Approaches

• Wilhelm Wundt opened the world’s first psychology laboratory in 1879. He and his assistants used ‘introspection’ to try to investigate the nature of awareness and consciousness.
• Introspection is the breaking down of conscience into thoughts, sensations and images
• Early behaviourists such as John B. Watson began to criticise the method of introspection for being subjective, and varying too much from person to person. He suggested that it was impossible to test people’s inward, private thoughts, and that psychology should focus on studying observable behaviour
• The behaviorist approach is a way of explaining in terms of what is observable and learnable
• As humans and non-human animals are governed by the same basic processes, animal behaviour can be studied and applied to human behaviour
• Conditioning involves forming learned associations between a stimuli and a response (either positive or negative) and assumes humans are born as a blank slate without genetic influences on behaviour.
• There are two types of conditioning which explain human behaviour which are; classical conditioning and operant conditioning
• Classical conditioning originated through the work of Pavlov (1927) and occurs through learning by association
• A behavioural response is learned when it becomes associated between a previously neutral stimulus and a reflex response
• The natural stimulus is called the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) and the natural response to it is known as the unconditioned response (UCR)
• In Pavlov’s experiments of classical conditioning:

  • The UCS was food given to the dog which produced the UCR of salivating
  • By introducing a neutral stimulus of a bell (NS) which is rang shortly before the food (UCS) is given, after many pairings of the two, the NS (bell) is able to produce the same response of salivation without the UCS (food)
  • The NS (bell) is now known as a conditioned stimulus (CS) and the response of salivation is known as the conditioned response (CR)
• Behaviourist explanations such as classical conditioning have been shown to have validity and reliability as an explanation for learning as they have been successfully recreated in replicated studies.
• Operant conditioning is the idea that learning occurs through rewards and punishments
• Positive reinforcement involves giving a reward in response to a behavior, making that behavior more likely to be repeated
• Negative reinforcement involves avoiding something unpleasant in response to a behavior, making that behavior more likely to be repeated
• Punishment, an unpleasant consequence, decreases the likelihood of a behavior being repeated
• BF Skinner studied operant conditioning
• Skinner tested these concepts using rats and pigeons
• In the 'Skinner Box', rats were placed in a box with a lever, light, and electrified floor
• If the rat pressed the lever when the light was off, it would receive a shock
• If it pressed the lever when the light was on, it received a food pellet
• The rats quickly learned to push the switch only when the light was on
• Behaviourism uses the scientific method, enhancing the replicability and validity of conclusions drawn
• Behaviourist principles have useful real-world applications, such as developing treatments for phobias (systematic desensitisation) and token economy systems
• Token economy systems involve giving rewards for desirable behaviours in patients with mental illnesses
• Social learning theorists share many of the assumptions of behaviourists; that behaviour is conditioned through operant and classical conditioning (direct learning). They also suggest learning takes place through observation and imitation (indirect learning).
• Vicarious reinforcement: Refers to learning through watching someone else being rewarded or punished for a behaviour. The person then learns indirectly that such behaviours are worth (or not worth) repeating. They may then imitate the behaviour witnessed.
• Social Learning Theory (SLT) considers the role of cognition, unlike behaviourism
• Bandura suggested four mediational processes in SLT:

  • Attention: noticing a behaviour
  • Retention: being able to remember the behaviour
  • Motor reproduction: the ability to imitate the action
  • Motivation: the desire to imitate the action, linked to the perceived likelihood of reward or punishment
• Bandura's Bobo doll study demonstrated these mediational processes:

  • Children who watched an adult attacking a Bobo doll copied the aggressive actions when placed in a room with the same doll
  • Children who did not witness aggression did not show any aggression
  • Children who watched an adult being punished for acting aggressively were much less likely to copy the aggression compared to those who watched an adult being rewarded for aggressive acts
• Identification: Children are more likely to imitate others’ behaviour. They identify with ‘role models’, who are likely to be similar to them and have attractive qualities, such as success and status. These role models can be real (a parent) or seen in the media (a celebrity or sportsperson)
• cognitive approach” which focuses on the study of internal mental processes
• As cognitive processes are not actually visible to be tested directly, psychologists must study them indirectly through making inferences about results gained from observing behaviour.
• Schema’s are a cognitive framework and represent ideas and expectations the person holds about a person or situation.

  They form through experience and aid in making future predictions of events or situations for us and remain unique to each individual as our experiences are subjective to ourselves. This means we see the world dependent on our own experiences and therefore our own version of reality is created through influences from these schema’s.
• Theoretical models are abstract and computer models are concrete things
• Theoretical models are diagrams representing steps involved in internal mental processes
• Computer models are computer simulations of mental processes
• An important theoretical models is the information processing approach. Information flows through the system in a series of stages like eg: multi store model
• We're comparing humans to information processors (computers) and behavior in terms of information processing (how computers deal with information)
• Cognitive neuroscience is the study of influence of biological structures on mental processes