LS6 - Classical & Operant Conditioning & The 2 Process Model Flashcards
Behavioural Model
Suggests all behaviour and phobias can be learnt and people who have an abnormality can learn negative behaviours
2 Process Model
- The phobia is learnt via classical conditioning/social learning
- The phobia is maintained by operant conditioning
Classical Conditioning
Involves building up an association between 2 different stimuli so that learning takes place.
Watson & Raynor (1920)
White rat (neutral stimulus) is presented to a person, Loud banging noise (unconditioned stimulus) is presented which makes the person have an emotional response. The 2 stimuli are repeatedly paired together until classical conditioning and learning takes place to which they have an emotional response. When the white rat (conditioned stimulus) is now presented alone, an emotional response will take place (conditioned response). Showing learning has taken place via classical conditioning and an association has been established.
Classical Conditioning Strengths
King (1998)
Classical Conditioning Weaknesses
Ethical Issues
Traumatic Experience Without Classical Conditioning
Hydro Study
King (1998)
Supports classical conditioning and found that children acquire phobias by encountering traumatic experiences with the phobic object/situation.
Ethical Issues
The Little Albert study can’t be repeated due to ethical issues meaning results aren’t very reliable
Remembering Traumatic Experiences (-)
Some people have traumatic experience e.g. car crash, without developing a phobia which isn’t explained by classical conditioning, and also some people have phobias without negative/any experiences with the object/situation.
hydro (-)
Menzies - Studied people that had hydrophobia and found only 2% had encountered a negative experience with water, therefore 98% weren’t explained via classical conditioning. 50% of people who have a dog phobia have never had a bad experience with a dog, meaning learning didn’t cause the development of the phobia.
Observational Learning
Where children might observe a reaction that their family have to particular situation and copy t, developing a phobia through observational learning.
Animal Research Support (+)
Minneka - Found that when one monkey in a cage showed a fear response to snakes, the other monkeys in the cage copied the response extending it’s validity to animals.
Operant Conditioning
Explains how the phobia can be maintained.
Negative Reinforcement
Where someone scared of snakes will try to avoid snakes in order to reduce the risk they will feel fear
Positive Reinforcement
Where someone will avoid snakes and find it rewarding and therefore continues to avoid snakes.
Operant Conditioning Strengths
SLT Study
2 Clear Steps
SLT Study (+)
Bandura - Supports SLT, he conducted an experiment whereby a person acted as if they were in pain when a buzzer sounded and pps were given the chance to hear the sound of the buzzer after seeing the person in pain and showed the same response, showing SLT does seem to be an effective method when learning to become fearful of an object
2 Clear Steps
The model encompasses 2 clear steps, highlighting how phobias are learned/maintained - learnt by SLT, classical conditioning and then maintained through operant conditioning.
Operant Conditioning Weaknesses
Ignore Other Factors
Doesn’t Explain Adults
Ignores Other Factors (-)
It ignores other factors that could cause phobias e.g. biological/evolutionary factors.
Doesn’t Explain Adults (-)
SLT explains how phobias are learnt in animals and young children but it isn’t strong explaining how adults have learnt phobias, limiting it to only explaining learning in young children and animals.
