Approaches

• ORIGINS OF PSYCHOLOGY
• What year did Wundt establish the first psychological lab in Germany

  1879
• What was Wundts aim of the lab

  To study the structure of the human mind by structuralism
• Define structuralism


  Breaks down human thoughts and experiences into basic components
• Define introspection (internal perception)

  Process by which a person gains knowledge about their own mental and emotional states

  Introspection allows us to observe our inner world
• What behaviours did Wundt break down using introspection

  1. sensation (the experiences from our sense organs)

  2. perception (what our brain does with this information)
• How did Wundt use introspection

  - Believed that with training, mental processes can be 'observed' systematically as they occurred

  - Participants were asked to describe inner mental processes (emotions, thoughts, feelings) In terms of their intensity, quality or duration

  - A controlled stimuli (sound/image) was shown and participants told to describe their inner processes

  - This allowed Wundt to compare their responses and establish general theories about mental processes
• Strengths of Wundt and introspection

  - Scientific: made recordings under controlled conditions (same stimulus each time) - allows him to compare participants descriptions

  
  

  - Research support: researchers used introspective methods to 'observe' 'happiness' in a measurable way . Teenagers were given beepers that went off during random times throughout the day, requiring them to write down their thoughts and feelings in the moment before the beep. Most of the entries, indicated that the teenagers were unhappy rather than happy and if they were focused on a challenging task, they tended to be more upbeat
• Limitations of Wundt and introspection

  - Unreliable and unscientific: We cannot see what someone is thinking or perceiving so the results of introspection cannot be proved or disproved. Behaviourists argue that psychologists should confine themselves to studying behaviour, since this is measurable and observable by more than one person

  
  

  - Demand characteristics: we cannot be sure that the experiences reported by the participants are accurate or valid. It is possible to deliberately distort and inaccurately describe our experiences e.g. pretend to have positive thoughts
• THE EMERGENCE OF PSYCHOLOGY AS A SCIENCE
• Define empiricism


  The belief that knowledge is derived from observable, measurable experiences and evidence rather than from intuition or speculation
• What do empiricist believe

  They believe that knowledge comes from observation and experience and empirical methods were first applied to humans by Wundt
• 5 features that make something a science

  1. Objectivity - scientific observations should be recorded without bias and not influenced by any other factors, or any other people

  
  

  2. Control - scientific observations should take place under controlled conditions

  
  

  3. Predictability - scientists should be able to use the results and knowledge gained from experiments to predict future behaviour

  
  

  4. Hypothesis testing - theories generate predictions (hypotheses) which can be tested to either strengthen the support for the theory, or else disprove it

  
  

  5. Replication - each experiment should be able to be replicated exactly so people can have confidence in the results
• Arguments for psychology as a science

  - Allport (1947) said psychology has the same aims as science - to predict, understand and control

  
  

  - Behaviourists, cognitive and biological approaches all use scientific procedures to investigate theories. They are all usually controlled and unbiased
• Arguments against psychology as a science

  - There are other approaches in psychology which don't use objective methods to study behaviour. They use unreliable methods e.g. interview techniques which can be biased and interpreted differently by different researchers

  
  

  - It's very hard to get a representative sample of the population for a study, so findings can't reliably be generated

  
  

  - Psychological experiments are also open to extraneous variables, such as demand characteristics (when participants try to guess the aim of the study and change their behaviour accordingly) which can be hard to control
• THE LEARNING APPROACH - BEHAVIOURIST APPROACH
• Assumptions of the Behaviourist (learning) approach

  1. Humans are born as 'Tabula Rasa' (blank slate). The environment that shapes our behaviour rather than it being innate

  
  

  2. All behaviour is learnt or conditioned through classical or operant conditioning

  
  

  3. Only observable behaviours are studied. Behvaiourists are not concerned with thoughts attitudes and feelings

  
  

  4. Valid to study animal behaviour as they share the same principles of learning as humans (e.g. conditioning)
• Who developed the theory of classical conditioning

  Pavlov
• Classical conditioning: learning through ___________________


  association1 multiple choice option
• What is classical conditioning


  Learning by association

  Involves learning to associate two stimuli together so that we begin to respond to one in the same way as we already respond to the other
• Outline Pavlov's experiment


  Pavlov was studying how dog's salivation helps them digest food, when he noticed that they would sometimes salivate before they got food. Instead of just thinking they were hungry he realised they had associated food with another stimulus, such as the sound of a bell ringing

  
  

  Before conditioning:

  Food (UCS) 🠪 Salivate (UCR)

  Bell ringing (NS) 🠪 No response

  
  

  During conditioning:

  Food (UCS) + Bell ringing (NS) 🠪 Salivate (UCR)

  
  

  After conditioning:

  Bell ringing (CS) 🠪 Salivate (CR)

  
  

  Pavlov further investigated if the bell alone was rung many times and the food was not presented to the dog, extinction occurs - CS loses the ability to produce the CR (disassociate)
• Classical conditioning order


  Before conditioning:

  Unconditioned stimulus (UCS) 🠪Unconditioned response (UCR)

  Neutral stimulus 🠪 No response

  
  

  During conditioning:

  Unconditioned stimulus (UCS) + Neutral stimulus (NS) 🠪 Unconditioned response (UCR)

  
  

  After conditioning:

  Conditioned stimulus (CS) 🠪 Conditioned response (CR)
• Operant conditioning: learning through ___________________________


  consequences of behaviour (rewards/punishment)
• What are the three types of consequences of behaviour

  1. positive reinforcement

  2. negative reinforcement

  3. Punishment
• Who developed the theory of operant conditioning

  Skinner
• Define positive reinforcement


  Receiving a reward when certain behaviour is performed.

  This increases the likelihood that desirable behaviour will be repeated
• Give an example of positive reinforcement


  Receiving a sticker for doing something well in homework
• Define negative reinforcement


  When behaviour is performed to avoid something unpleasant

  This increases the likelihood that desirable behaviour will be repeated
• Give an example of negative reinforcement


  Running to a lesson to avoid being told off
• Define punishment


  An unpleasant consequence of behaviour

  This decreases the likelihood that undesirable behaviour will be repeated
• Give an example of a punishment


  Detention for being late to lessons
• What are the differences between classical and operant conditioning

  Classical - focuses on involuntary behaviour and is learning through association

  
  

  Operant - focuses on voluntary behaviour and is learning through rewards and punishment
• Does classical conditioning focus on voluntary or involuntary behaviour

  involuntary
• Does operant conditioning focus on voluntary or involuntary behaviour

  voluntary
• Outline Skinners research on positive reinforcement (Skinners box)

  A hungry rat placed in skinners box.

  When button pressed food appeared, the rat soon learnt there was a link between pressing button and food appearing.

  The delivery of food provided reward (positive reinforcement) and so increased the likelihood of the behaviour occurring again
• What is Skinners box

  A specially developed cage with a button and a dispenser
• Outline Skinner's research on negative reinforcement (Skinner's box)


  Skinner also experimented with unpleasant environmental stimuli such as loud noises which could be switched off by pressing the button (negative reinforcement).

  Led to an increase in button pressing
• Outline Skinner's research on punishments (Skinners box)


  Skinner experimented with the use of punishment by delivering an electric shock everytime the button was pressed.

  Led to a decrease in button pressing
• Define continuous reinforcement


  Every single response is rewarded. e.g. skinners box (food) - most effective in establishing a response initially
• Define partial/variable reinforcement


  The response is not rewarded everytime, instead it may be rewarded every 10th time for example - most effective way of maintaining a response and avoiding extinction - this schedule can be applied to gambling addiction