Devon is an early years practitioner at a nursery. He is concerned about the behaviour of a four-year-old girl, Amelie, during group circle time. Amelie often refuses to join the circle, instead hiding in the quiet play corner. When Devon coaxes her to join, she runs out to the outdoor play area.
Devon decides to use behaviour shaping. He hopes to encourage her first to stand near the circle, then sit on a cushion slightly away from the group, and eventually shape her behaviour until she sits directly in the circle during group time.
Explain one strength and one weakness of Devon using behaviour shaping to encourage Amelie to sit in the circle.
205 exam-style questions on Edexcel A Level Psychology Content, covering Main features of classical conditioning, Pavlov (1927) salivation in dogs, Main features of operant conditioning, Properties of reinforcement, Behaviour modification and shaping, Main features of social learning theory, Social learning stages, Bandura (1961, 1963) Bobo doll experiments, Bandura (1965) vicarious reinforcement, Learning theories and phobias, Treatments for phobias, Individual differences, and Developmental psychology. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.