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Aqa A-level Psychology > Approaches > Flashcards

Approaches Flashcards

1
Q

What is Wundts method of introspection

A

aims to investigate conscious, internal mental processes in order to establish scientific theories about how the mind works

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2
Q

What is Wundts method of introspection based on

A

Based upon Wundts school of psychology known as ‘structuralism’. This is because it aims to analyse the individual events of conscious experience and how these elements combine to form our conscious experience

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3
Q

What does Wundts method of introspection involve

A

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

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4
Q

Give two limitations of wundts role in the emergence of psychology as a science

A
  • criticised for being unscientific
  • the study of internal mental processes was too subjective
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5
Q

Give to strengths of Wundts role in the emergence as a science

A
  • work led to positive, scientific advancement
  • elements of introspections are still used in talking therapies
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6
Q

What is the unconscious mind

A

The unconscious mind refers to the inaccessible part of the mind that we are not consciously aware of.

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7
Q

What are the two examples of what is stored in the unconscious

A
  1. Stores sexual and aggressive instincts and drives
  2. Stores disturbing memories that have been repressed
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8
Q

Why are things stored in the unconscious

A

So that we are not aware of them and we don’t remember them so they cannot cause distress upon us

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9
Q

What is a strength of the unconscious

A

It leeds to practical applications for example psychoanalysis

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10
Q

What is a limitation of the unconscious

A

It offered an unscientific explanations as it cannot be directly tested

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11
Q

What does the psychosexual stages refer to

A

Refers to a series of five stages that children progress through to determine their adult personality

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12
Q

How do you remmeber the series of psychosexual stages in the correct order

A

Old - Oral
Age- Anal
Pensioners- Phallic
Love- Latent
Guinness- Genital

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13
Q

Describe the oral stage

A

From 0-1 years old. Sexual energy is centred on the mouth. The child gains pleasure from sucking, tasting and biting

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14
Q

What are the consequences of the oral stage if fixated

A

Adult oral habits including smoking and biting one’s nails

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15
Q

Describe the anal stage

A

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

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16
Q

What are the consequences if fixated at anal stage

A

strict potty raining results in perfectionists personality
lenient potty training results in messy personality

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17
Q

Describe the Phallic stage

A

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

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18
Q

What is the consequences if fixated in the phallic stage

A

Too much pleasure from the opposite sex parent in the stage could result in narcissism

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19
Q

Describe the latent stage

A

Occurs during 6-12 years old. Precious conflict are repressed and early years are forgotten. No sexual energy at this stage

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20
Q

Describe the Genital stage

A

occurs 12+ of age. sexual energy become conscious alongside puberty

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21
Q

What are the consequences if fixated at the genital stage

A

Difficulty forming relationships

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22
Q

Describe the oedipus complex

A

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 inferior and internalise their fathers genders role and moral values

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23
Q

Describe the electra complex

A

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

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24
Q

Evaluate the role of the psychosexual stages in human behaviour

A

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

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25
Q

What are the 3 structures of personality
What principle is it based on
When is it formed
Is it conscious or unconscious

A

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

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26
Q

Evaluate the structure of personality

A

A strength is it resulted in explanation for offending behaviours. A limitation is it offers an unscientific explanation

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27
Q

What is a defence mechanism

A

They are uncouscious processes that are used when an individual is faced with a situation that their ego cannot rationally cope with

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28
Q

What are the 3 types of defence mechanisms and explain them

A

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

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29
Q

Evaluate the use of defence mechanisms

A

A strength is they have an intuitive appeal (most people can recognise their existence.
A limitation is it offers an unscientific explanation

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30
Q

What are the 4 basic assumptions of the behaviourist approach

A

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

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31
Q

What did Pavlov’s research aim to investigate

A

Whether dogs could learn to associate a bell with food.

