ch 7 Flashcards
learning
Any relatively permanent change in behaviour or potential
behaviour that occurs because of experience or knowledge.
- Behaviourism:
School of psychology that accounts for behaviour in terms of
observable acts and events.
Focuses on a basic kind of learning known as conditioning:
Learning that involves associations between environmental stimuli
and the organism’s responses. For example: Classical conditioning,
and operant conditioning.
Principles of Classical Conditioning
- Acquisition
The initial stage of learning.
The time during which a CR first
appears and increases in frequency.
- Extinction
The weakening and eventual disappearance of a learned response. CS is repeatedly presented alone, and the CR declines. Spontaneous Recovery The reappearance of a learned response after its apparent extinction.
- Higher-Order Conditioning
A procedure in which a neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus through
association with an already established conditioned stimulus.
Generalization
yellow light and food-> salivation, only yellow light leadis to salivation
blue light also leads to salivation- even though its not the yellow light
- Discrimination
Participant initially responds due to stimulus generalization Participant makes conditioned response to yellow light Participant learns to descriminate. Responds to yellow light but not blue
What is Actually Learned in Classical Conditioning?
Animals and human beings learn more than just an association between
two paired stimuli that occur close together in time.
They learn information conveyed by one stimuli about another.
The mere pairing of an unconditioned stimulus and neutral stimulus is
not enough to produce learning.
To become a CS, the NS must reliably signal or predict, the US.
John B. Watson
Founded Behaviourism in North America.
Enthusiastically promoted Pavlov’s ideas.
Recognized real-life applications of classical
conditioning.
Gorn (1982) Experiment
Group 1
Students looked at slides of a beige pen or blue pen.
Heard a best-selling pop song.
Group 2
Students looked at slides of a beige pen or a blue pen.
Heard a selection of traditional music from India.
Experimental Results
Later the students were allowed to choose one of the pens.
Three-fourths of those who heard the pop song chose a
pen that was the same colour as the one they had seen
in the slides.
Learning to Fear
Dislikes and negative emotions can be classically
conditioned.
Can learn to fear almost anything if it is paired
with something that elicits pain, surprise, or
embarrassment.
Biologically primed to fear spiders, snakes and
heights
Watson and Rayner (1920)
Phobia Irrational fear of an object or situation that interferes with normal activities. Developing Phobias Researchers established a rat phobia in an 11-month-old boy named Albert.
Eliminating Fears
Fears may be eliminated with the method of counterconditioning.
Counterconditioning
The process of pairing a conditioned stimulus with a stimulus that elicits a
response that is incompatible with an unwanted conditioned response
Accounting for Taste
Classical conditioning can explain how we learn to
like and dislike certain foods and odours.
Teach animals to dislike foods or odours by
pairing them with drugs that cause nausea or
unpleasant symptoms.
Many people have learned to dislike food after
eating it and then falling ill, even when the two
events are unrelated.
Accounting for Taste
Taste aversion may occur after only one pairing of
food with illness.
Humans are biologically primed to associate
sickness with taste more readily than sights or
sounds.
Biological tendency enhances species survival.
Eating bad food is more likely to be followed by
illness or death, than are particular sights or
sounds.
Reacting to Medical Treatments
Medical treatments can create unexpected misery, for reasons that are entirely unrelated to the treatment itself. Unpleasant reactions to a treatment generalize to a wide range of other stimuli. Example: Waiting room, nurse’s uniform, smell of rubbing alcohol.
Medical treatments can create unexpected relief from
symptoms, for reasons that are entirely unrelated to
the treatment itself.
Placebos
Pills and injections that have no active ingredients or
treatments that have no direct physical effect on the
problem.
Operant Conditioning
Behaviour becomes more likely or less likely, depending on its
consequences.
The individual’s response operates or produces effects on the
environment.
These effects, in turn, influence whether the response will occur again.
Responses in Operant Conditioning are complex, not reflexive like in
Classical Conditioning.
B.F. Skinner
Elaborated and extended Thorndike’s general principles to more complex forms of behaviour. His approach was called “radical behaviourism”. To understand behaviour we should focus on the external causes of action and the action’s consequences.
