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Introduction To Models And Methods Of Understanding Human Behaviour

There are five basic models in the understanding of human behaviour. These models
include: The Biological Model, The Psychoanalytic Model, The Behaviourist Model,
The Cognitive-Behavioural Model, and The Humanistic Model.
APPROACHES:
1. Biological: Concerned with the activity of the nervous system, especially the brain,
action of hormones & genetics
2. Psychodynamic: Emphasizes internal conflicts, mostly unconscious
3. Behavioral: Concerned with learning, especially each person's experience with
rewards and punishments
4. Cognitive: Studies the mechanisms through which people receive, store, retrieve,
and otherwise process information
5. Humanistic: Emphasizes individual potential for growth and the role of unique
perceptions in guiding behavior and mental processes.
The Psychodynamic Approach
The Interpretation of Dreams was a landmark for the science of psychology. Freud's ideas
about dreaming and other mental processes were often controversial.Whether one
accepts or rejects Freud's theory, there is little doubt that psychoanalysis had significant
impact.Terms like unconsciousness, ego, defence mechanism were introduced by
Freud.
Freud's Structural Models of Personality (Psychoanalysis)
Sigmund Freud's Theory is quite complex and although his writings on psychosexual
development set the groundwork for how our personalities developed, it was only one
of five parts to his overall theory of personality. He also believed that different driving
forces develop during these stages which play an important role in how we interact
with the world.
THE Id: According to Freud, we are born with our Id. In Psychoanalytical theory, it is the
part of the personality which contains our primitive impulses such as sex, anger, and
hunger. The id is an important part of our personality because as newborns, it allows us
to get our basic needs met. Freud believed that the id is based on our pleasure
principle. In other words, the id wants whatever feels good at the time, with no
consideration for the reality of the situation. When a child is hungry, the id wants food,
and therefore the child cries.
The id doesn't care about reality, about the needs of anyone else, only its own satisfaction.
If you think about it, babies are not real considerate of their parents' wishes. They have
no care for time, whether their parents are sleeping, relaxing, eating dinner, or bathing.
When the id wants something, nothing else is important.
The Ego:
Within the next three years, as the child interacts more and more with the world, the
second part of the personality begins to develop. Freud called this part the Ego.It is the
part of the personality which maintains a balance between our impulses (id) and our
conscience (superego). The ego is based on the reality principle.
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The ego understands that other people have needs and desires and that sometimes being
impulsive or selfish can hurt us in the long run. It’s the ego's job to meet the needs of
the id, while taking into consideration the reality of the situation.
The Superego
By the age of five the Superego develops. The Superego is the part of the personality that
represents the conscience. It is the moral part of us and develops due to the moral and
ethical restraints placed on us by our caregivers. Many equate the superego with the
conscience as it dictates our belief of right and wrong.
In a healthy person, according to Freud, the ego is the strongest so that it can satisfy the
needs of the id, not upset the superego, and still take into consideration the reality of
every situation. If the id gets too strong, impulses and self gratification take over the
person's life. If the superego becomes too strong, the person would be driven by rigid
morals, would be judgmental and unbending in his or her interactions with the world.
The Divisions of MIND
Freud believed that the majority of what we experience in our lives, the underlying
emotions, beliefs, feelings, and impulses are not available to us at a conscious level.
He believed that most of what drives us is buried in our Unconscious
Freud also believed that everything we are aware of is stored in our Conscious. At any
given time, we are only aware of a very small part of what makes up our personality;
most of what we are is buried and inaccessible.
The final part is the preconscious and subconscious. This is the part of us that we can
access if prompted, but is not in our active conscious. Its right below the surface, but
still buried somewhat unless we search for it. Information such as our telephone
number, some childhood memories, or the name of your best childhood friend is stored
in the preconscious. The iceberg.
Behavioral Model
Behavioral Psychology is basically interested in how our behavior results from the stimuli
both in the environment and within ourselves. Scientific Experiment: Often a
demanding process, but results have helped us learn a great deal about our behaviors,
the effect our environment has on us, how we learn new behaviors, and what motivates
us to change or remain the same. Behaviourism traces its roots to the early part of the
20th century, a time when many psychologists emphasized self-analysis of mental
processes (introspection) or the psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud.
In contrast, researchers like Ivan Pavlov and John B. Watson, and B.F Skinner began to
develop a framework which emphasized observable processes (environmental stimuli
and behavioural responses). The result was a new approach, behaviourism, which grew
in popularity for some fifty years, becoming the dominant framework for experimental
research.
The Cognitive Approach
The cognitive approach deals with mental processes like memory and problem solving.
By emphasizing mental processes, it places itself in opposition to behaviourism, which
largely ignores mental processes. (Not measurable directly).Today, the cognitive
approach has overtaken behaviourism in terms of popularity, and is one of the
dominant approaches in contemporary psychology. (Especially in treatment)
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The Humanistic Approach

