Psychology: Approaches - Behaviourist approach

• What are the assumptions of the Behaviourist approach?

  • All behaviour is learned
  • All behaviour can be unlearned
  • Both abnormal and normal behaviour are learned in the same way
• What are the advantages of the behaviourist approach

  • Scientific credibility

  -Uses controlled methods

  -Lab setting = easier to replicate

  • Real life applications

  -Token economies used in prisons and psych wards
• What are the negatives of the behaviourist approach

  • Ignores processes

  -Focus on stimulus and response

  • Environmental determinism

  -Says all behaviour is caused by experience, ignores free will

  • Ethical issues with animal experiments

  -Starving animals to make them hungry

  -Results also may not apply to humans
• What are the bases of the behaviourist approach?

  • Watson and other theorists rejected introspection for it's subjectivity
  • Behaviourist approach has more control and objectivity
  • Animals replaced humans as experimental subjects
• Classical Conditioning 


  -Involuntary responses and behaviours resulting from experiences + a response = association

  -Supporting study - Pavlovs Dogs (1902)
• Evaluation

  +Scientific credibility

  >controlled methods

  >lab setting = easy to replicate

  +Real life application

  >token economies in prisons and

  psych wards

  -Ignores process

  >focus on stimulus and response

  -Environmental determinism

  >says all behaviour is caused by

  experience, ignores free will and

  biological factors

  -Ethical issues with animal

  experiments

  >starving rats to make them

  hungry

  >may not apply to humans
• Operant conditioning 


  -Voluntary behaviour shaped by consequences

  -Link between behaviour and consequences

  -Supporting study = Skinners box

  -Positive/Negative reinforcement/punishment
• • positive reinforcement = giving something good = chance of behaviour increases
  • negative punishment = taking something bad = chance of behaviour increases
  • positive punishment = giving something bad = chance of behaviour decreases
  • negative punishment = taking something good = chance of behaviour decreases
• Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)


  Causes natural / automatic response
• Unconditioned response (UCR)


  Natural / automatic response
• Neutral stimulus (NS)


  Causes no natural / automatic response
• Conditioned Stimilus


  Learned - causes response
• Conditioned response 


  Learned response
• Little Albert study (1920)


  Goal-

  • Find out if CC could create fear

  Method-

  • Check NS is neutral (fluffy animals) to Albert
  • Check UCS causes UCR (banging pole causes fear) in Albert
  • Bang pole when Albert is in presence of fluffy animals
  • Give fluffy animals to Albert
  • Observe if Albert produces fear response

  Results-

  • Albert showed fear towards fluffy animals, extended to fluffy blankets, etc
  • Classical Conditioning can be used to create fear in humans

  Ethical issues-

  • Human subject used
  • Child was an orphan
  • Possible long term effects
  • No consent given
  • Lack of regulation
• Skinners box 


  • Pigeons made hungry
  • Put in box
  • Each time they peck disk = reward
  • Pigeons learn that pecking disk = reward, so continued
  • Pigeons can learn to respond to a stimulus