Operant conditioning

Question 1

Define non-associative learning

Answer 1

Learning that stimuli exist in the world

Question 2

Define associative learning

Answer 2

Learning associations between stimuli/events

Question 3

What did cats have to do in Thorndike’s puzzle box?

Answer 3

A box, with a flap that could be opened upon pressing of a pedal from the inside of the puzzle box. Cats were placed in puzzle boxes. Cats do not like being in confined spaces. So cats would scratch the inside of the box and would try to get out of the box, and eventually they would accidentally press the pedal and the door of the box would open and cats would get out.

Question 4

What did Thorndike find in relation to how long it took cats to get out of the puzzle box?

Answer 4

Thorndike plotted how long it would take cats to press the pedal and get out of the box and found that while initially, cats may take more than 3 minutes to escape, by trial 20, they only required a few seconds to press the pedal and get out of the box

Question 5

What are three of Thorndike’s laws of learning?
1. Law of ef____ - behaviour that leads to a p____ outcome is m____ likely to occur in the f____
2. Law of ex____ - connections between r____ and o____ are strengthened by r____
3. Law of r____ - learning is m____ by an i____ s____

Answer 5

1. Law of effect - behaviour that leads to a positive outcome is more likely to occur in the future
2. Law of exercise - connections between responses and outcomes are strengthened by repetition
3. Law of readiness - learning is motivated by an internal state

Question 6

What is meant by the organism operates on the environment in operant conditioning?

Answer 6

Behaviour changes the environment

Question 7

What is meant by behaviour is instrumental in operant conditioning?
Obtains d____ effect. This type of learning facilitates g____-d____ learning

Answer 7

Obtains desired effect, this type of learning facilitates goal-directed learning

Question 8

Define the following terms:
1. Reinforcer
2. Positive reinforcer
3. Negative reinforcer
4. Punishment
5. Omission

Answer 8

1. Stimulus that increases the likelihood of the preceding behaviour to occur
2. Stimulus (usually positive) produced by the behaviour that increases the likelihood of the preceding behaviour to occur
3. Stimulus (usually negative) eliminated by the behaviour that increases the likelihood of the preceding behaviour to occur
4. Negative stimulus that decreases the likelihood of the preceding behaviour to occur
5. Elimination of positive reinforcer decreases the likelihood of preceding behaviour

Question 9

What is meant by continuous compared to partial reinforcement?

Answer 9

Continuous reinforcement - each behavioural response is reinforced
Partial reinforcement - behaviour is reinforced only part of the time

Question 10

What are ratio schedules? Fixed compared to variable?

Answer 10

Ratio - reinforcement given after every nth response
Fixed - response requirement always constant (e.g., FR1, FR10)
Variable - response requirement varies around average (e.g. VR5)

Question 11

What are interval schedules? Fixed vs variable?

Answer 11

Interval - reinforcement given after certain amount of time
Fixed - reward intervals constant (FI10)
Variable - reward interval varies around mean time (e.g., VI10)

Question 12

What was found in the experiment that used token-economies in substance abuse treatment?

Answer 12

Those rewarded half as likely to relapse compared to those who weren’t rewarded (after eight weeks, 80% still sober compared to 40%)

Question 13

Compare respondent conditioning to operant conditioning

Answer 13

R - Learning associations between stimuli in the environment (Stimulus-Stimulus Learning)
O - Learning associations between actions and stimuli/outcomes (A-O learning)
R - Reinforcement not contingent on action/behaviour/response
O - Reinforcement contingent on action/behaviour/response
R - Behaviour is elicited in response to a stimulus (CS»respondent)
O - Behaviour is emitted/produced by the individual (operant)

Question 14

Describe an experiment into classical and operant learning interacting

Answer 14

Rat placed in chamber with 2 compartments
Speaker delivers auditory stimulus (would-be CS)
Grid floor delivers mild footshock (US)
Barrier for escape/avoidance of footshock
Initially, rat escapes following US (i.e. footshock)
Eventually learns to escape following CS (i.e. auditory stimulus)

Question 15

What is meant by an empty organism?

Answer 15

Organism is black box – collection of associations

Question 16

Summarise taste aversion learning in rats

Answer 16

When licked spout, received sweet water along with bright light and clicking noise
Separated rats into 2 groups – one received mild foot shock when licked spout, other group given x-ray upon liking spout
X-ray radiation results in illness later in time so no contiguity, compared to contiguity in foot shock group
Broke compound stimulus into two - A = bright, noisy water, B = sweetened water
The group that was given the x-ray and was made to feel ill long after presentation of the bright/noisy/sweet water, avoided the bottle with just the sweet water more of the time than it did the bottle that was paired with just the noise and the light. By contrast, the group that was given an electric shock upon licking the bright/noisy/sweet spout during testing, still went for the sweet water spout at test, but avoided the spout that upon licking it they would get the noise and the light. This suggested that contiguity was not necessary for learning to occur (a delayed illness to something we eat will still teach us to avoid that which made us ill). It also suggested that we do not make associations with everything, since the footshock group did not avoid the sweet water. It also suggested that some associations are easier established than others (evolutionary basis to learning what makes us ill)

Question 17

Describe Tolman’s latent learning effect (three different conditions of rats finding their way out of a maze)

Answer 17

One group always reinforced for finding way out of maze (food reward)
Other group never reinforced
Always reinforced group showed learning curve and less mistakes than non-reinforced
Ones who received reward on day 10 of training learned incredibly quickly, behaviour changed very quickly even did better than those who had always been reinforced
Shows reinforcement not necessary for learning, just speeds it up!