What is Psychology? + Schools of Thought

Question 1

What is Psychology?

Answer 1

Psychology is the scientific study of the human mind and behaviour: how we think,feel,act and interact individually and in groups.

Question 2

Where do psychology’s origins come from?

Answer 2

Ancient Greece

Question 3

From which subject can we say that psychology arose from?

Answer 3

Philosophy

Question 4

Where can we find psychology in everyday life? Mention some examples.

Answer 4

Social interactions
Mental health centres
Self-help
Performance enhancement
Etc

Question 5

What is the universal symbol for psychology?

Answer 5

The pitchfork.
This is great for shorthand purposes,instead of having to type or spell the word “psychology” we can use its symbol

Question 6

What does the word psychology mean?

Answer 6

The word “psychology” can be split into 2 :Psyche and ology. Ology means :the study of
Psyche means mind or soul
Therefore these 2 words gave us the word psychology which literally means the study of the mind

Question 7

Everyone behaves differentley in life and everyone has diffrent opinions and attitudes about diffrent subjects. Mention and explain 8 factors which influences these things.

Answer 7

1)Stimuli : these are the events that happen in my internal or in my external environment which cause a reaction. For example : I feel hungry so I go and cook something to eat.
2) Genetics : this is the passing of genetic information from the parent to the offspring. For example: studies have shown that alcoholism type 2 is related with genetics
3) Physiological systems: these are all the processes that take place in the body. For example: the secretion of adrenaline as a response to the sympathetic nervous system
4) Cognition: this is the term that we use in psychology to refer to all the mental processes such as : remembering,decision-making,thinking,solving mathematical problems etc.
Biological problems which make people forget are dementia or alzehimers.
5)Social context: this refers to the immeidate physical and social setting in which a person lives in and develops. Furthermore we are referring to the type of people and institutions that the person communicates with and the type of environment that the individual was brought up in and was educated in + the type of culutre
6) Culture: Culture refers to the characteristics of a particular group of people. This can range from its music,cuisine,language,gestures,religion,arts, etc.
7) Previous life experiences (positive or negative) which leave a mark upon the individual: exa: going through a really bad romantic breakup
8) Personal characteristics: These are the personal traits which influences how a person thinks,behaves or feels. ex: being an extrovert or being a pessimistic

Question 8

What is nature in psychology?

Answer 8

Nature refers to an individual’s genetics and biology on an individual’s traits and characteristics with shape them as an individual.

Question 9

What is nurture in psychology?

Answer 9

Nurture refers to environmental influences and experiences that shape an individual’s behaviour and development.

Question 10

What are the 5 goals in psychology?

Answer 10

Case scenario: Client who struggles with social anxiety

Observation : observe the client’s behaviour in social situations + body language ex: stuttering/stammering/ folded arms
Describe: Describe the client’s behaviour in social situations
Explain: give reasons for this type of behaviour in terms of anxiety
Predict: Predict how the client will feel in other similar social situations
Control: change behaviour or mental process by teaching the client new ways of keeping their anxiety

Question 11

What is a theory?

Answer 11

A theory is based upon a hypothesis and backed by evidence. A theory presents a concept or an idea that is testable.

Question 12

In science, a theory is not a guess. What is a theory in science?

Answer 12

It is a fact-based framework for describing a phenomenon

Question 13

And what is a theory in psychology?

Answer 13

It is used to provide a model to better understand human emotions,thoughts and behaviours.

Question 14

Why do we need to study psychological theories?

Answer 14

To gain a better and deeper understanding of human emotions,thoughts and behaviour
To learn more about the progression of thought upon a particular topic
And to gain rich and detailed information

+ Thanks to these psychological theories,nowadays we can much better understand human behaviour.

Question 15

Psychology can be divided into 2 main areas of focus. Mention and explain them.

Answer 15

The academic field and the applied field

The academic field : this field mainly focuses on building upon the pre-existing knowledge of psychology and focuses also on research. Ex: researchers + lecturers at university

The applied field: this field mainly focuses on professionals working in this field. These professionals apply research and psychological theories to try and understand and solve everyday problems. Ex: clinical,counselling or a sport psychologist

Question 16

As psychology moved away from its philosophical roots,more scientific methods were introduced to try and study and understand human behaviour. Mention some scientific methods that were introduced.

