Behaviourist approach

Question 1

What is the first assumption of the behaviourist approach?

Answer 1

Humans are born like a blank slate

Question 2

the behaviourist approach assumes that we are born _________ with no _______ ________ it is the ________ that shapes us

Answer 2

neutral
inherent personality
environment

Question 3

What does ‘tabula rasa’ mean?

Answer 3

blank slate - born blank and environment shapes us

Question 4

Is the term nurture or nature more fitting of the behaviourist approach?

Answer 4

nurture - social and environmental factors, which are learnt from interactions.

Question 5

what 3 factors are ignored in the behaviourist assumption?

Answer 5

genetics physiology and evolution.

Question 6

what is environmental determinism?

Answer 6

who we are is because of our environment. Our personalities and behaviour is determined by our environment. There isn’t free will over how the child behaves as it is chosen for them.

Question 7

what was the name of the individual who did a theory related to aggression through external factors? and what year did this take place?

Answer 7

Bandura 1963

Question 8

Explain the bandura (1963) study

Answer 8

it demonstrated how children learn aggression through external environmental factors

children were exposed to a number of aggressive/ non aggressive role models acting aggressively/non aggressively to the bobo doll.

Bandura found that children who observed aggressive or non aggressive behaviour towards the doll would model/copy the behaviour that they had observed which shows that children learn aggression.

Question 9

define classical conditioning?

Answer 9

when an association is made between a previously unlearned response, and a neutral stimulus. If the two are paired enough times, eventually the neutral stimulus will produce the unlearned response.

Question 10

what is the evidence for classical conditioning?

Answer 10

Ivan Pavlov (1849 - 1946)
was the first person to investigate classical conditioning. It involved an experiment related to dogs, a bell and some food.

Question 11

what happens before conditioning in classical conditioning?

Answer 11

the dog is hungry, sees the food which is an unconditioned stimulus and starts salivating.
This is a reflex action and is an unconditioned response.

When a metronome which is a neutral stimulus is played, it produces no response in the dog.

Question 12

What happens during conditioning during classical conditioning?

Answer 12

before the food is presented (UCS) to the dog we play the metronome (NS). the dog then salivates at the sight of food (UCR).

The action is repeated (metronome with food) at several meals.

Question 13

what happens after conditioning in classical conditioning?

Answer 13

the metronome now produces the response of salivation, even when no food is present.

The metronome has now become a conditioned stimulus (CS) and the dogs salivation in response to the metronome is now a conditioned response (CR).

Question 14

State the definition of operant conditioning.

Answer 14

operant conditioning involves learning through reinforcement.

It is the idea that when people behave in a particular way they are rewarded so will repeat.
If they are punished they will stop doing it.

consequences comes after the response and it’s more voluntary than learning seen in classical conditioning.

Question 15

what is the evidence for operant conditioning?

Answer 15

BF Skinner - performed many experiments with animals such as rats and pigeons.

genenralisation is made between animals and humans, as much of the research into conditioning couldn’t be carried on humans for ethical and practical reasons.

Question 16

Describe the Skinner box experiment.

Answer 16

contained a lever for animals like a rat or pigeon to press for food to be delivered.

The idea of the skinner box created an environment in which the experimenter had complete control over everything the animal experienced.

By altering the environment, desired behaviour could be conditioned in the animal

Question 17

Describe the Skinner Box example for the rat.

Answer 17

rat pressed lever, a food pellet was dispensed.
Rat might accidentally tap the lever to get food.
Wouldn’t take long before the rats behaviour changed, as they pressed the lever more. This is called positive reinforcement.
Skinner changed the experiment so food would be delivered when light turned red.
Rat would learn that pressing the lever when there was no red light on = no food.
Behaviour would change in the rat. - adapting to environmental changes to receive a reward.

Question 18

what is the third assumption in the behaviourist approach

Answer 18

humans and animals learn in similar ways

Question 19

What is the evidence for humans and animals learn in similar ways.

Answer 19

Both humans and animals are products of their environment and behaviour is determined by stimulus- response relationships.

Question 20

what is one consequence of the ‘humans and animals learn in similar ways’ assumption?

Answer 20

generalisation is made from animals to humans. Investigating the effect of conditioning on animals is easily applied to humans.

Question 21

what therapies have been treated cis classical conditioning?

Answer 21

treating phobias via systematic desensitisation and also used to treat drug and alcohol addiction in aversion therapy.

Question 22

explain the link of classical conditioning for humans and animals

Answer 22

pavlov- dogs, bell, salivation
Watson and Rayner - ‘little albert study’ association of loud noise with a white creating a newly conditioned response of fear in a human participant.

Question 23

how is operant conditioning used to link humans and animals?

Answer 23

operant conditioning has been used to shape behaviour in prisons and schools through the use of token economy.

token economy = desirable behaviour is reinforced with tokens.

Skinner’s experiment - rats and pigeons with food pellet and red light.

Question 24

what is the behaviourist explanation of a relationship formation?

Answer 24

operant conditioning principles suggest that reinforced and punishments drive our behaviour.

• explanation of the formation of relationships e.g. positive attention or compliments someone gives us is rewarding so we are likely to repeat the behaviour. This helps us avoid the feeling of loneliness.

in addition to liking people who we share pleasant experiences with. we also like people we associate pleasant events with. Liking leads to a relationship.

Question 25

What is the behaviourist explanation of relationships between pets and owners.

Answer 25

operant conditioning - training dogs involves rewarding good behaviour and punishing the bad. General belief that humans and animals behave in the same way. Dogs and cats adjust their own to reinforce positive behaviours. Reward will increase contentment and will more likely repeat this good behaviour.

Question 26

what are the punishments and rewards to humans of a pet and owner relationship?

Answer 26

punishment to human - costs, getting bitten, cold and wet weather walking, cleanliness. Reward to human - shows appreciation, comfort you, could protect you, ensures that you exercise.

Question 27

what is the behaviourist view of phobias?

Answer 27

they argue that phobias come through learning. people are not born with phobias, but develop them due to a negative experience. we can use classical conditioning to explain how a fear response has been learned in response to a previously neutral stimulus.

Question 28

How does systematic desensitisation link with the assumptions of the behaviourist approach?

Answer 28

SD uses principle of classical conditioning or learning through association. Stimuli which have been previously associated with fear are conditioned through therapy to be associated with relaxation. This will lead to extinction of the fear response (another assumption of the behaviourist approach). SD also uses generalisation. It is impossible during therapy for the therapist to account for every possible fearful situation that the client may encounter, but the relaxation responses learned in response to one set of stimuli, should be generalisable to other similar stimuli. Systematic desensitisation aims to change the unwanted behaviour by changing the learning experience of the individual - it does not attempt to uncover the underlying root of the problem or to artificially alter body chemistry in order to affect the fear response. The therapy normally takes place over a number of weeks.

Question 29

what is a phobia?

Answer 29

an exaggerated fear of an object or situation. The fear is irrational -the fear of the thing is greater than the risk posed by the thing itself.

Question 30

who was systematic desensitisation developed by and what was the use?

Answer 30

developed by Wolpe (1958) and is used in the treatment of phobias.

Question 31

what is the aim of systematic desensitisation?

Answer 31

the therapy aims to extinguish a phobia by eradicating an undesirable behaviour (fear) by replacing it with a more desirable one (relaxation).

Question 32

In the therapy ‘flooding’ how are phobias treated?

Answer 32

forcing someone into an inescapable situation where they have to face their fears, such as locking a dog phobic in a room full of dogs until they stop being scared.

Question 33

how is SD more of an ethical treatment?

Answer 33

it introduces the feared stimulus to the person gradually so it’s less stressful for the individual. It’s important in terms of maintaining the wellbeing of the person.

Question 34

how does the aim of systematic desensitisation link with the assumptions of the behavioust approach?

Answer 34

behaviourist approach assumes that all behaviour that is learned from the environment. Therefore we can unlearn the conditioned responses by manipulating the environment.

Question 35

Describe the process of systematic desensitisation.

