Holism & Reductionism Flashcards
Define biological reductionism.
Biological reductionism refers to the attempt by biological psychologists to explain behavior at a physical level, breaking it down into components such as neurons, neurotransmitters, hormones, and brain structure.
What’s an example of biological reductionism?
Psychological disorder explanations often simplify by focusing on biology, attributing causes to genes and neurochemical imbalances. For instance, a meta-analysis of 14 twin studies on OCD found that identical twins were over twice as likely to have the disorder if their twin also had it, hinting at a genetic connection.
Define environmental reductionism.
Environmental reductionism, also known as stimulus-response reductionism, is the behaviorist assumption that all behavior can be reduced to simple stimulus-response associations.
Give an example of environmental reductionism.
Behaviorists simplify complex attachment behavior by breaking it down into a stimulus-response connection. for example, the mother serves as the conditioned stimulus linked to the pleasure of feeding. Consequently, the child associates pleasure (conditioned response) with encountering their mother, resulting in the development of attachment.
Define environmental reductionism.
Experimental reductionism involves reducing a complex behavior to a single, isolated variable for the purpose of testing.
Give an example of environmental reductionism.
This can be seen in memory research. The multi-store model of memory proposes three memory stores, each with its coding, capacity, and duration. However, cognitive psychologists often break down memory into specific aspects. For instance, Miller (1956) studied short-term memory capacity, and Peterson and Peterson (1959) explored short-term memory duration. This approach, called experimental reductionism, simplifies complex behaviors by measuring and determining causal relationships through isolated variables.
How does environmental reductionism simplify behaviour.
It simplifies the study of behaviour by isolating and manipulating one variable to observe its effects. For instance, studying memory by presenting participants with a list of words to memorise and manipulating the presentation time as the isolated variable.
Define holism.
Holism is the perspective that human behavior should be viewed as a whole, integrated experience, considering all relevant factors and not as separate parts.
What does the interactionist approach propose regarding the levels of explanation for behavior?
The interactionist approach argues that several levels of explanation are necessary to understand a particular behavior, ranging from lower (biological) to higher levels (social and cultural). It suggests that different factors at various levels interact to shape human behavior.
Explain the concept of levels of explanations in the context of the reductionist approach.
The reductionist approach suggests that behavior can be explained at different levels, including social and cultural, psychological, or biological. Each level represents a specific perspective or framework for understanding behavior. For instance, explaining aggression at the biological level might focus on neurochemical processes, while a social and cultural level explanation might consider societal influences on aggressive behavior.
Define parsimony.
Parsimony is the idea that complex phenomena should be explained in the simplest terms possible.
Explain the concept of reductionism and its impact on understanding human behavior.
Reductionism is the belief that human behavior can be explained by breaking it down into simpler component parts. It simplifies complex phenomena by focusing on specific variables or factors. However, reductionism has limitations, as it may oversimplify the richness and complexity of human behavior by neglecting interactions between various factors and levels of explanation.
What’s the lowest level of explanation proposed by the reductionist approach.
The lowest level involves physiological (biological) explanations, focusing on neurochemicals, genes, and brain structure.
What’s the middle level of explanation proposed by the reductionist approach.
The middle level involves psychological explanations, including cognitive and behavioral factors.
What’s the highest level of explanation proposed by the reductionist approach.
The highest level involves social and cultural explanations, considering the influence of social groups on behavior.
