A2- behaviourist influence- applying to health psychology Flashcards
(16 cards)
Healthy behaviours=
behaviours that promote good physical, mental and emotional well-being of a person.
unhealthy behaviours=
any behaviour that causes harm to a person’s physical, mental and emotional well-being.
The role of cues and health related behaviour=
a cue is a stimulus that influences our behaviour
cues can trigger the initiation of an addictive behaviour/unhealthy behaviour/healthy behaviour.
such as retrieval cues
example (link to unhealthy behaviour)=
when you walk into a cinema you may opt for popcorn and chocolate even though you are not hungry.
example (link to addictive behaviour)=
when you are with a group of university students, you may associate the presence of students with binge drinking.
what is classical conditioning =
learning through association
application to health psychology =
an individual learns to associate a healthy/unhealthy trait our behaviour with a stimulus.
example=
for people wanting more control over their weight they need to be aware of conditioning which pre-exists for them.
for example, if you eat your dinner in the lounge in front of the TV. Each time you sit down to watch TV there is a greater chance of you associating this activity with eating.
To prevent this it is recommended that you find a designated place to eat-like at the dinner table
operant conditioning =
learning through punishment and rewards.
positive reinforcement=
occurs when a behaviour is followed by a pleasant consequence. Such as food, money, or a smile or nice comment
negative reinforcement =
taking away an unpleasant stimulus (like a noise or an uncomfortable feeling) to encourage a desired behaviour
application to health psychology=
If we are rewarded for engaging in certain healthy/unhealthy behaviours, we are reinforced to maintain that behaviour.
For example, if somebody is praised for losing weight after going vegan, she is more likely to maintain that diet as she has been reinforced.
. If we are punished for engaging in certain healthy/unhealthy behaviours, we are less likely to repeat those behaviours.
For example, if somebody is disowned for binge-drinking alcohol they are less likely to further engage in that behaviour.
strength/practical applications=
Token economy
a token economy is a form of behaviour modification designed to increase desirable behaviour and decrease undesirable behaviour with the use of tokens. (operant conditioning)
Individuals receive a token immediately after displaying a desirable behaviour. The Tokens are collected and later exchanged for a meaningful object or privilege.
for example, someone in a rehabilitation centre for alcoholism may receive tokens for staying sober and they can exchange them for extra time in bed, extra TV time ext.
research to support this practical application=
erikisson et al (1975)-
found that using token economy in a drug ward on 52 drug addicts for 17 days was effective in lowering drug intoxication on the ward in comparison to other programs
strength (research supports)=
Strohacker et al (2014-)
reviewed studies into the use of incentives to encourage exercise behaviours. Incentives included cash vouchers ext.
both positive and negative reinforcement increased exercise behaviours for all ages
This suggests that reinforcement is an effective way of encouraging healthy behaviours.
weakness=
application of operant conditioning to healthy behaviour is limited.
This is because rewards for healthy behavioural changes may take a long time to appear. For example, dieting. The rewards for this is weight loss. This is a weak form of reinforcement ( as it takes a long time) which is overwhelmed by competing short term rewards for unhealthy behaviour.
Therefore, operant conditioning may be a less effective way of encouraging healthy behaviour than other approaches.