Answer 16

Neurological tests/ MRIs (brain scan)
Longitudinal studies (very long study which usually takes years to finish)
Correalational studies
Experiments
Observations
Case-studies (an in depth study about 1 or a few people)

Question 17

Psychology is a very vast area of study. Not everyone studying human behaviour had the same opinions on how human behaviour should be studied and which topics should be given more importance throughout psychology’s history. Therefore this gave rise to 5 schools of thought. Mention them and their founders and the YEAR when they were found.

Answer 17

Structuralism (1879) : Edward B.Titchener and Wilhelm Wundt
Functionalism (1890) William James
Psychoanalysis (1900) Sigmund Freud
Behaviourism (1913) Pavlov,Skinner,Watson
Humanism (1951) Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers

Question 18

What is the difference between a psychologist and a psychiatrist?

Answer 18

A psychologist is a person who first does a bachlor in psychology,then they specialize a Master’s degree in a specific area of psychology (ex:educational or clinal psychology),then they apply for a warrant) + having acquired a relevant ammount of experience. A psychologst CANNOT prescribe medication. However in America they can,in Europe they cannot prescribe. Psychologists deal with less severe cases. Psychologists use the method of talking theraphy.

A psychiatrist is a medical doctor by profession who has specialized in the field of psychiatry. A psychiatrist can prescribe medication. These people deal with much more severe cases.

Question 19

What does the term referral mean?

Answer 19

Let’s say that a client goes to a psychologist with severe anxiety and depression. Since the problem is severe the psychologist can refer them to a psychiatrist and vice-versa.

If a client goes to a psychiatrist but the issue that they are dealing with is less severe and they dont need medication,the psychiatrist can refer them to a psychologist.

Question 20

Why do we need to study the history of psychology?

Answer 20

1)Perspective:seeing ideas in their historical perspective allows us to appreciate modern psychology
2)Deeper Understanding: Greater perspective bring about deeper understanding . Like this we know where psychology’s content came from and why is it important
3)Recognition of trends: What is popular varies with different times in history. A perspective does not fade away because it is wrong but its simply not popular.
4)To gain a supply of new ideas: Getting to learn more about certain important ideas which maybe were not as popular due to the social and cultural times of the past and not because it was a bad idea.
5)To avoid repetition of mistakes: Like in all subjects,mistakes were also committed when studying human behaviour,so by being aware of the mistakes that were committed in psychology, this could save us precious time in the future not to repeat those same mistakes.
6)Curiosity: we want to study the history of psychology just because we find it interesting and want to learn more about it.

Question 21

Mention some Greek philosophers who tried to study aspects of psychology.

Answer 21

Socrates and his student Plato
Aristotle

Question 22

What did these Greek philosophers conlude about certain aspects of psychology?

Answer 22

Socrates and his student Plato believed that the : mind existed after death
they believed that ideas were innate (nature)
And that the mind was separate from the body (dualism)

Aristotle believed that:

the mind is not separate from the body
that ideas grow from experience (nurture)

Question 23

What did Descartes conclude and what was his conclusion called?

Answer 23

His conclusion was called the cartesian Dualism

Descartes worked to answer the question: are the mind and the body the same,or are they different?

His answer was this: the mind and the body are different and related to each other. The mind can influence the body,and the body can influence the mind. Furthermore he said that the body is a machine like structure to be studied and understood,whilst the mind is the source of all information and ideas.

So he believed that all knowledge is innate but in order to gain knowledge one must discover knowledge through experience and learning.

Question 24

Charles Darwin was also a person who influenced the field of pscyhology. Name a theory that Darwin came up with which has influenced psychology.

Answer 24

The natural selection threoy (survival of the fittest)
Darwin claimed that humans adapt their behaviour in order to survive. This caused lots of revolutions specifically in the church.

He concluded that there is a degree of variation amongst species in the environment,and that this variation can be inheritable.

In nature a process of natural selection works by: the best-suited organisms well suited to the enviroment will live,whilst those which are not as adapted are going to be eliminated through this process of natural selection.

Question 25

Structuralism. (1879) By Edward B.Titchener and Wilhelm Wundt This school of thought focused more on identifying the structural elements of the brain. What type of method did Wilhelm Wundt expose his participants to?

