Debates, Areas, Perspectives Flashcards
Biological area
How your biology affects your behaviour
Genetics, brain, nerves, hormones (internal factors)
Biological area strengths and weaknesses
S- understanding of our physiognomy
- scientific
- internally reliable
- internally valid
W-limitations on data collection rely on self report
- reductionist
- not ecologically valid
Studies that relate to biological area
Sperry - separate brain hemispheres and their functions
Blakemore and Cooper - visual cortex and brain plasticity
Maguire - hippocampus and brain plasticity
Casey - roles of the inferior frontal gyrus and ventral striatum
Biological area points for comparison
Lab experiments Low ecological validity High internal reliability High internal validity Scientific Biological determinism Nature side of the debate Reductionist
Cognitive area
Mind works like a computer - Inputting, processing, storing and retrieving information
Focus on internal mental processes (memory, attention, perception etc) can influence our behaviour
People make decisions based on how they behave
Strengths and weaknesses of cognitive area
S-understanding and improving mental processes
- extraneous variables are controlled
- highly replicable
W-rely on self report
- demand characteristics
- lacks ecological validity
Studies to in cognitive area
Moray - auditory attention, internal process
Loftus and Palmer - reconstructive memory
Grant - context-dependent memory
Simons and Chabris - visual attention
Cognitive area points of comparison
Lab experiments Lack ecological validity Relies on self report Adult participants Both sides of individual and situational debate Ethical
Developmental area
Behaviour is learned from environment
Early experiences affect later behaviour
Assumes behaviour changes over time
Strengths and weaknesses of developmental
S- useful for child care
- both quantitative and qualitative data
- reduce participant variables - study same ps over time
W-children so ethical issues
- research is constrained to time
- usually small samples
Studies in developmental area
Bandura - behaviour affected by a model
Kohlberg - changes in morality with age
Chaney - influence of funhaler on behaviour
Lee - differences in truth and lie telling across cultures
Developmental points for comparison
Holistic view Focuses on children Cross-cultural Both quantitative and qualitative data Nurture Unethical - children Situational
Social area
We behave differently depending on social roles or presence of Others
Other people and the environment influence our behaviour
Relationships with people influence our behaviour
Strengths and weaknesses of social area
S- practical applications
- explains real life events
- understand human behaviour better
W- ethnocentric
- time restricted
- socially sensitive
Studies in social area
Milgram - influence of authoritative figure on obedience
Piliavin - influence of people on helping others
Bocchiaro - obedience and whistle blowing with an authoritative figure
Levine - helping people who are struggling
Social points for comparison
Field experiments Lack ecological validity sometimes Mainly quantitative data Free will - determinism Situational Reductionist
Individual differences
Looks at why people fall out of the normal range
Looks at why people differ and how
Develop understanding of disorders
Strengths and weaknesses
S- looks at all normal and abnormal behaviours
-treatment of abnormalities
W- socially sensitive
-hard to generalise from unique samples
Studies in individual differences
Freud - phobias
Gould - intelligence and mental ages
Baron-cohen - autism, Tourette’s and normal Theory of mind
Hancock - psychopaths
Individual differences points for comparison
Case studies Low population validity Individual side Socially sensitive Ecological validity Useful
Behaviourist perspective
Humans are born with a blank slate (tabula rasa) and everything’s learnt after birth
Classical conditioning (learn through association)
Operant conditioning (learn through rewards and punishment)
Social learning theory (learn through observation and imitation)
Behaviourist perspective strengths and weaknesses
S-nurture
- useful for child care
- scientific
W- reductionist - ignores nature
- hard to apply to adults
- low ecological validity
Studies in behaviourist perspective
Bandura - social learning theory influence of observing aggressive model
Chaney - operant conditioning rewards of funhaler
Behaviourist perspective comparison points
Controlled lab experiments Useful Children Nurture Useful Scientific
Psychodynamic perspective
3 levels of consciousness - conscious mind (personality) pre conscious (distant memories) unconscious (hidden desires)
3 parts of the personality - Id ego superego
Revealing unconscious mind - Freudian slips, dream analysis, free association, projective tests
Strengths and weaknesses of psychodynamic
S- mental disorders as result of unconscious
- suggestions for treatments
- case study method = detail
W- unscientific
-small samples means low population validity
Studies in psychodynamic
Freud - unconscious as explanation of phobias and fantasies
Hancock - language of psychopaths comes from unconscious, drives and ego defence mechanisms
Points for comparison for psychodynamic
Case study methods Low internal reliability Low Population validity Unscientific Free will - determinism Nature
Nature / nurture
Nature - behaviour due to genetics e.g. sperry moray
Nurture - behaviour due to upbringing and experiences e.g. Bandura blakemore and Cooper
Strengths and weaknesses of nature / nurture
Nature
S- useful for genetic modification, not ethnocentric
W- limited usefulness cant change genetics, socially sensitive
Nurture
S- useful
W- socially sensitive, ethnocentric, blame environment, reductionist
Reductionism / holism
Reductionism - behaviour explained by 1 factor e.g. milgram maguire
Holism - behaviour explained by multiple factors e.g. lee Levine
Strengths and weaknesses of reductionism / holism
Reductionism
S- find cause and effect, scientific, replicable
W- human behaviour too complex to reduce down, low ecological validity
Holism
S- more complete overview of behaviour
W- turns reductionist in finding most important factor
Psychology as a science
Replicability, objectivity, falsifiability to be a science
Is - piliavin, milgram
Not - Freud
Strengths and weaknesses of psych as a science
S- less vulnerable to researcher bias, cause and effect, increases psychology reputation and credibility
W- lacks qualitative data, reductionist, low ecological validity
Socially sensitive research
Topics which may have negative effects on sample or target population and that can cause upset
Is - Gould
Not - cognitive area
Usefulness debate
Whether the findings have practical applications
Is - Bandura loftus and Palmer
Isn’t - blakemore and Cooper
Strengths and weaknesses of usefulness
S- Positive applications to improve people’s lives
- improve reputation of psychology
- increases fundings for research
W- can be put to bad uses
- ethical guidelines broken to make findings useful
- could cancel out if two people have the same idea on different sides
Ethical considerations
Strict guidelines over how participants should be treated
Respect - consent, withdraw, confidentiality
Competence - done by someone with official skills - qualified
Integrity - deception
Responsibility - protection from harm, debrief
E.g is Chaney
Isn’t piliavin
Strengths and weaknesses of ethics
S-increases credibility of psychology
- more likely to get more participants next time
W- limits research being carried out
- reduce validity if know aim - demand characteristics
- withdraw may create a weak sample
Free will / determinism
Free will - choice over our own actions
E.g. milgram
Determinism - caused by external factors (biological = genetics, environmental = upbringing/ social factors)
E.g. Bandura
Maguire
Strengths and weaknesses of free will determinism
Free will
S- not socially sensitive, useful people held accountable
W- unscientific, socially sensitive
Determinism
S- useful can cause behaviours to occur, scientific
W- reductionist, open to negative uses, socially sensitive
Individual/ situational
Individual - behaviour due to personality, characteristics
E.g. milgram Freud
Situational - people’s behaviour changed in different situations
E.g. Bandura
Strengths and weaknesses of individual situational
Individual
S- better understanding of behaviour, useful - jobs
W- hard to change people’s behaviour, reductionist
Situational
S- helps understand changing behaviour, alter behaviour
W- socially sensitive, reductionist
