comparing approaches

• which approaches are determinist?

  • behaviourist: behaviour shaped by environmental stimuli & reinforcement.
  • SLT: behaviour is influenced by modelling & social reinforcement.
  • biological: behaviour is largely influenced by biological processes & genetics.
  • psychodynamic: early upbringings & unconscious forces drive determine behaviour.
• which approaches support free will?

  • cognitive: it emphasises the ability to make conscious choices & decisions.
  • humanistic: it focuses on self-actualisation & personal growth = free choice.
• which approaches support both sides of the nature & nurture theory?

  • cognitive: cognitive development involves interaction between internal processes & external environment.
  • psychodynamic: it focuses on the unconscious (nature) & early life experiences (nurture).
• which approaches support either nurture or nature?

  • behaviourist (nurture): it emphasises the role of environmental factors in shaping behaviour.
  • SLT (nurture): behaviour is learned through observation & imitating others.
  • biological (nature): genetic & neurological factors are central to behaviour.
• which approaches support reductionism?

  • behaviourist: behaviour is reduced to stimulus-response mechanisms.
  • cognitive: cognitive processes are broken down into smaller components e.g. memory & perception.
  • biological: it reduces behaviour to biological processes e.g. genetics & neurotransmitters.
  • psychodynamic: the psychodynamic theory often reduces behaviour to unconscious drives & early childhood.
• which approaches support holism?

  • SLT: it focuses on how social interactions influence learning & behaviour as a whole.
  • humanistic: it emphasises understanding the person as a whole, focusing on sole experiences.
• what type of research method does the behaviourist & cognitive approaches use?

  lab experiments:

  • behaviourist: high control which uses animals or humans to observe stimuli responses.
  • cognitive: often uses controlled conditions to study cognitive processes e.g. reaction times & memory recall.
• which research method does SLT use?

  observational studies - naturalistic observation of social interactions & modelling.
• which research method does the biological & psychodynamic approaches use?

  • biological (brain images): techniques like fMRI, PET scans & EEGs are used to observe brain activity.
  • psychodynamic (case studies): in-depth studies of individuals, typically focusing on the unconscious & early life experiences.
• what type of research method does the humanistic approach use?

  qualitative research - it focuses on interviews, personal reflections & self-report data to explore subjective experiences.