Archive for September, 2007
Classical Conditioning (Pavlov)
Summary: Classical conditioning is a reflexive or automatic type of learning in which a stimulus acquires the capacity to evoke a response that was originally evoked by another stimulus.
Originators and key contributors: First described by Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936), Russian physiologist, in 1903, and studied in infants by John B. Watson (1878-1958).
Keywords: stimulus-response, psychic reflexes, unconditioned stimulus, conditioned response, respondent conditioning
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Humanism
Summary: Humanism is a paradigm/philosophy/pedagogical approach that believes learning is viewed as a personal act to fulfil one’s potential.
Key proponents: Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers, Malcolm Knowles
Key terms: self-actualization, teacher as facilitator, affect
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Social Development Theory (Vygotsky)
Summary: Social Development Theory argues that social interaction precedes development; consciousness and cognition are the end product of socialization and social behavior.
Originator: Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934).
Key terms: Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), More Knowledgeable Other (MKO)
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Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Summary: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (often represented as a pyramid with five levels of needs) is a motivational theory in psychology that argues that while people aim to meet basic needs, they seek to meet successively higher needs in the form of a hierarchy.
Originator: Abraham Maslow in 1943.
Key terms: deficiency needs, growth needs, physiological, safety, belongingness, esteem, self-actualization
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Identity Status Theory (Marcia)
Summary: Refining and extending Erik Erikson’s work, James Marcia came up with four Identity Statuses of psychological identity development. The main idea is that one’s sense of identity is determined largely by the choices and commitments made regarding certain personal and social traits.
Originators: James Marcia, Canadian developmental psychologist and Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Simon Fraser University.
Key terms: identity status, diffusion, foreclosure, moratorium, achievement.
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