Download Dr. Aws khasawneh Hadeel alothman #8 : behavioral learning

Dr. Aws khasawneh
#8 : behavioral learning
Hadeel alothman
- We study the concept of the behavioral learning because it helps us to demonstrate the
mechanism of psychological diseases and to understand why does it happen
- The behaviorist Said the we learn behavior by two ways : adaptive and maladaptive ..
- The mal - adaptive way of learning will lead to abnormal behavior and the result will be
a disease
Learning is :
- The acquisition of new behavior patterns.
- A persisting change in human performance or performance potential . (brought)
about as a result of the learner’s interaction with the environment.
- the relatively permanent change in a person’s knowledge or behavior due to
experience.
- Behaviorists say that a person’s behavior is determined by adaptive and
maladaptive learning.
-Learning methods
are the basis of behavioral treatment techniques.
—
Learning Mechanisms:
A) Simple forms:
—
- Habituation: Repeated stimulation results in a decreased response (a child
who receives weekly allergy injections cries less and less with each injection)
- Sensitization: Repeated stimulation results in an increased response (a child
who is afraid of spiders feels more anxiety each time he encounters spider)
B) Complex forms: the more important in behavioral therapy techniques
1 - Classical Conditioning.
2 - Operant Conditioning.
1-——Classical Conditioning
—
A- Principles
In classical conditioning, a natural or reflexive response (behavior) is elicited by a
learned stimulus (a cue from an internal or external event). This type of learning is
called associative learning.
We will come to explain this concept of classical conditioning but first we
need to know some key definitions :
Unconditioned Stimulus (US) - stimulus naturally triggers a response ( like
when see or smell the food, this stimulates the natural or the reflex response ; the
salivation)
Unconditioned Response (UR) - unlearned (natural) or reflexive response
(behavior) to the UCS Like the salivation
Conditioned Stimulus (CS) – stimulus that produce a response following
learning ( initially neutral) : like when the ring sound of a bell or whatever
stimulus doesn't initially cause salivation of a dog for example (it is neutral at first
) but after learning experience it may has the ability of salivation when it hears the
sound…
Conditioned Response (CR) – is a behavior (response) that is learned by an
association between a conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus.
now let's come to an experience of a —Ivan Pavlov explaining an example of
person called
Classical conditioning :
—
- Firstly he was Russian physiologist studying the digestive system; he has nothing
to do with psychology but his experiences helped in demonstrating or developing
some psychological principles
- Focused on what substance helped to break food down and One notable
substance studied was saliva
—
-Developed method (a machine or an apparatus) to measure saliva production
—
B-—The Processes of Pavlov’s Saliva Research
—
Dog given food and salivation was recorded while the dog ate
C-—The results :
—
—
—Key finding: Experienced dogs salivated before the food was presented
—
Pavlov’s Theory: Some stimulus (e.g. when the dog see the experimenter or the
apparatus) that proceeded food presentation had acquired capacity to elicit the
response of salivation
What was happening? Dogs were exhibiting a type of learning
This type of learning is the foundation of Classical Conditioning
Paradigm of Classical Conditioning : models of ways for learning classical
conditioning
1st: Select a stimulus that reliably elicits a characteristic response
—
Stimulus – Unconditioned stimulus (US)
Response -- Unconditioned response (UR)
***Unconditioned - Signifies the US - UR connection is unlearned (innate)
—2nd: Select a Stimulus for Conditioning (CS)
—
Conditioned stimulus Can be any reasonable stimulus that does not initially evoke
the UR
Conditioned Signifies that CS will only elicit desired response after conditioning
***take place
SO in pavlov's dogs we can demonstrates many concepts :
Before Conditioning :
—
US (Food)  UR (Salivation)
CS (Bell)  No CR because it is initially neutral but the Dog may turn its head to
the source of the sound (an orienting response)
During Conditioning :
which means that the CS is paired or presented consistently before presenting the
unconditioned stimulus ( the bell with the sight of food )
with time After many times of pairing
CS (Bell)  US (Food)  UR (Salivation)
As presentations continue (more pairing tries ) :
CS (Bell)  CR (Salivation)  US (Food) UR (Salivation)
—
— After Conditioning :
—
US (Food)  UR (Salivation)
CS (Bell)  CR (Salivation) so the CS eventually elicit the CS
Extinction( —‫——(—الخمىد—او—انتهاء—الشيء‬:——————
-The conditioned response(CR) decreases if the conditioned stimulus(CS) is never
again paired with the unconditioned stimulus (US).
