Learning: Classical Conditioning, Operant Conditioning, and Social Learning Theory Chapter 8

Learning: Classical Conditioning, Operant Conditioning, and Social Learning Theory

Chapter 8

LEARNING

• Learning is defined as a relatively permanent change in an organism’s behavior due to experience.

• Experience is the key element.• The idea of learning breeds hope.• From the simple (flatworms) to the complex

(humans), learning has been measured in many organisms.

CLASSICAL CONDITIONING

• Conditioning is the process of learning associations (the linking of 2 events).

• Classical conditioning is the linking of 2 stimuli and thus to anticipate events. The stimulus precedes the response, and the response is often reflexive.

• For example, lightening signals thunder and we physically brace ourselves for it. An expanding balloon has been paired with popping so we flinch/squint in preparation.

ELEMENTS OF CLASSICAL CONDITIONING

• Pavlov a physiologists studying digestive processes. (Won the Nobel prize for his work!)

• Surgically attached saliva collection tubes to dogs to measure salivation. Discovered that food causes salivation, but with time, other stimuli would evoke salivation that originally would not. Only through the pairing of food was the connection made and thereby salivating occurred.

• The real experiment • A joke

ELEMENTS OF CLASSICAL CONDITIONING

• Food, unconditioned stimulus (UCS) >> salivating, unconditioned response (UCR)

• Metronome ticking + food (UCS) >> salivating (UCR)

• Metronome ticking, conditioned stimulus (CS) >> salivating (CR)

• You too can experience classical conditioning…

How to classically condition yourself:

• Go to a room that can be thoroughly darkened with the flip of a switch, have a mirror and a bell.

• Ring the bell, turn out the lights, wait 15 seconds, turn the lights back on, wait another 15 seconds, and repeat ~20 times.

• Now leaving the lights on, ring the bell and watch your eyes.

Important things to remember about classical conditioning:

• UCR and CR are the same outcome and are typically reflexive (salivating, eye dilation, fear, arousal)

• Unconditioned means occurs naturally, does not have to be learned (loud noises make us startle, food makes us drool: UCS and UCR)

• Conditioned means it has to be learned, the stimulus and response do not pair naturally.

Elements of Classical Conditioning

• Acquisition: the initial learning of the S-R (stimulus-response) relationship– CS must occur before the UCS for classical conditioning– Not much time can elapse between the two

Conditioning serves a function, it helps an animal (humans, too!) survive and reproduce. There are some things that are easier for us to become conditioned to due to “survival of the fittest.”


• Higher-order conditioning: When conditioning occurs when the conditioned stimulus (CS, like a bell) is paired with a new neutral stimulus (like a light) and can result in the new neutral stimulus becoming a new conditioned stimulus.

• Example: Pair the bell that causes drooling with a light, and eventually the light will cause drooling without it ever being paired with food.

• Example: Seeing a police car yields anxiety because at one time a police car lead to a speeding ticket that resulted in anxiety.


• Extinction: the diminished responding that occurs when the CS no longer signals an impending UCS. After several trials of the tone alone, the salivating would gradually diminished…BUT

• Spontaneous recovery: the reappearance of a CR after a rest (no longer being exposed to the conditioned stimulus), suggests the extinction suppresses the CR but doesn’t eliminate it completely.


• Generalization: the tendency to respond to stimuli similar to the CS.– “Little Albert” experiment: A loud noise (UCS) that

scared him (caused him to cry, UCR). This noise was paired with a white rat several times (CS). Soon the rat caused the same response (crying) without the noise. This same response was seen when exposed to white rabbit, cotton balls, Santa mask, etc.

– If you would like to know what happened to “Little Albert” go the www.thepsychfiles.com and search “Little Albert.”

http://www.thepsychfiles.com/


• Discrimination: the learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus which predicts a UCS and other irrelevant stimuli.– You would respond differently to a pit bull and a

golden retriever– As a young child you learn the difference very

quickly between your parents and strangers.

Elements of Classical Conditioning• Classical conditioning has been used to

explain:– Phobias (a neutral stimulus paired with an anxiety

or fear provoking experience resulting in that stimulus evoking fear/anxiety)

– Advertisers hope to bank on your arousal by utilizing attractive people and situations to encourage you to purchase their products

– Immuno-suppression has been measured in rats using a classically conditioned stimulus. Does this mean we can boost immune responses through classical conditioning?

