The Behavioural Approach

Question 1

What are the key assumptions of this approach?

Answer 1

• All behaviour is learnt. It is our experiences and interaction with the environment that make us what make us what we are, not our genes.
• Observable behaviour
• Behaviour is the result of stimulus and response.
• Laboratory studies, research methods should be scientific. Empirical methods- focusing on what we can observe and measure. Focus on looking at stimulus and response. Ignoring mental processes such as introspection.
• Behaviour, no matter how complex, can be reduced to a simple stimulus
• Humans learn the same way as animals do, so we can apply research using animals to human behaviour.

Question 2

What is classical conditioning and who’s theory was it?

Answer 2

It’s the idea of learning through association.

Pavlov

Question 3

What was Pavlov’s experiment?

Answer 3

Pavlov’s dog- hungry dog quickly leant to associate the sound of the bell with mealtime.
-During Pavlov’s experiment he decided to ring a bell every time before the dog eats; he deduced that each time the bell rung there was an increase in salivation. Therefore he used classical conditioning as the dog linked had the two stimuli of eating and the bell ringing. This was a new conditioned reflex being made. Pavlov found that for associations to be made, the two stimuli had to be presented close together in time. He called this the law of temporal contiguity. If the time between the conditioned stimulus (bell) and unconditioned stimulus (food) is too long, then learning will not occur.

Question 4

What is the unconditioned stimulus?

Answer 4

Food

Question 5

What is the conditioned stimulus?

Answer 5

Bell

Question 6

what is the neutral stimulus?

Answer 6

Bell

Question 7

What is the unconditioned response?

Answer 7

Salivation at the sight of food

Question 8

What is the conditioned response?

Answer 8

Salivation at the sound of the bell

Question 9

What was Skinners experiment?

Answer 9

• Skinner studied operant conditioning by conducting experiments using animals which he placed in a ‘Skinner Box’.
• He showed how positive reinforcement works by placing a hungry rat in the box and by it pushing a lever food was then dropped into the corner of the box. After the rat had been in the box a few times it had learnt that pressing the lever results in the positive consequence of food being dropped into the box. Positive reinforcement strengthens a behaviour by providing a consequence an individual finds rewarding
• He then showed how negative reinforcement works by placing a rat in his Skinner box and then subjecting it to an unpleasant electric current which caused it some discomfort. As the rat moved about the box it would accidentally knock the lever. Immediately it did so the electric current would be switched off. The rats quickly learned to go straight to the lever after a few times of being put in the box. The consequence of escaping the electric current ensured that they would repeat the action again and again.

Question 10

What are the operant stages of conditioning?

Answer 10

Stimulus 
Response 
Then either 
Positive reinforcement/ Negative reinforcement 
OR
Punishment

Question 11

Define primary reinforcer.

Answer 11

These are stimuli which are naturally reinforcing because they directly satisfy a need.
E.g. food, water. These provide reinforcement by themselves.

Question 12

Define secondary reinforcer.

Answer 12

These are stimuli, which are reinforcing through their association with a primary reinforcer.
I.e. they do not directly satisfy a need but may be the means to do so.
E.g. Money! You cannot eat it or drink it but if you have it you can buy whatever you want. So a secondary reinforcer can be just as powerful a motivator as a primary reinforce. A secondary reinforce can be exchanged for a primary reinforcer. For example, receiving a reward point at school is not reinforcing in itself but can be exchanged for parental praise which is a primary reinforce.