Understanding the Complex Process of Learning

• Learning is a complex process resulting in a relatively permanent change in an organism's behavior or mental processes due to experience
• It's influenced by biological, cultural, social, and emotional variables
• Psychologists study learning to understand how individuals acquire knowledge, adapt to their environments, and change over time
• Learning is the modification of behavior through experience and training (Gales)
• Learning is any change in behavior resulting from behavior (J.P. Guilford)
• Learning is the process of progressive behavior adoptions (Charles E. Skinner)
• Learning is the modification of readymade behavior due to experience (Colvin)
• Learning is the acquisition of habits, knowledge, and attitudes (Crow and Crow)
• Learning is a change in the individual following changes in the environment (E.A. Peel)

Characteristics of Learning

• Learning involves personal growth
• Learning occurs both individually and socially
• Learning is purposeful
• Learning begins at birth and continues throughout life
• Learning stems from experience
• Learning promotes adjustment

Factors Affecting Learning: Psychological Factors

• These include motivation, intelligence, emotional states, self-efficacy, and learning styles

Factors Affecting Learning: Social/Environmental Factors

• These include learning environment, social interaction, and sociocultural factors

Factors Affecting Learning: Biological Factors

• These are sensory abilities, health, well-being, and fatigue

Models of Learning

• These include Trial and Error Learning, Classical Conditioning, Operant Conditioning, Observational Learning, and Insight Learning

Trial and Error Learning

• English psychologist Edward Thorndike (1913) theorized learning occurs this way
• This is also known as Stimulus-Response theory
• The theory proposes "learning is by selection of the successful variant"
• Thorndike explained the trial and error learning through his Puzzle Box experiment

Thorndike's Laws of Learning

• Law of Effect: Responses to stimuli producing a satisfying effect are likely to be repeated; responses producing an unsatisfying effect are likely to be avoided
• Law of Exercise: Frequent connections between stimulus and response strengthen that connection, unless the response has unsatisfying effects
• Law of Readiness: The relationship between stimulus and response is strengthened based on the subject's readiness to learn

Conditioning: Learning by Association

• Conditioning involves taking up some new stimulus for which we already have some response, forming an association between the environmental events (stimuli) and our behavior (responses)
• The two types of conditioning are Classical and Operant
• The Cycle of Conditioning is: Encounter Stimulus, Form Association, and Exhibit Conditioned Response

Classical Conditioning

• It's a learning process where a neutral stimulus (e.g., a ringing sound) is paired with a stimulus that elicits a natural response or reflex (e.g., food), creating an automatic, conditioned response to the neutral stimulus
• Russian Physician Ivan Pavlov researched and defined classical conditioning principles

Operant Conditioning

• This method uses rewards and punishment to modify behavior
• Rewarded behavior is likely to be repeated, while punished behavior is less likely to occur
• B.F. Skinner researched and defined operant condition principles

Operant Conditioning: Reinforcements

• Positive Reinforcement: Presenting a pleasant stimulus after a desired behavior, increasing the likelihood that the behavior will occur again
• Negative Reinforcement: Removing an unpleasant stimulus when a desired behavior occurs, increasing the likelihood of that behavior
• Positive Punishment: Administering an unpleasant stimulus to decrease a behavior
• Negative Punishment: Taking away a pleasant stimulus to decrease a behavior
• Extinction: Gradual weakening of a behavior by stopping reinforcement or punishment; over time, the behavior decreases

Observational Learning

• This involves acquiring skills or modified behaviors by watching the behavior of others.
• Albert Bandura first recognized observational learning through his Bobo Doll experiment
• It pervades how children and adults learn to interact and behave

Albert Bandura's Social Learning Theory

• The theory suggests that people learn new behaviors by observing and imitating others
• It also considers how both environmental and cognitive factors interact to influence human learning and behavior
• The theory emphasizes the importance of observing, modeling, and imitating the behaviors, attitudes, and emotional reactions of others

The Meditational Process in Social Learning Theory

• Social Learning Theory believes that individuals do not automatically observe the behavior of a model and imitate it
• Thought occurs before imitation, and this consideration is called the mediational process
• This occurs between observing the behavior (stimulus) and imitating it or not (response)
• There are four meditational processes proposed by Bandura
• These components determine imitation
• Focus/Attention
• Encode/Retention
• Practice/Motor Reproduction
• Reinforce/Motivation

