socio cultural perspective in psychology

What is the Social-Cultural Perspective? The social-cultural perspective considers the way that different individuals interact with their social groups and how these social groups influence different individuals and how they develop throughout their lives.

1. Socio-cultural Perspective Group 4 Group member Aqsa shahid Hina majeed Arifa Bashir

2. Socio-cultural Perspective Broad or Infinite ?

3. Socio-cultural Perspective A psychological approach that emphasizes social and cultural influences on behavior. It is the influence that a culture and society has on a person'sworldview and perspective. This perspective includes :  Social psychology or the study of socail rules , roles, groups and relationships )  Cultural psychology or the study of cultural norms, socioeconomic status, gender ,values and  expectations.

4. Examples?

5. Assumptions  Examines how culture and politics effect our behavior .  A major influence on people’s behavior, thought processes and emotions are other people and the society they have created .  How we communicate, understand, relate and cope with one another is partially based on this theory. Our spiritual, mental, physical, emotional, physiological being are all influenced by sociocultural perspective theory .  Human’s ability to recall information is a result of our understanding of complex language.

6. Vygotsky Lev Vygotsky  is the pioneer of the sociocultural perspective in psychology.Vygotsky developed the  sociocultural theory of cognitive development  which focuses on how a child's mind develops as a result of interacting with their social environment . . Important aspects : 1-Socail Interaction 2-Language 3-Culture important Important terms: 1-Terms zone of proximal development (ZPD) 2-Scaffolding

7. Socail –Cultural theory of development According to Vygotsky, social interaction-especially involvement with knowledgeable community or family members-helps children toacquire the thought processes and behaviors specific to their cultureand/or society.

8. Socail –Cultural theory of development Socail interaction Vygotsky emphasized that effective learning happens through participation in social activifies . Parents , teachers and other adults in the learner's environment all contribute fo the process . They explain, model, assist, givedirections and provide feed back . Peers , on the other hand, cooperate and Collaborate and enrich the learning experience . Language Language can be viewed as a verbal expression of Culfure Every culture has the words it needs for its lifestyle.It opens the door for leaners to acquire knowledgethat others already have . It is use to know and understand the world and solveproblems.If servesa social function but it also has an importantindividual function . It helps the learner to regulateand reflect on his own fhiinking.

9. Cultural context: Vygotsky believed that  human activities take place in cultural settings and cannot be understood apart from the settings -our specific mental structures and processes can be traced to our interactions with others. In Vygotsky's system, children's cognitive development is affected by culture in two ways. First,  children acquire most of their knowledge (the contents of thought) through culture . In addition, not only does culture teach children what to think but also how to think .

10. Zone of proximal Development Vygotsky is also credited with developing the concept of the  zone of proximal development (ZPD)  which includes the skills that learners can develop with the help of someone who already knows that specific skill . Vygotsky believed that the ZPD was a far better way to gauge. A child’s intelligence than through the standard academic testing, which can often fail to account for cultural differences with regards to learning. Vygotsky claims that there are three cultural tools which children use to inform their cognitive abilities .

11. Scaffolding Vygotsky coined a definition of instructional scaffolding that focused on teacher practices. He defined this as, ' the role of teachers and others in supporting the learner's development and providing support structures to get to that next stage or level ' (Raymond, 2000).

12. Impact on personality & behaviors? Gender influences our behavior. Job’s opportunities to influence people’s goals and ambition. This approach helps us understand how behaviour can be influenced by other people, and the situation they find themselves in. It helps us understand that people’s behaviour may change if their situation changes. The Social Approach underestimates the influence of individual differences in behaviour – it doesn’t explain why some people differ from the norm expected in any given social situation. It helps us understand extreme human behaviours; this is good because if we can understand the causes of behaviour (such as power abuse by prison guards, SPE) then we can take steps to prevent it.

13. Strengths &Weaknesses

14. Strength of sociocultural theory Vygotsky's sociocultural approach provided an alternative viewpoint about cognitive development from that of developmental psychologist Jean Piaget  whose work focused on cognitive development via interactions with the physical environment . In general, the theories within psychology are great tools to help us better understand and explain why we act and think the way we do. Theories may also help us predict behavior. Our sociocultural settings teach us things that are flexible. From an early age, we may internalise and accept notions that we acquire from our environment, but as we become older, we may encounter various cultures and social settings that could ultimately affect what we choose to internalise and accept as our own.Raise button

15. Weaknessess of sociocultural theory The sociocultural perspective in psychology tends to downplay personal respThe sociocultural approach doesn't account for all factors that play a part in cognitive development . Even though there are sociocultural factors that influence our behavior and mental processes, there are other factors as well, and each person is unique. Vygotsky's theory of sociocultural cognitive development places a lot of importance on the power of language. Scaffolding is heavily dependent on verbal instructions. However, this may not be as important or relevant in all cultures and all types of  learning. The sociocultural approach doesn't account for all factors that play a part in cognitive development. Vygotsky's theory is hard to evaluate scientifically.

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