Behaviourist Assumptions

Question 1

Name the 3 Behavioural Assumptions.

Answer 1

1) Tabula Rasa

2) Behaviour is learnt through conditioning

3) Humans learn in the same way as animals

Question 2

What is the 1st Behaviourist assumption?

Answer 2

-Tabula Rasa

Question 3

What is the literary meaning of ‘tabula rasa’?

Answer 3

-‘Blank Slate’

Question 4

What does ‘tabula rasa’ assume?

Answer 4

​-We are born “blank” and our environment shapes us​

​-Babies born almost completely neutral, with only the most basic of responses (crying, pain, hunger) + will be moulded by the environment

-Everything we are is from experience with the environment

Question 5

What is a psychological example of the ‘tabula rasa’ theory?

Answer 5

-The Bobo Doll study (1961)

Question 6

What was the ‘Bobo Doll’ study?

Answer 6

-Bandura, Ross, and Ross tested 36 boys + 36 girls from the Stanford University Nursery aged 3- 6 years old

-24 children (12 boys + 12 girls) watched a model behaving aggressively towards a toy called a ‘Bobo doll’. The adults attacked the Bobo doll in many ways: using a hammer, throwing the doll in the air + shouting.

-Another 24 children (12 boys + 12 girls) were exposed to a non-aggressive model who played in a quiet and subdued manner for 10 minutes (playing with a tinker toy set and ignoring the bobo-doll).

-CONTROL GROUP: 12 Boys, 12 girls: not exposed to any model at all, served as baseline

Question 7

What was the result/findings of the ‘Bobo Doll’ study?

Answer 7

-Children who observed the aggressive model made far more imitative aggressive responses than those who were in the non-aggressive or control groups.​

THEREFORE:

-Children learn aggression through the process of observation learning - through watching the behaviour of another person.

Question 8

What is the 2nd Behaviourist assumption?

Answer 8

-Behaviour is learnt through conditioning

Question 9

What are the two types of conditioning?

Answer 9

-Classical + Operant

Question 10

What is Classical conditioning?

Answer 10

-Learning through association

ASS: (ClASSical conditioning​)

(ASSociation​)

Question 11

What is a Stimulus?

Answer 11

-An object or event in the environment that causes or elicits a response​

Question 12

What is a Response?

Answer 12

-A behaviour that results from the presentation of a stimuli, it refers to the actual behaviour that takes place​

Question 13

What is a Reinforcement?

Answer 13

-Something which strengthens or makes it more likely that a behaviour will be repeated in the future. This can be positive or negative reinforcement

Question 14

What is stage 1 of conditioning + what does this mean?

Answer 14

-The unconditioned stimulus (UCS) produces an unconditioned response (UCR) in an organism​

-This means that a stimulus in the environment has produced a behaviour/response which is unlearned​

Question 15

What is a neutral stimulus?

Answer 15

-​Neutral stimulus= has no affect on a person

-The neutral stimulus (NS) doesn’t produce a response until paired with the unconditioned stimulus (UCS)​

Question 16

What is stage 2 of conditioning?

Answer 16

-WHERE: the NS must be paired with the UCS on a number of occasions for learning to take place​

-After pairing, the NS now becomes known as the conditioned stimulus (CS)

Question 17

What is stage 3 of conditioning?

Answer 17

-WHERE: The conditioned stimulus (CS) has been associated with the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) to create a new conditioned response (CR)

Question 18

What is the psychological example for classical conditioning?​

Answer 18

-Pavlov’s dogs experiments

Question 19

What were Pavlov’s dogs experiments?

Answer 19

-First Pavlov established that meat caused the dog to salivate

-Then Pavlov established that a tone (bell) did not cause the dog to salivate

-Pavlov then presented the tone with the food ​

Note: dog is still salivating in response to the food

-After several pairings of the tone and food, Pavlov found that the dog would salivate to the (bell) when it was presented alone

Question 20

What does UCR/UCS/NS/CS/CR mean?

Answer 20

-UCS=Unconditioned Stimulus​

-UCR=Unconditioned Response​

-NS=Neutral Stimulus​

-CS=Conditioned Stimulus​

-CR=Conditioned Response

Question 21

Describe Pavlov’s experiment in terms of UCR/UCS/NS/CS/CR.

Answer 21

Before Conditioning:
-UCS = UCR​
-NS= No Response.​

During Conditioning:
-UCS + NS = UCR

After Conditioning:
-CS = CR​

Question 22

What is Operant conditioning ?

Answer 22

-Operant conditioning = learning through consequence

-It focuses on reward + punishment

Question 23

What is the ‘Law of Effect’?

Answer 23

• Thorndike’s theory:
  -Behaviour that is followed by pleasant consequences is likely to be repeated, + any behaviour followed by unpleasant consequences is likely to be stopped.

Question 24

What is Positive Reinforcement?

Answer 24

-Positive Reinforcement: provides a reward to increase likelihood of the behaviour being repeated

Question 25

What is Negative Reinforcement?

Answer 25

-Negative Reinforcement: removal of an unpleasant experience to increase likelihood of behaviour being repeated​

Question 26

What is Punishment?

Answer 26

-Punishment: Unpleasant consequences to stop/reduce frequency of the behaviour

Question 27

What is the overall relationship between Reinforcement/ Punishment and behaviour?

Answer 27

-Reinforcement increases (good) behaviour​ -Punishment decreases (bad) behaviour

Question 28

What is the psychological evidence for operant conditioning?

Answer 28

-Skinner's rat and pigeon experiments + Thorndike's puzzle box cat experiment

Question 29

What was Thorndike's experiment (1989)?

Answer 29

-Thorndike studied learning in animals (usually cats). -He devised a classic experiment in which he used a puzzle box to empirically (scientifically) test the laws of learning -A hungry cat is placed in a slatted box, food is placed outside the box and can be seen -Cat initially explores the box and fails to escape -During trial and error, the cat presses lever that open the door -Cat escapes and is rewarded (fed) -Escape times become quicker with increased trials

Question 30

What was Skinner's rat and pigeon experiment?

Answer 30

-Skinner placed a hungry rat in his Skinner box -The box contained a lever on the side, and as the rat moved about the box, it would accidentally knock the lever. -Immediately it did so that a food pellet would drop into a container next to the lever.

Question 31

What was the result of Skinner's experiment?

Answer 31

-Rats quickly learned to go straight to the lever after a few times being put in the box. -Consequence of receiving food, if they pressed the lever, ensured that they would repeat the action again. (Positive Reinforcement)

Question 32

What is the 3rd Behaviourist assumption?

Answer 32

-Humans learn in the same way as animals

Question 33

What does this animal/human assumption mean?

Answer 33

-We as humans have adapted to changes in our environment but the basic principle of learning is the same as animals -Belief that animals can be studied in a lab environment and the findings can be generalised to humans.

Question 34

What is the psychological example for the animal/human assumption?

Answer 34

-John Watson's 'Little Albert' experiment: classical conditioning in humans​ -Thorndike's investigations on cats + Skinner's investigations on rats and pigeons: operant conditioning in animals. (This has also been applied to human behaviour)