The Perils of Obedience, By Stanley Milgram
Milgram The Perils of Obedience, By Stanley Milgram Obedience is as basic an element in the structure of social life as one can point to. Some system of authority is a requirement of all communal living, and it is only the person dwelling in isolation who is not forced to respond, with defiance or submission, to the commands of others. For many people, obedience is a deeply ingrained behaviour tendency, indeed a potent impulse overriding training in ethics, sympathy, and moral conduct. The dilemma inherent in submission to authority is ancient, as old as the story of Abraham, and the question of whether one should obey when commands conflict with conscience has been argued by Plato, dramatised in Antigone, and treated to philosophic analysis in almost every historical epoch. Conservative philosophers argue that the very fabric of society is threatened by disobedience, while humanists stress the primacy of the individual conscience. The legal and philosophic aspects of obedience are of enormous import, but they say very little about how most people behave in concrete situations. I set up a simple experiment at Yale University to test how much pain an ordinary citizen would inflict on another person simply because he was ordered to by an experimental scientist. Stark authority was pitted against the subjects' strongest moral imperatives against hurting others, and, with the
Outline and Evaluate the Biological, Psychodynamic and Cognitive Explanations of Abnormality
Outline and Evaluate the Biological, Psychodynamic and Cognitive Explanations of Abnormality The models of abnormality are theories that attempt to explain the cause of a psychological disturbance. Each model has a contrasting view which will mould further research and treatment approaches accordingly. All the models relate to the brain; however some psychologists believe that a disorder must originate from psychological causes, whilst others believe the disorder to be based on neuroanatomy and biochemicals (biological causes). Three of these main explanations are the biological, psychodynamic and cognitive approaches; each with its own treatment solutions, and strengths and limitations. The biological model is a theory most widely supported by medically trained psychiatrists. The belief is that a psychological disorder must stem from the biology of the brain; either the neuroanatomy (the anatomical organization of the nervous system) or the biochemistry (the chemical processes of the brain). In this way the disorder is treated like any other physical illness. For example, a patient presenting with severe chest pains and shortness of breath would be classified as having a cardiovascular problem, the underlying cause of the pains would be a blockage in the coronary artery preventing a sufficient oxygen supply to the heart, the treatment would be a coronary bypass, and the
Consider the Problems Faced by Psychologists in the Definition of Abnormality
Consider the Problems Faced by Psychologists in the Definition of Abnormality Abnormality is a term that is difficult to define due to the wide range of behaviours displayed by people. There are not a certain set of characteristics which can be directly related to abnormality, which could therefore be used to define abnormal behaviour. Because of this, each of the separate behaviours must be judged by an independent individual in order to decide whether it ought to be classed as abnormal or normal. However, the judgement made may be affected by a number of factors, most prominently cultural relativism. In an attempt to define abnormality psychologists have put forward four key ways of determining the difference between normal behaviour and deviations from this. These are statistical infrequency, deviation from social norms, deviations from ideal mental health, and a failure to function adequately. The first of the four definitions is statistical infrequency. This method of classification uses deviation from an average in numerical form to show the boundaries of abnormality. This is a way of measuring specific characteristics statistically. A normal distribution curve of a certain behaviour belonging to the population would be drawn, to show the population distribution- the highest percentage should be seen around the middle at the average, with decreasing percentages as
The contents of this essay will explain different psychological approaches to health and social practice
Leah Skinner100102206Donna Croasdale Applying Psychological Perspectives The contents of this essay will explain different psychological approaches to health and social practice; compare two psychological approaches to health and social care provision; and conclude with an evaluation of the two approaches. For numerous individuals, consuming alcohol is nothing more than a pleasant way to relax and socialise with relatives and companions. Individuals with alcohol use disorders, conversely, consume alcohol to excess, endangering both themselves and others. This essay will explain how differing psychological perspectives aid individuals with alcoholism and differing conditions to recover by applying the approaches. (American Psychological Association, 2012) Individuals with alcoholism (alcohol dependent) have lost reliable control of their alcohol use. It does not concern the type of alcohol and individual consumes, or the quantity in which they intake: Alcohol-dependent individuals frequently do not have the capability to stop drinking once they begin the consumption. Alcohol dependence is characterised by tolerance (the need to drink a greater quantity to achieve the same "high") and withdrawal symptoms if drinking is suddenly discontinued. (American Psychological Association, 2012) The Behaviourist Perspective and Health Care Practice The behaviourist perspective
Investigation to find out which gender is better at recognising faces
Abstract This investigation was carried out at St Mary's College, Blackburn by a student for his AS Coursework. The aim of the study was to find out weather gender has an effect on facial recognition. The experimental hypothesis for this experiment is females will be able to recognise celebrity faces more than men as females stereotypically have a better knowledge of the celebrity world and have greater interest in celebrity lives. Also the null hypothesis for this experiment is there will be no significant difference between whether males or females will be better at recognizing inverted celebrity faces as each human has its own knowledge about the celebrity world and each gender does not have the upper hand in recognizing them. The type of experiment method used to carry out this experiment is a field experiment which means it takes place in the participants' natural or normal environment. The natural environment for this experiment is the college canteen. The selection of my 20 participants was done using opportunity sampling. Opportunity sampling is extremely quick and economical. It is the most common method of sampling because it is convenient. The participant is selected and given a consent form which they read and then sign. When the participant is ready he/she is seated in a reserved seat and shown 14 pictures all on one page, consisting of 7 famous
Compare and contrast the main approaches - Biological and Behaviourist, biological and cognitive, Psychodynamic and Behaviourist.
