Approaches

Question 1

Describe Wundt’s approach.

Answer 1

🔹Wundt used völkerpsycholgie. This was the field of describing high mental processes with general trends such as learning language. He believed these processes could be be studied experimentally since they are not observable and so developed introspection.
🔹Introspection is the process by which a person gains knowledge about his or her own mental or emotional state by reflecting on how they perceived things. He compared participant responses to establish general theories.
🔹 He believed that the best way to study the structure of the human mind was to use structuralism; breaking down behaviours such as sensation into the basic elements.
🔹 He used the scientific methods which were objective, systematic and replicable to gain empirical evidence.
🔹 Empirical evidence, the belief that all knowledge comes from personal experience, was based on the assumption of determinism and the assumption of predictability.

Question 2

Define empiricism.

Answer 2

The idea that all knowledge is based on experience gained from the senses. Empirical evidence is data that has been collected through direct observation or an experiment. It does not rely on argument or belief.

Question 3

Define objective.

Answer 3

Eliminating all types of bias when experimenting my adopting scientific methods such as control of variables.

Question 4

Define scientific method.

Answer 4

The means of acquiring knowledge based on observable, measurable evidence.

Question 5

Define introspection.

Answer 5

The process in which a person analyses his or her own thoughts and feelings.

Question 6

Define validity.

Answer 6

The extent to which a research method method measures what it is meant to measure.

Question 7

Define ecological validity.

Answer 7

The extent to which research methods and their findings can be generalised and applied to a real-life situation.

Question 8

Evaluate Wundt’s methods.

Answer 8

✅ - SCIENTIFIC METHOD - HIGH VALIDITY.

 - LABORATORY SETTINGS - OBJECTIVE - CONTROL - HIGH VALIDITY. 
  - EVIDENCE - EMPIRICISM - PROOF TO SUPPORT HYPOTHESIS. 

❌ - INTROSPECTION - BIAS - DEMAND CHARACTERISTICS.

 - LABORATORY EXPERIMENT - REDUCES ECOLOGICAL VALIDITY. 
  - EVIDENCE HAS LOW VALIDITY - UNOBSERVABLE.  - UNRELIABLE.

Question 9

Who developed classical conditioning and when?

Answer 9

Ivan Pavlov in 1903.

Question 10

Outline the principles of classical conditioning.

Answer 10

1) STAGE ONE - BEFORE CONDITIONING:
🔹 An unconditioned stimulus (UCS) produces an unconditioned response (UCR) in an organism.
- This is a natural response as no new behaviour has been learnt.
🔹 A neutral stimulus (NS) is introduced. This only produces a response once paired with the conditioned stimulus.

2) STAGE TWO - DURING CONDITIONING:
🔹The NS becomes paired with the UCS and now becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS). This is called association.
- Often association must be repeated for learning to take place.

3) STAGE THREE - AFTER CONDITIONING:
🔹 The CS stimulus has been associated with the UCS and now produces the same response as the UCS did. However this once unconditioned response has now become a conditioned response (CR).

Question 10

Relate classical conditioning to Pavlov’s dog experiment.

Answer 10

1) Whilst studying the digestive systems in dogs, Pavlov noticed that his dogs started salivating (an unconditioned response) at the sound of a meat powder dispenser (an unconditioned stimulus).
2) He paired the noise of a bell ringing (a neutral stimulus) with the sound of the meat powder dispenser so that a bell rang each time the meat powder dispenser functioned.
3) Thirdly he removed the meat powder dispenser; providing the dogs with meat powder whilst ringing he bell.
4) Finally, he rang the bell by itself and found that the dog’s now salivated at this noise alone (a conditioned response). The sound of the bell had now become a conditioned response.

Question 11

What kind of psychology is Pavlov’s dog experiment?

Answer 11

Comparative psychology.

Question 11

Outline the aims procedures, findings and conclusions of Watson and Raynor’s ‘Little Albert’ experiment.

Answer 11

A - To investigate whether classical conditioning can be successfully applied to humans.
P - Watson and Raynor experimented on a 9-month-year-old baby (Albert) who was states to be very ‘unemotional’. He was exposed to the loud noise of a hammer being struck (an unconditioned stimulus) which initially scared him (an unconditioned response). Over the course of 8 weeks he was shown a white rat (a neural stimulus) whilst the hammer was struck behind him. After the 8 weeks, he was shown the rat without the. Ouse of the hammer and he began to cry. His crying was a conditioned response and the white rat had now become a conditioned stimulus.
F - Albert had developed a phobia of white rats. -Furthermore, he developed phobias of other furry animals similar to the rat.
C - Classical conditioning can be applied to humans.

Question 12

Evaluate classical conditioning.

Answer 12

✅ - APPLICATION TO REAL LIFE - WATSON + RAYNOR/AVERSION THEORY - VALID METHOD - can help people with behavioural/psychological problems.
- EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE - CARRIED OUT IN LAB ENVIRONMENTS (PAVLOV AND LITTLE ALBERT) - HIGH CONTROL - HIGH VALIDITY.

