Describe and evaluate two or more theories of the formation of romantic relationships (9 marks + 16 marks) January 2011 One theory that outlines the formation of relationships is the reward/ need satisfaction theory that was developed by Byrne and Clore (1970). The theory suggests that we form a relationship because the presence of a particular individual is associated with reinforcement. This is because rewarding stimuli creates positive feelings and these stimuli may be people. These people therefore make us happy, so, due to operant conditioning, we seek to adopt behaviours that lead to a desirable outcome and avoid those that lead to an undesirable outcome. Therefore, the presence of an individual produces positive reinforcement as they have a more attractive appeal.
The principle of utility continually states that morally right actions produce happiness for all the affected people whose concerns are involved in the picture. If the happiness of the affected individuals by an action is not achieved, then the deed is considered as morally incorrect. The correctness or illness of an action can be calculated but, it relies on the amount of pleasure or pain resultant from that
He defines happiness in terms of this theory as an actuality; the virtues which allow happiness are dynamic-but-stable dispositions which are developed through habituation; and this pleasure in turn is another actuality that compliments the actuality of happy living. Augustine’s primary moral
Byrne and Clore (1970) proposed the reward/need satisfaction model. According to this model, we form relationships with people simply because we find them rewarding, It is suggested that we are rewarded in two ways: operant conditioning (through direct reinforcement) and classical conditioning (through association). Argyle (1992) suggests individuals who are rewarding are liked the most. An example of positive reinforcement may be through non-verbal signals such as smiling; this is a sign of liking. We may also be negatively reinforced by an individual helping us in our ‘time of need’.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN UTILITARIANISM AND CONSEQUENTIALISM Utilitarianism and consequentialism are closely related but they are not the same. These two views have different approaches. Utilitarianism is a theory that evaluates happiness, welfare and well being. It states that everyone want to be happy and avoid any possible pain to the highest percentage of people. It focuses on what the goals are and how they can be achieved.
Jeremy Bentham first proposed is theory of Utilitarianism on the basis for social reform. While Bentham may have failed in this aspect, he did set in stone the foundations for future ethicists such as J.S Mill and H. Sidgwick to expand on his theory and explore it in further detail. Bentham’s proposed that an action’s moral worth can easily be determined by the use of the Hedonic Calculus; this formula takes into account the intensity, density, duration and the number of people affected and places a numerical value of the potential outcome. This may be seen as a very mathematical approach to try and measure what it ultimately an abstract concept like happiness or pleasure, and subsequently critics of Bentham’s version can be used to justify acts such as torture, gang rape and murder. An example of when Act Utilitarianism could be used to decide the best course of action would be in a group of people, for example, choosing whether or not to have red wine or white wine.
To which the id demands pleasure and satisfaction, the ego deals with the demands from the id and superego, and the superego is the ethical element which is the conscience and may produce feelings of guilt. The Behaviorism perspective is where any physical action is a behavior which everything that is living does such as acting, thinking, and feeling. Arthur W. Staats’ merges psychological concepts like personality within a behavioral model like Basic Behavioral Repertoires. Humanistic Perspective is the positive image of what it means to be a human being. The ones who theorize the humanistic perspective focus mostly on methods that allow fulfillment of potential.
• Reward-personal Goals Relationship (also known as Valence) – The Higher the reward, the higher satisfaction Each factor has its own characteristics that are further defined in below but essentially they boil down to the philosophy that an individual will be motivated to do something, as well as, act a certain way if their actions will benefit themselves. Vroom suggests that individuals are motivated when they believe higher levels of effort will lead to better performance and will be rewarded with desired outcomes (Redmond, 2007). Expectancy theory is classified as a process theory of motivation due to the face that it believes that individual perceptions of their environment and that they act on that environment as a repercussion of their personal expectations (Scholl, 2002). Expectancy probability: The first component of the Expectancy Theory is the Expectancy probability. With the Expectancy probability, it is believed that a person’s performance is based on their experiences.
“We should consider the intensity, duration, certainty or uncertainty, propinquity or remoteness, fecundity, and purity of the value in question for each person affected. A more intense pleasure, for instance, might have to be weighed against a less intense but longer lasting pain. In making our calculation, we give greater weight to the pleasure or other value we are more certain of attaining, and less weight to less certain values.” (De George, page 46) We should ultimately choose what brings us and others, and those most directly affected by the action, the most pleasure or happiness. After determining our decision’s impact to ourselves and others, we come to our final conclusion which determines the morality of the action. If the action produces happy and good consequences versus bad, then it’s the morally right action to follow.
In retrospect, they provide criteria for evaluation of choices over decisions taken. Consequentialism According to the theory of consequentialism, an action, policy, and institution, is considered right, so long it produces good consequences. Consequences include the action itself and whatever the action causes. Consequentialism aims to spread greatest good of greatest number of people thereby bringing freedom, happiness and pleasure to humanity. John Stuart Mill and Jeremy Bentham are two well-known consequentialists.