SIX APPROACHES TO Ψ

NEUROBIOLOGY- Believe that our behavior is controlled by biological responses in the body. (heart rate, adrenalin, etc.)

BEHAVIORISM- Believe that our responses are directly related to past experiences. Have we been rewarded or punished in the past for the behavior, or a similar behavior?

HUMANISM- Believe that people are naturally good. We are in control of who we become, we control our own destiny, not our environment.

PSYCHOANALYTIC- Believe that our subconscious controls our behavior. We are not aware of what drives us. (Freud)

COGNITIVE- Believe that our behaviors are controlled by the internal conversations we have with ourselves. (talk yourself into or out of situations)

SOCIOCULTURAL- Believe that our social environment controls our behavior. (socio-economic, ethnic, religion).

Try these examples…

• Dr. Smith is studying the chemical effects of alcohol on the brain.

• Professor Davis is conducting a study to determine the effects on behavior of excessive viewing of television.

• Graduate student John is gathering evidence that shows a vocabulary-study curriculum will enhance student learning.

Try these examples…

• Dr. Stewart teaches his clients to reflect on events in their lives to help them make better choices in their lives.

• Dr. Kelli studies the relationship between early-childhood experiences and a person’s personality traits.

• College student Susan is studying the Navajo culture’s impact on the youth who live inside the Navajo Nation.

How about another option?

• Eclecticism: – creating your own system by borrowing

from two or more other systems– Combining approaches to explain

behaviors / situations

Apply the Six Approaches to a common situation…

Maria’s ProblemMaria wants to ask for a raise, but begins to

sweat uncontrollably every time she even gets near her boss. What is the behavior?How would you, as a psychologist, use each

different approach to explain this simple behavior?

Write a 2-3 sentence explanation for Maria’s problem for each of the Six Approaches. (Neurobiological, Behavioral, Humanistic,

Psychoanalytic, Cognitive, Sociocultural)

NEUROBIOLOGICAL

Maria has little control over how her body reacts in this situation. This situation causes increased adrenaline as well as heart rate which in turn results in sweating. She probably has the same reaction in similar situations she cannot control.

BEHAVIORALMaria’s reaction is a result from being

punished, or observing punishment in similar situations, maybe even by her current boss. If she had been rewarded in similar situations in the past the reaction would be different.

Humanistic

Maria is potentially a good person, but she does not seem to realize this. (internal confidence problem) With some help she hopefully will reconnect with her inner strength and reach her potential.

PsychoanalyticalMaria’s uneasiness with her boss probably

represents hidden anxiety toward someone else in her past, someone probably very close to her. Through psychoanalysis we might be able to extinguish her anxiety.

Cognitive

Maria’s inner voice is probably telling her things are going to go bad and she doesn’t deserve the raise. She needs to replace the negative internal statements to positive ones.

Sociocultural

We need to view Maria’s apprehension in a cultural context. Maybe she was brought up to believe that she should never confront authority figures. She needs to decide if this cultural norm is important enough to honor in this situation.