Individual differences

• The models we observe - Social learning theory


  > Social behaviours like aggressiveness are a result of imitating models

  > Different people are exposed to different role models

  + Bandura; children made more aggressive acts if they observed an aggressive role model, particularly boys

  - hormones affect all aspects of behaviour
• Rewards and punishment - Operant conditioning


  > Different people receive different levels of reinforcement/punishment leading to differences in behaviours that are repeated

  > Schedules (variable/ratio/continuous)

  + Skinner; press a lever to obtain food

  - Freud; unconscious parts of personality
• Personal experiences - Classical conditioning


  > Learning by association

  > Pairing a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus

  + Watson and Rayner; little Albert

  - Ahs et al; using fMRI scans, people with phobias have hyperactivity in the right amygdala