approaches psychology

• Inference - Psychologists use inferences when they cannot directly observe what goes on inside someone's head so instead make assumptions about their thought processes based on observable behaviours.
• Cognitive psychologists believe that we have an internal representation or model of our environment which allows us to predict what will happen next.
• Cognitive psychologists are interested in mental processes such as perception, memory, attention, problem solving and decision making.
• Observable and measurable behaviors are the focus of the behavioral approach.
• In the behavioral approach, behavior is determined by consequences such as reinforcement and punishment.
• Computer/theoretical models - The brain is seen as being similar to a computer which takes in information from the senses (input), processes it using rules and knowledge stored within the brain (processing) and then produces an output response.
• Introspection - The method used by Wundt to investigate the mind, where participants were asked to report back on their thoughts and feelings during experiments.
• Naturalistic observation - A research technique which involves watching people behave naturally without any interference from the observer.
• Cognitivists argue that behaviour can be explained by looking at mental processes rather than external factors such as reinforcement.
• Behaviorists argue that it is not possible to know anything about people’s thoughts because these are private events and therefore unobservable.