Behaviorism Essay -- Behavior Psychology Psychological Essays

Behaviorism Psychology is the science of behavior. Psychology is not the science of the mind. Behavior can be described and explained without making reference to mental events or to internal psychological processes. The sources of behavior are external (in the environment), not internal (in the mind). Behaviorism is a doctrine, or a set of doctrines, about human and nonhuman animal behavior. An important component of many psychological theories in the late nineteenth century were introspection, the study of the mind by analysis of one's own thought processes. It was in reaction to this trend that behaviorism arose, claiming that the causes of behavior need not be sought in the depths of the mind but could be observed in the immediate environment, in stimuli that elicited, reinforced, and punished certain responses. The explanation, in other words, lay in learning, the process whereby behavior changes in response to the environment. It wasn’t until the twentieth century that the scientist began to uncover the actual mechanism of learning, thereby laying the theoretical foundation for behaviorism. The contributions of four particular scientists are Ivan Pavlov, John B. Watson, Edward Lee Thorndike, and B.F. Skinner. A Russian neurophysiologist, named Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936), found that if he consistently sounded a tone at the same time that he gave a dog food, the dog would eventually salivate to the sound of the tone alert. Through this research he discovered a basic mechanism of learning called the Conditioned Reflex. A Conditioned Reflex is if a neutral stimulus (i.e. the tone) is paired with a nonneutral stimulus (i.e. the food), the organism will eventually respond to the neutral stimulus as it does to the nonneutral stimulus. Perhaps the strongest application of classical conditioning involves emotion. Common experience and careful research both confirm that human emotion conditions very rapidly and easily. Particularly when the emotion is intensely felt or negative in direction, it will condition quickly. His findings raised the possibility that many of our responses, like those of the dogs, were the result of a simple learning process. In other words, our loves and hates, our tastes and distastes might be the consequences of nothing more mysterious that a conditioning process whereby various things in our environment became "linked" in our min... ...lly "spreads," or generalizes, to thinks that resemble the conditioned stimulus. An example to this is in Watson's experiment with little Albert's spontaneous fear of rabbits, and other animals that resembles a white rate. The opposite side of the coin from generalization is discrimination that is learning to distinguish among similar stimuli and to respond only to the appropriate one. People learn to discriminate between similar stimuli, between a friendly smile and a malicious grin. When one turns to have reinforcing consequences and the other does not. When I was a little boy I loved the ice cream man. There would be so much noise going up and down my block but I could always hear his music over all the noise. Shaping is a critical process to operant conditioning. Throughout this process there is a positive reinforcement of successive approximations. The basic assumptions of behaviorism are that psychology's task is to study behavior, or the responses an organism makes to the stimuli in its environment; that psychological research should be empirical, based on measurement; that behavior can be controlled and predicted, and that the major component of behavior is learning. Behaviorism Essay -- Behavior Psychology Psychological Essays Behaviorism Psychology is the science of behavior. Psychology is not the science of the mind. Behavior can be described and explained without making reference to mental events or to internal psychological processes. The sources of behavior are external (in the environment), not internal (in the mind). Behaviorism is a doctrine, or a set of doctrines, about human and nonhuman animal behavior. An important component of many psychological theories in the late nineteenth century were introspection, the study of the mind by analysis of one's own thought processes. It was in reaction to this trend that behaviorism arose, claiming that the causes of behavior need not be sought in the depths of the mind but could be observed in the immediate environment, in stimuli that elicited, reinforced, and punished certain responses. The explanation, in other words, lay in learning, the process whereby behavior changes in response to the environment. It wasn’t until the twentieth century that the scientist began to uncover the actual mechanism of learning, thereby laying the theoretical foundation for behaviorism. The contributions of four particular scientists are Ivan Pavlov, John B. Watson, Edward Lee Thorndike, and B.F. Skinner. A Russian neurophysiologist, named Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936), found that if he consistently sounded a tone at the same time that he gave a dog food, the dog would eventually salivate to the sound of the tone alert. Through this research he discovered a basic mechanism of learning called the Conditioned Reflex. A Conditioned Reflex is if a neutral stimulus (i.e. the tone) is paired with a nonneutral stimulus (i.e. the food), the organism will eventually respond to the neutral stimulus as it does to the nonneutral stimulus. Perhaps the strongest application of classical conditioning involves emotion. Common experience and careful research both confirm that human emotion conditions very rapidly and easily. Particularly when the emotion is intensely felt or negative in direction, it will condition quickly. His findings raised the possibility that many of our responses, like those of the dogs, were the result of a simple learning process. In other words, our loves and hates, our tastes and distastes might be the consequences of nothing more mysterious that a conditioning process whereby various things in our environment became "linked" in our min... ...lly "spreads," or generalizes, to thinks that resemble the conditioned stimulus. An example to this is in Watson's experiment with little Albert's spontaneous fear of rabbits, and other animals that resembles a white rate. The opposite side of the coin from generalization is discrimination that is learning to distinguish among similar stimuli and to respond only to the appropriate one. People learn to discriminate between similar stimuli, between a friendly smile and a malicious grin. When one turns to have reinforcing consequences and the other does not. When I was a little boy I loved the ice cream man. There would be so much noise going up and down my block but I could always hear his music over all the noise. Shaping is a critical process to operant conditioning. Throughout this process there is a positive reinforcement of successive approximations. The basic assumptions of behaviorism are that psychology's task is to study behavior, or the responses an organism makes to the stimuli in its environment; that psychological research should be empirical, based on measurement; that behavior can be controlled and predicted, and that the major component of behavior is learning.