-Passage of time does not cause animals to “forget” to produce the CR in presence
of CS
-Repeatedly present CS without the US, will eventually lose CR
For example : in case of pavlov's dogs ; after learning ( the first pairing process )
if we just ring the bells without presenting the food the dogs will salivate only at
first but after many times we will reach a state where dogs don’t have salivation (
extinction ) after ringing the bells because we stop the pairing process
If we do the pairing process again dogs will return to the first state again ( they
salivate when they hear the bells ) also we have something called
Spontaneous Recovery
—
- Even though no CRs present after one day of extinction trials, CR is present the
following day : after extinction we ring the bells and the dogs salivate because we
have a spontaneous recovery
-Time is key factor in explaining this spontaneous recovery
- More time between 1st and 2nd extinction session, more spontaneous recovery
observed :
if we have more time between extinctions sessions, the pairing period will
increase and the more spontaneous recovery we will have …
Rapid Reacquisition :
—
- Acquisition phase (learning)  extinction phase  acquisition phase (i.e.
reacquisition phase)
- we may use this method when we want a rapid learning where we have :
- Faster Rate of learning
-Repeated Cycles continues to get faster
—
—Generalization and Discrimination :
—
-Generalization: Transfer of effects of conditioning to similar stimuli
—
In general, the more similar a stimulus is to a training stimulus, the greater its
capacity to elicit a CR ( in the previous experience in pavlove dogs ; we may use
any another similar sound which would may elicit the salivation)
- Discrimination: Subject learns to respond to one stimulus, but not to a similar
stimulus : the dog will respond only to the ring sound not to any other sound of
any other bell
Some clinical applications —Of generalization —:
J.B. Watson: “suggested…that human emotions might profitably be thought of as
glandular and muscular reflexes which, like salivation, easily become
conditioned” : the emotions may be learned , get paired with places or times and
conditioned to a certain stimulus …and depending on that he explained the
concept of phobia
He did an experience with a Little child called Albert which was then considered
unethical but it is important for you to know .. in this experience Watson was
able to demonstrate that the acquisition of a phobia (an exaggerated, seemingly
illogical fear of a particular object or class of objects) could be explained by
classical conditioning
Little Albert, eleven months of age, was an infant, afraid of nothing “under the
sun” except a loud sound made by striking a steel bar. This made him cry. By
striking the bar at the same time that Albert touched a white rat, the fear
transferred to the white rat. After seven combined stimulations, rat and sound,
Albert not only became greatly disturbed at the sight of a rat, but this fear had
spread to include a white rabbit, cotton, wool, a fur coat, [a dog, a Santa Claus
mask, and the experimenter’s hair. It did not transfer to his wooden blocks and
other objects very dissimilar to the rat….. this infant was only afraid of the sound
of steel bar but when Watson did pairing between this sound and touching a
white rat ( which is initially neutral ; doesn't scare him ) , and after 7 times of
pairing, little Albert had a fear from white hair, fur and wool etc … ( he
learned this fear response to these things and he experienced generalization by
being scared of anything look like the white rat ) …
—
Applications in Behavioral Therapy
1- Systematic
—
Desensitization for Phobia*** :
It is a gradual treatment for phobias in which the individual is trained to relax while
being exposed to progressively more anxiety-provoking stimuli : we may expose
these fears at first using imagination not necessarily by real and at the same we
reduce the anxiety by drugs or relaxation techniques and breathing exercise .
