Behaviourist Assumptions Flashcards
Humans born like a blank slate (tabula rasa)
Minds are born as a ‘blank slate’
Behaviour learned from environmental interaction (Nurture OVER nature)
Environmental Determinism - Early associations shape later reactions to situations
E.g. Dentists = Pain
Behaviour learned through conditioning
Classical Conditioning - Association
Pavlov’s Dogs -
UCS + UCR + NS = CS + CR
Operant Conditioning - Reinforcement
Positive reinforcement = Behaviour rewarded so behaviour repeated
Negative reinforcement = Behaviour increases to avoid negative stimulus
Punishment = Behaviour punished so behaviour stopped
Skinner’s Rats-
Press lever = Food
Electric shock = No food
Humans and animals learn in similar ways
Able to study animal learning in labs then make generalisations about how humans learn
All behaviour learned through stimulus response relationships
Skinners Rats operant conditioning applied in behaviourist therapies
E.g. Token economies in schools