Holism vs Reductionism Flashcards
1
Q
Define reductionism
A
- Is the belief that human behaviour can be explained by breaking it down into simpler component parts.
2
Q
What is the lowest level of reductionism?
A
- Biological explanations (neurochemical, genetic, brain structure etc.).
3
Q
What is the middle level of reductionism?
A
- Psychological reductionism (cognitive, behavioural/ environmental).
4
Q
A
5
Q
What is the highest level of reductionism?
A
- Social and cultural explanations (the influence of social groups on behaviour).
6
Q
Biological explanations: example….
A
- Memory can be considered in terms of biological components. For example, Maguire et al found an association between the size of the hippocampus and memory for spatial navigation.
7
Q
Psychological explanation: example….
A
- Memory can also be considered at a psychological level.
- For example, cognitive psychologists examine particular aspects of memory- Miller examined the capacity of STM, and Peterson and Peterson examined the duration of STM.
8
Q
Social and cultural explanations: example….
A
- Memory could be explained by/ at a social and cultural level, as research suggests that cultural expectations affect what we remember and how we recall information (Barlett- Schema theory).
9
Q
What are the main 2 types of reductionism?
A
1) Biological reductionism.
2) Environmental reductionism.
10
Q
Define biological reductionism
A
- Refers to the way biological psychologists try to reduce behaviour to a physical level and explain it in terms of neurons, neurotransmitters, hormones, brain structure etc.
11
Q
Define environmental reductionism
A
- Is also known as stimulus-response reductionism.
- Behaviourists assume that all behaviour can be reduced to simple building blocks of S-R associations, and that complex behaviours are a series of S-R bonds/ chains.
12
Q
Example of biological reductionism
A
- Year 1 Psychopathology= the biological approach claims that OCD is caused by higher levels of dopamine and lower levels of serotonin.
13
Q
Example of environmental reductionism
A
- Year 1 psychopathology= the behaviourist approach claims that phobias are maintained through classical conditioning and maintained through operant conditioning.
14
Q
Define Holism
A
- Holism comes from the Greek word ‘holos’ which means ‘all’, ‘whole’ or ‘entire’, and is the idea that human behaviour should be viewed as a whole integrated experience and not as separate parts.
15
Q
Example of holism (Gestalt psychology)
A
Gestalt psychology adopts a holistic approach to perception: when we perceive something in the real world, we do so as a whole rather than as a collection of bits and pieces.
