Week 3: Cognitive-Behavioural Perspective Flashcards
List the characteristics of the behavioural approach
- key role of learning and experience
- behaviour is situation specific
- minimal use of theoretical constructs
- parsimonious explanations
Key role of learning and experience
Behaviour develops and changes primarily through learning and experience (accumulation of classical conditioning, operant conditioning, observational learning)
Behaviour is situation specific
Consistency of behaviour depends on the situation in which the behaviour is performed
Minimal use of theoretical constructs
Behavioural theories tend to use relatively few concepts and assumptions
Parsimonious explanations
Remembering and forgetting are explained by the same principle: the presence of appropriate stimuli
List the prominent behaviourists and their theories
- Watson: radical behaviourism
- Pavlov: classical conditioning
- Skinner: operant conditioning
- Bandura: social learning
Pavlov
Interested in the idea of innate personality variables. Viewed this as strong vs. weak cortical excitation and inhibition
Watson
Idea that individuals are more shaped by learning experiences than by inherited or innate temperament
Operant conditioning and personality
Quality of actions are reinforced
What are three of Bandura’s social learning theories?
- observational learning
- reciprocal determinism
- self efficacy
Explicit self reinforcement
Treating yourself to something as a reward
Implicit self reinforcement
Personal feelings of approval or disapproval, often informed by a sociocultural framework
How does observational learning work?
- Observer exposed to the modelling cues
- Observer acquires modelling cues by paying attention and memorising them
- Observer uses modelling cues as a guide for action, which results in imitation or counter imitation
Counter imitation
Avoiding doing something that you have seen punished previously
What were the main takeaways from the bobo doll study?
- Children who saw the doll attacked attacked the doll
- more likely to attack if violence was rewarded
- behaviour inhibited by punishment
- behaviour did not generalise to hitting other children
Live models
Parents, siblings, teachers, friends
Symbolic models
Novels, comics, television, film, video games
What is triadic reciprocal determinism?
Three factors (behaviour, personal variables, and environment) can influence and be influenced by each other
Perceived self efficacy
The expectation that you are capable of learning or performing particular behaviours that will result in desirable outcomes
What are the four sources of self efficacy information?
- Performance accomplishments
- Vicarious experience
- Verbal persuasion
- Emotional arousal
Summarise Julian Rotter
- contemporary of bandura
- more explicitly cognitive focus
- the way that cognitive processes mediate decision making and learning experiences
What are four important constructs that Rotter came up with? P R E B
- psychological situation
- reinforcement value
- expectancy
- behaviour potential
Describe psychological situation
The existing situation from each individual’s perspective
Describe reinforcement value
A person’s preference for a particular outcome or reinforcer
Describe expectancy
Expectations about the chances that a particular behaviour will result in a given reinforcer
Describe behaviour potential
The likelihood that a person will engage in a behaviour - are there any obstructions or drivers?
What is locus of control?
A person’s view of the source of his or her outcomes
What is an internal locus of control?
The belief that outcomes are the result of our own efforts and resources
What is an external locus of control?
The belief that outcomes are due to outside forces over which we have no control
List the correlates of locus of control
- information seeking
- achievement
- dealing with others
- physical health
- psychological adjustment
List Mischel's criteria, or cognitive person variables C E E S S
- competencies
- encoding strategies and personal constructs
- expectancies
- subjective values
- self regulatory systems and plans
What is meant by competencies
Skills developed throughout life
What is meant by encoding strategies and personal constructs
Constructs such as schemas, attitudes, and worldview that shape experiences
What is meant by expectancies
Assumptions regarding how one event will lead to another event, how others will act in response to events, and how behaviours lead to outcomes
What is meant by subjective values
Values that shape outcomes that are sought
What is meant by self regulatory systems and plans
Setting goals and creating and modifying plans to move towards these goals
What does schema theory suggest?
People form mental schematics to organise knowledge and integrate meaning
What is a self complexity?
When aspects of the self are distinct, and each has it’s own place in self image
What is an entity schema?
A trait or ability is seen as an entity that they possess more or less of; is not changeable
What is an incremental schema?
A trait or ability is seen as something that can be grown or modified incrementally through training, experience, and effort
Briefly describe the cognitive behavioural approach
Situational thoughts and actions accumulate and through learning processes result in personality as personal continuity
Describe a top down view of personality
Focused on genes, traits and temperament
Describe a bottom up view of personality
Focussed on the nurture perspective, learning, experiences and growth
Burrhus Skinner
- operant conditioning
- behaviour is primarily determined by consequences
- only the external environment influences behaviour
What are qualities?
General themes in behaviour
List examples of qualities
- effort
- creativity
- concentration
- attentiveness
- speed
List two criticisms of the operant approach
- overly simplistic view of personality and humans
- rigidly deterministic stance
List three contributions of the operant approach
- many practical benefits
- applicable to forensic and org psych
- useful and effective intervention procedures in childhood psych and adult behavioural problems
Performance accomplishments
Wehn we perform competently at a task, our efficacy expectations are strengthened
Vicarious experience
By observing others succeeding at a task, we develop expectations that we might be able to also succeed
Verbal persuasion
Being told by others that we can succeed increases our efficacy expectations
Emotional arousal
People rely on their state of physiological arousal to judge their level of anxiety and efficacy
Treatment and self efficacy
- therapeutic interventions that strengthen self efficacy are effective
- effective treatment enhances clients expectations of efficacy
- efficacy is necessary to generalise mastery to outside a therapeutic setting
Social learning process
The likelihood that a person will engage in a behaviour is determined by reinforcement value and expectancy
What are the functions of a schema
- provides mental shortcut for setting expectations
- easier encoding in memory
- informs assumptions that fill in gaps
What is a self schema
The mental schematic everyone has of themselves
High self complexity
Associated with better functioning
Low self complexity
Self schemas where there are indistinct boundaries between difference aspects of self, which can lead to distress spilling over into different aspects, e.g. from work to home life
Proximity to self
We hold different qualities, roles, ambitions, loved ones etc close to who we are
Dual process models
Idea that we have two processing pathways - one deliberate and one intuitive
Rational, conscious….
Effortful, explicit, intelligence based
Emotional, unconscious…
Automatic, implicit, emotion based
How could internal locus of control be maladaptive?
Blaming themselves for everything even though there are always things we can’t control
How could external locus of control be maladaptive?
Can be maladaptive due to a lack of responsibility
What is the purpose of cognitive person variables
They are the 5 criteria that any adequate personality theory needs to address
