pysch contemporary debates - comp 1

• The behaviorist debate is the question of whether conditioning techniques used with children is ethical
• Jill in 1998 found that when children were rewarded for chores they completed


  20% of house chores
• Operant conditioning


  The use of positive reinforcements or rewards to perpetuate positive behavior from children
• Operant conditioning is ethical as it sets children up to be functioning members of society and therefore facing less adversity
• When a child/future adult is not prepared for society


  They'll face more adversity which will cause more cognitive dissonance and psychological distress
• Conditioning techniques allow children to learn and understand the key behaviors necessary to becoming a functioning member of society, protecting them from future psychological harm
• Children will not perfectly replicate all behaviors they are conditioned to elicit
• Children may only work where there is a reward, suggesting it may interfere with a child's natural drive
• Conditioning techniques are romanticized in shows as being professional and foolproof, but parents are not professionals and may not perform them properly
• Different parents may use different conditioning techniques, confusing the child
• Morris in 2014 criticized the 'naughty step' as it may cause psychological distress to children who are too cognitively immature to internalize what is happening
• Harsh punishments like isolation may confuse a child who interprets their actions as insignificant
• Children often lack the ability to verbalize their emotions as well as adults, so punishment may be used inappropriately
• Children may benefit from conditioning techniques once they have matured to a later age and developed the cognitive ability to internalize the consequences of their actions
• McAlister et al. found a decrease in inappropriate behavior in schools where praise was given for positive behavior and disapproval for inappropriate behavior
• Conditioning techniques are ethical as they predispose children to positive learning environments where they are encouraged to act appropriately
• Evidence suggests praise and disapproval are not necessary for the development of appropriate behavior, as seen in Japanese schools with readily motivated students
• Conditioning techniques may not address the root cause of inappropriate behavior, rendering them unethical
• Conditioning techniques may interfere with a child's internal drive to learn, causing demotivation and putting them at a disadvantage
• Conditioning techniques may be harmful for vulnerable groups of children
• pre-established for just drawing for just doing the bare minimum then children will spend half as much time so they will have less of a drive a drive to just draw because they want to draw to do the maximum to um achieve the best or put in an amazing amount of effort just to put an amazing amount of effort in because the rewards already there so they're just sitting back and just relaxing
• another the other study so D where children were praised on a m test they did worse on the second test compared to the control group that were told they were lazy so this suggests again that you need to ignite a competitive Spirit within children or people in general because they were told they were lazy and they did better than next test what does that tell you about them they may not need to be conditioned they may just need to have an internal um their internal drive ignited or reinforced
• Advantage of the use of conditioning techniques with vulnerable groups of children


  • Shown to benefit neurodivergent children, such as through ABA (applied Behavior Analysis) and operant conditioning, which increased social interactions among children with ASD through a reward system
  • Used for children with ADHD such as sensitivity issues and the F Haler for asmatic children, demonstrating the benefit of conditioning techniques for vulnerable groups of children
• Without conditioning techniques, children would likely suffer from psychological or physiological distress as they will be less socially interactive or would be discouraged from using their inhaler
• The methodology of Lovas' study has been called into question due to the presence of research bias, as the research that praises such techniques was conducted by Lovas himself, providing a decrease in external reliability
• There was no random allocation of participants and experimental conditions, decreasing validity as other confounding variables may have affected the dependent variable
• Implementation of techniques based on flawed evidence could be suggested to be unethical as it may provide other negative side effects that psychologists are unaware of
• Financial reward systems would only be available to schools with a high budget, as most educational institutions are on a small or decreasing budget, meaning some children would receive treatment and others would not, which is unethical
• The understanding of Neuroscience since the case of Phineas Gage has expanded exponentially, primarily through technological advancements such as PET scans and fMRI
• Some psychologists doubt the ethics of Neuroscience, arguing that the scientifically useful conclusions drawn from such studies should not trump the potential cost to the participants or those affected from the research results, particularly in wider society
• Others suggest that we reap both individual and societal benefits so vast that it is necessary for Neuroscience to be explored
• Stress reduction


  An ethical advantage of researching stress reduction is that it improves overall societal health
• A study by Lewis Hod, part of Mind Lab International, demonstrated a 65% decrease in reported stress among participants and a 35% reduction in usual physiological resting states
• Elevated levels of cortisol, the hormone implicated with stress, have been linked to a range of health problems such as cardiovascular diseases, obesity, depression, and gastrointestinal problems
• The 65% decrease in stress and 35% reduction in physiological resting states found in the study may not be a universal foolproof method of reducing cortisol levels, and the validity of the study may be doubted as it leaves individuals who do not reap such benefits confused or in a worse state than before
• The study of Neuroscience contributes to ongoing health concerns such as the obesity crisis via neuromarketing, where corporations can use Neuroscience to target individuals, especially unconsenting children, with unhealthy advertisements
• Studies on brain dysfunction and violent behavior, such as the Lassa study, may result in the unfair labeling of individuals as criminals based on biological factors, leading to legal injustice
• However, the concept of a stigma attached to a "psychopath brain" is not realistic, as most individuals will not undergo brain scans, and their behaviors will be weighed against such stigma
• Given the advancements in forensic technology, a jury would be presented with a mountain of far more convincing and concrete evidence than a brain scan
• Evidence they may look through things with a rose tinted glass or Rose tinted glasses so the concept of a stigma attached to a psychopath brain is foreseeable however it is not realistic this because most in this because most individuals in their lifetime will not undergo a brain scan this means that this knowledge will not be known anyway if it is then the general behaviors will be weighed against such stigma weighted against such stigma and people will not act in accordance with such stigma anyway um if they are given a brain scan but they are reported to be an extremely kind person throughout the entirety of their life then people may bear bear that in mind but they' been an extremely kind person all of their life so that's their experience