//Holism and reductionism

Question 1

What is reductionism

Answer 1

• the scientific view that it should be possible to explain complex things by reducing them to their most simple structures/processes
• this means explaining behaviour by reducing theories down to basic principles e.g. agression caused by conditioning
• testing this in an experiment means it’s possible to establish c+e
• but experiments are often unrealistically simplified and ignore other influences- so may not be testing real behaviour

Question 2

What is holism

Answer 2

• the argument that human behaviour is more complex than the processes that other sciences study e.g. chemical reactions
• this means it should be viewd as the product of different influences, which all interact
• trying to separate these influences by just studying them means complex behaviour can be misunderstood- holism approach avoids this
• difficult to test integrated theories as variables can’t be isolated- hard to establish c+e

Question 3

What did Rose (1976) come up with

Answer 3

• put forward a range of explanations used in psychology, from the most reductionist, to the most holistic
• levels of explanation- how reductionist/hoistic an explantion of something is

Question 4

Explain levels of explnantion

Answer 4

• The molecular level (physics)
• The cellular level (biochemistry)
• Parts of individuals (biology)
• The behaviour of individuals (psychology)
• The behaviour of groups (sociology)

Question 5

Psychodynamic approach- holistic/reductionist

Answer 5

• this approach considers unconscious forces and childhood experiences
• it is therfore holistic
• Freud emphasised that personality is the result of interaction betweenndifferent components e.g. id and ego- holistic view

Question 6

Biological approach- holistic/reductionist

Answer 6

• all behaviours can be explained as the product of biological influences like genetics, brain structure and brain chemistry
• this is biological reductionism- aims to establish c+e but focuses less on other influences on behaviour e.g. behavioural

Question 7

Cognitive approach- holistic/reductionist

Answer 7

• the bran’s cognitive processes are compared to the working of a computer- machine reductionism
• there is input, processing and output
• this is reductionist as it doesn’t explain why humans function differently to computers e.g. they can forget

Question 8

Behaviourist approach- holistic/reductionist

Answer 8

• all human behaviour (exceot biologicak insincts) is shaped by the environment through the processes of classic and operant conditioning
• this is known as environmental (stimulus-response) reductionism
• other possible influences (e.g. genetic, social) are focused on less

Question 9

Humanistic approach- holistic/reductionist

Answer 9

• the approach is holistic as it studies the individual in context and tries to understand their subjective experiences
• uses self report techniques, rather than breaking down behaviour into its component parts
• Humantistic psychologists disagree with reducing behaviour to cause and effect reactions