Answer 25

The structuralist approach aims at identifying the structures behind psychological experience. Wundt usually got his participants exposed to a stimulus,and he would tell them to ring a bell first when they heard the sound and to ring the bell again whenever they perceived the sound. This made Wundt distinct between sensation and perception. Sensation is : a stimulus' effect on our senses Perception is: our brain's interpretation of the stimulus. Therefore,the processing of the sound took longer than actually hearing the sound,so we can say that sensation and perception are 2 different things but they are related to each other.

Question 26

Edward B.Titchener was more focused on the structural elements of the brain,and tried to analyse and study the building blocks of the mind. Therefore Titchener was the ACTUAL founder of structuralism. What method did Titchener use to try to understand human behaviour ?

Answer 26

He trained his participants in self-reflective introspection. This worked by exposing his participants to a stimulus,and he would tell them to report back the sensations that the stimulus would evoke. For example when he showed them an apple he would expect them to report back that it was round,sweet,red,hard, rather than just describing it as an apple.

Question 27

Why was structuralism criticsized?

Answer 27

Although introspection was a step to understand human behaviour,it was not a good scientific tool because no 2 people could perceive something as exactly the same. Therefore it was too subjective. With the fail of introspection,came the decline of structuralism.

Question 28

Mention some contributions that structuralism had.

Answer 28

1) The birth of psychology as an experimental science 2) Wundt founded the first laboratory to study human behaviour. 3) Introduced introspection,but found that it was not a good scientific tool. 4) Titchener believed that the structure and function of the bind are interdependant. This understanding paved the way t the notion that the cognitive function and the cognitive structure of the mind are related.

Question 29

Functionalism (1890) By William James (Influenced by Darwin) What did Functionalism focus on?

Answer 29

Functionalism mainly focused to understand the functions of our behaviour. Functionalists argued that we know what we do and behave in certain ways, we just need to figure out WHY. Example : why do we feel jealous? why do we laugh? why do we smile?

Question 30

Which theory proposed by Charles Darwin was James influenced by?

Answer 30

The Evolutionary theory. James was focused on the functions of our behaviour in relation to evolution and how this helps people in their lives. (He focused on the functions of our behaviour and how these thoughts,emotions feelings and behaviours increase our chance of survival and how do they contribute to be more successful as a species. (Example how does laughing benefit us a species) (Does jealousy benefit us as a species)

Question 31

What type of methods did the functionalists use?

Answer 31

Introspection and direct observation

Question 32

Why was functionalism criticsized?

Answer 32

Titchener argued that in order to understand the functions of the mind,you need to understand the structure of the mind first. Like the structuralists the functionalists also relied heavily on the method of introspection which was not a good scientific tool This came about the decline of structuralism and functionalism. They both ignored 1 very important factor,the unconscious.

Question 33

Mention some contributions that functionalism had.

Answer 33

1)Functionalism evolved into a new branch of psychology that of evolutionary psychology. Evolutionary psychology focuses on the adaptive behaviour of humans and how these are predisposed by our genetic makeup. It aims to describe how our behaviour helps us to be more successful as humans and procreate fruitfully to ensure the propagation of our species. 2) Functionalism influenced behaviourism and applied psychology

Question 34

What was the evolutionary theory?

Answer 34

This theory describes how organisms change over time as a result of changes in their inherited physical or behavioural traits. These chnages allow the organsim to better adapt to its enviroment,help it survive therefore,more offspring.

Question 35

What did psychoanalysis mainly focus upon?

Answer 35

The importance of the unconscious and its influence on our behaviour

Question 36

Who is the founder of psychoanalysis?

Answer 36

Freud

Question 37

In which era did Freud live in and describe it .

Answer 37

The Victorian era. This was a time during the 19th century where people were expected to behave in morally abiding ways. It was also a patriarchial society in which women were viewed as lesser individuals. (It was a time when there was a great social and moral contradictions) People couldnt express themselves they wanted especially with topics regarding sexuality. Prostitution and child labour Freud challenged this era by his controversial theroies of personality,psychosexuality theory in this era.

Question 38

What were the conditions in mental asylums and hospitals during this time?

Answer 38

Duirng this time people with mental health conditions were treated like animals. The doctor was serving as an experimenter and used to carry out dangerous medical procedures on these patients such as lobotomies. The patiens were treated very very unfairly and suffered abuse. The patiens suffered violence,abuse and various fangerous medical procedures.