Primary Reinforcers and Punishers
Primary Reinforcer
A stimulus that is inherently reinforcing, typically
satisfying a physiological need. Example: Food.
Primary Punishers
A stimulus that is inherently punishing.
Example: Electric shock.
Secondary Reinforcers and Punishers
Secondary Reinforcer
A stimulus that has acquired reinforcing
properties through association with other
reinforcers. Example: Money and awards.
Secondary Punishers
A stimulus that has acquired punishing
properties through association with other
punishers. Example: Scolding and bad
grades.
Principles of Operant Conditioning
Extinction
Weakening and eventual disappearance of a
learned response.
It occurs when a response is no longer followed
by a reinforcer.
Principles of Operant Conditioning
Stimulus Generalization
The tendency for a response that has been reinforced (or punished) in the
presence of one stimulus to occur (or be suppressed) in the presence of
other, similar stimuli.
Stimulus Discrimination
The tendency of a response to occur in the presence of one stimulus but
not in the presence of other, similar stimuli that differ from it on some
dimension.
Discriminative Stimulus
A stimulus that signals when a
particular response is likely to be
followed by a certain type of
consequence.
Reinforcement Schedules
Continuous Reinforcement
A particular response is always reinforced.
Intermittent Schedule of Reinforcement
Particular response is sometimes, but not always reinforced.
4 types of Intermittent Schedules of Reinforcement.
Four types of Intermittent Schedules
Two are Ratio-based: Reinforcement provided after a certain number of
responses.
1. Fixed-Ratio
2.Variable Ratio
Two are Interval-based: Reinforcement based on intervals of time.
- Fixed Interval
- Variable Interval
- Fixed-Ratio
Reinforcement after a fixed number of non-reinforced responses.
High rates of responding.
Steady, rapid responding until reinforcement, then a pause before starting
again.
Low resistance to extinction.
- Variable Ratio
Reinforcement is unpredictable but on average occurs after some number of
non-reinforced trials.
High rates of responding.
Continuous, rapid responding with little pause after reinforcement.
High resistance to extinction.
- Fixed Interval
Reinforcement occurs for the first response that occurs after a fixed time
interval has elapsed.
Initially slow responding, increasing to rapid respond as time for
reinforcement approaches.
Pause in responding after reinforcement.
Low resistance to extinction.
- Variable Interval
Reinforcement occurs for the first response made after a fixed period of
time has elapsed since the last reinforcer.
Steady, moderate level of responding with little pause after reinforcement.
High resistance to extinction.
Intermittent schedules are best if you want a response to persist.
Intermittent schedules are best if you want a response to persist.
Intermittent schedules are best if you want a response to persist.
With a Continuous schedule, the learned response stops right after the
reinforcement is stopped.
With a Continuous schedule, the learned response stops right after the
reinforcement is stopped.
Biological Limits on Learning
Principles of Operant Conditioning are limited by
an animal’s genetic dispositions and physical
characteristics.
Instinctive drift
The tendency for an organism to revert to
instinctive behaviour.
B.F. Skinner
Usefulness of studying perceptions and thoughts.
We can study perceptions, emotions, and
thoughts.
However, thoughts and feelings are simply
behaviours that occur because of reinforcement
and punishment.
s
Determinist View.
eterminist View.
Human beings are shaped by our environments
and our genetic heritage.
Behaviour modification
The use of operant techniques in realworld settings. Help people change unwanted, dangerous, or self-defeating habits. Must have a good grasp of operant conditioning principles to apply them properly.
When Punishment Works
Punishment is effective when it is:
- Administered Consistently
Problem behaviours must be punished every
time they occur.
Inconsistency provides intermittent
reinforcement and makes the behaviour more
resistant to extinction.
2. Administered immediately following the problem behaviour. Suppresses the response for the duration of the punishment. However, it does little to reduce the probability of the response.
When Punishment Fails
- People often administer punishment
inappropriately or mindlessly. - The recipient of punishment often responds with
anxiety, fear, or rage. - The effectiveness of punishment is often
temporary, depending heavily on the presence of
the punishing person or circumstances. - Most misbehaviour is hard to punish
immediately. - Punishment conveys little information.
