approaches - behaviourist approach Flashcards
what are the assumptions of the behaviourist approach?
interested in studying behaviour that can be observed and measured
- used lab studies to maintain control and objectivity, and to establish causal relationships
believed that behaviour is learned through experience
identified two important forms of learning - classical and operant conditioning
why did Watson (1913) reject introspection?
concepts were vague and difficult to measure
involved subjective data, from with general laws couldn’t be found
what is classical conditioning?
learning through association
what is Pavlov’s research?
Pavlov (1927) showed how dogs could be classically conditioned
gods associated the NS of the bell with the UCS of food to create the CR of salivating
why did behaviourists use animals in their studies rather than humans?
they believed that the basic processes that govern learning are the same for all species
what is operant conditioning?
behaviour is shaped by consequences
- positive and negative reinforcement
- punishment
Skinner (1953) suggested that humans operate on their environment
what is positive reinforcement?
receiving a reward when a behaviour is performed
increases likelihood of a behaviour being repeated
what is negative reinforcement?
avoiding something unpleasant, which produces positive outcome
increases likelihood of a behaviour being repeated
what is punishment?
unpleasant consequence of behaviour
decreases likelihood of a behaviour being repeated
what is Skinner’s research?
The Skinner Box - put rats in a specially designed box to demonstrate the processes of positive and negative reinforcement
every time the rat activated the lever, they were rewarded with a food pellet
- positive reinforcement, repeated the behaviour
Skinner put an electric current in the ground, which would stop when the rat activated the lever
- negative reinforcement, repeat the behaviour
strength of behaviourist approach - well-controlled
research is conducted in a lab setting
- removes extraneous variables which allows causal relationships to be established
- e.g Skinner could clearly demonstrate how reinforcement influenced the rat’s behaviour
limitation - how is the behaviourist approach reductionist?
ignores the important influence of human thought, unlike SLT or the cognitive approach
learning is more complex than simply stimulus-response links - learning also involves mental processes
strength - real-world application
operant conditioning is the basis of token economy systems
classical and operant conditioning applied to treatment of phobias (SD and flooding)
limitation - environmental determinism
Skinner suggested everything we of is the result of our reinforcement history and ‘free will is an illusion’ (hard determinism)
- ignores any possible influence of free will