❌ - COMPARATIVE PSYCHOLOGY - PAVLOV’s DOG + SKINNER’S RAT - LOW GENERALISABILITY - CANNOT BE APPLIED TO REAL LIFE/HUMANS.

 - ETHICS - LITTLE ALBERT - CAUSED PSYCHOLOGICAL HARM OF PHOBIAS. 
 - REDUCTIONIST - WATSON + RAYNOR (only concluded application of classical conditioning) - IGNORES COGNITIVE PROCESSES AT WORK AND THEREFORE ALL POSSIBLE CAUSES.

Question 12

Who developed classical conditioning and when?

Answer 12

Skinner in 1938.

Question 12

Outline operant conditioning.

Answer 12

Operant conditioning was developed by Skinner in 1938 in response to classical conditioning. He believed that classical conditioning was a reductionist viewpoint and that the best way to study the mind was to study visible behaviour and it’s CAUSES. He believed in rewarding or punishing behaviour:
🔹 NEUTRAL OPERANTS
🔹 REINFORCERS
🔹 PUNISHERS

Question 13

What is an operant?

Answer 13

A consequence of behaviour that has reinforcing or inhibiting effects.

Question 21

What is social learning theory?

Answer 21

Social learning theory is the idea that learning is a cognitive process that takes place in a social context. It can occur purely through observation or direction instruction and imitation of behaviours that are rewarded.

Question 22

Outline the behaviourist approach to psychology.

Answer 22

The behaviourist approach in psychology involves the approaches of Pavlov and Skinner: classical conditioning and operant conditioning. It is based on the principal of the ‘tablau rasa’. This theory, developed by John Locke, States that we are all born as a ‘blank canvas’ and our characteristics have been shaped by our environments. E.g. Somebody weighs a lot from over eating. Consequently, behaviourist psychology works on the principle that our behaviour can be learn from our environment.
Classical conditioning states that humans learn by association of stimuli and responses. One psychologist who supported this was Pavlov. He carried out an experiment in which a dog was shown meat powder (an unconditioned stimulus) which causes the dot to salivate (an unconditioned response) at the same time as ringing a bell (neutral stimulus). After repeating this behaviour, the dog learnt to salivate at the sound of the bell alone. The bell had become a conditioned stimulus and the salivation at the bell had become a conditioned response.
Furthermore, in 1920, researchers Watson and Raynor proved that classical conditioning could be applied to humans with their ‘Little Albert’ experiment. They repeated the proccess of conditioning on a nine month old baby called Albert. However they used a white rat as a neutral stimulus and the noise of a hammer hitting a bell as an unconditioned stimulus. The noise caused Albert to cry (an unconditioned response) and he soon formed the association of fear with the white rat (which has now become a conditioned stimulus) and cried at the sight of the animal (a conditioned response).
On the other hand, operant conditioning states that people learn through operants. There are 3 types of operants: positive reinforcers which are environmental responses to behaviour that strengthen the behaviour, negative reinforcers which are environmental responses to behaviour to weaken the behaviour and neutral operants which are environmental responses that neither increase or describes a certain behaviour. Skinner proved this to be true in his research involving a rat. He placed a hungry rat into a box with a lever and each time the rat hit the lever, a food pellet was released. The rat soon learnt to repeatedly hit the lever to receive food. Operant conditioning can also be applied to humans. For example, children who behave badly at school are given street tins which deter them to repeat the behaviour.

Question 23

What is a reinforcer?

Answer 23

A response from the environment (as a consequence of a certain behaviour) that will increase the possibility of that behaviour being repeated. It can be positive or negative.

Question 24

What is a punisher?

Answer 24

A response form the environment (as a consequence of a certain behaviour) that will decrease/weaken the likelihood of that behaviour occurring again. They can be positive or negative. They are usually designed to eliminate behaviour. It does this by applying an unpleasant stimulus or removing a reward for a behaviour.

Question 25

What are neutral operants?

Answer 25

A response from the environment (as a consequence of a certain behaviour) that will neither increase or decrease the probability of that behaviour being repeated.

Question 26

Outline the aims procedures, findings and conclusions of Skinner’s 1913 ‘rat’ experiment.

Answer 26

A - To investigate the internal processes which made certain operant behaviours more or less likely to occur.
P - Skinner placed a hungry rat into a box containing a lever and electric shock system. The rat ran around the box and each time it hit the lever, a food pellet was dispensed in an adjacent container. The rat soon learnt to go straight to the leaver for food once put in the box.
Skinner repeated the experiment however turned on an electric current inside the box. Instead of using the positive reinforcer of dispensing food when the rat touched the lever, he used the negative reinforcer of turning off the electric current. He even taught rats to avoid the current by turning on a light before turning on the current. This taught the rats to run to the lever as the light appeared because they knew what was coming.
F - The positive reinforcer of receiving food after touching the lever and the negative reinforcer of stopping the electric meant that the rat touched the lever repeatedly.
C - Positive and negative reinforcement exists and strengthens behaviour.

