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define operant conditioning (OC)
learning though rewards and punishment
if a behaviour is followed by a desirable consequence then that behaviour is more likely to occur again in the future
define positive reinforcement
adding a pleasant stimulus
encourage behaviour
rewards behaviour
define negative reinforcement
encourages behaviour
removes punishment
what stops behaviours?
giving a punishment
taking away a reward
Skinners rat box experiment
demonstrated using a wrapped mechanisms of positive and negative reinforcement
Positive reinforcement was shown when the rats press down on the lever to receive food as a reward and subsequently learned to repeat this action to increase their rewards.
negative reinforcement was shown when the rat learnt to press down lever to avoid the unpleasant consequence of shock
what are the three reward schedules?
continuous
partial
variable
define continuous reward schedule
receiving a reward every time
define partial reward schedule
reward is given every 3rd time
define variable reward schedule
you never know when you’ll get rewarded
define learning
long term change in behaviour
define a punishment
Involves the application of an unpleasant consequence following the behaviour with the result that the behaviour is less likely to occur again in the future
what did Pavlov discover?
classical conditioning
what does the behaviourist approach reject?
rejected the vagueness of introspection, focusing instead on observable events
what is the behaviourst approach
learning is long term change which is shaped by our environment and all behaviour is learnt and acquired through classical and operant conditioning
define classical conditioning (CC)
learning through association
when a neutral stimulus (bell) is consistently paired with an unconditioned stimulus (food) so that it eventually takes on the properties of the stimulus and is able to produce a conditioned response
what is the process of CC of pavlovs dogs?
UCS (food) → UCR (saliva)
NS (bell) → NR (no saliva)
UCS (food) + NS (bell) → UCR (saliva)
CS (bell) → CR (saliva)
what are behaviourists
people who believe that human behaviour can be explained in terms of conditioning without the need to consider thoughts or feelings
what was John Locke’s philosophy?
‘we are all tabula rasa’
we have no innate (cognitional) knowledge so everything we know is learned
define ‘tabula rasa’
blank slate
what were the features effecting classical conditioning?
timing
extinction
spontaneous recovery
stimulus generalisation
How does timing affect classical conditioning
if the NS cant be used to predict the UCS (if it occurs after the UCS or the time interval between the two is too great) then conditioning doesn’t take place
how does extinction effect classical conditioning?
after a few presentations of the CS (bell) in the absence of the UCS (food) it loses its ability to produce the CR
The CR doesn’t become permanently established as a response
how does stimulus generation effect classical conditioning?
once animal has been conditioned, they will also respond to other stimuli that are similar to the CS
how does spontaneous recovery effect classical conditioning?
following extinction, if the CS (bell) and UCS (food) are paired together once again the link between them is made much more quickly
what is a strength of classical operant conditioning?
classical conditioning has been applied in the development of treatments for the reduction of anxiety associated various phobias
what’s punishment?
involves the application of an unpleasant consequence following behaviour, with the result that the behaviour is less likely to occur in the future
