PSY405 Notes Lecture 35

The Stimulus–Response Theory of Dollard and Miller

Dollard and Miller tried to combine behaviorism (learning through habits) with psychoanalysis (conflict, anxiety, unconscious). 👉 Their main idea is simple but powerful: Personality = a collection of learned habits (Stimulus → Response links) Everything you feel, think, fear, or do is learned through: Drives (needs) Cues (signals) Responses (actions or thoughts) Rewards (relief or satisfaction)

🧠 KEY CONCEPT: HABIT (MOST IMPORTANT)

🔹 What is a Habit?

Habit = a stable connection between a stimulus (cue) and a response

A habit is a learned association between a stimulus and a response. 📌 Plain English: When something happens, you automatically react in a certain way because you learned it earlier.

Examples:

Phone notification → you check your phone Exam announced → anxiety Parent’s angry voice → fear ⚠️ Important: Habits are not only external (things outside you), they can also be internal: Thought → emotion Feeling → behavior

🧱 CORE STRUCTURE OF THE THEORY

Dollard & Miller explain personality through four main areas:

1. Structure of Personality · 2. Dynamics of Personality · 3. Development of Personality · 4. Applications (therapy, conflict, unconscious)

We’ll focus deeply on Development of Personality, because that’s the heart of this lesson.

👶 3. DEVELOPMENT OF PERSONALITY

(How a simple baby becomes a complex adult) They say: Personality develops through learning, not mysterious instincts.

I. INNATE EQUIPMENT (What the baby is born with)

🔹 Meaning of “Innate”

Innate = inborn, present at birth. The baby is not empty—but also not complex.

1️⃣ Reflexes (Automatic responses)

Reflex = automatic response to a specific stimulus. Examples: Dust in nose → sneeze Cold → shiver Dust in eye → tears 👉 This is pure Stimulus → Response

2️⃣ Innate Hierarchies of Responses

📌 Meaning: Some responses are more likely than others in certain situations. Examples: Loud noise → cry Hunger → cry Wet diaper → cry This means: The baby has a preferred response order This is called:

🧠 Initial hierarchy of responses

3️⃣ Primary Drives

Primary drives = biological needs linked to survival. Examples: