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Psychology A2 > Approaches - Behaviourist, Cognitive, Biological > Flashcards

Approaches - Behaviourist, Cognitive, Biological Flashcards

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1
Q

Who was the first person to call themselves a psychologist?

A

Wilhelm Wundt

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2
Q

What did Wundt theorise / study?

A

The human mind can be explained by science He believed in structuralism and the importance of introspection

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3
Q

Define structuralism

A

Breaking things down into their most basic parts

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4
Q

Define introspection

A

Looking inside of something

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5
Q

Why did James disagree with Wundt’s approach?

A

He thought that the basic parts were irrelevant -> what really mattered was functionalism

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6
Q

Define functionalism

A

The function of thoughts / behaviours

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7
Q

What are the 3 main assumptions of behaviourism?

A
  • > nearly all behaviour is learnt
  • > animals and humans learn in the same ways
  • > the ‘mind’ and thought process is irrelevant
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8
Q

What are the two types of conditioning?

A

Classical and Operant

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9
Q

What did Pavlov notice about his dogs causing him to investigate classical conditioning?

A

Animals not only salivated when they were fed, but they also reacted to stimuli that they associated with being fed.

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10
Q

Describe Pavlov’s experiment

A

Pavlov rang a bell and got no response from his dogs. Every time he fed his dogs, he rang the bell. After a period of time, he began to ring the bell on its own. The dogs salivated at the sound of the bell alone -> they received no food.

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11
Q

What conclusions can be drawn from Pavlov’s experiment?

A

When a neutral stimulus is paired with an unconditioned stimulus repeatedly, the neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus and produces a conditioned response

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12
Q

What was the aim of Pavlov’s experiment?

A

to see if a neutral stimulus can become a conditioned stimulus after being paired with an unconditioned stimulus for a period of time

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13
Q

What are the IV and DV for classical conditioning?

A

IV -> pairing the neutral stimulus with the unconditioned stimulus

DV -> if the conditioned response is caused or not

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14
Q

Define operant conditioning

A

Organisms can learn new behaviours through positive or negative reinforcement

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15
Q

Define positive reinforcement

A

When a behaviour produces a consequence that is satisfying or pleasant

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16
Q

Define negative reinforcement

A

When a behaviour removes something unpleasant

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17
Q

What was the aim of Skinner’s experiment

A

to investigate operant conditioning in rats

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18
Q

Describe Skinner’s experiment

A

A rat was put in a box. If it pressed a lever, a food pellet falls into the cage. The rat quickly begins pressing the lever in order to obtain food (positive reinforcement) Then, the rat is given shocks, and when it presses the lever the shocks stop (negative reinforcement)

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19
Q

What are some applications of the behaviourist approach?

A

Classical conditioning can be applied to therapy, especially for phobias

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20
Q

What are some weaknesses of the behaviourist approach?

A
  • > only appropriate for associations with survival needs
  • > reliance of non-human animals, can’t be generalised
  • > ignores other factors such as thought processes
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21
Q

Define Social Learning Theory

A

That new behaviours can be imitated by observing a model that you identify with and is vicariously reinforced (the mediational process)

22
Q

What are the 4 stages of the mediation process?

A

Modelling

Identification

Imitation

Vicarious Reinforcement

23
Q

What are the benefits of SLT?

A
  • > useful applications in crimonology (eg James Bulgar case)
  • > can be used to promote good things (eg celebrities talking about mental health)
24
Q

What are some drawbacks of SLT?

A
  • > issue of causality? eg in James Bulgar - did the kids watch the film because they are violent or did the flim make them violent
  • > ignores other factors eg biological factors
25
Q

What is the cognitive approach?

A

The ‘process’ of thinking using machine reductionalism and schemas.

26
Q

Define a schema

A

A mental ‘plan’ consisting of expectations we use to make decisions and to make sense of the word

27
Q

What is the difference between a healthy schema and a depressed schema?

A

Healthy

Input -> memory -> decision -> Output

Depressed

Input -> self -> future -> others -> output

28
Q

What are two ways of seeing the physical modules of the brain?

A

PET scans

fMRI scans

29
Q

How does a PET scan work?

A

a radioactive barium sample is used to track where the blood goes in the brain

30
Q

How does a fMRI scan work?

A

Sends magnetic pulses affecting haemoglobin, causing red blood cells to vibrate and turn towards the magnet

31
Q

What are the strengths of the cognitive approach?

A
  • > better than behaviourism at explaining complex human problems
  • > uses a very scientific approach with objective findings
32
Q

Whar are the drawbacks of the cognitive approach?

A
  • > ignores emotive decisions and biological factors
  • > lacks ecological validity as the experiments use artificial situations
  • > correlation not causation
  • > machine reductionalism
33
Q

Define a genotype

A

the characteristics caused by the information in DNA

34
Q

Define a phenotype

A

the characteristics developed because of the environment

35
Q

What is the function of neurotransmitters?

A

To carry signals around the brain between synapses

all moods / feelings are created this way

36
Q

What are 4 hormones present in the brain?

A

Oxytocin

Serotonin

Dopamine

Cortisol

37
Q

When is oxytocin released?

A

On physical contact

38
Q

What is the effect of serotonin?

A

Impulse control

causes feelings of satisfaction

makes you sleepy

39
Q

What is the effect of dopamine?

A

Causes excitement, addiction and love

40
Q

What is the effect of cortisol?

A

Releases energy

Causes stress

Wakes you up

41
Q

What are the 6 main parts of the brain?

A

Temporal lobe

Occipatal lobe

Parietal lobe

Frontal lobe

Cerebellum

Brain stem

42
Q

What is the function of the frontal lobe?

A

Abstract thinking

Personality

Planning ahead

43
Q

What is the function of the occipital lobe?

A

controles vision

44
Q

What is the function of the temporal lobe?

A

Memory and emotion

Hippocampus located at bottom of the lobe makes new memories

45
Q

What is the function of the parietal lobe?

A

Controlling sensory information and voluntary muscle movement

46
Q

What is the function of the cerebellum?

A

Controls involuntary muscle movements

47
Q

What is the function of the brain stem?

A

connects brain to spine

48
Q

What are the benefits of the biological approach?

A
  • > uses the scientific method
  • > useful applications eg drug therapy
49
Q

What are the drawbacks of the biological approach?

A
  • > can lead to dangerous explanations eg the XYY case
  • > reductionist and doesn’t take into account emotional factors
50
Q

Describe the XYY case

A

The XYY gene was thought to have caused more testosterone and therefore more violent people

criminals with the XYY gene were hospitalized until it was proven to be incorrect

the XYY gene was proven to only cause acne and being taller

51
Q

Describe the James Bulgar case

A

Two boys watched a violent film featuring a doll killing a boy by throwing bricks onto him on a train track

The next day they kidnapped James Bulgar, a toddler, and killed him in the same way

One of the killers experienced violence at home, lacked empathy and was diagnosed as a psychopath while in prison

52
Q
A

Psychology A2 (13 decks)

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