Week 1 Learning & behavioural psychology/ principles of behaviour analysis (learning theory)

Question 1

What is psychology?

Answer 1

• Study of the human mind & behaviour
• Science, behaviour & mental processes

Question 2

Define what behaviours are

Answer 2

actions that can be directly observed

Question 3

Define ‘mental processes’

Answer 3

Experiences that cannot be observed directly, such as thoughts and feelings.

Question 4

What is the scientific approach to psychology?

Answer 4

The systematic and formalised study of thought and behaviour employing the methods and institutions of empirical science

• painstakingly learned
• built on rigorous methods
• researchers and practitioners
• designed for testable accuracy

Question 5

What if folk psychology?

Answer 5

Our everyday tendency to form intuitive theories about ourselves and those around us, to predict or explain the things they do

• Intuitive & partially innate
• Built upon biases
• Culturally informed & reinforced
• Designed to be ‘useful’, not true

Question 6

What are the Sub disciplines in psychology?

Answer 6

* biopsychology

* Developmental

* Social

* Clinical

* Personality

* Organisational

* Educational

* Health

* Counselling

* Sport

* Forensic

* Conservation

* Neuropsychology

Question 7

Name the 5 contemporary psychology perspectives

Answer 7

• Psychodynamic
• Behaviourist
• Humanistic
• Cognitive
• Evolutionary

Question 8

Psychodynamic Perspective - key figure

Answer 8

Sigmund Freud

Question 9

Psychodynamic Perspective - basic principles

Answer 9

Behavior largely the process of unconscious processes, motivation and early experiences

There are different parts of the mind - the mind is not a unitary entity, but is comprised of functional parts that can sometimes come into conflict with each other (hence, a ‘dynamic’ within the ‘psyche’)

Question 10

Psychodynamic Perspective - metaphor

Answer 10

Consciousness is like the tip of an iceberg; the mind is like a battleground for warring factions

Question 11

Psychodynamic Perspective - methods

Answer 11

Interpretation of verbal discourse. Eg slips of the tongue, dreams, fantasies, actions - case studies (psychoanalysis)

Question 12

Behaviourism - key figure

Answer 12

B. F. Skinner

Question 13

Behaviourism - basic princliples

Answer 13

Behaviour is learned and selected by its consequences

All psychological activity explained by making reference to observable behaviours

Human and animal behaviour can be explained in terms of conditioning, without reference to thoughts or feelings

* Classical Conditioning – all animals with nervous systems can learn to predictively associate stimuli in the environment
* Operant Conditioning – animals adaptively shape their behaviours by increasing frequency of reinforced actions, and reducing frequency of punished actions
* Stimulus Generalisation – learning can extend to new contexts

Question 14

Behaviourism - metaphor

Answer 14

Humans and other animals are like machines; the mind is like a black box

Question 15

Behaviourism - methods

Answer 15

Experimentations with humans and other animals

Question 16

Humanistic perspective - key figure

Answer 16

Carl Rogers

Question 17

Humanistic perspective - basic principles

Answer 17

Behaviours and experiences are shaped by the need to self actualise, to fulfill ones inner potential.

Focuses on the individual, their feelings, experience, and understanding of themselves in order to solve problems.

Question 18

Humanistic perspective - metaphor

Answer 18

Life is like a bottle of milk. The cream alwasy rises to the top. An optimistic view of behaviour - that everyone aims to be the ‘best’ person they can be.

Question 19

Humanistic perspective - methods

Answer 19

Person centres therapeutic approach that emphasises empathy, acceptance and respect for the individual.

Question 20

Cognitivism - key figure

Answer 20

Rene Descartes

Question 21

Cognitivism - basic principles

Answer 21

* The mind is like a computer
* The brain as an information processing device
* Steps of information processing the brain must perform in order to accomplish the various abilities of mental life (object recognition, memory, attention
* Correlates with literal neural circuitry in different regions of the brain

* Behaviour is the product of information processing, storage, transformation and retrieval of data.

* Brain damage offers an insight into how function is regionalised

Question 22

Cognitivism - metaphor

Answer 22

The mind is like a computer, enduring patterns of thought are like software

Question 23

Cognitivism - methods

Answer 23

Experimentation with humans, computer modelling

Question 24

Evolutionary perspective - key figure

Answer 24

Charles Darwin

Question 25

Evolutionary perspective - metaphor

Answer 25

Life is like a race for survial and reproduction

Question 26

Evolutionary perspective - basic principles

Answer 26

Psychological processes reflect evolutionary process of natural selection

Survival of the fittest

Question 27

Evolutionary perspective - methods

Answer 27

Deductions of explanations for traits and behaviours; cross species and cross cultural comparisons, limited experimentation

Question 28

What is health? How is it measured? (tute)

Answer 28

Health, according to the World Health Organization, is “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity “