What are approaches?
Approaches in psychology explain behaviours differently. The spec includes
these 6 approaches:
- Behaviourism
- Social Learning Theory
- Cognitive
- Biological
- Psychodynamic
- Humanistic
Behaviourism
The behaviourist approach suggests that all children are born as tabulae
rasae (blank slates), and they learn through interactions with their
environments:
Assumptions of the behaviouristic approach:
- Nearly ALL behaviours are learnt
- Animals and humans learn in the same ways
- The mind is irrelevant to science BECAUSE it cannot be observed, and it
CANNOT provide measurable data
- Behaviours are learned through two ways: classical conditioning and
operant conditioning
Classical Conditioning (Pavlov, 1927):
- States that humans learn through associations
Example:
Before association:
Bell (NEUTRAL STIMULUS) —> NO RESPONSE
Food (UNCONDITIONED STIMULUS) —> Salivation (UNCONDITIONED
RESPONSE)
Bell (NEUTRAL STIMULUS) + Food (UNCONDITIONED STIMULUS) —> Salivation
(UNCONDITIONED RESPONSE)
After association:
Bell (CONDITIONED STIMULUS) —> Salivation (CONDITIONED RESPONSE)
The dog has now learned to salivate upon hearing a bell BECAUSE it has
received food in conjunction with hearing the bell.
, Operant Conditioning (Skinner, 1953):
- States that humans learn through reinforcement
Key terms:
Positive reinforcement - Carrying out a behaviour to receive a reward
- Example: Doing chores to receive pocket money.
Negative reinforcement - Carrying out a behaviour to remove an unpleasant
consequence
- Example: Doing your homework to avoid a detention
Punishment - Receiving an unpleasant consequence due to not carrying out
the desired behaviour
- Example: Going to jail because you killed someone
! It is common to confuse negative reinforcement and punishment! Just
remember:
Negative reinforcement: you have CARRIED out a desired behaviour to
REMOVE a consequence
Punishment: YOU ARE SUFFERING THE CONSEQUENCE because YOU
DIDN’T CARRY OUT THE DESIRED BEHAVIOUR
Skinner’s Box
- A rat was placed inside a skinner box
- The rat learned to press the lever in order to receive a reward of food
pellets (POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT)
- The rat also received electric shocks for not pressing the level
(PUNISHMENT) SO the rat learned to press the lever to avoid the electric
shocks (NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT)
Evaluation
STRENGTHS:
1. SCIENTIFIC CREDIBILITY:
The experiments (Pavlov & Skinner) took place under controlled,
lab experiments
2. REAL LIFE APPLICATION:
This behaviourist has use in the real world, such as:
Treating phobias (systematic desensitisation)
LIMITATIONS:
1. ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINISM:
This approach ignores free will
Ignores internal mental processes that are involved in learning
2. REDUCTIONIST:
Reduces behaviour to stimulus-response links & reinforcement,
completely ignores biological/cognitive factors
Approaches in psychology explain behaviours differently. The spec includes
these 6 approaches:
- Behaviourism
- Social Learning Theory
- Cognitive
- Biological
- Psychodynamic
- Humanistic
Behaviourism
The behaviourist approach suggests that all children are born as tabulae
rasae (blank slates), and they learn through interactions with their
environments:
Assumptions of the behaviouristic approach:
- Nearly ALL behaviours are learnt
- Animals and humans learn in the same ways
- The mind is irrelevant to science BECAUSE it cannot be observed, and it
CANNOT provide measurable data
- Behaviours are learned through two ways: classical conditioning and
operant conditioning
Classical Conditioning (Pavlov, 1927):
- States that humans learn through associations
Example:
Before association:
Bell (NEUTRAL STIMULUS) —> NO RESPONSE
Food (UNCONDITIONED STIMULUS) —> Salivation (UNCONDITIONED
RESPONSE)
Bell (NEUTRAL STIMULUS) + Food (UNCONDITIONED STIMULUS) —> Salivation
(UNCONDITIONED RESPONSE)
After association:
Bell (CONDITIONED STIMULUS) —> Salivation (CONDITIONED RESPONSE)
The dog has now learned to salivate upon hearing a bell BECAUSE it has
received food in conjunction with hearing the bell.
, Operant Conditioning (Skinner, 1953):
- States that humans learn through reinforcement
Key terms:
Positive reinforcement - Carrying out a behaviour to receive a reward
- Example: Doing chores to receive pocket money.
Negative reinforcement - Carrying out a behaviour to remove an unpleasant
consequence
- Example: Doing your homework to avoid a detention
Punishment - Receiving an unpleasant consequence due to not carrying out
the desired behaviour
- Example: Going to jail because you killed someone
! It is common to confuse negative reinforcement and punishment! Just
remember:
Negative reinforcement: you have CARRIED out a desired behaviour to
REMOVE a consequence
Punishment: YOU ARE SUFFERING THE CONSEQUENCE because YOU
DIDN’T CARRY OUT THE DESIRED BEHAVIOUR
Skinner’s Box
- A rat was placed inside a skinner box
- The rat learned to press the lever in order to receive a reward of food
pellets (POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT)
- The rat also received electric shocks for not pressing the level
(PUNISHMENT) SO the rat learned to press the lever to avoid the electric
shocks (NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT)
Evaluation
STRENGTHS:
1. SCIENTIFIC CREDIBILITY:
The experiments (Pavlov & Skinner) took place under controlled,
lab experiments
2. REAL LIFE APPLICATION:
This behaviourist has use in the real world, such as:
Treating phobias (systematic desensitisation)
LIMITATIONS:
1. ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINISM:
This approach ignores free will
Ignores internal mental processes that are involved in learning
2. REDUCTIONIST:
Reduces behaviour to stimulus-response links & reinforcement,
completely ignores biological/cognitive factors
