Learning Flashcards

Question

What was the method used in the Skinner Box study?

Answer 1

-> Pigeons were reduced to 75% of their normal, well-fed weight in order to induce hunger -> They were placed in a Skinner box with a food hopper (delivery container) which could be presented for 5 seconds at a time -> Pigeons were presented with food at regular intervals, regardless of their actions -> Skinner recorded his observations of the pigeon’s behaviours across time

Answer 2

-> Skinner noticed that at first, the pigeons didn’t seem to associate any particular behaviour with feeding -> However, once the experiment started, the pigeons began to repeat whatever behaviour they happened to be carrying out when they were fed - E.g., if they were standing on one leg when it appeared, they increased the rate of standing on one leg -> Skinner concluded that the pigeons had begun to associate the coincidental behaviours that occurred when they were fed, with the feeding itself, in that environment -> That is, the pigeons had developed ‘superstitious’ behaviours - carrying out unrelated behaviours with the belief that they are influencing the consequence

Answer 3

-> Skinner proposed and demonstrated operant conditioning - the idea that behaviour is the outcome of reinforcement and punishment - in animals -> Skinner also noted parallels between behaviour of humans and that in animals (e.g., superstitious rituals) -> This is the basis for many behaviour modification therapies and also numerous education programs

Answer 4

-> Operant conditioning is not a full explanation of learning (only minor considerations of cognition, none of genetic or biological factors) -> Doesn’t fully explain learning in higher animals (e.g., apes and humans), which can occur without direct experience -> Can't generalise from animals to humans is not possible due to differences in anatomy and physiology as well as cognition -> Ethical issues around use of animals and ‘promoting punishment’ as an implication of findings

Answer 5

-> Albert Bandura (1977) -> Bandura, Ross and Ross (1961)

Answer 6

Bandura’s social learning theory- is the process where social influences affect an individual’s thoughts, feelings and behaviour

Answer 7

Observational learning- where the individual watches the behaviour of others and consequences of those actions, and uses that information to guide their own future behaviour -> This is the vehicle through which the Social Learning Theory occurs

Answer 8

When behaviour is imitated, this is referred to as modelling - A key factor in observational learning is that an individual does not have to have direct experience in order to learn - modelling of the behaviour is enough (survival advantage)

Answer 9

Mediational processes- refer to internal cognitive processes which determine whether an observed behaviour will be imitated or not -> Attention- refers to noticing/ attending to a behaviour and its consequences - Bandura proposed that we are more attentive and thus more likely to later imitate models Who are positively perceived, similar to us, Whose behaviour is clearly visible and stands out and who we feel able to imitate -> Retention- refers to encoding the behaviour with a meaningful mental representation - Often takes the form of a visual representation (verbal explanation of knitting= difficult) -> Reproduction- refers to replicating the behaviour in terms of motor skills -> Motivation- refers to the desire or drive to reproduce the behaviour -> Reinforcement- is the prospect of a positive result due to imitating the behaviour, which in turn increases motivation, types: - External reinforcement- being praised or paid for carrying out a behaviour is a powerful motivator - Self-reinforcement- internal goal-setting or drive to achieve certain standards can be highly motivating

Answer 10

The concept that an individual observes a model’s behaviour and the consequences, and chooses whether or not to imitate the behaviour in line with the results -> Vicarious Reinforcement- increased likelihood of imitation if witnessing an individual being rewarded for the behaviour -> Vicarious punishment- decreased likelihood of imitation if witnessing an individual being punished for the behaviour

Answer 11

-> Bandura’s theory is strongly supported by empirical research -> It considers the role of cognition (mediational processes) in learning, and thus is a more comprehensive explanation (e.g., outlining social factors such as gender roles and peer influence)

Answer 12

-> However, the theory is criticised for ignoring biological factors (e.g., stress response, genetics) in favour of environment (reward/ punishment) -> It doesn’t explain all cognitive processes (in some cases, intentions are formed before observation, e.g., seeking out delinquent peers)

Answer 13

Bandura, Ross & Ross (1961) -> Aim- to investigate if social behaviour (i.e., aggression) can be learned by observation and imitation in a controlled experiment