Cognition’s Influence• Pavlov and Watson highly underestimated the

role of cognition.• It has been concluded by others that CS>>CR

result implies the animal learns predictability and expectancy, which are cognitive constructs. (Rescorla)

• If classical conditioning was simply “stamping in” associations, alcohol + nauseating drug would lead to the end of alcoholism, but it doesn’t. Why?

Biology’s Influence

• Biological predispositions of each species dispose it to learn the particular associations that enhance its survival.

• Taste aversion tests show that the CS and UCS pairing does not have to be close together. (Unless you consider the vomiting experience to be a “revisiting” of the food.)

• Rats developed aversions to tastes but not to sights or sounds when sickened. (Garcia) This means that there are some things we cannot easily be conditioned to due to our biology.

Biology’s Influence

• Natural selection favors traits that aid survival. We fear snakes and spiders but not flowers. Nature prepares us to learn things necessary for survival.

• Learning enables animals to adapt to their environments.

Pavlov’s Legacy

• Classical conditioning is one way virtually all organisms learn to adapt to their environment.

• He showed how the process of learning can be studied objectively and scientifically. He revealed a scientific model for studying psychology…BEHAVIORISM

Operant Conditioning

• Conditioning is the process of learning associations (the linking of 2 events).

• Operant conditioning: the association of behaviors with consequences. Organisms are more likely to repeat reinforced (rewarded) behaviors and less likely to repeat punished behaviors.

Distinguishing Classical & Operant• Classical conditioning is a pairing of stimuli to

get an automatic response (reflexive).• Operant conditioning is the action operating

on the environment to produce a rewarding or punishing stimulus/consequence.

• To distinguish ask, “Who has control over their behavior?” (We can’t control reflexive responses.) If it is the organism, it is operant conditioning.

Elements of Conditioning

• Both classical and operant conditioning involve acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, generalization, and discrimination.

Elements of Operant Conditioning

• Thorndike’s law of effect: If a response in the presence of a stimulus leads to satisfying effects, the association between the stimulus and the response is strengthened.

• Though he changed the terminology, this is exactly what Skinner found to be true in terms of “reward” and “punishment.”


• BF Skinner and his box

Elements of Operant Conditioning• Acquisition of an association will often occur

by the process of shaping, especially with simpler animals.

• Shaping: procedure in which reinforcers (typically food) gradually guide an animal’s behavior toward a desired behavior.

• REINFORCER IS SOMETHING THAT INCREASES BEHAVIOR.


• REINFORCER IS SOMETHING THAT INCREASES BEHAVIOR.– Positive reinforcement

involves presenting a stimulus after some response that is worth repeating. (Praise, stickers, money, attention are all positive reinforcers.)

• Negative reinforcement involves the removal of something aversive. (Fastening a seat belt to stop the dinging, aspirin to get rid of a headache, giving in to stop a tantrum.)


• Though simple, some applications and situations are ineffectual. Food is only a reinforcer is the organism is hungry. There must a value in the reinforcer. “Token economy” often quits working with students if over-used.

• Something that is reinforcing once may not always be reinforcing. What works for one may not work for another.

• Primary reinforcers meet biological needs (ex: food) and secondary reinforcers may be associated with primary reinforcers (ex: money)

Elements of Operant Conditioning• Children who have been taught to delay

gratification (choose a big reward tomorrow instead of a little reward right now) become more socially competent and more likely to be high achievers (Mischel & others, 1989)

• \\ktadmfs09\staffdocuments\R0201467\My Documents\Learning and memory\Oh, The Temptation on Vimeo.mht

• Unfortunately, small and immediate is often more alluring, ie drugs, alcohol, sex, etc. because of the “pleasure center” pathway.

Elements of Operant Conditioningschedules of reinforcement

• CONTINUOUS: The reinforcement always happens in order to reach acquisition. Used in shaping.

• INTERMITTENT: reinforcement is used only some of the time. This is typically used after acquisition has been established.

