in levels of testosterone, which is released more in boys, and is linked to aggression. this means that this important influence on behaviour is not accounted for in SLT, therefore meaning it lacks validity.
the cognitive approach: 3 basic assumptions
- it is important to focus on the internal processes of the mind
- compare the brain to the workings of a computer: input, processing, output
- disordered thinking can cause disordered behaviour e.g. eating disorders.
the cognitive approach: the study of internal mental processes
cognitive psychologists use the results of their investigations as the basis for making inferences about mental processes. they apply the scientific method and have worked out some ways in which to examine thought. one way to do this is by making inferences about thought processes.
the cognitive approach: the role of the schema
cognitive processing can often be affected by a person’s beliefs or expectations - schema. these are ‘packages’ of information and ideas developed through experiences. As we get older, schemas become more sophisticated and detailed and as adults, we have developed mental representations for every concept. schemas enable us to process lots of information quickly and this is useful and a mental shortcut that prevents us from being overwhelmed by environmental stimuli.
the cognitive approach: the use of theoretical and computer models to explain and make inferences about mental processes
the cognitive approach also uses computer models, where the mind is compared to a computer by suggesting there are similarities in the way information is processed. these models use the concept of a central processing unit (the brain), coding (turning information into a usable format), and the use of stores to hold information.
the cognitive approach: the emergence of cognitive neuroscience
its main focus is to look for a biological basis for thought processes, specifically at how the neurons explain those processes. cognitive neuroscience is the scientific study of the influence of brain structures on mental processes. miller and Gazzinga first used the term cognitive neuroscience in 1971. they wanted to bridge the gap between cognitive science and neuroscience.
the cognitive approach: evaluation
real-life application: the cognitive approach has been influential in the development of talking therapies to help with mental health disorders. therefore, it has high ecological validity as it can be applied to the real world.
however, it doesn’t consider why people behave when they do. the cognitive approach only explains why they behave like they do. therefore, it lacks validity, as it doesn’t fully explain behaviours.
the biological approach: main assumptions
everything psychological is first biological. there are several biological influences on our behaviour, which can be separated into 3 main areas:
genes
biological structures
neurochemistry
the biological approach: what is the difference between genotype and phenotype?
genotype: born with it (nature)
phenotype: interactions with the environment to relsease/ ‘trigger’ the gene (nurture)
the biological approach: the influence of genes on behaviour
biological psychologists believe that an individual’s genes influence their behaviour and personality. each person is born with 23 pairs of chromosomes which have been inherited from their parents. biological psychologists believe our genes carry instructions for particular characteristics such as intelligence, personality and mental disorders. how these characteristics develop depends partly on the interaction with other genes and the environment. this forms the basis of the nature/nurture debate.
the biological approach: twin studies
twin studies are used to determine the likelihood that certain characteristics have a genetic basis by comparing the concordance rates between identical and non-identical twins. this means the degree to which two people are similar. if an identical twin (monozygotic) twin is found to have a higher concordance rate than a non-identical (dyzygotic) twin for musical ability, schizophrenia, criminality etc. this would suggest a genetic basis. this is because MZ twins share 100% of each others genes, whilst DZ twins share 50% of the same genes. for example, Gottesman found that where an identical twin has schizophrenia, there is a 48% concordance rate of schizophrenia in the other twin.
the biological approach: evolution and behaviour
Darwin’s theory of natural selection has 3 main assumptions: only a small proportion of each generation survives to reproduce. Offspring are not identical to their parents, so each generation has a degree of variation, and at least some of this variation is heritable. Some characteristics give the animal an advantage over others in the ‘survive and reproduce’ stakes.
The characteristics which give the animal a greater chance of survival and reproduction are adaptive. This means that the animal is better adapted to the environment, and is therefore more likely to survive, reproduce, and pass these adaptive genes onto their offspring - natural selection. If a characteristic has survived and been passed down through generations, it must have been adaptive and have given the animal a survival advantage.
the biological approach: biological structures and neurochemistry
The biological approach assumes that all behaviour can be explained in terms of physical changes in the body, such as the release of chemicals in the brain or activation of centres in the brain. For example, the effect of different neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine and noradrenaline can influence thoughts, feelings and behaviour.