Question 39

What condition was freud inerested in?

Answer 39

Hysteria Its apsycholoigcal disorder which affected mainly women. Some symptoms include: paralysis,hallucinations,blindness,loss of senstion and emotional outbursts etc)

Question 40

What type of method was carried out to try and treat this condition?

Answer 40

hypnosis

Question 41

How was it carried out?

Answer 41

By getting the patients to recall unpleasent experiences under hypnosis to try and treat hysteria

Question 42

Mention a case study oh hysteria in psychoanalysis+ and explain it

Answer 42

The case of Anna o

Question 43

Which person did freud collaborate with?

Answer 43

Josef Breuer

Question 44

True or false. Did freud use hypnosis in his patients

Answer 44

True ,because he saw how effectiveit was

Question 45

Why didnt psychoanalysis develop traditionally like the previous schools of thought?

Answer 45

Because psychoanalysis was mainly focused on mental illness and to try and find a cure to genuinely help these types of patients

Question 46

What other technique apart from hypnosis did Freud use to help his patients?

Answer 46

Free association (talking theraphy) Basically he got his patients to lie down on a couch and he would tell them to say whatever comes to mind from moment to moment (free association) He would sit behind to not distract the patients and he made sure to provide a safe and non-judgemental environment. Sessions were held regularly

Question 47

So what excatly is psychoanalysis?

Answer 47

1) it is a comprehensive theory about human nature,motivation,development and experience. 2)And it is a method of treatment for psycholoigclal prblems in living a successful life.

Question 48

What did psychoanalysis give the most importance to?

Answer 48

The unconscious mind. They argued that the majoority of human behaviour was caused by the unconscious and even mental illnesses was also caused by the unconscious. This made that stand out as a school of thought.

Question 49

What type of methodology did Freud use to study human behaviour?

Answer 49

Case studies and clinical cases. Also personal reflection and processing

Question 50

What theory of personality did Freud come up with?

Answer 50

The Structural theory of personality

Question 51

What is a case study? Give an advantage and a disadvantage of this type of research methodology?

Answer 51

It is an in-depth study of one person. Nearly every aspect of the individual is analysed to seek causes for behaviour. Advantage: gives rich and deatiled information Disadvantage: It can be too subjective so no generalisations to the entire population can take place

Question 52

Explain the structural theory of personality

Answer 52

According to Freud our personality is made up of 3 segments: Id Ego Superego Id: we are born with this as the other 2 segments wouldn't have developed yet. The id focuses on the pleasure principle. It wants whatever feels good at that particular moment in time,with not consideration of the reality of the situation. Ex: when a baby is hungry it cries. The id is important because it allows us to get our basic needs met Ego: mediator between the id and the superego. (tries to satisfy both the id and the superego) . Focuses on the reality principle. The ego understands that people have desires and needs and urges,and that sometimes being selfish or impulsive can help us in the long run. Superego: develops by the age of 5 The moral part of us. This develops due to our moral and ethical restraints placed on us by our society and caregivers as we are growing up. It contains the do's and don't of what I should do or shouldn't do. Ex: I shouldnt steal. I shouldnt lie.

Question 53

Define the unconscious

Answer 53

The unconscious is the area of the psyche which consists of memories,emotional conflicts,desires and repressed urges which are not directly within reach to conscsciousness but which have great impacts on our thoughts and actions.

Question 54

What was the topographical theory proposed by Freud?

Answer 54

Freud compared the mind with an iceberg. You might think that an iceberg is a huge structure but much of the structure of thee iceberg is actaully hidden underneath the water. Freud concluded that much of what we are is actually hidden in our unconscious (under the water) and the conscious only makes up a small part of us (above the water) Freud belives that all of your emotions,beliefs,attiudes and past experiences are sealed in the unconscious and make up the majority of human behaviour. Freud believed that everything we are aware of is sealed in our CONSCIOUS mind. Freud concluded that our conscious only makes up a very small part of us,and we are only aware of a small part of us at any given time. Most of what we are is buried and inaccessible .

Question 55

Mention some contributions of psychoanalysis.

