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Myers’ PSYCHOLOGY
(5th Ed)
Chapter 8
Learning
James A. McCubbin, PhD
Clemson University
Worth Publishers
Learning
 Learning
relatively permanent change in an organism’s
behavior due to experience
experience (nurture) is the key to learning
Association
We learn by association
Our minds naturally connect events that
occur in sequence
Aristotle 2000 years ago
John Locke and David Hume 200 yrs ago
Associative Learning
learning that two events occur together
two stimuli
a response and its consequences
Classical or Pavlovian
Conditioning
Two related events:
Stimulus 1
Lightning
Stimulus 2
Thunder
Result after repetition
Stimulus
We see
lightning
Response
We wince
anticipating
thunder
We learn to
associate two
stimuli
Operant Conditioning
We learn to
associate a
response and its
consequence
Behaviorism
John B. Watson
viewed psychology as objective science
generally agreed-upon consensus today
recommended study of behavior without
reference to unobservable mental processes
not universally accepted by all schools of thought
today
Classical or Pavlovian
Conditioning
Ivan Pavlov
1849-1936
Russian physician/ neurophysiologist
Nobel Prize in 1904
studied digestive secretions
Classical or Pavlovian
Conditioning
Pavlov’s device
for recording
salivation
Classical or Pavlovian
Conditioning
Classical Conditioning
organism comes to associate two stimuli
lightning and thunder
tone and food
begins with a reflex
a neutral stimulus is paired with a stimulus
that evokes the reflex
neutral stimulus eventually comes to evoke
the reflex
Classical or Pavlovian
Conditioning
Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)
effective stimulus that unconditionallyautomatically and naturally- triggers a
response
Unconditioned Response (UCR)
unlearned, naturally occurring automatic
response to the unconditioned stimulus
salivation when food is in the mouth
Classical or Pavlovian
Conditioning
Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
previously neutral stimulus that, after
association with an unconditioned stimulus,
comes to trigger a conditioned response
Conditioned Response (CR)
learned response to a previously neutral
conditioned stimulus
Conditioning
Acquisition
the initial stage of learning, during which a
response is established and gradually
strengthened
in classical conditioning, the phase in which a
stimulus comes to evoke a conditioned
response
in operant conditioning, the strengthening of
a reinforced response
Conditioning
Extinction
diminishing of a CR
in classical conditioning, when a
UCS does not follow a CS
in operant conditioning, when a
response is no longer reinforced
Classical or Pavlovian
Conditioning
Strength
of CR
Acquisition
(CS+UCS)
Extinction
(CS alone)
Spontaneous
recovery of
CR
Extinction
(CS alone)
Pause
Classical or Pavlovian
Conditioning
Spontaneous recovery
reappearance, after a rest period, of
an extinguished CR
Generalization
tendency for a stimuli similar to CS to
evoke similar responses
Classical or Pavlovian
Conditioning
Discrimination
in classical conditioning, the ability to
distinguish between a CS and other stimuli
that do not signal and UCS
in operant conditioning, responding
differently to stimuli that signal a behavior
will be reinforced or will not be reinforced
Generalization
Drops of saliva
in 30 seconds
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Pelvis
Hind
paw
Thigh
Shoulder
Trunk
Front
paw
Foreleg
Part of body stimulated
Classical or Pavlovian
Conditioning
UCS
(passionate
kiss)
CS
(onion
breath)
CS
(onion
breath)
UCR
(sexual
arousal)
UCS
(passionate
Kiss)
CR
(sexual
arousal)
UCR
(sexual
arousal)
Nausea Conditioning in
Cancer Patients
UCS
(drug)
UCR
(nausea)
CS
(waiting
room)
UCS
(drug)
UCR
(nausea)
CS
(waiting
room)
CR
(nausea)
Operant Conditioning
Operant Conditioning
type of learning in which behavior is
strengthened if followed by reinforcement or
diminished if followed by punishment
Law of Effect
Thorndike’s principle that behaviors followed
by favorable consequences become more
likely and behaviors followed by unfavorable
consequences become less likely
Operant Conditioning
Operant Behavior
complex or voluntary behaviors
push button, perform complex task
operates (acts) on environment
produces consequences
Respondent Behavior
occurs as an automatic response to
stimulus
behavior learned through classical
conditioning
Operant Conditioning
B.F. Skinner (1904-1990)
elaborated Thorndike’s Law of
Effect
developed behavioral
technology
Operant Conditioning
Skinner Box
soundproof
chamber with a bar
or key that an
animal presses or
pecks to release a
food or water
reward
contains a device
to record responses
Operant Conditioning
Reinforcer
any event that strengthens the behavior it
follows
Shaping
conditioning procedure in which
reinforcers guide behavior toward closer
approximations of a desired goal
Successive Approximations
reward behaviors that increasingly
resemble desired behavior
Principles of
Reinforcement
Primary Reinforcer
innately reinforcing stimulus
satisfies a biological need
Secondary Reinforcer
conditioned reinforcer
learned through association with
primary reinforcer
Schedules of
Reinforcement
Continuous Reinforcement
reinforcing the desired response each time it
occurs
learning occurs rapidly
extinction occurs rapidly
Partial Reinforcement
reinforcing a response only part of the time
results in slower acquisition
greater resistance to extinction
Schedules of
Reinforcement
Fixed Ratio (FR)
reinforces a response only after a
specified number of responses
faster you respond the more rewards you
get
different ratios
very high rate of responding
like piecework pay
Schedules of
Reinforcement
Variable Ratio (VR)
reinforces a response after an
unpredictable number of responses
average ratios
like gambling, fishing
very hard to extinguish because of
unpredictability
Schedules of
Reinforcement
Fixed Interval (FI)
reinforces a response only after a
specified time has elapsed
response occurs more frequently as the
anticipated time for reward draws near
Schedules of
Reinforcement
Variable Interval (VI)
reinforces a response at unpredictable time
intervals
produces slow steady responding
like pop quiz
Punishment
Punishment
aversive event that decreases
the behavior that it follows
powerful controller of unwanted
behavior
Problems with
Punishment
Punished behavior is not forgotten, it's
suppressed- behavior returns when
punishment is no longer eminent
Causes increased aggression- shows
that aggression is a way to cope with
problems- Explains why aggressive
delinquents and abusive parents come
from abusive homes
Problems with
Punishment
Creates fear that can generalize to desirable
behaviors, e.g. fear of school, learned
helplessness, depression
Does not necessarily guide toward desired
behavior- reinforcement tells you what to
do--punishment tells you what not to doCombination of punishment and reward can
be more effective than punishment alone
Punishment teaches how to avoid it
Cognition and Operant
Conditioning
Cognitive Map
mental representation of the layout of
one’s environment
example- after exploring a maze, rats act
as if they have learned a cognitive map of
it
Latent Learning
learning that occurs, but is not apparent
until there is an incentive to demonstrate it
Latent Learning
Average
errors
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8
6
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2
0
1
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10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
Days
Observational Learning
Observational Learning
learning by observing and imitating others
Modeling
process of observing and imitating
behavior
Prosocial Behavior
positive, constructive, helpful behavior
opposite of antisocial behavior