Unit 1: introduction to the psychology of learning Flashcards
Why should we understand behaviour?
our quality of life depends on the actions of ourselves and others
What does behaviour result from?
complex interaction between genetics and environment
How is evidence of learning achieved?
observing a change in behaviour
Is behaviour only determined by learning?
no, there are other factors influencing our performance
Which are the aspects that most definitions of learning include?
enduring change in mechanisms of behaviour
involving specific stimuli/ responses
result from prior experience with similar stimuli
What must any systematic effort to understand behaviour consider and why?
what we learn
why we learn it
-> many aspects of behaviour are results of learning
What is the main purpose of learning?
adaptation to the environment
-> physiological processes don’t take care of all adaptive functions, and even those that do can be improved
-> need to learn to find new food sources
What does the integrity of life depend on?
successfully achieving number of biological functions
Why do birds have to be able to recognise their children?
offer care for children
enhances ability to care for own offspring
What is included in learning?
acquisition of new behaviour
decrease or loss of previously common response
Does all learning require specialised training?
no, we can also learn without an expert teaching us
-> interaction with social and physical environment
How do animals normally learn?
trial and error
Phobia
learnt fear response to objects/ situations
Learning in drug abuse
difficulty resisting automatically triggered impulses to use substance
-> learnt associating of drug + positive effect
Is accumulating knowledge and making connections with previous information also learning?
yes
What is the difference between performance and learning?
performance: action at a particular moment, can be measured and observed
learning: change in mechanisms of behaviour, making connections with previous information
Why are changes in behaviour due to fatigue not associated with learning?
too short-lived
behaviour returns to normal after resting
Why are changes in behaviour due to maturation not associated with learning?
child being able to reach food on shelf due to growth isnt learnt
Related to biology, which other concepts are not related to learning?
physiology and motivational states
administration of some drugs
Hormonal states
Where do theoretical approaches to the study of learning have their roots and why?
the philosophy of descartes
before him
-> behaviour voluntary, determined by free will and not automatic
What did Descartes claim and which concept did he come up with to combine free will and automatic reactions?
many things are automatic reactions to external stimuli
Dualisitc view: cartesian dualism
What are reflexes?
automatic and involuntary responses to external stimuli
mediated by NS without conscious effort
How do reflexes work? (from beginning to end)
Stimulus that triggers reflex response
-> sensory receptor detects stimulus and changes inf to electrical signal
-> Afferent nerve: signal from receptor to CNS
-> Integration centre: Brain or spinal cord processes inf and determines response
-> efferent nerve: signals from CNS to effector organs to produce response
What is a reflex arc and what does it consist of?
basic mechanism underlying most reflexes
components:
Stimulus
Sense organ
Brain/Spinal cord
Muscles
Behaviour (involuntary)
What is voluntary behaviour?
independent of external reflexes
conscious and deliberate with clear intention and conscious decision-making
What’s the pineal gland?
endocrine gland regulating circadian rhythm by producing melatonin
for descartes: seat of the soul -> gateway to body and mind, site of their interaction
How does the mind initiate voluntary behaviour?
by tracking and correcting involuntary behaviour
Why did Descartes assume that animals only had access to involuntary behaviours?
nonhuman animal behaviours are reflexive responses to external stimuli
Which 2 intellectual traditions did cartesian dualism stimulate?
mentalism
reflexology
Mentalism
concerned with workings of the mind
Reflexology
concerned with reflexive behaviour
Nativism
Descartes
people are born with innate ideas
existent in all humans independant of personal experience
examples:
concept of god and self, shortest distance between two points is a straight line, basic axioms of geometry
Empiricism
John Locke
all ideas aqcuired directly or indirectly through experiences after birth
humans born with mind as tabula rasa (blank slate, no preconceptions)
-> inf encountered only through experience
What did Hobbes suggest?
agreed with empiricism
voluntary behaviour governed by hedonism
Hedonism
pleasure and paint as ultimate determinants of human behaviour
people act in pursuit of pleasure and avoidance of pain
-> behaviour controlled by positive and negative consequences
What did british empiricists focus on and why?
associations
-> combine simple sensations into more complex ideas
What exactly is an association?
the connection between the representation of two events
-> first event activates representation of second one
ideas
originate from experience
simple ideas are combined into more complex ones via association
Who established primary rules and which ones are there?
Aristotle
Contiguity: most important, things repeatedly occuring together in space and time become associated
Similarity
Contrast
Are all primary rules true?
no, contrast isn’t backed up by contemporary research
Secondary rules
intensity
frequency
What were the results of forming associations in the nonsense syllable experiment?
strenth of associations improves with training
material with meaning remembered 10x easier
the closer on the list the stronger the association
forward association > backward association
What is the relationship between stimuli and responses?
stimuli dont always directly elicit responses
responses dont always reflect stimulus strength
-> weak stimulus can cause strong response
What did Sechenov describe?
stimuli can also elicit inhibition after punishment
Complex forms of behavior are reflexive responses to stimuli too weak to notice
What did Pavlov discover?
not all reflexes are innate
you can create new ones through association
What are the primary fields of research on nonhuman animals?
Comparative psychology (evolution of mind)
Functional neurology (how NS works)
Developing animal models (study behaviour)
-> dominate contemporary research in learning
What did Darwin discover?
Human mind as product of evolution
man descended from lower form
animals are capable of imitation, curiosity, memory and attention
Nervism
all principle physiological functions are governed by NS
-> learning processes have origin in NS
What are the advantages of using nonhuman animals to gain information about human behaviour?
more easily controlled
less expensive
simpler processes
Issues of using animals in research
ethical treatment
ethical dilemma: is it justified?
