Behaviourists Approach

Psychology

Expectations

Introduction to Approaches

John Godfrey Saxe's Version of the Indian Legend

John Godfrey Saxe (1816-1887) presents a famous tale known as "It was six men of Indostan" which serves as an allegory illustrating different perspectives and interpretations. The story features six blind men who, independently observing an elephant, offer varying descriptions based on their limited sensory experiences. Their observations highlight the subjective nature of perception, as each man describes the elephant according to the part they touched:

  • The first man touches the elephant's side and proclaims it to be like a wall.
  • The second man feels the tusk and believes the elephant resembles a spear.
  • The third man encounters the trunk and asserts it looks like a snake.
  • The fourth man touches the knee and concludes it is similar to a tree.
  • The fifth man who feels the ear claims it resembles a fan.
  • The sixth man, by grasping the tail, describes the elephant as akin to a rope.

In the conclusion of the poem, it is revealed that despite each man being partially correct in their assertions, they all dispute vigorously, emphasizing that each was limited by their own experience and that collectively they were all wrong in understanding the full nature of the elephant.

Key Questions and Tasks

  • What was the point of the allegory?
  • Task: What's the image?

Depression

Historical Timeline of Psychology

  • 1879: Wilhelm Wundt opens the first Psychology laboratory, marking Psychology's emergence as a distinct discipline.
  • 1900: Sigmund Freud establishes the Psychodynamic approach, emphasizing the influence of the unconscious mind on behavior.
  • 1913: The Behaviorist approach is established, positing that all behavior is learned.
  • 1950: The Humanistic approach suggests behavior is not determined and emphasizes human free will.
  • 1960: The Cognitive approach focuses on the study of mental processes and infers the workings of the mind through laboratory experiments.
  • 1980: The Biological approach becomes dominant, utilizing MRI scans to enhance understanding of the brain.
  • 2000: Cognitive neuroscience emerges, integrating biological and cognitive approaches.

Learning Approaches

Introduction to Learning Approaches

  • Types of Learning Approaches:
    • Behaviourism
    • Social Learning Theory
    • Classical Conditioning
    • Operant Conditioning

The Behaviourist Approach

Key Principles of Behaviourism
  1. Behaviour is learned from experience.
  2. Only observable behavior is scientifically measurable; thus, researchers should focus on this and reject introspection.
  3. It is valid to study animal behaviour as they have similar learning processes to humans.
  4. Tabula Rasa: Humans are born as a "blank slate"; there are no predetermined influences on behavior.

Two Types of Behaviourism

  • Classical Conditioning: Associating an involuntary response with a stimulus.
  • Operant Conditioning: Associating a voluntary behavior with its consequences.

Classical Conditioning

Overview of Classical Conditioning

  • Scenario: Pavlov's research exemplifies classical conditioning, wherein he conditioned dogs to salivate in response to a bell by pairing the bell (neutral stimulus) with food (unconditioned stimulus).
Steps in Classical Conditioning

  1. Before Conditioning:

    • Food: Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)
    • Bell: Neutral Stimulus (NS)
    • Salivation: Unconditioned Response (UCR)

  2. During Conditioning:

    • Pairing Bell with Food leads to Salivation (UCR).

  3. After Conditioning:

    • Bell becomes the Conditioned Stimulus (CS) leading to Salivation (Conditioned Response - CR).

Supporting Research and Applications

  • Potential to explain learned phobias through classical conditioning processes.

Little Albert Experiment

  • Before Conditioning: Unconditioned Stimulus (loud noise) paired with a neutral stimulus (white rat) leading to a fear response (UCR).
  • After conditioning, the white rat (CS) results in a conditioned fear response (CR).

Applied Questions and Scenarios

Application: Jason’s Love for Strawberry Jelly

  • Jason associates strawberry jelly with positive experiences from childhood birthday parties, establishing it as a conditioned stimulus through classical conditioning techniques. The elements include:
    • Neutral Stimulus: Strawberry Jelly
    • Unconditioned Stimulus: Birthday Parties (providing happiness)
    • Unconditioned Response: Happiness from parties
    • Conditioned Response: Happiness associated with jelly after repeated exposure.

Evaluation of Classical Conditioning Knowledge

  • Detailed grading criteria assessing the knowledge and application of classical conditioning concepts and terminology.

Operant Conditioning

Principles of Operant Conditioning

  • Behavior is thought to be an active learning process involving consequences:
    • Positive Reinforcement: Rewards are offered to encourage behavior repetition.
    • Negative Reinforcement: Removing an unpleasant stimulus to promote behavior repetition.
    • Punishment: Implementing an unpleasant consequence to discourage behavior.

Teacher's Strategy in Operant Conditioning

  • Methods to reinforce homework completion:
    • Positive Reinforcement: Receiving a reward (£5) for completing work.
    • Negative Reinforcement: Avoiding the loss of £5 if work is completed.
    • Punishment: Penalization for non-completion (paying £5).

Evaluation of Operant Conditioning

  • Engage in discussions about the strengths and weaknesses of the operant conditioning approach to studying behavior.