The behaviourist approach

Question 1

What is the learning approach?

Answer 1

Way of understanding behaviour by focusing on how we are products of learning from experience and our environment

Including behaviourism and social learning theory approach

Question 2

Outline and evaluate the behaviourist approach

A01 General outline

Answer 2

Behaviourism suggest that all humans are born with a blank slate

that all behaviour is learnt by our experiences in our environment

No mental processes between S and R- we are products of our environment

The main assumption is that all behaviour is learnt to conditioning specifically operant and classical

Question 3

Outline and evaluate the behaviourist approach

A01 Operant conditioning

Answer 3

Operant conditioning was developed by Skinner and suggest our behaviour is learnt from consequence specifically positive reinforcement negative reinforcement and punishment

As seen with Skinners box and his experiment with rats,

Behaviour is more likely to be repeated if it results in a positive reward
(POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT)

or escapes something unpleasant
(UNPLEASANT)

where punishment will decrease the likelihood of a behaviour being repeated



Question 4

Outline and evaluate the behaviourist approach

A01 classical conditioning

Answer 4

Classical conditioning was developed by Pavlov and suggested all behaviour is learnt from Association

As Pavlov demonstrated with his experiment with dogs classical conditioning is where a new association is made between a neutral stimulus an unconditioned stimulus that are repeatedly paired together

so that the neutral stimulus takes on the properties of the unconditioned stimulus to produce a conditioned reflex response to a condition stimulus

Question 5

Behaviourist approach basic assumptions
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5

Answer 5

All behaviour is learnt from experience in our environment

Only studies behaviour by focusing on what is observable and can be measured -so rejects introspection (private thoughts)
Lab experiments- Use of control of experiments these are objective and scientific

Basic processes that infants behaviour is the same in all species so use animals

All behaviour is learnt to classical and operant conditioning

Question 6

Classical conditioning
Pavlovs research

Explain

Answer 6

Pavlov revealed dogs can be conditioned to salivate to the sound of a bell if the sound was repeatedly sounded at the same time food was given

Gradually dog associated the sound of the bell neutral stimulus with the food unconditioned stimulus after being paired

so the neutral stimulus (bell) takes on the properties of the unconditioned stimulus and now the bell now becomes a conditioned stimulus producing a conditioned response which is salivating to the sound of the bell, even in a absence of food

The dog has now been conditioned to salivate at the sound of the bell via association.

Pavlov also found if a stimulus had characteristics close to the condition stimulus, the association would also be made to the new stimulus

for example a varied bell pitch and tone Stimulus generalisation

Question 7

Classical conditioning
Pavlovs research

Diagram

Answer 7

UCS (FOOD) —> UCR (SALIVATE)

UCS (FOOD) + NS(BELL) —> UCR (SALIVATE)

CS (BELL) —> CR( SALIVATE)

Question 8

Stimulus generalisation

Pavlov

Watson and Rayner little Albert study

Answer 8

Pavlov found if a stimulus has characteristics close to the conditioned stimulus , association would also be made to the new stimulus for example varied bell pitch and tone

Not only was little Albert scared of theWhite rat but also small white fluffy objects e.g. cotton wall and furry coat

Question 9

Pavlov also found several other points about the classical conditioning

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Answer 9

Stimulus generalisation

Pavlov found if a stimulus has characteristics close to the conditioned stimulus , association would also be made to the new stimulus for example varied bell pitch and tone

Stimulus discrimination

if a stimulus is too different from the conditioned stimulus, association will not occur
e.g. little Albert wouldn’t associate with a large brown dog

Timing

Association only occurs if the unconditioned stimulus and neutral stimulus is presented at the same time or around same time

Question 10

Watson and Rayners little albert study 

Answer 10

Every time Albert went to reach for the white fat a steel drum was hit behind his head

UCS (LOUD NOISE) —> UCR (FEAR)

UCS (LOUD NOISE) + NS(WHITE RAT) —> FEAR (UCS)

CS(WHITE RAT) —> CR (FEAR)

Question 11

Operant conditioning skinners box

POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT

NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT

PUNISHMENT

Answer 11

Box with a range of stimuli and highly controlled

POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT:
Rat presses lever, given food pellet
Keeps pressing on lever, behaviour is reinforced - more likely to be repeated

NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT:
Presses lever, floor stops giving electric shock, presses again to stop getting shocked by floor - escapes something unpleasant, behaviour is reinforced - more likely to be repeated.

