learning psychology Flashcards
list the 4 main assumptions of the learning approach
- the major influence on human behaviour is learning from our environment
- the laws of learning are the same for all species
- psychology should be the study observable behaviour (learning is stimulus response not mental processes)
- scientific methods lead to knowledge
explain “the major influence on human behaviour is learning from our environment”
- we are born as a blank slate
- all behaviour is learnt
- one law is that if behaviour has pleasent consequences it will be repeated and we can encourage desirable behaviour by rewarding it
explain “the laws of learning are the same for all species”
- animals only differ from humans in terms of complexity
- any differences are quantitative rather than qualitative
- thus research carried out on animals can be applied to humans
explain “psychology should be the study of observable behaviour”
- its no use asking someone how they felt when being yelled at instead you should observe their behaviour eg crying
- learning theories do not concern themsleves with what goes on inside the brain, they focus on environment and reaction
explain “scientific methods lead to knowledge”
- behaviours need to be isolated to be studied
- there must be a specific IV and DV with tight control over any extraneous variables so we’re able to establish cause and effect
4 practical arguments FOR the use of animals in research
- valid (lab)
- long term effects on behaviour can be studied (animals reproduce faster)
- invasive (eg remove parts of brains)
- reliable (use large sample as they breed quickly)
2 arguments AGAINST the use of animals in research
- anthropomorphic (due to different genotypes)
- lacks ecological validity (artificial setting)
name the 5 ethical guidelines for animal research
- care over caging
- avoid discomfort and distress
- suitably qualified researchers
- cost benefit analysis
- look for alternatives
explain care over caging (animal ethics)
- need to be big enough
- social companion
- cognitive stimulation
explain avoiding discomfort and distress (animal ethics)
- stress and discomfort must be kept to a minimum
- move freely between tests and have enough food and water and cage cleaning
- replace animals with non sentitent species, reduce number used, refine procedures
explain suitably qualified researchers (animal ethics)
- qualified and competent
- must have personal licence
- animals have veterinary attention, daily care and costs must be justified
explain cost benefit analysis (animal ethics)
- animal suffering < benefit to humans
- account for certainty of benefit
explain look for alternatives (animal ethics)
- see if using humans or computers is possible
- research can only be carried out if alternatives have been considered
what is batesons cube
factors needed to be taken into account in animal research
factors in batesons cube
- degree of suffering (low)
- quality of research (high)
- certainty of benefit (high)
3 strengths of animal ethical guidelines
- protects animals
- adhering to societies moral standards
- research can be conducted on animals that cannot be conducted on humans
3 weaknesses of animal ethical guidelines
- hinder research due to restrictions (care over caging)
- endangered species cannot be used so some research is not possible (eg gorillas- similar genetic makeup)
- smallest number of animals must be used, decreased relability
what is classical conditioning
learning is association so by pairing a neutral stimulus with a unconditioned stimulus to create unconditioned response we are able to create a conditioned stimulus and conditioned response
what is a UCS
unconditioned stimulus
biological stimulus that causes an automatic reflex response eg food that we may salivate at
what is a UCR
unconditioned response
innate response to a specific stimulus which is automatically produced
eg salivation at food
what is a NS
neutral stimulus
elicits no response
what is a CS
conditioned stimulus
stimulus that originally produced no reflexive response but has been repeatedly paired with a UCS so is now associated with this to produce a response
what is a CR
conditioned response
the CR is a learnt response to a stimulus, it occurs when the CS is presented the response is the same as the UCR but to a different stimulus
what is forward conditioning
NS/CS is presented before the UCS
what is delayed conditioning
the NS/CS keeps going as the UCS is introduced
what is trace conditioning
NS/CS starts and ends before the UCS is introduced
what is spontaneous conditioning
simultaneous presentation of the NS/CS and the UCS
what is backwards conditioning
UCS is presented first and then the NS/CS appears
what is stimulus substitution theory
the CR and UCR are the same but appear in response to different stimuli
what is extinction in terms of CC
when the conditioned stimulus no longer elicits the conditioned response
what is spontaneous recovery in terms of CC
temporary return of an extinguished response after a delay
what is stimulus generalisation
extension of the conditioned response from the original stimulus to similar stimuli
what is stimulus discrimination
conditioned response will only occur to a specific stimulus
