behaviourism

• What are the key assumptions of the behaviourist approach (AO1)?


  • we are born as a blank slate (tabula rosa)
  • all behaviour is learned
  • studying behaviour that can be observed, measured and is quantifiable
  • humans are no different from animals and should not be regarded as more complex - so animals could replace humans as experimental designs
  • two ways we can learn: classical and operant conditioning
• what is classical conditioning? (AO1)


  • Pavlov: classical conditioning is a type of learning in which an existing involuntary reflex is associated with a new stimulus.
  • he tested his theory using dogs, who were conditioned to associate the sound of a bell (neutral stimulus) with food (unconditioned stimulus)
  • this resulted in the dogs producing a salivation response (conditioned response) at the sound of a bell (conditioned stimulus), even when no food was present
  • he demonstrated that repeated exposure to an event leads to a learned and uncontrollable behaviour
• what is operant conditioning? (AO1)

  • Skinner: suggested that behaviour is the result of learning through the consequences of our actions
  • he found that 3 types of reinforcement will affect behaviour: positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, and punishment
  • Skinner did this by creating the Skinner Box with rats and pigeons by pressing a lever
  • THORNDIKE'S ''LAW OF EFFECT'': if a certain response has pleasant consequences, it is more likely than other responses to occur
• what is positive reinforcement?

  • when a behaviour is followed by a reward and is more likely to be repeated
  • e.g. A parent allowing their child to borrow the family car when they get good grades
• what is negative reinforcement?

  • when a behaviour is followed by the removal of an unwanted stimulus in order to encourage good behaviour and is more likely to be repeated
  • e.g. a teacher taking away homework because the class was so well behaved
• what is punishment?

  • a consequence which reduces or aims to reduce the likelihood of an undesirable behaviour from happening again
  • e.g. a positive punishment includes things like scoldings, spankings, and extra chores. a negative punishment takes something desirable away, like a toy
• strengths of the behaviour approach (AO3):

  • using animals in experiments are easier to use and control, as well as cheaper
  • easy to replicate (lab experiment)
  • it has real world application as it can be used to treat phobias (systematic desensitisation) and train dogs
• limitations of the behaviour approach (AO3):

  • ignores internal mental processes and biology
  • it is deterministic as it ignores that people have free will
  • even though using animals is a strength, the rats in Skinner's box were exposed to stressful situations which is unethical