Full Approaches

What is the biological approach?

An approach that explains behaviour through physical factors, such as genes, hormones, brain structure and brain chemistry.

What are the key assumptions of the biological approach?

Behaviour has a physical basis; the brain and nervous system influence behaviour; behaviour can be inherited; behaviours may have evolved to aid survival; and scientific methods are important.

What is natural selection?

Individuals with genetic variations that improve survival and reproduction are more likely to pass these genes on. Over generations, advantageous traits become more common.

What is evolutionary psychology?

The application of evolutionary theory to explain human behaviour, suggesting that some behaviours evolved because they helped our ancestors survive or reproduce.

What is genotype?

An individual's genetic makeup.

What is phenotype?

Observable characteristics or behaviours resulting from the interaction between genotype and the environment.

How can the environment influence phenotype?

Environmental factors can affect whether a genetic predisposition is expressed. For example, a person may have genes associated with musical ability, but access to instruments and teaching can influence its development.

What is biological preparedness?

An inherited predisposition to develop certain responses, such as fears of threats that may have endangered our ancestors.

What is the nervous system?

The body's electrochemical communication system. Neurons transmit signals between the brain, spinal cord and the rest of the body.

What does the biological approach mean by determinism?

The idea that behaviour is determined by biological factors, potentially limiting free will and personal responsibility.

What did Charles Darwin (1809–1882) argue?

Genetic variations that help individuals survive and reproduce are more likely to be passed on, so advantageous traits become more common over time.

How does the example of giraffes illustrate natural selection?

Giraffes with longer necks could reach more food, helping them survive and reproduce. They passed on their genes, making longer necks more common.

How did Cosmides and Tooby (1992) contribute to the biological approach?

They applied evolutionary theory to psychology, helping develop evolutionary explanations of behaviour.

How does Seligman explain common phobias?

Fears of snakes, spiders, heights and similar threats may reflect biological preparedness because these could have endangered our ancestors.

What is one criticism of evolutionary explanations?

They may rely on inferences about ancestral environments rather than directly testable evidence, leaving explanations open to speculation and researcher bias.

What did Lacy and Ocobock (2021) argue?

They challenged gendered assumptions in hunter-gatherer research, including the assumption that men hunted while women gathered. They argued that evidence did not justify automatically attributing tools and weapons to men.

How can twin studies support the biological approach?

Researchers compare the prevalence of a disorder in identical and non-identical twins. Findings can provide evidence for genetic influences on behaviour.

How has biological research contributed to depression treatment?

It has contributed to drug treatments such as SSRIs, which affect serotonin signalling and can help treat depression.

AO3: Why is the biological approach considered scientific?

It uses objective, measurable methods such as brain scans, genetic testing and biochemical analysis. These can reduce researcher bias and improve the reliability of findings.

AO3: Why can evolutionary psychology lack scientific credibility?

Some explanations rely on assumptions about ancestral environments that cannot be directly tested or observed. This can make them speculative and difficult to falsify.

AO3: Why is the biological approach reductionist?

It can oversimplify complex behaviour by explaining it solely through genes, brain structure or neurochemistry. For example, explaining depression only through serotonin ignores cognitive, social and environmental influences.

AO3: What is a practical strength of the biological approach?

Biological research has contributed to treatments for mental health conditions, including SSRIs for depression. This demonstrates the practical value of understanding biological mechanisms.

AO3: How can family and twin studies support the biological approach?

They can provide evidence for genetic influences by comparing how frequently behaviours or disorders occur among relatives with different degrees of genetic similarity.

AO3: Why is biological determinism a weakness?

It can underestimate free will and personal responsibility by suggesting that biological factors determine behaviour.

AO3: What ethical issues can biological research raise?

Brain scans and genetic tests can raise concerns about consent, privacy and the potential misuse of personal biological data.

AO3: Why might the biological approach underestimate the environment?

It focuses on genetic and biological influences, potentially overlooking upbringing and life experiences that also affect behaviour.

