Behaviourist Perspective PDF

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These notes are all about the areas and perspectives in psychology. They link to component 2 and link to the issues and debates, as well as individual studies. ...

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Behaviourist Perspective This perspective believes that all behaviour is learnt and acquired through experience and interaction with the environment. It also argues that in order for psychology to be scientific it should focus on observable behaviour which can be objectively measured rather than on things like cognitive processes which can only be inferred as they cannot be seen directly. How a person is raised and what they learn from their surroundings is thought to be more important than the abilities that a person has inherited.

1. Principles and Concepts: 1. All behaviour is learnt and acquired through experience and interaction with the environment 2. Behaviourism is primarily concerned with observable behaviour, as opposed to internal events like thinking and emotion. Observable (i.e. external) behaviour can be objectively and scientifically measured 3. When born our mind is a blank slate 4. Behaviour is the result of stimulus – response (i.e. all behaviour, no matter how complex, can be reduced to a simple stimulus – response association) 5. Laws of learning are universal across all species 6. Classical and operant conditioning

Classical Conditioning - learning by association and refers to the conditioning of reflexes and involves associating a new stimulus with an innate bodily reflex. It involves pairing a response naturally caused by one stimulus with another, previously neutral stimulus. Conditioning of reflex-associating stimulus with innate bodily reflex. Operant Conditioning - consequences of behaviour shapes learning. Actions that lead to desirable consequences will be repeated; undesirable consequences reduce behaviour (law of effect). Skinner reduced reinforcement.

Pavlov’s dogs 1. 2. 3. 4.

Before conditioning - food  salivation Before conditioning - tuning fork  no salivation During conditioning - tuning fork + food  salivation After conditioning - tuning fork  salivation

Little Albert 1. 2. 3. 4.

Before conditioning - white rats  no response Before conditioning - loud noise  fear During conditioning - loud noise + white rat  fear After conditioning - white rat  fear

Positive Reinforcement - increases the likelihood of a response occurring because it involves a reward (added) for the behaviour   

The dog gets a treat for returning when called The child gets dessert for eating her vegetables The toddler gets picked up and comforted for screaming

Negative Reinforcement - increases the likelihood of a response occurring because it involves the removal of, or escaping from unpleasant consequences  

The car buzzer turns off when you put on your seatbelt The torture is stopped when the victim confesses

Positive Punishment - the consequence is receiving something unpleasant (added) which decreases the probability of the behaviour being repeated  

The driver’s speeding results in a ticket and a fine The baby’s hand is burned when she touches the hot stove

Negative Punishment - the consequence is removing something desirable and decreases probability of the behaviour being repeated  

Toys being taken away from a child when they throw a tantrum The child has his crayons taking away for fighting

Social Learning Theory - In society children are surrounded by many influential models, such as parents within the family, characters on children’s TV, friends within their peer group and teachers at school. These models provide examples of behaviour to observe and imitate. Observational learning involves being able to automatically learn behaviour from just being exposed to models, without the need for reinforcement. Imitation involves copying whole units of behaviour; the observer can duplicate what they have seen even if it consists of a quite complex series of actions. Vicarious reinforcement involves seeing another person being reinforced for a particular behaviour and therefore being more likely to produce the behaviour yourself.

2. Research to Illustrate the Area: Bandura (transmission of aggression) - Behaviourist because of the way it provides empirical support for social learning theory. This is shown through children imitating the aggressive behaviour of the role models that they observe. Bandura looked at the social learning theory. Chaney (Funhaler study) - Behaviourist because of the way it provides empirical support for operant conditioning (both positive and negative reinforcement). Results found increased adherence, due to the positive reinforcement provided by the Funhaler.

3. Strengths and Weaknesses of the Area: Strengths    

Scientific Nature debate Useful Ethical Issues

Weaknesses    

Reductionist Too deterministic Controlled methodology Lacks ecological validity

One strength of the behaviourist perspective is it has practical applications and therefore is very useful. Chaney’s research into the use of Funhaler demonstrated that there was a significant increase in the adherence to medicating asthmatic children when the Funhaler was used and thus the children was positively reinforced, compared to the standard inhaler. This is a strength because the development of programmes based on operant conditioning is beneficial for both individuals and society, particularly if linked to improving health and it will also stimulate further research into the effectiveness of treatments. Another strength of the behaviourist perspective is it is very scientific as the aim is to operationalise the behaviours that are being observed to produce objective data. Bandura’s research method operationalised aggression to objectively measure it and they counted the number of times verbal and physical aggression occurred. This is a strength because taking a scientific approach to studying human behaviour increases the credibility of psychology as the findings are more objective, thus ensuring that the findings and applications are seen as useful. One weakness of the behaviourist perspective is that it is very deterministic as it suggests that if the environment provides certain conditions for learning that will act accordingly without free will. Bandura’s study investigated the effects of seeing an aggressive model or a non-aggressive model and his findings suggested that aggressive

tendencies are not chosen; instead they are determined by being exposed to aggression as significantly more aggression was displayed by the children who had witnesses the aggressive model. This is a weakness because it may limit the ability to hold people responsible for actions as their behaviour is seen as determined by their environment rather than being their choice. This may also provide people with an excuse for any negative behaviours. Another weakness of the behaviourist perspective is that it is very reductionist as it believes that all behaviour is shaped by the environment. It fails to consider the role of biology or cognitive processes in causing behaviour. Chaney’s study saw that the increase in adherence seen when using the Funhaler has been reduced to a simple stimulus-response relationship, shaped by the environment. This ignores any cognitive factors that may have caused the children to take their asthma medication. This is a weakness because any behavioural treatments that are developed may not be wholly effective as all the factors influencing behaviour may not have been identified in the research.

4. Applications of the Area Systematic Desensitisation - Based on classical conditioning. Removes the fear response of a phobia, and substitute a relaxation response to the conditional stimulus gradually using counter conditioning. In vitro - the client imagines exposure to the phobia stimulus In vivo - the client is actually exposed to the phobic stimulus 1. Deep muscle relaxation techniques 2. Fear hierarchy 3. Work through fear hierarchy whilst using relaxation techniques

Aversion Therapy - Based on classical conditioning. Associate stimuli and behaviour with a very unpleasant unconditional stimulus, such as an electric shock. Patient learns to associate the undesirable behaviour with the electric shock, and a link is formed between the undesirable behaviour and the reflex response to an electric shock. Alcoholism: a sip of alcohol while under the effect of a nausea-inducing drug so sipping the drink is followed almost at once by vomiting. In future the smell of alcohol produces a memory of vomiting and should stop the patient wanting a drink.

5. Exam Questions on this Area Outline one principle/concept of the behaviourist perspective area to psychology [2 marks] One principle of the behaviourist perspective is that all behaviour is learnt and acquired through experience and interaction with the environment. This means you are born as a blank space and you learn your behaviour from people around you and things you witness. Outline how Casey et al’s study links to the behaviourist perspective area to psychology [4 marks] Casey’s study links to the biological perspective because it involves trying to see whether there is a neutral basis to self-regulation. This is done through fMRI scans of people who, forty years previously, had taken part in the delay of gratification test. This links to the behavioural perspective as one of the principles is that our mind is a blank state when we’re born.

6. Debates that link to the Area Debate Nature or Nurture Freewill or Deterministic Reductionist or Holistic Individual or Situational Useful Ethical Socially Sensitive Research

Which Side? Both Deterministic Reductionist Situational Yes Yes Yes-ish

Why?

Study Link

Scientific

Yes...