PUNISHMENT:
Presses lever, lever gives electric shock, stops pressing lever, stops getting shocked
Behaviour is not repeated, less likely to press lever

Question 12

What is operant conditioning?

Answer 12

A form of learning which behaviour is shaped and maintained by its consequences

possible consequences of behaviour include positive reinforcement negative reinforcement and punishment punishment

Question 13

What is positive reinforcement

Answer 13

Behaviour more likely to be repeated as it receives a reward that provides a feeling of satisfaction

Question 14

What is negative enforcement

Answer 14

Behaviour is more likely to be repeated as it avoids something unpleasant

Question 15

What is punishment

Answer 15

Behaviour is less likely to be repeated as it results in an unpleasant consequence

Question 16

How could video game addictions be explain using behaviourist principles

Answer 16

Positive reinforcement by getting more points are moving up a level is the reward acts as a positive reinforcement

Negative reinforcement want to avoid going down on the leaderboard

Punishment was in the game play more see you get better and will lose again again

Question 17

What are the strengths of the research methods used by behaviourist

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Limitation

Answer 17

High control of variables
clear cause and effect relationship between IV and DV established

Standardised procedures
easy to replicate therefore sure if results are reliable

Objective data
all behaviourist experiments measure a behavioural response and that he directly observed

Low generalisability of animals

Question 18

Evaluation of the behaviourist approach
Overall

Answer 18

Limitation - Environmental determinism
Limitation - reductionist
Strength - practical application
Strength - scientific credibility

Question 19

Evaluation of the behaviourist approach

P: One limitation of the behaviourist approach is that it is environmental determinism

Answer 19

E: Behaviourists see all behaviour is determined bye our past experiences and our environment that have been conditioned

E: It pays no attention to mediational processes between stimulus and response and assumes humans make no cognitive decisions - It only pays attention to the stimulus and response

This is a weakness as it provides an incomplete explanation for behaviour and ignores that humans have free will to make their own decisions .

Question 20

Evaluation of the behaviourist approach

P: Another limitation is that the behaviourist approach is reductionist

Answer 20

Behaviourists reduce humans to animals
and assumes that both humans and animals have the same learning mechanisms.

Therefore ignore the importance of mental processes between the stimulus and response in people and how people may play a more active role in their own learning, so not respond the same as rats and pigeons

This is a weakness as we may be unable to generalise findings from animals to humans as humans are more complex

Question 21

Evaluation of the behaviourist approach

A strength of the behaviourist approach is that there is real life application

Answer 21

One strength is that the principles of conditioning I’ve been applied to a broad range of real life behaviours and problems

Systematic desensitisation is based on classical conditioning and used to treat phobias bye eliminating the learned anxious response (CS) associated with an object (CR) and replace it with relaxation

This is a strength as it is usually the most appropriate form of cognitive therapy for a broad range of patients as it requires little effort from them.

Question 22

Evaluation of the behaviourist approach

Another strength of the behaviourist approach is that there is high scientific credibility

Answer 22

The behaviourist approach will only focus on behaviour that is observable and can be measured they therefore used controlled lab experiments to obtain objective results

E: e.g Skinner

They therefore rejects wundts work on introspection - argue it is too subjective and not observable

This is a strength as it allows clear cause and affects to be established between behaviours, allow prediction to be made, increasing its scientific credibility

Question 23

Operant conditioning token economy system

Answer 23

Used in prisons and psychiatric wards rewarding behaviour with tokens - exchange privileges

positive enforcement