AO3: Why might the biological approach struggle to explain individual differences?

People with similar biological characteristics may behave differently, suggesting that biological factors alone cannot explain all behaviour.

AO3: How does the biological approach link to other disciplines?

It connects psychology with medicine and genetics and has contributed to cognitive neuroscience, encouraging interdisciplinary research.

What is cognitive neuroscience?

It investigates the neurobiological basis of thought processes and psychological disorders, combining cognitive psychology with neuroscience.

What does an fMRI scan measure?

Changes in blood flow in the brain, showing which areas become active during specific tasks.

What does a PET scan measure?

Activity in different brain areas by tracking radioactive markers.

What did Blakemore (1988) learn from studying Clive Wearing?

Damage to Wearing's hippocampus helped demonstrate the hippocampus's role in transferring information from short-term memory to long-term memory.

Which brain areas are associated with OCD

The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and caudate nucleus. Increased activity in these areas may help explain obsessive thoughts and behaviours.

AO3: How does neuroplasticity support interactionism?

The brain can change in response to learning, education and rehabilitation. This shows that experiences can alter the brain, so biology does not completely determine behaviour.

AO3: What is a limitation of brain imaging?

Brain scans can show an association between brain activity and behaviour, but cannot always establish that the activity causes the behaviour.

AO3: What ethical issue could arise from using fMRI for lie detection?

It could threaten privacy and informed consent, and brain activity patterns may not reliably indicate whether someone is lying.

Which approach assumes biological determinism?

Biological

Which approach assumes environmental determinism?

Behaviourist

Which approach assumes psychic determinism?

Psychodynamic

Which approaches assume soft determinism?

SLT and cognitive

Which approach assumes free will?

Humanistic

Which approach is nature-focused?

Biological

Which approaches are nurture-focused?

Behaviourist and SLT (humanistic is mostly nurture)

Is the psychodynamic approach nature or nurture?

Mostly nature - shaped by childhood experience

Which approach is interactionist?

Cognitive

What type of reductionism does the biological approach show?

Biological reductionism

What type of reductionism does behaviourism show?

Environmental reductionism

What type of reductionism does the cognitive approach show?

Machine reductionism

Which approach is holistic?

Humanistic

Which approaches are nomothetic?

Biological - behaviourist - SLT

Which approach is idiographic?

Humanistic

Which approaches use both nomothetic and idiographic methods?

Cognitive and psychodynamic

Which approaches are scientific?

Biological and behaviourist and mostly SLT and cognitive

Which approaches are not scientific?

Psychodynamic and humanistic

What does a comparison PEEL begin with?

A key similarity or difference linked to a debate

What should every comparison paragraph include?

Both approaches

What should a comparison Link explain?

Why the difference matters

How do comparison AO3 paragraphs differ from normal ones?

They compare positions on debates rather than evaluating one approach

How are the 16 marks split in an approaches essay?

AO1: 6 marks - AO3: 10 marks

What do you outline for outline one approach and compare it with another?

Only the named approach

What do you outline for compare and contrast two approaches?

Both approaches briefly

How many comparison PEEL paragraphs are needed?

Three

What is a good comparison point for psychodynamic versus humanistic?

Determinism versus free will

What is a good comparison point for biological versus behaviourist?

Both are deterministic but the causes are biological versus environmental

What implication do both deterministic approaches share?

Reduced personal responsibility which is relevant to the legal system

What does RIA stand for?

Research - Issues and debates - Application or alternative

What does PEEL stand for?

Point - Evidence - Explain - Link

Why must AO3 apply to the approach and not just one study?

Marks reward evaluation of the approach's overall valu

What is the cognitive approach?

An approach that explains behaviour by studying internal mental processes, such as memory, perception, thinking and problem-solving.

What are internal mental processes?

The mental activities involved in perceiving, storing, manipulating and interpreting information.

What is a schema?

A mental framework that organises information and helps us interpret the world quickly.

What are the benefits of schemas?