Answer 55

1) Introduced the concept of the unconscious and its influence on our behaviour. 2) Introduced the method of talking theraphy. Freud used a techinique called free association whereby he encourgaed his patients to say whatever came into their minds inhibiting their thoughts. 3) The theory of psychoanalysis was innovative and revolutionary whch has withstood the test of time.

Question 56

Mention some limitations of psychoanalysis.

Answer 56

1) These theories were based on Freud's experience with a very select and unique population of adults in the Victorian society. 2) To date little has been accomplished to try and validate these theories. 3) It is very subjective, for example a psychoanalysis will observe a specific phenomenon and interpret it in a particular way and another psychoanalyst will observe the same phenomena and interpret it in a completely different way. 4) Mainly the case studies that Freud studied were people who needed professional help and had symptoms which didnt fall under the norm. So Frued could have developed his theories to describe human behaviour on the unhealthy segment of society and applied that to everyone.

Question 57

What is the preconscious?

Answer 57

This is the part which we can access if prompeted,but not in our active conscious. Ex: what you had for breakfast this morning? (It is still below right below the surface but still buried unless we search for it. (think)

Question 58

What is the non-conscious?

Answer 58

(The water) This is the part which represents everything that I am not fully aware of or have not experienced, and that has not been integrated into our personalities, but it is necessary for our lives. Ex: a person who has missed a few milestones in her life such as socialising,(you have not experienced it yet to the fullest so it is hidden in your non-conscious) because it still is beneficial to your growth and development.

Question 59

Which school of thought was getting closer to the behaviourist approach?

Answer 59

Functionalism. Because the functionalists used the direct observation method to root out causes for behaviour. Simply by observing you can get to know a lot about a person's behaviour.

Question 59

What type of organisms did the behaviourists study as well which was similar to human behaviour, which was leading up to a more objective approach?

Answer 59

Animals

Question 60

What is another factor that contributed to the flourishing of the behaviourist approach?

Answer 60

The need for fast psychological assessment because the war was approaching. Freud's psychoanalytical approach took too long so behaviourism provided a very good and speedy technique for assessment.

Question 61

Who was one of the founders of behaviourism who studied a lot about animal's behaviour and responses?

Answer 61

Pavlov

Question 62

What is an unconditioned reflex?

Answer 62

An unconditioned reflex is caused by an unconditioned stimulus. This occurs naturally in the biological world and every organism is programmed to respond to such stimuli in a similar manner. For example: when someone claps near your face and you blink. Unconditioned response: Blinking Unconditioned stimulus: Clap There are things that organisms dont need to learn,like a dog does not learn how to salivate when they see food.

Question 63

What is a conditioned reflex?

Answer 63

A conditioned reflex is caused by an conditioned stimulus.

Question 64

What is a neutral stimulus?

Answer 64

A neutral stimulus is a stimulus that does not evoke a reaction.

Question 65

Explain salivation in dogs when presented with food vs salivation in dogs when hearing a bell.

Answer 65

Salivation in dogs with food. (Normal) Pavlov concluded that there are some things that a dog does not need to learn. Certain responses happen naturally in the biological world, like salivation in dogs when presented with food. When a dog is presented with food (unconditioned stimulus) the dog will start to salivate (unconditioned reflex) This happens naturally. However, when a dog is presented with a neutral stimulus ex: a bell, the dog can learn to associate the neutral stimulus with the unconditioned stimulus IF presented with food. So the dog will learn to associate between the stimuli. This causes the dog to evoke a conditioned response due to the neutral stimulus becoming the conditioned stimulus, even when the dog is not presented with food.

Question 66

What did John Watson mainly focus on?

Answer 66

Watson didn't agree that behavior could be explained through the method of introspection. He was mainly focused on showing a relationship between stimuli and responses and how behavior is related to environmental events. (related to stimuli) He was also focused on predicting and controlling behavior.

Question 67

According to Watson what is a stimulus and what is a response?

Answer 67

A response: is anything that an organism does: jumping at a sound Stimulus: a general environmental situation or something happening internally in an organism: feeling hungry.

Question 68

What are the 4 types of behavior that Watson came up with and that any behavior that an organism does can be classified under of of these 4 behaviours?

