Comprehensive Guide to Classical, Operant, and Observational Learning Theories

What is learning?

Learning is a relatively permanent change in behaviour due to experience.

What is the behaviourist approach to learning?

A learning approach that focuses on how behaviour is learned through interactions with the environment, primarily through stimulus-response associations.

What is classical conditioning?

A type of learning where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with an unconditioned stimulus through repeated pairing, so that the neutral stimulus eventually produces a learned response.

What is the key mechanism of classical conditioning?

Learning occurs through stimulus pairing, not rewards or punishments.

What type of responses are involved in classical conditioning?

Involuntary responses such as reflexes or emotional reactions controlled by the autonomic nervous system.

What is the learner's role in classical conditioning?

The learner is passive and does not need to do anything for stimuli to be presented.

What is required for timing in classical conditioning?

The neutral stimulus must occur before the unconditioned stimulus, and timing must be very close (ideally within ~0.5 seconds).

What is acquisition in classical conditioning?

The process of learning through repeated association between a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus.

What is operant conditioning?

A type of learning where the consequences of a behaviour determine the likelihood of that behaviour being repeated.

What drives learning in operant conditioning?

Behaviour is strengthened or weakened depending on whether its consequences are rewarding or punishing.

What is the learner's role in operant conditioning?

The learner is an active participant who performs behaviours that produce consequences.

How does timing work in operant conditioning?

The consequence must occur after the behaviour, ideally soon after, but delays are still possible.

What is acquisition in operant conditioning?

Learning through repeated association between a behaviour and its consequences.

What is the three-phase model of operant conditioning?

A model describing behaviour as Antecedent → Behaviour → Consequence.

What is an antecedent?

A stimulus or event that occurs before a behaviour and triggers it.

What is behaviour in the three-phase model?

A voluntary response made by an individual due to an antecedent stimulus.

What is a consequence in the three-phase model?

The outcome of a behaviour that influences whether the behaviour is repeated.

What is reinforcement?

Any stimulus that strengthens or increases the likelihood of a behaviour occurring again.

What is a reinforcer?

Any stimulus that increases the probability of a behaviour being repeated.

What is positive reinforcement?

Strengthening a behaviour by adding a pleasant stimulus after the behaviour.

What is negative reinforcement?

Strengthening a behaviour by removing an unpleasant stimulus after the behaviour.

How are positive and negative reinforcement similar?

Both increase behaviour; they differ in whether a stimulus is added or removed.

Why is timing important in reinforcement?

Reinforcement is most effective when it occurs immediately after the behaviour.

What is required for reinforcement to work?

The reinforcer must occur after the behaviour, not before.

What makes something a reinforcer?

It must be perceived as pleasant or satisfying by the individual.

What is punishment?

A consequence that decreases the likelihood of a behaviour occurring again, either by adding or removing a stimulus.

What is positive punishment?

Adding an unpleasant stimulus after a behaviour to reduce its likelihood.

What is negative punishment?

Removing a pleasant stimulus after a behaviour to reduce its likelihood.

Why is timing important in punishment?

Punishment is most effective when it occurs immediately after the behaviour.

Which is more effective: punishment or reinforcement?

Reinforcement is generally more effective for shaping long-term behaviour.

What is observational learning?

Learning that occurs by observing a model's behaviour and its consequences, then using that information to guide future behaviour.

Is observational learning active or passive?

It is an active cognitive process.

What is vicarious conditioning?

Learning by observing the consequences of another person's behaviour.

What is vicarious reinforcement?

When observing a model being rewarded increases the likelihood of imitation.

What is vicarious punishment?

When observing a model being punished decreases the likelihood of imitation.

What is attention in observational learning?

The learner must focus on the model's behaviour and its consequences.

What influences attention?

Interest, situation, perceptual ability, and model characteristics (similarity, status, likability, authority).

What is retention?

The ability to remember the observed behaviour by encoding it into long-term memory.

What is reproduction?

The ability to physically and psychologically perform the observed behaviour.

What is motivation in observational learning?

The desire to perform a behaviour, usually influenced by expected rewards or consequences.

What role does reinforcement play in observational learning?

It influences whether the behaviour is repeated, either directly or vicariously.

What is situated learning theory?

The idea that learning is most effective when it occurs in the same context in which it will be applied.

What is situated cognition?

A model of learning where knowledge is constructed through social interaction within a community.

What characterises situated learning?

Learning is communal, collaborative, less structured, and focused on real-world application.

How is knowledge shared in oral cultures?

Through relationships between people and across generations.

What are songlines?

Multimodal cultural performances that map journeys across Country and encode and transmit knowledge across generations.

What do songlines do?

They link places, store cultural knowledge, and transmit information through generations via performance and storytelling.