Chapter 11: Behaviorism Part 2 Flashcards
What was the IQ Zoo?
A zoo established by Keller and Marian Breland- former psychologists who earned a living by applying conditioning techniques to animal behavior. Used techniques learned from BF Skinner. 140 trained animal shows at tourist attractions
What are the 3 stages of behaviorism?
Stage 1: Watson’s behaviorism
Stage 2: Neobehaviorism
Stage 3: Sociobehaviorism
When did Watson’s behaviorism peak?
1924
What is neobehaviorism?
Believes that the core of psychology is the study of learning. Most behavior, no matter how complex, can be accounted for by the laws of conditioning. Psychology must adopt the principle of operationism
Who were the three neobehaviorists?
Tolman, Hull, Skinner
What is sociobehaviorism?
A return to the consideration of cognitive processes while maintaining a focus on the observation of overt behavior.
Who were the sociobehaviorists?
Bandura and Rotter
What did Percy W. Bridgman promote?
Promoted operationism
What is operationism?
The idea that the validity of any scientific finding is based on the validity of the methods used to arrive at that conclusion. Physical concepts must be defined precisely. Concepts that cannot be operationalized should be discarded.
What did critics of operationism say?
It was really just a version of British Empiricism
Who was Edward Chace Tolman?
Started as an engineering student, transitioned into Psychology at Harvard. Acquainted with Watsn and behaviorism in the last year of his study. Taught comparative psychology at UOFC Berkley.
What was Edward Chace Tolman an avid supporter for using for research?
Rats for psychological testing.
What is purposive behaviorism?
Combining the objective study of behavior with the consideration of goal orientation. All actions are oriented towards achieving a goal or learning the means to an end.
What did Watsonian behaviorists criticize about purposive behaviorism?
Referencing purposiveness implies recognition of conscious processes
What was Tolman’s counter argument to the Watsonian behaviorists?
Measurements taken are stated in terms of changes in overt responses as a function of learning or experience. So long as measurements yield objective data, it is still in the spirit of behaviorism.
What are intervening variables?
A set of unobservable and inferred factors within an organism that connects the stimulus and response (ex: cognitions, expectancies, purposes, appetites). Need to be operationalized (ex: hunger measured by length of time between meals)
What is the S - R -O model of intervening variables?
Behavior (R) is a function of five observable independent variables (S), and there are also factors within an organism (O) that influence responses (mediating factor)
What are the 5 observable independent variables?
- Environmental Stimuli
- Physiological Drives
- Heredity
- Previous training
- Age
Which of Thorndikes idea’s did Tolman reject?
Law of effect. Tolman believed that reward or reinforcement has little influence on learning, and instead believed that reward or reinforcement enhances performance by influencing motivations.
How did Tolman test his learning theory?
Group A: Rats were fed after a successful maze run
Group B: Rats not fed after successful maze run
What were the results of Tolman’s experiments?
Rats in group A ran the maze faster after 10 trials, whereas rats in Group B actually increased their time in the 10th run.
What would behaviorists conclude from Tolmans experiment?
Group A learned, Group B did not
What did Tolman conclude from his experiment?
Group B rats did learn in unrewarded runs- latent learning wherein providing reinforcement motivated the rats to clear the maze faster
What was Tolman’s cognitive explanation for learning?
Rats develop a cognitive map of the maze due to sheer exposure. Providing reinforcement motivated the rats to clear it faster.
Who was Clark Leonard Hull?
Very motivated to succeed, started in engineering and went to psychology..
What areas did Clark Leonard Hull contribute to?
Concept formation Substance effects on behavioral efficiency Aptitude testing Motivation Conditioning and Learning
What was Hull’s approach?
Mechanistic in nature- he regarded Watson’s behaviorism was simple and naive.
Who was the most cited psychologist of all time?
Clark Leonard Hull, 40% of all experimental articles and 70% of all articles on learning and motivation
How did Hull view human behavior?