Answer 68

Overt and covert behavior Explicit or Implicit behavior 1)Overt Learned behavior (explicit) : (Visible behaviors which we have learned to do) ex: playing, writing, or reading. 2) Covert Learned behaviour (implicit) Things that happen inside of us because of the way we learn to behave in certain situations. Ex: increased heart rate when you see an injection in the doctor's hand.or butterflies in your stomach when you see your crush ;) 3) Overt UNlearned behavior Behaviors that happen innately and are manifested outside of the body. ex: blinking, shivering, sneezing 4) Covert unlearned behavior: behaviors inside of the body that happen naturally and we have no control over them ex: hormone production and bowel movements

Question 69

True or false. Watson argued that human instincts have are very important when trying to explain human behavior.

Answer 69

False. In reality, Watson argued that instincts are important in human behavior but later on in his career, he concluded that instincts give way to learned behavior and eventually, they do not influence human behavior. ACCORDING TO WATSON ALWAYS

Question 70

Radical environmentalism. What did Watson argue about human behaviour?

Answer 70

Watson argued that experience is the only influence on our human behavior. Watson didn't believe in inheritance He believed mainly in the nurture He also concluded that upon changing experience one can change personality

Question 71

True or false. Watson believed that certain inherited physical characteristics can influence personality.

Answer 71

True

Question 72

Watson also believed that we can inherit certain emotions. Which ones?

Answer 72

fear rage love

Question 73

Watson concluded that these emotions can manifest because of certain stimuli. Watson also concluded that emotions can also be manifested by elicited by other learned stimuli. Mention an experiment that was done to prove this and explain it

Answer 73

The Little Albert experiment This experiment was conducted to show that emotions can be elicited from newly learned stimuli rather than those which are innate. Albert an 11-month-old baby was the sole participant. The experiment consisted of showing Albert a furry white rat. Initially, Albert was not afraid of the rat he showed interest in it and tried to touch it. However when albert tried to touch the rat albert and rayner struck a hammer on a piece of steel scaring Albert. This was repeated for a couple of times until albert started crying when he heard the loud noise A week later they tried the same thing but when albert was presented with the rat he showed hesitation. The steel struck again Eventually albert was terrified of the rat and showed no interest in it,each time he saw the rat he instantly started to cry. Albert also showed fear to other furry white objects such as a fur coat or dog or a rabbit.

Question 74

According to Watson what are the 3 main factors when we study emotions?

Answer 74

1) The stimuli which bring about the emotion 2) The internal response 3)The external response

Question 75

What did Watson and Rayner want to show by the little Albert experiment?

Answer 75

They wanted to show that experience can change to the original stimuli to which we respond emotionally. All adult emotional reactions develop in the same manner that happened in the experiment with Albert, that is we associate certain emotions with certain experiences.

Question 76

What is behavior therapy?

Answer 76

Watson believed that in the same way that he could try to elicit emotional responses with a stimulus, he could do the same by trying to eliminate them. This was the first form of behavior therapy because the experiments that followed afterward focused on trying to change the emotional responses to stimuli.

Question 77

What was Skinner focused on?

Answer 77

The relationship of behaviour and its surroundings rather than why it is happening. However, he was not focused on the environmental stimuli. (behaviour which is elicited by a known stimulus) He was more concerned with OPERANT behaviour. He wasnt focused on mental processing like Watson and pavlov,

Question 78

What is operant behavior?

Answer 78

Operant behavior is behavior that is controlled by its consequences rather than by a stimulus that causes it.

Question 79

According to skinner why is behaviour repeated?

Answer 79

Because the behavior has led to a reinforcer He concluded that by changing reinforcement possibilities you can change behaviour

Question 80

Define positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement

Answer 80

Reinforcements increase behaviour Positive reinforcement: When you reward a behavior with a desirable stimulus the behavior is repeated. ex: giving candy to a child for completing their homework Negative reinforcement: when you take away an unpleasant stimulus to encourage behavior ex: taking medication to remove a headache or taking away the requirement of chores for a child if they complete their homework

Question 81

Define positive punishment and negative punishment

Answer 81

Punishments decrease behaviour Positive punishment: Adding an unpleasant consequence to decrease the likelihood of a behavior happening again. Example: Giving a time-out to a child for misbehaving. Negative punishment: Removing a pleasant stimulus to decrease the likelihood of a behavior happening again. Example: Taking away a teenager's phone privileges for breaking curfew.

Question 82

What is Darwinian influence?

