APPROACHES 2.0 Flashcards
what are the 3 other approaches?
biological approach
pyschodynamic
humanistic approach
waht are the main assumptions of biological approach?
if we understand the physcial e.g brain we can understand the pyschological e.g mind
BA firmly on nature side of nature/nurture debate
.. often criticised for being reductionist -> ignores social + cultural infl on beh
what are the infl of our genes?
genentic inheritance comes from 50% mother 50% father … we share both physical and pyschologial characteristics w parents
altho genes contain instr for paticular charactertic, how they dev or are expressed depends on the environment indiv is in adn the compelx interactions between these genes
what is 1 way psychologists study this interaction?
twin studies
monozygotic (identical twins) share 100% of genes
dizygotic (non-identical) only share 50% genes
… the saem as”normal siblings”
psych look at concordance rates
-> the expectation is that if characteristic is inherited there will be a higher concordance rate in identical twins
concordance rate def?
% of both twins displaying same characteristics
name a research that studied concprdance rates?
gottesman and shields found 58% concordance rate for schizophrenia in MZ twins
compared to 12% concordance rate with DZ twins
define genotype
waht is the phenotype?
refers to the genes an indiv possesses
the observable traits or characteristics shwon by indiv
-> characteristics are due to combined effect of genes + envi
what is the genotype determined by?
phenotype?
deterined by genes inherited from parents
phenotype is result of these genes interacting w environment (e.g diet, stress)
what do we inherit from parents?
we inherit 2 genes for each characteristic - one from each parent
2 genes inherited may be same form or different (alleles)
heterozygous gene def
homozygous gene def
genetype consists of 2 diff genes Ee
consists of 2 same genes EE or ee
according to biological model..
the mind lives in the brain
.. all thoughts, feelings + beh ultimately have a physicial bias
-> difference sin brain structure may infl persons beh
e.g it is know that schizophrenics often have larger brain ventricles than non-schizophrenics
.. showing poss side affects og biological str on beh
label brain
https://2totallypsyched.home.blog/2018/10/08/wb-9th-oct-localisation-of-the-brain/
waht happened to phineas gage?
a pole went thru brain .. changed brain str
- > injuries to brain affects how brain functions
- > ‘HE DIDNT SEEM LIKE GAGE’ -> changed beh
how does neurochemistry infl human beh?
lvls of neurotransmitters in brain
low lvls of serotonin resp for depression
one treatment for dep is SSRIs -> drugs aim to incr lvls of serotonin + had been effective treatment
-> suggests serotonin lvls are why ppl have depression
schizophrenia -> hgih lvls of dopamine have been assosiated w onset of this disorder
what did darwin suggest?
organisms evolve + become adpted over time to their environemt -> process called natural selection
-> aka survival of the fittest
-> suggests thatr organisms who have the genes which give best characteristic for survival in their envi
-> they have a greater chance of survival
the longer org servives -> more liekly it is of them to reproduce
-> passing on these desirable genes to next generation
expl giraffes in natural selection theory
mutation in genes .. some g have longer neck and some shorter necks due to genes
giraffes w LN can reach more leaves on trees .. more food available for them
a better food supply means girffe more liekly to survive
so giraffe w LN more liekly to survive + breed
.. more genes for LN get passed to next gen
over amny gens all g have LN
how can evolution affect human beh?
Buss argues mate choices have changed bc they lead to reproductive success
-> women desire men w resource bc provides for them + offspring. m prefer young physically attr w bc indicates fertility
how could evolutin expl why humans have good memories?
remembering problems regarding survival + remembering..
-> where food is + sources of nourishment
potential threats
how does evol explan human paretns and offspring usually make strong attachments?
adv to form attachments .. allow u to teach b how ti survive
… grow up+pass on genes
-> keeping family blood alive
how evol expl why some humans have OCD
hyper activation of warning systems which evolve to allow us to face against a whole range of enviro threats
(physical, pathogenic,social etc)
strengths of biological approach? (2)
based on r .. employs a scientific method
-> using scanning technqs + tests for hormones + twin studies
-> technq objective .. free from bias -> greater sientifc credibility
Has real life appl as it has led to better treatments for mental illness
-> BA has dev no of drug therapies
-> e.g anti-depressant drug which incr serotonin lvls are effective for up to 75% of ppl
-> .. has pos implications
weakness of biological approach? (3)
rductoinist view as reduces complex human beh down to simple component parts
-> genes or chemicals
-> fails to take in account of environ, social, cognitive factors which can also affect human beh
->e.g we learn some of our beh from models in environ (SLT) … maybe a more holistic appr to expl beh is needed
BA too deterministic bc it sees beh as being governed by internal biological processes .. we have no control
-> plus ignores our free will to choose how to behave
e.g for aggression -> testostrone may make us feel momre agg however we may choose to not act aggressively. biological app to simpilistic
further problems arise when one attemots to sep nurture + nature. use of id twins in r often use to support genetic basis for beh
-> howevr id twins normally brouight in same envir.. this could be considred as evidence forenvironment controlling (nurture) rather than our shsred genes (nature) .. limits use of twin studies
waht are the main assumptions of the psychodynamic approach?(4)
dev driven by biology as we inherit innate drive and insticts that propel us to be who we are
-> humans are hardwired to live + seek pleasure
PA stresses the interaction between conscious mind and unconscious. most of our mind is amde from unconscious
there are complex interactions between these 2 sets of thoughts + these may cause conflict resulting in psychological abnormality
freud stressed importance of childhood exp + states that they can affect adult beh in paticularthe formation of the psyche (mind/personality) + psychosexual development are of paramount importance
waht is the structure of pysche (personality)?
personality made up of 3 components according to freud (id, ego, superego)
the id is present at birth adn operates on pleasure principle as it demands gratification + pleasure. may lead to aggression adn violence. id is selfish and unconscious part of mind
the superego is your conscience + has a internalised sense of right and wrong
oper on morality princ
punishes the ego for wrongdoing (guilt)
unconconscious part of mind. forms at end of phallic stage around age 5
ego is developed around age 2 + balances the id and superego. it manages this by employing defence mechanisms + operates on reality principle
-> as constantly balances demadns of real world agaisnt instinctive drives of the id. conscious
THERE IS UNCONSCIOUS CONFLICT BETW ID AND SUPEREGO
what does superego represent?
represents the moral standards of childs same sex parent .. if parents divorced + son lives with mother he will have a weaker superego bc son will find it harder to identify w mother
->not same sex
what happes if ego fails to abalnce the id and superego?
pyschological disorders may resukt
what can constant balancing of demand cause?
can cause anxiety … we dev ego-defence mechanisms
waht are the 3 ego defence mechanisms?
repression - where threatening impulses and distressing memories pushed back to unconscious mind .. become unaware of tehm (but emerge as symptoms of psych adnormality) .. dont think about them
displacement - transferring feelings from tru source of distressing emotion onto a substitue target
denial - where an indiv refuses to akknowldge some aspet of reality such as an event or situation