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Behavioralism
Psychological perspective that emphasizing
the role of learning and experience in
determining behavior. A strict behavioralist
believes that babies are tabula rasa and the
study of psychology should focus purely on
observable behaviors and not unobservable
thoughts.
Learning
1)Behaviorists:relatively permanent
change in behavior that results from
experience
2) Cognitive:learning is made evident
by behavioral change, but learning
is defined as an internal and not
directly observable process.
Associative learning – learning that
certain events occur together
Classical conditioning – An
INVOLUNTARY behavior is determined by
what PRECEDES it
Operant conditioning – rewards and
punishment; A VOLUNTARY behavior is
determined by the anticipation of
something that FOLLOWS it.
Which is which?
1. A child is attacked by
a dog. The child
now fears all dogs.
2. You do your
homework every
night to get good
grades and avoid
punishment.
Classical – involuntary, stimulus
precedes behavior
Operant – voluntary, stimulus
follows behavior
Ivan Pavlov’s Experiments
Pavlov paired a
neutral stimulus (a
bell) with a meat
powder (which
made the dog
salivate).
Eventually, dog
salivates to bell
alone
Identifying Parts
Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)
Meat powder
Unconditioned Response (UCR)
Salivation
Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
Bell
Conditioned Response (CR)
Salivation
* Hint: replace “conditioned” with “learned” to make
it more intuitive.
Little Albert
John Watson – famous
behavioralist
Little Albert – 11 month old
orphan
Showed him a white rat. No
fear.
Made a loud noise. Albert
cried.
Showed him a white rat and
made a loud noise. Albert
cried. Repeated several times.
Eventually Albert cried at
white rat alone.
Identify the parts
Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)
Loud noise
Unconditioned Response (UCR)
Fear/crying
Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
White rat
Conditioned Response (CR)
Fear/crying
Definitions
Acquisition – initial learning of the stimulus-response
relationship (learning that bell means meat powder)
Extinction – diminished response to the conditioned
stimulus when it is no longer coupled with UCS. (stop
giving meat powder with bell and dog will stop salivating
to bell)
Spontaneous recovery – reappearance of an
extinguished CR after a rest.
Generalization – the tendency to respond to any stimuli
similar to the CS (Dog salivates to other noises)
Discrimination – the ability to distinguish between the CS
and similar stimuli (Dog only salivates to specific tone)
Application to Little Albert
If Little Albert generalized, what would we expect to happen?
– He might cry at the sight of similar objects (he did – rabbit, dog, sealskin
coat, some rumors – Santa’s beard)
How could we teach Little Albert to discriminate?
– Continually expose him to stimuli similar to the rat, but only make the
loud noise when exposing him to the rat
How could Little Albert’s conditioning be extinguished?
– Continually expose him to a white rat without making the loud noise
(unfortunately, this was never done because Little Albert was adopted
soon after the original experiments (he would be 83 now if he is still
alive – probably scared of rats!)
If Little Albert is still alive, his fear of white rats is likely to have
been extinguished (no loud noise when he sees a rat).
However, occasionally, when he sees a rat, he may find that his
heart races for a second or two. What is this called?
– Spontaneous recovery
Higher-Order Conditioning
A previously neutral stimulus
comes to serve as a CS after being
paired repeatedly with a stimulus
that has already become the CS
Ex: lightbellsalivate
TV showcar in drivewaysqueal of
happiness
Flooding
Fear-evoking reduction technique in
which the fear-evoking stimuli (CS) are
presented continuously in the absence
of harm so that fear responses (CR)
are extinguished
Ex: Little Albert-presenting rat without the banging
noise until the fear is no longer evoked
Can be unpleasant
Systematic Desensitization
Client is exposed gradually
to fear-evoking stimuli
under circumstances in
which he or she is relaxed
Ex: when Little Albert is relaxed, show him
pictures of rats before gradually bringing
them over
Counterconditioning
A pleasant stimulus is paired
repeatedly with a fear-evoking object,
in this way counteracting the fear
response
Ex: Joneses experiment with 2 year old Peter.
Placed rabbit in corner of room while Peter munched
on cookies. Gradually, the animal was brought closer.
Peter ate treats and touched the rabbit at the same
time
On your own
With your partner, practice with the terms
by completing the worksheet.
A friend has learned to associate the sound of a dentist’s
drill to a fearful reaction because of a painful experience
she had getting a root canal. In this example, what is the:
–
–
–
–
UCS?
UCR?
CS?
CR?
Pain from the drill
Fear
Sound of the drill
Fear
Using the example in question 4, give an example of how
each of the following may occur:
Extinction: if the pain does not result when the
drill is used, the CS (fear) will diminish.
Spontaneous recovery: the child returns for a
visit the next day and the sound of the drill elicits
fear again.
Generalization: the child becomes fearful of the
sound of any motor
Discrimination: the child learns that only the high
pitched dentist drill is associated with pain and
not a low pitch hum of the vacuum cleaner.
A BMW commercial has lots of pretty people in it. People
who watch the commercial find the people pleasing
to look at. With repeated viewing, they begin to
associate the car with the pleasant feeling.
