Scientific view that it should be possible to explain complex things by reductions them to most simple structures and processes
Behaviour down to basic principles e,g aggression caused by conditioning
Holism
Behaviour is more complex than the processes that other sciences study e.g chemical reactions
Psychodynamic approach
Relatively holistic approach- unconscious thoughts and childhood experiences, Id, ego
Biological approach
All behaviours can be explained as the product of biological influences like genetics, brain structure and brain chemistry
Biological reductionism
Cognitive approach
Brain- working like a computer
Machine reductionism processing model
Humans are much more complex
Behaviourist approach
All human behaviour is shaped by the environment though operant and classical conditioning
Environmental reductionism
Humanistic approach
Hoistic approach several different elements and tries to understand their own personal subjective experiences
holism strengths
aspects of social behaviour that only emerge within group context and cannot be understood at the level of individual group members e.g conformity to social roles- holistic explanations of this
reductionism oversimplifies complex- loss of validity
reductionism strengths
forms basis of scientific research
operationalised- need to break down behaviour into consistent parts
biological- precise and simple tested easily and can lead to generating treatment
