Chapter 5 Flashcards
Law of effect
Nature of animals behavior in a puzzle box
Relationship between actions and outcomes
Either satisfying or annoying
Thorndikes: behavior is a function of the consequences of behavior
Thorndike was first to demonstrate that behavior is systematically strengthened or weakened based on its consequences
Edward lee thorndike
Father of the study on animal intelligence
Memory and observation bias
Able to examine by studying animal learning
Present animal with a problem
B.f. Skinner
Operant learning
Behavior that operates on the environment and is instrumental in producing outcomes is either strengthened or weakened by consequences that result
Operant vs Pavlovian conditioning
Pc= passive ( a U.S. Follows a cs regardless of what the organism does Ol= active ( an organism acts on the environment and the resulting change either strengthens or weakens the behavior that produced the change)
Reinforcement
Behavior must have a consequence
Behavior must be more likely to occur again
Increase in strength must be the result of the consequence that the behavior produced
Positive reinforcement
Addition of a stimulus makes behavior more likely to occur again
Sometimes called reward learning
Paradoxical nature of positive reinforcement (ex: suspending a kid from school for skipping but he didn’t want to be in school in the first place )
Negative reinforcement
Removal of a stimulus strengthens a behavior
Ex:taking away rope climbs when they behave
The mechanism that makes this work is the escape from an aversive experience which over time tends to become avoided altogether
Sometimes called escape avoidance learning
Discrete trial procedure
A form of operant learning in which the participants successful behavior ends the trial
DV: the time it takes to complete the task
Ex: how long it takes a dog to sit down
Free operant procedure
Form of operant learning in which the participants behavior is free to vary
DV: in this model is most often the number of times a specific behavior (e.g. The one that gets rewarded) is displayed in a certain time period
Ex: how many times a kid shares with in a time period at daycare
Abcs of operant learning
A: antecedent (what came before)
B: behavior ( what was observed)
C: consequence ( what happened as a result)
Length of behavior is important for determining change
Pavlovian vs operant
In Pavlovian learning, one stimulus is contingent upon another stimulus
In operant learning, a stimulus (reinforcing or punishing) is contingent upon a behavior occurring
PL typically involves involuntary behavior whereas OL typically involves more willful behavior
Primary reinforcer
Those that do not depend on their association with other reinforcers Naturally reinforcing (sleep)
Satiation
Phenomenon whereby primary reinforcers lose their effectiveness with continued access
Secondary reinforcers
Dependent on their association with other reinforcers
Also called conditioned reinforcers
Ex: money (clicker for animals )
Ultimately owe their effectiveness directly or indirectly to primary reinforcers
Advantages of secondary reinforcers
More durable/reach satiation slower
Easier to reinforce with quicker than primary
Less disruptive than primary
Can be used in many different situations
Generalized reinforcers
Ones paired with many others
Main disadvantage to secondary reinforcers
Effectiveness depends on their association with primary reinforcers
Contrived reinforcers
Events that have been arranged by someone, usually for the purpose of modifying behavior
Natural reinforcers
Typically events that follow automatically from the behavior
Where do new behaviors come from ?
Shaping: reinforcement of successive approximations of a desired behavior
Getting closer to target that you want to see
Upping the ante
Behavior chain
Connected sequence of behaviors
Process of teaching a behavior chain
Task analysis
Procedure of breaking an overall task down into its component parts
Forward chaining
Reinforcing until step 1 is completed perfectly. Then step 1 and step 2. Then step 1,2, and 3
Backward chaining
Start with last move but it is not training them to do it backwards
Contingency
The degree of correlation between a behavior and its consequence
Strong one can make even small reinforcers quite effective
Contiguity
Refers to the interval of time between when a behavior occurs and when reinforcement is received (consistency)
Magnitude
Large reinforcers are more effective than smaller ones
Preferred-ness
A reinforcer that is qualitatively of higher value to the organism will be more effective in producing learning
Task difficulty
More difficult tasks are harder to learn than easier ones
Biological dispositions
Certain actions will be more inherent to a species which will make it easier to train
Auto shaping
A procedure in which a stimulus is followed by a reinforcer regardless of what the organism does
Often results in shaping of a behavior with out a reinforcement
Motivating operations
Anything that establishes conditions that improve the effectiveness of a reinforcer
Based on deprivation
Anything that makes a consequence more reinforcing necessarily changes the outcome of the reinforce the procedure
Role of competing contingencies
Procrastination. Other things that seem more reinforcing are interesting than doing the work
Neuro mechanics of reinforcement
Olds and Milner: demonstrate reinforcing potential of electrical stimulation of the brain
Builds notion of a reward pathway of the brain (reinforcers stimulate this area and they are thought to be located in septal region and running from midline of brain to frontal cortex)
Region has high concentration of dopamine neurons
Extinction
In the context of operant learning involves withholding the consequences that reinforce the behavior until that behavior no longer occurs
Extinction burst
A phenomenon whereby that removal of behavior maintaining reinforcement leads to a sharp increase in the behavior in the immediate short-term
After the burst, will lead to a steady and rapid decline the behavior
Spontaneous recovery
Will also occur with operant learning following extinction trials
Resurgence
Phenomenon involving the reappearance of previously reinforce behavior following removal of reinforcement
Factors affecting rate of extinction
Number of times behavior was reinforced prior to extinction, the effort the behavior requires, and the magnitude of the reinforcer used during training
Theories of reinforcement
Clark Hulls Drive reduction theory
Drive: motivational state where we are trying to satisfy that state
Deprivation
drawback:this theory has difficulty explaining secondary reinforcers because it is physiologically based
David Premacks relative value theory
Considers reinforcers to be behaviors rather than stimuli and attributes a reinforcers effectiveness to its probability relative to other behaviors
Ex: act of eating as reinforcer, not the food itself
Premack principle
High probability behavior reinforces low probability behavior
The advantage is this theory is entirely empirical
The problem: low probability behavior can reinforce high probability when the former is restricted
Responsive deprivation theory (timber lake and Alison)
Behavior becomes reinforcing when the organism is prevented from engaging in it at its normal frequency (e.g. Baseline)
Relative values are not the most important, rather, the degree to which each behavior occurs below its normal unimpeded baseline rate
Drawback: just a confirmation of a response can be reinforcing. There are many simple ones. This theory has trouble explaining how these are meaningful
