holism and reductionism

Question 1

is holism and reductionism on a continuum

Answer 1

no

Question 2

In the reduction-holism debate, interactionism is the interaction between…

Answer 2

different levels of explanation.

Question 3

what is holism

Answer 3

an argument or theory which proposes that it only makes sense to study an indivisible system rather than constituent parts

perception of whole behaviour/experience rather than the individual features and the relations between them, implying behaviour must be explained at the highest holistic level

the whole is greater than the sum of its parts

Question 4

which approach uses holism and explain

Answer 4

humanist approach, focusing on the individuals experience which is not something that can be reduced

humanistic psychologists use qualitative methods to investigate self whereby themes are analysed rather than breaking the concept into component behaviours

Question 5

what is reductionism

Answer 5

belief that human behaviour is best understood by studying the smaller constituent parts.

based on scientific principle of parisomy

Question 6

what is parisomy

Answer 6

the belief that all phenomena should be explained using the simplest (lowest level)

breaking behaviour down so actually know whats happening

Question 7

The principle of parsimony states that if there are several different explanations that completely explain something…

Answer 7

we should choose the simplest explanation.

Question 8

what are levels of explanation and what happens in their order

the lower they go the more reductionist

Answer 8

the idea that there are several ways (levels) that can be used to explain behaviour

Question 9

what does the lowest level of explanation consider

Answer 9

it considers physiological/biological explanations

Question 10

what does the middle level of explanation consider

Answer 10

psychological explanations

Question 11

what does the highest level of explanation consider

Answer 11

social and cultural explanations

Question 12

apply the levels of explanation to OCD

Answer 12

sociocultural: ocd interrupts social relationships

psych: experience of anxiety

physical: movements eg washing hands

envri/behav: learning experiences

physio: abnormal functioning in the frontal lobes

neurochemical: underproduction of serotonin

Question 13

why is the neurochemical level the most reductionist and does this mean as a result

Answer 13

you can break it down the most

most scientific, can have an iv and dv easier to conduct research on as less extraneous variables

Question 14

which approach is reductionist

Answer 14

behaviourist

Question 15

what is biological reductionism

Answer 15

includes the neurochemical and physiological levels and also evolutionary and genetic influences.

based on the premise that we’re all biological organisms > all behaviour is at some level biological

Question 16

explain how ocd can be biological reductionism

Answer 16

drugs that increase serotonin have been found to be effective at treating ocd, therefore low serotonin may be the cause of ocd.

ocd is therefore reduced to the level of neurotransmitter activity

Question 17

what is environmental reductionism

Answer 17

the attempt to explain all behaviour in terms of stimulus response links that have been learned through experience

Question 18

link behaviourism to environmental reductionism

Answer 18

behaviourist approach is built on environmental reductionism, proposing that all behaviour is learned and acquired through interactions with the environment.

B is explained in terms of conditioning which is focused on a simple stimulus-response link, reducing behaviour to these basic elements

Question 19

link social learning theory of attachment to environmental reductionism

Answer 19

slt of attachment reduces the idea of love (infant and caregiver who does the feeding) to a learned association between the person doing the feeding (ns) and food (uncs) and resulting in pleasure (cr)

Question 20

limitation of holism approach (practical value)

Answer 20

holistic accounts of behaviour are hard to use as they are complex.

researchers have a practical dilemma.

from a humanistic perspective there are many factors that influence behaviour eg contribute to depression so it becomes difficult to know which is the most INFLUENTIAL

then dk which to prioritise as the basis of therapy for eg

Question 21

strength of reductionist approach (scientific approach) inc explained psych eg

Answer 21

in order to conduct well controlled research the variables need to be operationalised in order to be studied. ie target behaviours need to be broken down into constituent parts > possible to conduct exps and record obs (behavioural CATEGORIES) in an OBJECTIVE and RELIABLE manner.

eg ss it was important to operationalise behaviours such as separation anxiety

thus scientific approach provides psych with greater credibility matching that of natural sciences because they reduce behaviour down into c+e rel that are empirically testable and therefore the rels are falsifiable

Question 22

counter point to strength of reductionist approach (scientific approach), reductionist approaches can be considered to oversimplify complex phenomena

Answer 22

this leads to reduced validity. explanations that operate at the level of the gene of the neurotransmitter do not include analysis of the social context within which behaviour occurs.

suggesting reductionist explanations can only ever form part of an explanation as if we break some behaviours down into smaller parts/to a lower level of exp then it wont make sense as we might miss other important factors

Question 23

limitation of reductionism (some bs can only be explained at higher levels)

inc explained psych eg

Answer 23

some aspects of social b only occur in a group context and cannot be understood in terms of the individual group members

eg zimbardo/effects of conformity to social roles in prisoner and guards. the exp couldnt be understod by observing ps as individuals, it was the interaction of members and b of the group that was important.

