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Learning
©2002 Prentice Hall
Learning
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Classical Conditioning
Classical Conditioning in Real Life
Operant Conditioning
Operant Conditioning in Real Life
Social-Cognitive Learning Theories
©2002 Prentice Hall
Learning
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Learning: A relatively permanent
change in behavior (or behavioral
potential) due to experience.
Behaviorism: An approach to
psychology that emphasizes the study
of observable behavior and the role of
the environment as a determinant of
behavior.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Classical Conditioning
New Reflexes from Old
Principles of Classical Conditioning
What is Actually Learned in Classical
Conditioning
©2002 Prentice Hall
Pavlov’s Apparatus
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Harness and fistula (mouth tube) help keep
dog in a consistent position and gather
uncontaminated saliva samples
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They do not cause the dog discomfort
©2002 Prentice Hall
New Reflexes From Old
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Classical Conditioning: 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.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Conditioning Terms
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Unconditioned Stimulus: A stimulus that elicits a
reflexive response in the absence of learning.
Conditioned Stimulus: An initially neutral
stimulus that comes to elicit a conditioned response
after being associated with an unconditioned
stimulus.
Unconditioned Response: A reflexive response
elicited by a stimulus in the absence of learning.
Conditioned Response: A response that is elicited
by a conditioned stimulus; it occurs after the
conditioned stimulus is associated with an
unconditioned stimulus.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Principles of Classical
Conditioning
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Acquisition
Extinction
Higher-Order Conditioning
Stimulus Generalization and
Discrimination
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Acquisition
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A neutral stimulus that
is consistently followed
by an unconditioned
stimulus will become a
conditioned stimulus.
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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.
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Higher Order Conditioning
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A procedure in which a neutral stimulus
becomes a conditioned stimulus through
association with an already established
conditioned stimulus.
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Generalization and Discrimination
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Stimulus Generalization: After
conditioning, the tendency to respond
to a stimulus that resembles one
involved in the original conditioning.
Stimulus Discrimination: The
tendency to respond differently to two
or more similar stimuli.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Classical Conditioning
in Real Life
Learning to Like
Learning to Fear
Accounting for Taste
Reacting to Medical Treatments
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Learning to Fear
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An 11-month old boy –
named “Albert” – was
conditioned to fear a white
laboratory rat
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Each time he reached for the
rat, Watson made a loud
clanging noise right behind
Albert
Albert’s fear generalized to
anything white and furry
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Including rabbits and Santa
Claus
©2002 Prentice Hall
Counterconditioning
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In classical conditioning, the process of
pairing a conditioned stimulus with a
stimulus that elicits a response that is
incompatible with an unwanted
conditioned response.
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Operant Conditioning
The Birth of Radical Behaviorism
The Consequences of Behavior
Principles of Operant Conditioning
Skinner: The Man and the Myth
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Operant Conditioning
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The process by which a response
becomes more likely to occur or less so,
depending on its consequences.
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The Consequences of Behavior
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Reinforcement: The
process by which a stimulus
or event strengthens or
increases the probability of
the response that it follows.
Punishment: The process
by which a stimulus or
event weakens or reduces
the probability of the
response that it follows.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Reinforcement
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Positive Reinforcement:
The response is followed by
presentation of, or increase
in intensity of, a reinforcing
stimulus.
Negative Reinforcement:
The response is followed by
removal, delay, or decrease
in intensity of, an unpleasant
stimulus.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Punishment
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Positive Punishment: The
response is followed by
presentation of, or increase
in intensity of, a punishing
stimulus.
Negative Punishment:
The response is followed by
removal, delay, or decrease
in intensity of, an pleasant
stimulus.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Principles of Operant
Conditioning
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Extinction
Stimulus generalization and
discrimination
Learning on schedule
Shaping
Biological limits on learning
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The “Skinner Box”
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When a rat in a
Skinner box presses
a bar, a food pellet
or drop of water is
automatically
released.
Similar boxes exist
for pigeons and
many other species.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Learning on Schedule
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Continuous Reinforcement: A
reinforcement schedule in which a
particular response is always reinforced.
Intermittent (Partial) Schedule of
Reinforcement: A reinforcement
schedule in which a particular response
is sometimes but not always reinforced.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Skinner: The Man and the Myth
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Burrhus Frederick Skinner,
1904-1990
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Better known as B.F.
Skinner
Much misinformation is
circulated about his life
and work
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e.g., his daughters grew up
normal, despite rumors
that they were
institutionalized
©2002 Prentice Hall
Operant Conditioning
in Real Life
The Pros and Cons of Punishment
The Problems with Reward
©2002 Prentice Hall
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 can be temporary, and depend on
the presence of the person who administers it.
Most misbehavior is hard to punish immediately.
Punishment conveys little information.
An action intended to punish may instead by
reinforcing because it brings attention.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Why Rewards Can Backfire
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Extrinsic Reinforcers: Reinforcers that are
not inherently related to the action being
reinforced, such as money, prizes, and praise.
Intrinsic Reinforcers: Reinforcers that are
inherently related to the action being
reinforced, such as enjoyment of the task and
satisfaction of accomplishment.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Turning Play Into Work
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When preschoolers
were promised a prize
for drawing with felttip pens, the behavior
increased.
After they got the
prizes, they spent less
time with pens than
before the study
began.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Social-Cognitive Learning
Theories
Learning by Observing
Behavior and the Mind
©2002 Prentice Hall
Learning by Observing
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Observational Learning: A process in
which an individual learns new
responses by observing the behavior or
another (a model) rather than through
direct experience; sometimes called
vicarious conditioning.
©2002 Prentice Hall
Latent Learning
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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
©2002 Prentice Hall