Approaches

• What was the aim of Pavlov's study?

  To see if associating a reflex with a neutral stimulus causes learning to take place
• What was Pavlov's procedure?

  Dog placed in a sealed room and strapped into a harness and attached to a tube that drained saliva

  Pairing of an electric buzzer with the presentation on food

  Did this 20 times to condition the dog with just the sound
• What were Pavlov's results?

  Conditioned dog started to salivate 9 seconds after hearing the sound
• What were Pavlov's conclusions?

  Discovery of classical conditioning

  Neutral stimulus after repeatedly being paired with the unconditioned stimulus, turned into a conditioned stimulus, producing a conditioned response of salivation
• Strengths of Pavlov's study?

  Standardised procedures lead to high test-retest reliability

  Practical applications like aversion therapy
• Limitations of Pavlov's study?

  Anthropomorphism as dogs cannot be generalised to humans due to more complex thoughts and motives

  Low ecological validity as dogs were kept in very unusual conditions
• What is classical conditioning?


  Learning through association
• What is operant conditioning?

  How behaviour is learned and maintained through reinforcement and punishment
• Who investigated classical conditioning?

  Pavlov (1890)
• Who investigated operant conditioning?

  B.F. Skinner
• What was Skinner's procedure? (Positive reinforcement)


  Placed rats in a 'Skinner Box' containing a light, lever and food dispenser

  When the rat pressed the lever, the light came on and a food pellet was dispensed

  Rats learnt to press the lever quickly

  Demonstrates positive reinforcement
• What was Skinner's procedure? (Negative reinforcement)

  Placed rats in a 'Skinner Box' with an electrified floor and a lever

  When the rat pressed the lever, the electric current stopped for 30 seconds

  Rats learnt to press the lever quickly as it removed something painful

  Demonstrates negative reinforcement
• Strengths of Skinner's experiment?

  High credibility as it uses scientific methods and every step is observable so it can be directly measured

  Practical applications like token economy programmes used to modify behaviour in settings like schools or prisons
• Limitations of Skinner's experiment?

  Theory focused heavily on nurture and it is possible people may be born with predispositions towards behaviours

  Oversimplification as it completely ignores cognitions so is reductionist
• What is positive punishment?

  Adding a consequence to punish
• What is negative punishment?

  Taking away a pleasure to punish
• What is negative reinforcement?

  An action that removes an undesirable feeling
• What is positive reinforcement?


  Gaining a reward for desirable behaviour
• What did Watson and Rayner study?

  Little Albert - 9 months old
• What was Watson and Rayner's aim?

  To see if classical conditioning works on humans
• What was Watson and Rayner's procedure?

  At first Albert did not display any fear reactions to rats, rabbits, cotton wool etc.

  The banging of an iron bar was paired with the presence of a white rat producing a fear response repeatedly
• What were Watson and Rayner's results?

  Albert cried at the presence of a white rat proving this had now become the conditioned stimulus

  Albert also produced similar reactions to a rabbit and dog, showing generalisation of response
• Strengths of Watson and Rayner's study?

  Standardised procedures so has high reliability and replicability

  Practical applications such as flooding and systematic desensitisation
• Limitations of Watson and Rayner's study?

  Idiographic as only experimented on one child so cannot be generalised to all humans

  Ethical issues as Watson and Rayner deliberately caused distress to an infant - possibly leaving Albert with long term phobias
• How do social learning theorists such as Bandura believe we learn?

  Through observation
• What was the aim of the Bobo Doll experiment?

  To investigate if social behaviours can be acquired by observation and imitation
• What was Bandura's sample?

  36 boys and 36 girls aged between 3 to 6
• What was Bandura's procedure?

  Modelling - Aggressive model shown to 24 children, non-aggressive model shown to 24 children, no model shown to 24 children

  Aggression arousal - Children were told they were not allowed to play with certain attractive toys as they were reserved for others

  Test for delayed imitation - Child was left in a room with a mixture of aggressive and non-aggressive toys for 20 minutes and observed for certain behaviours through a one-way mirror
• What were Bandura's results?

  Children who observed the aggressive model made far more imitative aggressive responses

  Girls were more physically aggressive with a male model and verbally aggressive with a female model

  Boys were more likely to imitate same-sex models
• What were Bandura's conclusions?

  Supports Social Learning Theory

  Children learn social behaviour such as aggression through the process of observation learning
• Strength of Bandura's experiment?

  Standardised procedure allows for replicability
• Limitations of Bandura's experiment?

  Low ecological validity due to lacking mundane realism in a lab settings

  Demand characteristics due to being in an unfamiliar environment they may feel as if they are expected to imitate the models
• What are mediational processes?


  Factors necessary for learning to take place
• What are the four mediational processes?

  Attention, retention, reproduction and motivation
• What is attention?


  Whether we notice the behaviour, and pay attention to it
• What is retention?

  Whether we remember the behaviour
• What is reproduction?


  Whether we are able to perform the behaviour ourselves
• What is motivation?

  Whether there is a desire to carry out the behaviour
• What is modelling?


  Involves somebody carrying out an attitude or behaviour which is then copied by someone else
• What is imitation?


  The act of copying a models attitudes and behaviours