Locked in the Cabinet Essay

Democracy is a form of government where people have a right enabling them to have a say in everything that affects their lives. However, our government is not a direct democracy, and as such, individuals are not empowered or able to have a say in the inner-workings of their government. Their beliefs are not heard as often as they would like, and they are given little to no opportunities to decide what the government will do. The average citizen has little access to political power, and as a result little influence in the government. But if one individual chooses to change the government, and places that as their goal, then they have a chance of altering the system that governs their lives. If one such as Robert Reich works hard towards their goal, then they can possibly change the government to some degree. Robert Reich was an average man who had strong beliefs, and among those beliefs was the belief that to help people was just. His career in law began as a law clerk to a judge, and he eventually worked his way to the position of Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton. All of the time that Reich spent in Clinton’s cabinet was dedicated towards attempting to make his idea’s bear fruit. Although in the book Reich is the Secretary of Labor, he did not start out in this position. He worked his way up from the position of a law clerk, as I have previously stated, to a job that came with some measure of power. Reich attained this place in the government through his own efforts, and by showing that he had ideas suitable to fill in the role of Secretary of Labor. Reich is just one example of an ordinary person with true passion for their beliefs who was able to make a difference in the government. In Reich’s book, he talks about how an average person named Steve Wandner had an idea to reduce unemployment. Reich explains that Steve’s idea was when unemployed people claimed that they were unemployed, that they had to be screened to find out whether or not they were permanently laid off so that they could find new jobs faster. Steve worked hard in order for his idea to be heard, and after being ignored several times, Reich gave him the attention his idea deserved. Later, Wandner’s idea became an official law. Anyone can make a difference in the government if they work hard to reach a position where it is possible. During Robert Reich’s stay a part of President Clinton’s cabinet, he followed a strong belief in â€Å"putting the people first†. He cared deeply about helping the unemployed obtain new jobs and to retrain them in order to have better working skills, and in that same vein, better jobs further down the road. Reich also wanted to raise the minimum wage, show people the inequality of income in America, and much more. Reich’s ideas were not in any way offensive or unfair, he simply wanted to help people first rather than putting full attention on government issues such as reducing the deficit. Because of this, many of his ideas were igored and rejected by the members of Clinton’s moderate administration. For example, during one of his meeting with Bill Ford, chairman of the House of Representatives Education and Labor Committee, Reich tried to explain to him the idea of retraining American workers. Reich ended up being yelled at and his idea rejected. Although many of Reich’s ideas were disregarded by other members of government he continued to pursue his goal of helping the working class of America. Reich was rather successful in performing his duties as Secretary of Labor. One of his successes was helping pass the Family and Medical Leave Act. It allowed working class families to have more time off from work if they were injured or had a child. He was also successful in convincing President Bill Clinton in aiding the people rather than the government. In doing so Clinton decided to pass a law in raising the minimum wage 90 cents. This pleased many of the working class of America. Finally, Reich was also able to set up several reforms in order to help provide more jobs for the unemployed. For example, Reich gave 3 million dollars to a job center helping people trying to get employment. Even though he want able to pass a law to retrain workers, he still managed to work hard and complete some of his goals. Reich was ignored by many government officials during his term as Secretary of Labor, and this greatly hindered his chances of getting his goals finished. But while this may be true, this was not the center of his experiences as the Secretary of Labor. Reich was aiming towards retraining Americans, and he is not the only one who has seen this as a valuable idea. Freddie Ray Marshall was the Secretary of Labor for Jimmy Carter, and he shared many similar ideas with Reich. Both men were working to provide jobs for others, and they both were trying to get workers to be retrained. (F. Ray Marshall) If workers could get more training, they can possibly get better jobs. He also is a teacher, like Reich. However, unlike Reich, Marshall was able to pass many programs and to help reduce unemployment. I would say that some of Reich’s experiences were unique to his time as the Secretary of Labor, and that others were not. In conclusion, Reich was a man who fought all alone for his beliefs, and was more successful in some areas than in others. To call him a failure is a little harsh, and to call him a success depends on your political views. All in all, Reich did what he felt would be best for the people who have little say in the government. Reich can be seen as a prime example of one who worked hard to have their voice heard, and as one who made a difference, even if it wasn’t as big a difference as he would’ve liked. Reich really seemed like he was a kind individual (but then again, he wrote the book) and even if he did not succeed in all his plans, he still changed some things for the better.

