In this essay I am going to explore two of the major approaches to Psychology‚ Cognitive theories and Behaviourist theories. I will discuss in some detail the two approaches‚ state how they compare and illustrate the similarities and the differences between them. John Watson‚ one of the founders of Behaviourism‚ based his theories on the principles of learning outlined by Pavlov who suggested the theory known as Classical Conditioning; he trained dogs to salivate whenever he rang a bell
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Cognitive approach The cognitive approach focuses on the way information is processed by humans. It looks at how we as individuals treat information and how it leads to responses. Cognitive psychologists study internal processes such as attention‚ language‚ memory‚ thinking and perception. The main assumption of this approach is that in when information is received it is then processed by the brain and this processing directs how we as individuals behave or justify why we behave the way we
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This report will apply the behaviourist approach to a case study and demonstrate an understanding of the behaviourist approach. To apply the approach to Evan – a 17 year old – who spends most of his time playing video games in his room‚ the report will analyse and explain Evan’s behaviour and back it up with evidence. Evan’s parents have noticed a drastic change in Evan’s behaviour since playing video games. Evan has become irritable and even aggressive. He has also become withdrawn from his friends
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their goods and services. 3 Why are some entrepreneurs so much more successful than others in starting new ventures? Previous efforts to answer this question have generally focused either on the personality traits or susceptibility to various cognitive errors of individual entrepreneurs or on such external factors as the number of competing businesses. We suggest that entrepreneurs’ social skills--specific competencies that help them interact effectively with others--may also play a
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COGNITIVE A main strength of cognitive psychology is that this approach has tended to use a scientific approach through the use of laboratory experiments. A strength of using laboratory experiments is that they are high in control therefore researchers are able to establish cause and effect. For example Loftus and Palmer were able to control the age of the participants‚ the use of video and the location of the experiment. All participants were asked the same questions (apart from changes in the
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One strength of the Behaviourist Approach is that it is a scientific approach in that it has clear and measurable variables (stimulus‚ response and reinforcer) which allows scientific experiments to be conducted. For example‚ Skinner’s conducted an experiment to present operant conditioning where the independent variable was the reinforcer (food pellet) and the electric shock (punishment) and the dependent variable was the frequency of lever pressing. This is a strength as scientific experiments
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Behaviourist approach 1.a) Outline two assumptions of the Behaviourist approach [4 marks] One assumption of the behaviourist approach is classical conditioning‚ where behaviours are learnt through association. This assumption was developed by a psychologist called Pavlov‚ through his research into dogs. After conditioning the neutral stimulus (the bell)‚ it produced a conditioned response‚ (salivation). This is because the dog had associated the bell with food. Another assumption of the behaviourist
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“Rethinking Genre from a Sociocognitive Perspective” by Carol Berkenkotter and Thomas N. Huckin discusses genre theory. Berkenkotter and Huckin claim genres help professionals communicate with their peers‚ and genre knowledge is essential to professional success. The authors discuss their thesis statement‚ support their argument with several years of research‚ as well as identify five general principles of genre theory. Berkenkotter and Huckin acknowledge their work is not a fully developed sociocognitive
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Describe and evaluate the Behaviourist Approach The basic assumption of the behaviourist approach is that all behaviour is learned through experiences a person has in their environment. From this we know that behaviourists are on the side of nature in the “nature vs. nurture” debate. In comparison bio psychologists will be firmly on the side of nurture. There is also the argument between behaviourists to whether behaviour is learnt better through positive or negative reinforcement. Positive
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Describe and discuss the behaviourist approach in psychology The behaviourists are a school of psychology that believe that behaviour is learned. The behaviourists don’t believe that people have the innate desire to act in a certain way. They think we are born as a blank sheet that is then developed by life experiences. As we develop interactions and life lessons mould us into the person who we become. Behaviourists do not believe that behaviour has any contribution from biology. They dismiss
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