week 5: learning

Question 1

what is learning?

Answer 1

any enduring change in the way an organism responds, based on its experiences

Question 2

what is the key issue in learning?

Answer 2

cannot be directly observed only inferred from behaviour that is observed

Question 3

concepts surrounding learning

Answer 3

classical (Pavlovian) conditioning
operant conditioning
social learning theory

Question 4

what is Pavlovian classical conditioning?

Answer 4

learning through association

associating a neutral stimulus with a stimulus that leads to a reflective response (saliva, sweat, heart rate)

Question 5

what is a stimulus?

Answer 5

something that exists in the surroundings or that is presented which elicit a response

Question 6

what is an unconditioned stimulus? (US)

Answer 6

the stimulus in classical conditioning that elicits an unlearned response
eg. food

Question 7

what is an unconditioned response? (UR)

Answer 7

an unlearned response to a stimulus, response occurs naturally
eg. salvia with food (US)

Question 8

what is a neutral stimulus? (NS)

Answer 8

a stimulus that doesn’t elicit any form of response

Question 9

what is a conditioned stimulus? (CS)

Answer 9

a previously neutral stimulus that is associated with the unconditioned stimulus
eg. ringing bell (CS) to give food (US)

Question 10

what is a conditioned response?

Answer 10

the response elicited by the conditioned stimulus

eg. salvia (CR) to bell ringing (CS) as dog knows that has been paired with food (US)

Question 11

what is the Pavlovian classical conditioning experiment?

Answer 11

Pavlov gave dogs food (US) which produced salvia (UR). Pavlov then rang bells to the dogs which they had no reaction to (NS). Pavlov then gave the dogs food and rang the bell at the same time so the dog would associate the bell with food. Eventually the dogs would salivate to the ringing of the bell. eventually pavlov took the food away (US) and rang the bell alone and the dog still salivated to the bell meaning the bell was no longer a NS but a CS as it created a CR

Question 12

what is extinction in Pavlov classical conditioning?

Answer 12

Extinction is when the CR stops due to the CS not being presented with the US for a period of time

Question 13

what is acquisition in Pavlov classical conditioning?

Answer 13

the initial stage of learning when a response is first established and gradually strengthened.
-A NS is repeatedly paired with an US to create a CS

Question 14

what are the responses before classical conditioning?

Answer 14

US–>UR

NS produces no response

Question 15

what happens during classical conditioning?

Answer 15

repeated pairing of CS and US

Question 16

what are the responses after classical conditioning?

Answer 16

both US and CS can elicit the response
US–>UR
CS–>CR

Question 17

what is Spontaneous Recovery in classical conditioning?

Answer 17

when the CS produces the CR after the behaviour has been extinct

Question 18

what is Stimulus Generalisation in classical conditioning?

Answer 18

the tendency for the CS to evoke similar responses after the response has been conditioned

eg. little Albert experiment, child was conditioned to fear white rats but also feared any white fluffy animal/object
eg. CS being a bell, similar sounding object may elicit CR

Question 19

what is Stimulus Discrimination in classical conditioning?

Answer 19

the ability to differentiate between a CS and other stimuli that have not been paired with an unconditioned stimulus.
eg. A bell (CS) has a particular pitch, a different bell with a different pitch may not elicit a CR

Question 20

classical conditioning fear response experiment

Answer 20

John B. Watsons Little Albert experiment

• child initially showed no fear of a white rat (NS), but after the rat was paired repeatedly with loud, scary sounds (US), the child would cry when the rat was present (CR).
• child’s fear also generalised to other fuzzy white objects (stimulus Generalisation)

Question 21

why is understanding classical fear conditionings important?

Answer 21

allows for better understanding in anxiety disorders

Question 22

what psychological intervention is used for classical fear conditioning?

Answer 22

cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)

Question 23

why are relapse rates high in classical fear conditioning?

Answer 23

• extinction does not completely erase learnt fear
• spontaneous recovery can still occur after extinction
• reinstatement (emergence of CR (fear) after encounter of US alone after extinction)
• renewal (emergence of CR (fear) in different context after extinction)

Question 24

how do we prevent conditioning relapse?

Answer 24

• strengthen extinction learning

- re-consolidation

Question 25

true of false

all stimuli and responses are equally likely to be conditioned

Answer 25

false

some stimuli and responses are more likely to be conditioned than others such as hunger

Question 26

Who is involved in operant conditioning?

Answer 26

Edward Thorndike
B.F. Skinner (mainly)
B.F. Skinner built on Thorndike’s work

Question 27

what psychological theory is conditioning associated with?

Answer 27

Behaviourist perspective

Question 28

what is operant conditioning

Answer 28

a type of learning in which the organism learns through the consequences of its behaviour

Question 29

what is the Skinner box of operant conditioning experiment

Answer 29

B.F. Skinner put a rat in a box with a lever, bowl and enclosed chamber. If you pull the lever food filled the bowl. Rat accidentally hits the lever causing a small amount of food to fill the bowl. After a few times accidentally doing this it eventually associates the lever with food.

Question 30

categories dividing operant conditioning

Answer 30

negative and positive reinforcement

negative and positive punishment

Question 31

what is reinforcement in operant conditioning?

Answer 31

something that strengthens the behaviour (increases the likelihood of a behaviour)

Question 32

what is positive reinforcement in operant conditioning?

Answer 32

the addition of a positive stimulus

eg. skinner experiment rats positive reinforcement is food

Question 33

what is negative reinforcement in operant conditioning?

Answer 33

the removal of an unpleasant stimulus

eg. Applying sunscreen (the behaviour) before going to the beach to avoid getting burnt (removal of unpleasant stimulus)

Question 34

what is punishment in operant conditioning?

Answer 34

used to reduce a behaviour

Question 35

what is negative punishment in operant conditioning?

Answer 35

taking something good/desirable away to reduce the occurrence of a particular behaviour
eg. girl stays out past curfew, so her parents ground her for a week

Question 36

what is positive punishment in operant conditioning?

Answer 36

presenting an unfavourable outcome/event following an undesirable behaviour
eg. you drive over the speed limit through a school zone and get fined by a police officer

Question 37

what is social learning theory?

Answer 37

• learning can occur through observing and imitating someone else behaviour
• considers how both environmental and cognitive factors interact to influence learning and behaviour

Question 38

what did Acquisition of aggressive behaviour-social learning experiment show?

Answer 38

learning through imitating

Question 39

what was the Acquisition of aggressive behaviour-social learning experiment?

Answer 39

children observed 3 behaviours (model rewarded, model punished, no consequences) then were given play time in which they unconsciously modelled the behaviour they witnessed.
eg. children that watched aggressive behaviour played aggressively, children that watched positive behaviour played kindly