Applying approaches to topics

Applying approaches to topics

1. Biological

   • Neurotransmitters & Hormones
     • OCD: A theory of OCD is that due to a ineffective cordate nucleus sending the wrong messages through to the thalamus from the frontal occipital cortex, causing a reaction
   • Behaviour has an innate, genetic basis
     • Can be used to explain Schizophrenia, where concordance rates of MZ twins was 42% whilst in DZ it was only 17%

2. Behaviourist

   • Behaviour is learned through classical conditioning
     • Phobia development, where a phobia may developed by the association of an Unpleasant stimulus with something neutral, causing phobia of the neutral stimulus
   • Behaviour is learned through Operant conditioning
     • Applied to the treatment of offenders; Token Economy. When a desirable behaviour is demonstrated, they are rewarded with a token. If the behaviour is undesirable, then it is followed with something unpleasant to prevent the reoccurence of the behaviour

3. Cognitive

   • Thought influences behaviour
     • Psychologists would assume atypical such as depression is caused to a "Faulty" Thinking Process
   • Humans are information processors
     • This has been used to explain how humans perceive ambiguous figurs. The information gathered is organised and interpreted based on prior expectations and what we already know about the world

4. SLT

   • Learn through the observation of others in their environment
     • Substance abuse, in which it can be used to explain substance abuse in an individual is they grow up in an environment where their peers are abusing substances
   • Vicarious learning
     • Gender Development, in that it helps to explain how stereotypical gender roles are acquired in a young child, such as cooking for a young girl

5. Psychodynamic

   • Oedipus and Electra Complex
     • This can be seen in Gender Development, where the Oedipus Complex helps form the male personality of the young male child. This is the same for females in the Electra complex.
   • Defence Mechanisms
     • The psychodynamic approach has many explanations for Phobias, one of which is displacement, in which the individual represses to the true fear into the unconscious and then displace it onto another, unharmful object

6. Humanism

   • Rogers' theory of self
     • Client-centred therapy is highly influenced by this. Successful as a form of therapy for treatment of mental health issues such as depression, low self-esteem etc.
   • Maslows Hierarchy of Needs
     • The hierarchy of needs has been applied to many everyday situations, such as the workplace and education. For a productive workforce, the hierarchy of needs should be met