Theories of Learning Flashcards
Conditioning is
the process of learning associations between a stimulus in the environment (one event) and a behavioural response (another event)
eg of conditioning
associating a smile with friendly behaviour
types of conditioning/learning include
- classical conditioning
- operant conditioning
- trial and error learning
- trial learning
- insight learning
- latent learning
- observational learning
a stimulus is
any event that elicits (produces) a response from an organism
a response is
a reaction by an organism to a stimulus
classical conditioning refers to
a type of learning that occurs through the repeated association of two (or more) different stimuli
eg of classical conditioning (pavlov’s dogs) Stage 1: before conditioning
Bell (NS) produces no response
Food (UCS) produces salivation
Eg of classical conditioning Stage 2: During conditioning
Bell (NS) paired with Food (UCS) produces salivation (UCR)
Eg of classical conditioning Stage 3: after conditioning
Bell (CS) produces salivation (CR)
Key elements of classical conditioning are
- UCS
- UCR
- CS
- CR
the UCS is
any stimulus that consistently produces a particular, naturally occurring, automatic response
the UCR is
the response that occurs automatically when the UCS is presented
The CS is
the stimulus that is neutral at the start of the conditioning process and does not normally produce the unconditioned response
The CR is
the learned response that is produced by the CS
the Key processes in classical conditioning are
- acquisition
- Extinction
- Spontaneous Recovery
- Stimulus Generalisation
- Stimulus Discrimination
acquisition in classical conditioning is
the overall process during which an organism learns to associate 2 events (the CS and the UCS)
The duration of the acquisition stage is usually measured by
the number of trials it takes for the CR to be acquired
Extinction in classical conditioning is
the gradual decrease in the strength or rate of a CR that occurs when the UCS is no longer presented
extinction is said to have occurred when
a CR no longer occurs following presentation of the CS
Spontaneous recovery is
the reappearance of a CR when the CS is presented, following a rest period (when no CS is presented) after the CR appears to have been extinguished
Stimulus generalisation is
the tendency for another stimulus - similar to the original CS - to produce a response that is similar (but not necessarily identical) to the CR
Stimulus discrimination occurs when
a person or animal responds to the CS only, but not to any other stimulus that is similar to the CS
Applications of classical conditioning
if you are driving and the brake lights of the car in front come on, you put your own foot on the brake quickly and without much thought as it has become an automatic process
classical conditioning processes that have developed therapies for treating phobias or addictions include
- graduated exposure
- flooding
- aversion therapy
graduated exposure involves
presenting successive approximations of the CS until the CS itself does not produce the conditioned response
The fear producing situations of a person with a fear of flying in aeroplanes from least frightening to most frightening
- buying a plane ticket
- travelling to the airport in a car
- waiting to get on the plane
- boarding the plane
- taxiing down the runway
- taking off
- experiencing mud air turbulance
graduated exposure may involve either
imaginal exposure or in vivo exposure
imaginal exposure involves
imagining each situation using visual imagery
in vivo exposure involves
real-life exposure to each fear-producing situation
flooding involves
bringing the client into direct contact with the anxiety - or - fear producing stimulus and keeping them in contact with it until the conditioned response is extinguished
Eg of flooding
a man with a fear of falling lifts, riding in lifts for 90 minutes and after the one session of this treatment, his fear of lifts disappeared
aversion therapy is
a form of behavioural therapy that applies classical conditioning processes to inhibit (‘block’) or discourage undesirable behaviour by associating (‘pairing’) it with an aversive (‘unpleasant’) stimulus such as a feeling of disgust, pain or nausea
Eg of aversion therapy
to stop the unwanted behaviour of nail biting, your fingernails could be painted with a foul tasting substance
an experience-expectant process is
the brain priming itself or ‘getting ready’ for ‘experiences’ that are ‘expected’ during sensitive periods
eg of experience expectant learning is
an infant learning to talk at around 2 years of age
Classical conditioning fails to explain behaviour that is
acquired voluntarily (behaviour that we can control)
instrumental conditioning is now better known as
operant conditioning
instrumental/operant conditioning are based on studies of
trial and error learning
trial and error learning involves
learning by trying alternative possibilities until the desired outcome is achieved
trial and error learning consists of
motivation, exploration, correct response/s and rewards
the law of effect was developed by
Edward Thorndike
the law of effect essentially states that
a behaviour that is accompanied or closely followed by ‘satisfying’ consequences is more likely to recur and a behaviour that is accompanied or closely followed by ‘annoying’ consequences or discomfort is less likely to recur
instrumental learning refers to
the process through which an organism learns to associate between behaviour and its consequences
an operant is
a response or behaviour that generates consequences
operant conditioning is based on
thorndike’s law of effect that an organism will tend to repeat a behaviour that has desirable consequences or that will enable it to avoid undesirable consequences
the 3 phase model of operant conditioning consists of
the stimulus, (that precedes an operant response), the operant response (to the stimulus), and the consequence (to the operant response)
Shaping is
a procedure in which a reinforcer is given for any response that successively approximates and ultimately leads to the final desired response, or target behaviour
Eg of shaping
pigeon being rewarded with reinforcers for turning closer to a full circle
a token economy is
a setting in which an individual receives tokens (reinforces) for desired behaviour and these tokens can be collected and exchanged for other reinforces in the form of actual or real rewards
