Outline the major theoretical perspectives in psychology and evaluate two of these paridigms.

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OUTLINE THE MAJOR THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES IN PSYCHOLOGY AND EVALUATE TWO OF THESE PARADIGMS.

INTRODUCTION

In this assignment I will be describing the five major schools of psychological research. These are Behaviourism, Biological, Cognitive, Humanist and Psychoanalytical. I will then attempt to evaluate the pros, cons and practical applications of the Behaviourist and Psychodynamic approaches.

 

BEHAVIOURISM

The earliest origins of behaviourism can be stemmed from the philosopher John Locke (1632-1704). He believed that the human being is born as a ‘tabula rasa’. This

effectively means a neonate is a blank slate with no prior knowledge or ideas.

According to Locke it is experience through senses, which provides the mind.

The modern founding father of behaviourism is John Watson (1878-1958). He believed that Ψ should be about the study of observable behaviour and that behaviour is moulded by experience.

Behaviourists believe that however complex a piece of behaviour might be, it is possible to break it down and analyse it in basic STIMULUS-RESPONSE units. This theory also relates to Reductionism, where psychologists attempt to understand behaviour by looking at the most basic parts.  This S-R theory can be best demonstrated in the work of a Russian psychologist called Pavlov (1849-1936). His theory of Classical Conditioning centred on his study of dogs and his attempt to artificially condition a natural response. The sight/smell of food leading to salivation is an unconditioned S-R. He introduced a neutral stimulus when food was presented so the dogs associated the two. After this conditioning was complete the dog salivated when presented with the neutral stimulus alone (see fig. 1).

Another area of behaviourism involves Skinner (1904-1990) and his theory of Operant Conditioning. He used rats put into a small maze to investigate his ideas. Rewards were placed at certain points around the maze to reinforce the rat’s behaviour towards that particular route. After this conditioning process the rat’s behaviour was reinforced to the extent that it was able to complete the maze on upon entering (see fig.2). He believed that all behaviour is learned not reflex or innate.

BIOLOGICAL OR NEURO-BIOLOGICAL

As the name implies this school of thought uses biology as a means of describing and explaining psychological functioning. They believe our behaviour is linked to the processes in our physiological make-up. The functions of the brain, nervous and hormonal systems are key to their research.

The origins of this approach can be traced back to the Greek physician Galen, who believed that the levels of such fluids as blood and bile affected our temperament and personality. But it has only been in the last hundred years or so that this perspective has gained momentum. This is due to technology and our better understanding of the human body. As our understanding of the brain and associated systems continues to evolve so will the ideas and theories of this paradigm.

One aspect of this approach is the notion of Reductionism (also used by Behaviourists). This is where area of research is broken down into basic forms or units. From the biological perspective it sees nerve activity, muscle movements and neuro-chemical processes as an understanding of psychological functioning.

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There have been numerous research studies in this field. I will outline some of the major ones. One of the earliest examples is by a doctor Broca (1861). In a post mortem he discovered that a specific area of the brain was responsible for the subjects inability to speak. This gave evidence to a localisation of brain functions, which corresponded to the view that behaviour had a physiological influence.

Lashley investigated memory and learning in the 1920’s where he used a technique called ablation on rats. This involved removing part of the cortex in the brain of the ...

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This is a difficult essay to write since there is such a lot to cover. Because of this the writer has to summarise the approaches within a word limit without losing the central ideas. Less time could have been spent on summarising the different approaches and more time could have been spent on the two theories of choice. However, the writer has covered in some detail all the approaches suggesting that there is a great deal of understanding. Learning to precis work and to summarise theories perhaps needs more practice. Writing a plan in future might help to structure the work better. 3 *