Approaches
- Created by: Hannah Brearley - Bayliss
- Created on: 31-01-15 12:01
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- Approaches
- Biological approach
- Behaviour is controlled by the nervous system.
- Nervous system is divided into central and peripheral nervous systems.
- Central nervous system divided into brain and spinal cord.
- Peripheral nervous system divided into autonomic and somatic nervous systems.
- Autonomic divided into sympathetic and parasympathetic.
- Sympathetic- fight or flight response.
- Autonomic divided into sympathetic and parasympathetic.
- Behaviours also controlled by neurotransmitters; e.g: adrenaline; thyroxin; and serotonin.
- Functional level of analysis
- Evolutionary and genetic basis of behaviour.
- Natural selection. Depends on 3 principals (Dowling, 1994):
- Principal of diversity- large variation of same species.
- Principal of interaction- species interact with fitting environment.
- Principal of differential amplification- variant will spread (reproduce).
- Natural selection. Depends on 3 principals (Dowling, 1994):
- Evolutionary and genetic basis of behaviour.
- Sexual selection-
- Males have unlimited sperm so find many female mates and indiscriminate.
- Females have limited eggs so care for offspring to ensure survival.
- Genes-
- mutation cause variation which if successful, will be passed onto the next generation.
- Chromosomes contain 4 bases (A with T and C with G).
- Evaluation
- Strengths
- Scientific
- Good evidence to support.
- Objective measurement.
- Makes sense as we are embodied.
- Findings can be used to help people.
- Limitations
- Deterministic.
- Reductionist.
- Ignores nature.
- Methodological problems with measuring physiology.
- Criticisms of evolutionary theory- not good at predicting what will happen.
- Strengths
- Behaviourist
- Behaviour is learnt through conditioning.
- Classical conditioning
- Pavlov's dog
- Noticed salivation even when not presented with food.
- Conditioned dog to salivate when bell was rung.
- Unconditioned stimulus (Food)-> unconditioned response (salivation).
- Unconditioned stimulus (food) -> conditioned stimulus (bell) -> unconditioned response (salivation).
- Conditioned stimulus (bell) -> conditioned response (salivation).
- Operant conditioning
- B.F Skinner + his rat box.
- Thorndike's Law of Effect: satisfying consequence = behaviour repeated.
- Positive reinforcement- reward for desired behaviour.
- Token economy.
- Negative reinforcement- removal of negative stimulus upon desired behaviour.
- Punishment: introduction of negative stimulus upon undesired behaviour.
- Evaluation:
- Strengths:
- Driving force in development of psychology as a science.
- Use of experimental method.
- Evidence from animal studies.
- Benefits of behaviour therapy.
- Behaviour modification effective with problem behaviour.
- Limitations:
- Deterministic.
- Reductionist.
- Assumption that animal behaviour and learning are the same as human.
- Contradictory evidence to principals of conditioning.
- Problems with behaviour therapy and behaviour modification.
- Strengths:
- Social Learning Theory
- Emphasised observational learning (observing and imitating).
- Emphasised expectancy (behaviour only copied if there is expectancy of reinforcement.
- Cognitive processes involoved:
- Attention- concentrating on model + behaviour.
- Retention- remembering.
- Reproduction.
- Motivation- reinforcement of punishment.
- Reproduction depends on:
- Appropriateness
- Relevance
- Smilarity of model.
- Warmth and friendliness
- Model having power.
- Consistancy of models behaviour.
- The Bobo doll
- Bandura
- 36 boy and 36 girls age 52 months. One control of 24 children.
- Aggressive towards doll- hitting sitting on, throwing and heckling.
- Conditions- F model, F ppts; M model, M ppts; F model M ppts; M model, F ppts.
- Non-aggressive: model played alone with toys, ignoring doll and children.
- Control: child left alone in playroom.
- 20 min observation, divided into 5 sec units, scored on direct imitation, physical and verbal aggression and non- aggression .
- Results
- More aggressive on aggressive conditions.
- Non-aggression lower aggression than control.
- Boys had higher physical aggression scores.
- Higher aggression for aggressive models.
- Evaluation:
- Lab so low ecological validity.
- Film experiment:
- Adult aggressive and was rewarded.
- Aggressive towards doll (+ control).
- Adult aggressive then punished.
- Didn't copy.
- Adult aggressive (control).
- Children asked to copy and all did (* showed difference of behaviour and performance).
- Adult aggressive and was rewarded.
- Bandura
- Evaluation:
- Strengths:
- Adds cognitive processes to behaviourist principals.