Compare and Contrast the Psychodynamic and Cognitive approaches in terms of similarities and differences. [12 Marks] The cognitive and psychodynamic approaches have many similarities and differences; these include debates in nature and nurture, the usefulness of these approaches, deterministic and scientific/non scientific. The psychodynamic approach takes into account both nature and nurture, however the cognitive approach has failed to recognise the influence of nature and nurture. Freud claimed that adult personality is the product of innate drives (nature) and childhood experiences (nurture). These innate drives include the structure of the personality, Id, ego and superego as well as the psychosexual development every child passes through. If a child does not pass through these processes successfully it could lead to abnormalities in behaviour. The cognitive approach has carried out research into intelligence but has not looked at the influence of genes in its research or environmental factors (such as wealth) that could influence intelligence. Therefore this clearly indicates that both approaches are different in terms of nature and nurture. The cognitive approach is useful and has been applied successfully in therapy. As one of the core assumptions of the cognitive approach is that mental processes influence our behaviour, therefore if these process are
Discuss the range of methods available to the psychologist.
Discuss the range of methods available to the psychologist. (2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 3.2) Experiments are the only way that the cause and effect can be established. Experiments are different from non-experimental methods as they enable us to study cause and effect which allows for accurate control of variables, being the independent variable (IV) and the dependant variable (DV). Control is intended to isolate the key variable (IV) in order to examine the outcome with another variable (DV). In most cases the IV is thought of as the cause and the DV is the effect. One more variable to consider is the extraneous variable (EV). These are factors such as temperature, time of day, weather, and noisiness of environment. Sometimes not all EV's can be controlled and they then become confounding variables. This is thought to be the most fundamental problem in research as it leads to a lack of certainty in being able to determine cause and effect. An advantage of this is experiments can be repeated as the more times you carry out the same experiment, the more secure the experimenter feels that the theory is more reliable. It can be easily repeated as it consists of easily changing procedures and measures. Laboratory experiments are considered artificial as the participants are asked to perform unnatural experiments which do not resemble the way this behaviour occurs in real life. This means
Compare and Contrast the five main perspectives in psychology
In this assignment I will be describing the five major theoretical approaches to psychology. These are; Behaviorism, Biological, Cognitive, Humanist and Psychoanalytical. I will then attempt to compare and contrast them, and its practical application in modern psychology. The biological approach focuses on the biological underpinnings of behavior and the effects of evolution and genetics. The premise is that behavior and mental processes can be explained by understanding human physiology and anatomy. Biological psychologists focus mostly on the brain and the nervous system. It implies the use of 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. 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
EVALUATE THE MEDICAL MODEL AND THE BEHAVIOURAL MODEL OF ABNORMALITY
EVALUATE THE MEDICAL MODEL AND THE BEHAVIOURAL MODEL OF ABNORMALITY. The Biological Model: The Biological model also referred to as the medical, biomedical, physiological or somatic model of abnormality is probably the most interesting model of abnormal behaviour to understand. Within psychiatry it is by far the most influential theory in use in the western world today. The biological model assumes that the cause of mental disorders or illness is down to physical malfunctions of the brain and nervous system and that mental disorders or illness can be treated in the same way as a physical disease. As a result treatment can vary from drugs to surgery in order to solve the problem. Assuming that mental illness is a result of biological factors is not without its problems, as the classification of physical illnesses involves observation and measurement of actual symptoms such as broken bones, fever or blood pressure, whereas with mental illnesses the symptoms are much more subjective such as feelings of despair, lack of energy, hearing voices, mood swings and grandiose thoughts. These cannot be easily measured so a clinician/doctor must make a judgement based largely on experience and usually with the help of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of mental disorders. With the biological model doctors will usually diagnose the patient, giving some indication as to what is the
Abnormality Revision Guide
Defining Abnormality You need to know the four main definitions of abnormality: - 1. Statistical Infrequency: Any behaviour seen as statistically rare is considered abnormal. Did You Know? - This is a normal distribution curve which shows how regular something is amongst a lot of people. This specific graph shows a normal distribution curve for IQ, but this also reveals one of the problems with this definition, it doesn't distinguish between desirable or undesirable behaviour, so a high IQ is consider abnormal by the definition of statistical infrequency. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ : : What are the Advantages of this definition? : : high in reliability (able to repeat the study and gain same results) - is useful for certain situations, for example mental retardation - : : What are the Disadvantages of this definition? : : ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ - Not all abnormal behaviours (by this definition) are undesirable, e.g. high IQ - Some behaviours are quite common but they're not desirable, like mild depression. THINK ! - Does this mean mild depression is not abnormal? - Doesn't distinguish between desirable and undesirable behaviours - Culturally Relative (what is abnormal in what culture may be normal for another) - 2. Deviation From Social Norms: If you fail to adhere to the "norms" of society, you are seen as abnormal. Did You Know? - What is considered a crime