• Can take the form of fixed or variable and ratio or interval

Elements of Operant Conditioningschedules of reinforcement

• RATIO SCHEDULES: Require the organisms to respond a certain number of times, either fixed or variable.

• INTERVAL SCHEDULES: Require the organisms to respond over a certain amount of time, either fixed or variable


• Intermittent/variable and ratio (# of trials) reinforcement has the most lasting effect on increased likelihood of repeat behavior:– Think slot machines and gambling (variable-ratio)

and is highly related to other addictive behaviors, too!

– Occasionally giving in to a tantrum will put a child on an intermittent reinforcement schedule thereby producing the most persistent behavior.


• PUNISHMENT DECREASES BEHAVIOR.• There have been numerous studies on the

effectiveness of punishments such as spankings. To sum it up, punishment tells you what not to do and reinforcement tells you what to do.

• Punishment can also lead to other undesirable effects such as creating fear and

teaching aggression.


Addition of something

Removal of something

Increase behavior

Positive reinforcement (adding something good, ex: stickers)

Negative reinforcement(taking away something bad, ex: ending a tantrum)

Decrease behavior

Punishment(adding something bad, ex: spanking)

Omission training(taking away something good, ex: grounding)

Cognition’s Influence• Learning can occur without obvious rewards;

rats will explore a maze and learn it. (But they will learn it faster if rewarded.) This is known as latent learning, learning that becomes apparent only when there is some incentive to demonstrate it. (Tolman)

• Overjustification effect: occurs when rewarding a behavior that is already enjoyed causes the loss of intrinsic interest in the behavior. You may not be rewarded for good grades because your parents want you to value the achievement not the reward.

Biological Influence

• An animal’s natural predisposition constrain its capacity for operant conditioning. People will be far more successful in training animals to do tasks they are naturally predisposed to do.

Skinner’s Legacy

• Reinforcement and training in schools (token economies)…computerized systems was Skinner’s ideal

• Reinforcers influence productivity, so in business, many allow employees to participate in company ownership and reap what they sow.

• At home, bill paying/energy conservation, parenting, personal behavior modification.

REVIEW: CLASSICAL VS. OPERANT• Whenever Allie takes are dog out for a walk, she

always wears the same blue jacket. Eventually her she sees her dog get excited every time she puts on the blue jacket.

• A successful rock bank is on tour. They play a lot of their new music, but the crowd doesn’t respond. Then when they play their old hits, the crowd goes while. They make a point to play more old hits than their new music.

• When Cindy and Mel first fell in love, they loved to listen to the music of a particular band. Now, 12 years after marriage, they still get warm, romantic feelings when they hear that same band.

BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION

• Have you ever wanted to quit a bad habit or take up a good habit? What are some effective techniques?– Reward yourself

(positive reinforcement)– Punish yourself? (Have

you ever used the nasty tasting nail polish to help you stop biting your nails?)

Social Learning Theory aka Observational learning

• SLT: Learning is purposeful and goes beyond the scope of mechanical S-R relationships. People can learn by simply watching others.

• Cognitive learning: focus is on how information is obtained, processed, and organized. What are the thought processes?– Learned helplessness: People need to know their

actions make a difference or they will give up. (This is often a cause of depression.)

Observational Learning• Behaviors we learn to mimic simply by

observing. Watch someone burn themselves, learn not to touch it.

• The process if known as modeling. Monkey see, monkey do! Modeling is a way of learning through observation and mimcry.

• Bandura’s Bobo doll experiment…You can find it on YouTube!

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdh7MngntnI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdh7MngntnI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdh7MngntnI

Observational Learning

• Anti-social models often lead to anti-social behaviors:– All states (except VT) had copy cat threat post-

Columbine– Abusive husbands often had abusive fathers as

models– Monkeys raised in aggressive environments tend

to be aggressive

Observational Learning

• Pro-social models have pro-social effects– Gandhi, Chavez, and MLK, Jr made history with

nonviolent protesting– Parents can be powerful models of pro-social

behaviorImitation of a model depends on reinforcement or

punishment of the imitator or model, and we are likely to imitate those we perceive as similar to ourselves, as successful, or as admirable.

MEMORYCHAPTER 9

You are what you remember.

• Memory is any indication that learning has persisted over time. It is our ability to store and retrieve information.

