History of Learning (2) Flashcards
How did Watson believe behaviour could be analysed?
In terms of stimulus and response (S-R).
What did Watson believe about theories?
That they should be kept simple.
What kind of process did Watson believe learning to be?
A mechanistic one.
What did Watson believe about reflexes and basic emotions?
That few of them are inherited.
What was Watson’s goal with his methodological behaviourism concept?
To break down behaviour into irreducible constructs.
What is operant conditioning (also known as trial-and-error learning)?
A type of associative learning in which a voluntary motor behaviour is strengthened or weakened, depending on its favourable or unfavourable consequences.
What type of learning is linked to associationism?
Trial-and-error learning
Which three laws of learning did Thorndike (1874 - 1949) propose?
- The law of exercise
- The law of effect
- The law of recency
To what does Thorndike’s law of exercise refer?
To the idea that practice increases stimulus-response links.
To what does Thorndike’s law of effect refer?
To the idea that behaviours with outcomes that are positive are more likely to occur in the future, and that behaviours with outcomes that are negative are less likely to occur in the future.
To what does Thorndike’s law of recency refer?
To the idea that recent behaviours are more likely to re-occur.
How did behaviourists respond to the allegation that apes do not seem to exhibit trial-and-error learning patterns?
By combatting that thinking essentially consists of covert internal mediational behaviours.
With which philosopher’s approach did Hull disagree in line with his discovery of neobehaviourism?
With Watson’s approach.
Which of Watson’s ideas did Hull reject?
With the idea that unobservable events were unable to be studied.
Why did Hull refute Watson’s idea that unobservable events couldn’t be studied, using the example of measuring thirst based on the number of minutes since someone last had a drink?
Because there are potential processes that could mediate between environment and behaviour (having a drink).
With which three concepts of Watson’s did Hull agree?
- With the idea that mentalism must go.
- With the stimulus-response (S-R) approach to learning (that behaviour manifests itself as a result of the interplay between a stimulus and a response).
- That learning is a mechanistic process (a machine-like process).
With which two philosophers did Tolman disagree?
With both Watson and Hull.
How did Tolman’s analysis of behaviour differ from that of Watson and that of Hull?
Tolman analysed behaviour more holistically, rather than simply a series of stimulus-response (S-R) connections.
How did Tolman view behaviour?
As “goal-directed”.
Which school of thought was influenced by Gestalt psychologists?
Tolman’s cognitive behaviourism
Which two concepts did Tolman apply to his analysis of behaviour?
- That a whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
- That internal cognitive processes (such as expectations and hypotheses) guide behaviour, as well as physiological processes.
