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Psychology > Issues And Debates > Flashcards

Issues And Debates Flashcards

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1
Q

A01
Explain nomothetic approaches and what they aim to do

A
  • try to establish general laws for everyone by assuming criteria’s for certain behaviour
  • objective knowledge through scientific methods e.g lab experiments, structured observations
  • seen as scientific as making general laws help develop predictions for behaviour
  • quantitative methods used
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2
Q

A01
Explain idiographic approaches and what they aim to do

A
  • focus on individual differences and uniqueness
  • qualitative methods used e.g case studies, unstructured interviews
  • case study example is patient HM and KF where research was discovered for different types of LTM
  • seen as unscientific as the individuals experiences are subjective
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3
Q

A01
Which of the approaches primarily have a nomothetic approach?
(However some use idiographic methods e.g case studies)

A
  • behaviourist
  • social learning theory
  • biological
  • cognitive
  • psychodynamic
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4
Q

A01
What approach is only ever idiographic

A
  • Humanistic approach
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5
Q

A01
What are examples of nomothetic methods?

A
  • lab experiments and controlled observations
  • nomothetic methods as they gather quantitative data and focus on explaining and predicting general patterns of behaviour rather than focusing on details of individual people
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6
Q

A01
What methods are examples of methods used for an idiographic approach

A
  • open ended questions and unstructured interviews as they gather qualitative data, in words
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7
Q

A01
What methodology combines both idiographic and nomothetic methods

A
  • Q methodology
  • questions are given in a survey where ppts rank their answers accordingly
  • this gives detail about the individuals and also can be done by large sample size
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8
Q

A03
Explain Gordon Allports position on the idiographic vs nomothetic debate

A
  • his argument was that the predictions of nomothetic methods were usually predictions about how people tend to behave on average. These predictions state that a certain percentage of people behave one way, and the rest behave another way. However, Allport argued that nomothetic methods do not give us any way of knowing whether a particular individual will fall into one category or the other. Idiographic methods like case studies and interviews, on the other hand, provide much richer detail, which allows us to make more accurate predictions of an individual
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9
Q

A03
What is a strength of nomothetic methods

A
  • seen as scientific
  • aims to create general laws of behaviour, therefore allows predictions for behaviour to be made
  • subjective bias is removed through standardised methods and measurements
  • data is also easier to replicate, making it more generalisable
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10
Q

A03
What is a weakness of nomothetic methods

A
  • misinterpretation: general trends may not accurately represent every individual in a group
  • superficial: fixed criteria does not give complete picture of individual. E.g two ppl with depression diagnosis have different experiences
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11
Q

A03
What are weaknesses of idiographic methods

A
  • unscientific, conclusions are open to researcher bias, reducing reliability of findings
  • however Allport argued, by providing greater insight into an individual, idiographic methods might allow better predictions

-time consuming: due to depth and detail can be a very time consuming process

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12
Q

A03
What are strengths of idiographic methods

A
  • rich detailed data, argued to provide more valid perspective on human behaviour e.g patient HM and diff types of LTM
  • hypothesis generation- while unusual cases are not generalisable, they can generate new interesting areas of research or overturn incorrect theories
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13
Q

A01
What is reductionism

A
  • studying behaviour by breaking them down into smaller components e.g biological approach doesn’t take into account environmental factors
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14
Q

A01
What is holism

A
  • behaviour can be understood by analysing the person and behaviour as a whole
  • behaviour must include all an individuals experiences and factors influencing behaviour
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15
Q

A01
What are the levels of explanation for reductionism and holism (1 being the most holistic, 3 being the most reductionist)

A

1) social/cultural
2) psychological/cognitive
3) biological

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16
Q

A01
What is biological reductionism

A
  • explains behaviour using biological systems, including genetics, hormones and neurotransmitters
  • seen in the biological approach
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17
Q

A01
What is environmental reductionism

A
  • explains behaviour in terms of stimulus-response relationships from the environment
  • seen in the behaviourist approach
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18
Q

A01
Explain where all the approaches lie on the levels of explanation

A
  • cognitive and social learning theory are somewhat reductionist but are more holistic than the behaviourist approach
  • psychodynamic approach is somewhat holistic as it breaks personality down into 3 parts, but says we need to look at all aspects of behaviour to understand how these parts interact
  • the humanistic approach is the most holistic as it says that we can’t break down behaviour at all
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19
Q

