L16 - Learning and attention Flashcards
Lashley ‘jumping stand’
The jumping stand showed simultaneous discrimination; rats are placed on a pedestal and have to choose to jump onto two different platforms depending on colour for a reward.
Attention
Prioritising some stimuli coming into the environment over others
Against behaviourist thinking
Lashley thoughts on selective attention
Extreme
Proposed that when subjected in an experiment, when learning a discrimination they are only attending to one isolable feature at a time
Define intra-dimensional shift, positive or negative shift?
The same reinforcement property, but the way it has been used has changed.
- e.g. colour the tell but shapes have changed.
You get a positive transfer because you are able to learn about this shift a lot quicker.
Define extra-dimensional shift, positive or negative transfer?
Rule has changed but participant is still focused on previous rules, a lot of generalisation to the wrong features so interferes.
ED you get a negative transfer because they have to change what information is relevant.
Define easy-to-hard effects (transfer along a continuum)
Initial training on easy discrimination results in better performance on the hard discrimination, because subjects learn to attend to the important features.
Start simple and build complexity to generalise to hard versions
Explanation of easy-to-hard effect
Reason this is due to attention as providing easy version allows one to learn to attend to certain properties and ignore others like where it occurs (position habit). Giving easy version allows them to attend to correct feature and ignore distraction
Mackintosh and Little experiment:
Easy to hard effect with pigeons and colours
- Hard group finding it difficult
- Easy find it easy
- Easy finds it easier at first in second phase, easy reverse start bad but pick it up above hard
- Evidence that easy works in reverse too
Sutherland and Mackintosh 2 stage model explaining attention
Stage 1 - selective attention
- the organism analyses the stimulus on various features that compete for limited attention
Stage 2 - associative learning
- values of the features are determined byS-R consistent reinforcement when focusing on them individually
Define learned irrelevance
Presenting CS without US before the CS and US conditioning leads to retardation in later conditioning.
Kremer Experiment
3 conditions:
Control, CS only before (LI) or CS not leading to US when presented (association with context)
Results:
- Control learns association fastest, CS only delayed response
3 condition key: learned irrelevance -, no real conditioning after 8 trials, because CS is not informative does not attend to it even when it is relevant, takes longer to condition
Mackintosh (1975) thoughts on selective attention
Informative stimuli gain attention when they correctly predict meaningful outcomes. Conversely, redundant or irrelevant cues lose attention.
Flexible alpha after each trial on whether it was relavent
If alpha is the best predictor you will attend to alpha more in the future
Mackintosh application to blocking
- R/W says it is because you are predicting the outcome
- Mackintosh says B doesn’t predict anything, so will ignore it on the first trial
- So alpha of B decreases, attention is diminishing so learning is diminished
Mackintosh experiment of blocking and attention
- Blocking of unblocking
Phase one:
C: N - shock
E: N - Shock
P2:
E: L + N - shock
P3
C and E: L + N - Bigger shock
Results:
- Better conditioning in control, learning doesn’t occur to light in experimental phase as is seen as irrelevant
R/W model says this wouldn’t happen, issue of R/W model as this says some leaning would occur to light
Learned predictiveness
Cues that predict an outcome in a Phase 1 are learned faster in Phase 2 than cues that were unreliable in Phase 1.
It demonstrates selective attention in learning is based on the past utility of cues.
Le Pelley and McLaren 2003
Learned Predictiveness experiment
- AX - allergic reaction 1 (headaches)
- BX - Nausea
- AY - headaches
- By - Nausea
- (A and B are the good predictors, X and Y irrelevant)
- According to Mackintosh attention to A and B goes up
Pearce and Hall on selective attention
When the consequences of a CS are already well known, there is little need to attend to it - CRs become automatic.
Better to devote limited resources attending to stimuli whose consequences are uncertain.
What is exploitation in relation to learning?
Attending to things you know about
What is exploration in relation to learning?
This information may help you differentiate your attention in the future.
Latent inhibition, know what to ignore
Kaye and Pearce
Evidence of orienting responses in rats
At the same time orienting responses:
- The extent to which animal looks up at the CS when it comes on
- Drops off for continuous becomes automatic
- Partial keep attending to the light the same amount, attention to CS maintained
Half way through extinction procedure
- Some evidence of partial reinforcement extinction effect
○ Very quick for reinforced group
○ Attention to CS comes back up to the CS once the reinforcement schedule has changed, attention to cs jumps up fast accordingly
Positive transfer
Occurs when something we’ve learned previously aids us in learning at a later time.
Negative transfer
Takes place when something we’ve learned interferes with our learning at a later time.
Issue of attention in humans
Verbal mediation makes it hard to measure
- Once one can say commands they can ignore things better
Thing that makes human attention different is cognitive control of attention
- Attention in humans is flexible and often voluntarily controlled
