learning and motivation 3/23

• rule governed behavior: verbal description of a contingency behavior generated through exposure to rules

  • ex: doing homework listed on the course syllabus
  • human characteristic

• some disadvantages of rule governed behavior

  • less efficient than behavior that has been directly shaped by natural contingencies
  • ex: rule governed is don’t be late for school / the bus. missing the bus is more powerful than just agreeing to the rule.
  • rule governed is insensitive to actual contingencies of reinforcement in a particular setting

• personal rules in self-regulation

  • personal rules / self-instructions: verbal descriptions of contingencies that we present to ourselves to influence our behavior
  • do to others what you would have them do to you
  • say-do correspondence: match what we say we are gonna do with what we actually do at a later time
  • clear, specific rules are important
  • “i’m a man of my word”
  • bright boundaries: clear and distinctive boundaries of acceptable and unacceptable behavior

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• contagious behavior - instinctive / reflexive

• stimulus enhancement: when attention is drawn to a stimulus

• observational learning in classical (vicarious emotional responses) operant (acquisition and performance)

• imitation: copy model behavior

• social learning and aggression: watching violence has big impacts

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