Cognitive Psychology Lecture Notes PDF

Cognitive Psychology Helwan University Medical School Psychiatry Unit  Learning is the change in behavior of an organism due to an experience in its environment.  i-Non-associative learning: relatively permanent change in the strength of response to a single stimulus d...

Cognitive Psychology Helwan University Medical School Psychiatry Unit  Learning is the change in behavior of an organism due to an experience in its environment.  i-Non-associative learning: relatively permanent change in the strength of response to a single stimulus due to repeated exposure to that stimulus. 1. Habituation: response decreases as stimulus is repeated. 2. Sensitization: response increases as stimulus is repeated. 3. Cross sensitization (pseudo-conditioning): response is increased to similar stimuli ii-Associative learning: a process by which an association between 2 stimuli or a behavior and a stimuli is learned. 1. Classical conditioning (Stimulus-response theory) 2. Operant conditioning (trial & error theory) 3. Social learning  Classical conditioning Pavlov’s experiment Pavlov, a Russian psychologist, noticed increased salivation in dogs on offering food. He started ringing a bell before every time he offered dogs food. He noticed that salivation increased in dogs when he rang the bell, even when there was no food yet.  Classical conditioning (Stimulus-response theory): Acquisition: response occurs to a stimulus associating another stimulus Unconditioned stimulus UCS (food) + Conditioned stimulus CS (bell) = Unconditioned response UCR (saliva for food) + Conditioned response CR (saliva for bell) Extinction/fading: disappearance of conditioned response by time. Recovery: reappearance of conditioned response again Salivation occurred in response to noise similar to the bell, but when food was not offered salivation increased in response only to bell. Stimulus Generalization: is to respond to similar stimuli. Stimulus discrimination: is to respond only to a specific stimulus.  Operant conditioning Skinner, an American Skinner’s box psychologist, noticed that an animal would do random movements trying to release food from a closed box until it was opened. The number of movements and effort made decreased every time the animal tried to get the food. Organisms operate behaviors (trying to open the box)  Operant conditioning (trial & error theory) Environment response is either: Neutral Punishment [painful] Positive: add bad event (animal is hurt) Negative: loose good event (animal loses food) Reinforcement [pleasurable] Negative: relief from bad event (not getting hurt) Positive: add good event ( finally getting the food) Chaining: reinforce step by step small tasks that finally get to desired behavior Shaping: reinforce approximations to the desired behavior Reinforcement schedule: Continuous: as long as you do this behavior you get a reward Intermittent: sometimes you do this behavior & get a reward -------Interval: you do this behavior, after a certain period of time you get a reward (fixed/variable) -------Ratio: the more you do this behavior the more you get that reward (fixed/variable)  Social learning Bandura, an American psychologist, described observational learning. Antecedent, behavior and consequence are the set through which behavior is understood. From modeling others we tend to imitate them if consequence of their behavior is favorable.  Effects of organism in learning process Imprinting is a sensitive life phase (critical period) where learning certain behaviors is the most appropriate. Lorenz, an Austrian ethologist, noticed that little geese that didn’t learn swimming at an early stage in their lives couldn’t learn it later. Stimulus preparedness is hard wired response from our ancestors e.g.: fear of snakes in humans and monkeys  Imprinting Lorenz teaching geese to swim after the critical phase of imprinting is over Lorenz, an Austrian ethologist, noticed that little geese that didn’t learn swimming at an early stage in their lives couldn’t learn it later.  To sum up: Factors affecting learning Organism: as to physical (imprinting phase - stimulus preparedness), IQ, emotional and mental state. Environmental effect (stimulus or reinforce): Quality of environmental effect (painful/ pleasurable) Frequency of environmental effect (continuous/ intermittent) Amount of environmental effect (fixed ratio/ variable)  Clinical applications Disorders 1. Phobia: we learn to feel afraid of neutral things 2. Depression: we learn to feel helpless and hopeless 3. Addictions, overeating and perversions are learnt behaviors Therapies We learn to overcome fear, sadness and cravings (longing for drugs, overeating, pervert sex) by Stimulus control (avoid frightful objects, frustrating objects, tempting drugs, food or sexual objects) or competing responses. Thank you