Approaches Flashcards
What is Wundts method of introspection
in other words what is introspection?
aims to investigate conscious, internal mental processes in order to establish scientific theories about how the mind works
What is Wundts method of introspection based on
Based upon Wundts school of psychology known as ‘structuralism’. This is because it aims to analyse the individual elements of conscious experience and how these elements combine to form our conscious experience
What does Wundts method of introspection involve
Takes place in a controlled laboratory. Participants are presented with stimuli eg a metronome. Participants would be trained to objectively analyse their conscious experience of this stimulus by breaking it down into the sensations, perceptions, emotions etc. that the stimuli produced
Give two limitations of wundts role in the emergence of psychology as a science
- criticised for being unscientific
- the study of internal mental processes was too subjective
Give tWo strengths of Wundts role in the emergence as a science
- work led to positive, scientific advancement
- elements of introspections are still used in talking therapies
What is the unconscious mind
The unconscious mind refers to the inaccessible part of the mind that we are not consciously aware of.
What are the two examples of what is stored in the unconscious
- Stores sexual and aggressive instincts and drives
- Stores disturbing memories that have been repressed
Why are things stored in the unconscious
So that we are not aware of them and we don’t remember them so they cannot cause distress upon us
What is a strength of the unconscious
It lead to practical applications for example psychoanalysis
What is a limitation of the unconscious
It offers unscientific explanations as it cannot be directly tested
What does the psychosexual stages refer to
Refers to a series of five stages that children progress through to determine their adult personality
How do you remmeber the series of psychosexual stages in the correct order
Old - Oral
Age- Anal
Pensioners- Phallic
Love- Latent
Guinness- Genital
Describe the oral stage
From 0-1 years old. Sexual energy is centred on the mouth. The child gains pleasure from sucking, tasting and biting
What are the consequences of the oral stage if fixated
Adult oral habits including smoking and biting one’s nails
Describe the anal stage
From 1-3 years old. Sexual energy is centred around the anus. This means that the child gains pleasure from withholding and/or expelling faeces
What are the consequences if fixated at anal stage
strict potty raining results in perfectionists personality
lenient potty training results in messy personality
Describe the Phallic stage
Occurs during the 3-5 years old. Sexual energy is centred around the genital area. Boys experience the oedipus complex while girls experience experience electra complex
What is the consequences if fixated in the phallic stage
Too much pleasure from the opposite sex parent in the stage could result in narcissism
Describe the latent stage
Occurs during 6-12 years old. Precious conflict are repressed and early years are forgotten. No sexual energy at this stage
Describe the Genital stage
occurs 12+ of age. sexual energy become conscious alongside puberty
What are the consequences if fixated at the genital stage
Difficulty forming relationships
Describe the oedipus complex
Boys develop an unconscious sexual drive towards their mother
Develop an aggresive drive towards their rival which is their father
Experience castration anxiety
Repress feelings for their mother and identify with their father
They therefore identify and internalise their fathers genders role and moral values
Describe the electra complex
Girls experience a penis envy and develop an unconscious sexual drive towards their father
Believe their mother had castrated them and develop an unconscious aggressive drive for their mother
Replace penis envy with desire for a baby
Identify and internalise with their mothers gender role and moral values
Evaluate the role of the psychosexual stages in human behaviour
A strength is the evidence from the case study of little Hans
A limitation is that it lacks validity + difficult establish cause and effect between fixation and adult behaviour
What are the 3 structures of personality
What principle is it based on
When is it formed
Is it conscious or unconscious
Id- Based on pleasure principle, formed from birth to 18 months, unconscious part of the mind
Ego- Based on reality principles, formed between 18 months to 3 years , conscious part of the mind
Superego- Morality principles, formed during phallic stage, in the conscious and unconscious part of the mind Ego
Evaluate the structure of personality
A strength is it resulted in explanation for offending behaviours. A limitation is it offers an unscientific explanation
What is a defence mechanism
They are uncouscious processes that are used when an individual is faced with a situation that their ego cannot rationally cope with
What are the 3 types of defence mechanisms and explain them
Repression- when an individual buries an unpleasant memory
Denial- when an individual refuses to accept reality
Displacement- when an individual will take their emotions out on a substitute
Evaluate the use of defence mechanisms
A strength is they have an intuitive appeal (most people can recognise their existence.