UCS?
UCR?
CS?
CR?
Pretty people
Feeling good
Sight of BMW
Feeling good
You get in a car accident and find you are afraid to get in a
car.
UCS?
UCR?
CS?
CR?
Pain of the accident
Fear
Presence of car
Fear
You go to a fancy restaurant and decide to try an appetizer
you’ve never tried before – escargot. After dinner,
you go to a concert and get violently ill (from a
stomach virus that’s been going around). From then
on, you can’t even look at snails without feeling sick.
UCS?
UCR?
CS?
CR?
Stomach virus
Feeling sick
Sight of snails
Feeling sick
You are cruising on 440 at 75 mph when you see flashing
police lights behind you. You pull over and the
policeman gives you a ticket. You get in insane
amounts of trouble from your parents. The next
time you see flashing police lights, your heart rate
speeds up.
UCS?
Getting in trouble from
parents
UCR? Increased heart rate
CS? Flashing lights
CR? Increased heart rate
Name one practical application of
classical conditioning.
Stop drug or alcohol addiction by
pairing a nausea-producing drug
with the drug of addiction.
Extinguish a drug addiction by
administering a drug that blocks
the pleasant feeling normally
elicited by the drug.
If a child is afraid of rabbits
because one bit him when he was
young, you can expose the child to
rabbits in safe environments
repeatedly until the behavior is
extinguished
Cancer patients and
chemotherapy.
Cancer patients tend
to associate the
nausea produced by
chemotherapy with
the hospital setting.
– UCS – chemotherapy
– UCR – nausea
– CS – hospital
– CR – nausea
Cognitive Processes
It was once thought that
cognitive processes
weren’t involved in
classical conditioning.
Now we know better. For
example, therapists give
alcoholics drink
containing a nauseaproducing drug to
condition them to avoid
alcohol. Because clients
KNOW that the drug is
what is actually causing
the nausea, it doesn’t
work so well.
Biological Predispositions
It was once believed that conditioning occurred the same in all animals
(and therefore you could study human behavior by studying any
animal) and that you could associate any neutral stimulus with a
response. Not so. Animals have biological predispositions to
associating certain stimuli over others
Example – You eat a novel food and later get sick. You will be
conditioned to associate the taste of the FOOD with getting sick
(and thus avoid that food in the future), but NOT the music playing in
the restaurant, the plate it was served on, or the perfume your
neighbor was wearing.
It is much easier to condition someone to have a fear of snake than
of flowers.
Birds hunt by sight and will more quickly become conditioned to the
SIGHT of tainted food
Operant Conditioning
Rewards and punishment
Classical vs. Operant Conditioning
Classical Conditioning
Behavior is determined
by what PRECEDES it.
Operant Conditioning
Behavior is determined
by anticipation of what
FOLLOWS it.
Involuntary
Voluntary
Dog salivates after a
tone.
Dog sits in anticipation
of getting a treat.
Operant Conditioning
A simple form of learning in
which an organism learns to
engage in behavior because
it is reinforced.
Classical or Operant?
When a mother strokes her infant’s skin, the
stroking creates pleasure responses in
the baby. After this goes on for many
days, the baby begins to show pleasure
responses simply at the sight of her
mother (even before being touched).
Classical or Operant?
A patient in a mental hospital is very disruptive at
mealtimes. She grabs food from the plates of
those sitting near her and tries to cram the
food in her mouth. Because this behavior of
stealing food is very undesirable, a plan is
developed whereby every time the patient
steals food from other plates, she is
immediately taken to a room without food.
Classical or Operant?
Imagine you have a friend who keeps the
temperature in her home so high that
each occasion on which you visit her you
find yourself perspiring. The last time
you visited her, you noticed that you
began to perspire and became
uncomfortable as soon as you saw her
house (even before you got inside).
Classical or Operant?
Fred leaves his clothes and toys all over his
room. It seems that the only time he
cleans up his room is when his mother
yells at him. When she yells at him, Fred
picks up his clothes and put away his
toys.
Edward L. Thorndike
Cats in a box-trial and error
As trials were repeated, it would take
less time for the cat to pull the string
Law of Effect: responses are “stamped
in” by rewards (escaping from box and
eating) and “stamped out” by
punishments.
B.F. Skinner
Reinforce: to follow a response with a
stimulus that increases the frequency
of the response
Operant behavior: an organism
learns to do something because of its
effects or consequences
“Skinner Box”
Hungry rats in a cage
Sniffed around the cage and engaged in random
behavior
Rat’s first pressing of lever is by accident-food
pellet dropped in cage
Food pellet increased the probability that the rat
would press lever again
Pellet serves as a reinforcement for the lever
pressing
Reinforcement vs. Punishment
Practice with partner.
Types of Reinforcers
Positive: a reinforcer that when
presented increases the
frequency of the operant (pellet,
approval, praise)
Negative: a reinforcer that when
removed increases the
frequency of an operant (removal
of fear and pain)
Types of Reinforcers
Primary-an unlearned reinforcer that are
effective because of the biological makeup of
the organism
(food, water, warmth)
Secondary- a stimulus that gains
reinforcement value through association with
established reinforcers
(money, attention, social approval)
Positive Reinforcer
Behavior
Studying
Consequence