Question 27

Evaluate operant conditioning.

Answer 27

✅ - APPLICATION TO REAL LIFE - DETENTION I. SCHOOL - VALID METHOD - can help people with behavioural/psychological problems.
- EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE - CARRIED OUT IN LAB ENVIRONMENTS (SKINNER’S RAT) - HIGH CONTROL - HIGH VALIDITY.

❌ - DETERMINISM - the belief that all behaviour is controlled by environmental or biological causes - SKINNER USED REINFORCERS TO CONTROL BEHAVIOUR - UNETHICAL - GOES AGAINST SOCIETY’S IDEA OF SELF-CONTROL AND RESPONSIBILITY + MAKES IMMORAL ACTS JUSTIFIABLE SINCE IT STATES BEHAVIOUR CAN BE CONTROLLED.

- COMPARATIVE PSYCHOLOGY - SKINNER'S RAT - LOW GENERALISABILITY - CANNOT BE APPLIED TO REAL LIFE/HUMANS.
 - ETHICS - RAT - ANIMAL CRUELTY?
 - REDUCTIONIST - SKINNER'S RATS (behaviour is explained by breaking it down into smaller parts) - IGNORES COGNITIVE PROCESSES AT WORK AND THEREFORE ALL POSSIBLE CAUSES - STATES BEHAVIOUR IS A RESPONSE FROM ONLY ENVIRONMENTAL STIMULI.

Question 28

What is modelling?

Answer 28

For learning to take place, someone must model an attitude or behaviour. There are 2 hoes of model; a live model (e.g a parent or teacher) and a symbolic model (e.g a celebrity portrayed in the media).

Question 28

What is imitation?

Answer 28

The action of replicating the behaviour demonstrated by a model.

Question 28

What is identification?

Answer 28

The extent to which an individual relates (identifies) to a model and feels that they are similar to that person. To be strongly identified, an observer must feel similar enough to their model to experience the same outcomes of the imitated behaviour.

Question 30

What is meditational processes?

Answer 30

The internal mental processes that exist between external stimuli and the response made by an individual to these stimuli. (Their decision to reinforce the behaviour or not).

Question 30

What is vicarious reinforcement? (Check this def)

Answer 30

Learning that is not a result of direct reinforcement of behaviour but is instead a result of observing the rewards or punishments someone revue se for their behaviour.

Question 31

Outline the aims, procedures, findings and conclusions of Bandura, Ross and Ross’ 1961 investigation into Social Learning Theory.

Answer 31

A - To demonstrate that learning can occur through observation of a model and imitation can occur in the model’s absence.
- They predicted that children shown a more aggressive model will act more aggressively and that boys will be more aggressive than girls.
P - A matched pair design (that matched 72 boys and girls aged mean average of 52 months on pre -existing levels of aggression) took place in a laboratory setting. Firstly the children were put in three different conditions: exposed to an aggressive, exposed to a non-aggressive model or exposed to no model. Secondly they were moved to a new location and subjected to mild arousal. Thirdly the children were given aggressive and non-aggressive toys and a bobo doll. Their behaviour was observed in the following categories:
- Imitation of aggressive model.
- Parital imitation of aggressive model.
- Non-imitative aggressive physical and verbal behaviour.
- Non-aggressive behaviour.
F - Children in the aggressive model condition showed more imitation of behaviour observed than children in the other conditions.
- Children in aggressive condition showed more partial Imitation and non-imitative behaviour than children in the other conditions.
- Children in the non-aggressive model showed very little aggressive behaviour.
- Children who saw the same-sex models were likely to imitate behaviour for only some one of the categories.
C - Supports the idea of social learning theory since evidence proves that children imitate behaviour.
- Explains violence in children, e.g Venables and Thompson.

Question 31

Evaluate Bandura, Ross and Ross’s 1961 investigation into social learning theory.

Answer 31

✅ - HIGH CONTROL - LAB SETTING - LOW EX VARIABLES e.g. Parents had to fill out form about previous aggression rates.

 - GENERALISABILITY - LARGE SAMPLE OF CHILDREN 
 - HIGH VALIDITY - LOW DEMAND CHARACTERISTICS - children are unlikely to notice the lab setting and estimate the point of the research. 

❌ - LOW ECOLOGICAL VALIDITY - LAB SETTING - NOT AN EVERYDAY SITUATION. e.g. Being forced to feel aggression.

 - LOW POPULATION VALIDITY - only young children - LOW GENERALISABILITY.   
 - ETHICS - PHYSICAL/MENTAL HARM/ RIGHT TO WITHDRAW - scares children,  they do not understand, bad behaviour taught. 
 - REDUCTIONIST - NATURE V NUTURE - Ignores the cognitive processes involved, doesn't fully explain behaviour.