Behaviourist approach

Question 1

Assumption: behaviour is learnt from the environment as humans are born a blank slate

Answer 1

Psychologist : john watson
Claims : that behaviour is determined by the environment and that all behaviour can be shaped or manipulated
- behaviourists argue that babies are born completely neutral with basic responses
- the emvironment can determine how we will behave based on our past experiences, new experiences, associations we make
- suggest that people do not have any free will over their own behaviour

Question 2

Assumption : Blank slate - the study

Answer 2

Banduras bobo doll study
- 72 participants who were between the ages of 3-6.
- 24 children were exposed to an aggressive role model who attacked a bobo doll and another 24 were exposed to a non aggressive role model who played in a quiet and subdued manner
- another 24 children were in a room with no role model

Observations
-those who were put into the room with the aggressive role model had a more violent response than others
-tells us the children observed the behaviour and learnt it

Question 3

Assumption : behaviour is learnt through conditioning

Answer 3

We learn through the two types of conditioning : classical and operant conditioning
Classical conditioning: learning through association
- two stimuli are linked together to produce a new learned response in a person or animal
3 stages in classical conditioning
- Stage 1 before conditioning
The UCS produces an unconditioned response in an organism
- means that a stimulus in the environment has produced a behaviour that is unlearned
- this stage also involves a neutral stimulus that has no effect on the person
- Stage 2 during conditioning
The NS must be paired with the UCS on a number of occasions for learning
- Stage 3 after conditioning
After pairing the NS now becomes known as the conditioned stimulus and it has been associated with the UCS to create a conditioned response

Question 4

Assumption : behaviour is learnt through conditioning
Pavlovs study : evidence for classical conditioning

Answer 4

Pavlovs dogs
Before conditioning During conditioning CS - CR
UCS - UCR. UCS + NS - UCR. (bell) - (salivation)
(food) - (salivation) (food) + (bell) - (salivation)

NS - no response
(petrol)

Question 5

Operant conditioning- learning through consequences

Answer 5

-thorndike put forward the law of effect which stated that any behaviour that is followed by pleasant consequences is more likely to be repeated which is called positive reinforcement
- any behaviour that is followed by unpleasant consequences is less likely to be repeated and therefore stopped
- can be used in schools or at home

Question 6

Evidence for operant conditioning
Skinner

Answer 6

• a rat learns to press a lever to receive a food pellet.
• the rats behaviour of pressing the lever increases because it is reinforced by the reward of food
• this illustrates the principles of operant conditioning through the association of behaviour through consequences

Question 7

Assumption : humans and animals learn behaviour in similar ways

Answer 7

• behaviourists believe that the laws of learning are the same for both humans and non human animals which allows generalisations to be made about human behaviour
  Classical conditioning
  -pavlovs dogs
  -same principle has been applied to humans through the study of little albert as classical conditioning was used on him by pairing a white rat with a loud noise

Operant conditioning
- skinner developed the principles of operant conditioning using the skinner box which he used for his research on animals