A limitation is it offers an unscientific explanation
What are the 4 basic assumptions of the PSYCHODYNAMIC approach
Basic assumption 1: the unconscious mind drives human behaviour
2: Progression through the psychosexual stages determines our personality/behavjour
3: the id ego and superego form the structure of personality that influences behaviour
4: humans employ defence mechanisms to deal with situations they cannot rationally cope with
What did Pavlov’s research aim to investigate
Whether dogs could learn to associate a bell with food.
What did Skinners research aim to investigate
aimed to investigate where rats could learn through consequences
What is classical conditioning
Based on the findings of Pavlov’s research, it has been proposed that behaviour can be learned through conditioning.
Classical conditioning refers to learning through association
Describe the steps in classical conditioning
Before conditioning:
A neural stimulus (eg a bell) results in no response. Meanwhile an unconditioned stimulus (eg food) results in an unconditioned response (eg salivation)
During conditioning:
Presenting the neutral stimulus (bell) at the same time as the unconditioned stimulus (food) initially results in an unconditioned response (salivation) to the unconditioned stimulus (food).
After conditioning:
The learned association of the neutral stimulus (bell) with the unconditioned stimulus (food) results in the neutral stimulus (bell) becoming a conditioned stimulus. The conditioned stimulus (bell) therefore produces a conditioned response (salivation)
What is operant conditioning
Based on the findings of Skinner’s research, it has been proposed that behaviour can be learned through operant conditioning.
Operant conditioning refers to learning through consequences
What are the different types of consequences
Positive consequences include:
Positive reinforcement involves providing a reward to increase behaviour being repeated
Negative reinforcement involves removing something unpleasant to increase behaviour being repeated
Negative consequences include:
Punishment involves providing something unpleasant or removing somethign pleasant to reverse behaviour being repeated
Evaluate Pavlov’s classical conditioning
Strength= practical applications when explaining and treating phobias
Limitation= reliance on animal studies means it may not generalise to human behaviour
Evaluate Skinners operant conditioning
A strength = led to practical application of token economies as used in prisons
What are the basic assumptions of the behaviourist approach
Basic assumption 1: only observable behaviour that can be objectively measured should be studied
2: there is little difference between the learning that takes place in humans and other animals
3: behaviour is learned from the environment and can be reduced to stimulus-response learning
What is the humanistic approach based on
It is based on free will i.e able to make our own decisions on how to behave
Evaluate the humanistic proposal of free will
A strength= positive implications on the criminal justice system
A limitation= rejects the scientific method
What is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
Maslow focused on the importance of personal growth. In order to self actualise people must progress through Maslows hierarchy of needs. Each of these levels must be fulfilled before progressing to a higher need and eventually self actualising
Evaluate Maslows hierarchy of needs and the innate need to self actualise
A strength= positive applications in schools
A limitation = over idealised and unrealistic
not scientific
What is congruence
Conference refers to when the perceived self matches the ideal self
What is conditions of worth
They are expectations placed upon people which they need to meet in order to be perceived positively and can create incongruence
How can congruence be achieved
- Developing a healthier view of the perceived self
- Having a more realistic ideal self
- Losing conditions of worth
- Achieving unconditional positive regard
Evaluate congruence and the role of conditions of worth
strengths
- significant impact on counselling psychology
- resulted in the gathering of in depth data
limitations
- alternative theorised have been provided
What are the 3 basic assumptions of the humanistic approach
Basic assumptions 1 = humans have free will over their behaviour
2= Humans have an innate need to self actualise
3= Congurence improves psychological health and can be achieved by removing conditions of worth
What is the cognitive psychologists view on internal mental processes
They belive you cannot understand behaviour without understanding the thought processing that happens before it. These internal mental processes (e.g. attention, perception and memory) should be studied scientifically e.g. through brain scanning techniques
Evaluate cognitive psychologists study of internal mental processes
Strengths= led to practical applications of CBT, led to the emergence of cognitive neuroscience
Limitations- relies on making inferences that are subjective
What are schemas
They are the mental representations of experince and understanding
Describe the 4 different schemas
Object schemas- understanding what different objects are and how they work
Event schemas- understand and expecting what may happen at an event
Role schemas - expectations of how a person in a specific role will behave
Self schemas- our understanding and expectations of ourselves.
