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Health and Social Care
Unit A2 6: Understanding Human Behaviour
Content Page
- and personality Psychological perspectives on behaviour
- Treatments and therapies
- Psychoanalytic Therapies
- Humanistic Therapies
- Therapies linked to the behaviourist perspective
- Cognitive Therapies
- Therapies based on the social perspective
- Therapies based on the biological perspective
- and treating individuals The application of perspectives to understanding
- Depression
- Aggression
- Stress
- Eating Disorders
- Phobias
- The influence of socio-economic factors
- Depression
- Aggression
- Stress
- Eating Disorders
- Phobias
Psychological perspectives on
behaviour and personality
Cognitive perspective (Beck and Ellis)
Behaviourist perspective
operant conditioning (Skinner)
classical conditioning (Pavlov)
Social learning perspective (Bandura)
Biological perspective (genetic, physiological and neurobiological processes in depression, aggression and stress)
Psychoanalytic perspective (Freud)
Humanistic perspective (Rogers)
PSYCHOLOGICAL
PERSPECTIVES ON
BEHAVIOUR AND
PERSONALITY
The diagram highlights the six major perspectives in psychology; the names of theorists and other information shows what you need to know about each perspective. The perspectives are described in detail in CCEA’s fact file ‘Psychological Perspectives on Behaviour and Personality’.
Play therapy
In this psychoanalytic technique for children, play is used to communicate with them to allow feelings and conflicts to emerge from their unconscious minds, in a similar way that free association, dream analysis and other techniques are used with adults. Toys are provided, for example dolls, cars, houses, bricks, and drawing materials, to allow children to act out scenes, which can uncover unconscious thoughts and feelings. The actions and interactions that take place during play can be interpreted by a therapist to get a better understanding of a child’s problems. The therapist can then help the child to work through his/her feelings, which will help the child to experience catharsis and therefore cope better with any trauma that has negatively affected their behaviour.
Evaluation of psychoanalytic therapy Strengths
- These are well-established therapies that are still popular and widely used with lots of published case studies to help therapists in their own development;
- Clients are able to express their feelings and conflicts in a safe environment;
- They can be applied to dealing with a whole range of behaviours ,for example depression, aggression, eating disorders;
- They recognise that negative early experiences can negatively affect an individual’s ability to cope with life; and
- The therapies can be applied to children as well as adults – play therapy can help children who may otherwise find it difficult to explain how they are feeling.
Weaknesses/limitations
- Psychoanalytic therapy tends to be expensive, as it is a one-to-one approach and it can take a lot of sessions before any progress is evident;
- The childhood conflicts that are uncovered may be very distressing for clients, so they may feel worse than ever whilst undergoing therapy;
- Clients’ memories may be inaccurate – these are referred to as ‘false memories’;
- An analyst’s interpretations, for example of dreams or of what a client says during free association, may be inaccurate;
- It may be difficult to establish a therapeutic relationship as some clients may be very resistant to exposing their thoughts; and
- The whole approach has been criticised as being totally unscientific, for example there is no evidence for the existence of the ‘unconscious’.
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Humanistic therapies
Client-centred therapy
In Rogers’ client centred therapy, also known as person centred therapy (PCT), the role of the therapist is to provide unconditional positive regard for the client. This will allow the client to work towards self-actualisation as he/she is freed from trying to satisfy other people’s ‘conditions of worth’ in order to achieve positive regard. There is a need for warmth, genuineness and empathy in the therapeutic relationship to allow positive regard to be experienced by the client. The focus of this therapy is on dealing with the present rather than the past. The therapy is non-directive, meaning that the client, not the therapist, should decide how to work towards self-actualisation, so that his/her behaviour becomes congruent with his/her self-concept. The therapist employs the Q-sort technique to determine the discrepancy between the client’s self – image and ideal self. This involves cards which contain statements that the client can sort into piles to represent the self and the ideal-self. This technique can be repeated to measure progress in the therapy. Here is a clip of Carl Rogers’ talking about his therapy and working with his client, Gloria.
