HOLISM VS REDUCTIONISM Flashcards
what 4 things do you have to remember for holism vs reductionism?
holism
reductionism
levels of explanation in psychology
types of reductionism
define holism
the argument proposing it only makes sense to study an inseparable system than it’s constituent parts
what did German/Gestalt psychologists say?
’ the whole is greater than the sum of it’s parts’
holism argues that any attempt to….
break up behaviour is inappropriate, only understood by analysing the person/behaviour as a whole
what approach is holistic?
humanistic approach as effective therapy brings in all aspects of the person together
define reductionism
the belief that human behaviour is best explained by breaking it down into it’s smaller constituent parts
what scientific principle is reductionism based on?
parsimony
define parsimony
all phenomena is explained using basic principles
reductionism is the ______ and most __________ level of explanation
easiest and most economical
define levels of explanation in psychology
explanations vary from those at a fundamental level focusing on basic component to those at higher more holistic multivariable level
in simpler terms, levels of exp in psych are…
diff ways of viewing the same phenomena in psychology
explain OCD at it’s diff levels of exp
socio-cultural = behaviour such as excessive hand washing seen as irrational
psychological = explanation of having obsessive thoughts
physical = sequence of movements involving washing hands
physiological = hypersensitivity of basal ganglia
neurochemical =- underproduction of serotonin
reductionist psychologists think that…
psychology will be replaced with other sciences higher in reductionist hierarchy
what are the two types of reductionism?
biological
environmental
define biological reductionism
attempts to explain social/psychological phenomena at lower biological level e.g. genes or hormones
the ______ approach is biologically reductionist as…
biological as it believes all behaviour is somehow biological
biological approach has led to the development of…
psychoactive drugs that contribute to the understanding of neural processes such as OCD, depression and schizophrenia at a biochemical level
define environmental reductionism
attempts to explain all behaviour in terms of stimulus-response links made through experience
what approach is environmentally determinist?
behaviourist as they study observable behaviour and break it down
behaviourists believe that…
key analysis happens at a physical level and the mind is irrelevant into understand behaviour
give a strength and weakness of holism`
+ aspects of group cannot be understood individually
- no scientific testing
one strength of holism is that….
there are aspects of social behaviour that only emerge during a group context and cannot be understood at an individual
what is an example of social behaviour that only emerges during a group?
effect of conformity, social roles and deindividuation cannot be understood when you look at ppts as individuals
what is important in group behaviour that supports holism?
interaction with people and behaviour of the group is important
what does aspects of social behaviour show about holistic explanations?
they provide a more complete and global understanding of behaviour than reductionist approaches
since some behaviour can only be understood in a group context the…..
the reliability and internal validity of holism as an explanation in psychology is increased
one weakness of holism is that….
there is no scientific testing
the holistic explanation doesn’t…
lend itself to rigorous scientific testing and becomes vague/speculative as becomes more complex
for example, humanistic psychology which takes a holistic approach tends to be criticised as…
it lacks of empirical evidence, and is instead seen by many as a rather loose set of concepts
higher level explanations that combine different perspectives present researchers with a practical dilemma…
if we accept that there are many factors that contribute to depression, it is difficult to establish the more influential one
therefore, the _________ ________ of holism is _______ as it suggests that a lower level explanation is more appropriate
internal validity of holism is decreased
give one strength and weakness of reductionism
+ forms basis of scientific research (operationalisation)
- oversimplifies behaviour
one strength of reductionism is that it…
forms the basis of scientific research
how does reductionism form the basis of scientific research?
in order to create operationalised variables, it is necessary to break target behaviours down into it’s constituent parts
reductionism makes it possible…
to conduct experiments/record observation through behavioural categories in meaningful and reliable way
an approach that shows reductionism was the…
behaviourist approach to demonstrate how complex learning could be broken down into simple stimulus-response links within the lab
the reductionist approach gives psychology…
greater credibility, placing it on equal terms with the natural sciences lower down in the reductionist hierarchy and consequently increases the internal validity
a weakness of the reductionist approach is that….
it oversimplifies complex behaviour
what is an example of explanations that do not include an analysis of the social context behaviour happens in?
explanations that operate at the level of gene, neurotransmitter and neuron, where the behaviour in question may get it’s meaning
for example, ______________ processes involved in…. do not show….
physiological processes such as pointing one’s finger is the same regardless of context, but an analysis of these doesn’t tell us why finger is pointed
reductionism oversimplifying behaviour means…
internal validity is decreased as reductionist explanation only form part of the explanation