The Humanistic Approach began in response to concerns by therapists against perceived
limitations of Psychodynamic theories, especially psychoanalysis. Individuals like Carl
Rogers and Abraham Maslow felt existing (psychodynamic) theories failed to
adequately address issues like the meaning of behavior, and the nature of healthy
growth. There are several factors which distinguish the Humanistic Approach from
other approaches within psychology, including: The emphasis on subjective meaning, A
rejection of determinism, A concern for positive growth rather than pathology.
Mind Body Connection
Another question which raised many controversies among scientists is the issue of the
mind body connections. Most experts in the field of psychology and biology agree that
the mind and the body are connected in more complex ways than we can even
comprehend. Research constantly shows us that the way we think affects the way we
behave, the way we feel, and the way our body’s respond. The opposite is also true,
physical illness, physical well being, exercising, insomnia all affect not only the way
we feel and behave, but also the way we think about ourselves and the world.
Understanding Development
Psychologists have also been interested in the changes that occur during our lives since the
very beginnings of the discipline. John B. Watson, in his famous statement about being
able to shape any child to achieve any career, was making an assertion about the power
of the environment to shape development. Others, from Francis Galeton onward, have
asserted that our destiny is in our genes.Neither view is likely entirely correct,
Other questions which psychologists tried to answer include:What really does shape our
personality? What makes a good parent? And what determines if someone is happy and
active in old age, or bitter and withdrawn?
While no one has complete answers to any of these questions, developmental
psychologists, drawing on all of the five approaches, are gaining an increasingly
detailed picture of the processes that influence the way we grow and change.

