The Behaviorist Approach Flashcards
What is the main focus of the behavioural approach?
The behavioral approach is only interested in studying behaviour that can be observed and measured.
What is the behavioural approach built on?
- The use of lab experiments
Behaviourists tried to maintain more control in their research so relied on lab experiments
Animals in research?
Behaviourists support the use of animals in research, behaviourists suggested that learning is the same in all species so animals can replace humans in experiments
state three key features of the behavioral approach?
- Humans are born as a blank slate
- all behaviour is learned from experiences in their environment
- All behaviour is learned through association or reinforcement
What is classical conditioning?
-Classical conditioning involves learning through association
When a neutral stimulus is paired with an unconditioned stimulus the neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus
How did Pavlov demonstrate classical conditioning?
- Pavlov conducted an experiment using dogs (the use of animals in the behaviorist approach.)
- He showed the dogs food and rang a bell at the same time, after some time the dog would associate the bell with the food.
- Eventually just ringing the bell made the dog salivate. The food is the unconditioned stimulus, the salivation is the unconditioned response.
- When the unconditioned stimulus (food) is paired with something that was neutral (bell), the bell becomes the conditioned stimulus.
what is operant conditioning?
Operant conditioning involves learning through the consequences of our actions. There are three types of consequences;
-Positive reinforcement
-Negative reinforcement
-Punishment
What is positive reinforcement?
Positive reinforcement is receiving a reward when a behaviour is preformed, this increases the chance the behaviour will be repeated
What is negative reinforcement?
Negative reinforcement is when someone/something produces behaviour that avoids something unpleasant, this increases the chance the behaviour will be repeated
What is punishment?
Punishment is an unpleasant consequence of behaviour, this decrease the chance the behaviour will be repeated
what did Skinner do?
Skinner conducted experiments with rats in specially designed boxes.
The box had a lever, a bowl and an enclosed chamber, if the lever was pulled the camber opened and food came out. The rat noticed that every time it hit the lever food came out.
In other variations of the Skinner box the rat had to preform the same task to avoid an unpleasant stimulus (shock)
what did skinner find?
Skinner found that when rewarded (positive reinforcement) the behaviour would continue.
The behaviour would also continue to avoid a negative stimulus (negative reinforcement.)
Strengths of the behavioural approach
-Gave scientific credibility as it focused on measurements of behaviour in labs, these studies emphasized the importance of replication so has a scientific status
-Principles of conditioning have real life application, operant conditioning is used in the token economy system in places like prisons.
Limitations of the behavioural approach
- Sees behaviour as determined by past experiences that have been conditioned and ignore free will shaping behaviour.
-Skinner’s experiments has ethical issues (shocking the rats.)
