Behaviourist Approach
Assumption one: Humans are born Tabula Rasa (blank slate)
Behaviour not innate
Nurture dependent
Environmental determinism e.g dentist= pain
Assumption two: Behaviour is learnt through conditioning
Leant through environment
Classical conditioning= learn through association
Pavlov’s dog: - Unconditioned stimulus (UCS)
-Unconditioned response (USR)
- Neutral stimulus (NS)
- Conditioned response (CR)
- Conditioned stimulus (CS)
Little Albert (Watson and Rayner)
Operant conditioning= learnt through consequences
Skinner’s rats: -Positive reinforcement= desirable given so behaviours not repeated
-Negative reinforcement= Undesirable taken away, so behaviours repeated
-Positive punishment= undesirable given so behaviours not repeated
- Negative punishment= desirable taken away, so behaviour not repeated
Assumption three: Humans and animals learn in similar ways
No difference in way humans and animals learn
Product of environment
Determined by stimulus – response relationship
Humans just more complex
Classical conditioning of systematic desensitisation to treat phobias
Shape behaviour through token economy e.g schools
Systematic desensitisation
“Unlearn” learnt behaviour
Developed 1950s by Wolpe to treat phobias on the idea of positive reinforcement
Stages are as followed:
1- Be in a relaxed state
2- Create desensitisation hierarchy
3- Once anxiety free at this state, progress e.g from pictures of spiders to holding
one
4- No phobia left
In Vivo= confront fear (vivo means to be in the presence of something)
Assumption one: Humans are born Tabula Rasa (blank slate)
Behaviour not innate
Nurture dependent
Environmental determinism e.g dentist= pain
Assumption two: Behaviour is learnt through conditioning
Leant through environment
Classical conditioning= learn through association
Pavlov’s dog: - Unconditioned stimulus (UCS)
-Unconditioned response (USR)
- Neutral stimulus (NS)
- Conditioned response (CR)
- Conditioned stimulus (CS)
Little Albert (Watson and Rayner)
Operant conditioning= learnt through consequences
Skinner’s rats: -Positive reinforcement= desirable given so behaviours not repeated
-Negative reinforcement= Undesirable taken away, so behaviours repeated
-Positive punishment= undesirable given so behaviours not repeated
- Negative punishment= desirable taken away, so behaviour not repeated
Assumption three: Humans and animals learn in similar ways
No difference in way humans and animals learn
Product of environment
Determined by stimulus – response relationship
Humans just more complex
Classical conditioning of systematic desensitisation to treat phobias
Shape behaviour through token economy e.g schools
Systematic desensitisation
“Unlearn” learnt behaviour
Developed 1950s by Wolpe to treat phobias on the idea of positive reinforcement
Stages are as followed:
1- Be in a relaxed state
2- Create desensitisation hierarchy
3- Once anxiety free at this state, progress e.g from pictures of spiders to holding
one
4- No phobia left
In Vivo= confront fear (vivo means to be in the presence of something)
