approaches

who theorised social learning theory and when

Albert Bandura in the 1960s

what two approaches in social learning theory a bridge between

behaviourism and the cognitive approach

what is identification with models

children are more likely to imitate the behaviour of models (people they identify with)

what are the types of models

role models live models symbolic models

what are live models

people who are present in our environment (teachers/parents/siblings)

what are symbolic models

people who are present in the media (celebs)

what does the term modelling refer to

child imitating the behaviour they have observed

method of Bandura's Bobo doll experiment (1961)

- he put young children in a room with an adult model (who was either the same or opposite sex as the child) who either: played nicely with some toys played aggressively with the toys (e.g. hitting) - after the children where put in the room with a bobo doll and their behaviour was observed through a two way mirror

what were the findings of the Bobo doll experiment

- the children who watched an aggressive model were more likely to show similar behaviour - boys were more likely to show physical aggression than girls; they showed the same level of verbal aggression - boys were more likely to imitate same sex model

what was the method for the further bobo doll experiment that tested reinforcement

carried out in three conditions: 1) all adults praised for addition (vicarious positive reinforcement) 2) adult told off/punished (vicarious punishment) 3) aggression with no consequence

findings of the further bobo doll experiment testing reinforcement

aggression was displayed by the children in the following order: condition 1,3,2

what are the cognitive factors that intervene between observation and behaviour

- attention (noticing the behaviour) - retention (remembering the behaviour) - motor reproduction ( it has to be physically possible and the child must think they can do it) - motivation (there has to be a reason to want to copy the role model - admiration or if it is seen to be rewarded or punished is important

strengths of social learning theory

- considers the role of cognitive factors in learning such as attention, motivation, retention and motor reproduction - it is based on lab experiments which is scientific because they have the following features: control of EV, standardisation, manipulation of the IV, replicable method

limitations of social learning theory

- it doesn't account for all behaviour e.g. why someone might become a criminal when they aren't associated with criminals or observe criminal behaviour - lab experiments are artificial, there are criticisms of the bobo doll experiment including demand characteristic due to how the study was conducted - there is good evidence that genes predispose us to much of our behaviour therefore a full explanation would need to consider both environment and biology

who created the psychodynamic approach

Sigmund Freud

stages in Freuds mental iceberg

- conscious (the small amount of mental activity we know about e.g. thoughts, perceptions) - preconscious (things we could be aware of is we tried e.g. memories, stored knowledge) - unconscious (things we are unaware of and can't become aware of except through dreams or psychoanalysis e.g. fears, sexual desires, violent motives)

stages and characteristics in Freuds tri-partite theory

- Id, from birth, the pleasure principle, wants immediate satisfaction, Freud describes it as 'bundle of Id', operates in the unconscious - Ego, 1-3 years old, reality principle, balances the need of the Id and Superego, operates mainly in the conscious - Superego, 5 years old, morality principle, develops at the resolution of the Oedipus conflict, the child identifies with their same sex parent and internalises their morals, operates in the conscious and unconscious

what are the defence mechanisms according to Freud

- repression = the mind can force unacceptable thoughts, impulses and feelings into the unconscious mind - denial = some aspect of reality is denied, not acknowledged by the conscious mind - displacement = difficult feelings are displaced onto something else (an easier target)

what are the psychosexual stages according to Freud

0-1 = oral, focus is on pleasure of the mouth (mothers breast is the object of desire), can result in oral receptive (smoking, eating) and oral aggressive (swearing) 1-3 = anal, focus on please of anus (child gains pleasure from withholding and expelling poo), can result in anal retentive (perfectionist) or anal expulsive (messy) 3-5 = phallic, focus on please of the genital areal, can result in phallic personality (narcissistic, recklace) 5-puberty = latency, earlier conflicts are repressed puberty onward = genital, sexual desire becomes conscious alongside the onset puberty, can result in relationship difficulties

techniques to access the unconscious mind used by Freud

dream analysis - tell dream to an analysis hypnosis - deep relaxation Rorschach inkblot test and other 'projective' tests

the oedipus conflict according to Freud

- all young boys experience this - they develop a passionate desire to possess their mother for themselves, see father as a rival: jealous, wish father dead - happens at the phallic stage - they are afraid father will discover their desire for their mother and punish them by removing their prized possession: castration anxiety - their conflict is between their lust for mother and fear of father

electra complex according to Freud

- all young girls experience this - they develop[ a passionate desire for their father, resent mother when they realise that they dont have a penis, believe they were castrated and blame the mother - happen at the phallic stage - they long for a penis: penis envy - they fear losing the mothers love (lower anxiety than for the male) - key conflict is between lust for father and fear of losing mothers love