Insight Learning

• This a cognitive form of learning that involves the mental rearrangement or restructuring of the problem's elements to achieve a sudden understanding of the problem and find a solution (APA, 2013)
• It is also known as an "ah-ha" moment and is understanding, clear, deep & sometimes sudden
• It underscores the role of sudden problem-solving insights

Kohler's Insight Learning Theory

• Wolfgang Kohler postulated the theory of learning by insight, based the gestalt concept
• According to gestalt concept,"the whole is more meaningful than the sum of its parts"
• Learning is taking place, not as a part, but as a whole

Insight Learning: Kohler's Chimpanzee Experiments (1925)

• A chimpanzee was placed inside a cage with a bunch of bananas hung from the roof
• A box was placed inside the cage.
• The chimpanzee tried to get the bananas by jumping, but could not get them due to their height
• The chimpanzee finally used the box, placed below the hanging banana, climbed on it, and obtained the bananas
• In another experiment, the chimpanzee required two or three boxes to reach the banana
• The chimpanzee, named Sultan, was able to place one box on the other and succeeded in getting the banana
• In another experiment, a bunch of bananas was kept outside the cage with two sticks placed inside
• After several trials, the animal joined the two sticks and pulled the bananas in with the resulting, longer stick

Four Stages of Insight Learning

• Preparation
• Incubation
• Insight
• Verification

Characteristics of Insight Learning

• Insight is suddenly grasping the solution to a problem
• Insight alters the perception of the essential relationships in the total situation
• Insight is facilitated by previous experience
• Insight is related to the intellectual ability of the learner
• Insight learning involves understanding and reasoning about the problem

Real World Applications of Learning Theory

• Education & Training
• Corporate Training
• Behavior Modification Therapy
• Criminal Justice
• Healthcare
• Media
• Parenting
• Policy Making

Transfer of Training

• Transfer of training signifies the extent to which learning from one context can facilitate learning in a different context
• It is proportional to the situations' resemblances

Transfer of Training of Learning Formula

• Transfer ("act of moving something to another place") + Learning ("act of gaining knowledge skill by experience study, being taught or creative thought") = Transfer of Learning ("Transfer of learning is a process in which something learnt in one situation is used in another situation")
• Positive: Previous learning facilitates performance in a new task
• Negative: Previous learning hinders or interferes with performance in a new task
• Zero: Previous learning has no effect on subsequent learning

Maturation

• This is the emergence of personal and behavioral characteristics through growth processes;
• Alternatively, the act of maturing
• Arnold Gesell (1925) defined maturation as "the unfolding of an individual's inherent traits or potentials"
• Maturation is a complex interplay of biological, psychological, and environmental factors

Maturation vs. Learning

• Maturation is the process of becoming mature or developed, both mentally and physically, whereas learning is the process of acquiring knowledge, skills, and behaviors through experience, training, and education
• Maturation involves both mental and physical development, whereas learning is mainly a mental process
• Maturation occurs through individual growth, whereas learning happens through experience, practice, training, or education
• Maturation does not need any external stimuli, whereas learning happens because of external stimuli

More Models of Learning

• Constructivism and Connectivism

Constructivism

• Learners actively construct their own knowledge based on prior experiences and interactions with the environment
• Previous knowledge is the foundation for new learning
• Every individual learning is unique
• Motivation is key to learning

Connectivism

• This is a learning theory emphasizing connections and networks in the learning process, particularly in the digital age
• It views knowledge as distributed across a network
• Learning is the ability to navigate and construct those networks
• Learning is built through the social and digital network rather than confined to individual minds
• Knowledge is dynamic and constantly evolving
• It requires digital literacy, critical thinking, and self-directed learning

Learning Theories

• Behaviorism focuses on the individual's interactions with the environment
• Cognitivism focuses on the mental processes of the brain, thinking of the learner as a data processor
• Constructivism focuses on reflection and active processing of new information

Learning Theories Timeline

• Early 1900s - Behaviorism
• 1950s - Cognitivism
• 1980s - Constructivism
• 2000s - Connectivism