The Behaviourist Approach
27 September 2023 11:33
Behaviourism was pioneered by John B Watson. (20th century)
- Dominated first half of the century
- Rejected introspection as the concepts were too vague/ unmeasurable/
- Credited with developing psychology as scientific discipline.
Assumptions of the Behaviourist Approach:
All animals are born with blank slate and all behaviours are learned from interaction with the environment (experiences).
- Not interested in mental processes - only things that can be observed and measured. (rejected Wundt's work)
- Highlighted the importance of control and objectivity.
Classical Conditioning:
Learning through association. - Ivan Pavlov.
Unconditioned stimulus, conditioned stimulus and neutral stimulus.
We learn to associate a previously neutral stimulus, with a stimulus that already produces response (unconditioned
stimulus)
*Bunny experiment.
Operant conditioning:
Learning through consequences - BF Skinner.
Used rats to study this. Skinner's rats
- Positive reinforcement (adding pleasant consequences)
- Negative reinforcement (removing unpleasant consequence)
- Punishment. (adding something unpleasant)
Behaviour that is reinforced (rewarded) will be repeated and learned whereas behaviour that is punished will die out.
Strengths of the Behaviourist Approach:
Scientific credibility:
- The behaviourist approach is based on well controlled research.
- Behaviourists focused on the measurement of observable behaviour within highly controlled lab settings.
- By breaking down the behaviour into basic stimulus response units, all other possible extraneous variable were
removed, allowing cause-and-effect relationships to be established.
Limitation of the Behaviourist Approach:
Research Counterpoint:
- The problem is that behaviourists may have oversimplified the learning process.
- By reducing the behaviour to such simple components, behaviourists may have ignored an important influence on
learning: human thought.
- Other approaches such as social learning theory and the cognitive approach have drawn attention to mental
processes involved in learning and their importanes.
- This suggests that learning is more complex than observable behaviour alone
Real life Application:
- Operant condition forms of the basis of token economy systems that are often used in institutions. They work by
rewarding appropriate behaviour with tokens, which can then be exchanged for rewards e.g. privileges.
- Equally behaviourism has made important contributions to our understanding of mental illness
- For example, many phobias are thought to be the result of earlier unpleasant learning experiences. Consequently, this
understanding has helped psychologists develop therapists, such as systematic desensitisation, that attempt to re -
condition a patient's fear.
Animal studies:
- Using non-human animals in research gives experimenters more control over the process, without demand
characteristics or individual differences influencing findings.
Approaches Page 1
, characteristics or individual differences influencing findings.
- However, many consider using animals in experiments to be unethical as there is less concern about protection from
harm for non-human subjects.
- Furthermore, some argue that finding from animal experiments are not generalisable to human behaviour.
- Therefore Skinner's operant conditioning theory may provide an understanding of rat behaviour, but little about
human behaviour.
Approaches Page 2
, Social learning theory - Albert Bundura
04 October 2023 12:08
Social learning theory:
Pioneered by Albert Ba
ndura: he agreed with behaviourists that much of our behaviour was learned through direct experience.
Reciprocal Determinism:
- Unlike the Behaviourists' deterministic viewpoint, Social learning Theory emphasises a much softer type of determinism.
- Bandura emphasises, what he called
Vicarious reinforcement:
The social learning theory that suggests that behaviour is learned through observation and imitation.
Operant conditioning relies on direct reinforcement/punishment.
SLT (social learning theory)- behaviour is learned through observation and imitation however only if the behaviour is seen to be
rewarded. This is vicarious reinforcement.
Example: if you see someone getting shouted at for an action you would avoid doing the same action. If they are rewarded for the
action you will imitate it.
Mediation processes:
Attention - to what extent was the behaviour noticed.
Retention - how well was the behaviour remembered.
Motor reproduction - how able is the observer to reproduce the behaviour e.g.
Motivation - The will to carry out the behaviour observed.
→ Usually determined by whether it was punished.
Identification:
People don’t imitate just anyone:
- Role models:
▫ Similar characteristics
▫ High status (celebrities)
▫ Attractive
▫ Charismatic
▫ For children - parents or older siblings (same sex)
Role models don't need to be present in the room
The Bobo Study - Bandura and Walters (1961)
- Bandura (1961) recorded the behaviour of young children who watched an adult behave in an aggressive way towards a
Bobo doll. The adult hit the doll with a hammer and shouted abuse at it.
- When these children were later observed playing with various toys, including a Bobo doll, they behaved much more
aggressively towards the doll and the other toys than those who has observed a non -aggressive adult.
Second study
- In a second study Bandura and Walters (1963) showed videos to children where an adult behaved aggressively towards the
bobo doll. One group saw the adult praised for their behaviour, one group saw them punished and one group saw no
consequence.
- When given their own Bobo doll, the first group were most aggressive followed by the third and then the second.
It was shown that if it was a man that showed aggressive behaviour, more boys than girls would also be aggressive.
Strengths of social learning theory:
Recognises cognitive factors unlike behaviourism who ignored them.
- Neither classical nor operant conditioning offer an adequate explanation of learning by themselves.
- Humans and animal rely on the behaviour of others to make judgements about their own actions and when it is appropriate
to perform well.
- Learning would with very laborious and dangerous if we only relied on the effects of our own actions to inform us what to do.
e.g. Have to watch someone being bit by a snake in order to process that snakes are dangerous.
- The recognition of cognitive factors in learning means that SLT provides a more comprehensive account of human learning.
Real life application:
- SLT can explain cultural differences in behaviour.