strengths of the psychodynamic approach

explanatory power: - can explain things other approaches cant. they psychodynamic approach has been hugely influential. The theories have been used to explain gender, abnormal behaviour and personality development Applications: - the approach includes psychoanalysis, dream analysis and hypnotism as therapeutic methods - however theyre unhelpful and harmful for those with sever mental illness like psychosis

limitations of the psychodynamic approach

unstable concepts: - Karl Popper argued it doesnt meet the scientific criteria on falsification. It is not open to empirical testing (and possibly being disproved) - Many of Freuds concepts are said to occur unconsciously making them difficult/impossible to test methodology: - based on case study evidence - not representative, so not generalisable - information is subjectively interpreted to draw conclusions. Not objective, not verifiable, not scientific

who created the humanistic approach and when

Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers in the 1950s

assumptions of the humanistic approach

we all have free will: - humanistic psychology is different from other approaches by claiming that human beings are self-determining and have free will - this doesnt ignore people being affected by external or internal influences, but says we are active agents who have the ability to determine our own development personal growth is a desirable goal for all people Scientific methods are rejected; people are unique and should be studied as such; this is known as a person-centered (idiographic) approach to studying behaviour

what is the order of maslows hierarchy of needs starting from the bottom of the pyramid - give exmples

physiological - breathing, food, water, sex saftey - security of body, of employment, of resources love/belonging - friendship, family esteem - self-esteem, confidence, achievement sef-actualisation - morality, creativity, spontaneity

what are the deficiency needs in Maslows hierarchy of needs

physiological, saftey, love/belonging, esteem

what is the growth need in Maslow's hierarchy of needs

self-actualisation

Maslows beliefs about the hierarchy of needs

- humans are motivated by needs beyond those of basic biological survival - fundamental to human nature is the desire to grow and develop and achieve our full potential (self-actualisation) - all four lower levels of the hierarchy (deficiency needs) must be met before an individual can work towards self-actualisation (growth need) - Maslow's theory emphasises uniquely human motivational factors - he believed that higher level needs are a later evolutionary development of the human species

what did Rogers believe

- humans have a basic need to feel nurtured and valued by significant people in their lives - if this is given freely, without conditions (unconditional positive regard), then people will develop a healthy sense of self-worth - children who receive negative regard (criticism and blame) or conditional positive regard develop low self-esteem

Rogers beliefs on congruence and incongruence

- a healthy sense of wellbeing is established is an individual maintains a reasonable consistency between their ideal self (who they want to be) and perceived self (who they believe they are) = known as congruence - the greater the gap the greater the incongruence - incongruence can lead to low self-worth and maladjustment

what is rogers client based theory

Rogers believed that the therapist should provide genuineness, empathy and unconditional positive regard that the client may have been missing in childhood the client is encouraged to develop positive self regard and reduce the gap between perceived and ideal self (achieve congruence)

strengths of the humanistic approach

emphasises choice (free will and responsibility) - largly ignored by other approaches: - empowers individuals and gives them hope that they can improve (having internal locus of control linked to higher confidence and mental well being) - could also lead to self blame holistic - studies the whole person in their wider social context: - it gives a fuller picture so may be more valid applications: it has contributed to psychological theories and has been shown to be effective in the treatment of some disorders such as depression and stress - client centred therapy - educational and occupational psychology

limitations of the humanistic approach

not scientific: - validity is unknown - cant draw up general rules and laws about behaviour - cant predict or prevent behaviour - less useful cultural bias: - developed in an individualist society, only really applies to that type of society. Collectivist societies wouldnt emphasis perfonal growth of self actualisation, so this cant be universally applied

assumptions of the cognitive approach

- it is important to study the events within a person to understand behaviour - internal mental processes can be studied in an objective way and insight into mental processes may be inferred from behaviour - models can be used to illustrate and explain internal mental processes

the role of inference

- drawing conclusions based on evidence - involves assumptions (educated guess) about what is happening - mental processes cant be directly observed

what are the models in the cognitive approach and what are the uses

- theoretical models = simplified representations based on current research - computer models = uses computer analogies: e.g. imputing, coding, retrieval

what is the limitations with models

- cannot reduce the human mind to a machine - we have emotions and motivations that change our behaviour and thought processes

selective attention explanation

we can see and hear many things in our environment, we have to make a choice about what to focus on due to limited capacity. so we only remember something when we pay attention

schema definition

an organised package of information that stores our knowledge about the world

what are schemas used for

- make sense of what we encounter - predict what is going to happen - behave appropriately

what does memory is reconstructive mean

- memories aren't recorded and stored exactly as a snapshot of an event, we automatically unconsciously fill in gaps in our memory (using stereotypes and expectations from our schemas) -this produces distorted memories, which may have more to do with previous experiences then what actually happened - we accept these memories as real - over time memories can change - whenever we recall them they can be reconstructed and then saved again