The Egg And The Sperm - 1202 Words

Emily Martin s article The Egg and the Sperm highlights androcentric biases hidden within biology texts. Martin acknowledges the language that is being used around the egg and the sperm cells, attributing the sperm with masculine characteristics while the egg is given more feminine characteristics. The language that Martin speaks about is not only found in texts, but also in educational films such as: Fertilization: a Love Story, and The Miracle of Human Creation parts one and two. The language of giving these body cells a gender or gender characteristics has become so habitual that it has gone unnoticed until pointed out. Being that the egg and sperm cells are bodily cells just like any other cell (brain cell, lung cell, etc), it is outrageous to assign them characteristics attributed to a gender. The film Fertilization: A Love Story begins explaining the process of fertilization by introducing the players Mr.Sperm and Miss Oocyte. Mr. Sperm refers to sperm cells, which are found in a male s scrotal sac; and rightfully the counterpart to a sperm would be an egg, or Ms.Egg for the purpose of the film s players. However, Mr. Sperm s counterpart in the film is Miss Oocyte. While many people may easily be able to identify what a sperm cell is, it is not likely that the same amount of people are able to identify what an Oocyte cell is, making it easily dismissible. According to the Webster Dictionary, an Oocyte cell is an immature ovum. The androcentric language withinShow MoreRelatedThe Sperm and the Egg783 Words   |  4 PagesThe Sperm and the Egg Anna Carroll PSY 265 When sperm fertilizes an egg, conception occurs. For conception to occur the sperm and egg must meet. This is a story about how Bob, the sperm and Mary, the egg meet for the first time. The moment Bob and Mary come together a new individual is formed. Marys was produced at the time she was in a fetuss ovaries. It has been over 23 years since she and five million others like her were produced. It is an exciting day for Mary because unlike allRead MoreThe Egg And The Sperm1188 Words   |  5 Pagesme Instructor s Name Course Title 23 July 2015 Any Topic (writer s Choice) Surname Instructor Course Date The Egg and the Sperm Emily Martin begins the literature piece by claiming that culture tends to shape many things in the society including the manner as to how biological scientists illustrate what they know about the scientific world. She goes ahead to explain various scientific details regarding reproductive technologies that confer information as to how gender stereotypes prefer hidingRead MoreThe Sperm and the Egg900 Words   |  4 PagesThe Sperm and the Egg PSY/265 May 6th, 2012 Rhettman Mullis The Sperm and the Egg Hello, my name is Eve and today is going to be the most exciting day of my life. 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Martin assertsRead MoreThe Development of the Egg and Sperm884 Words   |  4 PagesThe Development Of the Egg and Sperm your name PSY/265 May 20, 2012 Nicole Pansey The sperm and the egg are the key to reproduction. Without the sperm fertilizing the egg there would no reproduction. They both start off in very different places and in different ways but come together to create a life. The journey to create a life is a very interesting one and in this paper I will be outlining it in detail, describing the male and female sex organs and the role of both theseRead MoreEssay about The Egg and the Sperm774 Words   |  4 PagesMartin, in her essay entitled The Egg and the Sperm, takes this problem of gender stereotype to a new and much more serious level. As an anthropologist, Martin is concerned with the socio-cultural impacts on many different aspects of everyday life, including biology. 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Martin points outRead MoreThe Egg And The Sperm By Emily Martin910 Words   |  4 PagesAcademic research throughout the conversation of language in science indiscreetly displays gender bias towards women, aiding the theories that Martin addresses in her article. 2. Introduction paragraph: †¢ Introduce, Emily Martin’s article The Egg and the Sperm. Martin’s main goal is to shine a light on gender stereotypes hidden in the language of biology (Martin 1). Explain the gender roles in scientific language. Three main points of the article, Gender bias is seen in an early age in science textbooksRead MoreFrozen Sperm And Frozen Eggs1382 Words   |  6 PagesOver the last few years there have been court battles involving frozen embryos, frozen sperm and frozen eggs. One of the most recent cases is Sofia Vergara and Nick Loeb’s publicized battle over the frozen embryos that they created together in 2013. 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