The Behaviourist Assumptions Flashcards
Blank slate, Conditioning, Humans and animals learn in similar ways
Name the three behaviourist assumptions
Blank slate, conditioning, humans and animals learn in similar ways
What does ‘blank slate’ mean in Latin?
Tabula rasa
Psychological example for blank slate
Bobo doll experiment
Who conducted the bobo doll experiment?
Bandura
Key terms: blank slate
Manipulated, molded, shaped, environment, taula rasa, experiences, interactions
What is the assumption of blank slate?
Our interactions and experiences with our environment shapes and manipulates our behaviour
Explain the Bobo doll experiment
Children arranged into two groups (experimental and control), the experimental group watched a video of an adult behaving aggressively towards the doll
What sort of violence was the adult inacting on the Bobo doll and give examples
Styalised depictions of violence: throwing it in the air, hitting it with a hammer, sitting on top of it and hitting it
What did the Bobo doll experiment demonstrate about behaviour
The aggressive behaviour was learnt by the observation of the adult and the styalised acts of violence were copied. This shows that our experiences in our environment manipulate and shape our behaviour.
What are the two types of conditioning?
Classical and operant conditioning
Psychological example for classical conditioning
Pavlov’s dogs
Key terms: classical conditioning
Association, conditioned (stimulus and response), unconditioned (stimulus and response), neutral stimulus
What is classical conditioning?
Learning through association
In Pavlov’s dogs, what is the neutral stimulus?
The bell
Initially, in Pavlov’s dogs, what is the unconditioned stimulus?
The food
Initially, in Pavlov’s dogs, what is the unconditioned response?
Salivation
What is the process of classical conditioning?
UCS > UCR
UCS + NS > UCR
CS > CR
Psychological example(s) for operant conditioning
Thorndike’s cat puzzle box and Skinner’s rats
Key terms: operant conditioning
Consequences, positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, punishment
What is operant conditioning?
Learning through consequences
What is positive reinforcement?
Getting a reward for desirable behaviour, encourages the behaviour to continue
What is negative reinforcement?
The removal of an unpleasant experience to increase the likelihood of the desired behaviour being repeated
What is punishment?
Imposes unpleasant consequences to stop of reduce the frequency of an undesired behaviour
What is the positive reinforcement in Thorndike’s cat puzzle box?
The cat getting the food once they have escaped
What is the negative reinforcement in Thorndike’s cat puzzle box?
The cat is no longer trapped in the box as they have escaped
