comparison of approaches

• Behaviourism and development

  No coherent stages- people learn throughout life
• SLT and development

  NO coherent stages- people learn continuously throughout life
• Cognition and development

  Schema develops with age
• Biological approach and development

  Maturation- genetic changes in child’s physiological status influence psychological and behavioural status
• Psychodynamic approach and development

  Most coherent- psychosexual stages of development
• Humanistic approach and development

  Development is continuous- particularly important in younger years (unconditional positive regard)
• Behaviourism and nature/nurture

  Nurture- born as ‘blank slates’- written on by experience and environment
• SLT and nature/nurture

  Nurture- behaviour learnt through observation of role model (mediational processes)
• Cognition and nature/nurture


  Nature and Nurture- info processing abilities are innate, but schemas are constantly being refined
• Biological approach and nature/nurture

  Nature- behaviour is a result of a genetic blueprint, but acknowledge nurture
• Psychodynamic approach and nature/nurture

  Nature and Nurture- behaviour driven by innate desires and instincts, but parents have an influence on child’s behaviour
• Humanistic approach and nature/nurture

  Nature and Nurture- environment and people influence the self concept, but innate desire to be ideal self
• Behaviourism and reductionism/holism

  Environmental reductionism- behaviour broken up into stimulus and response units for testing
• SLT and reductionism/holism

  Reductionist- behaviour reduced to mediational processes
• Cognition and reductionism/holism

  Reductionist- machine reductionism, ignores human emotion
• Biological approach and reductionism/holism

  Genetic reductionism- explains behaviour at level of genes and neurons
• Psychodynamic approach and reductionism/holism

  Reductionist and holistic- Freud claimed to be holistic: asked people about their history, but approach is mainly reductionist: id, ego, superego, and psychosexual stages
• Humanistic approach and reductionism/holism

  Holistic- investigates all aspects of an individual
• Behaviourism and determinism/free will

  Hard/environmental determinism- all behaviour determined by external forces, behaviour is the result of conditioning
• SLT and determinism/free will

  Soft/reciprocal determinism- behaviour is influenced by environment, but we exert some influence upon it through free will
• Cognition and determinism/free will

  Soft determinism- we are ‘choosers’ of our behaviour, but these can only operate within the limits of what we already know/ have experienced
• Biological approach and determinism/free will

  Hard determinism- environment influences biological structures, behaviour directed by innate desires
• Psychodynamic approach and determinism/free will

  Hard determinism- unconscious forces drive behaviour, free will is an illusion
• Humanistic approach and determinism/free will

  Free will- we are active agents who chose our own destiny