Encounter Groups
Clients in group therapy can provide positive regard for each other. Rogers’ encounter groups have the same purpose and effect as his one-to-one therapy described above.
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Therapies linked to the behaviourist perspective
In therapies linked to the behaviourist perspective, the focus is on changing problem responses or behaviours, as opposed to trying to understand reasons for them. The aim of these therapies is to replace negative or inappropriate responses with more positive and appropriate ones, for example a behaviour therapy may attempt to replace a fear response with a more relaxed response in clients with phobias, whilst behaviour modification might be used to replace aggressive behaviours in a child with more positive co-operative behaviours when in the presence of other children.
Behaviour therapies , based on Pavlov’s theory of classical conditioning through learned associations, are used to help clients with phobias. Systematic desensitisation is a therapy in which clients are asked to draw up a ‘hierarchy of fears’ from the least to the most threatening. For example, a client with a fear of rodents might have looking at a photograph at the bottom of the hierarchy and actually holding a live animal at the top. The therapist teaches the client to use relaxation techniques and the client works gradually through the hierarchy of fears, replacing the conditioned fear response with relaxation. The therapy starts with least threatening situation and gradually works up the hierarchy. It may not be necessary to achieve relaxation at the very top of the hierarchy for the client to live a more normal life for example. a client with a phobia of rodents may not necessarily need to be able to hold a live animal, as long as the fear reduces enough for the client to be able to live a normal life. In exposure therapies, which include flooding and implosion , clients are required to remain with the feared stimulus, despite high levels of anxiety. It is physiologically impossible for the body to maintain an anxiety state like the ‘fight or flight’ response, so it subsides and fear is extinguished as a result. In flooding the clients are directly exposed to the object of their fear and made to confront it, whilst in implosion therapy clients are never brought into direct contact with the object or situation they fear, but they are asked to imagine or visualise coming in contact with it again and again until the fear is reduced. You can see an example of a phobia of snakes being cured in this video.
Behaviour modification techniques are based on Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning and in particular his concept of reinforcement; these techniques can be used by parents and teachers as well as by psychologists. Behaviour modification starts with measuring and quantifying the behaviours to be reduced for example, observing and counting acts of aggression. Inappropriate behaviours are then ignored, where possible, or they can be punished using ‘time out’ though such punishments must be immediate to be effective. Appropriate behaviours are positively reinforced, for example by a child gaining
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adult attention. A common form of behaviour modification is the use of star or reward charts; children can accumulate stars by producing the desired behaviour, for example playing co-operatively with others, and this allows the children to earn treats or rewards. Behaviour is measured to check for change and progress. For children, all the adults they come into contact with, as consistency is essential, should follow through this type of programme both at school and at home.
Time management techniques, based on operant conditioning, can also be used for stress. This involves setting and meeting realistic targets for tasks so they are more likely to be completed. This, in turn, removes the stressor of lack of time (i.e. the environmental stimulus that elicits the learned stress response) and improves the individual’s sense of control. It focuses on changing the behaviours that have become associated with the stress response for example, rushing to complete tasks at work. In behaviourist terms, it extinguishes the stress response caused by not having enough time to complete tasks and replaces the stress response with more relaxed behaviours, which are reinforcing for the individual.
Evaluation of therapies based on the behaviourist perspective – behaviour therapies, behaviour modification and time management
Strengths
- These therapies can be more effective than counselling therapies for some people as they take a more direct and practical approach to solving problems rather than just talking about them and they don’t depend on the client and therapist developing a positive therapeutic relationship;
- They tend to be much quicker than talking therapies like psychoanalytic therapy because of the focus on changing behaviour rather than trying to find out the root cause;
- Research has shown that behaviour therapies can be just as effective as medication for conditions like anxiety, as clients can learn to produce new behaviours in anxiety- producing situations;
- These therapies can provide long-term protection against relapse as clients have learnt techniques to help them cope that they can reproduce in the future;
- Behaviour modification techniques can easily be adopted by non-psychologists, for example parents and teachers using star charts to encourage positive behaviours;
- Time management is easily understood by clients and they can be quickly trained or even just given literature so they can try to help themselves, which is cost effective compared to talking therapies.
