Areas, perspectives and debates Flashcards
1
Q
Social Area principles
A
- Investigates how the social context such as the surrounding environment and the presence of others affects our behaviour, thought processes and emotions
- Also considers how individuals think about other people – social cognition – as it can involve behaviours such as stereotyping, prejudice, helping behaviours (piliavin/bocchiaro) and aggression
2
Q
strengths of the social area
A
- Research aims to explain real world phenomena so research is often reported to the media, increasing the publics understanding of psychology
- High ecological validity as field experiments are used often
3
Q
weaknesses of the social area
A
- As society changes, results may only apply to one time period
- Research can be considered ethnocentric as only one group of people are studied
4
Q
application of the social area
A
- People commit atrocities
- Why people receive or don’t receive help
- The power that other people have over individuals
5
Q
principles of the cognitive area
A
- Looks at internal mental processes and how these affect and impact our behaviour
- Memory, language, attention, problem solving etc.,
- Based on the analogy the brain works like a computer as individual receives, processes and responds to information
6
Q
strengths of the cognitive area
A
- Considered scientific as it uses controlled methods and standardised procedures
- Practical applications for professions such as police officers
7
Q
weaknesses of the cognitive area
A
- Relies on the use of self-report as researchers can only ask what a person is thinking as they cannot directly observe thoughts reducing the validity
- Lab experiments lack ecological validity and can cause demand characteristics
8
Q
application of the cognitive area
A
- Can help police officers understand the validity of eyewitness accounts and informs the police to not use leading questions
- Can be used by students to improve their revision due to context dependent memory
9
Q
principles of the biological area
A
- It assumes that behaviour can be explained in terms of biological functions e.g the brain, nervous system, neurotransmitters and gene
- what was once biological is now psychological
10
Q
strengths of the biological area
A
- leads to a greater understanding of the brain, how we are learning and how the brain works and how it impacts on our behaviour
- uses scientific methods, such as lab experiments, to investigate mental processes. it enables researchers to establish cause and effect between variables
- easy to test for reliability because the studies are controlled
11
Q
weaknesses of the biological area
A
- demand characteristics may be a problem because they often have to rely on self-report data to gather data and it can’t always be done objectively
- methods used to measure the brain objectively have their limitations
- explanations of human behaviour based on biology alone are often too reductionist. it is influenced by a range of factors from all areas
12
Q
applications of the biological area
A
- Abnormal psychology (mental health and criminal behavior)
- Plasticity of the brain (helping stroke victims)
- Mapping brain function (explain dysfunctions)
- rehabilitation for those who have undergone brain surgery
13
Q
principles of the developmental area
A
- It focuses on how behaviour develops throughout a human life, from birth to death. (Includes changes in cognitive, social and emotional abilities and behaviours)
- an assumption is that there are identifiable, systematic changes that occur in an individuals behaviour from birth to death
- early experiences can affect our development
14
Q
strengths of the developmental area
A
- These studies often study how participants change over time, giving rich and detailed data without participants variables affecting results.
- Studies have practical applications for childcare which are useful to parents and teachers
-uses a variety of qualitative and quantitative methods so will gain useful data.
15
Q
weaknesses of the developmental area
A
-research with children may arise ethical issues, such as consent and protection
-using children as participants can highlight practical issues, such as making inferences from observed behaviour as they cant tell us
- research may be constrained by time or culture due to changes in early year environments and cultural differences in child rearing
- samples are often small and may be unrepresentative
16
Q
applications of the developmental area
A
Education systems have developed the curriculum to teach children in the same order that development occurs in
17
Q
principles of the individual differences area
A
- looks at why people fall out of the ‘normal’ range
- focuses on why people differ and the reasons for these differences
- develop an understanding for disorders
- also concerned with how to measure differences between people
18
Q
strengths of the individual differences area
A
- it enables psychologists to find out about a wider range of human behaviours because all behaviours are studied
- it can have a social benefit by improving our understanding of mental disorders and suggesting treatments
- it can help to inform the free will-determinism debate, suggesting the extent to which we have control over our behaviour
19
Q
weaknesses of the individual differences area
A
- lacks a defining set of belief about how people behave so leads to more disagreements within this area than others
- socially sensitive due to potentially harmful uses
- low validity due to tools used to measure differences
20
Q
applications of the individual differences area
A
- helped to develop psychoanalysis therapy
- helped to develop strategies to cope with situations that arise due to a lack of theory of mind
- Once the differences between people are established these structural differences can be used to identify individuals who may be more likely to become a psychopath and they can be worked with to prevent offending behaviour.
