Post by sjangwal on Nov 17, 2017 23:01:17 GMT
Understanding Cleo's behaviour
Two psychologists, Charles and Inez, have a common acquaintance named Cleo. Charles thinks of himself as a causal scientist, but Inez considers herself a normative scientist. Both agree, however, that Cleo is very difficult to work with because she is quick to become frustrated and then to respond angrily to those around her. What kinds of explanations for Cleo's behaviour do you imagine Charles might propose? What kinds of explanations for Cleo's behaviour do you imagine Inez might propose?
The causal scientist believes in cause and effect models so in this case they would question, 'what caused Cleo's behaviour'? They could look at Cleo's behaviour caused by predetermined factors such as genetics. More specifically, her personality as a predetermining factor resulting in 'short-tempered' behaviour with people. Whereas the normative scientist looks to patterns of behaviour through social norms within cultures and looks for shared meaning systems as potential reasons for people's behaviour. They could question why Cleo chooses to behave with frustration when society would not deem that as 'proper' behaviour in a workplace, going against the social norm. A normative scientist could consider the environment Cleo works in, the dynamics within her workplace, maybe Cleo treated like an outcast in the workplace and doesn't enjoy working with her colleagues so she acts negatively towards them to maintain distance (an act of showing negative behaviour towards and out-group/majority group). Another perspective could be to look at Cleo's relationship with her family and friends, maybe Cleo's behaviour is something learned through her relationship with her peers and possibly that type of behaviour is normal within those relationships.
Two psychologists, Charles and Inez, have a common acquaintance named Cleo. Charles thinks of himself as a causal scientist, but Inez considers herself a normative scientist. Both agree, however, that Cleo is very difficult to work with because she is quick to become frustrated and then to respond angrily to those around her. What kinds of explanations for Cleo's behaviour do you imagine Charles might propose? What kinds of explanations for Cleo's behaviour do you imagine Inez might propose?
The causal scientist believes in cause and effect models so in this case they would question, 'what caused Cleo's behaviour'? They could look at Cleo's behaviour caused by predetermined factors such as genetics. More specifically, her personality as a predetermining factor resulting in 'short-tempered' behaviour with people. Whereas the normative scientist looks to patterns of behaviour through social norms within cultures and looks for shared meaning systems as potential reasons for people's behaviour. They could question why Cleo chooses to behave with frustration when society would not deem that as 'proper' behaviour in a workplace, going against the social norm. A normative scientist could consider the environment Cleo works in, the dynamics within her workplace, maybe Cleo treated like an outcast in the workplace and doesn't enjoy working with her colleagues so she acts negatively towards them to maintain distance (an act of showing negative behaviour towards and out-group/majority group). Another perspective could be to look at Cleo's relationship with her family and friends, maybe Cleo's behaviour is something learned through her relationship with her peers and possibly that type of behaviour is normal within those relationships.