Psychology Chapter on Classical Conditioning

Learning

• Learning involves beneficial changes in behaviour.
• Cognitive learning involves acquiring new knowledge through methods like reading, listening, and tests.
• Associative learning involves pairing stimuli.

Classical Conditioning

• Classical conditioning is learning where a neutral stimulus elicits a response originally caused by another stimulus.
• Before conditioning, a neutral stimulus (e.g., a metronome) produces no response.
• Before conditioning, an unconditioned stimulus (e.g., food) triggers an unconditioned response (e.g., salivation).
• During conditioning, the neutral stimulus is repeatedly paired with the unconditioned stimulus.
• After conditioning, the previously neutral stimulus (now a conditioned stimulus) triggers a conditioned response (e.g., salivation).

Acquisition, Extinction, and Spontaneous Recovery

• The association between a conditioned stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus relies on repeated, temporally contiguous pairings.
• Acquisition is the initial learning of the association between a conditioned stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus.
• Extinction occurs when the conditioned stimulus is presented repeatedly without the unconditioned stimulus, so the conditioned response weakens.
• Spontaneous recovery is the reappearance of a previously extinguished conditioned response after a period of rest.

Generalization and Discrimination

• Generalization is when a response that originally occurs to a specific stimulus occurs also to similar stimuli.
• Discrimination involves learning to respond to one original stimulus but not to a new, similar stimulus.
• Generalization and discrimination enhance survival and fitness.

Preparedness

• Preparedness refers to the biological predisposition to learn a response to a particular class of stimuli.
• This biological predisposition is relevant to the speed and ease of learning.
• Different conditioned stimuli and different responses show different degrees of preparedness for conditioning, with biological threats being the easiest to condition and non-threatening stimuli hardest.

Conditioned Taste Aversions

• Conditioned taste aversion is the dislike of a food or drink paired with illness.
• These are frequently learned in a single trial, even when illness is delayed following consumption.
• New foods are more susceptible to conditioned taste aversions compared to familiar foods.

Higher-Order Classical Conditioning

• Higher-order conditioning is when a conditioned stimulus functions as if it were an unconditioned stimulus.
• Learning a new response using the original conditioned stimulus as the new unconditioned stimulus.

Conditioning Emotions

• Conditioned emotional responses are emotional responses associated with specific objects or situations.
• Conditioned emotional responses can impact other aspects of learning and behaviour.
• Little Albert and Phobias are examples of demonstrating conditioned emotional responses.

Conditioning and Advertising

• Evaluative conditioning occurs when one stimulus takes on the emotional valence of another stimulus.
• Classical conditioning is used in advertising, with examples including Watson's Pebeco toothpaste campaign and celebrity advertisements.

Negative Political Advertising

• Negative political advertising uses evaluative conditioning to elicit unpleasant emotional responses in viewers.
• Images of political opponents are presented in a negative light, evoking negative emotions.
• This approach aims to influence voters' opinions and actions towards political candidates.

Operant Conditioning

• Operant conditioning involves learning behaviours based on their consequences.
• Classical conditioning involves automatic responses, while operant conditioning is voluntary.
• The law of effect states that responses followed by satisfaction are more likely to occur again, and responses not followed by satisfaction are less likely to occur again.

Reinforcement and Punishment

• Reinforcement involves a situation that increases the likelihood of a behaviour.
• Punishment involves a situation that decreases the likelihood of a behaviour.
• Reinforcement and punishment can be positive (adding a stimulus) or negative (removing a stimulus).

Positive, Negative Reinforcement, Positive, and Negative Punishment

• Positive reinforcement involves adding a pleasant stimulus to increase a behaviour.
• Negative reinforcement involves removing an aversive stimulus to increase a behaviour.
• Positive punishment involves adding an aversive stimulus to decrease a behaviour.
• Negative punishment involves removing a pleasant stimulus to decrease a behaviour.

Corporal Punishment

• Corporal punishment interrupts behaviour but has lasting effects.
• This type of punishment is associated with a range of negative consequences for individuals and their relationships.

