The behaviourist approach

• Behaviourist explanations are sometimes called stimulus-response (S-R) explanations, as they only refer to observable stimuli and responses
• All behaviour is explained in the behaviourist approach as a result of conditioning
• There are two types of conditioning:

  • classical conditioning
  • operant conditioning
• The approach as a whole was inspired by Locke's empiricist philosophy which argued that we are blank slates at birth and all knowledge is gained through experience.
• A stimulus is any change in the environment that an organism registers
• A response is any behaviour that the organism produces as a consequence of a stimulus
• A reflex is a consistent connection between a stimulus and response