21
Q
Nature
A
sees genetic and biological factors as the explanations for thinking and behaviour
22
Q
strengths of nature
A
- unlikely to be ethnocentric as biological factors will affect people in the same way no matter where they are from
- scientific as studies typically use objective measures
- useful for drug intervention
23
Q
weaknesses of nature
A
- could be socially sensitive if identifying a problem that someone can’t change about themselves
- reductionist as it suggests only one factor (biology) affects our behaviour
- deterministic as it suggests we are only controlled by our genes
24
Q
studies that link to nature
A
Sperry
- the brain is wired to function a certain way, and the corpus callosum’s transfers information to hemispheres
Baron - Cohen
- people are born with or without autism/ theory of mind and this affects their behaviour
25
Nurture
Sees behaviour as learned or acquired from experience in the environment
26
strengths of nurture
- can be scientific as it is a way of investigating the extent to which one variable can change someone's behaviour
- high in ecological validity/replicability when using studies to replicate real life situations
27
weaknesses of nurture
- reductionist as it only takes into account the environment affecting behaviour and no other factor
- deterministic as it implies were are controlled by our environment
28
studies that link to nurture
Milgram
- behaviour was a result of the environment the participants were in, felt pressured to shock the student
Bandura
- when children observed the violent behaviour they exhibited violent behaviour; they were influenced by their environment
29
Freewill
The idea that humans are entirely free to act as they choose and bear the responsibility for the outcome of their actions
30
strengths of freewill
- not socially sensitive - people will often like to feel that they have control over their behaviour
- makes a person take accountability for their actions
31
weaknesses of freewill
- not very scientific as free will is not much of an explanation for behaviour
- no clear definition of what freewill is and you cannot be sure the person acted on their own and were not influenced
32
studies that link to freewill
Kohlberg
- children are free to chose how they would act in the moral dilemas
Milgram
- people had the choice whether to continue following the destructive orders and shock the student
33
determinism
Suggests a lack of control over our behaviour and are controlled by our genes or past experiences
34
strengths of determinism
- scientific as determinist explanations often arose from controlled experiments in which cause and effect have been established
- supports psychology as a science due to the use of scientific and objective measures when studying behaviour
- interventions to prevent behaviours
35
weaknesses of determinism
- lack of responsibility as people will excuse away their behaviour claiming they have no control over it
- reductionist as it implies behaviour is only affected by out genes and previous experiences
36
studies that link to determinism
Simons and Chabris
- cognitive processes such as visual perception have an influence on our behaviour and people have no control over this suggesting behaviour is not freely chosen
Casey et al
- participants could not choose to respond/not respond to stimuli as delay of gratification is controlled by the ventral striatum and the inferior frontal gyrus
37
Reductionism
The breaking down of behaviour into its individual parts and using single factor explanations such as individual genes or particular hormones to account for a particular action
38
strengths of reductionism
- allows research to be more scientific as only one variable is being tested at one time and establish cause and effect
- can define behaviour and provide treatments e.g., low serotonin = depression
39
weaknesses of reductionism
- studies which take a reductionist approach are often highly controlled and can lack ecological validity
- ignores complex interactions between multiple factors which influence our behaviour such as the environment interacting with our genes
40
studies that link to reductionism
Casey et al
- study only considers delay of gratification to be affected by the size of the inferior frontal gyrus and the ventral striatum
Maguire et al
- only the hippocampus is considered to control spatial navigation and memory
41
holism
Holistic approach sees behaviour as too complex to be reduced to a single explanation, and humans are seen as more than the sum of all their individual parts
42
strengths of holism
- taking a holistic approach can lead to explanations of behaviour that are high in face validity
- better reflects human behaviour as it takes into account the interactions between different factors
43
weaknesses of holism
- it can be difficult for researchers to pin down which factor has the greatest effect on behaviour
- cannot be tested scientifically due to overcomplication and too intricate for empirical testing
