In social learning theory, the term “locus of control” refers to the belief that individuals hold about the source of reinforcement for his or her own behavior. In other words, some people believe that they have an ability to exert control over their own lives (i.e. internal locus of control) while others believe that their lives are mostly controlled by luck or fate (i.e. external locus of control).

“Locus of control” is one of the most frequently studied psychological constructs. It is a major component of social learning theory and refers to an individual’s belief regarding their ability to exert control over their own lives. In general, individuals with an internal locus of control tend to see themselves as more powerful in their own lives, and this belief is associated with greater health, lower stress and more freedom of choice. Individuals with an external locus of control tend to view themselves as less powerful in their lives and may be more susceptible to depression, anxiety, stress and high blood pressure.

Whether classified as “radical” or “methodological,” a behaviorist is defined as a researcher who uses rigorous and controlled methods as well as precisely defined concepts. “Methodological behaviorists” diverged from the earlier “radical behaviorists” due to the inclusion of subjective internal experience in their understanding of behavior. This was opposed to strict object empirical observation of behavior that was characteristic of radical behaviorists.

Kohler went to the island of Tenerife to study apes, with no intention of training or shaping their behavior. He wanted to determine whether apes were capable of problem solving. His first insight to this phenomena was the result of observing a female ape who could not reach some fruit. He placed a stick within her reach and waited. He observed her notice the stick, initiate play with it, abandon it, and then realize that it could be used to pull the fruit closer. On successive tries, her skill at using the stick to reach fruit increased. This was the first time a psychologist noted that animals were capable of learning through problem solving, like humans. 

The Gestalt Revolution was the result of rejecting previous “elementistic” views of psychology. Gestalt psychologists believe that the study of consciousness is valuable, and amounts to more than a mere joining of atoms or “elements.” They believe that perception is not based on a set of separate sensory elements. Rather, the whole is different from its parts just as a melody is different than a group of individual musical notes. When sensory elements are combined, new patterns or configurations may emerge.    

Phenomenology is the unbiased description of immediate experiences just as they occur. The view is the opposite of breaking down perception or experience into elements which, according to this doctrine, would be considered artificial, unnatural and abstract. It is also based on the notion that the primary data for psychology should be phenomena.  

Proximity is an organizing principle of perception within Gestalt psychology that refers to our tendency to perceive parts that are close together in time or space as belonging together. This is evidenced by experiments in which shapes are organized in columns with varying degrees of spacing in between them. Perceptually, we tend to group the shapes nearest each other into a combined object.

According to the Gestalt principle of “Figure/Ground,” our tendency for perceptual organization leads us to view objects in relation to their background. Depending on how an individual’s perception is organized, he or she is more likely to see the figure or the ground. When looking at this famous image, most people will gravitate toward a view of faces or vase; however, they are reversible and when called into attention both can be seen.

The humanistic model supports the belief that people are innately good and can exercise free will and creativity. This paradigm was proposed by Maslow in opposition to Freud's mechanistic and sexual ideas which are consistent with his psychoanalytic model. The humanistic model also emphasizes the power of the individual promotes the maintenance of a coherent, unified sense of self.

Karen experiences fear every time she sees a cat, which now occurs when she sees small dogs. Her fear is the result of classical conditioning, where a neutral stimulus (cat) becomes associated with an unconditioned stimulus (animal bite). Her fear has therefore generalized to other stimuli (small dogs), indicating that she has experienced stimulus generalization. Stimulus discrimination would have occurred if she was able to discern between similar but different stimuli. For example, it would be stimulus discrimination if she only feared the exact breed of cat that bit her. Operant conditioning involves increasing or decreasing behaviors by providing reinforcement or punishment. Shaping is a form of operant conditioning where reinforcement is provided to guide a person toward performing a desirable behavior. Chaining is similar to shaping, but reinforcers are only given if the behaviors are performed in a specific order.