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Theories of Learning
Learning
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Classical conditioning
Classical conditioning in real life
Operant conditioning
Operant conditioning in real life
Learning and the mind
Watson’s Extreme Environmentalism
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“Give me a dozen healthy infants, wellformed, and my own special world to bring
them up in, and I’ll guarantee to take any one
at random and train him to be any type of
specialist I might select - doctor, lawyer, artist,
merchant-chief, and yes, beggar-man and thief,
regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies,
abilities, vocations, and race of his ancestors.”
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John Broadus Watson, 1928
Classical Conditioning
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Defining learning, behaviorism, and
conditioning
New reflexes from old
Principles of classical conditioning
What is actually learned in classical
conditioning?
Defining Learning, Behaviorism and
Conditioning
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Learning
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Behaviorism
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A relatively permanent change in behavior (or
behavior potential) due to experience.
Research on learning has been influenced by this
approach to psychology that emphasizes the study of
observable behavior and the role of the environment
as a determinant of behavior.
Conditioning
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The association between environmental stimuli and
the organisms responses.
Social-Cognitive Learning Theories
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Do not omit mental processes from explanations
of human learning.
Learning is not so much a change in observable
behavior as a change in knowledge that has the
potential for affecting behavior.
Emphasize learning by observation and imitation,
positive consequences, and cognitive processes
such as plans, expectations, and beliefs.
Classical Conditioning
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The process by which a previously neutral
stimulus acquires the capacity to elicit a
response through association with a stimulus
that already elicits a similar or related response.
Pavlov’s Apparatus
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Harness and fistula (mouth tube) help keep dog in
a consistent position and gather uncontaminated
saliva samples.
 They do not cause the dog discomfort.
New Reflexes from Old
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Unconditioned stimulus (US)
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Elicits a response in the
absence of learning.
Unconditioned response (UR)
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The reflexive response to a
stimulus in the absence of
learning.
New Reflexes from Old
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A neutral stimulus is then regularly paired
with an unconditioned stimulus.
New Reflexes from Old
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Conditioned stimulus (CS)
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An initially neutral stimulus that
comes to elicit a conditioned
response after being paired with
an unconditioned stimulus.
Conditioned response (CR)
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A response that is elicited by the
conditioned stimulus.
Occurs after the CS is associated
with the US.
Is usually similar to US.
Principles of Classical Conditioning
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Extinction
Higher-order conditioning
Stimulus generalization
Stimulus discrimination
Extinction
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The weakening and eventual disappearance of a
learned response.
In classical conditioning, it occurs when the
conditioned stimulus is no longer paired with the
unconditioned stimulus.
Acquisition and Extinction
Higher-Order Conditioning
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A neutral stimulus can become a conditioned
stimulus (CS) by being paired with an existing
conditioned stimulus (CS).
Stimulus Generalization
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In classical conditioning, occurs when a new
stimulus that resembles the conditioned stimulus,
elicits the conditioned response.
Stimulus Discrimination
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The tendency to respond differently to two
or more similar stimuli.
In classical conditioning, it occurs when a
stimulus similar to the condition stimulus
(CS) fails to evoke a conditioned response
(CR).
What is learned in classical conditioning?
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For classical conditioning to be most
effective, the stimulus to be conditioned
should precede the unconditioned stimulus.
We learn that the first event (stimulus)
predicts the second.
Classical Conditioning in Real Life
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Learning to like
Learning to fear
Accounting for taste
Reacting to medical treatments
Learning to Like
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Where do sentimental feelings come from?
Objects have been associated in the past
with positive feelings.
Learning to
Fear
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Research suggests we can learn fear through
association.
Watson and Raynor conditioned “Little Albert” to
be afraid of white rats by pairing the neutral
stimulus (rats) with a unconditioned stimulus
(loud noise).
Within days, Albert was not only afraid of the
rats, his fear had generalized to other furry
objects.
Unlearning Fear
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Counterconditioning
 The process of pairing a conditioned stimulus
with a stimulus that elicits a response that is
incompatible with an unwanted conditioned
response.
 Another child’s fear of rabbits was removed by
pairing the stimulus which elicited fear with a
stimulus that elicited happiness.
Accounting for Taste
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Classical conditioning can also explain how
we learn to like and dislike many foods and
odours.
Researchers have taught animals to dislike
foods or odours by pairing them with drugs
that cause nausea or other unpleasant
symptoms.
Humans also quickly learn to associate illness
with food even when the food is not the cause
of becoming sick.
Reacting to Medical Treatments
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Stimuli associated with drug treatments that
produce nausea can become conditioned
stimuli, creating problems for cancer patients
undergoing chemotherapy.
Non-drug treatments, such as placebos, are a
beneficial application of classical
conditioning, through association with real
drugs.
