Download Perspectives + Nature Nurture analysis

THE 7 MAIN APPROACHES/PERSPECTIVES TO PSYCHOLOGY
*Many psychologists may believe that each perspective has valid explanations depending on the specific situation, and this point of view is called eclectic. This term refers to the
claim that no one perspective has all the answers to the variety of human thought and behavior. Psychologists tend to use various perspectives in their work depending on which point of
view fits best with the explanation.
Directions:
Step ONE: Read pages 8-9 in your text: Psychology’s Biggest Questions: The Nature-Nurture debate.
Step TWO: Philosophers and psychologists have long debated the relative influences of heredity and environment on behavior—the
NATURE-NURTURE DEBATE. Give an example of how each of the following perspectives would explain their position in what is
commonly known as the “nature-nurture controversy.” Use your book as necessary.
Approach & Its Influential
Period
Humanistic
(1950s-Present)
Psychoanalytic/Psychodynamic
(1900-Present)
Biopsychology/Neuroscience
(1950s-Present)
Principle Contributors
Subject
Matter
Basic Premise
Carl Rogers-Person-centered therapy and unconditional
positive regard
Abraham Maslow-Hierarchy of Needs and SelfActualization
Unique aspects
of human
experience
Belief that we choose most of our behaviors and these
choices are guided by physiological, emotional or
spiritual needs. Humans are free, rational beings with
the potential for personal growth, and they are
fundamentally different from animals.
Sigmund Freud-Personality and States of Consciousness
Carl Jung-the most important and lifelong task imposed
upon any person is fulfillment through the process of
individuation, achievement of harmony of conscious and
unconscious, which makes a person one and whole
Alfred Adler-"Individual Psychology," a term which is
sometimes misunderstood. It refers to the indivisibility of
the personality in its psychological structure.
Unconscious
determinants of
behavior
Belief that the unconscious mind---a part of our mind
that we do not have conscious control over or access
to---controls much of our thought and action.
Unconscious motives and experiences in early
childhood govern personality and mental disorders.
James Olds-the "reward" system in the brain
Roger Sperry-showed that if the two hemispheres of the
brain are separated by severing the corpus callosum (the
large band of fibers that connects them), the transfer of
information between the hemispheres ceases, and the
coexistence in the same individual of two functionally
different brains can be demonstrated.
George Miller-The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus
Two: Some Limits on our Capacity for Processing
Information
Physiological
bases of
behavior in
humans and
animals
An organism’s functioning can be explained in terms of
the bodily structures and biochemical processes that
underlie behavior. How the body and brain enable
emotions, memories, and sensory experiences
Evolutionary/Darwinian
(Also called sociobiologists)
(1980s-Present)
Behavioral
(1913-Present)
Cognitive
(1950s-Present)
Sociocultural (Social-Cultural)
(???-Present)
David Buss-His primary interests include the evolutionary
psychology of human mating strategies; conflict between
the sexes; prestige, status, and social reputation; the
emotion of jealousy; homicide; anti-homicide defenses; and
stalking.
Charles Darwin-the Origin of Species in 1850.
Evolutionary
bases of
behavior in
humans and
animals.
Examines human thought and behavior in terms of
natural selection. Behavior patterns have evolved to
solve adaptive problems; natural selection favors
behaviors that enhance reproductive success.
John B. Watson-Father of Behaviorism & Baby Albert
Experiment
Ivan Pavlov-Classical Conditioning with dogs and salivation
B.F. Skinner-Operant Conditioning and invented the
Skinner Box
Effects of
environment on
the overt
behavior of
human and
animals.
Explain human thought and behavior in terms of
conditioning and look strictly at observable behaviors
and what reaction organisms get in response to specific
behaviors. Belief that only observable events (stimulus
response relationships) can be studied scientifically.
Jean Piaget-Stage Theory of Cognitive Development
Noam Chomsky-Theorized the critical-period for language
acquisition
Herbert Simon-one of the founding fathers of modern
research in artificial intelligence
Ulric Neisser-focused on pattern recognition, visual search,
brief information processing, and memory.
Thoughts;
mental process
Examine human thought and behavior in terms of how
we interpret, process, and remember environmental
events. The rules that we use to view the world are
important to understanding why we think and behave
the way we do. Overall, human behavior cannot be
fully understood without examining how people acquire,
store, and process information.
Vygotsky-argues that a child's development cannot be
understood by a study of the individual. We must also
examine the external social world in which that individual
life has developed.
Effects of social
and cultural
issues on
behavior
Looks at how our thoughts and behaviors vary from
people living in other cultures. Emphasizes the
influence culture has on the way we think and act.