Mastering the World of Psychology Essay

One of the interesting areas of psychology is learning. From the womb to the last day that you live, the human body is at constant learning mode. As we grow the different stages of life will experience different ways of learning.

I have always been intrigued by the mental processes of humans and animals. As a young child and into adolescence, as a student and teacher and as a caregiver, I have always been interested in psychology in one form or another. This essay will reflect not only the development of my interest in psychology, but the development of myself as a person.

Positive reinforcement is presenting an organism with a stimulus, increasing the probability of that behavior. For my roommate, I will present him with a new video game if he has lost three pounds at the end of one week. This should result in him wanting to lose more weight in order to receive a new video game. If he does not lose this amount of weight then he will not receive anything, which will allow him to learn to lose the weight in order to receive the reward. Another form of conditioning I will use is negative punishment. Negative punishment is removing something in order to decrease a behavior. For my roommate, I will remove an

In the book negative reinforcement is the removal of an unpleasant stimulus following a target behavior, which increases the likelihood of it occurring again. Reinforcements and operant conditioning are one in the same, if you read the definition both stating a way of learning associating volunteer behavior with its consequences. So, for my friend that believes that negative reinforcement id a type of punishment it really is not because a punishment intends to make the behavior being punished stop, whereas for negative reinforcement tries to make the behavior being negatively reinforced occur more often. We negatively reinforce by all kinds of things that end up leading to consequences that are actually good instead of the traditionally thinking

Negative reinforcement is how we can teach children and adults to give the wanted behavior by taking away something they do not want according to Mazur (2013). This worked best for my son because his teachers would use negative reinforcement in order to get the behavior they wanted from him in class by taking away homework one night a week

The difference between negative reinforcement and punishment there is a clear difference. Negative reinforcement is where something is taking away from a scenario to have a better outcome. For example, when you are at a light on the road and it turns green and the car in front of you doesn't move, one would blow their horn causing the car to move ( ). While negative punishment is where something is taken away from them that they desire because they are doing something unacceptable ( ). For instance, if your child is back talking, you could take their phone or video game to teach them a lesson.

The removal of an unpleasant reinforcer can also strengthen behavior. This is known as negative reinforcement because it is the removal of an adverse stimulus which is ‘rewarding’ to the animal or person. Negative reinforcement strengthens behavior because it stops or removes an unpleasant experience.

Herzberg theory of motivation differs a bit from Maslow’s. Herzberg’s theory was based off of one’s needs in a professional elements. Herzberg was trying to discover a theory that would avoid employees’ dissatisfaction and gains satisfaction within his or her work environment. So he came up with these six factors. The factors that lead to dissatisfaction are, salary, relationship with peers, company policy, work conditions, relationship with boss, and supervision. The factors that lead to satisfaction are growth, advancement, recognition, achievement, responsibility, and work itself (Herzberg, 1959). These are not separate from one another to gain satisfaction. However, without dissatisfaction to gain satisfaction there would be none at all. So in order to gain satisfaction ones psychosocial and

Throughout one’s lifetime, an individual undergoes a magnitude of various learning experiences, all of which serve as a shaping agent, consequently forming personality traits that are unique to each human being. Examining this fact further, what does learning mean, precisely? Namely, the definition of learning is the resulting change in behavior or knowledge that occurs through experience (Boundless, 2016). Moreover, (from a psychological aspect) associative learning entails linking particular stimuli or events that occur jointly in the environment (such as in classical and operant conditioning). And, cognitive-social learning is a cognitive learning process - series of thoughts and comprehension with experiences and actions - materializing in a social framework and supervenes purely via observation or explicit instruction (such as in observational learning/modeling).

The first major goal of psychology is “to describe”. Describing behavior helps us to understand what sort of behaviors are normal versus abnormal. Several different research methods are used. The second major goal of psychology is “to explain”. Explaining involves looking at factors that contribute to the described behaviors. This is where theories emerge. The third goal of psychology is “to predict”. By learning about behaviors, we are able to predict what will happen in the future. Predictions can be made even if the underlying cause is still unknown. Lastly, the fourth major goal of psychology is “to change”. By learning about psychology, we are able to create beneficial changes and adaptations that help people.

This article will examine the benefit and indications of applying one of a contemporary organized psychological theory to a patient that the writer has already worked with as a summative case study. A brief history of the patient ailment which is borderline personality disorder (BPD) will be discussed as well as treatment plan and choices in accordance with a chosen psychotherapy (mentalisation base therapy MBT). The author will legitimize the purpose behind the chosen treatment and conclude his discussion. For Nursing Midwifery Council (NMC, 2012) policy on confidentiality, the patient under discussion will allude to as 'K '.

            According to Moreno (2010) , the term “learning”, can be defined as a “relatively permanent change in our thoughts, feelings, or behavior that results from experience “ (p.150)

There are two types of reinforcement, positive and negative, and they both affect how people will act in the future (Hockenbury, page 198). “Positive reinforcement involves that leads to a reinforcing or rewarding event” (Hockenbury, page 198). An example would be, a teacher gives her students a homework pass for every A they make on a test. “In contrast, negative reinforcement involves behavior that leads to the avoidance of or escape from an adverse or punishing event”(Hockenbury, page 198). An example would be putting on sunscreen before going out in the sun to avoid a sunburn. “Punishment is defined as the opposite of reinforcement since it is designed to weaken or eliminate a response rather than increase it” (McLeod). Just like reinforcement, there is also positive and negative punishment (Hockenbury, page 200). “Positive punishment, also called punishment by application, involves a response being followed by the presentation of an aversive stimulus” (Hockenbury, page 200). An example would be a dog jumping up on a visitor’s lap, and you swat him with a rolled-up newspaper (Hockenbury, page 201). Negative punishment, also called punishment by removal, involves the loss or withdrawal of a reinforcing stimulus following behavior (Hockenbury, page

A positive reinforcer likely increases the likelihood of a behavior whereas as negative reinforces will likely decrease the behavior. In regard to positive reinforcement there are internal and external positive reinforcements. Internal refinforcers refer to things like food, water , and smiling . External reinforcers are things like the satisfaction of discovering new idea, following the rules, doing what you like, etc. Likewise, it is necessary to understand that punishment and negative reinforcement is not the same thing. Punishment works only temporarily or produces unwanted side effects, such as; avoidance or

The behaviourists viewed psychology as a science and believed that everything had to be observable and measurable. Skinner believed that humans are born a blank slate and our behaviour is moulded through experiences with and in our environments. Through classical and operant conditioning, we are shaped by socialisation, punishment and reinforcement; as Skinner stated (1953:91) ‘Operant conditioning shapes behaviour as a sculptor shapes a lump of clay.’ Talk about Skinner study into rats in the box. Conversely, the psychodynamic approach focused on peoples’ unconscious motives and emotions. Freud believed that the mind was driven by three elements, these elements make up personality: the id ‘the true psychic reality’ (Hall date :26). The workings of the id are unconscious and are driven by the pleasure principle whose aim is to avoid pain and find pleasure by releasing tension (Hall date:22). Freud believed the pleasure principle drove people’s sexual desires. The Ego, run by the reality principle; mediates between the id and the Superego. The final element is the Superego; the moral branch of the three elements. It is subdivided into the conscience; where people internalise rules and morals learnt and the ego-ideal; a person’s ideal image of themselves. The Superego combines visions of ethics and morals that have been learnt, into a moral code. Freud believed that these elements, combined with childhood experiences, shape people. Neither of the approaches acknowledge