approaches: behaviourism Flashcards
what does “we were born as tabula rasa” mean
blank slate - as we’re born, we start learning, and other behaviours shape our identities + behaviours
what is behaviourism / behaviourist approach?
a way of explaining human mind through what is observable + emphasises the importance of the the role of learning in human behaviour
how is social learning theory in behaviourism
social behaviour is learned by observing and imitating behaviours of others
what are the behaviourist views on introspection
thought it was unscientific + so set out to establish general principles of behaviour in a scientific way
what are the 3 key assumptions
- only interested in studying behaviour that can be observed and measured
- rejected introspection (because it involved too many concepts that were vague and difficult to measure)
- animals + humans learn in the same way
what is classical conditioning
learning through association that occurs when 2 stimuli are repeatedly paired
what is operant conditioning
learning through reinforcement / consequences of our actions (goes further than classic - aims to explain a more complex phenomena)
operant conditioning: what is reinforcement
a consequence of behaviour that increases the likelihood of that behaviour being repeated
operant conditioning: what is positive reinforcement
award which is given when a certain behaviour is performed
operant conditioning: what is negative reinforcement
occurs when an individual increases a behaviour due to avoidance of the negative consequences
operant conditioning: what is punishment
reduces probability that behaviour will occur again by
presenting unpleasant stimulus
classical conditioning experiment: what was pavlov’s research
pavlov revealed that dogs could be conditioned to salivate at the sound of a bell, if that sound was repeatedly presented in the same time as they were given food. dogs learned to associate the sound of a bell (stimulus) with the food (another stimulus) + would produce he salivation response every time they heard the sound
operant conditioning experiment: what was skinner’s research box
- rat moved around cage and accidentally presses the lever and a food pellet falls
- the rat begins pressing the lever in order to obtain food
- if the food stops, the rat presses the lever a few more times and then abandons it (extinction)
what are the limitations of using animals in research
animals miss the most important signs of toxicity in humans, objections to animal testing + animals are not small humans
ao3 why does behaviourism have scientific credibility?
brings language and methods of natural sciences into psych by focusing on the measurement of observable behaviour within highly controlled lab settings. it also emphasises importance of scientific processes (such as objectivity and replicability)
