Learning theories

• Classical conditioning explains how someone can be conditioned into a response from a stimulus that is not the one that would naturally produce that response.
• What does ucs stand for?

  Unconditioned stimulus
• What does ucr stand for?

  unconditioned response
• What does ns stand for?

  neutral stimulus
• What does cs stand for?

  conditioned neutral stimulus
• What does cr stand for?

  conditioned response
• Extinction

  • The association of UCS and CS no longer occurs
  • After a few trials of separating the two stimuli, the learned response is extinguished
• Extinction example


  • If you taught your dog to shake hands and you don't get your dog to shake hands for a while, the response will become extinct as the dog will no longer respond to the command when asked
• Spontaneous Recovery

  Reappearance of a CR after it has been extinguished
• Spontaneous recovery example

  Your dog stops salivating when a bell is rung but food is not present. However after a few hours your dog salivates again when the bell is rung.
• Stimulus Generalisation is when stimulus similar to the specific one can elicit the CR. For example someone who experiences an anxiety attack near wasps can have the same response near bees.
• One strength of classical conditioning is that Watson + Rayner found that it was possible to train little Albert to associate loud noise with a white rat. This shows Classical conditioning could be used to explain how phobias develop through association of a stimulus and response in humans.
• Another weakness of classical conditioning is that it doesn’t take into account individual differences. Some people may find it easier than others to form associations between stimuli and responses. Therefore some individuals may be more susceptible to developing certain fears than others.
• Another strength of classical conditioning is that Pavlov showed that dogs would salivate at the sound of a metronome even if they weren’t hungry. This suggests that classical conditioning isn’t just about hunger or thirst but also other factors such as emotions.
• Skinner box is a chamber containing a lever which is pressed by the animal. When the animal presses the lever they receive a reward e.g. food pellet. Skinner observed that animals would continue pressing the lever if they received rewards frequently enough.
• Reinforcement is any consequence that increases the likelihood of a particular behaviour being repeated. Reinforcers are positive because they increase the frequency of the desired behaviour.
• Punishment is any consequence that decreases the likelihood of a particular behaviour being repeated. Punishers decrease the frequency of undesired behaviours.
• Operant Conditioning is learning from consequences, where behaviour is strengthened (reinforced) or weakened (punished).
• Another limitation of classical conditioning is that it only explains simple reflexive behaviours such as salivation or heart rate changes. It does not explain complex behaviour like learning to play tennis or riding a bike.
• One weakness of classical conditioning is that Skinner found that when a rat was placed in a ‘skinner box’ it quickly learned to press a lever for a reward of a food pellet. This shows that giving positive reinforcement would lead to behaviour being learned and not stimulus and response.
• One strength of classical conditioning is that it is reductionist as it suggests that people learn their behaviour just due to association which is a simplistic explanation of how behaviour is learned. This is a strength because predictions can be made about who will and won’t learn behaviour due to associations between stimulus and response.
• This theory can be considered useful because it shows how behaviours can be created through associations, which means that practical applications can be created such as systematic desensitisation to reduce phobias. This is where you are gradually exposed to your fears whilst performing relaxation techniques to reduce your anxiety.