Operant Conditioning
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Defining operant conditioning
The consequences of behavior
Reinforcers and punishers
Principles of operant conditioning
Schedules of reinforcement
Shaping
Operant conditioning in real life
Operant Conditioning
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The process by which a response becomes
more or less likely to occur depending on
its consequences.
Consequences of behavior
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A neutral consequence neither increases or
decreases the probability that the response
will recur.
Reinforcement strengthens the response or
makes it more likely to recur.
Punishment weakens a response or makes
it less likely to recur.
Reinforcement
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A stimulus strengthens or increases he
probability of the response that it follows.
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Primary reinforcers are inherently reinforcing
and typically satisfy a physiological need.
Secondary reinforcers are stimuli that have
acquired reinforcing properties through
associations with other reinforcers.
Types of Reinforcement
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Positive reinforcement
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when a pleasant consequence
follows a response, making the
response more likely to occur again.
Negative reinforcement
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when a response is followed by the
removal of something unpleasant,
making the response more likely to
occur again.
Punishment
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The process by which a stimulus weakens or
reduces the probability of the response that it
follows.
Primary punisher
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Something that is inherently punishing such as
electric shock.
Secondary punisher
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A stimulus that has acquired punishing properties
through an association with other punishers.
Types of Punishers
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Positive punisher
 When something
unpleasant occurs
after a behavior.
Negative punisher
 When something
pleasant is removed
after a behavior.
The Skinner Box
Principles of Operant Conditioning
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Extinction
 In operant conditioning, it occurs when a
response is no longer followed by a reinforcer.
Stimulus generalization
 Stimuli that are similar to the original stimulus
are more likely to trigger a response.
Stimulus discrimination
 The tendency of a response to occur in the
presence of one stimulus but not another.
Schedules of reinforcement
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Continuous
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A particular response is always reinforced.
Intermittent (Partial)
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A particular response is sometimes but not
always reinforced.
Fixed-ratio, variable-ratio, fixed interval, and
variable-interval.
Best choice for response to continue.
Schedules of Reinforcement
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Simple reinforcement
schedules produce
characteristic response
patterns.
Steeper lines mean
higher response rates.
Ratio schedules produce
higher response rates
than interval schedules.
Partial Reinforcement
Shaping
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To teach complex behaviors, may need to
reinforce successive approximations of a
desired response.
For example, training animals, getting
children to make their beds.
Biological Limits on Learning
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All principles of operant conditioning are
limited by an animal’s genetic dispositions
and physical characteristics.
During operant learning, organisms tend to
revert to instinctive behavior, called
instinctive drift.
Operant Conditioning in Real Life
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Behaviour modification
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The pros and cons of Punishment
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the application of conditioning techniques to
teach new responses or to reduce or eliminate
undesirable ones.
When punishment works.
When punishment fails.
The problems with reward
When Punishment Works
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Immediately punishing a self-destructive
behavior eliminates it.
Milder punishments appear to work as well
as harsh ones.
Consistency is important.
When Punishment Fails
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People often administer punishment
inappropriately or mindlessly.
The recipient often responds with anxiety,
fear, or rage.
The effectiveness is often temporary.
Most misbehavior is hard to punish
immediately.
Punishment conveys little information.
An action intended to punish may instead
be reinforcing.
Extrinsic and Intrinsic Reinforcers
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Extrinsic reinforcers.
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Intrinsic reinforcers
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Reinforcers that are not inherently related to
the activity being reinforced.
Reinforcers that are inherently related to the
activity being reinforced.
Extrinsic reinforcers may undermine
intrinsic reinforcers.
Why Rewards Can Backfire
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Preschoolers played
with felt-tipped markers
and observed
Divided into 3 groups:
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Given markers again
and asked to draw
Promised a reward for
playing with markers
Played with markers,
then rewarded
Learning and the Mind
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Latent learning.
Social-Cognitive learning theories.
Latent
Learning
(Tolman)
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Rats: one maze trial/day.
One group found food every time (red line).
Second group never found food (blue line).
Third group found food on Day 11 (green line).
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Sudden change, Day 12.
Learning isn’t the same as performance.
Social-Cognitive Learning
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Social cognitive theories emphasize how behavior
is learned and maintained:
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through observation and imitation of others,
positive consequences,
cognitive processed such as plans, expectations, and
beliefs.
Observational learning involves learning new
responses by observing the behavior of another
rather than through direct experience; sometimes
called vicarious conditioning.
Bandura, Ross and Ross, 1963.
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Nursery school children watched a film of
2 men (Johnny and Rocky) playing with
toys.
Johnny refuses to share and Rocky hits
him, ending up with all the toys.
Children who watched the video were
significantly more violent than children in
a control group.
The Case of Media Violence.
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The greater the exposure to violence in
movies or television, the stronger the
likelihood of a person’s behaving
aggressively.
This is not true for all children.
Effects of violence are worse for children
and adults already predisposed to
aggressive behavior.