Psychology Chapter 6 - Learning and Behaviorism

Unit 8 - Learning

• The unit covers learning, behaviorism, and classical conditioning.
• The textbook for the unit is Kalat, J. (2010). Introduction to Psychology (12th Edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
• The content corresponds to Chapter 6, Modules 6.1-6.3 of the textbook excluding Explanations of Classical Conditioning (pp. 184-186) and Drug Tolerance as an Example of Classical Conditioning (pp. 186-187).
• Behaviorism is a form of psychological empiricism.
• Behaviorism focuses on observable behaviors rather than internal thoughts or feelings.
• In the legal system, witnesses are not allowed to describe internal states like "nervous and worried" but instead use observable descriptions like "trembling".
• A human being is born with almost no mobility, which is not a bad thing.
• Surviving and thriving involve learning what is safe and unsafe.
• Learning is about establishing and changing behavior.
• Theories of learning explain why we react to different stimuli, e.g., salivating at the sight of food.

Behaviorism and Classical Conditioning

• The instructor is Themistoklis Pantazakos, Ph.D.
• Contact information includes Email: [email protected] and Office: DC 709.

Classical Conditioning: History

• Ivan Pavlov, the father of classical conditioning, won the Nobel Prize in 1904.
• Pavlov's work focused originally on digestion
• Pavlov observed that dogs salivated at the sight of the researcher entering the laboratory before food was presented – "psychological secretion".
• Pavlov believed these learned responses could be transferred from one stimulus to another.
• This is "classical conditioning".

Classical Conditioning: Method

• When Pavlov gave the dog food, it salivated without training – this is the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) and unconditioned response (UCR).
• The metronome sound was a neutral stimulus at first.
• By pairing the metronome with the food, the dog eventually salivated at the sound of the metronome. This has now become a conditioned stimulus (CS) and a conditioned response (CR).

Classical Conditioning: Extinction

• If the conditioned stimulus (CS) is presented repeatedly without the unconditioned stimulus (UCS), the conditioned response (CR) will eventually disappear – extinction.
• Extinction is not forgetting; it is actively facilitated.

Classical Conditioning: Spontaneous Recovery

• After a period of extinction, a previously extinguished response may reappear in a weakened form when the conditioned stimulus is presented. This is known as spontaneous recovery.

Classical Conditioning: Stimulus Generalization

• Stimulus generalization is when a similar stimulus to the conditioned stimulus (CS) elicits a similar response.
• For example, if a bee stings you, you might develop a fear of other stinging insects, such as wasps and hornets, as they are similar in their properties.

Classical Conditioning: Discrimination

• If an animal is reinforced for responding to a specific stimulus but not to similar stimuli, it learns to discriminate between them.

Operant Conditioning

• Operant conditioning involves learning through consequences.
• Animals will attempt different actions (R1, R2, R3...) to achieve desired outcomes.
• Reinforcement increases the probability of repeating a behavior.
• Punishment decreases its probability.

Operant Conditioning: History

• Edward Thorndike studied animal behavior using puzzle boxes demonstrating gradually consistent improvement by animals during experiments to escape the box.
• Thorndike observed that the success rate increased over time without assuming the animal "understood" the mechanism.

Operant Conditioning: Positive/Negative Reinforcement/Punishment

• Operant conditioning has positive reinforcement (introducing a desired stimulus to encourage a behavior).
• Negative reinforcement (removing an undesirable stimulus to encourage a behavior).
• Positive punishment (introducing an undesirable stimulus to discourage a behavior).
• Negative punishment (removing a desired stimulus to discourage a behavior).

Operant Conditioning: Effectiveness of Punishment

• Punishment is most effective when it's immediate and predictable.
• Irregular or delayed punishment is less effective.

Operant Conditioning: Punishment for Children

• The effectiveness to spank a child is disputed.
• The effect of spanking is a disputed topic. Some research indicates a correlation between frequent spanking and problematic behavior in children, but it is not fully understood whether spanking causes problematic behavior or if problematic behaviors cause parents to resort to it.
• If severe or consistent. spanking may result in unwanted consequences.
• Mild spanking, when used as a last resort to stop the initial unwanted behavior, may have less harmful long-term effects.

Operant Conditioning: Extinction

• Extinction in operant conditioning occurs when a behavior stops producing reinforcements

Operant Conditioning: Generalization

• Generalization in operant conditioning occurs when a similar stimulus to the stimulus associated with reinforcement elicits a similar response.

Operant Conditioning: Discrimination

• Discrimination in operant conditioning occurs when an animal learns to respond differently to different stimuli.

Applied Behavior Analysis

• Applied behavior analysis (ABA) is an approach used to enhance desirable behaviors by removing reinforcement from unwanted ones and reinforcing those preferred.

Variations of Learning: Preparedness

• Certain types of learning are easier than others. This is called preparedness. Animals are more readily able to learn things that are evolutionarily advantageous.

Variations of Learning: Social Learning

• Humans learn from others' behavior.
• Imitation/modeling is common in learning how to act.
• We can observe and modify our actions based on those around us.

Vicarious Reinforcement/Punishment

• Vicarious reinforcement/punishment occurs when people observe another person being reinforced or punished.
• This impacts how they might later behave.

Self-Efficacy

• Self-efficacy is the belief in one's ability to complete a task successfully.
• Observing competent role models can build self-efficacy.

Self-Reinforcement and Self-Punishment

• Some people use self-reinforcement and self-punishment to modify their behaviors.
• The effectiveness of this method is not always predictable.

Reinforcement Schedules

• The schedules of reinforcement are different ways of reinforcing behaviors. There are distinct types of schedules, including fixed-ratio, variable-ratio, fixed-interval and variable-interval. Each type of reinforcement schedule impacts how and when behaviors are exhibited.

This quiz explores the principles of learning, behaviorism, and classical conditioning as outlined in Chapter 6, Modules 6.1-6.3 of Kalat's Introduction to Psychology. It emphasizes the importance of observable behaviors and the implications of learning in our responses to stimuli. Test your understanding of these fundamental psychological concepts!