- An action intended to punish may instead
be reinforcing because it brings
attention.
Punishment Guidelines
- Should NOT involve physical abuse.
- Should be accompanied by information
about appropriate behaviour. - Should be followed by the reinforcement
of desirable behaviour.
Combine extinction of undesirable
acts with reinforcement of
alternative ones.
The Misuse of Rewards
The Misuse of Rewards
Rewards must be tied to the behaviour you are
trying to increase.
Rewards dispensed indiscriminately, without
being earned, become meaningless because they
no longer reinforce desired behaviour.
Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic Rewards
Extrinsic Reinforcers
Reinforcers that are not inherently related to the
activity being reinforced.
Intrinsic Reinforcers
Reinforcers that are inherently related to the
activity being reinforced.
Extrinsic Rewards: Turning Play into Work
When we are paid for an activity, we interpret
it as work.
2. Extrinsic rewards may be regarded as
controlling.
3. Extrinsic reinforcement may raise the rate of
responding above some optimal, enjoyable
level.
Reward Guidelines
- Extrinsic rewards are sometimes necessary.
- Extrinsic rewards should be used sparingly.
- Extrinsic awards are beneficial, when combined with
interesting, challenging and varied kinds of work to do.
Behavioural “ABCs”
Learning can be explained by specifying the
Behavioural ABCs:
1. Antecedents Events preceding behaviours. Sets the occasion for a response. 2. Behaviours Response made by individuals. 3. Consequences Event that follows and is caused by specific behaviours.
Tolman & Honzik (1930)
Three groups of rats were placed in mazes and had
their behaviour observed.
Group 1: Always found food at the end of the
maze. Learned the route.
Group 2: Never found food at the end of the
maze. Wandered aimlessly.
Group 3: Found no food for 10 days. On the 11th
day, they received food at the end of the maze.
Quickly learned the route.
Group 3 demonstrate latent learning:
A form of learning that is not immediately
expressed in an overt response; it occurs
without obvious reinforcement.
Social-Cognitive Learning Theories
Emphasize how behaviour is learned and maintained through observation
and imitation of others, positive consequences, and cognitive processes
such as plans, expectations, and beliefs.
People differ in their attitudes, expectations, and perceptions.
They can live through the same event and come away with entirely
different lessons.
Observational Learning
A process in which an individual learns new responses by observing the
behaviour of another rather than through direct experience.
Bandura, Ross, & Ross (1963)
Nursery school children watched a short film of two
men, Rocky and Johnny, playing with toys.
Content of Film:
Johnny refuses to share his toys, and Rocky
responds by clobbering him.
Rocky’s actions are rewarded because he ends up
with a sack full of toys and a hobby horse.
Johnny ends up alone in the corner.
Bandura, Ross, & Ross (1963)
Children’s Response:
Each child was left alone for 20 minutes in a
playroom full of toys, including some of the toys
shown on the film.
Watching through a two-way mirror, the
researchers found that these children were more
aggressive, than a control group who had not
seen the film.
Some children imitated Rocky exactly
The Case of Media Violence
Does media violence make people behave more
aggressively?
Viewing media violence appears to increase the
likelihood of aggressive and violent behavior.
When grade-school children cut back on their time
watching TV or playing video games, their
aggressiveness declines.
The Case of Media Violence Critiqued
- Critiques argue that the relationship between
media violence and real violence is weak.
Media violence does not cause all viewers
to become aggressive.
Behaviour is influenced by many other
factors. - The relationship between media violence and real
violence may work in the opposite direction.
Children and adults who are habitually
aggressive may like to watch violent shows.
Aggressive people may also be more affected
by violent media, than nonaggressive people.
The Social-cognitive View
Holds that both conclusions about the correlation
between media violence and violent behavior have
merit.
Repeated acts of aggression in the media do
model behavior that some people will
imitate.
Perceptions and interpretations, and
personality dispositions are crucial factors
that intervene between what we see, and
how we respond.