Answer 35

1. the subject is given training in deep muscle relaxation techniques 2. The therapist and the client work together to construct a hierarchy of fear. This is a series of imagined scenes, each one causing a little more anxiety than the previous one. 3. The patient gradually works his/her way through the hierarchy, starting with the least fearful stimuli. They visualize each anxiety provoking situation while utilising the relaxation techniques. Due to reciprocal inhibition, they should after a while be able to visualize the stressful situation while remaining relaxed. This event no longer causes them stress. 4. The client then moves on to the next step in the hierarchy, again remaining relaxed while they visualize the stressful situation. Once this is mastered they move on again and so on. The therapy moves at the pace decided by the client. If they feel that they are unable to proceed, they can move back a stage until they feel more confident. 5. Eventually, the client will reach the top of the hierarchy, and will have mastered the fearful situation which caused them to seek help in the first place. Using behaviourist methodology, we can demonstrate how SD works. This procedure is known as counter conditioning.

Question 36

what is the difference between in vitro and in vivo desensitisation?

Answer 36

There are two subtypes of SD. In vivo desensitisation is when the client has to relax While directly experiencing the feared stimuli; for example, they have to relax while a real experiencing dog is in the room. (experiencing fear) In vitro desensitisation is when the client has to visualize the feared stimuli; for example, by imagining that a dog is in the room. (imagining fear) Research has found that in vivo techniques are more successful than in vitro (Menzies and Clarke 1993). However, there may be practical reasons. why in vitro may be used.

Question 37

what type of disorder is SD effective for?

Answer 37

Anxiety disorders

Question 38

What did McGrath et al find?

Answer 38

McGrath et al (1990) state that 75% of patients with phobias respond to systematic desensitisation.

Question 39

Describe the Capafons et al discovery.

Answer 39

Capafons et al (1998) treated aerophobia (fear of flying) using systematic desensitisation. 41 aerophobics were recruited - 21 were in a waiting control group whilst the remainder received: two one-hour sessions per week of systematic desensitiation for 12-15 weeks. Both imagination and real-life in vivo sessions were used (in vivo and in vitro). Aerophobics who were treated reported lower levels of anxiety compared to the control group and lower physiological signs of fear during a flight simulation. one person in the control group showed similar improvements. 2 patients in the treatment group showed no recovery, So systematic desensitisation is not 100% effective.

Question 40

What did Seligman discover in the effectiveness of SD in treatment of ALL phobias?

Answer 40

However, SD is not effective in the treatment of all phobias. More generalised phobias are not easily treated with SD. Seligman argued that SD is not an appropriate treatment for 'ancient fears' such as the genetically programmed fears of stimuli that may be potentially life threatening. These include things that would have been dangerous in our evolutionary past such as snakes, heights, and strangers. It would have been an adaptive behaviour to rapidly learn to avoid these stimuli. This is known as biological preparedness and would explain why people are less likely to be afraid of modern dangers such as toasters.

Question 41

what is biological preparedness?

Answer 41

not everyone who has a phobia has a bad experience. Seligman: some phobias we are biologically prepared to fear.

Question 42

What research supports biological preparedness?

Answer 42

Research that supports biological preparedness found by Bregman (1934) found that infants between 8-16 months could not be taught to fear wooden blocks pared with a loud bell. This would suggest that preparedness is only learned with living animals and not objects. This reinforces Seligman's theory of a link with ancient fears.

Question 43

What is symptom substitution?

Answer 43

Behavioural theories may not work with some phobias because the symptoms are only the tip of the iceberg. SD can cure the phobia but the problem remains. This is because it only treats the symptoms and not the cause. Therefore, if the fear is removed, the cause remains. It is likely the fear will resurface, in another form (symptom substitution)

Question 44

what is the psychodynamic approach on treating a phobia and what is the study that supports the approach?

Answer 44

The psychodynamic approach suggests that phobias develop because of projection. Freud recorded the case of Little Hans who developed a fear of horses. The boy's actual problem came from instances envy of his father, but he could not express this directly, and his anxiety was projected onto the horse. The phobia was cured when he accepted his feelings towards his father. If SD had been used to treat Hans' phobia, it is likely that his anxiety about his father would have resurfaced in another form at a later date.