Weaknesses/limitations
- Behaviour therapies do not suit everyone, as clients must be committed to tackling their problems and often are required do ‘homework’ between sessions, which requires determination and some discipline;
- Some theorists argue that these therapies fail to tackle the underlying problems as they try to change behaviour without getting to the bottom of why an individual is displaying it in the first place;
- Behaviour modification techniques are better suited to children than adults ,for example the token economy in which adults in settings like mental hospitals were given tokens for good behaviour, which they could collect and trade for privileges, was regarded as patronising.
Therapies based on the social perspective
Modelling therapy
This therapy is based on Bandura’s Social Learning Theory and aims to change problem behaviours. The theory is that, if you can get someone with a psychological disorder to observe someone dealing with the same issues in a more productive fashion, the first person will learn by modelling the second. A client will be shown examples of people behaving in a desired way and perhaps see them being rewarded or alternatively being punished for undesired behaviour, for example an aggressive child could see a film of someone being given sweets for being co-operative and of an aggressive child being scolded. The models can be live and actually present or observed indirectly as on TV. Bandura’s original research on this involved herpephobics, people with a neurotic fear of snakes. Clients watched another person, an actor; go through a slow and painful approach to a caged snake. He acts terrified at first, but shakes himself out of it, tells himself to relax and breathe normally and take one step at a time towards the snake. He may stop in the middle, retreat in panic, and start all over. Ultimately, he gets to the point where he opens the cage, removes the snake, sits down on the chair, and drapes it over his neck, all the while giving himself calming instructions. After the clients saw all this they were invited to try it themselves. They knew that the other person was an actor – there was no deception involved, only modelling! And yet, many clients, lifelong phobics, were able to go through the entire routine first time around, even after only one viewing of the actor!
Social skills training
Social skills are those communication, problem solving, decision-making, self- management, and peer relations abilities that allow people to initiate and maintain positive social relationships with others. Many clients never learned appropriate behaviour in social settings Perhaps they did not have good role models in the home to promote appropriate behaviour, or if they did have they did not pick up these skills as well as others.
Social skills training is a general term for instruction that promotes more productive/ positive interaction with others. Social skills are taught to clients who are socially unskilled in order to promote acceptance by others. A social skills training programme might include:
- “Manners” and positive interaction with others
- Appropriate behaviour, for example in the classroom
- Better ways to handle frustration/anger, for example counting to 10 before reacting, distracting oneself, learning an internal dialogue to cool oneself down and reflect upon the best course of action
- Acceptable ways to resolve conflict with others ,for example using words instead of physical contact or seeking the assistance of others to resolve a conflict
Family therapy (for eating disorders)
- The therapy aims to help the whole family learn about eating disorders and how they are treated, in particular to help parents realise that a young person with an eating disorder cannot control his or her thoughts and behaviour. The idea is to help parents to understand and support the client more effectively
- The therapy aims to help everyone in the family to understand that the family is not the cause of the illness, but the family can help overcome it.
- It aims to help parents take control of their child’s eating until he or she has put on weight. For example, the therapist might suggest that parents monitor meals and limit exercise for a child who has anorexia. In return, parents might give the child choices over things like whether or not to tidy their room.
- It tries to focus on how the family members get along together to see if anything is making it hard for parents and the client to work towards improving the eating problems. For example, the family might be encouraged to consider the rules they have, how decisions are made and how limits are set.
Evaluation of therapies based on the social perspective
Strengths
- These therapies take account of the important effect role models can have on the behaviour of individuals;
- Family therapy helps those who are most often with the clients to understand their condition and to help them;
- Social skills training can be delivered to a group of clients, for example in a school setting; and
- Modelling therapy is a powerful therapy that has a proven record of working well with phobias.
