Question 1: Define the psychodynamic perspective and discuss two big ideas associated with it.
Psychodynamic perspective typically refers to theories that were developed by Sigmund Freud which were later adopted by many people. It refers to the art of understanding what is going on in the mind of another individual.
One of the main ideas associated with psychodynamic theory is the critical importance of one’s early experiences in life. Childhood events end up shaping an individual’s personality later in life and those events are the determinants of that individual’s personality development. The other main distinctive idea held by this theory is that nothing in life happens simply by chance. Everything has a reason as to why it occurs and that there is no such thing as random thought or behavior. Most expressed behaviors and personalities always arise from a combination of certain psychological factors as well as biological entities.
Question 2: Define the developmental perspective and discuss two big ideas associated with it.
Development psychology can be said to be a technique that aims at explaining how children and at the same time adults change over time (Hutchison, 2014).
One of the main ideas that is held by the approach is the idea of normative development. Normative development can be understood from the perspective that one’s current personality was reached upon through continual and cumulative processes. It is through this dimension that you can explain why children who were raised in orphanages oftentimes act cheerfully when they are placed in better places. The other main idea of this approach is the importance of both nature and nurture. It is through the balance of both nature and nurture that forms the basis for change. The two allow both biological aspects and environmental factors to act upon an individual and allow the development process to take place.
Question 3: Define the social behavior perspective and discuss two big ideas associated with it.
Social behavior perspective can be understood from the point of view that the art of learning and behavior is developed from the stimulus-response relationships that individuals always encounter in their lifetimes (Hutchison, 2014).
One of the main ideas that social behaviorism perspective holds is the fact both animals and human beings are as a result of what they have learned from the environment (Hutchison, 2014). We can act in the way we act because of what the environment has taught us. Our response is always derived from something that is acting externally in the environment. This way, we either learn by association while dealing with stimuli in the environment or learning from the consequences of a given action. Another idea of the approach is the fact that individuals have no free will to choose their responses or how they would act as the environment always determines all our behavior. It is this tamed way that a dog can be made to know when it is time to feed simply by a ring of a bell.
Question 4: Define the humanistic perspective and discuss two big ideas associated with it.
The humanistic perspective can be understood from the point of view that human beings are always motivated by the potential and ability to be creative and productive despite their social and environmental conditioning. Human beings have the will to choose and that we are entitled to choose a given path for ourselves.
One of the main ideas of humanistic perspective is that human beings have the utmost free will to choose their own path. Human beings are motivated by their personal agencies which refer to the choices that they make in life as well as the consequences of the choices that we make. It rejects the notion that human beings are just there to be made to behave in certain ways. Similarly, zombies can react blindly to the environment. The other main idea that humanistic perspective holds is the fact that human beings are basically good in nature and are always motivated by that inner drive to make themselves as well as the world in which they live in better. It is through this perspective that human beings can overcome any form of hardship or pain that comes their way as they can tap into the centrality of their human values and their creativity part.
Question 5: Compare and contrast the ideas of the systems perspective and the conflict perspective. Cite examples of how you think these theories would help with assessment and intervention in your interaction with clients.
The conflict perspective, primarily focuses on the negative and the ever-changing nature of the society that human beings live in while on the other hand system perspective can be understood as the process of understanding how things that can be said to be regarded as systems always happen in a way that they influence one another within a given complete structure (Hutchison, 2014). System thinking is used as a problem solving approach such that in its applications, it tries to balance holistic thinking as well as reductionist thinking while conflict perspective on the other hand, is only used for explaining social change and cannot be used to explain social stability.
Dealing with my client conflict perspective theory will help me in analyzing the issue with the client from the perspective of his/her related interests that are conflicting with the resources that are available. Unequal groups in the society always have conflicting values and agendas and it is through the application of conflict theory that I will be able to draw this from my client. On the other hand, system perspective theory will help me study my client’s human behavior and his/her experiences in a complex system. It will help me to discern my client’s needs and his/her expectations so that the client can feel whole again and part of the system.
References
Hutchison, E. (2014). Dimensions of human behavior + dimensions of human behavior - the changing life course, 5th ed.: Sage Publications.