there is no conformity gene so social processes like conformity can only be explained at the level at which they occur.
if we break some behaviours down into smaller parts/to a lower level of exp then it wont make sense as we might miss other important factors

Question 24

what is experimental reductionism

Answer 24

reducing complex behaviours to isolated variables is useful for conducting research

it underlies experimental approach where bs are reduces to operationalised variables that can be manipulated and measured to determine causal relationships

Question 25

holsim comes from ….. psychologists and what are they/what do they believe

Answer 25

gestalt psychologists

focus on perception, explanations only make sense through the consideration of the whole rather than individual elements

the whole is greater than the sum of its parts

Question 26

evaluation point for biological reductionism (strength (has led to ….))

approach is ..

limitation/cp of above

Answer 26

it has lead to the formation of drug therapies and such treatments have reduced institutionalisation it can be used to treat symptoms of mental disorders.

this approach is more humane to the treatment of mental illness as it doesnt blame the patient > leads to greater tolerance of the mentally ill.

cp of drug therapies is that their success rates are variable and they treat symptoms not the causes > may not have long lasting effects

reducing mental illness to a biological level ignores the context and function of such behaviour whereas psych explanations take more account of these and have produces many successful therapies

Question 27

limitation of environmental reductionism (exps used non human animals…..)

Answer 27

it was created as a result of exps with non human animals. b was explained in terms of simple components and so may not be appropriate for more complex human behaviour

humans b is influenced by social context/intentions etc

even in nonhuman animals reductionist explanations ignore other possible influences such as cognitive/emotional factors

Question 28

example of a study that used a level of exp that was too low and so it overlooked the actual meaning of behaviour

Answer 28

wolpe who developed systematic desensitisation

he treated a woman with a fear of insects but found no improvement from this behavioural method of therapy

it turned out her husband who she was arguing with was given an insect nickname and so her fear was not the result of conditioning but a means of representing her martial problems (meaning was ignored)

danger of loe thats too low is it may distract us from a more appropriate loe

Question 29

The most reductionist level of explanation is a biological explanation, because…

Answer 29

it involves explaining behaviour in the simplest parts, tiny genes in the body

Question 30

The cognitive approach is reductionist to an extent, because…

Answer 30

it breaks behaviour down into simpler parts.

but the cognitive approach is less reductionist than the behaviourist approach.

Question 31

is social learning theory more reductionist than behaviourist approach

Answer 31

no it is less

Question 32

The psychodynamic approach does use reductionism to an extent, because ….. but overall….

Answer 32

it breaks down personality into three simpler parts: the id, ego and super-ego.

but it is relatively holistic because ut takes into account all aspects of individuals behaviour plus cultural such as role of mother and father

Question 33

Reductionist explanations involve cause and effect relationships that can be empirically tested. This means that…

Answer 33

they are falsifiable and they can be studied using the scientific method

Question 34

Very holistic explanations can’t be studied scientifically, because…

Answer 34

they insist that we shouldn’t break down behaviour into cause and effect relationships.

Question 35

One advantage of interactionism is that…

Answer 35

it fits the evidence we have about the causes of conditions like depression.

Question 36

More holistic levels of explanation are difficult to test scientifically because…

Answer 36

they dont break things down into cause and effect relationships

Question 37

Why might interactionism violate the principle of parsimony?

Answer 37

It requires us to use more than one level of explanation.

It introduces higher levels of explanation.

Question 38

The first problem with interactionism is that it involves more ….. levels of explanation, which are difficult to …

Answer 38

holistic
test scientifically

Question 39

The second problem with interactionism is that it violates the …

Answer 39

principle of parsimony

Question 40

Ethan is studying gender differences in sporting preference. He has concluded that boys and girls like different sports because of their upbringing, social groups, culture and educational background.

holistic
reductionist
interactionist

Answer 40

holistic

Question 41

Penelope is studying schizophrenia. She is investigating the fact that people can have particular genes which make them more likely to develop schizophrenia, but they often don’t show any symptoms until they have experienced stress in their environment.

holistic
reductionist
interactionist

Answer 41

interactionist

Question 42

Katrina works in a hostel for people who have recently been released from prison. She conducts a study to find out whether the offenders committed their crimes because they had learned to associate the criminal behaviour with rewards such as excitement, money and respect from friends.

holistic
reductionist
interactionist

Answer 42

reductionist

Question 43

Outline two weaknesses of interactionism. [3 marks]

Answer 43

The first weakness is that interactionism is less scientific than very reductionist explanations.

The second weakness of interactionism is that it violates the principle of parsimony because it introduces higher levels of explanation and it also requires us to use more than one level of explanation.