Weaknesses/limitations
- These therapies don’t really focus on finding out the root cause of the problem;
- Clients with eating disorders may feel that including the family is an invasion of privacy, so they may hold back on saying things they would discuss with a therapist on a one-to-one basis because of the presence of family members;
- One drawback to modelling therapy is that it isn’t easy to get the rooms, the snakes, the actors, etc., together.
Meditation
Meditation involves getting into a comfortable position and repeating a mantra of a single syllable – this can reduce oxygen consumption and induce electrical activity in the brain indicative of a calm mental state; it also reduces blood pressure.
Relaxation One physiological symptom of stress is muscle tension – progressive muscle relaxation involves tightening and relaxing muscles until the whole body is relaxed and muscle tension and blood pressure are reduced. Have a go at progressive muscle relaxation by listening to the audio here.
Evaluation of therapies based on the biological perspective Strengths Drugs
- Are effective for most patients in dealing with the physical symptoms of psychological conditions, for example reducing the physiological reactions to stress;
- Usually have reasonably quick results for example. most patients who are prescribed anti-depressants start to feel better within 3 weeks ;
- Are more cost effective for the health service than patients spending long periods in talking therapies; and
- Are free for patients on the NHS.
Other physical treatments
- ECT has helped very extreme cases of depression where other techniques have failed when used for drug resistant patients;
- Using biofeedback, meditation and relaxation can give clients a sense of control over their symptoms;
- Biofeedback, meditation and relaxation have no side effects; and
- Meditation and relaxation techniques can be managed by clients once they have been learned so are very cost effective.
Weaknesses In general these therapies treat the symptoms of the problem not the underlying cause. Drugs
- Drugs can have minor side effects like dizziness or more serious side effects like blurred vision; SSRIs have been shown to suppress appetite;
- Some drugs for example, benzodiazepines can be addictive and so their use is often time limited to avoid this problem;
- Withdrawal symptoms can be very unpleasant, for example anxiety, tremors and
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headaches can be experienced;
- Patients may refuse to take drugs because they fear addiction;
- Patients may forget to take their medication – this problem can be exacerbated by their condition, for example the lethargy associated with depression; and
- There may be reactions with other drugs the client uses.
Other physical treatments
- ECT has some serious side effects like memory problems for up to 6 months, reading difficulties and painful headaches – it has been described as ‘electrical head injury’ by some patients’ groups;
- It is not clear how ECT works and because of this some people regard it as unethical;
- Patients sometimes perceive ECT as a punishment for being different – they report that it is a frightening experience;
- Biofeedback needs specialist equipment and expert supervision which makes it expensive, especially compared to meditation and relaxation; and
- Meditation and relaxation are unsupervised so clients may feel unsupported and may give up using the techniques.
When there is incongruity between the ideal and the real self the individual is in a threatening situation and will feel anxiety. To reduce this the individual uses two defences: denial and perceptual distortion. Unfortunately for the depressed individual, by using these defences, he puts a greater distance between the real and the ideal self, creating more incongruence, more threat, and greater levels of anxiety, and therefore the individual uses defences more and more frequently. It becomes a vicious cycle that the person eventually is unable to get out of, at least on his own. More serious depressive episodes or mental breakdown occurs when a person’s defences are overwhelmed, and their sense of self becomes ‘shattered’.
From this perspective the treatments for depression are client-centred therapy and encounter groups.
The cognitive perspective argues that irrational thoughts and beliefs cause depression. As maladjusted thinking causes depression, it is necessary to examine an individual’s thought processes to understand his or her depression.
Beck described the irrational and maladaptive assumptions and thoughts that lead to depression as cognitive errors. Beck claims mental disorders like depression are rooted in the maladaptive ways people think about:
- Themselves for example, I can’t succeed at anything;
- The world ,for example it’s a bad place and nothing in it can make me happy ; and
- The future, for example nothing will change.
Beck referred to this as a ‘ cognitive triad ’ of negative, automatic thoughts. These negative schemas dominate thinking and depression is the result.
