The behaviourist approach

Question 1

classical conditioning

Answer 1

learning by association
-when two stimuli are repeatedly paired together (an unconditioned stimulus) and a new neutral stimulus. The neutral stimulus eventually produces the same respond that was first produced by the unlearned stimulus alone

Question 2

operant conditioning

Answer 2

a form of learning in which behaviour is shaped and maintained by its consequences.
Possible consequences of behaviour include positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement or punishment

Question 3

reinforcement

Answer 3

a consequence of behaviour that increases the likelihood of that behaviour being repeated, can be negative or positive

Question 4

Pavlovs research

Answer 4

• classical conditioning
• revealed that dogs could be conditioned to salivate to the sound of a bell if that sound was repeatedly presented at the same time as they were given food
• pavlovs dogs learned to associate the sound of a bell (stimulus) with the food (another stimulus) and would produce the salivation respond every time
• showed how a neutral stimulus in this case a bell can come to elicit a new learned respond (conditioned response) through association

Question 5

Skinners theory

Answer 5

• (1953)- suggested learning is an active process whereby husked and animals operate on their environment
• positive reinforcement- receiving a reward when a certain behaviour is performed
• negative reinforcement- when an animal or human avoids something unpleasant
• punishment- an unpleasant consequence of behaviour

Question 6

Skinners research

Answer 6

repeated Thorndikes experiment on cats

• put rats in a box with a lever, every time the rat activated the lever a food pellet came out, the rats continued this behaviour (positive reinforcement)
• also showed how they could be conditioned to perform the same behaviour to avoid an unpleasant stimulus

Question 7

law of effect

Answer 7

any behaviour that is followed by pleasant consequences is likely to be repeated and an behaviour followed by unpleasant consequences is likely to be stopped

Question 8

scientific credibility

Answer 8

• objectivity and replication helped create psychology as a science
• highly controlled lab settings

Question 9

real life application

Answer 9

• operant conditioning is the basis of token economy systems in institutions such as prison
• classical conditioning has been applied to the treatment of phobias

Question 10

mechanist view of behaviour

Answer 10

suggests people play a much more active role in their own learning compared to animals

Question 11

environmental determinism

Answer 11

behaviourist approach sees all behaviour as determined by past experiences that have been conditioned
-skinners suggested everything we do is due to our reinforcement history- ignores free will

Question 12

ethical and practical issues

Answer 12

although the experiment was highly controlled, the animals involved were exposed to stressful and aversive conditions which may have affected how they reacted