Evolution, what, and any evidence is there?
Opening In this case study I will be writing about evolution and, what, if any evidence there is. I chose this topic of science because im interested in how our species came about and how it’s been changed from theory to theory, and how it’s still being challenged. This, I hope, will interest and reading group of KS4. This may or may not help them with there GCSEs and revision. After they have read my case study, I hope they will make up there own minds using the for and against evidence presented. I will also so show my own opinion at the end of the study along with a conclusion for for and against, I will also compare the sources that I present and evaluate them to see if they are backing up their claims. Arguments for. A general explanation of how scientists think it works. This is an opening and explanation of evolution from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_evolutionary_synthesis#The_modern_synthesis “The modern evolutionary synthesis (also referred to as the new synthesis, the modern synthesis, the evolutionary synthesis and the neo-Darwinian synthesis) is a union of ideas from several biological specialties which forms a logical account of evolution. This synthesis has been accepted by nearly all working biologists.[1] The synthesis was produced over about a decade (1936–1947), and the development of population genetics (1918–1932) was the
Evolution. This issue report will aim to address the Theory of Evolution by explaining key concepts and ideas in an informative and unbiased way. It will set forth to describe the theory, by highlighting its main components,
Evolution Candidate Number: **** [An insight into the controversial issue of evolution.] Deadline: 24th April '09 Edexcel GCE Biology Introduction This issue report will aim to address the Theory of Evolution by explaining key concepts and ideas in an informative and unbiased way. It will set forth to describe the theory, by highlighting its main components, and also touching upon significant moments in time that shaped the modern Theory. I will be identifying the problem/s biologists have in regard to this issue, and the measures they are taking to produce an effective solution. Problem The problem biologists are struggling to solve is the full establishment of the Theory of Evolution as an accepted fact throughout the global population. And that is why the scientific community is determined to enlighten everyone with their own understanding. On a near global scale, the Theory of Evolution has become a default ideology that defines the existence of life. It is defined as scientific and logical, and it has become extremely dominant due to the many biologists who agree with it because of its simplicity, in terms of understanding the basic concept. It is taught as a standard in educational facilities, and therefore cannot be disputed. The problem with this issue is that while calling it a 'Theory', the majority of proponents consider it as solid fact. They are convinced
Freud and Behaviourist's Theories
Freud and Behaviourist's Theories In the late 19th and early 20th Century, there were many important theories developed explaining, or trying to explain, human behaviour and personality development. In this essay, I aim to compare and contrast the Freudian Theory and the Theories of the Behaviourists. These were some of the main theories constructed with aims at looking at the way our behaviour is, or isn't, controlled by our personality. The way I have decided to structure this essay is to firstly describe each theory separately. I will make my comparisons between the two theories and finally I will conclude with some criticisms aimed at each theory. Sigmund Freud (1856 - 1939) dedicated his life to developing his 'Psychoanalytic Theory'. This theory comprises of several different factors; each one contributing to our mental make up, thus governing our actions, thoughts and behaviour. He completed the theory in 1926, at the age of 70, although he continued to re-present it, rethink its implications and apply it in new ways until his death. (Padel, 1987.) One of the factors making up his theory was the 'levels of mind'. Freud said that it was as if the mind was separated into three sections. These sections being the 'conscious' mind, the 'pre-conscious' mind and the 'unconscious mind'. The first section, the conscious mind, being our awake state or our state of
Cultural bias in psychological theories
Cultural bias in psychological theories Many psychological theories are hampered by cultural bias, which can ultimately negate their validity. Cultural bias can appear in two forms; ethnocentrism and eurocentrism. Ethncocentrism refers to the use of our own cultural group to make judgements about other groups. We tend to view the beliefs, customs and behaviours of our own cultural group as normal or even superior, and those of other groups as strange or deviant. Eurocentrism is a particular form of ethnocentrism wereby psychologists place an emphasis on european (or western) ideas at the expense of those of other cultures. Western researc is then applied to other cultures to create a universal view of human behaviour. Mogaddam has suggested that 'economic' theories of relationships such as Thiabut and Kelly's social exchange theory and walster's equity theory only apply to western relationships and even then only to short term relationships among those with high mobility. Such theories only reflect characteristics of individualist socieites whereby members are concerned with their own success (therefore their profit and loss in relationships). Conversely, collectivist societies strive towards the success of the group as a whole, thus profit and loss and equity in relationships are less important. In social psychology many theories eg those by walster and thiabut and kelly
Piaget's and Freud's Child development theories
In the mid twentieth century the interest in child development grew, more in-depth research took place and a large number of theories arose .Two theorists that had great impact on child development in this era were Jean Piaget and Sigmund Freud. Jean Piaget's research is centered around life stages of cognitive developmental theory, also how children adapt to their environment with the use of schemas, accommodation and assimilation. Like Piaget, Freud also developed a process, which involved stages of development called psychosexual theory. Psychosexual theory centered on the sexual drive and consists of 5 stages of development in children. Freud also divided the mind into three personality parts the id, ego and super ego; these become integrated into the 5 stages of psychosexual development. (Berk, 2009) Jean Piaget was born in 1896 in Neuchatel, Switzerland. Piaget was an intelligent child who took an interest in biology and the natural world at a young age. After Graduating Piaget went on to teach at Grange- Aux-Belles Street School for Boys, Where he worked along side the creator of the Binet Intelligence Test, Alfred Binet. Piaget discovered while marking the Binet Intelligence Test, young children were making wrong answers on certain questions that older children and adults did not. This lead to Piaget's research into young child development. (Vialle & Verenikina,