32
Q

What did Skinners research aim to investigate

A

aimed to investigate where rags could learn through consequences

33
Q

What is classical conditioning

A

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

34
Q

Describe the steps in classical conditioning

A

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)

35
Q

What is operant conditioning

A

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

36
Q

What are the different types of consequences

A

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

37
Q

Evaluate Pavlov’s classical conditioning

A

Strength= practical applications when explaining and treating phobias
Limitation= reliance on animal studies means it may not generalise to human behaviour

38
Q

Evaluate Skinners operant conditioning

A

A strength = led to practical application of token economies as used in prisons

39
Q

What are the basic assumptions of the behaviourist approach

A

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

40
Q

What is the humanistic approach based on

A

It is based on free will i.e able to make our own decisions on how to behave

41
Q

Evaluate the humanistic proposal of free will

A

A strength= positive implications on the criminal justice system
A limitation= rejects the scientific method

42
Q

What is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

A

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

43
Q

Evaluate Maslows hierarchy of needs and the innate need to self actualise

A

A strength= positive applications in schools
A limitation = over idealised and unrealistic
not scientific

44
Q

What is congruence

A

Conference refers to when the perceived self matches the ideal self

45
Q

What is conditions of worth

A

They are expectations placed upon people which they need to meet in order to be perceived positively and can create incongruence

46
Q

How can congruence be achieved

A
  • Developing a healthier view of the perceived self
  • Having a more realistic ideal self
  • Losing conditions of worth
  • Achieving unconditional positive regard
47
Q

Evaluate congruence and the role of conditions of worth

A

strengths
- significant impact on counselling psychology
- resulted in the gathering of in depth data
limitations
- alternative theorised have been provided

48
Q

What are the 3 basic assumptions of the humanistic approach

A

Basic assumptions 1 = humans have free will over their behaviour
2= Humans have an innate need tit self actualise
3= Congurence improves psychological health and can be achieved by removing conditions of worth

49
Q

What is the cognitive psychologists view on internal mental processes

A

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

50
Q

Evaluate cognitive psychologists study of internal mental processes

A

Strengths= led to practical applications of CBT, led to the emergence of cognitive neuroscience

Limitations- relies on making inferences that are subjective

51
Q

What are schemas

A

They are the mental representations of experince and understanding

52
Q

Describe the 4 different schemas

A

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.

53
Q

Why are schemas helpful / unhelpful

A

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

54
Q

Describe theoretical models

A

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

55
Q

Evaluate the theoretical model

A

A strength = they are easy to read, interpret and understand
A weakness = often adapted and changed based on new evidence

56
Q

What are computer models

A

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

57
Q

Evaluate computer models

A

A strength is that it led to practical applications in AI
A limitation is that they have been criticised for being machine reductionist

58
Q

What are the basic assumptions of the cognitive approach

A
  1. Behaviour can only be understood by studying the internal mental processes that occurred before it
  2. Schemas influence behaviour
  3. The theoretical and computer models allow us to make inferences about mental processes
59
Q

What is Modelling

A

For social learning to take place, there must be someone carrying out a behaviour that is observed i.e. they are modelling a behaviour

60
Q

What is imitation and explain the 2 types of imitation

A

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

61
Q

Evaluate the idea of social learning

A

A strength is it receives supporting evidence

A limitation is that it doesn’t consider biology to have a role on behaviour

62
Q

What was the aim of banduras bobo doll research

A

Bandura aimed to investigate whether children learn behaviours through social learning i.e. observation and imitation

63
Q

Describe the procedure of banduras bobo doll

A

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

64
Q

What were the findings of the banduras bobo doll

A

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

65
Q

Evaluate banduras bobo dolls research

A

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

66
Q

What is mediational processes

A

Refers to the internal mental processes that exist in the time between observation and imitation. 4 meditation processes are attention, retention, reproduction and motivation

67
Q

Evaluate the study of mediational processes

A

Strength= they enabled a more holistic approach to explaining behaviour
Limitation= they are not directly testable

68
Q

What are the basic assumptions of the social learning theory

A

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

69
Q

What does the behaviourist approach argue with to do with evolution on behaviour

A

the behaviourist approach would argue that many ‘evolutionary advantageous’ behaviours may have been learned

70
Q

What is the difference between genotype and phenotype

A

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

71
Q

How do we investigate the genetic basis of behaviour

A

Through twin studies and adoption studies

72
Q

What are MZ twins

A

MZ twins are twins who share 100% of their genes

73
Q

What are DZ twins

A

twins that share 50% of their genes

74
Q

What is meant by a higher concordance rate

A

they are more likely to share the the same behaviour / disorder occurring

75
Q

Explain twin studies

A

twin studies involve comparing the likelihood of a behaviour / disorder occurring in MZ twins and DZ twins. If MZ twins show a higher concordance rate than DZ twins, there is argued to be a genetic component to the behaviour/ disorder. This is because the environments in each pair of MZ and DZ twins are assumed to the same, so the only difference is that MZ twins share more of their genetics.

76
Q

Explain adoption studies

A

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

Aqa A-level Psychology (2 decks)

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