strengths of the cognitive approach

scientific: - based of controlled and replicable research - this means it has credible scientific basis theoretical and computer models helps us understand unobservable mental processes: - they are practical and easy to understand, some have led to AI development - practical application therapies are based on the findings of the approach: - CBT is the most widely used therapy, helps people so improves wellbeing has been successfully integrated into other approaches: - biopsychology and cognitive neuroscience have been integrated with cognitive psychology to enhance our understanding of behaviour

limitations of the cognitive approach

'man as machine' ignores emotional, motivational and social factors in human behaviour: - reduces validity of the approach as it ignores features of human behaviour and mental processes still requires inference as we cant observe the process: - reduces validity of findings as there is less evidence the emphasis on lab experiments means findings may not reflect everyday life: - low ecological validity means the approach tells us little about internal mental processes about everyday life

what are the two behavioural processes in the behavioural approach

classical conditioning (Pavlov and Watson) operant conditioning (Skinner)

what is classical conditioning

- to mold someone or something to a certain way of behaving or thinking

key terms in classical conditioning

unconditioned stimulus unconditioned response neutral stimulus neutral response conditioned stimulus conditioned response

what is temporal contiguity

Pavlov found that the two stimuli need to be paired closely in time; if they aren't then conditioning wont occur

what is operant conditioning

- learning through reinforcement (reward) or punishment - reinforcement comes in two forms: positive and negative - rewarded behaviour is more likely to be repeated punished behaviour isnt

strengths of the behaviourist approach

scientific, based of carefully controlled replicable research: - reliable as it can be repeated easily. Control of extrantious variables improves validity and supports psychology of science operant conditioning is used in 'token economies': - useful application that can improve the running of prisons, schools and hospitals as desirable behaviour is encouraged clsssical conditioning can be used to treat phobias: - useful application which improves human wellbeing as it has no side effects so is therefore preferable to drug therapy

limitations of the behaviourist approach

it takes a mechanistic view of behaviour: - ignores much of what it is to be human, so lacks validity believes behaviour is caused by the environment and we dont have free will: - ignores our experiences as humans, we believe we have free will - courts operate as though free will exists, holding people accountable for their actions - not a fully appropriate explanation for human behaviour much of the research was carried out on animals which were highly stressed in the lab conditions: - cant generalise the findings to humans - the animals behaviour may not represent real life due to hte stressful conditions

assumptions of the biological approach

- everything psychological was first biological - all thoughts, feelings and behaviours ultimately have a biological cause - studies how bilogical structures and processes withing the body impact on behaviour, such as genes, neurochemistry and the nervous system

what does DNA do

carries the code that determines the characteristics of every living thing. Genes are short sections of DNA found on chromosomes

description of genes

inherited from our parents, we inherit pairs of genes with one of each pair coming from each parent. Each of these genes in a pair is known as an allele

what are the two ways of approaching research into the genetic basis of behaviour

- we can study our genes (genotype) by looking at our genes under a microscope - we can look at family relationships and look at characteristics (phenotype)

what are twins that share 100% of DNA called

monozygotic twins

what are twins that share 50% of DNA called

dizygotic twins

what is the difference between what twin studies, family studies and adoption studies look at

- twin studies: compare concordance rates between monozygotic and dizygotic twins - family studies: looks at concordance rates between different family members - adoption studies: compares concordance rates between adopted family and biological family

strength of the biological approach

uses scientific methods such as machines in studies: - machines are reliable and objective - results arent affected by researcher or culture bias - meaning the studies can be said to be valid and reliable useful application of treatment: - for example the development of psychoactive drugs - some drugs have revolutionised the treatment of mental illness and improved quality of life for many sufferers

limitations of the biological approach

many studies are quasi - the IV is part of the person so cant be manipulated: - limits the usefulness of results as we cant be sure of cause and effect - however many of these studies would be unethical/ impossible to do without using the quasi method and findings have helped develop hypothesis for future research

what are the measures of central tendency

mean, median and mode

what are measures of dispersion

range and standard deviation

when did introspection and the emergence of psychology as a science happen

1879

what did Wihelm Wundt do in 1873

published his first model on principles of physiological psychology

what is Wundt considered

the father of psychology

what did Wundt use introspection for

to investigate the human mind as participants were asked to reflect on their cognitive processes and describe them

what is structuralism and how did Wundt use it

he broke down the human mind by breaking down consciousness into basic human elements

weaknesses of introspection

relies on non-observable experiences: - we are unable to comment on unconscious factors produced subjective data - it becomes difficult to establish general principles

strength of introspection

uses features of the scientific enquiry: - standardised instructions, standardiesd conditions and the procedures were replicable

order of the scientific method

1) ask a question 2) state a hypothesis 3) conduct an experiment 4) analyze the result 5) make a conclusionn