- cannot determine cause and effect relationships due to multiple factors affecting behaviour
44
studies that link to holism
freud
- case studies view behaviour in a holistic way, and Freud considers many reasons for Han’s phobias
Lee et al
- investigates different factors that affect lying and truth telling such as age, cultural upbringing, and what country they're from (china/canada)
45
individual explanation
Individual explanations look to the person as a cause of behaviour, specifically their personalities and dispositions
46
strengths of the individual explanation
- research tends to be scientific
- free will as individual explanations emphasise a personal responsibility
47
weaknesses of the individual explanation
- difficult to generalise results to populations as findings are individual
- reductionist as it leads to oversimplification of complex behaviours
48
studies that link to the individual explanation
Maguire et al
- the taxi drivers have a larger hippocampal size due to their job as a London taxi driver which involves memorisation and spatial awareness
Hancock et al
- language differences are individual between psychopaths and non-psychopaths when describing the murder they committed
49
situational explanation
Situational explanations draw on circumstances around individuals for example their culture or environmental context
50
strengths of the situational explanation
- supports the idea that environmental factors impact on behaviour
- predictability as it suggests behaviour can be understood and influenced by improving the environment
51
weaknesses of the situational explanation
- socially sensitive: it could be used as an excuse to explain any bad behaviour
- reductionist as oversimplification can occur when explaining how the environment affects behaviour
- deterministic as it suggests only the environment affects behaviour
52
studies that link to the situational explanation
loftus and palmer
- behaviour is due to the wider context of the environment and results take into account other situational factors that impact eye witness testimony
Milgram
- behaviour was a result of the situation the participants were placed in
53
Psychology as a science
Research should include:
- Assumptions/hypothesis
- Scientific methods
- Terminology
- No theory in science is final
54
arguments for psychology as a science
- Based on research and investigation
- Scientific methods used
- Has theories that generates hypothesis and then tested
55
arguments against psychology as a science
- Psychology studies humans and they cannot be investigated like chemistry or physics
- People know they’re being studied – demand characteristics
- Can only infer what happens in the mind
- Many aspects of the mind are not visible
56
strengths of psychology as a science
- quantitative data is often gathered which can be analysed to see significant effects
- controlled laboratory experiments can be replicated to see if findings are reliable
57
weaknesses of psychology as a science
- scientific research is often lacking in qualitative data (and therefore explanations are limited)
- scientific studies are often conducted in tightly controlled laboratory settings, which can reduce the ecological validity of the findings
58
4 main ethical concerns when conducting research
SSR
- The research question or hypothesis
- The treatment of individual participants
- The institutional context – harm to the researchers/institution
- The way the findings are interpreted and applied
59
SSR BPS guidelines
BPS provides guidelines for a study to not have ethical issues
- All participants leave in a similar state of mind
- No one is deceived or humiliated
- Participants are debriefed
- No confidentiality breaches
60
groups affected by SSR
- Members of the social group being studied
- Friends and families of those taking part
- The research team
- The institution in which the research is conducted
61
strengths of SSR
- Useful knowledge can be obtained from SSR
- Can reduce prejudice and discrimination
- Insight into human behaviour
62
weaknesses of SSR
- Groups may be offended by the results
- Ethical concerns such as whether the research causes harm to participants
63
what makes a study useful
- Useful results are reliable
- Understanding of behaviour
- Practical applications to manage behaviour
- High validity/ecological validity
- Quantitative data allows comparison
- Qualitative data allows procedures to be put in place
64
strengths of usefulness
- Improves society and peoples lives
- Enhances the value of psychology as a subject/science
- practical applications of useful research
65
weaknesses of usefulness
- Only useful if ethical
- Needs high ecological validity to be useful
- Should use a representative sample
- Should not be ethnocentric
66
similarities between the psychodynamic perspective and the behaviourist perspective
nurture
- they both recognise how the environment can develop someone's behaviour
deterministic:
- psychodynamic perspective is based on subconscious desires so beyond free will
