Behaviourist approach

• Identify three basic assumptions of the behaviourist approach.


  Only observable behaviour that can be objectively measured should be studied.

  Humans and animals learn in the same way so research can be conducted on animals and generalised to humans.

  Behaviour is learned from the environment and can be reduced to stimulus-response learning.

  Behaviour is learned through association (classical conditioning) or consequences (operant conditioning).
• Define classical conditioning.


  Classical conditioning refers to learning through association.
• Outline how classical conditioning occurs.


  Before conditioning: Classical conditioning begins when a neutral stimulus initially produces no response. Meanwhile, an unconditioned stimulus produces an unconditioned response.

  During conditioning: The neutral stimulus and unconditioned stimulus are then repeatedly paired together to form an association between them.

  After conditioning: After repeated pairings, the neutral stimulus turns into a conditioned stimulus that produces a conditioned response.
• Outline the procedures of Pavlov’s research.


  Pavlov rang a bell (neutral stimulus) and measured the dogs’ saliva production.

  He then presented dogs with food (UCS) and measured their saliva production (UCR).

  He would then ring the bell every time he presented food in an attempt to train the dogs to associate the bell with food.

  After repeated pairings, Pavlov rang the bell (CS) and measured their saliva production (CR)
• Outline the findings of Pavlov’s research


  Pavlov found that dogs would not initially react to the ringing of a bell.

  Pavlov found that dogs would produce an unconditioned response of salivation to the presentation of food.

  After repeatedly pairing the bell with food, Pavlov found that dogs would learn to associate them together.

  This is because Pavlov found that dogs would produce a conditioned response of salivation to the sound of the bell alone (as they were expecting food).
• Define operant conditioning and distinguish between positive and negative reinforcement.


  Operant conditioning refers to learning through consequences.

  Positive reinforcement = providing a reward to increase the likelihood that a behaviour will be repeated.

  Negative reinforcement = removing something unpleasant to increase the likelihood a behaviour will be repeated.
• Outline the procedures of Skinner’s research.


  There were 3 conditions – positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, and punishment.

  • Positive reinforcement: When the rat pressed the lever, it would receive a food pellet.
  • Negative reinforcement: When the rat pressed the lever, it would stop a loud sound from playing.
  • Punishment: When the rat pressed the lever, they would get an electric shock.
  • In each condition, Skinner measured the number of times the rat would continue to press the lever.
• Outline the findings of Skinner’s research.

  In the positive reinforcement condition, when given a positive consequence of food, the rats would continue pressing the lever.

  In the negative reinforcement condition, when removing the unpleasant sound, the rats would continue to press the lever.

  In the punishment condition, when given an electric shock, the rats would not continue to press the lever.

  Rats therefore learn through consequences i.e. positive consequence = repeat behaviour. Negative consequence = do not repeat behaviour.
• Outline how the behaviourist approach has contributed to our understanding of human behaviour.


  The behaviourist approach proposes that humans and animals learn in the same way and so research can be conducted on animals and generalised to humans.

  This is because it proposes that behaviour is learned through the environment and can be reduced to stimulus-response learning.
• Outline how the behaviourist approach has contributed to our understanding of human behaviour.


  More specifically, the behaviourist approach proposes that we can learn through classical conditioning i.e. through association.

  This refers to when a neutral stimulus (which initially produces no response) is repeatedly paired with an unconditioned stimulus (that produces an automatic response), resulting in the neutral stimulus becoming a conditioned stimulus that produces a conditioned/learned response.
• Outline how the behaviourist approach has contributed to our understanding of human behaviour.


  The behaviourist approach also proposes that we can learn through operant conditioning i.e. through consequences.

  For example, positively reinforcing (providing a reward) and negatively reinforcing (removing something unpleasant) a behaviour increases the likelihood it will be repeated while punishing a behaviour (by giving something unpleasant or taking away something pleasant) decreases the likelihood the behaviour will be repeated.
• Evaluate the contributions of Pavlov’s research/classical conditioning into our understanding of human behaviour: explanations of how phobias form.

  This is because it proposes that phobias can develop through associations e.g. an individual may learn to fear dogs because they associate them with being bitten. This is a strength because this has led to effective treatments for phobias such as systematic desensitisation whereby the individual is gradually exposed to their phobic stimulus so that they learn to associate it with relaxation rather than fear.
• Evaluate the contributions of Pavlov’s research/classical conditioning into our understanding of human behaviour: may not generalise to human behaviour. 


  This is because the research involved animal studies and so humans may not learn in this way e.g. not everybody who is bitten by a dog develops a phobia of them by associating them with the act of being bitten. This is a limitation because it suggests that human behaviour is more complex in that it is affected by more complex thinking, emotions and motivations rather than simple stimulus-response learning.
• Evaluate the contributions of Pavlov’s research/classical conditioning into our understanding of human behaviour: evidence to support that it can be applied to humans.

  E.g. the study of Little Albert found that they could train a little boy to develop a phobia of white rats by presenting a white rat alongside a loud, unpleasant sound. This is a strength as it shows how human behaviours such as phobias can be learned through association.
• Evaluate the contributions of Skinner’s research/operant conditioning into our understanding of human behaviour: led to explanations of how phobias are maintained.

  This is because it proposes that phobias can be maintained when an individual avoids their phobic stimulus to remove the unpleasant feeling of fear, negatively reinforcing their phobia. This had led to effective treatments for phobias such as flooding whereby the individual is exposed to their worst fear for a prolonged period of time so that they cannot avoid and negatively reinforce their phobia.
• Evaluate the contributions of Skinner’s research/operant conditioning into our understanding of human behaviour: may not generalise to human behaviour.

  This is because the research involved animal studies and so humans may not learn in this way e.g. students may consistently not complete their homework despite receiving detentions (punishments). This is a limitation because it suggests that human behaviour is more complex in that it is affected by more complex thinking, emotions and motivations rather than stimulus-response learning.
• Evaluate the contributions of Skinner’s research/operant conditioning into our understanding of human behaviour: evidence to support that it can be applied to humans.

  E.g. token economies aims to get people to repeat their desirable behaviour by giving them tokens that they can then exchange for rewards. This is a strength because token economies have been used to improve behaviour in many institutions including schools, prisons and psychiatric hospitals. Therefore adds credibility.
• Evaluate the behaviourist approach’s contributions to our understanding of human behaviour: supporting evidence from Pavlov’s research.

  This is because Pavlov found that when a bell was repeatedly presented alongside food, dogs would learn to associate the sound of a bell with the presentation of food i.e. they would produce a conditioned response of salivation to the sound of the bell alone. This is a strength because it supports the proposal that behaviour can be learned through the environment by forming associations i.e. classical conditioning.
• Evaluate the behaviourist approach’s contributions to our understanding of human behaviour: supporting evidence from Skinner’s research.

  This is because Skinner found that the number of times a rat presses a lever depends on the type of consequence it received i.e. when a rat was reinforced, the rat would continue to press the lever. However, when they were punished, they would not continue to press the lever. This is a strength because it supports the proposal that behaviour can be learned through the environment via consequences i.e. operant conditioning.
• Evaluate the behaviourist approach’s contributions to our understanding of human behaviour: relied on animal studies which may not generalise to human behaviour.

  E.g. Pavlov’s research into classical conditioning investigated dogs while Skinner’s research into operant conditioning investigated rats. This is a limitation because human behaviour is more complex in that it is affected by more complex thinking, emotions and motivations and so stimulus- response learning may not apply to more complex human behaviours.