Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
Key themes in Psychology and principles/concepts - Coggle Diagram
Key themes in Psychology and principles/concepts
Social
Suggests that behaviour is influenced by other people's presence ( Milgram) and the social context (Piliavin) of situations/environment.
Piliavin & Levine ( responses to people in need)
Similarities:
They both investigate responses to people in need and how it differs within each condition. (Drunk/ill victim and the dropping pen scenario/ acting like a blind person needing help to cross the road)
Piliavin investigated that the level of help depends on the appearance of the victim and Levine investigated that the level of help is affected by culture.
Participants did not know that they were in a psychological setting
Differences:
Piliavin's study was conducted only in the subway of New York, America while Levine carried this out in 23 different cities across continents.
Piliavin focuses on how helping behaviour is effected on how many people are present and the appearance of the victim while Levine focuses on how culture affects helping behaviour. (simpatia cultures such as Brazil tend to help more compared to non-simpatia culturess like Malaysia)
Piliavin had only collected their data based on helping behaviour to one helping scenario whilst Levine collected theirs in relation to three scenarios.
Milgram & Bocchiaro ( Responses to people in authority)
Similarities:
Both investigate how people respond to people in authority. (the experimenter encouraging participants to go to 450v and the the experimenter telling participants to lie about what the study is about)
They both investigate how far participants are willing to follow orders even when they know the orders are unethical.
Took part in a laboratory on a university campus
Differences:
Milgram carried out his research in America while Bocchiaro did this in Amsterdam.
Milgram's sample was all male while Bocchiaros sample consisted of both male and females
In Milgram's study, the people would be hurting someone that they have only met briefly while Bocchiaros participants would be hurting someone they knew.
Milgram evaluation
Participants were
highly deceived
about the true aims of the study, they did not know they would have to "shock" someone.
technically, they were allowed to withdraw, but the experimenters prods such as " You must continue" was
discouraging
them from doing this.
High levels of face validity
as it appears to be measuring what he wanted to measure ( obedience).
Very
low ecological validity
as it does not represent real life situations. It is not a daily occurance to shock someone because they have given an incorrect answer to a question
The study was
highly replicable
as Milgram was able to replicate this with 40 different participants, and the fact that this had a standardised procedure.
Can be seen as
ethnocentric
as the research was only carried out in one country (USA) so cannot be assumed that the levels of obedience of his American participants would reflect the levels among others in different cultures.
Links to debates
Supports the
situational side
of individual/situational debate. They were pressured into continuing and shocking the learner up to 450v.
Determinism - They were
determined
by the experimenter to continue to do this. But there is
space for freewill
here as they essentially choose whether or not they decide to obey the experimenter.
Very useful
- suggests that people in positions in authority can expect those who are subordinate to them to be obedient.
Bocchiaro evaluation:
The study remained within the ethical guidelines. Confidentiality and consent was respected.
Participants experienced a
high level of deception
and the consent they had given was not fully informed.
Can be seen as measuring what it intended to measure.
High in reliability as each participant had the same cover story, and since the sample is large, the results can be said to show a consistent trend.
Links to debates
Usefulness
- Suggests more negative uses than positive ones.
Freewill
- The figure of 23.5% which represents those who were not obedient can be used to show that they were in control of their actions.
Applications:
Using CCTV to deter crime (as people act differently when they know they are being watched)
Managers/teachers to wear formal clothing and act sternly to get obedience from others
Companies to have an app or website to allow employees to blow the whistle on unethical practices anonymously
Strengths and weaknesses
Weaknesses:
Research can lack controls on extraneous variables
Research can be ethnocentric (i.e. only reflect social behaviour in one culture)
Research can get out of date (e.g. as social behaviour changes)
Can be difficult to stay within the ethical guidelines
Strengths:
Can help us understand the causes of historical events
Has practical applications (e.g. for managers wanting compliance from employees)
Research is often high in ecological validity when field experiments are used
Developmental area
Behaviour develops over time throughout a person’s life. Upbringing and childhood experiences affect adult behaviour.
Concepts: External influences on children’s behaviour, moral development, stages of development, social learning, operant conditioning.
Bandura & Chaney (External influences on children's behaviour)
Similarities
Both used young children as their participants
Both showed the importance of external influences on children's behaviour ( aggression acted out as role models and the fun aspects of the Funhaler to encourage correct use)
Both gained quantitative data
Differences
Bandura used observation whilst Chaney used self-report method
Bandura used a controlled setting whilst Chaney used a natural setting
Bandura's study took place in America whilst Chaney's study took place in Australia
Kohlberg & Lee (Moral development)
Similarities:
Both investigate moral development in children
Both use children as their participants
Both had cross-cultural aspects to them
Both involved participants being presented scenarios to them in which they had to comment on
Differences:
kohlberg's study was longitudinal whereas Lee's study was a snapshot
Kohlberg explains the universality of moral reasoning while Lee show the cultural differences in moral rules.
Kohlberg had only male participants while Lee had a mix of both genders
Strengths and weaknesses of the area
Strengths:
Often uses longitudinal research so we can see how behaviour develops
Often has practical applications for parents and teachers (encouraging positive behaviours)
Helps investigate whether behaviour is influenced by nature or nurture
Weaknesses:
Often uses children (which can bring up ethical issues)
Research can be socially sensitive if it leads to parents being blamed for poor behaviour
Research is often ethnocentric as parenting and upbringing vary across cultures