Learning Flashcards
What are the applications of classical conditioning?
Learned immune responses
Phobias
Predator control
What are the definitions of learning?
1) the process through which experience modifies pre-existing behaviour and understanding
2) relatively persistent change in behaviour as a result of experience
3) an individuals adaptation to environmental events
What is Operant conditioning?
- learning process by which the consequence of a response affects the likelihood that the response will occur in the future
What is an instrumental response?
Functions like an instrument or tool to make a change in the environment
What is an operant response?
Operates in the world to produce some effect
What is an operant?
Any behavioural act that has some effect on the environment
What is a discriminative stimulus?
Stimulus that signals whether reinforcement is available if a certain response is made
Schedules of partial reinforcement - Ratio
Reinforcement after a certain number of responses
Schedules of partial reinforcement - Interval
Reinforcement after a certain number of seconds
Schedules of partial reinforcement - Fixed
Reinforcement after X amount
Schedules of partial reinforcement - Variable
Reinforcement after x amount on average
What is reinforcement?
Any process that increases the likelihood that a particular response will occur
What is punishment?
Any process that decreases the likelihood that a particular response will occur
Describe positive / negative with regards to operant conditioning
Positive - stimulus is presented
Negative - stimulus is removed
What is latent learning? (Tolman)
Learning that is not immediately demonstrated in behaviour
Manifests later when a suitable motivation and circumstances appear
What are cognitive maps? (Tolman)
Mental representations of the world
An internal perceptual representation of external environment features and landmarks
Focus more on the details which are more important to you
What is UCS / US?
Unconditional stimulus
A stimulus that elicits a reflexive / innate response with no conditioning
What is UCR / UR?
Unconditioned response
The innate response that occurs from a stimulus with no conditioning
What is the CS?
Conditioned stimulus
A stimulus that through an association with the US comes to elicit a conditioned response similar to the original US
What is the CR?
Conditioned response
A response elicited by the conditioned stimulus
What is acquisition?
The period during which a response is being learned
The CS has to be paired multiple times with the UCS in order to establish a strong CR
CR improves also when the intensity of the UCS increases
(Pavlov - giving more food to the dogs)
If the CS is aversive (electric shock), the conditioning may only need one CS-UCS pairing
What is generalisation?
When a CR has been acquired, the organism often responds not only to the original CS but also to stimuli that are similar to it
What is discrimination?
When the CR occurs to one stimulus but not to others
What is extinction?
When the CR is weakened and eventually disappears after the UCS has been repeatedly presented in the absence of the CS
Name research examples of classical conditioning
Pavlov
Watson & Raynor
McGrath et al
Explain Thorndike’s work into operant conditioning
- wanted to explore how animals learnt to solve problem
- puzzle boxes - cats had to step on levers to get out
- behaviour improved slowly over trial & error = instrumental learning as the behaviour functioned like an instrument to make a change in the environment
- law of effect developed - response followed by a satisfying consequence will be more likely to occur & vice versa for annoying consequences
Describe Skinner’s work into operant conditioning
- expansion of Thorndike’s work
- Skinner boxes - allowed him to study OC experimentally
- rats had to press levers to receive a food pellet
- 2 consequences for behaviour - reinforcement & punishment
What is operant extinction?
The weakening & eventual disappearance of a response because it is no longer reinforced
Low resistance = reinforced response stop quickly
High resistance = responses occur 100’s or 1000’s of times afterwards
Operant conditioning - what is shaping?
Involves reinforcing successive approximations towards a final response
Operant conditioning - what is chaining?
When you develop a series or chain of responses by reinforcing each response with the opportunity to perform the next response
What are primary reinforcers?
Stimuli such as food & water that an organism naturally finds reinforcing because they satisfy biological needs
What are secondary reinforcers?
Stimuli that acquire reinforcing properties through their associations with primary reinforcers
For example, money is a conditioned reinforcer
