Download GX Learning Approach presentation

Gaby, Bea, Megan, George, Elise
The learning approach focuses on
mechanisms of learning including
conditioning and social learning…
Watson (1878-1958) was convinced that the methods used in the psychodynamic
approach were highly unscientific. Watson wanted to make psychology more science
orientated and in 1913 wrote a book called ‘Psychology as the behaviourist views’
setting out his ideas of science based learning.
Watson argued that psychology should focus more on observation and measurement
to come to conclusions on learning and behaviour.
The learning approach is also known as the umbrella term for a group of theories
which highlight the importance of learning; these include the behaviourism and
social learning theory which arrived in the 20th century and further developed by
chemistry and psychics
Classical conditioning is where there is an association between a neutral
stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus and this will then create a response.
This has been shown by two psychologists, one from Russia known as Ivan
Pavlov. He classically conditioned dogs to drool when a bell is heard. The
other is John Watson who gave Baby Albert a phobia of a rat.
At 9 months old Baby Albert was presented with
different items to observe his reactions- to which
he stayed normal. However at 11 months when
Albert was presented with a white rat, Watson
would bang a steel bar with a hammer, creating an
extremely loud noise.
Every time Albert would go near the rat he would
bang the steel bar to scare him. Eventually Albert
conditioned the rat with the loud noise. Therefore
every time he saw the rat, Albert would cry.
Albert was then observed for 10 days after the
conditioning and Watson saw that Albert became
less scared of the rat. The dying out of a learned
response is called extinction.
In this stage, the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) produces an unconditioned
response (UCR) in an organism. In basic terms, this means that a stimulus in
the environment has produced a behaviour / response which is unlearned
(i.e. unconditioned) and therefore is a natural response which has not been
taught. In this respect no new behaviour has been learned yet.
During this stage a stimulus which produces no response (i.e. neutral) is
associated with the unconditioned stimulus at which point it now becomes
known as the conditioned stimulus (CS).
Now the conditioned stimulus (CS) has been associated with the
unconditioned stimulus (UCS) to create a new conditioned response
(CR).
After a person has been conditioned there are a few different things that can
happen. A person could start to generalise, which is where a stimulus similar to
the conditioned one also leads to a response. E.g. little Albert cried when he
came into contact with Santa's white beard.
Another thing that can happen is discrimination which is the opposite to
generalising- it is when you have the ability to tell the difference between two
similar stimuli. E.g. Pavlov's dogs didn’t salivate when they hard a different bell.
Spontaneous recovery is the return of a conditioned response (in a weaker
form) after a period of time. E.g. When Pavlov waited for a few days and then
rang the bell once more the dog salivated again.
OPERANT
CONDITIONING
Types of reinforcement
Learning
through
consequences
such as
reward and
punishment.
Big Bang Theory Clip
Terrell has learnt that smiling leads to his Dad
picking him up and so he has learnt through reward
that smiling is a positive behaviour. This is an
example of operant conditioning.
NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT
The removal of an unpleasant
reinforcement can also
strengthen behaviour by
stopping an unpleasant
experience. This is known as
negative reinforcement
because it is the removal of an
adverse stimulus which is
‘rewarding’ to the animal or
person.
In school, if you did not
complete your homework,
you got a detention from
your teacher. You will
complete your homework
to avoid having to go to
detention, thus
strengthening the
behaviour of completing
your homework.
BURRHUS FREDERIC SKINNER
Skinner showed how negative reinforcement
worked by placing a rat in his Skinner box and then
subjecting it to an unpleasant electric current which
caused it some discomfort. As the rat moved about
the box it would accidentally knock the lever.
Immediately after it did so, the electric current
would be switched off. The rats quickly learned to
go straight to the lever after a few times of being
put in the box. The consequence of escaping the
electric current ensured that they would repeat the
action again and again.
Modelling/ imitation
Vicarious reinforcement
o Is the act of copying the person's
o We observe people who gets
behaviour by observing them for a
period of time. For example, the child
may model the same behaviour as
their parents.
Identification
o Model the same behaviour from
someone who is similar to them or
popular, attractive or some one we
look up to, and adopt the same
behaviour as them.
rewarded and it motivates us to do
that same so that we can get
rewarded as well. For example if a
student who works hard gets good
grades at school, her friend may
work as hard as her to get grades, to
get praise from teacher or parents.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
Pr0OTCVtHbU
Aim:
• To investigate if social behaviour can be observed and limited.
Procedure:
• They used 72 children aged 6 and split them in 3 groups of 24 (12
boys and 12 girls). One condition showed children an aggressive
model, condition 2 showed a non-aggressive model, and the third
showed no model to the children.
Result:
• Children who had an aggressive model, were more aggressive than
children who had a non- aggressive model. Boys showed more
physical aggression than girls. The verbal aggression had differences
in both boys and girls.
Conclusions:
• Children learn social behaviour through observing the behaviour of
adults.
Strength:
• The experiment can be replicated again due to standardised
procedures.
• Bandura's study supports the social learning theory because children
did copy the behaviour.
Weakness:
• The study was unethical, because the children was put under stress
and may suffer long term effects due to the study.
• Difficult to study as the modelling may take place after a long period
of time or not happen at all.
Behaviourist Approach:
- The development of anxiety disorders can be explained by classical
conditioning, as an individual begins to associate the fear with other
aspects of life.
- ‘Systematic desensitisation’ is a behavioural therapy used to treat
phobias by working through an anxiety hierarchy in a relaxed state,
which has been found through research into the learning approach.
It involves the cause of the phobia (an object or situation) being
paired with a relaxation response.
- Human behaviours can also be explained through classical
conditioning.
- Siegel (1984) found that drug overdosing is more likely to occur in
unfamiliar environments. Usually, the body would respond through
classical conditioning to signals, but when in a different place there is
no association, so the preparation does not happen.
- Operant conditioning can also be used to explain human behaviours.
It has been argued that horror films can lead to aggressive behaviour
as a lack of punishment or, in some cases, the behaviour being
positively reinforced, can make people think that the behaviour is
acceptable. Other films where ‘bad behaviour’ can lead to being
popular has also been said to increase the percentage of less
acceptable behaviour.
- Video game addiction can also be explained by operant
conditioning. The reward of completing a level or achieving a set
goal makes the player want to continue with the game. (David Wong,
2008)
Social Learning Theory:
- There is substantial evidence that social learning theory has an affect
in a range of behaviours, not just aggression. This can include things
like preferences in foods, eating disorders, addictions and ideas
about gender roles. These can come from observing and imitating
other people, whom we might look up to or want to be like.
- Social learning theory can also be used to treat phobias through
‘modelling’. Someone with a phobia needs to ‘model’ their
behaviour on that of someone who does not have a phobia.
o Modelling /Imitation – observing,
identifying with and copying the
behaviour of a role model.
o Social learning theory – Bandura's
study; children learns from observing
adults.
o Identification – feeling of similarity
with a role that leads to the imitation
of their behaviour (we think we can
be like them).
o Vicarious reinforcement – learning
through positive consequences. (We
are more likely to copy if they are
rewarded instead of punishment).
o Systematic desensitization - a
behavioural therapy used to treat
phobias by working through an
anxiety hierarchy in a relaxed state.
o Operant conditioning - Learning
through consequences such as
reward and punishment.
o Classical Conditioning -where there
is an association between a neutral
stimulus and an unconditioned
stimulus and this will then create a
response.
o Learning Approach - also known as
the umbrella term for a group of
theories which highlight the
importance of learning.