The Strengths Of The Six Psychological Differences In Psychology

Throughout the course of the first semester we as a Psychology class learned a whole variety of different and varying concepts of Psychology. Chapter one we went over all the different ways psychologists study behaviors and mental processes. Included were the contemporary perspectives, such as behavioral, which focuses on behavior that is observed. Psychodynamic focuses on our fantasies and our hidden motives. Humanistic is all about our free will and conscious choices. Physiological is the relationships between biological processes and behavior. Cognitive perspective is our acquired knowledge, and last but not least is sociocultural, which places great value on the role of cultural and social influences on our behavior.

Psychology is the scientific “study of the mind” (Gross, 2015) and behaviour, which includes the study of humans and animals. There are various approaches in modern psychology. A theoretical approach is a perspective which is someone’s view about human behaviour, there can be many different theories within an approach, however they all piece together the same assumptions. (McLeod, 2007). A theory is an attempt by theorists to try to explain behaviour. Theories are not facts but can be verified by testing. Theories can then be evaluated which I aim to achieve through this essay, where I will briefly explain the theoretical approaches in psychology and aim to focus on an analysis of each perspective which consists of the psychodynamic,

Psychology is the scientific “study of the mind” (Gross, 2015) and behavior, which includes the study of humans and animals. There are various approaches in modern psychology. A theoretical approach is a perspective (view) about human behavior, there may be several different theories within an approach, but they all share these common assumptions and principles. (McLeod, 2007). A theory is an attempt by theorists to try to explain behavior. Theories are not facts but can be verified by testing. Theories can then be evaluated which I aim to do through this essay, where I will briefly explain the theoretical approaches in psychology and aim to focus on an analysis for each perspective which consist of the psychodynamic, humanist, cognitive and behavioral approaches where I will analyze the strengths and weaknesses of each approach separately.

The main assumption of the biological approach is behaviour and experiences can be explained by biological changes in the body. This approach focusses on the investigation of the brain, nervous system and other biological factors such as hormones; whereas the main assumption of the cognitive approach is that information received from our senses is processed by the brain and that this processing influences how we behave or at least justifies how we behave the way we do. Cognitive processes are examples of hypothetical constructs – researchers cannot directly observe processes such as thinking but we can infer what a person is thinking based on how they act (behavioural patterns). Some key researchers in the biological approach are Maguire et. Al (2000) - Navigation-related structural changes in the hippocampi of taxi drivers, and Sperry (1968) - Hemisphere disconnection and unity in consciousness. Some key researchers in the cognitive approach are Loftus and Palmer (1974) - eyewitness testimony and Baron-Cohen (1997) – Autism.

The biological perspective also can be called Biopsychological Perspective, is a large scientific perspective that undertake that human behaviour and thought processes have a biological fundamental points. Investigations with biological perspective into biochemistry of behaviour link with genetics and heritability, neurotransmitters and hormones, and the psychophysics of sensation and perception. Parts of biological perspective may include; Physiological psychology, neuroscience, pyschoneuroimunology and psychopharmacology. The biological perspective relies on scientific methods because of this, its scope of information is limited to variable that can be manipulated.

The biological approach focuses on both the physiological and evolutionary aspects which explain human behaviour.

In psychology there are many different approaches to understanding the complexity of human behaviour, all of which have different methods of testing what factors can influence behaviour, varying from scientific to pure assumption in an attempt to understand human behaviour. This essay with explain the key ideas of the behaviourist, biological and humanistic approaches and will compare and contrast their assumptions on human behaviour.

The purpose of this essay is to outline and evaluate at least three psychological perspectives of human behaviour. The three approaches that will be summarised are humanistic, social learning theory and the Biological approach. They will also be criticised and compared to one another. A brief description on psychology will occur, and there will also be a short summarisation on some key early influences of psychology, from its origins in philosophy.

This proves that psychology is ever expanding, fascinating, and complex. The biological model sees physical processes as the key to human behavior. Biological theorists believe that abnormal behavior is biological, thoughts and feelings

This essay will outline and compare both biological and behavioural perspectives on human behaviour. The history, major discoveries and theories will be discussed along with some of the most influential theorists in each of these two areas of psychology. This essay will also compare the two areas strengths and weaknesses in the field of psychology.

The Contribution of a Biological Perspective to our Understanding of Behaviour The importance of Biology within the field of psychology has been and continues to be widely debated. Some scientists such as Francis Crick, believe that explanations for psychological differences can only be found by the means of studying the biology of the brain and genes, this belief is known as reductionism. However most psychologists now believe that biology and psychology go hand in hand and that both need to be considered; the biology and the social context, to be able to come to a more accurate explanation.

Human behavior and mental processes cannot be explained by a single perspective because it is made of seven modern perspectives. The modern perspectives consist of behavioral, biopsychological, cognitive, evolutionary, humanistic, psychodynamic, and sociocultural perspectives (Ciccarelli & White, 2014). They are all based off different factors. However, for this paper only three perspectives will only discuss sociocultural perspective, biopsychological perspective, and evolutionary perspective.

Biological approaches in psychology can be described as the principles of biology applied to the study of psychological, genetic, and developmental mechanisms of human behavior. The biological perspective applies itself to the study of psychology in three ways: the comparative method, which is the study of animals in order to find out about humans behavior. It is believed that to some degree behavior in animals and humans are alike. Physiology is how the nervous system and hormones work, how the brain functions, and how changes in structure and/or function can affect behavior. Investigation of inheritance is what an animal inherits from its parents, which is genetics. An example of biological psychology in the novel can be seen when Miss Axline

Psychology is not just philosophical speculation and reasoning over the years it has evolved and it is now also recognised as a science, to understand what psychology is all about it is necessary to know it’s origins and the theorist who brought it out of obscurity, Sigmund Freud. He developed the Psychodynamic or Psychoanalytical perspective to enable better understanding of human behaviour these concepts will be discussed further later in this study. After Freud opened the gateway other perspectives and approaches have been developed, now with five main areas of psychology - Cognitive, Behaviourist, Biopsychology and Humanist approaches. For a comparison with the Psychodynamic theory, Behaviourist Theory will be discussed.

Psychologists have been focused on observing and understanding human behavior for centuries, dating back to the Greek philosophers when psychology and philosophy were considered one.Today, Psychology is the study of human behavior, beginning before birth and lasting until death. It is clear that the observance human behavior is a vast and profound source of data for psychologists. Early philosophers relied on methods of observation and logic. A physiologist named Wilhelm Wundt in the 1800’s began using scientific research methods in his study of mental processes. However, the situation was totally different in the beginning of 20th century when psychology still struggled to be regarded as a separate discipline with practical value(Mastering,2011). Psychologists had only begun to be accepted as a science. It was John B. Watson who established the school of Behaviorism and inspired many other psychologists to study patterns of human behavior and their mechanisms. Watson 's contribution to psychology is important not to underestimate; he studied animal and human behavior to come up with a methodology that would give Psychology a respected status among other scientific disciplines. This essay will focus on the biography and works of John B. Watson with a purpose to show why his works are important for Psychology today(Hergenhahn & Henley, 2013).