Positive reinforcer
(Teacher approval)
is presented
when student
studies
Change in Behavior


frequency of
behavior increases( student studies more)
Negative Reinforcer
Behavior
Studying
Consequence

Negative reinforcer
Change in Behavior


(Teacher disapproval)
frequency of
is removed
behavior increaseswhen student
( student studies more)
studies
Rewards and Punishments
Reward: a pleasant
stimulus that increases
the frequency of the
behavior it follows
Rewards and Punishments
Punishments: an unpleasant
stimulus that suppresses the
behavior it follows
-although it works it is usually
undesirable
-better to focus on rewarding
behavior
Negative Reinforcer
Behavior
Studying
Consequence

Negative reinforcer
Change in Behavior


(Teacher disapproval)
frequency of
is removed
behavior increaseswhen student
( student studies more)
studies
Punishment
Behavior
Talking in
class
Consequence

Punishment
(detention)
is presented
when student
talks in class
Change in Behavior


frequency of
behavior decreases( student talks less in
class)
Problems with Punishment
it models aggression as a way to solve
problems
breeds anger in the recipient
doesn’t provide an alternative behavior.
Therefore, the behavior only goes away
when the punisher is around.
Reinforcement vs. Punishment
(increase behavior)
(decrease behavior)
Action
Consequence
Behavior
Positive
Reinforcement
:)
+ :)