- Based on lab experiments.
- Less deterministic and reductionist.
- Explains specific imitated behaviour.
- Explains development of culture and complex behaviours.
- Limitations:
- Does not explains how cognitive processes work.
- Concentrated on external behaviours.
- Lab settings.
- Does not explains how cognitive processes work.
- Strengths:
- Cognitive:
- Focusses on workings of the mind, not physiology of the brain.
- How information is stored in the brain e.g., in categories.
- Knowledge is stored in schemas.
- When an event happens, we draw info from relevant schema.
- Mischel (1973):
- Variables influencing response to a stimulus.
- Competencies
- Encoding- catagories
- Expectancies
- Values
- These variables influence attribution process and behaviour.
- Plans
- Variables influencing response to a stimulus.
- Cognitive development concerned with how individuals learn categories, concepts and schemas.
- Evaluation:
- Strengths:
- Adds cognitive processes to behaviourist ideas.
- Less deterministic.
- Middle in nature-nurture debate.
- Rigorous experimental methods.
- Ideas applied in cognitive-behavioural therapy.
- Limitations:
- Not possible to see cognitive processes in work.
- Not good as explaining why cognitive processes happen as they do.
- Reductionist.
- Too much emphasis on brain as computer.
- Limitations of using experimental methods.
- Strengths:
- Psychodynamic
- Basic assumptions
- Behaviour and personality are determined by unconscious motives.
- Understanding of ourselves are obscured by defence mechanisms.
- Experiences at early age set unconscious mind.
- Best ways to study behaviour is through case study.
- Structure of personality:
- Id- concerned with instant gratification and instinct.
- Superego- moral part, includes conscience. At conflict with id.
- Ego uses defence mechanisms to protect conscious mind from discovering id.
- Psychosexul stages of development
- Oral- 1 year- fixation around the mouth.
- Anal stage-- 3 years- fixation with bowels e.g., toilet training ( can cause conflict).
- Phallic stage- 3-5 years- Oedipus and electra complexes.
- Latency stage- 6- pubery.
- Genital stage- puberty to aduklthood.
- Post Freudians-
- Focusses more ego, development through lifespan and culture society.
- Focusses less on id, psychosexual stages and instincts.
- Erik Erikson-
- Erikson's eight stages of psychosocial development:
- 9th stage: created by wife. Experiencing growing frail and loss of ability leading to gero-transcendence.
- Similarities to Freud:
- E accepted three parts of personality.
- E agreed stages of development are genetically determined.
- Both said that there is a conflict to be resolved at each stage.
- Differences to Freud:
- E placed more emphasis on Freud.
- E spanned development over life span.
- E had coflicts relating to family in early stages but school and peers in later stages ( F just family).
- E used wide range of research methods (e.g., psychobiography of famous historical figures).
- Erikson's eight stages of psychosocial development:
- Evaluation:
- Strengths:
- Detailed theory of human condition.
- stens to individuals talking about experiences.
- use of case study method.
- Thingds are not always as they seem in behaviour.
- Middle position in many debates in sychology.
- Limitations:
- Hypothetical constructs that are not testable.
- Limitations of case study method.
- Deterministic.
- Too much emphasis on conscious.
- Freud's limited sample of patients.
- Strengths:
- Basic assumptions
- Structure of mind:
- Unconscious, conscious and preconscious.
- Humanistic:
- Emphasis on conscious awareness and ability to chose our behaviour.
- Supports free will.
- Ability to chose leads to personal growth.
- We have autonomy.
- We have situated freedome- we are cionstrained in some way.
- Holism- reductionism: concentrates on whole person rather than individual neurones or behaviours.
- Abraham Maslow:
- Peak experiences - occasional experiences characterised by a sense of delight, wholeness, meaningfulness and abundant energy.
- Hierarchy of needs:
- Carl Rogers:
- The 'Fundamental predominance of the subjective'.
- Individuals live in their own subjective world.
- Importance of personal growth:
- Self- is composed of subjective experience and evaluation of others.
- The 'Fundamental predominance of the subjective'.
- Evaluation:
- Strengths:
- Emphasises autonomy.
- Alternative to scientific psychology.
- Places subjective experience and meaning at centre.
- Holistic.
- CCT is supportive.
- Limitations:
- Too positive about human nature.
- Too much emphasis on subjective experience.
- Not scientific.
- Ignores anything outside conscious awareness.
- CCT is limited in whom it can help.
- Strengths:
- Biological approach
- Conditions- F model, F ppts; M model, M ppts; F model M ppts; M model, F ppts.
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