Transcript Levels of Explanation

Stage 1 and 2 Psychology
Levels of Explanation
Aspects of Importance (4)
• knowledge and understanding;
• application to social issues and/or
personal growth;
• methods of investigation;
• ethical issues.
2
Levels of Explanation (4)
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•
•
•
Biological processes
Basic psychological processes
Person enacting the behaviour
Socio-cultural processes
3
Framework (two dimensions)
Aspects of Importance (4)
knowledge application methods ethics
Levels (4)
biological
basic
processes
person
sociocultural
4
Levels of Explanation
Biological level explanations
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•
•
•
Stimulus/response
Drugs
Hormones
Nerve damage
5
Levels of Explanation
Basic processes level explanations
• Psychological processes that are universal (or at
least very widespread) across humans
– Cognition (memory and thinking)
– Learning
6
Levels of Explanation
Person level explanations
• individual differences in behaviour
7
Levels of Explanation
Socio-cultural level explanations
• influence other people exert on behaviour;
behaviour in social and cultural contexts
8
Human Behaviour
• Biological factors
– Brain activity
– Drug effects
• Basic Processes
– Attention
– Perception
– Word finding
• Person characteristics
– Intelligence
– Personality
• Social and cultural context
– Audience number and identity
– Social meaning of interaction
9
Tasks
• Advertising is based on psychological
processes
• View the advertisements, bearing the 4
levels of explanation of behaviour in
mind
10
Task
• What physiological responses might this ad
stimulate? (Biological bases of behaviour)
• How memorable is this ad likely to be?
(Basic processes)
• What type of person is this ad targeting?
(Person characteristics)
• Would this ad offend any groups of people?
(Socio-cultural factors)
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End Session
Prepared by Drs. Julie Robinson and
Carla Litchfield, and the Psychology
Subject Advisory Committee.
Copyright SACE Board of South Australia.