Pepperberg ( Parrot Learning)

Question 1

Aim

Answer 1

was to see whether a parrot could use vocal labels to demonstrate a symbolic understanding of the concepts same and different

Question 2

Symbolic representation

Answer 2

-the concept of sameness or difference learned from one experience can be applied to an entirely new and different situation

Question 3

Sample

Answer 3

• one African Grey parrot called Alex

- had been involved in prior research on communication and cognition for around 10 yrs.

Question 4

Procedure

Answer 4

• prior to the training, Alex already had a considerable vocab
• purpose of the training was to teach Alex to respond to questions with a categorical label, rather than simply describing an item’s appearance, or stating whether it matched or did not match a paired item.
• the training method used was the model-rival approach -based on the concept of modeling
• a system of continuous reinforcement was used

Question 5

continuous reinforcement

Answer 5

-when a learner receives a reward each time they perform a desirable behavior. It is one of the several possible schedules of reinforcement.

Question 6

Task

Answer 6

• tested by secondary trainers
• materials were paired from a selection given to a student who had nothing to do with the study, in order to create an unbiased set of stimuli
• other questions were also included to prevent boredom effects
• if correct, praised and given the object
• if incorrect, was told ‘No’ and had the object removed while the trainer turned their head away from the parrot

Question 7

Results (familiar objects)

Answer 7

• correctly responded to 99/129 trials (76.6%) in familiar objects
• for first trials only, Alex answered correctly in 69/99 instances (69.7%)

Question 8

Conclusion

Answer 8

• parrots have the potential to demonstrate comprehension of the symbolic concepts same and different
• they may also learn to respond to verbal questions to vocalise categorical labels

Question 9

Results(Novel objects)

Answer 9

• 96/113 in all trials (85%)
• 79/96 on first-trial performance only
• did better on novel trials, he might have been motivated to do better on novel trials because he was curious to investigate newer reward items.