Applying Non-Physical Punishment

• The effectiveness of non-physical punishment depends on severity, contiguity, and consistency.
• Showing appropriate behaviours is key to effective non-physical punishment.

Discrimination and Generalization in Operant Conditioning

• A discriminative stimulus cues that a particular response will be reinforced.
• Delayed reinforcement reduces the strength of stimulus-response pairing.

Applications of Operant Conditioning

• Shaping involves reinforcing successive approximations of a desired behaviour until the desired behaviour is established.
• Chaining involves linking individual behaviours into a sequence of actions.
• Applied behaviour analysis (ABA) employs operant conditioning principles to treat developmental conditions such as autism, aiming to shape desirable behaviours.

Schedules of Reinforcement

• Continuous reinforcement occurs when every response is reinforced.
• Partial reinforcement occurs when only some responses are reinforced.
• Partial reinforcement schedules include fixed ratio, variable ratio, fixed interval, and variable interval schedules.

Partial Reinforcement Schedules

• Ratio schedules focus on the number of responses, while interval schedules focus on the time elapsed.
• Fixed schedules have a consistent reinforcement pattern, while variable schedules have an unpredictable pattern.

Fixed Ratio Schedules

• Reinforcement is delivered after a specific number of responses.
• This produces high response rates.
• Rewards systems function using fixed ratio schedules.

Fixed Interval Schedules

• Reinforcement is delivered after a specific amount of time has elapsed following a response.
• This type of schedule results in inconsistent response rates, with an increase in response rate nearing the next reinforcement interval.
• Exemplified by waiting periods between paychecks, driving tests, and other activities with response rates that fluctuate with the time intervals.

Variable Interval Schedules

• Reinforcement is delivered after a variable amount of time has elapsed following a response.
• This type of schedule typically produces a moderate to steady response rate.
• Exemplified by how often checking your email, checking the mail, or other activities that lack a clear time frame for reinforcement.

Variable Ratio Schedules

• Reinforcement is given after a variable number of responses.
• This schedule leads to high rates of responding because reinforcement is unpredictable.
• Exemplified by gambling, as the reinforcement amount and timing are unpredictable.

Controlled by Conditioning

• Ratio schedules typically lead to higher response rates.
• Variable ratio schedules are particularly motivating.
• Partial reinforcement resistance to extinction is stronger than continuous reinforcement.

Driving Addiction

• Classical and operant conditioning work together to maintain addictive behaviours.
• Losses are often disguised as wins in gambling and associated activities.

Superstitions

• Superstitions can develop when the relationship between behaviours and outcomes is unclear.
• Superstitious behaviour was studied using pigeons to examine the unpredictable relationship between behaviours and rewards.

Superstitions (continued)

• Confirmation bias can strengthen superstitious behaviours.
• Superstitions can sometimes have positive effects on behaviours one thinks may influence control.

Cognitive Perspectives on Learning

• Latent learning is learning that is not expressed until reinforcement.
• Latent learning was studied in experiments with rats learning a maze.

Observational Learning

• Observational learning involves acquiring behaviour and knowledge by watching others.
• Albert Bandura's Bobo doll experiment studied observational learning in children.
• Social learning theory highlights the importance of attention, memory, motor ability, and motivation in observational learning.

Imitation

• Imitation involves recreating a motor behaviour or expression to achieve a goal.
• Humans tend to imitate behaviours of others, possibly through mirror neurons.

Can Media Affect Behaviour?

• Media often impacts how we perceive certain behaviours as normal.
• Desensitization to violent behaviours and a correlation between exposure to violent media and aggressive behaviours have been observed.
• This correlation does not necessarily indicate causation.

Mirror Neurons

• Mirror neurons are cells that fire when performing an action and observing the same action in another.
• These neurons can be influenced by the intention behind the observed movement.

Explore the principles of classical conditioning in this informative quiz. Test your understanding of the concepts of learning, including cognitive and associative learning, as well as the processes involved in acquisition, extinction, and spontaneous recovery. Perfect for psychology students eager to deepen their knowledge of behavior change.