TYPES OF RESEARCH METHODS

THE EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN
If researchers are interested the Causal Effects of one variable on another, they use an
experimental design for their study.With an experimental design, the researcher can
control for extraneous variables.
The simplest experimental design includes two variables and two groups of participants.
The two variables (Independent versus Dependent variables). In experimental designs
with two variables, one is called the independent variable (IV) and the other is called
the dependent variable (DV). The IV is the predictor variable whereas the DV is the
outcome variable. Researchers manipulate and control the IV to study it's effect on the
DV.
The two groups of participants (Control versus Experimental group). Before beginning
the experiment, the researcher (randomly) assigns his/her sample to two different
groups: the control group and the experimental (treatment group or clinical group).
The control group receives no manipulation of the IV (no treatment), whereas the
experimental group receives the manipulation of the IV
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Advantages
- Can infer causation (experiments are the ONLY way to determine causation)
- Can control for (most) confounding variables
Disadvantages
- Are subject to placebo effects
By defining our variables that we will use to test our theory we derive at our Hypothesis,
which is a testable form of a theory. As an example of this, lets say that we have a
theory that people who drive sports cars are more aggressive in interactions with
others. Our independent variable would be the type of car you drive (sports, sedan,
etc.). Our dependent variables, the outcome of our research, would be aggression.
We would need to further define aggression so that it is something we can test and measure
such as speeding or cutting other people off in traffic. (Operational Definition).We
now have the basics of our very simple experiment and can write our Hypothesis:
People who drive sports cars drive over the speed limit more frequently than people
who drive other types of cars.
Controlling for Biases
After carefully reviewing our study and determining what might affect our results that are
not part of the experiment, we need to control for these biases. To control for selection
bias, most experiments use what’s called Random Assignment, which means
assigning the subjects to each group based on chance rather than human decision. To
control for the placebo effect, subjects are often not informed of the purpose of the
experiment. This is called a Blind study, because the subjects are blind to the expected
results. To control for experimenter biases, we can utilize a Double-Blind study, which
means that both the experimenter and the subjects are blind to the purpose and
anticipated results of the study.
Internal Validity is whether observed changes can be attributed to your program or
treatment intervention (i.e., the cause) and not to other possible causes (sometimes
described as "alternative explanations" for the outcome). In those contexts, you would
like to be able to conclude that your program or treatment made a difference -- it
improved test scores or reduced symptom. But there may be lots of reasons, other than
your program or treatment, why test scores may improve or symptoms may reduce.
External validity is related to generalizing. That's the major thing you need to keep in
mind. So, external validity refers to the approximate truth of conclusions the involve
generalizations. Put in more simple terms, external validity is the degree to which the
conclusions in your study would hold for other persons in other places and at other
times.
Standardization
We have our hypothesis, and we know what our subject pool is, the next thing we have to
do is standardize the experiment. Standardization refers to a specific set of
instructions. The reason we want the experiment to be standardized is twofold.
First, we want to make sure all subjects are given the same instructions, presented with the
experiment in the same manner, and that all of the data is collected exactly the same or
all subjects.
Second, single experiments cannot typically stand on their own. To really show that are
results are valid, experiments need to be replicated by other experimenters with
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different subjects. To do this, the experimenters need to know exactly what we did so
they can replicate it.

OTHER TYPES OF RESEARCH TECHNIQUES

There are several other types of research that you need to be aware of.
Naturalistic Observation: A research method where the subject(s) is (are) observed
without interruption under normal or natural circumstances. Perhaps this is the simplest
form of research and it involves: Observing behavior in their natural environment and,
often involves counting behaviours, such as number, frequency, duration of aggressive
acts, or of smiles, etc.
Advantages: Behaviour is naturally occurring and is not manipulated by a researcher and
it can provide more qualitative data as opposed to merely quantitative information.
Limitations: Even the presence of someone observing can cause those being observed to
alter their behaviour (Reversed mirror). Researcher’s beliefs can also alter their
observations.
Case Study: Following a single case, typically over an extended period of time (e.g.
developmental). Can involve naturalistic observations, and can also include
psychological testing, interviews with others, and the application of a treatment or
observation
Advantages: Can gather extensive information, both qualitative and quantitative and it can
be helpful in better understanding rare cases or very specific interventions
Limitations: Only one case is involved, severely limiting the generalization to the rest of
the population. (External Validity)
Survey: A research technique in which subjects respond to a series of questions. It is
suitable for studies which involves a relatively large sample (e.g. Epidemiology).
Usually questionnaires are used to gather information.
Advantages: Can gather large amounts of information in a relatively short time, especially
now with many surveys being conducted on the internet.
Limitations: Survey data is based solely on subjects’ responses which can be inaccurate
due to outright lying, misunderstanding of the question, placebo effect, and even the
manner in which the question is asked
Correlation Studies:
Correlational Research refers to studies in which the purpose is to discover relationships
between variables through the use of correlational statistics (r), which is referred to as a
correlation coefficient. A correlational relationship between two variables is
occasionally the result of an outside source, so we have to be careful and remember
that correlation does not necessarily tell us about cause and effect.
Correlation means relationship, so the purpose of a correlational study is to determine if a
relationship exists, what direction the relationship is, and how strong it is, causality can
be tested by using an experimental approach.
Advantages: Can assess the strength of a relationship. Is popular with lay population
because it is relatively easy to explain and understand.
Limitations: Can not make any assumptions of cause and effect (explain how third a
variable can be involved, or how the variables can influence each other).