what is higher order/secondary conditioning
where a previously NS is paired with a CS to produce the same CR if you repeat this several times the NS will become a CS
what was the aim of pavlovs study
- investigate the reflex response of salivation (how and why a dog can learn to salivate to something that is not edible
- to find out if reflexive behaviour can be produced in new situations through learning
- to see if associating a reflex with a NS causes learning to take place producing a CR in new situations
how many studies did pavlov conduct over how many years using how many dogs were used
over 25 years pavlov conducted 23 studies with 35 dogs of various breeds
pavlov procedure
- baseline condition (meat in dogs mouth to measure salivation reflex)
- control condition (pavlov presented dog with food)
- pavlov presented the dogs with a METRONOME, TUNING FORK and ELECTRIC BUZZER and the dogs didnt salivate to any of these sounds
- he paired the arrival of food with the metronome and measured salivation a few times
- he then presented the metronome on its own and measuring salivation
- he then tested forward/backward conditioning using a buzzer
- he then paired the metronome and buzzer to investigate higher order conditioning
pavlov findings
- baseline (put meat in mouth) found salivation after 1-2 seconds which shows an automatic reflex
- control found salivation after 5s and 6 drops collected
- experimental found salivation after 9s and 11 drops collected
- after 20 pairings the dog would lick his lips at the sound of the metronome
- forward conditioning produced salivation but backwards didnt
- higher order/secondary worked
pavlov conclusion
- signalisation in the brain links metronome to food and thus gives response of salivation
- although salivation is a reflex response it must first be learnt
- signalisation is necessary for dogs to survive as well as natural in born reflexes
- conditioning was sensitive to individual differences and extraneous variables
- there is no way to look at cereberal cortex functioning as it is too complex
3 strengths of pavlov
- applications (deconditioning for phobias)
- high internal validity (special chamber)
- wide range of dog breeds
3 weaknesses of pavlov
- ecological validity (chamber)
- anthropomorphic (different anatomy to humans)
- ethics, discomfort and distress (strapped down and glass tubes)
what is my learning psych classic study
watson and rayner, “little albert”
what is the aim of watson and rayner
to demonstrate that CC can be used to create an irrational fear in humans, this would then show that phobias were the result of such consitioning. they also wanted to show that fears could be transferred to ther animals and objects and to investigate the effect of time on the conditioned response.
participants watson and rayner
1 ppant
little albert was pseudonym
location watson and rayner
john hopkins university hospital
IV and DV watson and rayner
IV- stimulus
DV- fearful response
watson and rayner procedure
- shown white rat, no fear response
- banged steel bar, fear response of crying
- paired 5 times over 12 days and conditioned white rat as CS
- then showed white dog and rabbit with hammer to see if fear could be transferred
watson and rayner findings
- by the 5th day of the trial albert showed a distinct fear of the white rat
- 12 days after experiment albert showed a distinct fear of other white furry objects (stimulus generalisation)
- 17 days after experiment albert showed fear of rabbit and dog, strengthened fear of rat even when showed in lecture theatre as opposed to a dark room
watson and rayner conclusion
a conditioned emotional response can occur in humans after only a few pairing of stimuli but the pairings may need to be repeated. the CR can be transferred to other similar objects, different settings and persist over time. little albert was removed from the study so their were no means of seeing whether the fears could be extinguished.
4 strengths of watson and rayner
- practical apps (treat phobias by using relaxing sounds)
- internal validity
- standardized procedure
- inter rate reliability (filmed)
3 weaknesses of watson and rayner
- eco v
- pop v
- psych harm
2 strengths of CC
supporting evidence (watson and rayner/pavlov)
practical apps (deconditioning phobias)
2 weaknesses of CC
alternative theories (SLT) that consider cognition
reductionlist (not just stimulus response)
what is operant conditioning
concerned with voluntary behaviour
if reward is given, behaviour is repeated
law of effect (operant conditioning)
learning takes place because of what happens after the action
if behaviour is rewarded it becomes more probable and therefore will be repeated
the subject operates on the environment to produce an outcome
what did skinner do
skinner put rats and pigeons in skinner boxes in which they needed to push a lever in order to receive food (reinforcement), it starts by accident and then the rat repeats the action until it becomes a conditioned response
what is reinforcement
when behaviour can lead to repetition, behaviours that are deemed desireable are often reinforced.
positive reinforcement (with eg)
something pleasent is given when a desireable behaviour is shown, this increases the likelihood of it being repeated.