Approaches Page 3
27 September 2023 11:33
Behaviourism was pioneered by John B Watson. (20th century)
- Dominated first half of the century
- Rejected introspection as the concepts were too vague/ unmeasurable/
- Credited with developing psychology as scientific discipline.
Assumptions of the Behaviourist Approach:
All animals are born with blank slate and all behaviours are learned from interaction with the environment (experiences).
- Not interested in mental processes - only things that can be observed and measured. (rejected Wundt's work)
- Highlighted the importance of control and objectivity.
Classical Conditioning:
Learning through association. - Ivan Pavlov.
Unconditioned stimulus, conditioned stimulus and neutral stimulus.
We learn to associate a previously neutral stimulus, with a stimulus that already produces response (unconditioned
stimulus)
*Bunny experiment.
Operant conditioning:
Learning through consequences - BF Skinner.
Used rats to study this. Skinner's rats
- Positive reinforcement (adding pleasant consequences)
- Negative reinforcement (removing unpleasant consequence)
- Punishment. (adding something unpleasant)
Behaviour that is reinforced (rewarded) will be repeated and learned whereas behaviour that is punished will die out.
Strengths of the Behaviourist Approach:
Scientific credibility:
- The behaviourist approach is based on well controlled research.
- Behaviourists focused on the measurement of observable behaviour within highly controlled lab settings.
- By breaking down the behaviour into basic stimulus response units, all other possible extraneous variable were
removed, allowing cause-and-effect relationships to be established.
Limitation of the Behaviourist Approach:
Research Counterpoint:
- The problem is that behaviourists may have oversimplified the learning process.
- By reducing the behaviour to such simple components, behaviourists may have ignored an important influence on
learning: human thought.
- Other approaches such as social learning theory and the cognitive approach have drawn attention to mental
processes involved in learning and their importanes.
- This suggests that learning is more complex than observable behaviour alone
Real life Application:
- Operant condition forms of the basis of token economy systems that are often used in institutions. They work by
rewarding appropriate behaviour with tokens, which can then be exchanged for rewards e.g. privileges.
- Equally behaviourism has made important contributions to our understanding of mental illness
- For example, many phobias are thought to be the result of earlier unpleasant learning experiences. Consequently, this
understanding has helped psychologists develop therapists, such as systematic desensitisation, that attempt to re -
condition a patient's fear.
Animal studies:
- Using non-human animals in research gives experimenters more control over the process, without demand
characteristics or individual differences influencing findings.
Approaches Page 1
, characteristics or individual differences influencing findings.
- However, many consider using animals in experiments to be unethical as there is less concern about protection from
harm for non-human subjects.
- Furthermore, some argue that finding from animal experiments are not generalisable to human behaviour.
- Therefore Skinner's operant conditioning theory may provide an understanding of rat behaviour, but little about
human behaviour.
Approaches Page 2
, Social learning theory - Albert Bundura
04 October 2023 12:08
Social learning theory:
Pioneered by Albert Ba
ndura: he agreed with behaviourists that much of our behaviour was learned through direct experience.
Reciprocal Determinism:
- Unlike the Behaviourists' deterministic viewpoint, Social learning Theory emphasises a much softer type of determinism.
- Bandura emphasises, what he called
Vicarious reinforcement:
The social learning theory that suggests that behaviour is learned through observation and imitation.
Operant conditioning relies on direct reinforcement/punishment.
SLT (social learning theory)- behaviour is learned through observation and imitation however only if the behaviour is seen to be
rewarded. This is vicarious reinforcement.
Example: if you see someone getting shouted at for an action you would avoid doing the same action. If they are rewarded for the
action you will imitate it.
Mediation processes:
Attention - to what extent was the behaviour noticed.
Retention - how well was the behaviour remembered.
Motor reproduction - how able is the observer to reproduce the behaviour e.g.
Motivation - The will to carry out the behaviour observed.
→ Usually determined by whether it was punished.
Identification:
People don’t imitate just anyone:
- Role models:
▫ Similar characteristics
▫ High status (celebrities)
▫ Attractive
▫ Charismatic
▫ For children - parents or older siblings (same sex)
Role models don't need to be present in the room
The Bobo Study - Bandura and Walters (1961)
- Bandura (1961) recorded the behaviour of young children who watched an adult behave in an aggressive way towards a
Bobo doll. The adult hit the doll with a hammer and shouted abuse at it.
- When these children were later observed playing with various toys, including a Bobo doll, they behaved much more
aggressively towards the doll and the other toys than those who has observed a non -aggressive adult.
Second study
- In a second study Bandura and Walters (1963) showed videos to children where an adult behaved aggressively towards the
bobo doll. One group saw the adult praised for their behaviour, one group saw them punished and one group saw no
consequence.
- When given their own Bobo doll, the first group were most aggressive followed by the third and then the second.
It was shown that if it was a man that showed aggressive behaviour, more boys than girls would also be aggressive.
Strengths of social learning theory:
Recognises cognitive factors unlike behaviourism who ignored them.
- Neither classical nor operant conditioning offer an adequate explanation of learning by themselves.
- Humans and animal rely on the behaviour of others to make judgements about their own actions and when it is appropriate
to perform well.
- Learning would with very laborious and dangerous if we only relied on the effects of our own actions to inform us what to do.
e.g. Have to watch someone being bit by a snake in order to process that snakes are dangerous.
- The recognition of cognitive factors in learning means that SLT provides a more comprehensive account of human learning.
Real life application:
- SLT can explain cultural differences in behaviour.
Approaches Page 3
