Issues and Debates- Holism vs Reductionism Flashcards
What’s Holism?
The argument proposes we should examine individuals complex behaviour by taking into consideration all aspects of experience, including culture.
e.g. Humanism’s a holistic approach as it explains complex human behaviour by focusing on broader experiences (e.g. culture).
What’s Reductionism?
This side of the debate examines complex human behaviour by breaking it down into smaller constituent parts/ basic units/ components.
e.g. Biological Approach is reductionist because it explains complex human behaviour by just basic biological components (genes).
What are levels of explanation
When looking at one particular behaviour, there are different ways of viewing the same phenomenon.
There are different levels of explanation considered when explaining human behaviour.
These range from low-level (focusing on basic concepts) to those at higher, more holistic level.
The holism/ reductionism debate asks whether it’s appropriate to look at one level specifically or whether more than one level’s appropriate.
Several explanations at several levels are more appropriate.
How can OCD be explained by various levels of explanation
- Socio-cultural context: behaviour’s such as repetitive hand washing most people would regard as odd/ irrational.
- Psychological level: behaviours are due to obsessive thoughts.
- Neurochemical level: OCD’s due to low level of serotonin.
What’s Biological Reductionism?
Explains complex human behaviour by narrowing it down to basic biological systems e.g. genetics.
Assumptions of biological approach have successfully been applied to numerous areas in psychology.
e.g. effects of psychoactive drugs on brain, helped us understand and explain mental illnesses e.g. OCD and Sz at biochemical level.
What’s Environmental Reductionism?
Simplifies complex human behaviour down to learning through stimulus-response-association e.g. classical conditioning.
Phobia of snakes can be explained, learnt through experience, e.g. snake bite, fear and pain associated with snake bite.
Explanation ignores mental processes of mind that occur at psychological level.
What’s Holism?
Holistic side of debate argues psychology should look at whole individual rather than one specific part to explain human behaviour.
Holism advocates don’t deny potential influences of genetics, but feel it’s necessary to take a step back from detail and look at social context of individual e.g. friends, family, etc.
AO3: Holism Strength
P: Praised for explaining aspects of social behaviour that only arise in group settings.
E: Cannot be understood at level of individual group member (reductionism).
E: e.g. effects of conformity on social roles and deindividuation of guards in Zimbardo’s experiment as it was an interaction between people and behaviour of group that was important.
L: Important to take holistic view when explaining human behaviour.
AO3: Holism Criticism
P: Researchers often don’t use scientific methods to investigate human behaviour, unlike research from reductionist explanation.
E: Explanations become more complex and holistic, become more vague, psychologists unable to test them scientifically unlike reductionist explanations.
E: e.g. biological approach, conduct objective and empirical methods to establish cause and effect.
L: Reductionist approach favoured due to increase in internal validity, compared to holistic approaches.
AO3: Reductionism Strength
P: More likely to lead to practical applications compared to holistic approach.
E: Studying basic units of behaviour e.g. which chemicals are involved in certain behavioural disorders, lead to effective treatment for disorder.
E: e.g. dopamine’s a key neurotransmitter in Sz development, led to production of antipsychotics, regulate individual’s dopamine levels, effective in reducing Sz symptoms.
L: Reductionist explanation used to study human behaviour, important applied of applied psychology, helps treat people in real world.