A03
What are the strengths of reductionist explanations

A
  • scientific: reduces behaviour down into cause and effect relationships that are empirically testable, therefore falsifiable.
  • supports the development and empirical testing of treatments like drug therapies. These therapies have helped millions of ppl manage mental health symptoms
  • e.g ppl with schizophrenia from a biological perspective have either too high/low levels of dopamine, therefore drugs are made to target the dopamine system , however, treatment resistant + holistic explanations may be more useful for long term

-supported by the principle of parsimony which says that we should choose the simplistic explanation, as reductionism says that we can break down explanations into their simplest parts

20
Q

A03
What are the weaknesses of a reductionist explanation

A
  • overly simplistic: oversimplifies complex behaviour leading to a loss of validity. Genetic explanations don’t analyse the social context within which the behaviour occurs
21
Q

A03
What are the strengths of a holistic explanation

A
  • led to development of therapeutic approaches such as ‘client centred therapy’
  • they aim to provide more personalised treatment options than alternatives like drug therapies
22
Q

A03
What are weaknesses of a holistic explanation

A
  • taking into account multiple factors/ variables makes it difficult to establish causation as it’s hard to isolate specific variables for empirical testing
  • might overlook the importance for a specific element by focusing too broadly on the whole. Holism fails to acknowledge the importance of individual components
    (Same strengths and limitations of the humanistic approach)
23
Q

A01
What is the principle of parsimony

A
  • if we have different explanations which completely explain the same thing, we should always choose the simplest one
  • e.g not using higher levels of explanation if a lower level of explanation will do
24
Q

A01
What is meant by interactionism in holism and reductionism

A
  • the interaction between levels of explanations
25
Q

A01
What are the problems with interactionism for holism and reductionism

A
  • interactionism involves more holistic levels of explanation, which are difficult to test scientifically
  • it violates the principle of parsimony
26
Q

A01
What is meant by the term empirical

A
  • knowledge is gathered from observational studies that rely on measurable data
27
Q

A01
What is meant by free will

A
  • the belief that humans are essentially self-determining
  • we have control over our behaviour
28
Q

A01
What is meant by soft determinism

A
  • traits and behaviours to an extent are dictated by internal and external factors. However we do have some level of control (free will) behaviour through conscious thought processes
29
Q

A01
What is meant by hard determinism

A
  • personality traits and behaviour are set by forces outside of our control with no role for free will .This states that all behaviour has a cause
30
Q

A01
Label what each of the approaches are in terms of either free will, soft determinism or hard determinism

A
  • biological approach (hard determinism)
  • behaviourist approach (hard determinism)
  • cognitive approach (soft determinism)
  • psychodynamic (soft determinism)
  • humanistic approach (free will)
31
Q

A01
Describe what is meant by environmental determinism

A
  • our experiences shape our behaviour
  • we have learned to behave in specific ways based on factors like operant and classical conditioning
  • behaviourists are usually considered hard determinism as behaviour can be fully explained by stimulus-response
32
Q

A01
Describe what is meant by biological determinism

A
  • our behaviour is sort by our genetics and biological processes such as hormones, neurotransmitters and brain structure
33
Q

A01
How can twin studies be used to disprove biological determinism

A
  • mz twins (share 100% of genes), dz twins (share 50% of genes) therefore any similarities between mz twins can be attributed to genetic factors
  • however concordance rate is never 100% for any trait, therefore genetic determinism can be refuted as behaviours are not solely determined by our genes
  • e.g in ODC concordance rate is 70% and in depression concordance rate is 40%, highlighting the importance of environmental factors as well
34
Q

A01
Explain how the cognitive approach is seen as soft determinism

A
  • accepts the influence of biological factors on human behaviour, however they also believe in a significant role for cognitive processes involving choice and decision making
  • e.g CBT (client based therapy) shows how changing thought patterns can alter emotional responses and behaviours
35
Q

A01
Explain what is meant my psychic determinism

A
  • Freud believed innate drives, shaped by childhood experiences form unconscious forces that determine behaviour
  • e.g include conflicts among id, ego and superego, fixations during psychosexual stages and defence mechanisms shielding conscious mind from anxiety
  • though psychoanalytical therapy, individuals can become aware of unconscious motivations and gain conscious control over their behaviour
36
Q

A01
Explain how the humanistic approach is free will

A
  • argues that humans have agency; capable of making free choices and are responsible for those choices
  • humanistic theories focus on the human capacity for self actualisation and psychological growth as expressions of free will
37
Q