- behaviourist perspective is based on environmental influences so beyond free will
ethical considerations:
behaviourism leads to more manipulation of their behaviour
- psychodynamic brings up past traumas from their childhood
usefulness:
- both are optimistic in terms of the potential for changes in behaviour and theories
social sensitivity:
- both can be accused of stigmatising certain types of families/family dynamics
67
similarities between the individual differences area and the psychodynamic perspective
- both tend to be socially sensitive
- both are deterministic
68
differences between the psychodynamic perspective and the behaviourist perspective
reductionism/holism:
- behaviourist is more reductionist as it focuses on one stimulus response
- psychodynamic reduces down explanations to the unconscious mind but it does also interact with childhood experiences making it more holistic
usefulness:
- behaviourism focuses more on here and now, whereas psychodynamic focuses more on the past
social sensitivity:
- behaviourism manipulates behaviour to make people more normal whereas with psychodynamic there are issues around the sexualisation of children
psychology as a science:
- behaviourism is more objective. use of experiments vs. case studies
validity:
- use of animals by behaviourists raises issues of generalisability (they may also lack ecological and construct validity) whereas qualitative data from psychodynamic has more validity
reliability:
- easier to replicate behaviourists' research and it produces more consistent outcomes
69
differences between the individual differences area and the psychodynamic perspective
- ID area collects qualitative and quantitative data but psychodynamic only collects qualitative
- ID is more reductionist but psychodynamic is more holistic
70
similarities between the individual differences area and the behaviourist perspective
- both tend to be socially sensitive
- both are deterministic
71
differences between the individual differences area and the behaviourist perspective
- behaviourist looks at nurture, individual differences looks at nature
- behaviourist looks at situational, individual differences is individual
72
similarities between the biological area and the psychodynamic perspective
- both collect quantitative data
- both are deterministic
- both are reductionist
73
differences between the biological area and the psychodynamic perspective
- biological is more situational and psychodynamic is more individual
- biological area is more scientific
74
similarities between the biological area and the behaviourist perspective
- both collect quantitative data
- both are deterministic
- both are reductionist
75
differences between the biological area and the behaviourist perspective
- biological area tends to follow ethical guidelines, behaviourist does not
- biological looks as nature, behaviourist looks at nurture
76
similarities between the developmental area and the psychodynamic perspective
- both are deterministic
- both collect qualitative data
77
differences between the developmental area and the psychodynamic perspective
- developmental is situational and psychodynamic is individual
- developmental looks mainly at nurture and psychodynamic at nature
78
similarities between the developmental area and the behaviourist perspective
- both collect qualitative and quantitative data
- both are deterministic
79
differences between the developmental area and the behaviourist perspective
- behaviourist perspective tends to be more scientific
- behaviourist perspective tends to be more situational and developmental more individual
80
similarities between the cognitive area and the psychodynamic perspective
- both are deterministic
- both look at nature
81
differences between the cognitive area and the psychodynamic perspective
- cognitive area tends to collect quantitative data and psychodynamic collects qualitative
- cognitive area is situational and psychodynamic is individual
82
similarities between the cognitive area and the behaviourist perspective
- both are reductionist
- both are deterministic
- both are ethnocentric
- both are scientific
83
differences between the cognitive area and the behaviourist perspective
- cognitive looks at nature but behaviourist looks at nurture
- cognitive is situational but behaviourist is individual
84
similarities between the social area and the psychodynamic perspective
- both collect qualitative data
- both are deterministic
85
differences between the social area and the psychodynamic perspective
- social looks at situational factors but psychodynamic looks at past experiences and traumas (individual)
- social area is reductionist but psychodynamic is holistic
86
similarities between the social area and the behaviourist perspective
- both are unethical
- both tend to collect quantitative data
- both look at nurture
- both are deterministic
87
differences between the social area and the behaviourist perspective
- behaviourist perspective is more scientific
- behaviourist perspective is ethnocentric
