Learning and Behaviourism Flashcards
Define learning from a behaviourist perspective.
-a lasting/permanent observable change (not internal) caused by experience
What does Skinner say is personality?
-collection of response tendencies (habits) acquired by the individual
Skinner rejected the concept of the self, even calling himself a __________.
-non-person
According to Skinner, a person is not defined by a “self,” but rather by their __________ response tendencies (habits).
-behavioral
What are contingencies?
-one event will occur if and only if another event occurs before that (it depends on something)
How do we get response tendencies?
-through conditioning by the environment
What are the three main types of learning? (3)
-classical conditioning
-operant conditioning
-observational learning
Describe the US, UR, NS, CS, CR
Unconditioned stimulus: food
Unconditioned response: salivating
Neutral stimulus: bell
Conditioned stimulus: bell after paired with food
Conditioned response: salivate in response to bell alone
Define extinction (2)
-occurs if the bell is repeatedly rung without presenting food.
-Over time, the dog’s salivation response to the bell would decrease and eventually stop
Define stimulus generalization
-if the dog salivates not only to the original bell but also to bells with slightly different tones
Define stimulus discrimination
-if the dog salivates only to the specific tone of the original bell and not to other bells with different tones
Define higher-order conditioning.
-if a light is repeatedly paired with the bell (which already causes the dog to salivate), the dog may eventually start salivating in response to the light alone.
Describe the Little Albert experiment. What was the point of it? (2)
-demonstrated how a fear response could be conditioned in a child by pairing a neutral stimulus (a white rat) with a frightening noise, eventually causing the child to fear the rat and similar objects.
-This experiment illustrated that emotional responses like fear can be learned through classical conditioning.
What did Watson mean when he said, “psychology, as the behaviourist views it, is a purely objective, experimental branch of natural science which needs introspection as little as do the sciences of chemistry and physics.”
-thinks psychology should be cold, objective science and that humans are no different than animals
What is Thorndike’s law of effect?
-behaviour that is followed by a reward will tend to be repeated and behaviour followed by a punishment will tend not to be repeated
What did B.F Skinner base operant conditioning on?
-Thorndike’s law of effect
What is operant conditioning all about in one word?
-reinforcement
What three things did Skinner believe about science and psychology? (3)
It should be:
-cumulative (Science should build upon itself)
-empirical (based on direct observation and measurable evidence)
-lawful (uncover consistent principles or “laws” that govern behavior)
What is a Skinner box?
-an experimental chamber used to study animal behavior (operant conditioning) where an animal can be reinforced with food or a mild electric shock in response to certain behaviours
What did Skinner say was the origin of human behaviour? (3)
-natural selection
-selection of cultural practices
-individual reinforcement history (operant conditioning, most significant part)
What are the two kinds of reinforcers? (2)
-primary (built in, don’t have to learn)
-secondary (conditioned)
What are examples of primary reinforcers and secondary? (2)
Primary: feeling relief after peeing
Secondary: money gets you things like food
What are reinforcers?
-strengthens a behaviour
Describe positive and negative reinforcement.
+: giving a dog a treat for sitting
-: seatbelt noise to make people put on seatbelts
What is punishment?
-anything that decreases a behaviour
Describe positive punishment and negative punishment. (2)
+: spraying cat with water for going on counter
-: grounding teenager for staying out past curfew
What are the problems with punishment? (4)
-you suppress the behaviour but do not remove the desire
-condition negative feelings
-generalized maladaptive behaviours
-doesn’t always work
Define shaping
-small steps toward a desired behavior are gradually reinforced until the full behavior is learned.
What are the two schedules of reinforcement? (2)
-continuous
-partial
Describe fixed-ratio. Example (2)
-Reinforcement is given after a set number of responses.
Example: A rat is reinforced with food after pressing a lever 5 times.
Define variable ratio. Example (2)
-Reinforcement is given after an unpredictable number of responses.
Example: A gambler receives a payout after an unpredictable number of slot machine pulls.
Define fixed interval. Example (2)
-Reinforcement is given after a fixed amount of time.
Example: A worker receives a paycheck every two weeks, regardless of how much work is done.
Define variable intervals. Example (2)
-Reinforcement is given after varying amounts of time.
Example: A person checking their email might receive a message at random times throughout the day.
Which of the four partial reinforcements works best? Go from best to least. (4)
-variable ratio
-fixed ratio
-variable interval
-fixed interval (check this is right)
What does Skinner say causes dysfunctional personality?