They help us process information quickly without becoming overwhelmed by individual details.

What are the disadvantages of schemas?

They can contain unconscious biases or negative beliefs, leading to inaccurate interpretations and irrational thinking.

What is the computer analogy?

The idea that human information processing is similar to a computer: both receive input, process and store information, and produce output.

What are theoretical models?

Simplified representations, often flow diagrams, used to explain and test ideas about internal mental processes.

What is inference?

Drawing conclusions about unobservable mental processes from observable evidence and results.

Why does the cognitive approach use inference?

Internal mental processes cannot be directly observed, so psychologists infer how they work from people's behaviour and performance.

What are the stages of the computer analogy?

Input → processing → storage → output.

How does the computer analogy explain human behaviour?

Sensory information provides input; the brain processes and stores information; thinking and behaviour provide output.

Give an example of a schema.

A dog schema helps someone recognise different breeds, such as Chihuahuas and Great Danes, as dogs.

How can schemas lead to unconscious bias?

A schema may associate a job, such as cleaner, with a particular gender, causing someone to make biased assumptions without realising it.

How can a negative self-schema affect thinking?

If someone believes they are useless, this schema can encourage negative, irrational thoughts and an inaccurate view of the world.

What is machine reductionism?

Reducing complex human thought to simplified machine-like processes, such as input, processing, storage and output.

What did Peterson and Peterson investigate?

How long information can remain in short-term memory when rehearsal is prevented.

What was the method?

24 participants attempted to recall three-letter trigrams, such as XRT, while counting backwards in threes to prevent rehearsal. Each completed six trials.

What were trigrams?

Short combinations of three letters, such as XRT, used as material to remember.

What did Peterson and Peterson find?

Participants could retain information in short-term memory for approximately 18–30 seconds when rehearsal was prevented.

What does Peterson and Peterson's study support?

It supports explanations of memory that distinguish short-term retention from rehearsal and transfer into long-term memory.

Why is Peterson and Peterson's research a strength of the cognitive approach?

It used controlled laboratory conditions and a measurable memory task, allowing researchers to investigate internal processes scientifically through participants' performance.

AO3: Why is inference a weakness of the cognitive approach?

Mental processes cannot be directly observed, so psychologists infer how they work from behaviour and test results. These conclusions may involve guesswork or researcher bias, meaning they could be inaccurate.

AO3: How might inference affect conclusions about short-term memory?

Poor recall after 30 seconds might indicate that information was lost, but it could also reflect difficulty reporting it. Therefore, the inference about the underlying mental process may not be completely valid.

AO3: Why is the cognitive approach still considered scientific?

It uses controlled laboratory experiments, measurable tasks and replication. Theoretical models also generate ideas that researchers can test, although inferences remain a limitation.

AO3: Why is the computer analogy a weakness?

Computers do not experience emotions in the way humans do. Factors such as anxiety can affect human processing, so the analogy may oversimplify thought.

AO3: What is machine reductionism?

Explaining complex human thought through simplified computer-like operations, potentially ignoring emotional and other influences on behaviour.

AO3: What is a practical application of the cognitive approach?

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) helps people identify and challenge negative or irrational thinking patterns.

AO3: Why is CBT an important strength?

Your notes describe CBT as an evidence-based treatment offered on the NHS. It has been used to help people manage conditions including depression and OCD by changing unhelpful thought patterns.

AO3: How does the cognitive approach have interdisciplinary value?

It contributed to cognitive neuroscience, which combines cognitive explanations with the biological study of the brain.

AO3: Why might the cognitive approach lack ecological validity?

Some findings come from artificial laboratory tasks, such as remembering letter trigrams, which may not reflect how memory operates in everyday life.

AO3: How does the cognitive approach compare with behaviourism?

The cognitive approach investigates inferred internal mental processes, whereas behaviourism focuses on observable behaviour. Cognitive explanations consider thinking but rely on inference.

What is the behaviourist approach?

An approach that explains behaviour through learning from the environment via classical and operant conditioning.