LA: Behaviourist

• Assumption 1

  We are all born as a blank slate (tabula rasa) : all behaviour is learned and determined by interactions and experiences in our environment, therefore there is no biological influence on our behaviour e.g. genetics
• Assumption 2

  The Behaviourist approach rejects the vagueness of introspection. Only observable behaviour is measurable scientifically and it is only these behaviours that should be studied e.g. a lab study. Thought processes cannot be observed and so are difficult to test.
• Assumption 3

  Behaviourists suggests that the basic process of learning is the same for all species. It is therefore valid to study how animals learn and apply the same principles of learning to humans e.g. classical and operant conditioning
• Theory 1 


  Classical Conditioning - Pavlov's research
• How do behaviourists regard behaviour? 


  As a response to a stimulus and believe that we are born with only a handful of responses that don't need to be learned. Most responses are learned through interacting with the environment.
• How is classical conditioning learned by? 


  Association
• Explain the key idea of classical conditioning 


  Learning occurs when 2 stimuli are repeatedly paired together (neutral and unconditioned)

  • Neutral stimuli doesn't cause a response
  • Unconditioned stimuli causes a natural response
• Draw a diagram that explains classical conditioning


  Unconditioned stimulus -> Unconditioned response

  Unconditioned stimulus + Neutral -> Unconditioned response

  Conditioned stimulus -> conditioned response
• What are 3 other important features of classical conditioning. 


  Timing

  Stimulus generalisation

  Extinction
• Theory 2

  Operant Conditioning
• How is operant conditioning learned? 


  Through consequences of behaviour
• List the 3 consequences of operant conditioning


  Positive Reinforcement

  Punishment

  Negative Reinforcement
• Define positive reinforcement


  A reward given for doing something that causes behaviour to be repeated
• Define punishment


  Occurs after behaviour and reduces the chances of it being repeated

  • Grounded for a fight
• Define negative reinforcement


  Something unpleasant stops when we perform a desired behaviour, then the behaviour is more likely to be repeated.

  • End of torture if admitting what they want to hear
• Define shaping


  This is a route to a target behaviour.

  Instead of only reinforcing the target behaviour, behaviours which lead to the target behaviour are rewarded.

  • Teach a dog to lie before teaching it to roll over
• List 3 overall evaluations of the behaviourist approach


  Deterministic

  Evidence

  Application
• Deterministic: Point

  The behaviorist approach could be accused of being environmentally deterministic in its view of human behavior. 
• Deterministic: Example


  The behaviourist approach sees all behaviours being controlled by past experiences that have been conditioned. Skinner suggested that everything we do is the sum is the sum total of our reinforcement history. According to Skinner, any sense of free will is simply an illusion, and our past conditioning history controls our behaviour. 
• Deterministic: Link


  This is a weakness, as the approach is suggesting that people are not really responsible for their behaviour, it ignores any possible influence of free will. If our past experiences control our behavior, then it means we cannot choose how to behave. If someone behaves in an immoral way, the approach seems to suggest it is not their fault. 
• Deterministic: However


  A positive perspective of behaviour being considered deterministic is that could be used to inform parents and how to raise their children. If children are continuously being punished and are not reinforced, then this could have a negative impact on a child's mental health and well-being. This is a strength as it will educate parents that their child's behaviour in the future could be the result of how they have reinforced their child's behaviour. 
• Evidence: Point

  There is a wealth of supporting evidence for the Behaviourist approach
• Evidence: Example

  Much of the supporting research is from scientific lab studies. Skinner's (operant conditioning) and Pavlov's (classical conditioning). Scientific lab studies are highly controlled, minimize any extraneous variables affecting the findings, allowing a cause-and-effect relationship between reinforcement (IV) and the learning of a behavior (DV) to be established. 
• Evidence: Link


  This is a strength because supporting research adds validity and credibility to the behaviorist approach and is very influential in the development of psychology as a scientific discipline, giving psychology greater credibility and status. 
• Evidence: However

  Much of the supporting research for the behaviorist approach drives some animal studies, such as rats and dogs. The DNA match between humans and rats is approximately 90%. This is a weakness as supporting pieces of research therefore suffer from anthropomorphic and ultimately dilute the generalizability of the research findings and reduce the support of the behavioral approach. 
• Application: Point

  The principles of conditioning have been applied to a broad range of real-world behaviors and problems. 
• Application: Example

  Operant conditioning is a basis of token economy systems that have been used successfully in institutions. For example, taken economies are used in prisons and psychiatric wards. These work by rewarding appropriate behavior with tokens that can then be exchanged for privileges. Additionally, classical conditioning has led to the development of treatments for the reduction of anxiety associated with phobias.
• Application: Link

  These are a strength because token economies have been very successful in treating and correcting prisoners' behaviour. Additionally, systematic desensitization has a very high success rate of treating phobic patients (90% success rate) 
• Application: However

  The problem with the behaviorist therapies / treatments such as token economy is that they may only work in the short term. Once the token is removed in the real world, their undesirable behaviour may return. This is therefore a weakness, as the success of these therapies are limited to the environment in which they are offered. The other therapy such as CBT have the benefit of being long term solutions as it gives the patient skills to use in the future to deal with their mental health issues.
• What method do behaviourist psychologists use? 


  Scientific method - study things that could be directly observed and measured
• What theory does Darwin accept? 


  Darwin's theory of evolution
• What does Darwin's theory of evolution state?


  Human beings have evolved from lower animals. As a result, behaviourists see the basic processes of learning as being the same for all species.
• What is the consequence of Darwin's theory of evolution? 


  Animals can replace humans as experimental subjects. Behaviourists have studied rats, cats, pigeons and dogs to investigate how learning occurs.
• Describe Classical Conditioning Research - Pavlov's Dogs


  Pavlov wanted to see if dogs could salivate at the sound of a bell so whenever he gave the dog food, he would ring a bell. This led to the dogs salivating at the sound of the bell.

  Thus, Pavlov was able to show hoe a neutral stimulus (bell) can elicit a new response through association.
• Describe Operant conditioning research - The Skinner Box


  Placed a hungry rat in a box that had a lever that would deliver food pellets when pressed.

  • Positively reinforced = rat kept pressing the lever when it realised it would get food
  • Punishment = rat was given an electric shock when it pulled the same lever and stopped pressing the lever
  • Negative reinforcement = floor of the box was electrified and the lever switched off the current so whenever the floor was electrified the rat would press the lever
• What are the 3 evaluation of behaviourist research studies points


  High control over the variables

  No demand characteristics

  Ethical issues
• High control over the variables: Point

  Lab studies have such tight control over the IV and extraneous variables. This means they can clearly look at how a stimulus can lead to a response when researching behavior. 
• High control over variables: Evidence


  E.g. in Skinners study all variables were kept the same apart from the type of reinforcement / punishment.  
• High control over variables: Link

  This is a strength because this means that a cause-and-effect relationship between the IV (Skinner study - type of reinforcement) and DV (response to the rat) can be established. 
• High control over variables: However


  Such tight control over all the variables could mean that other studies do not reflect how humans and animals learn in real life. It is a weakness as having such tight controls leads to a lack of ecological validity and therefore the findings of such studies are limited in terms of their generalizability to the behaviourist approach.