Negative
Reinforcement
:)
- :(

Positive Punishment
:(
+ :(

Negative Punishment
:(
- :)

Reinforcement Schedules
reinforcement schedules
– continuous – rewarded every time
– partial – not every time
“fixed” – set, constant
“variable” – unpredictable
“interval” – time
“ratio” – number, doing a behavor
Reinforcement Schedules
fixed ratio – set number/behavior (every three
times you raise your hand I call on you)
variable ratio – unpredictable number of
responses (slot machine)
fixed interval – set amount of time (pay you
every hour)
variable interval – unpredictable amount of time
(fishing)
Schedules of reinforcement-Draw 4 squares
– Fixed Specific, Set
– Ratio behavior
– Variable Unpredictable
– Interval time
***Highest response rate to lowest in order
Fixed Ratio-food pellet for every 5 times of
hitting desk
Variable Ratio-food pellet randomly (gambling)
Fixed Interval-every 2 mins you get food pellet
Variable Interval-randomly given food pellet for
random time
Reinforcement Schedules
Summary
–
–
–
–
Ratio schedules cause a greater response rate
Variable schedules are more resistant to extinction
Continuous reinforcement causes the fastest learning.
Immediate reinforcement is more effective than
delayed.
Shaping
A procedure for teaching complex
behaviors that at first reinforces
approximation of the target behavior
(smiling and saying good)
Ex: driving stick shift car-first reinforce and say good
when they shift without stalling
Token Economies
An environmental setting that fosters
desired behavior by reinforcing it
with tokens (secondary reinforcers)
Ex: giving tickets for good behavior and using the
tickets to buy goodies
Star stickers for reading: more stars allows you free
time or buy more books etc.
Overjustification Effect
Overjustification effect: when we are
rewarded for behaviors that we naturally
enjoy, we sometimes lose our intrinsic
motivation.
Learning and grades?
Professional athletes?
Criticisms of Behavioralism
Deemphasizes the
role of internal
thoughts and
feelings in
behavior;
Presents humans
as lacking free will
Ignores biological
predispositions
Support for Criticisms
1. Experiments with humans and animals
both indicate that biological
predispositions influence conditioning.
a. Animal training
b. fear of snakes more than flowers
Support for Criticisms
2. Cognition seems to influence conditioning
(alcoholics and nausea-producing drug).
3. Learning occurs in the absence of
rewards or punishments (this is called
latent learning)
- mice and cognitive maps
Learning:
Observational
Observational Learning
The acquisition of knowledge
and skills through the
observation of others (who are
called models) rather than by
means of direct experience.
Observational Learning
May account for most human learning
Not mechanically acquired through
reinforcement
We can learn by observation without
engaging in overt responses at all
Ex: observe parents cook, read, clean
Latent Learning
Latent:
hidden or concealed
Tolman’s rats:
– Rats learned about mazes in which they roamed
even when they were unrewarded for doing so
– Rats would acquire a cognitive map of the maze
– Learning remained hidden until they were
motivated to follow the rapid routes for food
goals
Modeling
Models may be live, symbolic,
or verbal instruction
Behaviors learned:
–
–
–
Academic skills: reading, problem-solving
Aggression: doll experiment, media
violence
Moral thinking: generosity, self-control,
temptation resistance
Modeling
Effects of modeling on Behavior:
– Learn new behaviors and ways
of responding
– Reinforcement may facilitate or
inhibit frequency of behaviors
– Increases similar behavior
Modeling
Traits of Effective Models:
– Perceived as competent, successful,
and high status individuals
– Typically exhibit “genderappropriate” behavior
– Relevant to observer’s situation
Modeling
Prosocial Behavior – constructive behavior
Antisocial Behavior – unproductive or
destruction behavior
Social Learning Theory
Albert Bandura
Bobo doll experiment