Issues and debates: science (learning)

Question 1

INTRO

Science

Answer 1

• Psychology uses the hypothetico-deductive method, testing theories through objective research with tight controls to establish cause and effect.
• Scientific research should be based on empiricism and falsifiability, according to Popper i.e. scientifically tested to find out if it was right or wrong, could not be considered scientific.

Question 2

A01 & A03 (is)

Answer 2

A01:
Early learning theories like behaviourism used controlled animal studies (e.g., Skinner’s box) where behaviour was objectively measured and environmental conditions tightly controlled, supporting a scientific approach.

A03:
Skinner’s research demonstrated how reinforcements influenced behaviour; by controlling stimuli and rewards in a lab, Skinner established clear cause and effect relationships between stimulus and response, achieving replicability and objectivity.

Question 3

A01 & A03 (isn’t)

Answer 3

A01:
However, later learning research such as social learning theory uses observational techniques, which can be subjective and harder to replicate due to variation in interpreting behaviours like aggression.

A03:
In Bandura’s Bobo doll study, even with behavioural categories, coding aggressive acts like a “hit” or “kick” involved human judgement, leading to subjectivity, reducing the scientific validity and making findings less consistently replicable.

Question 4

judgement

Answer 4

overall, learning psychology is not scientific as it is more observational then objective as it focus’ on another individuals behaviour and how it can be replicated