Issues and debates (holisim v reductionisim)

Question 1

What is holism

Answer 1

Idea that it only makes sense to study the whole of things rather that constituent parts

Question 2

What is reductionism

Answer 2

Idea that human behavior is best explained by breaking it or smaller constituent parts

Question 3

What is levels of explanation

Answer 3

• Rose proposed there are different levels of explanations when explaining behaviour from the lowest level focusing on basic components to the highest which is a more holistic view

Question 4

What is the lowest level

Answer 4

Biological reductionist - behaviour is explained in its smallest parts including genetics, neurochemicals and biological structures.

Question 5

What is the middle level

Answer 5

Psychological explanations (depression being explained by Becks cognitive theory & Ellis’s ABC model)

Question 7

Types of reductionism

Answer 7

• Biological - reducing behaviour to biology (schizophrenia due to excessive dopamine)
• Environmental - explains all beavhiour in terms of stimulus response links (phobias are obtained and maintained through conditioning)
• Machine - linking human behaviour to machines (cognitive, models of memory MSM)

Question 8

What do Gestalts psychologists believe

Answer 8

‘The whole is greater than the sum of its parts’
- That the idea to break up behaviour and experience is inappropriate as these can only be understood by analysing the persons behaviour as a whole

Question 9

Where does holism come from

Answer 9

The Greek word ‘holos’ which means ‘whole’

Question 10

What approach supports holism

Answer 10

Humanistic approach
- argues that human experices should be as a whole.
- Maslow proposed theories sing as ‘hiercahy of needs’ that consider all contributors to human behaviour

Question 11

Explain the levels of explanation

Answer 11

There are different ways of viewing the same phenomena in psychology
- eg, socio-cultural , psychological , physical, neruochemical , physiological.
- Reductionism suggests that lower level explanations will eventually replace higher level explanations.

Question 12

Whta does the highest level of explanation mean

Answer 12

Socio-cultural explanations of behaviour
- Eg, effects of social factors in post- event discussions

Question 13

What does the middle level of explanations mean

Answer 13

Psychological explanations
- explaining memory through MSM

Question 14

What does the lowest level of explanations mean

Answer 14

Extreme reductionist- Biologival reductionism.
- behaviour is explained in its smallest parts including genetics, neurochemicals