Behaviourism

• Empiricism - The belief that all knowledge is derived from sensory experience. It is generally characterised by the use of the scientific method in psychology.
• Introspection - The process by which a person gains knowledge about his or her own mental and emotional states as a result of the examination or observation of their conscious thoughts and feelings.
• Scientific method - Refers to the use of investigative methods that are objective, systematic and replicable, and the formulation, testing and modification of hypotheses based on these methods,
• Behaviourist - People who believe that human behaviour can be explained in terms of conditioning, without the need to consider thoughts or feelings.
• Classical conditioning - When a neutral stimulus is consistently paired with an unconditioned stimulus so that it eventually takes on the properties of this stimulus and is able to produce a conditioned response
• Operant conditioning - Learning through reinforcement or punishment. If a behaviour is followed by a desirable consequence then that behaviour is more likely to occur again in the future.
• Punishment - Involves the application of an unpleasant consequence following a behaviour, with the result that the behaviour is less likely to occur again in the future.
• Reinforcement- Anything that strengthens a response and increases the likelihood that it will occur again in the future.