The physiological approach assumes that behaviour is controlled by separate, localised brain structures and that damage to these brain structures has serious effects on behaviour.
the biological approach: evaluation
+ good testability. The biological approach follows the scientific method which allows for reliable and valid data on which statistical testing can be performed.
- lack of insight into the environment. As the focus of the biological approach is the internal body, there is a lack of insight into environmental factors such as family life, social status, and childhood. Thus, bringing up the nature/nurture debate.
the humanistic approach: what is freewill?
freewill is the idea that we can play an active role and how we have a choice in what we do. the assumption is that individuals are free to choose their behaviour and are self-determined.
the humanistic approach: Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs
Biological and physical needs: air, food, drink, sex, shelter, warmth.
safety needs: protection, safety, order, law, stability
belongingness and love needs: family, affection, relationships
esteem needs: achievement, status, responsibility, reputation
cognitive needs: knowledge, meaning, self-awareness
aesthetic needs: beauty, balance, form
self-actualisation: personal growth and fulfilment.
the humanistic approach: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs - self-actualisation
Self-actualisation represents the uppermost level of HON. It means you have fulfilled your desire to grow psychologically and fulfill one’s full potential—becoming what you are capable of. To reach self-actualisation, you must first fulfill the lower levels of the hierarchy before reaching full potential.
the humanistic approach: the self, congruence, and self-worth
Rogers argued that for personal growth to be achieved individuals ‘ self-concept must be broadly equivalent to, or have congruence with, their ideal self. If too big a gap exists between the two ‘selves’, the person will experience a state of incongruence and self-actualisation will not be possible due to the negative feelings of self-worth that arise from incongruence.
To reduce the gap between self-concept and the ideal self, Rogers developed client-centred therapy to help people cope with problems of everyday living. Rogers claimed that many of the issues we experience as adults, such as worthlessness and low self-esteem, have their roots in childhood and can sometimes be explained by a lack of unconditional positive regard (unconditional love) from our parents. A parent who sets boundaries or limits on their love for t their child by claiming “I will love you if…” is storing up psychological problems for the child in the future. Rogers saw one of his roles as an effective therapist as being able to provide his clients with the unconditional love they failed to receive as children.
the humanistic approach: Rogers - conditions of worth
Society has led us to rely on conditions of worth. Parents, teachers, friends, and the media only give us what we need when we are worthy, rather than because we need it e.g. “If you are good at school, you can have…”
We get positive regard ‘on the condition’ that we behave in a certain way. Conditioning means that people measure their self-worth against their ability to live up to society’s conditions, if hey cannot meet them, it impacts self-esteem.
the humanistic approach: evaluation
+ not reductionist: other approaches such as the biological approach reduce us only to our genes, and the cognitive approach reduces us to our thoughts; however, humanists reject any attempt to break up behaviour into smaller components. in contrast, humanists advocate holism, this is seeing the ‘whole person’ seeing the mind and the body being important in order to self-actualise. thoughts, feelings, and behaviour contribute to feelings (in)congruence.
- cultural bias: many of the ideas that are central to humanistic psychology, such as individual freedom, autonomy, and personal growth would be more readily associated with individualistic cultures in the western cultures like USA. what is normal/abnormal varies from society to society, therefore what is ‘normal’ psychologically may vary from culture to culture.
the psychodynamic approach: main assumptions
unconscious forces in our mind determine our thoughts, feelings, and behaviour.
the mind can be divided into 3 levels of consciousness - iceberg analogy
childhood experiences influence adult behaviour through the psychosexual stages.
personality is made up of the ID, Ego, and the superego
unconscious conflicts are mediated by defence mechanisms
the psychodynamic approach: what is the Id?
this is the primitive part of the personality and we are born with it. it is the source of our instinct desires and impulses. it demands instant gratification of its needs, which consist of hunger, thirst, and sex. it is the primitive part of our personality as it seeks to obtain pleasure, it is said to operate on the pleasure principle.