Answer 82

Darwin's ideas about adaptation and natural selection influenced Skinner's understanding of how organisms learn and adapt to their environment through reinforcement and punishment, which are key concepts in operant conditioning. In essence, Skinner's work can be seen as applying Darwinian principles to the study of behavior and learning. According to Skinner, the environment was crucial because it selected behavior. Behaviors according to Skinner are repeated when reinforced. So the behavior becomes part of the organism.

Question 83

What is a token economy?

Answer 83

This was a technique that was used in asylums and psychiatric hospitals. When the patients showcased desirable behaviors these would be reinforced by desirable behaviors. So the tokens would be exchanged for desirable objects ex: cigarettes or watching a football match Ex: completing homework in order to get a reward from a teacher

Question 84

Mention some contributions of behaviorism.

Answer 84

1) They highlighted the importance of nurture's effect on our behavior. 2) The importance given to objectivity, which made their scientific experiments very reliable 3) Behaviourists used scientific methods (they can be credited with introducing the scientific method in psychology) 4) Behaviourist techniques are still used nowadays for example rewarding children and pets and in treatment for example for autistic children and children with phobias or anxiety.

Question 85

Mention some limitations of behaviorism.

Answer 85

1) Behaviourism is deterministic: it does not allow any free will for the individual. (Because the behaviourist approach mainly assumes that behaviour is entirely controlled by the environment only) 2)Behaviourism focuses only on behaviour and the environment and ignores the mental process which is also a crucial part of learning. 3) Due to the very strict scientific methodology used, behaviour may be studied in very artificial conditions that do not reflect real-world contexts very well

Question 86

Humanism was a reaction to psychoanalysis and behaviorism. What is this school of thought known as?

Answer 86

The third force in psychology

Question 87

Mention the founders of humanism

Answer 87

Maslow, rogers, Rollo may

Question 88

Which schools of thought did humanism reject?

Answer 88

Psychoanalysis and Behaviourism because they were both deterministic

Question 89

Humanism concluded that psychoanalysis and behaviorism neglected other important aspects which influenced human behavior. Mention some of them.

Answer 89

Humanism conluced that each individual is UNIQUE. Our need for love and acceptance. The need to reach our full potential

Question 90

What does humanism focus on?

Answer 90

They take into consideration the whole of a person. They also focused on integrating the body and the mind and studied the effects the 2 had on each other. They concluded that physical illnesses can stem from psychological issues and this can lead to psychosomatic illnesses. Focuses on subjectivity:what is it like to be that person? They believe that people always have a choice. (free will) They focus more on the present rather than the past (focus on the here and now)

Question 91

What did Maslow believe about humans?

Answer 91

He viewed the person as a whole He believed that people could contribute towards their growth and development He believed that humans have the ability to become healthy and creative individuals. He also concluded that when people are motivated by certain needs if those needs are met they can become self-actualised.

Question 92

What theory did Maslow come up with?

Answer 92

Maslow'shierarchy of needs

Question 93

Explain this theory

Answer 93

Since Maslow believed that people were motivated by their needs, he developed a theory called the hierarchy of needs Self-actualization Esteem Love and belonging safety physiological According to Maslow,a person's needs cause them to want to develop and grow. These needs cannot be skipped and all of them are important in order to reach self-actualization and their full potential

Question 94

What contributions did Rogers have?

Answer 94

He also believed in communication and not observation. He believed this because to understand a person according to Rogers one needs to communicate to unravel the behavior of the person (from their perspective) (Not from our perspective) He developed client-centered therapy This therapy values individuals as they are, and works towards growth and potential and not the abnormalities of the person.

Question 95

According to Rogers what are people who become self-actualized?

Answer 95

He concluded that people who become self-actualized are self-actualized because they are living based on what they feel is right and not the type of traditions,values or conventions that people or socety places on them.

Question 96

What contributions did humanism propose?

Answer 96

1)View the person as a whole 2) Focus on the strengths and potential of the person and not upon the abnormalities. 3) Believe that people are intrinsically good and proactive. 4)conscious experience 5) Emphasized the importance of te relationship between te client and the theraphist

Question 97

What limitations does humanism have?

Answer 97

1) too subjective 2) does not put froward a structured theory 3) concepts such as self-actualisation are difficult to define and test