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Behaviorism
General Overview

The behaviorist
perspective proposed
that it was more
important to
understand observable
(external) human
actions rather than the
human thought
processes (internal
and observable)
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015, p. 31).

The overview is that

behaviorism pays
more attention to
actions that we can
see rather than what
we think (Windsor,
Murrell, & Jackson,
2015).

Classical Conditioning
Process

Classical
conditioning primarily
focuses on the ability
to use stimuli to create
involuntary responses,
such as blinking and
salivating (Pavlov,
1927, as cited
Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015, p. 32).

There are three

different phases for
classical conditioning,
which try to invoke
involuntary responses
through stimuli
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015).

Classical Conditioning
(Pavlov) Findings

Pavlov demonstrated
the principles of
classical conditioning
through an experiment
in which dogs, who
normally salivate at
the sight of food,
learned to salivate to
the sound of a bell
(Pavlov, 1902; 1927,
Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015, p. 32).

Pavlov did an
experiment with dogs
in which he made the
dogs learn to salivate
at the sound of a bell
instead of food
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015).

Watson Findings

Findings from this

experiment revealed
that Little Alberts
behavior had changed.
Not only had he
developed an
irrational fear of rats,

Watson found from

his experiment that
humans could have
their stimulus changed
just like animals in the
Pavlov experiment.
Watson found that

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but he had a
generalized fear of all
furry things that he
encountered
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015, p. 33).

Albert developed a
fear of all furry things
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015).

Operant Conditioning

Operant
Conditioning refers to
the control of an
individuals voluntary
responses; and places
emphasis on an
individuals actions
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015, p. 34).

The condition that

focuses more on the
persons actual and
involuntary responses
is operant
conditioning
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015).

Reinforcement

In order for a
reinforcement to be
effective, it needs to
be important to and
desirable for the
individual (Windsor,
Murrell, & Jackson,
2015, p. 34).

The reinforcements
used in experiments
can only be effective
if the object is
important to the
person or animal
being experimented
on (Windsor, Murrell,
& Jackson, 2015).

Punishment

Punishment, on the
other hand, is
anything that might
weaken or diminish
the likelihood that a
behavior will
continue (Windsor,
Murrell, & Jackson,
2015, p. 35).

A punishment is a
negative response to a
stimulus that the
person or animal will
not want to repeat
again (Windsor,
Murrell, & Jackson,
2015).

Schedules of
Reinforcement

With continuous
reinforcement, the
behavior is reinforced
every time it takes
place (Windsor,
Murrell, & Jackson,
2015, p. 36). With
intermittent
reinforcement, the

There are two

different types of
schedule
reinforcements,
continuous
reinforcement (every
time) and intermittent
reinforcement
(periodically)

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behavior is reinforced (Windsor, Murrell, &

periodically
Jackson, 2015).
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015, p. 36).
Social Learning
Theory

This perspective
suggests that a
substantial amount of
human learning takes
place as individuals
observe the actions
that occur within the
environment
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015, p. 36).

The social learning

theory states that
people learn by
observing the actions
of others (Windsor,
Murrell, & Jackson,
2015).

Bandura Findings

This concept
demonstrated the idea
that human behavior
is a result of the
interaction between
psychological
processes (i.e.,
cognitive states), the
environment, and a
persons behavior
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015, p. 37).

Bandura found that

humans behave in
reaction to their
thoughts, their
surroundings, and
their own behavior
(Windsor, Murrell, &
Jackson, 2015).

Learned Helplessness

A person with
learned helplessness
will respond to the
environment passively
and will retain the
belief that the
situation cannot
change (Windsor,
Murrell, & Jackson,
2015, p. 39).

Learned helplessness
is when people
respond negatively to
their environment and
that their feelings
toward that place will
not change (Windsor,
Murrell, & Jackson,
2015).

Optional Extra

Notes

References
Winsor, D.L., Murrel, V.S.,& Magun-Jachon, S. (2015). Lifespan development: An educational
psychology perspective. Boston, MA: Pearson Learning Solutions.