-maladaptive behaviour that originates from excessive social control or self-control
What is the structure of Skinner’s theory?
-collection of response tendencies
What is the development aspect of Skinner’s theory?
-conditioning by the environment
What causes pathology in Skinner’s theory?
-Maladaptive response tendencies originating from excessive control
What does B.F. Skinner mean by “a small part of the universe is private”?
-an organism’s internal experiences (thoughts, feelings, etc.) are part of the environment influencing behavior, even though they are private and not external events.
What are types of private events according to Skinner? (5)
-self-awareness
-emotions
-intention (goal pursuit that gives us a good feeling)
-problem solving (this is behaviour that is going on inside someone head, and gets rewarded when we find a solution to our problem)
-dreams (hidden and symbolic forms of behaviour)
What controls an individual’s behavior in behaviorism?
-The individual’s environment controls their behavior through contingencies.
Contingencies arise from the __________, __________, and the __________.
-physical world, social groups, and the individual themselves.
Which of the following is NOT a source of contingencies in behaviorism?
A) Physical laws
B) Social laws and rules
C) Genetic predispositions
D) Self-control through environment manipulation
-Genetic predispositions
One behavioral therapy method where the person is exposed to a feared stimulus at full intensity is called __________.
-flooding
Which of the following is a method in behavioral therapy used to gradually expose an individual to a feared stimulus while using relaxation techniques?
A) Aversion therapy
B) Systematic desensitization
C) Token economy
D) Time out
-systematic desensitization
In which behavioral therapy method would a child be given a reward, such as tokens, for engaging in desired behavior, and then be able to exchange those tokens for a reward?
-token economies
Aversion therapy is used to reduce undesirable behaviors by associating the behavior with an __________ stimulus.
-unpleasant
What is the key principle of shaping in behavioral therapy?
-reinforcing successive approximations of a target behavior.
Which of the following behavioral therapy methods involves removing a person from a situation as a consequence of undesirable behavior?
A) Shaping
B) Time out
C) Exposure therapy
D) Social skills training
-time out
True or False: Social skills training is a behavioral therapy method designed to help individuals improve their interpersonal interactions.
-true
In exposure therapy (flooding), the person is exposed to the feared situation __________ to reduce anxiety.
-all at once
Which behavioral therapy technique is designed to reinforce desirable behavior and extinguish undesirable behavior through a reward system?
A) Shaping
B) Token economy
C) Exposure therapy
D) Aversion therapy
-token economies
Aversion therapy seeks to reduce undesirable behaviors by pairing them with an __________ stimulus, whereas systematic desensitization aims to reduce anxiety by pairing the feared stimulus with a __________ response.
-unpleasant; relaxation
Both token economies and shaping involve reinforcement, but token economies reinforce behavior by giving the person __________, which can be exchanged for rewards, whereas shaping reinforces __________ approximations of a desired behavior.
-tokens; successive
Systematic desensitization involves gradually exposing an individual to a feared stimulus while using __________ techniques, whereas flooding involves exposing the person to the feared stimulus __________.
-relaxation; all at once
The first step in the process of systematic desensitization is to build an __________ hierarchy. The second step is using a __________ technique.
-anxiety; relaxation
In aversion therapy, the unconditioned stimulus (US) is the __________ response caused by the drug, while the conditioned stimulus (CS) is the __________ that eventually triggers the unpleasant response after repeated pairings.
-nausea; alcohol
In aversion therapy, pairing alcohol consumption with nausea is an example of __________ conditioning, where alcohol (a neutral stimulus) becomes associated with an aversive stimulus (nausea).
-classical
Describe the assumptions about human nature that exist within Skinner’s theory. (7)
-deterministic
-optimistic
-past
-unconscious
-social
-consistent
-unique
Evaluate Skinner’s theory (6)
-generate research: very high
-allow falsifiability: high
-organize data: moderate
-guide practical action: very high
-maintain internal consistency: very high
-maintain parsimony: high
Skinner’s learning theory is rated as __________ in terms of generating research.
-very high
How well does Skinner’s learning theory organize data?
A) Very high
B) Moderate
C) Low
D) Not applicable
-moderate
Skinner’s learning theory is rated as __________ in terms of guiding practical action.
-very high
Skinner’s learning theory maintains a very high level of internal consistency.
-true
Skinner’s learning theory is considered to have a high level of __________, meaning it is simple and does not involve unnecessary complexities.
-parsimony
Skinner’s learning theory allows for __________, meaning the theory can be tested and potentially disproven through experiments.
-high falsifiability
