Area of Study Two: Learning and Memory

Unit 3 Area of Study Two

How do people learn and remember?

SAC DETAILS

  • Date: Wednesday 6th May

  • Format: Comparison and evaluation of psychological concepts, methodologies and methods, and findings from three student practical activities.

  • Length: 50 minutes

  • Marks: 40 marks

  • Weighting: 10%

  • Chapters: 1, 4, and 5

  • Key Science Skills: Green, pink and blue

Key Knowledge

Behaviourist Approaches to Learning

  • Classical Conditioning: A three-phase process resulting in the involuntary association between a neutral stimulus and unconditioned stimulus to produce a conditioned response.

    • Three phases:

    1. Before Conditioning: Neutral stimulus (NS) does not elicit a response.

    2. During Conditioning: NS is paired with an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) to produce an unconditioned response (UCR).

    3. After Conditioning: NS becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS) that elicits a conditioned response (CR).

  • Operant Conditioning: A three-phase process involving reinforcement and punishment that determines the likelihood of a behavior performed again in the future.

    • Three elements:

    1. Antecedent: The stimulus or context leading to behavior.

    2. Behaviour: The voluntary response performed by the learner.

    3. Consequence: The outcome influencing future behavior.

Learning Definition

  • A relatively permanent change in behavior due to experience.

    • Does not include temporary changes from fatigue, mood, or illness.

    • Change results from environmental interactions, not innate processes.

    • Example: Reflexes are NOT learned responses.

Behaviourist Approaches to Learning

Classical Conditioning

  • Describes learning through associations, whereby a stimulus is linked to a response post-conditioning.

  • Role of the Learner: Passive; does not actively engage in response learning.

  • Response Type: Involuntary/reflexive (emotional or simple behavioral responses).

Classical Conditioning Principles

  • Operates on the principle of association.

    • Repeated pairings of stimuli lead to expectations and responses.

Phases of Classical Conditioning

Before Conditioning

  • Neutral Stimulus (NS):

    • Example: Bell

    • No elicited response (no salivation).

During Conditioning

  • Pairing of:

    • NS: Bell

    • UCS: Food

    • UCR: Salivation.

After Conditioning

  • Conditioned Stimulus (CS): Bell.

  • Conditioned Response (CR): Salivation.

Key Components of Classical Conditioning

Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)

  • Stimulus that consistently produces a naturally occurring automatic response.

Unconditioned Response (UCR)

  • Automatic response triggered by UCS.

    • Characterized as reflexive and involuntary.

Neutral Stimulus (NS)

  • Initially has no effect.

    • Becomes the CS after learning.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

  • Formerly the NS that now elicits a response.

Conditioned Response (CR)

  • Learned response by the CS.

    • Often similar to UCR.

Three-phase Process of Operant Conditioning

Phase One: Antecedent (A)

  • Context or situation leads to a behavior;

    • Example: Dirty dishes in the sink.

Phase Two: Behaviour (B)

  • Voluntary action performed by the learner.

    • Example: Child washing the dishes voluntarily.

Phase Three: Consequence (C)

  • Outcome of the behavior influencing future behaviors.

    • Example: Child receiving dessert as a reward.

Types of Consequences

Reinforcement

  • Desirable outcome that increases the likelihood of a behavior repeating in the future.

Positive Reinforcement

  • Adds a positive stimulus (e.g., praise, money).

Negative Reinforcement

  • Removes a negative stimulus (e.g., taking a painkiller).

Punishment

  • Undesirable outcome that decreases the likelihood of a behavior repeating in the future.

Positive Punishment

  • Adds an aversive stimulus (e.g., reprimand).

Negative Punishment

  • Removes a rewarding stimulus (e.g., taking away a toy).

Key Knowledge: Social-Cognitive Approaches to Learning

  • Learning occurs in a social context, incorporating:

    • Personal Factors: Cognition (attention, expectations).

    • Behavior: Physical actions taken.

    • Environmental Influences: External conditions impacting learning.

Observational Learning

  • A more active process than classical/operant conditioning.

Five Stages of Observational Learning

  1. Attention: Learner must focus on model's behavior.

  2. Retention: Form mental representation of model's behavior.

  3. Reproduction: Physical and mental capability to perform behavior.

  4. Motivation: Desire to imitate behavior based on anticipated reinforcement.

  5. Reinforcement: Increases likelihood of future behavior performance.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Ways of Knowing

  • Learning embedded in relationships and a multimodal system patterned on Country.

Essential Concepts

  • Knowledge is community-oriented rather than individualistic, focusing on benefits to the entire community.

  • Uses diverse methods (dance, song) due to the connection between learning and cultural practices.

  • Kinship is fundamental for passing down knowledge and information.

Memory Models

Atkinson-Shiffrin Multi-Store Model of Memory

  • Outlines three stores of memory:

    • Sensory Memory: Brief storage of sensory information; stores unlimited information for 0.2 to 10 seconds.

    • Includes iconic (visual) and echoic (auditory) registers.

    • Short-Term Memory: 7±2 items stored for 18-30 seconds.

    • Long-Term Memory: Relatively permanent storage with unlimited capacity.

  • Function, capacity, and duration differ across storage types.

Brain Structures in Memory

Hippocampus

  • Responsible for encoding explicit memories (episodic and semantic).

Amygdala

  • Enhances emotional memory interactions with the hippocampus.

Neocortex

  • Stores and retrieves explicit memories.

Basal Ganglia

  • Involved in procedural memory processes.

Cerebellum

  • Manages fine motor skills and conditioned responses.

Alzheimer’s Disease

  • Progressive neurodegenerative disease leading to memory loss, confusion, personality changes.

  • Affects episodic and semantic memory, complex mental functions and social skills.

Symptoms include:

  • Initial memory loss, confusion, impaired attention, with increasing difficulty retrieving autobiographical events and constructing imagined futures.

Biological Causes:

  • Presence of amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, and acetylcholine deficiency.

Aphantasia

  • Inability to voluntarily generate visual mental imagery.

  • Does not impair conceptual thinking or understanding.

Impact on Memory:

  • Past and future scenarios may lack vivid visualization.

  • Comparatively with Alzheimer’s, Aphantasia is stable, while Alzheimer's is progressive.

Mnemonics in Written and Oral Cultures

Written Cultures

  • Utilizes explicit memory techniques like acronyms, acrostics, method of loci.

Oral Cultures

  • Transmits knowledge via sung narratives, such as songlines, which act as mnemonics.

Songlines

  • Encode knowledge related to navigation and culture; help in remembering cultural, historical, and genealogical information through melody and structure.