Approaches in Psychology Flashcards
1. Origins of Psychology 2. Learning Approaches 3. The cognitive Approach 4. The Biological Approach (91 cards)
1
Q
What is Psychology?.
A
The scientific study of the mind and its function
2
Q
What is Science?
A
The means of acquiring knowledge through systematic and objective investigation using empirical methods such as observation and experimentation
3
Q
What is Introspection?
A
It is the process of observing and examining one’s own conscious thoughts or emotions
4
Q
Who is Wihlem Wundt?
A
He is known as the “father of Psychology”
5
Q
Why was He referred to as “the father of Psychology”?
A
He proposed the idea of using controlled empirical scientific research techniques to study the mind
6
Q
What was his main contribution in the field of Psychology?
A
He established Psychology as “a separate discipline in it’s own right
7
Q
Outline one criticism of Wundt’s contribution to psychology
A
- His work relied on non-observable responses.
- His approach also failed because of the lack of reliability of his methods. It could not be reliably produced by other researchers in other laboratory
8
Q
Describe Wundt’s role in the development of Psychology
A
- He was known as “the father of Psychology”- moved from philosophical roots to controlled research
- Set up the first Psychological laboratory in Leipzig, Germany in 1870s
- Promoted the use of introspection as a way of studying mental processes
- Introspection is a systematic analysis of one’s own conscious experience of a stimulus stimulus.
- An experience was analysed in terms of its component parts e.g sensations, emotional reactions.
- His work paved the way for later controlled research and the study of mental processes by cognitive psychologists.
9
Q
What is the behaviourist approach?
A
It focuses on understanding behaviour through observable and measurable actions, and environmental influences, rather than internal mental processes like emotions or thoughts
10
Q
What are the key concept in behaviourism?
A
Learning through conditioning (Operant and Classical)
Environmental determinism
Reductionism
Focus on observable behaviors
11
Q
What are some assumptions of the behaviourist approach?
A
- Behaviourists believed that humans were born as a “blank slate” with no traits or predispositions. They argue that all behaviour is learnt through the environment
- Behaviourists focus on observable behaviours rather than internal mental processes. They believe that Psychology should be grounded in empirical observations and thus, only measurable behaviours should be studied.
- Behaviourists assume that behaviour is primarily shaped by environmental factors and experiences. They emphasize the role of the stimulus-response mechanism.
12
Q
What is classical conditioning?
A
Classical conditioning is learning by association.
13
Q
Keywords involved in classical conditioning
A
Unconditioned Stimulus – stimulus in our environment that creates an involuntary response.
Unconditioned response- the response that is caused by the unconditioned stimulus.
Neutral Stimulus- A stimulus that has no effect on us.
Conditioned Stimulus- The stimulus that we are trained to have an involuntary response to.
Conditioned Response- Our involuntary response to the newly conditioned stimulus.
14
Q
What are the key principles involved in classical conditioning? (The experiment he did)
A
The key principle involved in classical conditioning is the idea that a NS (a bell) which has no effect on the dog brings about a NR (not salivating). An UCS (food) automatically triggers an UCR (salivating). After the NS is paired with the UCS, the NS becomes the CS that triggers a learned response(salivating). Over several pairings, the dogs learnt to associate the NS (the sound of a bell) with the UCS (food) which would then trigger a response even in the absence of the CS.
15
Q
Key processes in classical conditioning?
A
- Extinction: The idea that if the CS(the bell) is repeatedly presented without the UCS (the food), the CR(salivating) would gradually weaken and eventually disappear
2.Generalization: The tendency for the stimuli similar to the CS to elicit the CR (different bell tones could trigger salivating)
16
Q
What is Operant conditioning?
A
Operant conditioning is learning by consequences The consequences shape and maintain behaviour, so the behaviour being repeated could increase or decrease depending on the consequence.
17
Q
Key principles involved.
A
Reinforcements is any consequence that increases the likelihood of a behaviour being repeated
Punishment is any consequence that decreases the likelihood of a behaviour being repeated
Schedules of Reinforcements is how different patterns of reinforcement can affect how quickly and strongly a behaviour is learned
18
Q
What are the types of Reinforcements?
A
Positive and Negative
Positive reinforcement is adding a pleasant stimulus and so it increases the likelihood of the behaviour occurring
Negative reinforcement is the removal of an unpleasant stimulus to increase a behaviour
19
Q
Types of punishments
A
Positive and Negative
Positive punishment is the addition of an unpleasant stimulus to decrease the likelihood of the behaviour occurring
Negative Punishment is the removal of a pleasant stimulus to reduce a behaviour
20
Q
What are some strengths of the behaviourist approach?
