Learning approaches: The behaviourist approach Flashcards
The behaviourist approach is only interested in studying behaviour that can be…
observed and measured
True/False: The behaviourist approach is not concerned with investigating mental processes of the mind
True
Early behaviourists accepted/rejected introspection
rejected
Why is the behaviourist approach not concerned with investigating mental processes of the mind?
These were seen as irrelevant
Why did early behaviourists reject introspection?
It involved too many concepts that were vague and difficult to measure
Behaviourists tried to maintain what with their research?
Control and objectivity
How did behaviourists achieve control and objectivity with their research?
Relying on lab studies
Behaviourists believe that all behaviour is…
learned
How would behaviourists describe a baby’s mind?
A ‘blank slate’ that is written on by experience
The behaviourist approach suggests that the basic processes that govern what are the same in all species?
Learning
In behaviourist research what replaces humans as experimental subjects?
Animals
How many important forms of learning are identified in the behaviourist approach?
2
Name the two forms of learning as identified by the behaviourist approach
Classical and operant conditioning
Classical conditioning is learning through…
association
Who was classical conditioning first demonstrated by?
Pavlov
How did Pavlov first demonstrate classical conditioning?
Showing how dogs could be conditioned to salivate to the sound of a bell
Pavlov showed that dogs could be conditioned to salivate to the sound of a bell if…
that sound was present at the time they were given food
What did Pavlov’s dogs gradually learn?
To associate the sound of the bell with the food
The bell and food in Pavlov’s experiment were what?
Stimuli
In Pavlov’s experiment, the bell and food would produce..
the salivation response every time they heard the sound
Pavlov was able to show how a neutral stimulus…
can elicit a new learned response (conditioned response
What was the neutral stimulus in Pavlov’s experiment?
The bell
Skinner suggested that learning is an active/passive process
active
Skinner suggested that learning is an active process whereby humans and animals do what?
Operate on their environment
Positive reinforcement
Receiving a reward when a certain behaviour is performed
Praise from a teacher for answering a question correctly in class is an example of what in terms of operant conditioning?
Positive reinforcement
A student handing in an essay to avoid being told off is an example of what in terms of operant conditioning?
Negative reinforcement
Negative reinforcement occurs when…
an animal (or human) avoids something unpleasant and is therefore in receipt of a positive experience
A rat may learn through what that pressing a lever leads to avoidance of an electric shock?
Negative reinforcement
Punishment
An unpleasant consequence of behaviour
Finding way to avoid being shouted at by a teacher is an example of what?
Negative reinforcement
Operant conditioning states that behaviour is shaped by what?
Its consequences
Positive and negative reinforcement increases/decreases the likelihood that behaviour will be repeated
increases
Punishment increases/decreases the likelihood that behaviour will be repeated
decreases
Give an example of where operant conditioning has been applied to real-world behaviours and problems
Token economies or treatment of phobias
What is the basis of token economy systems?
Operant conditioning
True/False: Operant conditioning has been used in token economy systems successfully, in institutions such as prisons and psychiatric wards
True
How do token economy systems work?
By rewarding appropriate behaviour with tokens that can be exchanged for privileges
Give an example of where classical conditioning has been applied to real-world behaviours and problems
Treatment of phobias
The fact that principles of conditioning have been applied to real-world behaviours and problems does what for the behaviourist approach’s widespread application?
Increases its value
Procedures such as Skinner’s box allowed behaviourists to maintain a high degree of what?
Control over their experimental ‘subjects’
Why may the ethics of procedures such as Skinner’s box be questioned?
Animals were housed in harsh, cramped conditions and deliberately kept below their natural weight so they were always hungry
True/False: In Skinner’s procedure, he deliberately kept rats above their natural weight so they weren’t hungry
False, he deliberately kept them below their natural weight so they were always hungry
True/False: The behaviourist approach is based on well-controlled research
True
The behaviourist approach focused on the measurement of observable behaviour within what?
Highly controlled lab settings
How did behaviourists remove all other possible extraneous variables in their research?
By breaking down behaviour into basic stimulus-response units
How were cause-and-effect relationships established in behaviourist research?
By removing all other possible extraneous variables through breaking down behaviour into basic stimulus-response units
The fact that behaviourism is based on well-controlled research suggests…
that behaviourist experiments have scientific credibility
How may have behaviourists oversimplified the learning process?
By reducing behaviour to such simple components
What is the important influence on learning that behaviourists may have ignored?
Human thought
The fact that other approaches such as social learning theory and the cognitive approach have drawn attention to the mental processes involved in learning suggests what about learning?
It is more complex than observable behaviour alone and private mental processes are also essential - something not addressed by the behaviourist approach
Behaviourism sees all behaviour as what conditioned by what?
Past conditioning experiences
Skinner suggested that everything we do is the sum total of our what?
Reinforcement history
When something happens we may think ‘I made the decision to do that’. According to Skinner, what determined this outcome?
Our past conditioning history
What did Skinner say about free will?
It is an illusion
Skinner’s view that free will is an illusion is an extreme position that ignores what?
The influence of conscious decision-making processes on behaviour
Behaviourism sees all behaviour as conditioned by past conditioning experiences. What is this an example of?
Environmental determinism
