MODULE 5: LEARNING

• Learning


  Any relatively permanent change in behavior brought about by experience and practice
• Learning


  • Interaction between organism and its environment
  • Any change in behavior because of environment
• Behaviorism


  Stimulus-Response Psychology
• Cognition or any other internal mental state is not used to explain behavior in Behaviorism
• Intellectual giants behind Behaviorism


  • John B. Watson
  • B.F. Skinner
• Thoughts and feelings are unimportant in Behaviorism
• Philosophical Paradigms of Behavior


  • Empiricism: Knowledge and truth can only be known through the senses
  • Positivism: Establishing relationship between variables based on scientific method
  • Behaviorism puts emphasis on objectivity. We can only measure what is observable
• Behaviorist Albert Bandura recognized the role of cognition such as beliefs in determining behavior
• Self Efficacy


  You will only perform a behavior for a reward if you believe you're capable of doing the behavior
• Cognitive processes mediate the relationship between stimulus and response
• Principles of Learning


  • Brain is incredible associative
  • Associations through experience
• Cortisol

  Stress hormone
• Sensitivity to triggers is a learned response
• Classical Conditioning


  Learning by associating one stimulus with another
• Unconditioned Response


  Any response that is reflexive or autonomic, usually a person/animal has no control over this response
• Unconditioned Stimulus

  Stimulus that triggers the unconditioned response
• Neutral Stimulus


  By itself will not trigger any response
• Conditioned Stimulus


  Stimulus that is now capable of evoking a response formerly associated with an unconditioned stimulus
• Conditioned Response


  Response that the conditioned stimulus evokes
• Classical Conditioning can be used to explain the development of phobias
• Operant Conditioning


  Learning by associating a behavior with its consequence
• Reinforcement


  Aimed at increasing the probability of a behavior, makes behavior more likely to occur, strengthens the response
• Positive Reinforcement


  Addition of stimulus makes the behavior more likely to occur
• Negative Reinforcement


  Removal of stimulus makes the behavior more likely to occur
• Types of Reinforcement


  • Primary Reinforcers: Reinforcers that we find inherently rewarding
  • Secondary/Conditioned Reinforcers: Reinforcers that we have associated with primary reinforcers
• Schedules of Reinforcement


  • Continuous Reinforcement: Every instance of the behavior is being reinforced
  • Intermittent/Partial Reinforcement: Reinforcement is only given after a certain period of time or after a number of behaviors are displayed
• 4 Schedules of Intermittent Reinforcement


  • Fixed Ratio: Reinforcement after fixed number of responses
  • Variable Ratio: Reinforcement after variable number of responses
  • Fixed Interval: Reinforcement after a fixed time interval
  • Variable Interval: Reinforcement after variable interval
• Punishment


  Consequence that makes the behavior less likely to occur
• Positive Punishment (by Application)


  Addition of an aversive (causing strong dislike) stimulus makes the behavior less likely to occur
• Negative Punishment (by Removal)


  Removal of a pleasant stimulus to make the behavior less likely to occur
• Observational Learning


  Learning through observation