the behaviourist approach

Question 1

ao1

Answer 1

concerned with behaviour that can be observed & measured
early behaviourists rejected wundt’s idea of introspection, believinf concepts involved with it are too difficult to measure
instead rely on lab experiments to ensure objectivity & control in research

Question 2

classical conditioning

Answer 2

learning through association
pavlov’s dogs

Question 3

operant conditioning

Answer 3

learning through reinforcement or consequence
skinner, skinners box & rats

Question 4

ao3, strength= based on well controlled research

Answer 4

focus on measurable, observable behaviour within highly controlled lab settings.
breaking behaviour into basic stimulus-response units, all other extraneous variables were removed allowing cause & effect to be established
e.g skinner able to clearly demonstrate how reinforcement influenced animal behaviour
shows scientific credibility

Question 5

ao3, limitation= however this may oversimplify the learning process

Answer 5

by reducing behaviour to such simple components, behaviourists may have ignored an important influence on learning that of human thought.
other approaches such as cog/slt draw attention to the mental processes involved in learning.
suggests learning has more complex than observable behaviour alone, and that private mental processes are also essential

Question 6

ao3, strength= real world behaviour application

Answer 6

principles of conditioning have been applied to real world behaviours and problems e.g operant conditioning is the basis of token economies, successfully used in institutions such as prisons/psychiatric wards.
work by rewarding appropriate behaviour with tokens that can be exchanged for privileges.
increases value of behaviourist approach- widespread application