Psychology of Learning: Understanding Behaviors

• Psychology of Learning is about understanding behaviors and how they occur through the process of learning.
• Psychologists and scholars have been interested in how humans and other organisms learn for centuries.
• Understanding learning helps with understanding and influencing behavior.

Defining Learning

• There is no single, universally accepted definition of learning.
• Hall (2003) defined learning as the process by which an animal, human or non-human, interacts with its environment and becomes changed by this experience so that its subsequent behavior is modified.
• Breedlove et al. (2007) defined learning as the process of acquiring new and relatively enduring information, behavior patterns, or ability characterized by modification of behavior as a result of practice, study, or experience.
• Mazur (2013) defined learning as a process of change that occurs as a result of an individual's experience.
• Psyc Central (2018) defined learning as the process leading to a relatively permanent behavioral change or potential behavioral change.
• Mayer (2009) defined learning as a relatively permanent change in a person's knowledge or behavior due to experience
• Lahey (2012) defined learning as any relatively permanent change in behavior brought about through experience.
• Definitions of learning share key characteristics, referred to as attributes of learning.

Attributes of Learning

• Learning is a process that occurs over time and is not a single event.
• Learning results in long-term changes, not short term.
• The phrases “enduring” and “relatively permanent” refer to changes lasting longer compared to changes not from learning, such as injury or fatigue.
• The actual learning process may not be directly observable.
• Acquisition and storage of information are internal processes.
• There is no immediately visible change in behavior until it is required.
• Experience leads to change in behavior

Learning, Knowledge, and Performance

• Learning is the process through which behavior is changed due to experience.
• Knowledge is the information obtained through experience that is stored in the brain.
• Performance includes actions demonstrated with the aid of the information obtained through experience and stored in the brain.

Approaches to Studying Learning

• Psychologists use different approaches to studying learning, based on their orientation.
• Three such approaches include the Behavioral, Cognitive, and Biological/Neuropsychological approaches.

Behavioral Approach

• The behavioral approach is the earliest approach to studying how organisms learn.
• It believes that learning occurs through stimulus-response mechanisms.
• It emphasizes relationships between observable behaviors, antecedent stimuli, and consequences that follow behavior.
• Methodologically, it studies learning through animal and human experimentation and observation.

Cognitive Approach

• The cognitive approach focuses on the role of cognition in the stimulus-response mechanism.
• It believes that cognitive interpretation of stimuli produces eventually learned behavior.
• The approach argues that organisms form mental/internal representations of stimuli, process them, and then exhibit a changed or unchanged behavior.
• It uses animal and human experimentation with cognitive inference.

Biological/Neuropsychological Approach

• The biological/neuropsychological approach focuses on the underlying biological basis for learning and memory.
• The goal is to discover the biological events and processes that take place to produce learning.
• Studies include changes that occur in the nervous system when learning occurs.
• Brain imaging techniques and surgical procedures using animals are used.

Animals in Learning Experiments

• Animals have been the primary subjects in learning experiments due to practical and ethical reasons.
• Darwin's theory of evolution is one practical reason for animal testing.
• Humans evolved from animals, and studying animals can help identify principles applicable to human learning.
• Human genetic heritage, history, and environmental experiences of animals can be easily controlled and manipulated.
• Humans are more likely to alter their behavior when they know they are in an experiment.
• Structure and functions of the central nervous system provide another practical reason for animal testing.
• Scientific evidence shows similar structure and functions of the CNS in humans and some animals.
• Cytoarchitecture, cell type composition, and neurogenic gene expression programs are similar between humans and chimpanzees.
• Differences between humans and chimps mostly come down to cell numbers and structural sizes.
• Brains of some animals function similarly to that of humans and can be used to understand brain mechanisms underlying learning in humans.
• Studying animal help psychologists understand animal learning and behavior
• Understanding animal needs to help improve their wellbeing
• The cost of research comes at a cost in terms of resources and logistics. Using animals instead of humans could be cheaper in this regard.
• Using animals can prevent potential harm to humans, like testing new drugs.
• Animals require less ethical requirements compared to humans; there is no need for informed consent.
• There are laws governing the use of animals.
• It is unlawful to use animals without justifiable reasons.
• Even with justifiable reasons, after the experiments, the animal has to be euthanized in a humane manner.
• There are laws governing the housing, feeding and handling of animals etc. during experiments.

Explore the psychology of learning and how behaviors are acquired. Discover various definitions of learning from experts like Hall, Breedlove, and Mazur. Understand the role of experience in behavioral changes.