Behaviorist Approach Flashcards
Give the four main assumptions of the Behaviorist Approach.
• a person is born as a ‘blank slate’ and everything the learn is from the environment through conditioning processes with an exception of a few reflexive behaviours
• behaviourists only observe observable and measurable data (cannot study the internal workings of the mind)
•animals and humans learn in the same way so its okay to study animals and generalise the findings to human behaviour
• learn all behaviour from our enviro from either classical or operant conditioning
What is Classical Conditioning?
Classical conditioning is learning through association and both humans and animals can learn in this way. An association is made between previously neutral stimulus and a reflex (a non-learned behaviour)
Give the 5 features of classical conditioning.
Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)
Unconditioned Response (UCR)
Neutral Stimulus (NS)
Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
Conditioned Response (CR)
What is a UCS?
An object or action that generates a reflexive response
What is a UCR?
A reflexive response to a stimulus
What is a NS?
An object or action that does not cause a specific response
What is a CS?
A neutral stimulus transforms into a conditioned stimulus when a response is a associated with it
What is a CR?
A reflexive response to a new stimulus that has been associated with something recognisable
What is operant conditioning?
How people and animal learn from the consequences of their actions. This was studied by BF Skinner using the ‘Skinner Box’ in 1938
What is positive reinforcement?
If our behaviour results in a positive consequence then we are more likely to repeat that behaviour in the future.
What is negative reinforcement?
If a behaviour results in the avoidance of a negative consequence, then this is still rewarded and likely to be repeated.
What is punishment?
A negative consequence comes from our actions. The person is more likely to extinguish the behaviour.
What was the ‘skinner box’?
•one rat placed inside at a time
• multiple stimuli: speaker, lights, electric shock floor, food dispenser that released food what a lever was pressed
• hungry rat placed in box
• time taken for the rats to learn that pressing the lever resulted in food was recorded
How is positive reinforcement shown with the skinner box?
• learned through trail and error
• accidentally pressed lever, rewarded with food
• longer in box, quicker to learn what the lever was for
• rats operantly conditioned to press the lever because they learnt that they would be rewarded
• pressing the lever was positively reinforced.
How was negative reinforcement shown with the skinner box?
• placed rat in box and electrified floor
• when light came on, rat had to learn to press the lever when it was on to prevent the electric shock
• lever in response to light was negatively reinforced as it avoided shock
