Psychological perspectives on behaviour
This unit introduces the following psychological perspectives on behaviour:
- Psychodynamic
- Behaviourist
- Cognitive
- Humanist
- Ecosystemic
It looks at the origins, principles and approaches of each perspective and considers what each means in the context of schools.
Psychological perspectives
The different approaches to understanding and managing behaviour are informed by a variety of theoretical perspectives on psychology.
This resource presents an overview of each of these approaches.
Select one of the circles to find out more.
Psychodynamic
The psychodynamic perspective is based around the early work of Freud and argues that behaviour is governed by subconscious feelings arising from early life experiences.
From this perspective, difficulties with behaviour in children (and adults) are seen as external symptoms of internal conflicts, such as early trauma, loss or troubled relationships with parents and carers.
Assessment
Psychodynamic assessment is carried out by professional psychoanalytic counsellors. They employ questioning and inference techniques to analyse a pupil’s subconscious motives for behaviour.
Interventions
Interventions based on the psychodynamic approach focus on encouraging individuals to express painful feelings in a safe environment, often through talking therapy or creative play. This builds a sense of security which allows pupils to give up negative behaviour and form strong bonds with others.
« ReturnBehaviourist
This perspective states that all behaviour is learned, and as such can be modified with reward and punishment systems. It focuses on a scientific approach to the study of behaviour.
It rejects introspective Freudian methods, concentrating instead on measurable behaviour, rather than underlying causes.
Assessment
Assessments related to this approach are based on systematic observation and recording of behaviour. The intention is to avoid inaccurate evaluations, so behavioural information is recorded on checklists, both pre- and post-intervention. These checklists can then be compared to give an accurate picture of a child’s behaviour and the efficacy of any interventions.
Interventions
Interventions that employ behaviourist principles aim to change behavioural patterns by establishing positive reinforcement of good behaviour and negative consequences for bad behaviour.
« ReturnCognitive
The cognitive perspective argues that internal processes of cognition – like reasoning, understanding and interpretation – have the greatest impact on behaviour.
This approach maintains that difficult behaviour may arise from conflict between an individual’s perception of a situation and the perceptions of others. Pupils are likely to respond to the world in a way that seems appropriate and rational to them, but can sometimes seem inappropriate to carers and peers that see the situation differently.
Assessment
Cognitive assessment is often carried out in schools through the use of self-monitoring logs, self-reports, or interviews. The aim of cognitive assessment is to understand behaviour from the pupils’ point of view in order to define areas on which to focus any intervention.
Interventions
Interventions modelled on the cognitive perspective aim to clarify misperceptions, and challenge negative attitudes. Cognitive training is implemented in schools as ‘emotional literacy’, and helps students to develop a strong understanding of their own behaviour.
« ReturnHumanist
The humanist perspective expands on the behaviourist approach by incorporating other essential human needs into the list of motivations for behaviour.
These needs, as described by Abraham Maslow in A theory of human motivation (1943), engage with the idea of what it means to exist as a human being, and include the want for social belonging, the drive towards personal growth, and the desire to think well of oneself.
Assessment
Central to the humanist perspective is a belief that the meaning of individual behaviour is personal and subjective. As such, humanists argue that scientific assessment cannot be truly objective. Nonetheless, there is an acceptance amongst some that assessment can be used to serve the goals of humanist approaches.
Interventions
Interventions based on humanist approaches aim to address the hierarchy of need by developing self-esteem and a sense of social belonging. Counselling may be used to help pupils learn alternative ways of perceiving themselves and the world around them, enabling them to be less dependent on others for a sense of self-worth and more resilient to troubling factors in their lives.
« ReturnEcosystemic
The ecosystemic perspective is based on models of ecosystems in the natural world. Small changes in any part of an ecosystem can have knock-on effects on the rest of the system, and changes can snowball into large problems.
From this perspective, problems arise from smaller difficulties in interaction between teachers, pupils, families and peers. Pupils can become locked into a cycle of negative interaction, which may lead to deterioration in behaviour.
Assessment
Ecosystemic approaches to assessment encourage teachers to examine their own interpretations of their interactions with pupils, parents and other teachers. They are encouraged to think about their own behaviour at particular times and in particular contexts.
Interventions
Interventions modelled on this approach train teachers to look for a positive interpretation of events in order to change, or ‘reframe’, pupils’ behaviour and break out of negative cycles of interaction with students.
« ReturnPsychological perspectives in schools
Frequency of recommending strategies
High
25.8% behavioural
3.5% cognitive
8.5% systemic
0.7% other agencies
Medium
18.4% behavioural
20.6% cognitive
5% systemic
0.7% other agencies
Low
6.4% behavioural
4.3% cognitive
5% systemic
2.1% other agencies