Learning: Classical and Operant Conditioning

Learning: Classical and Operant Conditioning

• Learning is the process of acquiring new and lasting information or behaviors.
• Two key parts of learning are: lasting change, and the mental process involved in maintaining information (a simple reflex is not learning).

Learning's Effects on Behavior

• Individuals learn new behaviors by observing others.
• Learning has a greater impact on human behavior compared to instincts, which is an evolutionary advantage.

How We Learn

• Learning happens through associations.
• Our minds constantly look for patterns, trends, and connections in the stimuli around us to determine our responses.
• We also learn indirectly by utilizing language to understand others' experiences.

Types of Learning

• Simple learning includes habituation and mere exposure effects.
• Complex learning includes classical and operant conditioning.

Simple Learning: Habituation

• Habituation is the decreasing response an organism makes to consistent exposure to a stimulus.
• Examples of this include:
  • Becoming accustomed to city car horns or emergency vehicle sirens.
  • How often someone looks when a car alarm goes off in their city.

Simple Learning: Mere Exposure Effect

• The mere exposure effect is a learned preference for stimuli to which someone has been exposed previously.
• Examples include a preference for a friend's voice over a stranger's,
• Or the kind of drink someone's parents preferred as a child.

Complex Learning: Behavioral Learning

• Behavioral learning involves classical and operant conditioning.
• These processes can be explained in terms of stimuli and responses.
• A stimulus is any event or situation that causes a response.

Ivan Pavlov and Classical Conditioning

• Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936) made significant contributions to learning, specifically classical conditioning.
• Classical Conditioning is a type of learning where a previously neutral stimulus becomes associated with another stimulus, and eventually triggers a similar response.

How We Learn: Classical Conditioning Example

• Two related events: Lightning and Thunder.
• Result after repetition: We expect thunder after lightning.
• Response from an individual: Expectation of thunder, a startled reaction/wincing.

Pavlov's Findings

• A neutral stimulus paired with a natural reflex stimulus can trigger a learned response even when presented alone.
• A neutral stimulus does not produce a learned response on its own before conditioning starts.

Pavlov's Experiment

• Before conditioning: An unconditioned stimulus (UCS) such as food elicits an unconditioned response (UCR) like salivation.
• During conditioning: A neutral stimulus (NS), such as a bell, is repeatedly presented before the UCS.
• After conditioning: The neutral stimulus (NS) becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS), triggering a conditioned response(CR) like salivation through repeated exposure.

Components Of Classical Conditioning

• Neutral Stimulus (NS)
• Unconditioned Stimulus (US)
• Unconditioned Response (UR)
• Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
• Conditioned Response (CR)

Operant Conditioning

• Operant conditioning is a form of learning where the probability of a behavior is changed by its consequences.
• An observable behavior is an operant, that an organism uses to navigate its environment.
• Examples: behaviors like pressing a lever, or looking when a car alarm goes off.

Effects of Operant Conditioning

• Reinforcement strengthens a behavior, like gaining a reward or privilege.
• Punishment diminishes behavior.

B.F. Skinner (1904-1990)

• A famous behaviorist who researched operant conditioning using rats. -B.F. Skinner worked with the "Law of Effect": behaviors followed by favorable consequences reoccur, while those followed by unfavorable consequences wane.

Reinforcement

• A reinforcer is a stimulus, that strengthens a behavior.
• Presentation or removal of stimulus after a behavior strengthens desired response.
• Positive reinforcement: Adding a stimulus that increases the likelihood the behavior will reoccur (such as getting a reward for good work).

Negative Reinforcement

• Removing an unpleasant stimulus to encourage the behavior.
• An example: putting on a seatbelt to make a buzzing stop.

Punishment

• An undesirable stimulus following a behavior.
• The stimulus decreases the probability of the behavior happening again.
• Positive Punishment: adding an undesirable stimulus to reduce a behavior (such as getting detention after cheating on a test).
• Negative Punishment: Removing a desirable stimulus to reduce a behavior (removing a phone for failing school).

Classical vs. Operant Conditioning

• Classical conditioning focuses on the relationship between stimuli, causing a reflexive response.
• Operant conditioning focuses on the consequences of a behavior, changing its likelihood.

Explore the fundamental concepts of learning, including classical and operant conditioning. Understand how behaviors are acquired, maintained, and influenced by observing others and recognizing patterns. This quiz delves into various types of learning and their effects on behavior.