AP Psych Learning

Introduction of Learning Concepts

• ==Learning== – any relatively permanent change in behavior that occurs due to experience
• ==Behaviorism== – school of psychology that accounts for behavior in terms of observable events
• ==Conditioning== – involves forming associations between environmental stimuli and responses
  • Classical conditioning
  • Operant conditioning
• Other theories reject the idea of omitting mental processes from explanations of human behavior
  • Social learning theories
  • Cognitive theories

Classical Conditioning

New reflexes from old

• ==Pavlov== was the first to describe and document the form of learning we now call classical conditioning
• Terminology :
  • ==Unconditioned stimulus (US)== – stimulus eliciting an automatic or reflexive response
  • ==Unconditioned response (UR)== – response that is automatically produced
  • ==Conditioned stimulus (CS)== – an originally neutral stimulus that comes to elicit a conditioned response after being paired with a US
  • ==Conditioned response (CR)== – response that is elicited by a CS
• ==Learning== occurs when a neutral stimulus is regularly paired with a US and the neutral stimulus becomes a CS that elicits a CR that is similar to the original, unlearned one
• Classical conditioning is also called Pavlovian or respondent conditioning

Principles of Classical Conditioning

• ==Extinction== – when the conditioned stimulus is presented repeatedly without the unconditioned stimulus, the conditioned response eventually disappears
• ==Spontaneous recovery== – after a response has been extinguished, it may spontaneously reappear after the passage of time, with exposure to the conditioned stimulus
• ==Higher‐order conditioning== – a neutral stimulus can become a conditioned stimulus by being paired with an already established conditioned stimulus
• ==Stimulus generalization== – after a stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus for some response, similar stimuli may produce the same reaction
• ==Stimulus discrimination== – different responses are triggered by stimuli that resemble the conditioned stimulus in some way

What is really learned in classical conditioning?

• For effective conditioning to occur, it is not enough to pair the stimuli; the neutral stimulus must reliably signal the unconditioned one
• Conditioning is less certain in everyday life

Classical Conditioning in Real Life

• Learning to like
• Learning to fear
  • Some things may be more easily learned because of a biological predisposition based on evolutionary considerations
  • Little Albert example
  • Therapy techniques that have developed to reverse classically conditioned fears include ==counterconditioning== and ==systematic desensitization==
• Accounting for taste – food and odor likes and dislikes
• Reacting to medical treatments

Operant Conditioning

The birth of radical behaviorism

• Introduced at the turn of the twentieth century
• Thorndike observed that behavior is controlled by its consequences
• B.F. Skinner – behavior is explainable by looking outside of the individual

The Consequences of Behavior

• A response can lead to three types of consequences: neutral consequences, ==reinforcers== : increase the probability that the response they follow will recur, and ==punishers== : make the response they follow less likely to recur
• Consequences are most effective when there is no delay between response and consequence

Primary and secondary reinforcers and punishers

• ==Primary reinforcers== satisfy biological needs
• ==Primary punishers== are inherently unpleasant
• ==Secondary reinforcers== are reinforcing through association with other (possibly primary) reinforcers
• ==Secondary punishers== are punishing through association with other punishers

Positive and negative reinforcers and punishers

• ==Reinforcers== – always increase the likelihood of a response
  • ==Positive reinforcement== – something pleasant is presented
  • ==Negative reinforcement== – something unpleasant is removed
• ==Punishers== – decrease the likelihood of a response
  • ==Positive punishment== – something unpleasant occurs
  • ==Negative punishment== – something pleasant is removed

Principles of operant conditioning

1. Skinner boxes and cumulative recorders are often used when conditioning animals
2. ==Extinction== – a previously learned response stops occurring because it is no longer
   reinforced
3. ==Spontaneous recovery== is the return of a response that has been extinguished
4. ==Stimulus generalization== – a response occurs to stimuli that resemble the stimuli present during the original learning
5. ==Stimulus discrimination== – the ability to distinguish between similar stimuli and to respond only to the one that results in the reinforcer
6. ==Discriminative stimulus== is a signal whether a response will pay off; it is said to exert stimulus control over the response because it signals whether the conditions in which the response will be reinforced are present
7. ==Schedule of reinforcement== – the pattern of delivery of reinforcements; can have powerful effects on rate, form, and timing of behavior
   • ==Continuous reinforcement== – reinforcing a response each time it occurs; most effective for initial learning
   • ==Partial or intermittent schedules== – reinforcement occurs only after a certain amount of time has passed or only after a certain number of responses have been made
   • ==Superstitious behavior== can be learned when behavior is coincidentally reinforced
   • Reinforcement on an intermittent schedule makes a response more resistant to extinction when reinforcement is discontinued
8. ==Shaping== - method of getting a response to occur in the first place by reinforcing successive approximations to the desired response
9. Principles of conditioning are limited by genetic dispositions and physical characteristics
   10. Skinner : The man and the myth

Operant Conditioning in Real Life

• ==Operant principles== may explain why people do not always behave as we or they would like
• ==Behavior modification== – the use of classical and operant conditioning techniques in real world settings

Pros and Cons of Punishment

• Punishment is widely used as a means of controlling behavior; punishment is appropriate in situations where the individual's behavior is dangerous
• Punishment is often administered inappropriately or in a state of rage
• The recipient often responds with anxiety, fear, or rage
• Effects can be temporary and may depend on the presence of the punisher
• Most behavior is hard to punish immediately
• Punishment conveys little information about how to behave differently
• An action intended to punish may be reinforcing because it brings attention

Guidelines

• No physical abuse
• Describe appropriate behavior
• Reinforce desirable behavior as soon as possible
• ==Alternative to punishment== – combine extinction of undesirable behavior with the reinforcement of desirable behavior

The problems with reward

• Rewards must be tied to the activity being reinforced
• ==Intrinsic reinforcers== involve enjoyment of the task itself, feelings of accomplishment
• ==Extrinsic reinforcement== may undermine intrinsic reinforcement because the behavior is now viewed as “work” so they should be used sparingly

Learning and the Mind

• Latent learning
  • Tolman’s experiment with rats demonstrated latent learning
  • Latent learning is learning that is not immediately revealed through a change in behavior
  • ==Latent learning== occurs without obvious reinforcement
  • Perceptions of the model and of themselves influence individuals’ learning
• Social‐cognitive learning theory
  • The importance of observational learning was demonstrated by Bandura

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