Approaches-paper 2 Flashcards
(51 cards)
What was Wundt’s impact on psychology?
- Known as the ‘father of psychology’
- Opened the first psychology lab in Germany in 1879
- This marked the beginning of scientific psychology,separating it from its philosophical roots
- Introduced structuralism and introspection
What is introspection?
Analysis of the nature of human consciousness under controlled conditions. Wundt’s aim was to try and develop theories about mental processes and to study thoughts, feelings and sensations in the conscious mind in response to a stimulus.
What is structuralism?
Isolating the structure of consciousness, the stimulus in all Wundts studies were always in the same order and the same instructions were given to all participants.
What’s a strength of Wundt’s research?
- Wundt uses scientific methods and well controlled laboratory experiments and all procedures and instructions were standardised.
What’s a strength of Wundt’s research?
- Wundt uses scientific methods and well controlled laboratory experiments and all procedures and instructions were standardised.
What’s a weakness of Wundt’s research?
- Subjective data, not all approaches use objective methods. Scientific approaches to human thought and experiences may not always be possible.
What are the assumptions of the behaviourist approach?
- Only interested in studying observable and measurable behaviour
- Not concerned with studying mental processes of the mind
- Maintain controlled, objective research relying on laboratory studies
- All behaviour is learned
- Babies are born a ‘blank slate’
What is classical conditioning?
Classical conditioning is learning through association, Pavlov showed how dogs could be conditioned to salivate to the sound of a bell, if that sounds was repeated when given food.
What is operant conditioning?
Learning is an active process shaped by consequences and reinforcement.
- Positive reinforcement; receiving a reward for certain behaviours
- Negative reinforcement; avoiding something unpleasant, the outcome is a positive experience.
-Punishment; an unpleasant consequence of behaviour.
What are strengths of the behaviourist approach?
- Real world application; operant conditioning is the basis of token economy used to reward good behaviour in prisons and psychiatric hospitals. Classical conditioning has been applied to treatment for phobias.
- Scientific credibility; brings language and methods of natural sciences into psychology by focusing on measuring observable behaviour within highly controlled lab settings. Also emphasises importance of objectivity and replication.
What are weaknesses of the behaviourist approach?
- Environmental determinism; all behaviour is determined by past experiences that have been conditioned. Skinner suggests everything we do is a sum of our conditioning history and doesn’t believe in free will.
- Ethical and practical issues on animal studies; these studies allow us to maintain a high degree of control, however these raise a lot of ethical issues due to the levels of stress these put the animals under.
What is vicarious reinforcement?
Observing behaviours and imitating the behaviour if the others are rewarded. (Reinforced)
Explain the role of the mediation processes.
Mental (cognitive) factors mediate in learning processes to determine whether a new response is acquired:
- Attention: the extent we notice certain behaviours.
- Retention: how well behaviour is remembered.
- Motor reproduction: Assessing our ability to perform the behaviour.
- Motivation: the will to perform the behaviour, often determined by whether the behaviour is punished or rewarded.
Describe identification according to social learning theory.
People are likely to imitate people they identify with, called role models.
This is called modelling.
Describe Bandura’s (1961) study.
2 groups of children had their behaviour observed. 1 group had to watch an adult behave aggressively towards a bobo doll, 1 group did not. Bandura found the children who watched the adult act aggressively were also very aggressive. Compared to the other group who did not behave in an aggressive manner.
Describe Bandura and Walter’s (1963) study.
3 groups of children were shown a video of an adult being aggressive to a bobo doll, group 1 were praised, 2nd group punished and 3rd group had no consequence (control group). When given their own bobo doll to play with the 1st group showed much more aggression followed by 3rd then the 2nd.
What are limitations to social learning theory?
Underestimates the influence of biological factors- One consistent finding of the bobo doll experiments was that boys were more aggressive than girls regardless of the experimental situation.
This can be explained by hormonal factors, such as difference in levels of testosterone which is linked to increased aggressive behaviour.
Over-reliance on evidence from lab studies- Many of bandora’s ideas were developed through observation of children in lab settings. This has been criticised for their artificial nature and that the participants may be reacting to demand characteristics.
What are strengths of social learning theory?
Explains cultural differences- SLT is able to explain how children learning from individuals from different cultural norms and differences, this can also explain how these are transmitted through particular societies.
Less determinist than behaviourist approach- Bandura emphasises reciprocal determinism, meaning not only are we influenced by our environment, we also exert influence upon it, through behaviours we choose to perform. This suggests we have free will in the way we act.
What are the assumption of the cognitive approach?
- Internal mental processes should be studied scientifically.
- Processes should be studied indirectly by making inferences.
What is computer reductionism?
The cognitive approach uses computer models, suggesting the way information is processed, coded and stored is similar to a computer.
Describe the role of a schema according to the cognitive approach.
Schema is a mental framework of ideas and information developed through experience, which allows us to interpret incoming information received by the cognitive system.
Babies are born with simple motor schemas for innate behaviours which become more detailed and sophisticated as we get older.
Why are schemas important?
They enable us to process lots of information quickly and prevents us from being overwhelmed.
Describe what cognitive neuroscience is.
The scientific study of the influence of brain structures on mental processes.
What is cognitive neuroscience useful for?
Scanning techniques have proven useful in establishing neurological basis for some mental disorders, for example the link between the parahippocampalgyrus and OCD.
The focus of cognitive neuroscience has expanded to include computer generated models designed to ‘read’ the brain, which has lead to the mapping techniques known as ‘brain fingerprinting’.