Ellis also argued that irrational thoughts are the main cause of depression as they lead to a self defeating internal dialogue of negative self statements ,for example depression is caused by catastrophising self statements like ‘I’ll never be a happy person, my life may as well be over’. He identified 11 basic irrational beliefs that are emotionally self- defeating and commonly associated with depression for example:
- I must be loved and accepted by absolutely everybody
- I must be excellent in every respect and never make mistakes – otherwise I’m worthless
Sometimes referred to as the ‘ ABC model ’, Ellis claims disorders begin with an activating event (A) (for example, a failed exam) leading to a belief (B) , which may be rational (for example, I didn’t work hard enough) or irrational (for example, I’m too stupid to pass). The belief leads to consequences (C) , which can be adaptive (appropriate) for rational beliefs (for example, I’ll do more revision) or maladaptive (inappropriate) for irrational beliefs (for example, getting depressed).
From this perspective, treatments for depression are Beck’s cognitive restructuring and Ellis’s RET and REBT.
From the biological perspective , depression results from genes and neurochemistry. This perspective points to evidence of the increased risk of depression for first-degree biological relatives (parents, siblings, children) of people with the condition, suggesting there may be a genetic explanation. The genetic component may be a predisposing factor rather than a direct cause.
Depression is also linked to the disturbance of brain chemistry, specifically involving chemicals called neurotransmitters, which assist in transmitting messages between nerve cells in the brain across a small gap called a synapse.
Certain neurotransmitters are known to regulate mood. When they are not available in sufficient quantities, depression can result. Serotonin is a monoamine neurotransmitter that is believed to play an important role in the regulation of mood, with low levels associated with both depression and anxiety. Noradrenaline and dopamine have also been shown to be involved. The brain’s response to stressful events may alter the balance of neurotransmitters and result in depression. Sometimes, a person may experience depression without any particular sad or stressful event that they can point to. People who have a genetic predisposition to depression may be more prone to the imbalance of neurotransmitter activity that is part of depression. Depression can also be linked to substance abuse that affects brain chemistry, for example alcohol abuse is linked to depression.
Hormones may also be involved in depression, with high levels of cortisol linked to over- activity of the hypothalamus. In pre-menstrual, post-natal and menopausal depression, an oestrogen-progesterone imbalance has been suggested.
Eysenck argued personality has a biological basis. He proposed that there were two major dimensions of personality, namely the extroversion – introversion dimension and the neuroticism – stability dimension. He argued most people’s personalities would fall into one of four types, a stable extrovert, a neurotic extrovert, a stable introvert or a neurotic introvert as shown on the diagram on page 18.
Eysenck later added psychoticism, which most people score very low on. Psychotic personalities are solitary, insensitive, uncaring, opposed to social customs and lacking in conscience.
In terms of the biological basis of extroversion, Eysenck proposed a link to the lower parts of the brain, where there are structures, which control the levels of arousal of higher brain
Eysenck’s personality theory
High Neuroticism
Low Neuroticism
Introversion Melancoholic Extraversion
Choleric
Phlegmatic
Sanguine
Moody Anxious Rigid Sober Pessimistic Reserved Unsociable Quiet
Passive Careful Thoughtful Peaceful Controlled Reliable Even-tempered Calm
Touchy Restless Aggresive Excitable Changeable Impulsive Optimistic Active
Sociable Outgoing Talkative Responsive Easygoing Lively Carefree Leadership
Activity
Read again how Roger’s humanistic theory explains depression. Now write an explanation of aggressive behaviour from this perspective, incorporating the following key phrases:
- failing to self-actualise
- conditional and unconditional positive regard
- conditions of worth
- conditional self-regard
- the real self and the ideal self
- incongruity
- defence mechanisms.
From this perspective client-centred therapy and encounter groups are used to help individuals to self-actualise and therefore to stop being aggressive.
From the behaviourist perspective , aggression is a learned response to environmental stimuli, with the key learning process being conditioning.
