Z

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
    1. 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