Overview Homework card/checklist

Housekeeping activities Ellie.Lumsden@sussexdowns.ac.uk Homework card (catch up with summer homework: check on Wednesday) What are you going to learn this term?

Term One Week Lesson 1 Lesson 2 Lesson 3 1 Introductory lesson/ Psych as a science Overview of the approaches Introspection 2 RM Behaviouist SLT 3 TEST Behaviourist/SLT evaluation Biological 4 evaluation Cognitive 5 Essay writing 6 MEMORY

What does this parable suggest about psychology? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vn9BUfUCL4I

Why are there different approaches in psychology? The ‘idea’ of an approach is that psychologists tend to have a general view of what causes behaviour Each approach looks at human behaviour from a different perspective. No approach is right and the others wrong but some are more useful than others depending on what we try to explain. Some of the approaches think that the way we behave is largely inherited; others believe it is largely learned through your life experiences The approaches to psychology are each partly right but also partly wrong because they do not necessarily make connections with each other and look at the big picture. To truly understand psychology we need to be able to understand each of the approaches. The idea of an ‘approach’ is that psychologists tend to have a general view of what causes behaviour. Some of them think that the way we behave is largely inherited; others believe it is largely learned through your life experience.

Nature or Nurture? The approaches to psychology are each partly right but also partly wrong because they do not necessarily make connections with each other and look at the big picture. To truly understand psychology we need to be able to understand each of the approaches. The idea of an ‘approach’ is that psychologists tend to have a general view of what causes behaviour. Some of them think that the way we behave is largely inherited; others believe it is largely learned through your life experience.

Objectives To be able to outline the approaches in psychology. To outline the main assumptions of each approach in psychology To create a timeline of the approaches in psychology

Approaches based on assumptions All approaches are based on assumptions, (belief that something is a fact) For example the biological approach is based on the assumption that biological factors such as the level of serotonin in the synapses influence our behaviour. The first step when studying an approach is to look at what are its main assumptions.

Activity 1 On your table, select one of the main approaches. Using your summer homework, resources provided and the internet, find the following: Psychologists associated with the approach Main assumptions Key terms Important dates 15 minutes

Approaches Behaviourist approach Social Learning Theory Cognitive approach Biological approach Humanistic approach Psychodynamic approach

Feedback Behaviourist approach Social Learning Theory Cognitive approach Biological approach Humanistic approach Psychodynamic approach You have 3 minutes each to feedback to your group, the information that you found out about your researched approach.

As a group, how would you explain Lewis’s behaviour? Lewis had problems keeping down relationships. He had a number of romantic relationships but they never lasted. He was often left feeling unsatisfied and pessimistic about his romantic future. Lewis’s friends argue that he is always looking for perfection in his romantic partners and that he sets himself up for disappointment as no one can live up to his expectations. print

Individually: Apply Task Explain a students poor performance on their exams using the assumptions from each approach An inappropriate level of emotional arousal (i.e test anxiety) is preventing the student from performing at an optimal level)

Which approach do the following assumptions belong to? The human mind processes information much the same as a computer Classical conditioning and operant conditioning can be used to explain behaviour Twin studies are often used by this approach Behavioural traits and abnormalities may be inherited from our parents, experiences in the environment The individual uses defence mechanisms to protect themselves from harmful thoughts and feelings Each individual is unique, and their subjective experience should be studied Faulty thought processes lead to behavioural abnormalities Most of our personality is made up of the unconscious

Creation of the timeline In your group, create a poster for your approach. The poster must contain the following information: Psychologists associated with the approach Main assumptions Key terms Important dates You have the rest of the lesson to create your poster. The more creative they are, the better!

Psychology has its roots in 17th and early 19th century philosophy and was indeed once known as experimental philosophy. 1879 Wilhelm Wundt Opens the first experimental lab and psychology emerges as a distinct discipline. He studied the structure of the human mind, by breaking down behaviours into their basic elements. 1950s Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow reject the ideas favoured by behaviourism and the psychodynamic approach. Humanistic psychologists emphasise the importance of self-determination and free will 1913 J.B Watson rejecting the vagueness of introspection instead focusing on how we are a product of our learning, experience and environment. Thus, the behaviourist approach was established 1900s Sigmund Freud emphasised the influence of the unconscious mind and the psychodynamic approach is established

The emergence of psychology as a science Even though the scientific method is still a major cornerstone in psychology, it has come a long way since its early beginnings 1960s With the introduction of the computer, psychologists applied the analogy of the workings of a computer to the human mind. Cognitive psychology studied the working of the internal mind in a more scientific way than Wundt’s earlier investigations 1960s Around the time of the cognitive revolution, Albert Bandura proposes the social learning theory. This provided a bridge between behaviourism and cognitive psychology 1980 onwards The biological approach begins to establish itself as the dominant scientific perspective in psychology. Advances in technology have lead to increased understanding of the brain and biological processes Eve of the 21st century Cognitive neuroscience emerges as a distinct discipline bringing together the cognitive and biological approaches.