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OCR AS Psychology Notes - Approaches to the Studies

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Ukhti-R:
Here a quick notes that I've typed up for anyone taking OCR AS psychology.

There are 6 approaches to the studies:

1. SOCIAL APPROACH:

Assumption of the approach: Our behaviour, thought process, and emotions are influenced by the people around us, how they behave, and their characteristics.

How the approach explains Milgrams Study: The social approach can explain obedience by demonstrating the power of legitimate authority even when the command requires destructive behaviour. In Milgrams study, he showed that normal American citizens can carry out lethal electric shocks to strangers simply because they were told by an authoritative figure- a University Professor. Milgram concludes that the social process of obedience can lead normal people to do abnormal things.

How the approach explains Piliavin et al's Study: The social approach helps understand the helping behaviour by examining the social process of the cost-benefit analysis and the characteristics of the people involved. Piliavin et al shows that an individuals decision to help another person would depend on the likely benefits (e.g. feeling good, possible rewards) and the likely costs (e.g. violence, unpleasant experience) - the results of the cost benefit analysis would determine the decision whether to help or not. The characteristics of the person also influences the decision, with race significantly affecting the likelihood of helping.

How the approach explains Reicher and Haslams Study:  The social approach can help explain the relationships in a prison by highlighting the effects of social processes of group identification and power. Reicher and Haslam show that the group identity of the prisoners and the guards led to conflict, and that the power given to the guards and the lack of power of the prisoners created conditions of tyrannical regime.

Ukhti-R:
2. COGNITIVE APPROACH:

Assumption of the approach: That behaviour can be explained through an understanding of mental processes- perception, thinking, language, and memory.

How the approach explains Loftus and Palmers Study: This approach can explain Loftus and Palmers study as it shows that memory is not a photographic or precise version of events. Instead, memory is formed by cognitive functions that can be influenced by post-event information. Participants saw a film of car crashes and were then asked leading questions about what they saw. Results found that information received after an event has happened can distort an individuals memory of the event.

How the approach explains Savage-Rumbaugh's Study: The cognitive approach helps explain language acquisition by showing how the mental process involved in the learning of language is developed through cultural transmission. Savage-Rumbaugh can help demonstrate how pygmy chimps were able to acquire language through being immersed in human culture- this environment led the chimps to acquire language spontaneously in the same way that a child acquires language.

How the approach explains Baron-Cohen's Study The cognitive approach helps explain autism by identifying the key cognitive function called the "Theory Of Mind" which autistic people lack. the Theory of Mind refers to the ability of understanding how the mind works in general, and seeing things from another individuals point of view. Baron-Cohen's research using the "Eye Task" and the "Strange Stories" demonstrated that adults with autism and Aspergers Syndrome lack the theory of mind, although they had normal IQ. He concludes that the key deficit in autism is that of an advanced theory of mind.

Ukhti-R:
3. Physiological Approach:

Assumptions of the approach: This approach assumes that behaviour can be explained in terms of the physiological workings of the body and the brain. This means the influence of hormones, neurotransmitters, brain structure and genes.

How the approach explains Maguires Study: The physiological approach can explain how brain structure influences behaviour. In Maguire's Study, she showed how taxi drivers who learned "The Knowledge" had a greater volume of grey matter in their posterior hippocampus than the non-taxi drivers. The hippocampus is responsible for memory. This shows plasticity in the brain, which means the size can increase to allow greater cognitive behaviour.

How the approach explains Sperry's Study: The physiological approach can help explain how the structure of the brain accounts for behaviour. Sperry's study of the brain lateralization showed how the left hemisphere was responsible for language and on the right hemisphere for spatial awareness and creativity. Therefore language skills depend on a certain part of the brain.

How the approach explains Dement and Kleitman: D&K showed that there are physiological requirements for dreaming to occur. These are the person has to be in Stage 1, and they have to be in REM. Approx 80% of participants recalled their dream when awoken in REM. The direction of the eyeball can also determine the content of the dream.

Ukhti-R:
4. DEVELOPMENTAL APPROACH

Assumptions of the approach: Changes occur over a persons lifetime die to lifetime experiences of results of inherited factors.

How the approach explains Samuel and Bryant's Study: Children think in a qualitatively different way than adults. The findings of Smauel and Bryants study show that as the child gets older, their ability to conserve gets better. This shows that the cognitive development is based on maturational factors. Therefore, the cognitive ability of a child develops over time as the child matures.

How the approach explains Bandura's Study: The findings of this study suggest that child development is greatly influenced by environmental factors. The study shows that children adopt aggressive behaviour by observing an adult role model- Banduara calls this observational learning. He also found that same sex role models had the greatest effect on subsequent imitation of behaviour byt he children.

How the approach explains Freud's Study: The Little Hans case study provides evidence for Freud's theory of psycho-sexual development and in particular his theory of the Oedipus Complex. The case of little Hans demonstrated how the child passes through the Phallic stage into the Latency stage pf development with the resolution of the Oedipus Complex. It shows the development passes through a number of stages and that the successful resolution pf the Oedipus Complex is necessary for healthy development into the Latency stage.

Ukhti-R:
5. PSYCHODYNAMIC APPROACH

Assumption of the approach: The unconscious mind can determine behaviour without the person being aware of it. For example the cause of a phobia could be unknown.

How the approach explains Freud's Study: Little Hans fear of horses which was in fact according to the psychodynamic approach, a displacement of his real fear, his father, during the Oedipus Complex stage of his development. This shows the unconscience mind determining conscience behaviour.

How the approach explaine Thigpen and Cleckly's Study: Factors in Eve's unconscious caused the different Eve's to emerge at different times. These personalities may have been a result of trauma whereby she created a mechanism of a new personality to protect herself from psychological stress that she could not deal with. This shows the unconscious mind determining behaviour.

 

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