eg given desert if finish dinner
negative reinforcement (with eg)
something unpleasent is taken away when a desireable behaviour is shown, this increases the likelihood of it being repeated.
eg car stops beeping when you put on your seat belt
positive punishment (with eg)
something unpleasent is given when an undesireable behaviour is shown, this decreases the likelihood of it being repeated.
eg put on naughty step
negative punishment (with eg)
something pleasent is taken away when an undesireable behaviour is shown, this decreases the likelihood of it being repeated.
eg take away phone
what is a primary reinforcer
anything that satisfies a basic need/want eg food
what is a secondary reinforcer
things that can be exchanged for a primary reinforcer eg given a token that can be exchanged for tv timr
extinction (OC)
when the conditioned response is no longer reinforced, the behaviour will gradually weaken and then dissapear
stimulus generalisation (OC)
if a person or animal is reinforced for making a particular response to a certain stimuli, they are likely to make the same response to similar stimuli.
what is behaviour shaping (OC)
reinforce any behaviour vaguely similar
add to it, reinforce last response
what is a schedule of reinforcement
how many times a behaviour must occur for the reward to be given or how much time must occur before the reward is given
interval schedules of reinforcement
reinforcement given after a period of time
fixed- specified amount
variable- random
ratio schedules of reinforcement
reinforcement provided after a number of correct responses
fixed- specified number of correct responses
variable- random number of correct responses
what is the token economy programme
used in institutions such as schools/prisons
secondary reinforcers used to exchange for rewards
2 strengths of operant conditioning
supporting evidence (skinner)
practical apps (token economy)
2 weaknesses of operant conditioning
critisisms with supporting evidence
other theories (like SLT) consider cognition
what is an observation
no IV to manipulate
ppants watched engaging in behaviour being studied
naturalistic observation
own environment
controlled observation
lab environment
ppant observation
observer takes part
non ppant observation
observer watched from a distance
overt observation
aware being obseerved
covert observation
unaware being observed
direct observation
researcher conducts their own observation and collects their data
indirect observation
observations gather secondary data where researcher analyses behaviour recorded by someone else
event sampling
before experiment determine behaviours to be coded
then every time behaviour is shown, note down
time sampling
before experiment determine time periods to code and after this period write down observed behaviour
what did bandurra argue in slt that people are in shaping their environment
active
a model is most likely to be imitated if
- individual identifies with model
- same-sex
- powerful and respected
- model is reinforced
- individual thinks theyre capable of performing of the actions
- behaviour is observable
4 main factors required for observational learning
ATTENTION
RETENTION
REPRODUCTION
MOTIVATION
3 types of motivation
vicarious reinforcement
internal reinforcement
external reinforcement
what is vicarious reinforcement
seeing the role model reinforced for their behaviour and so youll imitate the behaviour to receive the same reinforcement
what is internal reinforcement
feeling a sense of pride or belonging for behaving like a role model
what is external reinforcement
receiving direct reinforcemnet for the imitated behaviour
what is vicarious learning
behaviour will be learnt if it is observed and is more likely to be imitated if it rewarded
3 effects of vicarious reinforcement
modelling effect- where someone does something that they have seen and would not otherwise have done
eliciting effect- where someone watches a behaviour and copies it but does it a bit differently
disinhibiting effect- where behaviour that would have previously seen as unaccetable is seen as done without negative consequences so now seen as OK
vicarious punishment
seeing model be punished for behaviour and therefore not copying (inhibitory effect)
vicarious extinction
never copying the behaviour of others because of seeing them be punished for it.
what is bandurra 1961
aggressive vs non aggressive role model
what is bandura 1963
filmed aggressive modeks
what is bandurra 1965
role model consequences
how many participants in bandurra 1961
72
how many participants in bandurra 1963
96
how many participants in bandurra 1965
66
aim of bandurra 1961
to investigate whether young children will imitate an aggressive role model through only observation and the influenece of gender on the imitation of role models
aim of bandurra 1963
to investigate whether children would imitate aggression when witnessing a role model on a screen. Investigate whether children would be more likely to imitate a cartoon role model or a human model. Investigate whether children who watch aggression are more aggressive than those who dont. to investigate whether boys showed more IMITATIVE aggression than girls.
aim of bandurra 1965
to investigate the impact of a role model receiving consequences for their aggressive behaviour. to investigate the difference between learning a models behaviour and the childs decision to reproduce that. to investigate whether boys showed more imitative aggression than girls.
