3 - Learning (27.01.2020)

Question 1

Learning definition

Answer 1

“a process by which experience produces a relatively enduring change in an organism’s behavior or capabilities.”

Question 2

Basic learning processes:

Answer 2

Non-associative learning – response to repeated stimuli

– Classical conditioning – Learning what events signal

– Operant conditioning - Learning one thing leads to another

– Observational learning – Learning from others

Question 3

Habituation and Sensitisation

Answer 3

• Habituation is a decrease in the strength of a response to a repeated stimulus. (after a while you get used to the stimulus)
• Sensitisation is an increase in the strength of response to a repeated stimulus.
• Responses happen simultaneously and compete to determine behaviour

= 2 forms of non-associative learning
= this is true across the animal knigdom

Question 4

Classical conditioning

Answer 4

• Pavlov (Nobel Prize in physiology, digestion)

Stimuli
• Unconditioned stimulus (UCS): A stimulus that elicits a reflexive or innate response (the UCR) without prior learning
• Conditioned stimulus (CS):
A stimulus that, through association with a UCS, comes to elicit a conditioned response similar to the original UCR

Responses
• Unconditioned response (UCR):
A reflexive or innate response that is elicited by a stimulus (the UCS) without prior learning
• Conditioned response (CR):
A response elicited by a conditioned stimulus.

Question 5

When is classical conditioning strongest?

Answer 5

– There are repeated CS-UCS pairings
– The UCS is more intense (if the UCS is more intense you probably need less pairings)
– The sequence involves forward pairing (i.e. CS -> UCS)
– The time interval between the CS and UCS is short

Question 6

Extinction of conditioning

Answer 6

• acquisition: CS - UCS pairing
• extinction is more like attenuation, establishing new patterns of learning
• reread this part!!

Question 7

Stimulus generalisation

Answer 7

• A tendency to respond to stimuli that are similar, but not identical , to a conditioned stimulus.
• similar stimuli will also elicit the CR, but in a weaker form. e.g. the further away the frequency from original the less saliva production

Question 8

Stimulus Discrimination

Answer 8

• The ability to respond differently to various stimuli.
– E.g. A child will respond differently to various bells (alarms, school, timer)
– A fear of dogs might only include certain breeds
– e.g. distinguish different sounds for different zoos and respond accordingly.

Question 9

Clinical example of conditioning

Answer 9

• A significant proportion (25-30%) of patients undergoing chemotherapy experience anticipatory nausea and vomiting.
• Chemotherapy (UCS) -> Nausea (UCR)
• related cues e.g. sight of chemotherapy Unit (CS) -> anticipatory nausea

Also:

• hospital can be a conditioned stimulus of nausea
• immune system function of patients in hospital more suppressed than at home even though they did not have treatment yet.
• not only subjective effects!

Question 10

Overshadowing

Answer 10

• Cancer patients divided into two groups
• Group one given unpleasant, novel drink
• Group two given water
• Patients in group one showed significantly reduced nausea to clinic setting alone i.e. the CS had been altered

=> the stimulus was shifted from the hospital setting to an unpleasant drink.

Question 11

Classical conditioning and fear learning

Answer 11

• “Little Albert” Experiment (Watson & Raynor 1920)
• anything white and fluffy was scary (e.g. white cotton, bearded Santa Claus)
• result is string fear to rat, rabbit, dog and coat
• negative response to mask and Watson’s face.

Question 12

Two-factor theory of maintenance of classically conditioned associations e.g. fear

Answer 12

• Trauma (UCS) & needle (CS) -> fear response (UCR)

avoid injections -> fear reduced -> tendency to avoid is reinforced

Question 13

Menti 1

Answer 13

x

Question 14

Menti 2

Answer 14

x

Question 15

Thorndike’s Law of Effect:

Answer 15

A response followed by a satisfying
consequence will be more likely to
occur.
A response followed by an aversive consequence will become less likely to occur

Question 16

Operant Conditioning

Answer 16

• Behaviour is learned and maintained by it’s consequences

•

Question 17

Reinforcement

Answer 17

• there are different forms:

•Positive Reinforcement: occurs when a response is strengthened by the subsequent presentation of a reinforcer
– Primary Reinforcers: those needed for survival e.g. food, water, sleep, sex
– Secondary Reinforcers: stimuli that acquire reinforcing properties through their association with primary reinforcers e.g. money, praise