A
- It focuses on observable behaviours rather than internal mental processes making it a more objective and scientific way of study
- It is effective in treating various psychological disorders such as phobias and addiction
- Behaviourists can predict how individuals will react to certain stimuli based on past experience and this can be used in classrooms and therapy sessions
- Behaviourism has practical applications in various fields like education and therapy which were derived from behaviourist principles like Reinforcements and punishments.
21
Q
What are some limitations of the behaviourist approach?
A
- The behaviorist approach tends to reduce complex human behaviors to simple stimulus-response mechanisms, overlooking the complexity of human emotions and thoughts.
- Many behaviorist studies were conducted on animals, and while these experiments provide insights into learning, they may not always be applicable to more complex human behaviors. Humans have cognitive capacities and emotional experiences that animals do not, making it harder to generalize findings across species.
- The behaviourist approach is environmentally deterministic as they believe behaviour is entirely determined by environmental factors and this neglects free will and cognitive processes.
22
Q
Features of SLT
A
- Vicarious reinforcement- individuals learn to perform or avoid behaviours by observing others actions without having to experience it themselves.
- Identification- behaviour is more likely to be repeated from models with the same characteristics
- Modelling- individuals we observe and emulate are referred to as models
23
Q
What are the four mediational processes in SLT?
A
Attention, Retention, Reproduction and Motivation
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Q
Describe the 4 four mediational processes in SLT
A
Attention- the individual must pay attention to the model by observing their behaviours
Retention- the observed behaviour must be stored in memory and must be able to be retrieved
Reproduction- The belief in one’s physical ability to replicate the observed behaviour
Motivation- The willingness to actually perform the behaviour which is influenced by the consequences (either rewards or punishments)
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Bandura's Research: The Bobo Doll Experiment
Procedure: 72 children were split into three groups. In group 1, the children were shown an adult model who displayed aggressive behaviours towards the Bobo doll. In group 2, the children were shown an adult model who showed no aggression towards the Bobo doll. In group 3, the children were shown no model. The children were then taken to a separate room with the Bobo doll and recorded
Findings: The children who had watched the aggressive adult model displayed similar aggressive behaviour towards the Bobo doll than those who watched the non aggressive adult model.
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How does SLT differ from the behaviourist approach?
1. SLT acknowledges internal mental processes such as thoughts and emotions and also that individuals can learn by observing others and that internal mental states influence learning
2. SLT emphasizes observational learning, where individuals learn by watching others (models) and the consequences of those behaviours, without needing direct experience or reinforcement
3. SLT introduces the concept of vicarious reinforcement which is when individuals learn to perform or avoid behaviours by observing others actions without having to experience it themselves. Behaviourists believe that behaviour is learnt only through direct reinforcements or punishment
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What are the strengths of SLT?
1. Incorporates cognitive processes: This provides a more comprehensive understanding of learning
2. Role of vicarious reinforcement: Explains how individuals can learn behaviours without direct reinforcements or punishments. Due to this, individuals can adopt behaviours based on consequences making SLT applicable to real-world social learning
3. Explains cultural differences: SLT accounts for cultural influences of culture and social norms on behaviour. Individuals learn by observing others within their social and cultural context, SLT explains how people from different cultures learn unique behaviours and values
4. Less deterministic then the behaviourist theory as it acknowledges that humans have thought process and can make active decisions about whether to imitate observed behaviour
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What are the criticism of Bandura's Bobo doll experiment?
1. the research has low ecological validity as the experiment took place in a controlled lab which may not reflect real-life situations where children observe and imitate behaviours
2. The short term effects. the experiment measured the immediate imitation of aggressive behaviours but it didn't assess the long term impacts.
3. Some researchers also believe that the children may have been influenced by demand characteristics. The children may have assumed that they were meant to imitate the adult's behaviour leading to more aggressive behaviours than they would normally exhibit.
4. The study focused specifically on aggression but it doesn't explain other types of behaviour that could be learned through observation like positive social behaviours.
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What is the biological approach?
It is an approach that tries to explain human behavior by examining biology
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What aspects of biology is looked under the biological approach?
Evolution, Genetics, Biological structures( Nervous and endocrine systems)
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What is the evolution theory by Charles Darwin?
