Major Psychological Thinkers

Behavioural Theorists
Albert Bandura
Best Known For: Bobo Doll Studies Social Learning Theory Self-efficacy

Albert Bandura's social learning theory stressed the importance of observational learning, imitation and modeling. "Learning would be exceedingly laborious, not to mention hazardous, if people had to rely solely on the effects of their own actions to inform them what to do," Bandura explained (Bandura, 1977). His theory integrates a continuous interaction between behaviors, cognitions and the environment. Bobo doll study. - In the experiment, he made a film in which a woman was shown beating up a Bobo doll and shouting aggressive words. The film was then shown to a group of children. Afterwards, the children were allowed to play in a room that held a Bobo doll. The children immediately began to beat the doll, imitating the actions and words of the woman in the film. The study was significant because it departed from behaviorisms insistence that all behavior is directed by reinforcement or rewards. The children received no encouragement or incentives to beat up the doll; they were simply imitating the behavior they had observed. Bandura termed this phenomena observational learning and characterized the elements of effective observational learning as attention, retention, reciprocation and motivation. Self-Efficacy The concept of self-efficacy lies at the center of psychologist Albert Banduras social cognitive theory. Banduras theory emphasizes the role of observational learning, social experience, and reciprocal determinism in the development of personality. According to Bandura, a persons attitudes, abilities, and cognitive skills comprise what is known as the self-system. This system plays a major role in how we perceive situations and how we behave in response to different situations. Self-efficacy plays is an essential part of this self-system.

Self-efficacy is "the belief in ones capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to manage prospective situations." In other words, self-efficacy is a persons belief in his or her ability to succeed in a particular situation. Bandura described these beliefs as determinants of how people think, behave, and feel.

Cognitive Theorists
Suggests that an individual cognitive process controls their behaviour. The use of memories, perceptions, images and thinking allows greater cognitive control over ones behaviour.

Jean Piaget
Piaget's stage theory describes the cognitive development of children. Cognitive development involves changes in cognitive process and abilities. In Piaget's view, early cognitive development involves processes based upon actions and later progresses into changes in mental operations. Key Concepts Schemas - A schema describes both the mental and physical actions involved in understanding and knowing. Schemas are categories of knowledge that help us to interpret and understand the world. In Piaget's view, a schema includes both a category of knowledge and the process of obtaining that knowledge. As experiences happen, this new information is used to modify, add to, or change previously existing schemas. For example, a child may have a schema about a type of animal, such as a dog. If the child's sole experience has been with small dogs, a child might believe that all dogs are small, furry, and have four legs. Suppose then that the child encounters a very large dog. The child will take in this new information, modifying the previously existing schema to include this new information. Assimilation - The process of taking in new information into our previously existing schemas is known as assimilation. The process is somewhat subjective, because we tend to modify experience or information somewhat to fit in with our preexisting beliefs. In the example above, seeing a dog and labeling it "dog" is an example of assimilating the animal into the child's dog schema. Accommodation - Another part of adaptation involves changing or altering our existing schemas in light of new information, a process known as accommodation.

Accommodation involves altering existing schemas, or ideas, as a result of new information or new experiences. New schemas may also be developed during this process. Equilibration - Piaget believed that all children try to strike a balance between assimilation and accommodation, which is achieved through a mechanism Piaget called equilibration. As children progress through the stages of cognitive development, it is important to maintain a balance between applying previous knowledge (assimilation) and changing behavior to account for new knowledge (accommodation). Equilibration helps explain how children are able to move from one stage of thought into the next. Support and Criticism of Piaget's Stage Theory Piaget's theory of cognitive develop is well-known within the fields of psychology and education, but it has also been the subject of considerable criticism. While presented in a series of progressive stages, even Piaget believed that development does not always follow such a smooth and predictable path. In spite of the criticism, the theory has had a considerable impact on our understanding of child development. Piaget's observation that kids actually think differently than adults helped usher in a new era of research on the mental development of children.

Humanistic Theorists
Stresses a persons capabilities for personal growth, freedom to choose his or her destiny and positive qualities. Best Known For: Hierarchy of Needs Founder of Humanistic Psychology

Contributions to Psychology: At a time when most psychologists focused aspects of human nature that were considered abnormal, Abraham Maslow shifted to focus to look at the positive sides of mental health. His interest in human potential, seeking peak experiences and improving mental health by seeking personal growth had a lasting influence on psychology. While Maslows work fell out of favor with many academic psychologists, his theories are enjoying a resurgence do to the rising interesting in positive psychology.