the psychodynamic approach: what is the ego?
the ego represents our conscious mind. it develops around 2-3. its purpose is to balance the Id in society. the child realises that the demands of the Id cannot always be met. the ego is logical and rational and seeks to satisfy the Id in socially acceptable ways. it operates according to the reality principle.q
the psychodynamic approach: what is the superego?
this is formed around 5-6, and contains our moral values, therefore it operates on the morality principle. the superego is our internalised same-sex parent, so for females, morality comes from the mother and for males, the father. the superego ensures the ego does not use unacceptable means to satisfy the demands of the Id. The superego gradually takes over this parental role and tells us inside our head how we should behave. it consists of two parts: the conscience and ego ideal. the conscious tells us what we should not do - right and wrong, whilst the ego tells us what we should do. the conscience makes us feel guilty; the ego makes us feel proud.
the psychodynamic approach: what are the 5 psychosexual stages of development?
oral
anal
phallic
latency
genital
the psychodynamic approach: what is the oral stage?
0-1 years.
the mouth is the focus of sensation and pleasurable experiences; the organ of pleasure. this is the least contentious of the stages. Freud stated an individual could become fixated in this stage if they were over/under fed as a baby.
the psychodynamic approach: what is the anal stage?
1-3 years
the organ of pleasure is now the anus. the child derives pleasure from the retention or expulsion of faeces. in this stage, the child becomes aware of the demands of reality, as the parent begins to impose potty training on the child. it is in this stage the ego develops. too strict or too lax potty training can result in the child becoming fixated in this stage.
the psychodynamic approach: what is the phallic stage?
the organ of pleasure is the genitals, as the child becomes fully aware of gender differences. according to Freud, this is the most important stage of development as it is where the Oedipus complex occurs. Freud suggested that children in the phallic stage children begin to have unconscious sexual desires for their opposite-sex parents. this makes them resentful of the same-sex parent, as they see them as a competitor for their parent’s love. Freud also suggested feminity was failed masculinity and suffer penis envy.
the psychodynamic approach: what is the latency stage?
in this stage, sexual desires remain dormant. children want nothing to do with the opposite sex, as social and intellectual development occurs.
the psychodynamic approach: what is the genital stage?
this stage marks the beginning of mature adult sexuality. the calm of latency is disrupted as the ID makes powerful demands in the form of heterosexual desires.
the psychodynamic approach: what is fixation?
each child needs to pass successfully through these stages, or conflict can occur. if the child receives too little or too much stimulation, the libido may become fixated in this stage.
the psychodynamic approach: what are defence mechanisms?
the ego can suffer anxiety as a result of conflict between the id and the superego. it developed tactics for these feelings of anxiety - defence mechanisms.
denial - completely reject the thought or feeling and refuse to acknowledge aspects of reality e.g. “He would never cheat on me”
repression - forcing a distressing memory out of the conscious mind e.g. “I can’t think about that now, let’s go shopping”
displacement - transfer feelings from true sources of distressing emotion onto a substitute target e.g. “It’s not my fault my marriage is over”
the psychodynamic approach: evaluation
- The greatest criticism of the psychodynamic approach is that it is unscientific in its analysis of human behaviour. Many of the concepts central to Freud’s theories are subjective and as such, difficult to test scientifically. For example, how can scientifically study concepts like the unconscious mind or the tripartite personality? In this respect, it could be argued that the psychodynamic perspective is unfalsifiable as its theories cannot be empirically investigated.
+ Psychotherapy and psychoanalysis are both rooted in the psychodynamic approach and still have modern uses. For example, Kohlenberg et al
(2002) found that “FECT / Functional Analytic Cognitive Therapy produced a greater focus on the client-therapist relationship and is a promising approach for improving outcomes and interpersonal functioning. It also appears that a focus during sessions on clients’ problematic cognitions about the therapist adds to the efficacy”. Therefore, Freud’s psychodynamic approach has made a long-lasting contribution towards the treatment of various mental disorders, such as depression