It is the belief that individuals with traits that enhance survival and successful reproduction are more likely to pass those desirable characteristics to their offspring.
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What role does genetics play in the biological approach?
1. Genes are passed down from parents to offspring and they include a wide range of traits, including physical characteristics like eye colour or height, and also behavioural tendencies such as personality disorder.
2. Genotype is the genetic makeup that is inherited from their parents. Phenotypes are the observable characteristics that are influenced by genes and the environment.
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What are some strengths of the biological approach?
Scientific basis: The biological approach relies on scientific methods, such as neuroimaging techniques like MRI and PET scans. This empirical approach provides reliable, objective data that can be tested and replicated, enhancing validity of findings.
It also has practical applications in drug therapy as pharmaceutical drugs have been developed to help regulate brain functioning and alter behaviours.
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What are some limitations of the biological approach?
1. It is environmentally deterministic as they believe that our behaviours are solely influenced by our biology.
2. It is also considered to be reductionist as they reduce complex human behaviours to simple biological processes like genes and brain structures
3. it has limited explanations for complex human behaviours like love or moral decision-making which often involve social, cultural and psychological elements.
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What is the cognitive approach?
It is an approach that focuses on internal mental processes and how they influence behavior. It emphasizes how people perceive, think, remember, solve problems, and process information.
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What are schemas?
They are mental frameworks that have basic knowledge about the things, people and the world
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What are the roles of schemas (strengths)?
They help process environmental information without being overwhelmed by sensory information
They also help us predict the future as they are based on previous experiences
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What are some drawbacks of schemas?
1. They influence memory leading to inaccurate recall. This is a problem with EWT as people feel they are remembering information accurately, however their recall has been altered by leading questions
2. Negative schemas can lead to mental health issues as Beck argues that people with depression have faulty schemas which bias their thinking about themselves and others
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What is the computer model?
It is an analogy between the computer CPU and a human's brain with both systems receiving inputs and generating outputs. They both also process information through a sequence of programmed steps
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Weakness of the computer model?
It is machine reductionist as it reduces the complexity of the human brain into a computer which isn't true as human minds are capable of consciousness and emotions
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What is the theoretical model?
They are flowchart representations of the steps of a specific mental process eg The multi store model of memory
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Strength of the theoretical model?
They generate testable hypotheses, allowing each assumption to be systematically and scientifically tested
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What is cognitive neuroscience?
It is an approach that aims to understand human cognition by combining information from behaviour and the brain using FMRI and EEG's to study brain activity
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Emergence of CN
Its emergence is due to the development of brain scanning techniques, PET and FMRI scanners allowing researchers to observe activity in the different areas of the brain
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Strengths of CN
1. It uses scientific methods which are objective to confirm the link between brain structure and mental processes.
2. It uncovers how the brain produces various cognitive functions
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Evaluation of the cognitive approach- Strengths
1. It has practical real world application- understanding schemas has led to cognitive behavioural therapy which helps clients change their negative thought process
2. In the area of EWT, it has helped us to understand how thought processes may lead to inaccuracies of memory, which has led to improvements in police interviewing techniques, reducing the possibility of wrongful conviction.
3. Uses highly controlled experiments so it is considered to be highly scientific
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Weakness of the cognitive approach
1. Due to its highly controlled lab setting, it has low external validity as the tasks involved in the lab study do not mirror daily memory use
2. The use of inferences is highly criticised as they can be mistaken
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What is the Nervous system?
It is a specialised network of cells in the human body and is our primary communication system.
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What is the nervous system divided into?
1. The Central nervous system (CNS) and;
2. The Peripheral nervous system (PNS)
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What is the central nervous system divided into?
The brain and the spinal cord
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What is the function of the brain?
It is the centre of all conscious and unconscious processing
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What is the function of the spinal cord?
It receives and transmits information to and from and connects nerves to the PNS
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What is the function of the PNS?
It transmits messages via neurons to and from the CNS
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What is the PNS divided into?
It is divided into:
1. Somatic nervous system (SNS) and;
2. Autonomic nervous system (ANS)
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What is the function of the Somatic nervous system?
It controls voluntary movement of the skeletal muscles
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What does the SNS contain?
It has sensory neurons which receive information from sensory receptors in the sense organ and sends the information to the CNS
It also has motor neurons send the signal to the muscles to bring about movement.
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What is the function of the Autonomic nervous system?
It is responsible for involuntary control of the body including reflex movement and organ function
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What is the Autonomic nervous system divided into?