• Negative Reinforcement: occurs when a response is strengthened by the removal (or avoidance) of an aversive stimulus
– Negative Reinforcer: the aversive stimulus that is removed or avoided (e.g. the use of painkillers are
reinforced by removing pain)

• “Positive” and “Negative” refer to presentation or removal of a stimulus, not “good” and “bad”

Question 18

Punishment

Answer 18

• Positive Punishment:
occurs when a response is weakened by the presentation of a stimulus (e.g. squirting a cat with water when it jumps on dining table)

• Negative Punishment: occurs when a response is weakened by the removal of a stimulus (e.g. phone confiscated)

Question 19

Reinforcement vs Punishment

Answer 19

• Skinner maintained that reinforcement is a much more potent influence on behaviour than punishment
• Largely because punishment can only make certain responses less frequent – you cant teach new behaviour
• Implications for teaching and behaviour change?

Question 20

Positive vs. negative (reinforcement, punishment)

Answer 20

refers to the presence of a stimulus.

Question 21

Reinforcement schedules

Answer 21

How often and in what pattern does a stimulus have to appear for change?

• Continuous reinforcement produces more rapid learning than partial reinforcement
– The association between a behaviour and its consequences is easier to understand

• However, continuously reinforced responses extinguish more rapidly than partially reinforced responses
– The shift to no reinforcement is sudden and easier to understand
- variabel: e.g. every 5th time (or random number) most resistant to extinction
-> gambling!! this works by this schedule of reinforcement where sometimes you win sometimes you dint so you keep playing to seek that reinforcement.

Question 22

Reinforcement schedules - specific

Answer 22

• Fixed interval schedule: reinforcement occurs after fixed time interval
• Variable interval schedule: the time interval varies at random around an average
• Fixed Ratio Schedule: reinforcement is given after a fixed number of responses
• Variable Ratio Schedule: reinforcement is given after a variable number of responses, all centered around an average

Question 23

Operant Conditioning and health behaviour

Answer 23

• Chronic pain behaviour includes limping, grimacing, and medication requests.
• This is often reinforced by family or staff e.g. by being overly sympathetic, encouraging rest, increasing medication
• This behaviour is likewise reinforced by gratitude signals from the patient
• A cycle is created in which the patient receives positive consequences for “being in pain“, so pain is more likely to occur in frequency

Question 24

Cognitive approach

Answer 24

• Unlike Skinner, Bandura believes that humans are active information processors and think about the relationship between their behaviour and its consequences.
• Social imitation may hasten or short-cut the acquisition of new behaviours without the necessity of reinforcing

Purely from social learning

Question 25

Social Learning Theory

Answer 25

• Observational (vicarious) learning - We observe the behaviours of others and the consequences of those behaviours.
-> e.g. seeing someone else being reinforced for doing something on the ward round, change own behaviour.

• Vicarious reinforcement - If their behaviours are reinforced we tend to imitate the behaviours

Question 26

Modeling or Observational Learning (Albert Bandura)

Answer 26

• Albert Bandura
• Occurs by watching and imitating actions of another person, or by noting consequences of a person’s actions
  – Occurs before direct practice is allowed

Steps to Successful Modeling
– Pay attention to model
– Remember what was done
– Must be able to reproduce modeled behavior
– If successful or behavior is rewarded, behavior more likely to recur

Question 27

Bobo doll experiment

Answer 27

• 72 children (Mean aged 4yrs) recruited from Stanford University Nursery.
• Bandura 1961
• All children spent time in a playroom with an adult who modelled either non- aggressive (building tinker toy) or aggressive play (punching and striking the Bobo doll with mallet)
• All children then spent a further 20 minutes in the room alone and their behaviour was observed. Aggressive behaviour both imitative and non- imitative was recorded.
• Children who observed aggressive behaviour showed a much higher level of aggression towards the doll.

Question 28

Social Learning

Answer 28

• We don’t imitate the behaviour of everyone we encounter
• More likely if model is:
– Seen to be rewarded
– High status (e.g. Medical consultant) – Similar to us (e.g. colleagues)
– Friendly (e.g. peers)