EVALUATION - PAVLOV X SKINNER

PAVLOV STRENGTH

P - used experimental method

E - controlled conditions (e.g. dogs harnessed in lab) to discover possible casual relationship between IV and DV. By manipulating UCS and NS (IV) he was able to accurately measure effect on amount dog salivated (DV)

E - strength - allowed him to establish cause and effect between stimulus and response.

PAVLOV LIMITATION

P - animal studies

E - critics claim using dogs cannot reveal a lot about human behaviour. They claim that humans have free will - hence behaviour is not solely determined by association made between stimulus & response.

E - limitation - conclusion about classical conditioning might not provide valid explanation of all human behaviour. extrapolate findings from animals to humans with caution

PAVLOV LIMITATION

P - unethical

E - prior to experiment - surgery performed on dogs’ saliva glands so salivation was easy to measure. During experiment - strapped in harnesses so kept in same place for many hours at a time.

E - although BPS guidelines do not extend to animals, psychologists argue animals have rights and shouldn’t be subjected to such experiments especially as findings may not be representative of human behaviour.

However, others have argued that Pavlov’s research is acceptable - provided insight into role of classical conditioning on behaviour - such research on humans wouldn’t be accepted under BPS guidelines

SKINNER STRENGTH

P - experimental method

E - controlled conditions (Skinner box) to discover possible relationship between 2 or more variables. By manipulating consequence of behaviour (IV) he was able to accurately measure effect on rats behaviour (DV)

E - strength - allowed him to establish cause and effect relationship between the consequences of a behaviour (positive/negative) and future frequency of its occurrence

SKINNER LIMITATION

P - animal studies

E - critics claim his reliance on rats means his research reveals little about human behaviour. Unlike animals humans have free will and behaviour is not determined by positive/negative reinforcement in the same way.

E - Limitation - may not provide valid explanation for all human behaviour. However, skinner argued free will was merely an illusion and that all behaviour is a product of external influences so testing animals is a valid way to investigate human behaviour.

SKINNER LIMITATION

P - unethical

E - kept animals in small cages and subjected them to a range of different tests which would have caused them pain and anxiety, e.g. electric shocks

E - Limitation - although BPS guidelines do not extend to animals, psychologists argue animals have rights and shouldn’t be subjected to such experiments especially as findings may not be representative of human behaviour.

However, others have argued that Skinner’s research is acceptable - provided insight into role of operant conditioning on behaviour - such research on humans wouldn’t be accepted under BPS guidelines