where were all bandurra ppants from
stanford university nursery school
participant design for all bandurra studies
independent groups design
conditions in bandurra 1961
aggressive/non aggressive model
female/male/no model
conditions in bandurra 1963
female/male/no model
real life/human filmed/ cartoon model
conditions in bandurra 1965
female/male model
model rewarded/model punished/no consequence
bandurra 1961 procedure
- rated 1-5 on verbal/phys/object aggression
- allocated condition
- placed in room with attractive toys (stixkers) and model in other corner with bobo doll and mallet
- in agg condition model attacked doll shouted “pow”
- after 10 minutes taken to new room
- werent allowed to play with attractive toys to create arousal
- taken to new room with agg and non agg toys
behaviour coded every 5s for 20 minutes
bandurra 1961 findings
- agg model showed more imitation and non imitative aggression
- children in non agg model showed less aggression that agg model but not always less than no model
- boys reproduced more physical aggression but equal verbal
- same gender model increased aggression (affecting boys more)
bandurra 1961 conclusion
children are likely to copy behaviour
observational learning explains the accquisition of new responses in a way that reinforcement and punishment cannot
boys are more likely to observe and imitate aggression than girls
bandurra 1963 procedure
real life model- same as 1961
humand filmed model- video of 1961 model
cartoon model- black cat behaving same as 1961 towards bobo doll, artficial flowers and grass to make it look more cartoon like
taken to room and created arousal
taken to room with agg and non agg toys
coded every 5s for 20 minutes
bandurra 1963 findings
increase in aggression for all who saw agg role model compared to control
no staistically significant difference between agg conditions however real life was lowest
more boys showed imitative aggression than girls
more likely to imitate if role model is same sex
bandurra 1963 conclusion
both those that watched the filmed aggression showed more aggression than the in person aggressive role model. the acts of aggression were clearly imitated. exposure to aggressive behaviours increases the likelihood of reproduction especially on screen aggression.
bandurra 1965 procedure
same as 1961
model rewarded- given 7up and sweets
model punished- told that their behaviour would not be tolerated
control- no consequence
children given juice and stickers if they reproduced aggressive acts.
bandurra 1965 findings
model rewarded had the highest imitation, then control then model punished
imitation increased with incentives in ALL conditioned
bandurra 1965 conclusion
the control condition demonstrates the disinhibiting effect
the model punished condition demonstrates the inhibiting effect
supports the idea of vicarious reinforcement and SLT
4 strengths of Bandurra
- standardised procedure
- inter rate reliability (observed by 2 experimenters through one way mirror, behaviour only used in data if both noted down)
- practical apps (watershed)
- internal validity
4 weaknesses of Bandurra
- pop v (stanford)
- eco v (unfamiliar lab setting)
- demand characteristics (unusual lab setting)
- protection from harm (aggression)
2 strengths of SLT
supported by Bandurra
positive applications (watershed)
2 weaknesses of SLT
alternative theories (OC and CC)
reductionlist (nature)
definition of phobias
an overwhelming and debilitating fear of an object, place, situation, feeling or animal
main symptoms of phobias
fight or flight response, increased heart rate, prefused sweating
5 types of specific phobias
animal
natural environment (eg heights/tsunami)
blood injections
situational (eg plane/lift)
other (noise/illness)
what are social phobias
fear of situations where the individual may be scrutinised and evaluated, (eg eating in public/public speaking)
agoraphobia
paired with a panic attack
being in places it may be difficult to escape
usually occurs later on in life
classical conditioning as an explanation of accquisition phobias
thunder boom (UCS) –> fear (UCR)
lighning bolt (NS) –> no response (NR)
lightning + thunder = fear (CR)
dolligner found lightning strike surevivors had a more intense phobia of thunder/tornadoes, therefore direct experience led to more fear
slt as an explanation of the accquisition of phobias
attention- child pays attention when another child shows fear of spider
retention- remembers this
reproduction- the child physically screams when they see a spider
motivation- sees child get attention so wants it too
operant conditioning as an explanation of the maintenance of phobias
- pos reinforcement, attention/sympathy
- neg reinforcement, remove feared object
slt as an explanation of the maintenance of phobias
- vicarious reinforcement, if model continues to show fear the observer will be reminded of the danger nd continue the phobia
supporting evidence of learning theories as an explanation of phobias