Hierarchy of Needs

Source: Psychology.com, 2012

The Five Levels of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs This hierarchy suggests that people are motivated to fulfill basic needs before moving on to other, more advanced needs. Most often displayed as a pyramid with the lowest levels of the pyramid made up of the most basic needs, while the more complex needs are located at the top of the pyramid. Needs at the bottom of the pyramid are basic physical requirements including the need for food, water, sleep, and warmth. Once these lowerlevel needs have been met, people can move on to the next level of needs, which are for safety and security. As people progress up the pyramid, needs become increasingly psychological and social. Soon, the need for love, friendship, and intimacy become important. Further up the pyramid, the need for personal esteem and feelings of accomplishment take priority. Like Carl Rogers, Maslow emphasized the importance of self-actualization, which is a process of growing and developing as a person in order to achieve individual potential. 1. Physiological Needs These include the most basic needs that are vital to survival, such as the need for water, air, food, and sleep. Maslow believed that these needs are the most basic

and instinctive needs in the hierarchy because all needs become secondary until these physiological needs are met. 2. Security Needs These include needs for safety and security. Security needs are important for survival, but they are not as demanding as the physiological needs. Examples of security needs include a desire for steady employment, health insurance, safe neighborhoods, and shelter from the environment. 3. Social Needs These include needs for belonging, love, and affection. Maslow considered these needs to be less basic than physiological and security needs. Relationships such as friendships, romantic attachments, and families help fulfill this need for companionship and acceptance, as does involvement in social, community, or religious groups. 4. Esteem Needs After the first three needs have been satisfied, esteem needs becomes increasingly important. These include the need for things that reflect on self-esteem, personal worth, social recognition, and accomplishment. 5. Self-actualizing Needs This is the highest level of Maslows hierarchy of needs. Self-actualizing9 people are self-aware, concerned with personal growth, less concerned with the opinions of others, and interested fulfilling their potential. Criticisms of Maslows Hierarchy of Needs While some research showed some support for Maslow's theories, most research has not been able to substantiate the idea of a needs hierarchy. Wahba and Bridwell (1994) reported that there was little evidence for Maslow's ranking of these needs and even less evidence that these needs are in a hierarchical order. Other criticisms of Maslow's theory note that his definition of self-actualization is difficult to test scientifically. His research on self-actualization was also based on a very limited sample of individuals, including people he knew as well as biographies of famous individuals that Maslow believed to be self-actualized, such as Albert Einstein and Eleanor Roosevelt. Regardless of these criticisms, Maslows hierarchy of needs represents part of an important shift in psychology. Rather than focusing on abnormal behavior and development, Maslow's humanistic psychology was focused on the development of healthy individuals.

Carl Rogers
Conditioned, Controlled World Most individuals have difficulty accepting their own true feelings which are innately positive because as we grow up people central to our lives conditions us to move away from the positive feelings. This is called conditioned, controlled world which is term for love and praise being withheld unless the individual conforms to parental or societal standards. The result is low self-esteem These constraints and negative feedback continue during our adult lives thus we carry a dark cloud of conflict or conform to what others want. As we struggle to live up to societys standards, we distort and devalue our true self. In some instances going as far as to completely lose our sense of self. The Self The I or me of our existence which may not necessarily be conscious but is easily accessible and consists of ones self perceptions (how attractive I am, how well do I get along with others etc.) and the values we attach to these perceptions (good, bad, average). Client-Centered Therapy Carl Rogers' Non-Directive Approach to Therapy Unconditional positive regard is a term used by humanist psychologist Carl Rogers to describe a technique used in his non-directive, client-centered therapy. According to Rogers, unconditional positive regard involves showing complete support and acceptance of a person no matter what that person says or does. Rogers believed that it was essential for therapists to show unconditional positive regard to their clients. He also suggested that individuals who don't have this type of acceptance from people in their life can eventually come to hold negative beliefs about themselves.

RESEARCH METHODS IN PSYCHOLOGY

Researchers have to decide which methods to utilise when conducting research in psychology.

