Behaviourist Approach

Assumptions of Behaviourist Approach

1. Our behaviour is shaped by learning from our environment

2. NURTURE side

3. For psych to be scientific, should focus on observable behaviour that can be objectively measured

4. Lab experiments best way to objectively measure observable behaviour

What do behaviourists study?

Changes in behaviour that are caused by a person’s direct experience of their environment, using the principles of classical & operant conditioning

What is classical conditioning and who discovered it?

Learning through association, discovered by Ivan Pavlov

• Neutral stimulus consistently paired w. unconditioned stimulus so it eventually takes on the properties of this stimulus & is able to produce a conditioned response

Process of classical conditioning

1. UCS (food) elicits UCR (salivating dog)

2. Acquisition phase where NS (bell) presented before UCS ; no response elicited

3. NS (bell) + UCS (food) elicits UCR (salivating dog)

   • Consistent pairing of NS + UCS needs to occur for step 4.

4. CS (bell) now elicits CR (salivating dog)

Other features of Classical Conditioning

1. Timing

   • If NS occurs after UCS or time interval too big, conditioning doesn’t occur

2. Extinction

   • CS eventually loses ability to produce CR in absence of UCS. CR not perm. established

3. Spontaneous Recovery

   • Post (2) if CS + UCS, link between them made much quicker

4. Stimulus generalisation

   • Once animal conditioned, responds to other stimuli similar to CS

What is operant conditioning and who proposed the theory?

Learning through reinforcement/ punishment or consequences. Discovered by Skinner

• If a behaviour is followed by a desired consequence, then that behaviour is more likely to occur again

Skinner’s box study

• Every time rat presses lever within box, was rewarded w. a food pellet

  • From then, animal will continue its behaviour

• If food pellets stops, rat presses lever few more times before abandoning it

  • Extinction

• Showed how rats could be conditioned to perform same behaviour to avoid unpleasant situations (hunger)

Positive Reinforcement

Adding something pleasant as a reward in order to increase behaviour

• Produces satisfying / pleasant consequence for organism

• Reinforces particular behaviour, so it is more likely to occur in the future

Negative reinforcement

Remove something unpleasant to increase behaviour

Positive punishment

Adding something unpleasant in order to decrease behaviour e.g. adding detention

Negative punishment

Removing something pleasant to decrease behaviour

What are the 2 types of Schedules of Reinforcement?

Continuous Reinforcement

• Desired behaviour reinforced every time it occurs

• Can cause behaviour to be extinct

Variable Ratio

• Behaviour is reinforced part of the time

• More effective at maintaining response & avoiding extinction

  • Prolonged conditioned behaviour

DIS1: Environmental Determinism

P: Limitation is that it sees all behaviour conditioned by past conditioning experiences

Ev: Skinner suggested everything we do is sum total of our reinforcement. When something happens, we think we made the decision to do it ; Skinner says our past conditioning history determines outcomes

Ex: This means that, it ignores any possible influence free will may have on behaviour.

L: Therefore, this is an extreme position & ignores influence of conscious decision making processes on behaviour.

AD1: Real World Application

P: Strength is its principles of conditioning have been applied to real-world behaviours & problems

Ex: O.C. is basis of token economy systems that are used successfully in institutions e.g. prisons & psychiatric wards. Appropriate behaviour is rewarded w. tokens that can be exchanged for privileges

Ex: Treating phobias via C.C.; S.D. is process of learning new association between stimulus & fear response

L: This increases value of behaviourist approach because it has widespread application

DIS2: Ethical Issue

P: Limitation is ethical issues associated w. how experiments were carried out

Ev: Skinner locked his participants & tactically teased them w. concept of food. Lack of consent, lack of ability to withdraw, and no protection from harm

Ex: This means that the ways in which the experiments were carried out were unethical

L: Therefore, this highlights the ethical dilemma in psych between gaining knowledge & ensuring humane treatment of respect

AD2: Well-Controlled Research

P: Strength is this approach is based on well-controlled research

Ex: They focused on measuring observable behaviour within highly controlled lab settings. As behaviour was broken down into basic stimulus response units, extraneous variables were removed, so cause-&-effect relationships could be established

Ev: Skinner able to demonstrate clearly how reinforcement influenced animals’ behaviour

L: Suggests that behaviourist experiments have scientific credibility

CA to AD2: Too simple

• Behaviourists may have oversimplified learning by overlooking role of human thought.

• SLT & Cognitive approaches highlight importance of mental processes. suggesting learning is more complex than just observable behaviour