2- Aversion therapy: is a type of behavior therapy designed to encourage individuals
to give up undesirable habits by causing them to associate the habit with an
unpleasant effect
It Means that we expose the person to an aversive and unpleasant stimulus if he shows
anxietic phobia .
3- Flooding: is a form of desensitization that uses repeated exposure to highly
distressing stimuli until the lack of reinforcement of the anxiety response causes
its extinction. :
*** Phobia isn’t specific ; everything in the world may cause phobia …
Practical example :
A grade school principal has 1 week to try out a new fire-alarm system for the school.
He decides to test the system three times during the week. The first time the alarm
is sounded, all of the students leave the school within 5 minutes. The second time,
it takes the students 15 minutes to leave the school. The third time the alarm is
sounded, the students ignore it. The students' response to the fire alarm the third
time it is sounded is most likely to have been learned by
A. sensitization
B. habituation
C. classical conditioning
The answer is b
now we will come to the second type of complex form of learning —— —
2 ) OPERANT CONDITIONING : more developed than classical conditioning
- Principle
For an individual, behavior is determined by its consequences. The consequences (reenforcement or punishment) occurs immediately following a behavior… in
classical conditioning ; the desired condition stimulus happen before the behavior
( we learn it ) while in operant condition; the behavior depends on the
consequences ( if we do re-enforcement, the behavior will probably continue and
if we do punishment , it will stop )
The Skinner experiment :
It is a box with a lever ‫ عتلة‬and rats moving randomly in it and the rat learned that
when it pushes the lever , a food will drop down into the box so it continously goes to
push the lever to get food as the food re enforces the rat , it will keep pushing the lever …
at the same time there was a place in the box where there Is an electrical current and in
order for the rat to get away from this area it has to go and push the lever ( this is called
negative re-enforcement : it is like people when escape from things that hurt them but at
the same time we enforce desired behaviors )
Differences between Classical Conditioning and Operant Conditioning —
Classical Conditioning
-Simple/Reflex Behavior
- Focuses on ANTECEDENTS: Events which take place BEFORE the target response
- Learning takes place when there is an association made between two unrelated
stimuli (before the desired or target response)
Operant Conditioning
-Complex/Voluntary Behavior
-Focuses On CONSEQUENCES: Events which take place AFTER the target response
- Learning takes place when a desired (target) response is affected by its consequences
(after the desired/target response)
Operant Conditioning Concepts —
Always when we say re- enforcement we mean increasing any specific target or —
behavior even though it is positive or negative re-enforcement
Positive reinforcement (reward) :—
Strengthening (increasing) a behavior by presenting a positive stimulus immediately
after the behavior has occurred
—Negative reinforcement ( escape, avoidance):—
Strengthening (increasing) a behavior by removing a negative stimulus immediately
after the behavior has occurred
punishment: the introduction of aversive stimulus after behavior aimed at reduced the
rate of that behavior by giving aversive stimulus
Extinction When a previously reinforced behavior decreases in frequency and
eventually ceases altogether because reinforcement is withheld
Spontaneous recovery : When an extinguished behavior reappears without having
been reinforced
Example: A mother would like her 8-year-old son to stop hitting his 6-year-old brother. She can
achieve this goal by using one of the following features of operant conditioning ( she can achieve
her goal by different mechanism ) :
—
Feature
—
—
Positive
reinforcement
Effect on
—
behavior
—
—
Behavior is
increased by reward
Negative
reinforcement
Behavior is
increased by avoidance
or escape
Punishment
Behavior is
decreased by suppression
( child decreases his
hitting behavior after the
mother scolded him )
Extinction
Behavior is
eliminated by non
reinforcement(ignorance)
—
Example
—
—
Child increases
his kind behavior toward
his younger brother to
get a praise from his
mother
—
Comment
—
—
Reward or
—
reinforcement
(praise)
—
increases desired
behavior (kindness
—toward brother)
A reward can
—
be praise or attention as
well as a tangible
—reward like money
—
—
Child increases
Active
—
his kind behavior toward avoidance of an
his younger brother to
aversive
—
avoid being scolded( the —stimulus (being
mother tell his child that scolded)
—
she will scold him if he
increases desired
hits his brother)
behavior (kindness
—toward brother)
—
—
Behavior is
Delivery of an
—
decreased by
aversive
suppression
stimulus
—
—(scolding)
decreases
—
—unwanted
behavior
—
—(hitting brother)
rapidly but not
—
—permanently
—
—
Child stops his
Extinction is
—
hitting behavior when
more effective
the behavior is ignored
than
—
by his mother(she
—punishment for
doesn’t do anything to
long-term
—
him nor positive or
—reduction in
negative)
unwanted
—
—behavior
There may be
—
—an initial
increase in
—
—hitting behavior
before it
—
—disappears
—
—
Remember : in reinforcement we increase particular behavior by reward or escape while in
punishment we reduce a behavior ….