Why are schemas helpful / unhelpful
Helpful= predict what will happen in our world based on previous experiences
they enable us to rapidly process info
they prevent us from becoming overwhelmed
unhelpful= they can distort our interpretation
they can lead to inaccurate memories
negative self schemas can lead to poor mental health
Describe theoretical models
Theoretical models to the use of flow charts and diagrams that aim to represent and simplify the process of human thinking
e.g. multi store model of memory
Evaluate the theoretical model
A strength = they are easy to read, interpret and understand
A weakness = often adapted and changed based on new evidence
What are computer models
Computer models demonstrate how the brain is similar to a computer. This is because both the brain and a computer involve input, process and an output
Evaluate computer models
A strength is that it led to practical applications in AI
A limitation is that they have been criticised for being machine reductionist
What are the basic assumptions of the cognitive approach
- Behaviour can only be understood by studying the internal mental processes that occurred before it
- Schemas influence behaviour
- The theoretical and computer models allow us to make inferences about mental processes
What is Modelling
For social learning to take place, there must be someone carrying out a behaviour that is observed i.e. they are modelling a behaviour
What is imitation and explain the 2 types of imitation
Imitation- When an individual copies the behaviour of a role model
Identification is when an individual is more likely to imitate a role model if they identify with them
Vicarious reinforcement- refers to the learning of behaviour through observing role models being reinforced. eg if they are being rewarded for the behaviour they are more likely to imitate
Evaluate the idea of social learning
A strength is it receives supporting evidence
A limitation is that it doesn’t consider biology to have a role on behaviour
What was the aim of banduras bobo doll research
Bandura aimed to investigate whether children learn behaviours through social learning i.e. observation and imitation
Describe the procedure of banduras bobo doll
Bandura obtained a sample of children who were matched on their levels of aggressiveness. In a controlled lab, half of the children observed an adult model interesting aggressively with a Bobo doll while the other half were exposed to a non-agressive model. All the children were then shown toys that they were not allowed to play with to make them frustrated. Finally, they were taken to play in the room with toys including a Bobo doll. During this time, a researcher and a nursery teacher independently observed and tailed the number of aggressive acts the children displayed
What were the findings of the banduras bobo doll
Children who watched the aggressive model behaved more aggressively towards the bobo doll than those who observed the non-aggressive model. Regardless of the condition they were in boys typically behaved more aggressively than girls
Evaluate banduras bobo dolls research
A strength = carried out in a controlled environment m, attempted to control participant variables and inter observer reliability was checked.
A limitation = lacked ecological validit
What is mediational processes
Refers to the internal mental processes that exist in the time between observation and imitation. 4 meditation processes are attention, retention, reproduction and motivation
Evaluate the study of mediational processes
Strength= they enabled a more holistic approach to explaining behaviour
Limitation= they are not directly testable
What are the basic assumptions of the social learning theory
Basic assumption 1- Human behaviour is learned in a. social context (through social learning )
2- Mediational processes occur between observation and imitation and affect behaviour
3- Social learning theory provides a bridge between the behaviourist approach and the cognitive approach
What does the behaviourist approach argue with to do with evolution on behaviour
the behaviourist approach would argue that many ‘evolutionary advantageous’ behaviours may have been learned
What is the difference between genotype and phenotype
Genotype is the genes an individual posses (i.e . their genetic makeup that is inherited from their parents
Phenotype- the observable traits shown by an individual that are due to the combined effects of genes and the environments
How do we investigate the genetic basis of behaviour
Through twin studies and adoption studies
What are MZ twins
MZ twins are twins who share 100% of their genes
What are DZ twins
twins that share 50% of their genes
What is meant by a higher concordance rate
they are more likely to share the the same behaviour / disorder occurring
Explain twin studies
Twin studies compare behavior or disorder concordance in monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins. Higher concordance in MZ twins suggests a genetic influence, as they share more genes but similar environments.
Explain adoption studies
Adoptions studies involve investigating whether a child’s behaviour or disorder has resulted from their biological parents or from their adoptive parents. If it’s more similar to their biological parents then it is assumed to have a genetic basis
What are the basic assumptions of the biological approach
Behaviour has evolved
Behaviour has a genetic basis
Biological structures and neurochemistry influence behaviour
