Holism and reductionism

• Holism

  > This argument proposes that we should examine individuals complex behaviour by taking into consideration all aspects of their experience, including culture and social context

  > Risk factors in addiction – family and peers – these both consider an individual’s social context and how this increases vulnerability to addiction
• Reductionism

  > This side of the debate is based on the assumption that complex human behaviour should be explained in the simplest terms possible e.g. by breaking it down into smaller component parts (simple, basic units). This is known as parsimony
• Biological reductionism

  > Biological reductionism is explaining complex human behaviour by narrowing it down to basic biological systems e.g. genetic, physiology of the body brain or biochemistry

  > Biological explanations of Sz – reduce Sz down to inherited maladaptive genes e.g. PCM1 or imbalance of neurotransmitters such as dopamine.
• Environmental reductionism

  > Environmental reductionism simplifies complex human behaviour down to learning through stimulus-response association’s i.e. classical conditioning

  > The learning theory suggests a phobia of snakes can be explained as learned through an experience such as a bite from a snake, where fear and pain are associated with the snake.
• Levels of explanation

  > The lowest level of explanation is extreme reductionism which explains complex human behaviour and experience by breaking it down into smaller component parts eg biological reductionism

  > Mid level explanation focuses on how psychological and environmental factors influence behaviour eg the behavioural approach

  > Highest level of explanation considers social and cultural explanations, where behaviour is explained in terms of the influence of social groups
• Holism AO3

  :) Praised for explaining aspects of behaviour that only occur in social contexts

  > For example, conformity to social roles and deinidividation cannot be understood at the level of the individual group member (reductionism), because it is created from an interaction between people and it was the behaviour of the group that was important

  > Therefore it is important to take a holistic view in order to explain human behaviour
• Holism AO3

  :( Dont use scientific methods

  > This is because, as the explanations become more complex and more holistic, they become more vague so psychologists are unable to test them scientifically unlike reductionist explanations such as the biological approach, which conduct objective and empirical methods to establish cause and effect

  > Therefore, a reductionist approach to understanding human behaviour, may be favoured due to the increase in internal validity when compared to holistic approaches.
• Reductionist AO3

  :) Practical applications

  > This is because studying basic units of behaviour e.g. which chemicals are involved in certain behavioural disorders can lead to effective treatment for that disorder.

  > For example, dopamine is a key neurotransmitter in the development of schizophrenia which has lead to the production of antipsychotics which regulate and individual’s dopamine levels and have been effective at reducing the symptoms of schizophrenia.

  > Therefore a reductionist explanation is important in applied psychology