Some people call this addiction Why do people become addicted? This is a question that psychologists would very much like to answer. There are lots of theories and lots of disagreement. Addiction is a behaviour and, like all behaviours, it can be explained from dierent points of view (or approaches, as we call them in this Unit). The people in the image above may well be addicted to their phones (are you?). Think about these questions: • Is it possible to think in an ‘addicted’ way? How? • Is there a social aspect to being addicted? What is it? • Can you learn to be addicted? How? • Is addiction biological? Is there something happening in the brain? Specification terms Central nervous system (CNS) Consists of the brain and the spinal cord and is the origin of all complex commands and decisions. Computer analogy The human brain can be compared to a computer with input, processing and output stages. Culture Ideas, customs and social behaviour of a particular group of people or society. Evolution The changes in inherited characteristics in a biological population over successive generations. Genes Inherited DNA with instructions for building physical and psychological characteristics that in«uence behaviour. (See also page 42.) Imitation Occurs when a learner copies the behaviour they observed being carried out by a model. It is more likely to occur when the observer identi es with the model. (See also page 38.) Information processing Behaviour can be understood in terms of information «owing through the cognitive (mental) system in a series of stages. Learned response A behaviour acquired through conditioning, either association (classical) or rewards/ punishments (operant). Neurochemistry Relating to chemicals in the nervous system that regulate psychological functioning. (See also page 48.) Observation Actively attending to and watching (or listening to) the behaviour of others (models). Social context In«uences from other people, either individually or in groups. Fishing reels Norman Triplett (1898) found that children would wind shing reels much faster when competing against each other than when they did it alone (even when they were told to wind as quickly as they could). However, some of the children consistently performed worse against a partner than when alone. Choose one assumption from the cognitive approach and one from the social approach. Explain how these assumptions relate to this scenario. ACTIVE GET Assumptions of the cognitive approach Behaviour is a product of information processing The word cognitive means mental processes. The cognitive approach views humans as processors of information – we take in information and blend it with stored knowledge to come up with new thoughts. Our minds use internal mental processes such as reasoning and remembering, which work together to enable us to make sense of the world and respond to it. Information from the environment passes through a series of stages as it is processed by the cognitive system. At each stage ‘something happens’ to the information (i.e. it is processed). These processes occur together and work cooperatively. For example, when you see a dog, you notice it (perception), you focus on it to the exclusion of other things (attention), you recognise it (memory) and you can even name it (language). The brain can be compared to a computer A computer processes information, so we might understand the brain better by comparing it to a computer. Computers and humans process information through three basic stages. Information goes into the system (input), it is changed and/or stored (processed) and then it is used to respond to the environment (output). Cognitive psychology uses several concepts borrowed from computing. The brain is our central processing unit (the ‘hardware’) and it codes information to change it from one format to another (the ‘so¡ware’). This approach to understanding the brain and behaviour has helped to develop arti cial intelligence (AI). Assumptions of the social approach Behaviour occurs in a social context The word ‘social’ means other members of your species. Humans are ‘social animals’, so social psychologists believe behaviour is best understood by considering the in«uence of other people. For example, have you ever ‘gone along’ with a group of friends just because you didn’t want to be the odd one out? Perhaps you had a different view from everyone else, but still outwardly agreed with them. Conformity is one way in which social context affects our behaviour. This pressure can be so powerful that other people do not even have to be physically present – we just have to think about how others behave. Many social psychologists believe that social situations are the biggest in«uence on behaviour rather than an individual’s disposition (their personality). Wider culture and society in uence people’s behaviour Behaviour can also be understood and explained in terms of wider society or culture. Some psychologists believe there are two broad types of culture: individualist and collectivist (Hofstede 2001). In individualist cultures (e.g. the UK and USA), the main priority is the needs of the individual person. So what really matters is that we can achieve our potential and goals in life. For example, two people who want to share their lives together are expected to be ‘in love’ – the important thing is their individual happiness. In collectivist cultures (e.g. China and India), people prefer to prioritise their family and community before their own needs and wants. In such cultures, people tend to seek partners approved by their family, so being ‘in love’ is less important (Bejanyan et al. 2015). Content area A1: Approaches and assumptions Assumptions of four approaches 10 Unit 1: Psychological approaches and applications Copyright: Sample material
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