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Throughout history, psychology has evolved into the branch of science it is today, touching on topics from various fields. However, the actual beginnings of psychology we can trace back to philosophy. Many philosophers and psychologists have tried to explain the roots of our behaviour. They have changed the psychological landscape and given it a new direction, developing theories still considered relevant today.
There are several philosophical debates in psychology. These include things like the nature-nurture debate and free will vs determinism. Exploring and understanding these debates can improve our understanding of psychology and the human condition in the future, with several real-world benefits. Let us briefly review the primary arguments in psychology, along with some examples, evaluations, and approaches in psychology that support them.
Psychological approaches exist on a spectrum on most issues, and the free will vs determinism debate is no exception. Some theories believe in ‘hard determinism’ (fatalism), which disregards the idea of free will and attempts to explain concepts such as behaviour purely due to factors outside our control. Some sit on the opposite side of the spectrum, arguing that our actions are our choices.
The debate of free will and determinism attempts to understand and explain whether our behaviour as moral agents results from our own decisions and deliberate actions or our environment, genetics, or cognition alone.
An example of a free-will argument is that no matter the situation, we choose our final actions ourselves, such as using violence towards those who anger or threaten us, regardless of external factors.
An example of a deterministic argument is that some people may be predisposed to commit violence due to their environment (like upbringing) or genetics. Thus, their actions were not truly their choice.
Some nuances exist between these two extremes.
An example of a free-will approach would be the humanistic approach. This approach states that while external factors can influence us, ultimately, we have the final say on whether or not we take action. It is a free-will approach because it recognises our choice to act.
An example of a deterministic approach would be Freud’s psychodynamic approach. This approach uses our early life, past experiences, and genetic forces to explain our actions. The idea of the ‘Freudian slip’ in which someone accidentally says a word that belies hidden beliefs is an example of psychodynamic determinism. It suggests that a person’s inner self led them to say something they did not mean to.
The hard determinist approach and the free will approach are reductive. It is generally recognised that human behaviour is a mixture of processes that influence decision-making and actions and one’s choice to act.
In psychology, what are reductionism and holism?
Reductionism and holism is the debate between the idea that we should break down concepts like people’s behaviour into smaller segments and the theory that we should analyse the big picture at all times because everything is connected.
An example of a reductionist approach is behaviourism. Behaviourism is reductionist because it analyses tiny parts of human behaviour and generalises its findings to human behaviour in general. For example, it attempts to explain all behaviour with conditioning.
An example of a holistic approach would be social psychology. Social psychology is holistic in that it explains human behaviour in terms of both the individual and the group, recognising that group behaviour in humans is often very different from individual behaviour.
What is the nature versus nurture debate in psychology?
Nature vs nurture, Flaticon
The nature versus nurture debate attempts to explain human behaviour in one of two ways. In psychology, the ‘nature’ side of the debate holds that human behaviour is primarily the result of genetics. In contrast, the ‘nurture’ side argues that human behaviour is essentially the result of environmental factors such as nurture.
An example of a theory on the nature side would be Chomsky’s (1965) nativist theory of language, which proposes that language development is due to a ‘language acquisition mechanism’ in the brain that acts as an encoder for language. This theory is nativist, which is a label for most ‘nature’ theories, in that it assumes that something as complicated as language is the result of internal processes. It is innately present, a hard-wired mechanism.
An example of such an approach would be behaviourism. Behaviourism is an approach that uses the environment and situational factors to explain human behaviour. A basic assumption of behaviourism is that we are born as a ‘tabula rasa’ (a blank slate). This approach sides with education because it uses the environment and life experiences to explain all behaviour.
Examples of philosophical debates are free will and determinism, nature vs nurture, and reductionism vs holism.
The main debates in psychology are the nature vs nurture debate, free will vs determinism, and reductionism vs holism.
A philosophical debate is a two-way attempt to make a case for which ideas are the most logical and accurate.
Issues and debates in psychology is a subtopic of psychology that explores ongoing discussions about the nature of psychology.
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