I&D Holism and Reductionism Flashcards
Define Reductionism
Reductionism is the belief that human behaviour can be explained by breaking it down into simpler component parts
Define Holism
Holism is the idea that human behaviour should be viewed as a, whole integrated experience, and not as separate parts
define the levels of explanation
The idea that there are different ways of viewing the same behaviour in psychology
define biological reductionism
then what approach links to this definition
Biological Reductionism is when behaviour is reduced to the neurons, neurotransmitters, hormones and brain structure
it is linked to the biological approach
define Parsimony
A complex phenomena should be explained in the simplest way
Identifying the simplest and most accurate explantation for brain processes and human behaviour
define environmental reductionism and what approach is it linked to
Environmental Reductionism is known as stimulus-response reductionism and that behaviour is reduced down to stimulus-response behaviour
it is linked to Behaviourist approach
what other approach is linked to environmental reductionism other than- Behaviourist
the cognitive approach- where environmental reductionism is behaviour that’s being investigated in terms of isolating variables
for example- the capacity of STM
which approach is ‘partially reductionist’ and how
SLT approach, as it shares elements of the behaviourists and cognitive approaches
which approach is both reductionist and holistic and why
the Psychodynamic approach because behaviour is reduces into taking account the multiple aspects of human behaviour
which approach is holistic
the humanistic approach and it focuses on understanding all aspects of human experience and interactions
what does the levels of explanation look like and explain it from bottom to top
Upside down triangle
Smallest level- bottom - physiological explanations (biological),
middle level- psychological explanations (cognitive processes
Top level is the socio-cultural explanation level, which is (social influence)
Give examples that would go in the physiological level of explanation
- Brain scans, brain structures, genetics, neurochemical
- The critical period of 18 hours
- The fight or flight stress response
- Harlows monkeys - contact comfort
give examples of what would go in the psychological level of explanations
- Internal working model (cognitive)
- Mediational processes (slt)
3.Classical and operant conditioning (slt)
give examples of what would fit in the socio-cultural levels of explanation
- Adorno Authoritarian personality test
- Ainsworth’s strange situation
- Zimbardos Standford prison experiment
- Asch’s line study
AO3 strength
Both biological and environmental reductionism is scientific, increases it’s reliability
P A strength of both- are scientific increased reliability,
- for research behaviour scientifically- must be broken down into simplest components
E e.g. bio reduct research led to drug treatment for OCD, use of SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors)
E- This SSRI treatment have improved patients anxiety, showing positive impacts
L- Shows real life application- validity of biological reductionism increases
AO3- Limitation of environmental reductionism (studies stimulus response) using animal studies
P- However, criticism is use of research for env reduct is ono-human
E- e.g. Palov’s dogs -can’t be generalised to human behaviour- due to unconsidered complex factor (ignored due to simplification)
E- This means that reductionists often miss key factors eg cognition and emotion
L- Therefore, environmental reductionism reliability reduces and cannot be an effective way to understand human behaviour
AO3- Strength
Holism considers a whole group
research- Z
P- Strength an entire group is considered at once.
E- e.g. Zimbardo’s Stanford Prison study - researched behaviours such as deindividuation that occur when in a group context - can’t study indiv due to interaction between people
E- Helped to provide a global understanding of behaviour - can be generalised to wider societies/cultures
L- Research support for holism being able to effectively study topic where behaviours are influenced by others such as social influence
AO3- Weakness of Holism
However- vague, can’t explain higher functioning of the brain
P- However, a criticism of holism- vagueness increases when behaviour becomes more complex.
E- e.g. holistic approach has loose concepts when explaining complex behaviour, which is a weakness as the research lacks empirical evidence
E- Therefore, holism research can only study behaviour to an extent, so disorders such as depression is difficult to understand when taking a holistic approach
L- Therefore, only lower explanations such as physiological level of expl can be explained using holism when finding real life solutions
