Download Learning in Pigeons, Monkeys, and People

Learning From Experience
I.
Learning about events: Noticing and ignoring
A. Habituation and sensitization
1. Orienting response
2. Habituation
3. Sensitization
B. Short- and long-term effects
II. Learning what events signal: Classical Conditioning
A. Terminology of classical conditioning
1. Unconditioned stimuli and unconditioned
responses
2. Conditioned stimuli and conditioned
responses
B. Acquiring the conditioned stimulus-unconditioned
stimulus connection
C. Conditioned responding: Why does it develop?
D. Second-order condition
E. Stimulus generalization
F. Stimulus discrimination
G. Extinction and spontaneous recovery
III. Learning about the consequences of behavior:
Instrumental conditioning
A. The law of effect
B. B.F. Skinner and radical behaviorism
C. The discriminative stimulus
D. The nature of reinforcement
1. Positive & negative reinforcement
2. Bliss point and response deprivation theory
3. Conditioned reinforcers
E. Schedules of reinforcement
1. Fixed ratio schedules
2. Variable ratio schedules
3. Fixed interval schedules
4. Variable interval schedules
F. Shaping the desired behavior
G. Biological constraints on learning
H. Punishment
1. Positive and negative punishment
2. Practical considerations
IV. Learning from others: Observational learning
A. Modeling: Learning through example
B. Practical considerations
Learning in Pigeons, Monkeys,
and People
The Conditioned StimulusUnconditioned Stimulus Connection
Rule:
A conditioned stimulus will acquire
signaling properties, leading to the
production of the a conditioned response,
whenever it provides information about the
occurrence of the unconditioned stimulus
(Rescorla, 1992).
Experimental Findings on
Conditioning
1. For an effective association to form, the
conditioned stimulus needs to be presented
before the unconditioned stimulus.
2. The unconditioned stimulus needs to follow
the conditioned stimulus closely in time.
3. The conditioned stimulus needs to uniquely
predict the unconditioned stimulus.
4. The conditioned stimulus needs to provide
new information about the occurrence of the
unconditioned stimulus.
Types of Reinforcement
Consequence
Description
Example
Positive
Reinforcement
The presentation of an
event after a response
increases the
likelihood of the
response occurring
again
Bob’s parents reward
him for cleaning his
room by giving him
$5. The presentation of
$5 increases the
likelihood that Bob
will clean his room
Negative
reinforcement
The removal of an
event after a response
increases the
likelihood of the
response occurring
again
Karen’s parents nag
her continually about
cleaning her room.
When she finally
cleans her room, her
parents stop nagging
her. The removal of
the nagging increases
the probability that
Karen will clean her
room again
Schedules of Reinforcement
Type
Description
Example
Continuous
Response is followed
by reinforcement
every time it occurs
Every time you
clean your room
your parents give
you $5
Sometimes you get
$5 for cleaning
your room
Partial
• Fixed Ratio
• Variable Ratio
• Fixed Interval
• Variable
Interval
Effect
Fast acquisition of
response, with
response easily
extinquished
Response is followed
Acquisition is
by reinforcement
slower, but response
some of the time
is more resistant to
extinction
The number of
You get $5 every 3 You clean your room
responses required for times you clean
consistently, but stop
reinforcement is fixed your room
cleaning quickly if
reward stops
The number of
You get $5 after
You clean your room
responses required for cleaning your
consistently, and
reinforcement varies
room a certain # of continue to clean
times, but the
your room even if
exact number
reward isn’t
varies
delivered for a while
Reinforcement is
Every Tuesday
You don’t do much
delivered for the first you get $5 if your cleaning until
response after a fixed room is clean
Tuesday, and you
interval of time
stop quickly if
reward stops
Reinforcement is
On some random
You clean your room
delivered for the first weekday you get
consistently and
response after a
$5 if your room is don’t stop even if the
variable interval of
clean
reward isn’t
time
delivered for a while
Schedules of Reinforcement, con’t