A01
Explain the importance of scientific research

A
  • based on the belief that all behaviours have cause and effect relationships
  • through repeating research under controlled conditions, a cause and effect relationship can be established between two variables
  • increases scientific credibility of psychology as, research is falsifiable, as the hypothesis can be tested
  • this links to a deterministic approach
  • however determinisms is unfalsifiable as we can only falsify claims about specific causes for behaviour, and cannot falsify the general idea that behaviour has a cause
38
Q

A03
What are the strengths of determinism (with a counter point: treatment resistant)

A
  • application: based on cause and effect relationships. Has led to the development of drug treatments, as for certain conditions it is assumed that low/high neurotransmitter levels are the cause of that condition, e.g low dopamine levels cause depression
  • therefore by understanding cause and effect relationships, treatments can be made accordingly to reduce symptoms of mental illnesses
  • however 1/3 of patients suffer with treatment resistance, showing that it isn’t determinist as there must be multiple factors affecting behaviour as it isn’t due to the supposed cause e.g dopamine cannot be the sole cause of depression bc if it were then the drugs targeting the dopaminergic system should in theory demonstrate 100% efficiency rate
39
Q

A03
What are the weaknesses of determinism

A
  • simplifies human behaviour: human behaviour is influenced by many factors, so arguing that behaviour is due to a single determining factor is an oversimplification. E.g depression cannot be simplified to solely the action of dopamine as there are environmental factors such as upbringing which accompany the chances of developing depression
  • may be used for people to justify behaviours if they have committed a crime, e.g in criminal cases murderers may claim their behaviour is determined by inherited aggressive genetics or tendencies and therefore should not be punished or help accountable for their behaviours
40
Q

A03
What are strengths of free will

A
  • aligns with our everyday subjective experiences, in everyday scenarios we tend to be making our own decisions, therefore we appear to have free will in our day to day lives
  • if we treat everyone as if they have free will then they are likely to believe they have free will, and develop an internal locus of control, improving their mental health
41
Q

A03
What is a weakness of free will

A
  • assuming free will can unfairly blame people for behaviour that wasn’t their fault
  • assuming free will we cannot study cause and effect relationships, so can’t make predictions about behaviour, both of which are necessary for a scientific approach to psychology
42
Q

A01
For the nature v nurture debate what is a way of studying the influence of genes on behaviour (twin studies and adoption studies)

A

-twin studies: MZ single egg that splits into 2, sharing 100% of genes, DZ two separate eggs, sharing 50% of genes
- if MZ twins are more similar to one another in a phenotype/behaviour then we can assume that there is a genetic component to behaviour

  • adoption studies: if child is more similar you adoptive parents then there is and environmental influence (adopted child is living with adoptive parents)
  • if child is more similar to biological parents then there is a biological influence
43
Q

A01
Explain the diathesis stress model

A
  • suggests that a combination of genetic and environmental (gene environment interaction) can cause an extreme outcome
  • suggests that individuals with a genetic vulnerability are more likely to develop a psychological disorder if they are exposed to an disadvantageous environment
  • e.g some ppl who experienced childhood maltreatment may be more likely to develop depression
  • however those who don’t develop depression may not have the genetic vulnerability for depression
  • some do have this genetic vulnerability but do not experience childhood maltreatment
  • e.g while schizophrenia has a strong genetic component, some individuals with genetic susceptibilities to the disorder remain healthy
  • therefore the view help by psychiatrists is that schizophrenia requires a genetic predisposition in combination with stress later on in life, which triggers the emergence of the disorder
44
Q

A01
Give an example of interaction between nature and nurture

A
  • Maguire et al, studied London taxi drivers and found that their hippocampus, which is responsible for spatial memory, had gotten larger as a result of having to memorise and learn many routes and streets to complete the ‘knowledge exam’
  • everyone is born with a static hippocampus, but from plasticity, it shows how nurture/ experiences can alter the capacity
  • PKU (phenylketonuria), ppl with this can’t break down the amino acid phenylalanine, which builds up in their blood and brain
  • main treatment is a low protein diet (argument for nurture) environmental impact
  • however, to inherit PKU you need both recessive alleles to get it
  • supports nature argument as it’s biological determinism, which both recessive alleles you are bound to inherit PKU
45
Q

A03
Why is it difficult to test the contributions of nature and nurture

A
  • interactions between them are often very complex
  • Ripke et al found that there are 100 risk alleles associated with schizophrenia
  • since different people carry a different combination of these risk alleles, it’s very difficult to test a cause and effect relationships between each particular allele, or each combination of alleles and schizophrenia
  • therefore it’s difficult to determine the overall contribution of heredity to schizophrenia

Psychology (9 decks)

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