Parasympathetic nervous system and;
Sympathetic nervous system
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What is the function of the sympathetic system?
It is referred to as the "flight or fight response". It activates in stress response and releases adrenaline and noradrenaline from the adrenal medulla into the bloodstream.
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What is the effect of adrenaline and noradrenaline on the body?
Both hormones trigger physiological changes in the body such as increased heart rate, increased breathing rate, dilation of pupils and increased sweat production
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What is the function of the Parasympathetic nervous system?
It is referred to as the "rest and digest" response. It returns the body to its resting state by reducing the activities of the body
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How are signals transported WITHIN a neuron?
They are transported **ELECTRICALLY** along the neuron's axon
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How are signals transported BETWEEN neurons?
The signals are transported **CHEMICALLY** in the form of neurotransmitters
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What are neurons?
They are nerve cells that are responsible for sending, receiving and transmitting electrochemical signals throughout the body
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Structure of a neuron
A neuron has:
Dendrites, cell body which includes the nucleus, axon, myelin sheath, node of ranvier, schwann cells, axon terminals
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What is the function of the dendrites?
Dendrites are tree-like structures that receive information from other neurons and transmit electrical signals to the cell body.
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What is the function of the cell body?
It contains the nucleus which contains the genetic material of the cell
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WHat is the function of the axon?
The axon carries electrical signals away from the cell body
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What is the function of the myelin sheath?
It insulates and protects the axon and also helps to speed up transmission of electrical impulse along the axon
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What is the function of the node of ranvier?
It speeds up transmission of the impulse by forcing it to "jump" across the gaps along the axon
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What is the function of the axon terminal?
It sends impulses to the next neuron across a synapse through the release of neurotransmitters
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What is a reflex action?
It is an automatic, involuntary response to a stimulus
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Process of reflex action
A stimulus is detected by sensory receptors in the sense organ and this triggers a sensory neuron which then sends the electrical impulse to a relay neuron in the spinal cord, which is received by a motor neuron carrying the signal to an effector.
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Structure of the sensory neuron
It has long dendrites and short axon
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What is the function of the sensory neuron
It carries nerve impulse from the sensory receptors towards the CNS
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Structure of the relay neuron
They have short dendrites and short axons
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What is the function of the relay neuron?
It carries nerve impulses between neurons, connecting the sensory and motor neuron
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Structure of the motor neuron
It has short dendrites and long axons
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What is the function of the motor neuron?
It carries nerve impulse from the CNS to the effectors (muscles or glands)
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What is a synapse?
It is the gap between two neurons where neurotransmitters are released from a presynaptic neuron to the postsynaptic neuron
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Process of synaptic transmission
1. When an electrical impulse reaches the end of the presynaptic neuron axon terminal, it triggers the release of neurotransmitters that are held within synaptic vesicles.
2. The neurotransmitters then cross the synaptic cleft and bind to receptors on the postsynaptic neuron dendrites
3. The postsynaptic neuron then converts the chemical signals back to electrical signal and the whole process is repeated
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What is summation?
It is when the excitatory and inhibitory action potential is added and an overall action potential determines the likelihood of a neuron firing
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What is excitation?
It is when a neurotransmitter increases the positive charge of the postsynaptic neuron increasing the likelihood that the neuron will fire and pass on the electrical impulse
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What is inhibition?
It is when a neurotransmitter increases the negative charge of the postsynaptic neuron decreasing the likelihood that the neuron will fire
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What is the nervous system?
It is a network of glands that secrete chemical messengers known as hormones
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What are hormones?
They are chemical messengers that are released into the bloodstream and trigger certain reactions in different parts of the body
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What does the thyroid gland produce?
It produces thyroxine which regulates metabolism
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What does the pancreas produce?
It produces insulin which regulates blood glucose levels
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What does the adrenal gland produce
It produces adrenaline which prepares the body for a "fight or flight response"
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What does the pineal gland produce?
It produces melatonin which regulates sleep pattern
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The flight or fight response
1. When a stressor is detected, the symphathetic nervous system is triggered and sends a signal to the adrenal medulla to secrete adrenaline and noradrenaline into the bloodstream. That causes some physiological changes in the body such as increased heart rate, increased breathing rate, increased sweat production and dilation of pupils for better vision.
2. When the stressor passes, the parasympathetic nervous system returns the body back to its rest and digest state and reduces the activity of the body that was increased by the symphathetic nervous system.
