AQA A-Level Psychology – Approaches (2022/2023) (Certified Solutions)

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AQA A-Level Psychology – Approaches (2022/2023) (Certified Solutions) Origins of Psychology ✔✔Wundt founded first ever psychological lab in Germany in 1879. Aimed to document and describe the nature of human consciousness. Developed *introspection* Introspection ✔✔Involved recording own conscious thoughts. Aim was to break these thoughts down into their constituent parts. Isolating the structure of consciousness in this way is known as *Structuralism* Origins of psychology - Evaluation ✔✔-Wundt's methods were unreliable: - non observable responses - hard to reproduce -Introspection is inaccurate +Scientific approach - Brought objective systematic methods -Lab studies produce low ecological results Assumption of the behaviourist approach ✔✔Blank slate All behavior is learnt other than survival instincts Animals can be used in research No difference between man and brute Rejection of introspection Reliant upon lab experiments to maintain control and objectivity 2 forms of learning: classical and operant conditioning. Classical conditioning ✔✔Learning through association Pavlov research - dogs associate sound of bell with food if bell is rung consistently before feeding. Classical conditioning procedure ✔✔Before conditioning: Unconditioned stimulus (Food) = unconditioned response (Salivation). Neutral stimulus (Bell) = no conditioned response (No salivation). During conditioning: Neutral stimulus (Bell) + Unconditioned stimulus (Food) = Unconditioned response (Salivation). After Conditioning: Conditioned stimulus (Bell) = Conditioned Response (Salivation) Operant conditioning ✔✔Learning through consequences Skinner (1953) suggested that learning is an active process where humans and animals operate in their environment. There are 3 types of consequences of behaviour: Positive reinforcement, Negative reinforcement, punishment. Positive reinforcement ✔✔Receiving a reward when a certain behaviour is performed. Example - Praise from a teacher for answering a question. Negative reinforcement ✔✔Performance of a behaviour to avoid something unpleasant. Example - Handing in homework to avoid being told off. Behaviourist Approach - Evaluation ✔✔+Influential in giving psychology greater credibility and status as a result of its largely lab based research. +Real life application - Token economy systems -Mechanistic view of behaviour - humans seen as passive machine like responders with no conscious insight into own behaviour. Assumptions of social learning theory ✔✔People learn through *observation and imitation* of others within a social context. Behaviour is learned Learning occurs directly through classical and operant conditioning but also through indirect means (observation) SLT - Vicarious reinforcement ✔✔Indirect reinforcement Learner observes a behaviour Imitation occurs if the learner sees the behaviour being reinforced rather than punished The learner observes the consequences of a behaviour SLT - Mediational processes ✔✔Cognitive factors involved in learning *Attention* - Extent to which we notice certain behaviour *Retention* - How well the behaviour is remembered *Motor Reproduction* - The ability of the observer to perform the behaviour *Motivation* - The will to perform the behaviour SLT - Identification ✔✔People (especially children) are more likely to imitate the behaviour of people they identify with.

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