Human nature described in mechanistic terms. Regarded behavior as automatic and capable of being reduced to the language of physics.
What are the 4 methods that Hull considered to be useful?
- Simple observation
- Systematic controlled observation
- Experimental testing of hypotheses
4> Hypothetico-deductive model
What are the 7 steps of the hypothetico-deductive method?
- Identify problem statement
- Develop testable, falsifiable hypothesis
- Determine method of experimental test
- Conduct study and collect data
- Analyze data and interpret results
- Identify limitations and future directions
- Repeat process with new knowledge.
What did Hull believe to be the basis of motivation?
Drives
What are drives?
A state of need due to a deviation from optimal bodily conditions- arouses or activates behavior.
What is the basis for reinforcement according to Hull?
Reduction of the drive.
What is the strength of drive determined by?
Length of deprivation and intensity of the response behavior.
What are primary drives?
Innate biological needs that are vital to survival (ex. food, water, air, sex)
What are secondary drives?
Stimuli associated with the indirect reduction of primary drives (ex. desire for wealth, fear of pain-inducing stimuli)
What is Hull’s law of primary reinforcement?
Learning cannot take place in the absence of reinforcement, and the reinforcement must satisfy a drive. If a stimulus-response connection produces a reduction in primary drives, then the likelihood of the same stimulus evoking the same response increases.
What is habit strength?
The strength of the stimulus-response connection
What were Hull’s contributions to psychology?
Many citations
Defended and expanded influence of behaviorism in the US
Trained many students including Hilgard and Mowrer
Hull’s behaviorism won over Tolman’s but lost to Skinner’s.
Who was B. F. Skinner?
Came from a warm home with strict moral standards. Degree in English from Hamilton College. Wanted to become a writer but didn’t find success, considered himself a failure. Read Watson and Pavlov’s conditioning experiments which awakened a scientific interest- psychology at Harvard.
Who has the most citations to date?
B. F. Skinner (the most influential psychologist of all time)
What was Skinner’s empty organism approach?
A descriptive form of behaviorism. Focused efforts on describing behavior rather than explaining it. Wasn’t interested in intervening variables or drives. Believed human beings are controlled and operated by environmental forces.
What did Skinner believe about sample sizes?
Wasn’t necessary to use large ones- conducted comprehensive investigations on a single subject.
What is classical conditioning?
A behavior elicited by a specific observable stimulus
What did Skinner call classical conditioning?
Respondent behavior
What is operant conditioning?
A behavior that occurs spontaneously without an observable stimulus (operant behavior).(ex: Rat pressing lever and getting food)
What is the law of acquisition (Skinner)
The strength of an operant behavior increases when it is followed by the presentation of a reinforcing stimulus. Practice can lead to more efficient behavior, but reinforcement is required to increase rate of responding
How does operant conditioning differ from Thorndike and Hull’s positions?
Purely descriptive- only explains that the rat is behaving a certain way in these conditions, but does not try to explain why.
What are schedules of reinforcement (Skinner)
Developed because Skinner was running low on food pellets and decided to ration and reinforce the rats once per minute (regardless of responses). Found that frequency affects extinction.
What are the 4 interval schedules of reinforcement?
- Fixed ratio schedules
- Variable ratio schedules
- Fixed interval schedules
- Variable interval schedules
What are fixed ratio schedules?
Food is dispensed after the rat presses the lever X number of times. Result: high and steady response rate, brief pause after dispensation.
What are variable ratio schedules?
Food is dispensed after the rat presses the level 5 times, then after 10 times, 7 times etc. Result: High and steady response rate
What is the fixed interval schedule?
Food is dispensed after a fixed length of time has passed since the rat first pressed the lever. Result: high rate of response nearing dispensation, slowed rate of response after.
What is the variable interval schedule?
Food is dispensed after an unpredictable length of time has passed since the first lever press. Result: Slow and steady response rate.
