Behavioural Approach To Psychopathology

Question 1

Key assumptions of the behavioural approach to psychopathology

Answer 1

• People are born as ‘blank slates’ and can acquire abnormalities through experiences
• Abnormalities are learned through classical conditioning, operant conditioning and/or social learning theory and can be unlearned
• Only observable behaviours should be measured

Question 2

Classical conditioning

Answer 2

Learning through association.

Mainly explains phobias.

Question 3

Watson (Little Albert)

Answer 3

Watson presented Albert with a white rat and Albert played with it happily. He later repeatedly paired the white rat with a loud banging noise right behind Albert’s head and he became severely distressed.
In the end, the presentation of the rat alone was enough to make Albert distressed

Question 4

Operant conditioning

Answer 4

Learning through reward and punishment.

Mainly explains depression.

Question 5

Seligman

Answer 5

Split dogs into two groups and gave them a task to do. Group one were punished if they failed, Group two were punished regardless of success. When given the opportunity later to avoid punishments, the second group of dogs didn’t bother and just accepted the shocks.
This supports learned helplessness.

Question 6

Learned helplessness

Answer 6

When someone is punished over and over then they will eventually give up and stop attempting to be successful.

Question 7

Social learning theory

Answer 7

Learning a mental disorder through observation.

Mainly explains Antisocial personality disorder.

Question 8

Bandura

Answer 8

Split children aged 3-6 into two groups. Group one watched an adult play nicely with a Bobo doll and group two watched watched an adult play aggressively.
The second group imitated the aggressive behaviour they’d seen when they were allowed to play with the Bobo doll

Question 9

Strengths of behavioural approach to psychopathology

Answer 9

• Scientific and objective as it provides hypotheses that can be tested
• Lots of supporting evidence (Watson, Seligman, Bandura)
• Practical implications (systematic desensitisation)

Question 10

Weaknesses of behavioural approach to psychopathology

Answer 10

• Oversimplistic
• Studies done on infants and animals so cannot be generalised to human adults
• Ignores other factors, such as genetic factors

Question 11

Systematic desensitisation

Answer 11

Used to treat phobias by replacing an association of feelings of fear to relaxation.
Step 1: Teach a relaxation technique
Step 2: Get them to construct a fear hierarchy
Step 3: Starting with the smallest fear, pair the relaxation technique with fear using imagination first and then real examples
Step 4: Build up until the client pairs feared object with being relaxed