Behavioural Approch

Question 1

Assumptions

Answer 1

All behaviour is learned and acquired through classical and operant conditioning.
Watson and skinner disagreed with the subjective nature of introspection.
Focuses on observable behaviour.
Animals and humans learn in a similar way so behaviourists carry out experiements on animals and extrapolate results to humans.

Question 2

Classical conditioning

Answer 2

Learning through association
Demonstrated by pavlovs dogs of whom salivated at the sound of a bell after associating it with food.
Food was ucs salivating was ucr when ucs was paired with ns enough times the bell became the cs and the salivation became the cr. dogs had learned to associate the bell with the food.

Question 3

Operant conditioning

Answer 3

Learning through consequences
Skinner argue that learning is an active process and that if an outcome is pleasant a behaviour is repeated if unpleasant behaviour is not repeated.
Positive reinforcement - receiving a reward
Negative reinforcement - behaviour that avoids punishment
Skinner box 1953
Hungry rat placed in a cage. Each time successfully activated the lever a food pellet was dispensed not the box suggesting that positive reinforcement increases likelihood of the behaviour being repeated.
In another experiment a rat was palaced in a cage with an uncomfortable electric current if lever activated current would stop negative reinforcement.

Question 4

Application

Answer 4

Behaviourism increased our understanding of phobia causes and attachment
Has also given rise to systematic desensitisation and token economy.

Question 5

Evaluation negatives

Answer 5

-Environmental determinism- does not leave room for aspect of free will or conscious decision making because sees all behaviour as a product of past reinforcement.
-use of animals may not be accurate to represent human behaviour.
- skinners box raises ethical issues
-doesn’t explain internal processes such as memory only observable aspects of human behaviour (reductionalist)
- ignores any biological approaches eg a predisposition to be afraid of lions or the role of neurotransmitters eg serotonin
- sees people as passive in their learning

Question 6

Evaluation positives

Answer 6

+ scientific rigour- methods used are scientific standardised and highly controlled in procedure
+ real life applications eg systematic desensitisation in phobia treatment and explaining attachment
+experimental support