According to Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning, reinforcement is the process by which any behaviour including aggressive behaviour is learned or strengthened. Where aggressive behaviour has positive consequences for the individual it is repeated – the positive consequences may be in the form of a reward or positive reinforcement ,or example getting others to do what you want, or the opportunity to avoid something unpleasant or negative reinforcement , for example being aggressive towards others so they will not attack you. Aggressive behaviour may also have been learned because it has not been effectively punished.
From this perspective, aggressive behaviours can be reduced through the process of behaviour modification, which involves:
- Observing and quantifying the behaviours to be reduced i.e. counting acts of aggression
- Ignoring aggressive acts or punishing them by using ‘time out’ for example. where a child is removed from the situation by being made to spend some time alone
- Positively reinforcing non-aggressive behaviour for example. by giving attention or through the use of star charts and rewards
- Observing and measuring behaviour again to check for a reduction in acts of aggression.
From the cognitive perspective , irrational thoughts and beliefs cause aggression in the same way they cause depression. For Beck, examples of the cognitive triad of negative thoughts in someone who is aggressive might include:
- I have to be aggressive to protect myself (about the self)
- People are always out to get you (about the world)
- Nothing will change, people will always pick on me (about the future).
For Ellis the aggression results from catastrophising self statements like ‘I’ll never be in control of my life unless I take on other people’. In terms of the ‘ ABC model ’ the activating event (A) might be a disagreement, leading to a belief (B) , which may be rational (for example, people have the right to have different opinions) or irrational (for
example, I’m always being challenged and picked on). The belief leads to consequences (C) , which can be adaptive (appropriate) for rational beliefs (for example, I’ll try to understand this alternative point of view point) or maladaptive (inappropriate) for irrational beliefs (for example, becoming aggressive). People who are aggressive have developed maladaptive beliefs and behaviours.
From this perspective, Beck’s cognitive restructuring and Ellis’s RET and REBT aim to change the irrational or inappropriate thoughts that are causing the aggression. For example in a cognitive restructuring session, Beck might ask the client questions, such as:
- What is the evidence supporting the belief that people pick on him?
- What is another way of looking at the same situation ,for example listening to other people or putting forward a different view without getting angry
- What will happen if, indeed, the current conclusion/opinion is correct, for example if people do pick on him how could he deal with it in another way?
Ellis would challenge a client to prove unrealistic statements like ‘ the only way to get what you want is to fight your corner’ and a therapy session might involve role playing different situations such as discussing something you disagree with someone about without becoming angry and aggressive. A task set by the therapist between sessions might involve talking over something you disagree with a family member on without becoming angry or shouting.
From the social perspective , Bandura’s Social Learning Theory claims that aggressive behaviour is learned through observation by imitating and modelling the behaviour of role models and also through identification with aggressive role models , as well as by reinforcement as emphasised by Skinner. Identification is a progression from simply imitating aggression to ‘ internalising ’ the behaviour so that aggression becomes part of the individual’s personality. Aggressive role models teach children different ways of being aggressive and the learned aggression is generalised as aggressive acts are perpetrated in a whole range of other situations. Role models who are warm and loving, who have power, influence and competence and who are similar, for example in terms of sex or age, are particularly influential in modelling aggression.
Activity
Working in pairs, think of a situation in which a child is likely to learn to be aggressive. Use the key words highlighted in the previous paragraph to explain why the child will be aggressive.
From this perspective, modelling could be used to address aggressive behaviour. A client could be shown examples of people being rewarded for behaving in a cooperative way, or alternatively being punished for being aggressive. For example, an aggressive child could see a film of someone being given sweets for being co-operative and of an aggressive child being scolded. The models can be live and actually present or observed in a film. Social skills training could also be used to reduce aggressive responses and help individuals to learn new ways of dealing with others.
From the biological perspective , low levels of serotonin in the brain have been linked to a reduced ability to control aggressive impulses. Extreme aggression may also be linked to dysfunctions in certain parts of the brain, for example the hypothalamus, which regulates emotions. Other research has shown that there is a link between pain and aggression. The research suggested that stimuli that cause pain often also trigger aggressive behaviour.