Observations
Systematic observation, recording, description, analysis and interpretation of peoples behaviour. Casually observing someone is not considered scientific observation Systematic observation means: a) know what you are looking for; b) whom you are observing; c) when and where you are observing; d) how the observations will be done and; e) in what form will they be recorded. Types of Observation 1. Natural- observing behaviour in the real world setting while making no effort to manipulate or control the situation. It is often difficult for researchers to remain inconspicuous so as not affect with the participants behaviour. Researchers Roles Complete Participant- researcher becomes a member of the group without revealing their true purpose performing the same activities. Complete Observer researcher only observing the activities without revealing their true purpose. Observer as Participant researchers revealed purpose is to attend and observe without taking part. Participant as Observer revealed researcher participates and observes.

2. Laboratory a control setting in which many of the complex factors of the real world are removed. Drawback is that it is almost impossible to conduct research without the participants knowledge. The setting is unnatural hence the participants may behave unnaturally. Participants are often volunteers and are unlikely to represent the diverse cultural population. Some aspects of the mind and behaviour are difficult to study in a lab. E.g. work stress.

Interviews
Purposeful discussion between two or more people. Can be highly formalised, structured, semi- structured, unstructured, in-depth or a combination. Can also be conducted using different contact methods. Provides the ability to collect rich and detailed data when done by a competent interviewer Often the best and quickest way to get information from people. Drawback is that respondents may tell interviewer what they believe is socially acceptable which might not be the truth.

Surveys
Structured questions which the respondents read off paper or other format and mark their answers. Can be administered to large numbers of participants. Drawback is that respondents may answer what they believe is socially acceptable which might not be the truth.

Case Study
An in-depth look at a single individual used mainly by a clinical psychologists when either for practical or ethical reasons unique aspects of the individual life that cannot be duplicated.

Provides information about issues such as fears, hopes, fantasies, traumatic experiences, upbringing, family relationships, health or anything that will assist in the study of the human mind and its behaviour. Results cannot be generalised as the information is often unique.

Standardised Test
A test that is administered and scored in a consistent, or "standard", manner. Standardized tests are designed in such a way that the questions, conditions for administering, scoring procedures, and interpretations are consistent and are administered and scored in a predetermined, standard manner. Provide individual differences among people. Does not predict behaviour in nontest situations and can vary depending on the particular situation.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY IN PSYCHOLOGY

Causal Research
When most people think of scientific experimentation, research on cause and effect is most often brought to mind. Experiments on causal relationships investigate the effect of one or more variables on one or more outcome variables. This type of research also determines if one variable causes another variable to occur or change. An example of this type of research would be altering the amount of a treatment and measuring the effect on study participants.

Descriptive Research
Descriptive research seeks to depict what already exists in a group or population. An example of this type of research would be an opinion poll to determine which Presidential candidate people plan to vote for in the next election. Descriptive studies do not seek to measure the effect of a variable; they seek only to describe.

Relational Research
A study that investigates the connection between two or more variables is considered relational research. The variables that are compared are generally already present in the group or population. For example, a study that looked at the proportion of males and

females that would purchase either a classical CD or a jazz CD would be studying the relationship between gender and music preference. A theory is a well-established principle that has been developed to explain some aspect of the natural world. A theory arises from repeated observation and testing and incorporates facts, laws, predictions, and tested hypotheses that are widely accepted. A hypothesis is a specific, testable prediction about what you expect to happen in your study. For example, an experiment designed to look at the relationship between study habits and test anxiety might have a hypothesis that states, "We predict that students with better study habits will suffer less test anxiety." Unless your study is exploratory in nature, your hypothesis should always explain what you expect to happen during the course of your experiment or research. While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably in everyday use, the difference between a theory and a hypothesis is important when studying experimental design. Some important distinctions to note include: A theory predicts events in general terms, while a hypothesis makes a specific prediction about a specified set of circumstances. A theory has been extensively tested and is generally accepted, while a hypothesis is a speculative guess that has yet to be tested.

There are two types of time dimensions that can be used in designing a research study. 1. Cross-sectional research takes place at a single point in time.
1.

All tests, measures, or variables are administered to participants on one occasion. This type of research seeks to gather data on present conditions instead of looking at the effects of a variable over a period of time.

Longitudinal research is a study that takes place over a period of time. Data is first collected at the outset of the study, and may then be gathered repeatedly throughout the length of the study. Some longitudinal studies may occur over a short period of time, such as a few days, while others may take place over a period of decades. The effects of aging are often investigated using longitudinal research.