watson and rayner
ao1 systematic desensitisation
- counter conditioning
- reciprocal inhibition (you cant feel two conflicting emotions at once)
- functional analysis to identify fear
- taught relaxation techniques
- fear hierarchy (in vivo in vitro)
- gradual exposure
3 strengths of SD
- mcgrath et al (found 75% of individuals with phobias responded positively to this therapy)
- ethical (patient in control)
- practical (quicker than psychotherapy)
3 weaknesses of SD
- patient must fully commit
- symptom substitution (underlying issue not solved)
- doesnt work for all anxiety disorders (ie general anxiety disorder)
ao1 flooding
- physically placed in situtation with phobia for a prolonged period with no way of leaving
- aims to remove the maladaptive through the process of reciprocal inhibition
- initial alarming reaction h/e this cannot be sustained
- person will learn to associate situation with calmness
3 strengths of flooding
- quick
- rests on strong theories (f/f and cc)
- supported by wolpe (girl with fear of cars and drive round initially very distressed but soon calmed down)
3 weaknesses of flooding
- unethical (intentionally put under great distress)
- effectiveness may be short lived
- therapist in control
aim of capafons
SD is still an effective method for treating phobias of flying today
how succesful SD is in comparison for no treatment for fears of flying
capafons sample
volunteer sample responded to advert
41 ppants - 20 in experimental 21 in control
random group assignement (h/e comtrols put in place to balance groups in terms of age/gender etc)
capafons procedure
interview about fear of flying
self report (spanish diagnostic tool, fear scale, scale of expectation of danger and anxiety)
physiological measures
2 1hour SD sessions
- breathing and relaxation techniques
- fear hierarchy
- applying SD
2 flights
same as pretest
capafons findings
experimental group has less fear during flight
less catastrophic thoughts
and decreased physiological measures
(ALL AFTER FLIGHT)
skin surface temp showed no difference
only 10% didnt show benefit
capafons conclusion
capafons thought sd was succesful because…
thorough breathing tech taught and eoncoyraged to practice at home
hierachy sloped for each individual carefully
imagination situations used before real life so it was gradual
3 strengths of capafons
internal validity
practical applications
mundane realism
3 weaknesses of capafons
demand characteristics
only one phobias looked at
pop v - all from spain
what is my learning psych key question
would it be a good idea for airline companies to offer treatment programmes for phobias of flying
ao1 learning psych key questions
while fear of flying is an example of aerophobia, according to the DSMV this phobia is characterized by peristenet fear, rapid anxirty response, avoid planes
its estimated that 2.5-5% of population have aerophobia
easyjet and virgin offer treatment prpgrams 92% success
good idea- social, emotional, economic
ao2 learning psych key question (FOR treatment programmes)
- phobias are learnt and so can be unlearnt
- SD is based on CC, fear of flying UCS crashing
- SD works on principle of reciprocal inhibition
- airline companies offer SD (explain process, hierarchy in vitro/in vivo)
ao2 learning psych key question (AGAINST treatment programmes)
- criticised for hard to reach outside big ciities
- success rates may be biased (h/e capafons found stat sig difference)
- virtual reality is easier and cheaper alternative
according to learning theories how does a person develop aggressive behaviour
- bandurra would argue aggression is due to slt (role models)
- bandurra would argue children arent born aggressive but if they are rewarded by a same sex role model
- slt proposes that if adults have retained memories of observing aggressive behaviour they will be more aggressive
what 5 things does a study need to be considered scientific
experimental method
objectivity
falsification
reliability
paradigm
what is falsification
looking at things that criticise a theory rather than prove it
ao1 content analysis
indirect observation used to analyse secondary data
converts qual data to quant
create coding categories to measure common themes
frequnecy of coding units is then counted
3 strengths of content analysis
ecological validity (sources have not been manipulated by researcher)
practical
inter rate reliability
3 weaknesses of content analysis
researcher bias
ethnocentric (cultural bias)
validity
ao1 thematic analysis
primary data
coding
searching for themes
reviewing themes
name themes
producing a report
3 strengths of thematic analysis
primary source
makes large data manageable
flexible way to analyse qual data
3 weaknesses of thematic analysis
time consuming/requires skill
researcher bias
validity of primary data
4 conditions needed for a chi squared
nominal data
independent groups design
test of difference
observed > critical
when is a chi squared significant
observed > critical