What is successive approximation (shaping)?
Reinforcement changes in successive stages as the human or animal approaches the final desired behaviour.
What is the idea of shaping of language?
Infants spontaneously babble, which are reinforced by parents smiling, laughing, and talking. Stronger reinforcers are provided by parents when babbling becomes more like words. As words become more common, parental reinforcement becomes restricted, given only for correct words and pronunciation.
What was Chomsky’s language acquisition device?
Humans are born with a language ability that develops
How do we modify behavior according to Skinner?
Using reinforcment. Socially desirable behaviors should be reinforced with smiles, praise, and affection. Undesirable behavior should not be punished.
What is the idea of token economies?
Hospitals, schools, psychiatric facilities. Behavior is reinforced through tokens, tokens exchanged for items.
What is Applied behavior analysis?
Primarily used for individuals with autism spectrum disorder. One-on-one intervention using positive reinforcers.
What are some criticisms of Skinner?
Extreme positivism and opposition to theory
Instinctive drift showed that reinforcement not as all powerful as Skinner claimed
Stronger evidence for Chomsky’s view of language acquisition.
Radical behaviorism with little room for cognition
What were Skinner’s contributions?
World’s most famous psychologist for decades
Beyond Freedom and Dignity
Promoted behavior modification and its clinical application in hospitals, factories, schools.
Involved in the invention of an automated crib for tending infants and teaching machines
Methods still in use today.
Who was Albert Bandura?
Discovered psych by accident and UBC. Regarded as one of the most influential psychologists of all time. From small town Alberta.
What is social cognitive theory (Bandura)
Less extreme form of behaviorism which incorporates cognitive aspects. Believed humans were not like machines and that internal motivators influence behavior. Importance of rewards or reinforcement in acquiring and modifying behavior
How can learning be done according to Bandura?
Through modelling and observation of others and through vicarious reinforcement- observing the behavior of others and it’s consequences (direct experience not necessary to learn)
Who are people more likely to model their behavior after?
A person of the same sex, age, their peers, or those who have solved similar problems to their own.
What types of behaviors are more easily imitated?
Simple over complex
How effective is modelling?
It can vary- hostile and aggressive behaviors also tend to be strongly imitated
How was Bandura’s approach in opposition to Skinners?
Criticized the use of individual, isolated subjects. No direct link between behaviour and reinforcement- link is mediated by cognitive processes
What did Bandura believe about the schedule of reinforcement?
The schedule itself does not change the behavior, rather it is what the person thinks the schedule of reinforcement is.
What is self-efficacy?
One’s sense of self-esteem and confidence in dealing with life’s problems- people vary in their responses to events based on this.
What were Bandura’s contributions?
Principles of social cognitive theory and modelling applied to behavioral therapy. Snake example
What is the snake example?
A subject who is afraid of snakes watches a model play with one from a distance. Subject is prompted to move closer, and progressively learns that the snake is harmless. Movements towards snake are reinforced through praise and encouragement, increasing self-efficacy. Eventually subject gets close enough to the snake that they can touch it and play with it.
Who was Julian Rotter?
Read both Freud and Adler in his youth, financial hardship during Great Depression influenced his views on social injustice.
What did Rotter believe about cognitive processes?
Promoted the inclusion of cognitive experiences in behaviorism. Emphasized that internal cognitive states, such as subjective expectations and values influence the effect of external experiences. This varies between people.
How did Rotter believe that we learn?
Primarily through social experiences, critizied the isolation of subjects.
What did Rotter believe the link between behavior and reinforcement is mediated by?
Cognitive processes
What is the locus of control?
Something that causes people to vary in their responses to events.
What is the internal locus of control?
Belief that reinforcement depends on one’s own behavior.
What is the external locus of control?
The belief that reinforcement depends on outside forces.
Which locus of control is considered to be physically and mentally healthier?
Internal
