reductionism vs holism

• what is reductionism

  The belief that complex human behaviour can be understood by breaking it down into smaller parts
• what is holism?

  The belief that to best understand complex human behaviours, you need to look at things as a whole
• are reductionism and determinism the same thing

  no
• how is reductionism different to determinism?

  It is the simplification of behaviours into small parts to help us understand peoples actions
• what makes a study reductionist

  Focusing on only one explanation for a complex behaviour.

  Having only one independent/dependent variable.

  Only gathering quantitative data.

  Conducting a snapshot study.

  Using only closed questions
• what makes a study holistic

  Considering several different explanations for behaviour.

  Having multiple independent/dependent variables.

  Gathering qualitative data or both qualitative and quantitive.

  Conducting a longitudinal study.

  Using scales to measure opinions.
• how could reductionist measure behaviour?

  Zooms in to behaviours
• how could holistic measure behaviour?

  Zooms out
• Do you like cheese? Yes or no

  Example of a reductionist question
• on a scale of one (hate it) to ten (love it) how much do you like cheese

  Example of a Holistic question
• what does holism say about truly understanding human behaviour

  We need to study the whole person, not just certain aspects of their behaviour
• strengths of reductionism

  Scientific and allows you to see cause and affect, might be more objective.

  Could be more useful and deterministic as you can see how one thing affect behaviour and can make predictions.

  Can pinpoint specific influences on behaviour.
• weaknesses of reductionism

  Oversimplifies behaviour, so could miss out other plausible explanations.

  Arguably lacks construct validity as it focuses to narrowly on understanding behaviours, not broadly.

  Lacks depth of understanding
• what is the structure of a five marker?

  Define reductionism.

  Identify study and aspect of it, which is reductionist.

  Include relevant details of a study to add context.

  Explain why this is considered reductionist.

  Identify if this is a good or bad thing.
• how can Milgrom be seen to be a reductionist?

  He considers the situational factors for why they obey but doesn’t consider peoples personality, cognitions or biology
• how can bocchiaro be seen to be holistic

  It’s considering whether other factors like personality, have any impact on the way someone behaves not just the situation they are in