behaviourist approach

• what is the nature vs nurture debate 


  the degree to which human behaviour is determined by genetics/ biology (nature) or learned through interacting with the environment (nurture)
• How did philosopher John Locke describe the mind in relation to the behaviourist approach?

  He described the mind as tabula rasa, or a blank slate.
• What does the behaviourist approach believe about how behaviours are learned?

  It believes that all behaviours are learned through experiences in our environment.
• How can consequences affect behaviour in operant conditioning?

  Consequences can either reinforce a behaviour or make it less likely to occur.
• What is the stance of the behaviourist approach on the study of psychology?

  Psychology should be scientific and objective, focusing only on observable behaviour.
• What are the five basic assumptions of the behaviourist approach?

  1. Mind as tabula rasa (blank slate)
  2. Learning through classical conditioning
  3. Learning through operant conditioning
  4. Focus on observable behaviour
  5. All species learn the same way
• What is the significance of John Locke's concept of tabula rasa in behaviourism?

  • It implies that the mind starts as a blank slate.
  • All behaviours are learned through environmental experiences.
• What are the two types of conditioning in the behaviourist approach?

  • Classical conditioning: Learning through association.
  • Operant conditioning: Learning through consequences of behaviour.
• Why are animals used in behaviourist research?

  • To demonstrate that all species learn in the same way.
  • To study learning processes in a controlled environment.
• what is a UCS (unconditioned stimulus) 


  any stimulus that produces a natural, unlearnt behavioural response

  (food = mouth watering)
• what is a UCR (Unconditioned Response) 


  any response that occurs naturally without learning
• what is a NS (Neutral Stimulus) 


  any environmental stimulus that does not naturally produce a behavioural response
• what is a CS (conditioned stimulus)


  a stimulus that has been associated with a US so that it now produces the response as the US on its own
• what is a CR (conditioned stimulus)


  a learnt behaviour that is shown in response to a learnt conditioned stimulus
• What is classical conditioning?

  • Learning via association
  • Developed by Ivan Pavlov
  • Involves pairing stimuli to elicit a response
• What was Pavlov studying when he discovered classical conditioning?

  The digestive reflex in dogs
• What is the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) in Pavlov's experiment?

  Food
• What is the unconditioned response (UCR) in Pavlov's experiment?

  Salivation
• What is the neutral stimulus in Pavlov's experiment before conditioning?

  The bell
• What happens during the conditioning phase of classical conditioning?

  Two stimuli are paired together
• What occurs after conditioning in Pavlov's experiment?

  The bell alone causes salivation
• What is the conditioned stimulus (CS) after conditioning?

  The bell
• What is the conditioned response (CR) in Pavlov's experiment?

  Salivation in response to the bell
• What are the stages of classical conditioning as demonstrated by Pavlov?

  1. Before Conditioning: UCS (Food) -> UCR (Salivation)
  2. During Conditioning: Pairing of CS (Bell) with UCS (Food)
  3. After Conditioning: CS (Bell) -> CR (Salivation)
• Why did Skinner believe classical conditioning was insufficient?

  He thought it was too simplistic for complex human behavior
• What type of animals did Skinner primarily conduct his research on?

  Rats and pigeons
• What is a 'Skinner Box' used for?

  To study operant conditioning in animals
• What is an example of primary reinforcement?

  Food
• What is secondary reinforcement?

  Something that can satisfy a basic need but is not itself a basic need
• What is an example of secondary reinforcement?

  Money
• What are the key components of operant conditioning?

  • Behavior is influenced by its consequences
  • Consequences can be rewarding or punishing
  • Reinforcement increases the likelihood of behavior repetition
  • Primary and secondary reinforcements are used
• what is positive reinforcement 


  when something desired (a reward) is given in response to a desired behaviour. This leads to a desirabke behaviour being repeated
• what is negative reinforcement 


  when a response or behaviour is strengthened by stopping, removing or avoiding a negative outcome. This occurs when a human (or animal) avoids something unpleasant
• what is a punishment 


  doing something unpleasant to stop a behaviour. Punishment does not stop a behaviour, but stops an undesired one
• how was skinners rat positively reinforced 


  by receiving a pellet of food as a reward, as a consequence of its actions, the rat continued to display this behaviour
• how was the rat punished


  skinner changed the mechanism so that when the rat pressed the lever it was given an electric shock. as a consequence of this, very quickly the rat stopped pressing the lever
• how was the rat negatively reinforced 


  when skinner electrified the floor the rat was bouncing around and accidentally pressed the lever. this turned the electric current off and the rat learnt to press this to avoid something unpleasant
• how can operant conditioning be applied to behaviour modification


  token economy

  - each time a desirable behaviour they are given a token which can be exchanged for a privilege or reward

  - if they act inappropriately a token will be taken away
• how is the approach being an example of environmental determinism a weakness


  p - it claims all behaviour is due to external factors

  e - for example, all behaviour is thought to be result of past learning either through association or through consequences of behaviour. skinner argued that free will is an illusion

  t - therefore, behaviourism ignores the role of free will in human behaviour which is a problem as people may not feel responsible for their actions or feel like they have the power to change
• why is the approach being reductionist a weakness 


  p - it attempts to reduce behaviour down to just one level of explanation

  e - for example, the approach focuses on past leaning ignoring factors such as genetics, cognitive processes, or wider socio-cultural factors which may influence behaviour

  t - therefore this approach may be viewed as overly simplistic and lacking in validity as an explanation for human behaviour