Behaviourism

• Behaviourist approach


  Only interested in studying behaviour that can be observed and measured, not concerned with investigating mental processes of the mind
• Assumptions of the behaviourist approach

  • Rejects introspection as it involved too many concepts that were vague and difficult to measure
  • Tries to maintain more control and objectivity within research and relied on lab studies
• Behaviourists' view of a baby's mind

  A blank slate written on by experience
• Behaviourists suggested the basic processes that govern learning are the same in all species
• Classical conditioning


  Learning through association, demonstrated by Pavlov's research on dogs
• Classical conditioning process

  1. Neutral stimulus presented with another stimulus

  2. Neutral stimulus becomes conditioned stimulus and elicits conditioned response
• Operant conditioning


  Learning is an active process where behaviour is shaped by its consequences, demonstrated by Skinner's research
• Types of operant conditioning

  • Positive reinforcement
  • Negative reinforcement
  • Punishment
• Behaviourist approach

  • Well-controlled research
  • Real-world application
  • Environmental determinism
• Behaviourists may have oversimplified the learning process by reducing it to simple stimulus-response units and ignoring mental processes
• Other approaches like social learning theory and cognitive approach have drawn attention to the mental processes involved in learning