Compare and Contrast two theories of Bystander Behaviour
Compare and Contrast two theories of Bystander Behaviour "A man approached the gates of heaven and asked to be admitted. 'Tell me one good thing you have ever done in your life', said St Peter. 'Well', said the man. 'I saw a group of skinheads harassing an elderly lady and so I went over and kicked the leader in the shin'. Impressed, St Peter asked when this act of bravery had occurred. 'About 40 seconds ago,' came the response." (Cardwell, Clark & Meldrum 2001) Bystander apathy (effect) can be defined as a tendency for people to more likely act in an emergency or come to the aid of other when they are alone, or conversely, the lesser likelihood of an observer to help people in trouble if other people are present. (Corsini 1999). There have been many theories surrounding bystander behaviour; two prominent examples are Latané and Darley's (1970) Cognitive model and Piliavin et al.'s (1981) Bystander-calculus model. These theories have been widely discussed and have many similar and contrasting ideas. Latané and Darley's cognitive model of bystander behaviour is considered a classic theory in psychology; it uses a five stage model to show that bystander intervention depends on the outcomes of a series of decisions. These stages progress from whether the bystander notices the incident to determining whether their intervention would put them in danger. The model argues that
Outline and evaluate two social psychological theories of aggression
Outline and evaluate two social psychological theories of aggression. (24 marks) Bandura believed that the potential for aggression may be biological, but the expression of aggression is learned. The social-learning theory (SLT) states that learning occurs through observation of a model. Imitation of an observed behaviour is more likely if the model is someone we aspire to or identify with or if they are rewarded. This is vicarious reinforcement. A child forms a mental representation of an event, including the possible rewards or punishments of the behaviour. When a child imitates an aggressive behaviour, they gain direct experience, and the outcome of the behaviour influences the value of aggression for the child. If they are rewarded they are more likely to repeat the behaviour. Children develop self-efficacy, which is confidence in their ability to successful carry out a behaviour. If aggressive behaviour is unsuccessful for a child, they will have a lower sense of self-efficacy so are less likely to behave this way in future. There is strong empirical evidence to support the SLT. For example, Bandura's Bobo doll studies found that children who observed a model behaving aggressively to the Bobo doll behaved more aggressively than those who observed a non-aggressive model and also imitated specific aggressive acts. This supports the theories claims that behaviour can be
Compare and contrast the development theories of Piaget, Bruner and Vygotsky
Compare and contrast the development theories of Piaget, Bruner and Vygotsky Child development has been an area of study that has attracted an enormous amount of interest and debate since the last century. Jean Piaget (1886 - 1980) pioneered the theory of cognitive development and has possibly been one of the most influential figures within this area. However, the work of Lev Vygotsky (1896 - 1934) and Jerome Bruner has been paramount in discrediting a lot of the work carried out by Piaget. However, it should be remembered that Piaget has influenced education in many ways. His theories and studies show that knowledge is acquired by active exploration and many of his theories are still being used within the education system today. This essay will compare and contrast the development theories of Piaget, Vygotsky and Bruner. Analysing the theories of each, and whilst not arguing that one theory is truer than the other, discovering the comparisons between the three through evidence and facts, gained through a variety of sources and asking questions of each theory throughout. Vygotsky's theoretical framework is that social interaction plays a fundamental role in the development of cognition. He believed that cognitive development is a result of others transmitting rules and norms to children. Every function in the child's cultural development appears twice, first on the social
Outline the theories Malthus and Boserup on impacts of population growth.
Outline the theories Malthus and Boserup on impacts of population growth Thomas Robert Malthus and Ester Boserup had individual theories on population growth. Malthus Thomas Malthus was born in 1766 near London and worked as a clergyman along with being a professor. He also had strict religious views. He wrote an essay on 'The Principle of Population'. This essay was based on a theory of population growth. Thomas Malthus based his theory on two principles * In the absence of any checks, human population has the potential to row at a geometric rate (2, 4, 8, 16, 32, and so on). In other words, populations can double every 25 years * Even in the most favorable circumstances, agricultural production can only be expected to increase at an arithmetic rate (1, 2, 3, 4, and so on) These two principles together made Malthus notice that something had to be done to keep the population in check to prevent wholesale starvation. Malthus said that there were only two kinds of checks that limited population growth; Preventative Checks - these are to reduce birth rate. Positive Checks - these are to increase the death rate Malthus had several ways of doing this. Preventative checks, the ways of doing this were; Moral Restraint, the aim of this one was that if you had a smaller family then when wealth was distributed it would be in larger amounts for each family member
Discuss one or more theories of Moral Understanding and evaluate its conclusions.
Discuss one or more theories of the development of moral understanding and evaluate its conclusions. The term morality, according to Shaffer (1993) means "a set of principles or ideals that help the individual to distinguish right from wrong and to act on this distinction. Morality is important to society, as it would not function effectively unless there is some agreement of what is right and wrong. There are many underlying processes and environmental factors, which limit or promote social, cognitive and moral development in children. In modern society, television could be considered to be one of the major influences on a child's moral development. There are three approaches to moral development; the cognitive approach, the psychodynamic approach and the social learning theory. The Cognitive-Developmental approach of Piaget and Kohlberg studies how children become more able to reason morally and make moral judgements, whereas the Freud's psychodynamic approach is more concerned with the development of the conscience and moral feelings such as guilt and anxiety. The social learning theory of Bandura and Mischel investigates the development of moral behaviour and how role models in the family, society and the media, influence it. The theory I am going to discuss is Piaget's Cognitive-Developmental Approach. His theory of moral development is concerned with how