Answer 14

-> Children (36 girls, 36 boys) were recruited from Stanford University Nursery School (3-6y); informed consent obtained from parents -> Rating scales used to judge aggression of children (naturalistic observation) -> Inter-rater reliability of observers tested independently and correlation r = 0.89 -> Bobo doll: bounces back up when hit or pushed -> Children in each of 3 test groups matched based on similar aggression (matched pair designs) -> Children watched recording of adult either: - Knocking Bobo doll over, hitting with a mallet, kicking it, sitting on it and shouting aggressively (‘Kick him!” and “Pow!”) - Quietly and non-aggressively acting towards the doll - A third group did not see a recording -> Children were subjected to mild aggressive arousal (frustrated by not being allowed to play with toys) then allowed to play with the Bobo doll and other toys - 20 minutes; one-way mirror and 5-second interval ratings (240 per child) - Notes of other behaviour taken also

Answer 15

-> Those children who observed the aggressive adult acted aggressively to the Bobo doll far more often, and in very similar ways to the model, than those who watched the non-aggressive model -> Boys were also more likely to imitate the behaviour of same-sex models, however, this was not the case for girls and same-sex models -> Boys were more likely to be physically aggressive; verbal aggression was not significantly different for boys and girls

Answer 16

-> Findings support Bandura’s ‘social learning theory’- that is, children learn social behaviour (in this case, aggression) through observation- through a controlled experiment (good variable control and replication) which allows for causation -> Informs parenting and educational styles -> Paved the way for later experiments into the effect of different model types (1963) and of observing rewards and punishments (1965)

Answer 17

-> Children who had no experience with the Bobo doll were 5x more likely to imitate behaviour, suggesting the novelty of the doll was a factor -> Ethical concern: while information from the original article is scanty, the children may not have given assent and were likely deceived -> Ethical concern: the children were exposed to violence and made to feel frustrated, which fits the definition of psychological harm

Answer 18

It is the application of classical and operant conditioning techniques to human behaviour and learning (Token economy and System Desensitisation) -> This uses reinforcement (and sometime punishment) to modify or change unwanted behaviours, and to instil or strengthen desirable ones, it alters the environment and how the individuals interact with it (behaviour therapy) -> Aims is to change the behaviour response to different situations

Answer 19

Artificial reward and reinforcement system where the rewards are symbolic markers/tokens (Operant Conditioning) -> e.g., gold stars - primary reinforcer) -> Once enough tokens are earned, they can be exchanged for larger rewards (e.g., goods, privileges) - secondary reinforcers

Answer 20

1) Identify the desired behaviour (e.g., improved grades in spelling due to home study) 2) Set the primary reinforcement ratio: 1 gold star for every 10 minutes of spelling study at home 3) Set the secondary reinforcement ratio: for 10 gold stars, a new Pokemon card 4) Review regularly for effectiveness: update system as behaviours improve (e.g., discontinue spelling reward system and focus on writing instead)

Answer 21

-> Under a token economy, the person never becomes ‘full’ -> Also, unlike only offering a secondary reinforcer (e.g., laptop for an A in spelling), the primary reinforcers can maintain motivation in the longer term (immediate reinforcement usually produces better association)

Answer 22

-> Difficult to maintain behaviours once a person has left the institution (e.g., prison) -> Difficult to replace token with other social reinforcers

Answer 23

It uses classical conditioning to treat fears and phobias in humans -> The aim to replace the undesired behaviour with more productive behaviours - that is, an appropriate response to the event -> Methods include Relaxation techniques and Graded Exposure

Answer 24

Relaxation techniques are usually taught first, in order to replace the tension associated with the stimulus -> The psychologist then usually asks questions to identify the breadth of the fear - E.g., buildings with elevators, pictures of elevators? Stationary elevators? Riding in an elevator with others? Alone? Getting stuck? -> This usually involves finding the source of the problem, in order to better understand how it impacts daily living -> A list is then drawn up, from most frightening event to least frightening event

Answer 25

Each event/ situation is introduced gradually (least fear-provoking first) during therapy -> Person uses relaxation techniques to relax to each situation before being presented to another situation -> The process repeats for every item on the list -> The psychologist supports the person in their relaxation and provides cognitive reasoning about the actual danger (which is none in therapy)