Shaping
—
- Reducing complex behaviors into several more simple behaviors
- Reinforcing successive approximations to the complex behavior (for instance
when the child wants to learn reading and writing , this process is long and
consists of many steps so every time he learns something new, the letters for
example, we give him a reward and so on.. same applies when we want o teach
kids to use the bathroom …
-Modeling: type of observational learning in which individual behaves in a manner
similar to that of someone she/he admires ;is it one of the techniques used in behavioral
therapy specially in OCD ( obsessive compulsive disorder ) patients who are repeating
actions over and over like washing hand or ( ‫ ) الوضوء‬So we tell these patients to follow a
person whom are considered a model to them…
Schedules of Reinforcement —
1 –Continuous
: Reinforcement presented after every response.( rapidly learned but has little
resistance to extinction/ disappears rapidly if we stop the reinforcement )
E.g. A teenager receives a candy bar each time she puts a dollar into a vending
machine. One time she puts a dollar in and nothing comes out. She never buys
candy from the machine again.
2- Fixed interval schedule
Reinforcement occurs after a specific amount of time.( the response rate increases
toward the end of each interval)
. E.g. A student has an anatomy quiz every Friday. He studies for 10 minutes on
Wednesday nights, and for 2 hours on Thursday nights. .. they have the habit to
study more in the day before the exam in order to pass …
3- Fixed ratio schedule
Reinforcement occurs after a specific number of responses.( fast response rate)
E.g. - A man is paid $10 for every five hats he makes. He makes as many hats as
he can during his shift ( he tries to work more and more
4- Variable interval schedule
Reinforcement occurs after a random amount of time.( it is highly resistant to
extinction.)
. E.g. After 5 minutes of fishing in a lake a man catches a large fish. He then
spends 4 hours waiting for another bite.
—5-—Variable ratio schedule
—
Reinforcement occurs after a random number of responses. (highly resistant to
extinction)
. E.g. - After a slot machine ( pays off $5 for a single quarter, a woman plays $50
in quarters despite the fact that she receives no further payoffs.
Of all the reinforcement schedules, variable schedules are the most resistant
to extinction.
Applications of Operant Principles :
—
used in many aspects of life : in our homes, with children, in schools , by people
who works in and even with adults in behavioral therapy :
Behavior modification
—
-Shaping ( may apply in toilet training and learning reading and writing )
- Token economies ( for instance the child is reinforced to collect things with no
value like stickers and may be asked to collect a particular number of it so the
child can get money instead )
- Contingency contracts ( a contract between parents and their children so if they
do a particular positive thing , their parents will allow them to go out , to use their
car or any rewards things )
- Extinction, time-out, and response cost and punishment (more used with kids
and teenagers)
this lecture is specially dedicated to my special friends
Aseel , hadeel and roaa