• To remember any event we must do 4 things:o Pay Attentiono Encodeo Storeo Retrieve

Model of MemoryInformation-processing model

• Sensory memory (seconds) >> encoding >> short term memory/working memory (minutes) >> encoding >> long term memory (maybe forever)

• Working memory is the more current term as it represents the action of making associations with old information.

ENCODING• Automatic processing: information encoded with

little effort, ex: remembering how to get to your next class.

• Effortful processing: information that can only be remembered with effort and attention, ex: most school work

Rehearsal is often helpful. In some cases, the rehearsal turns effortful processing into automatic. Think about what it has been like to learn to read or to drive.

Ebbinghaus’ study of learning & forgetting

• JIH• BAZ• FUB• YOX• SUJ• XIR• DAX• LEQ

• VUM• PID• KEL• WAV• TUV• ZOF• GEK• HIW

Ebbinghaus’ study of learning & forgetting

What he discovered is the amount remembered depends on the time spent learning.Even after we have learned something, additional rehearsal (over learning) increases retention.Later research reveals that learning quickly = forgetting quickly. That’s why the spacing effect is so important

Encoding. Testing is effective too! Spacing out studying and self assessment are the best for learning.• Another interesting phenomenon:

o Try to recall the list of nonsense syllables again…which do you remember?

o (You can also see this by attempting recall all of the US presidents in order

o What typically happens is we remember the beginning (primacy effect) of the list and the end (recency effect). This is known as the serial position effect.

SEMANTIC ENCODING: ENCODING

MEANING• Research shows that encoding meaning tends to

be very powerful.• When we encode meaning, remembering is much

more successful.• We can especially recall information that can be

related to ourselves: self-reference effect…this is powerful for learning psychology

• What is remembered depends on the time spent learning it and you making it meaningful.

• We remember words and phrases that lend themselves to a visual image.

• Mnemonic: visual imagery utilized to aid memory; concrete concepts are easier to visualize…think Michael Britt’s Erikson’s 8 stages Peg Word systemo One is a bun, two is a shoe, three is a tree…

• Method of loci: The mental walk; technique utilizing spacial relationships (like a map of your house) to items to be memorized (digits, names, etc.)

• Link method: Link consecutive words in a list to one another through creative, imaginative visual imagery…the more bizarre the better.

VISUAL ENCODING: ENCODING IMAGERY

TRY THIS: Use one of the above

mentioned techniques to memorize

this list• Spaghetti sauce• Rice• Cheese• Yogurt

• Milk• Eggs• Fruit• Laundry detergent• Dog food• Diapers• Hot dogs• Bread• Toilet paper• Vanilla ice cream• Cheerios • Band aids

ACOUSTIC ENCODING: ENCODING

SOUNDS• Using rhyme is very powerful in enhancing

memory.• Attorney Johnnie Cochran is famous for saying, “If

the glove doesn’t fit, you must acquit.” (Of OJ Simpson.) He didn’t say, “If the glove doesn’t fit, you must find him not guilty.”

• You put all 3 together: semantic, acoustic, and visual and you have a VERY powerful tool to enhance memory.

ORGANIZING FOR ENCODING

• Chunking: organizing information into meaningful unitso Acronyms: using the first letters to remember

something, ex: HOMES, ROY G BIVo Hierarchies: organizing information by levels

of importance, think of a flowchart, p. 327o Acrostic: using letters to make a saying/poem

STORAGE• Sensory memory: the initial recording of sensory

informationo Iconic memory: fleeting photographic memory of imageso Echoic memory: fleeting auditory memory aka: echo chamber lasts 3-4

seconds

• Working/Short-Term Memory: Has a capacity of 7 +/-2 chunks (George Miller) of information but will be lost if not actively rehearsed for encoding. STM is slightly better with information we hear than see.

STORAGE• Long-Term Memory: It is estimated that the

average adult has 1 billion bit of information in memory and the capacity for a thousand to a million times more…essentially LTM is limitless.

• Where are they?o Memories do not reside in a single place.o Most recent research suggests memories form at the

synapse with serotonin playing a significant part. Based on the research of Kandel & Schwartz observations of the learning in sea slugs. Long-term potentiation (LTP) is where increased activity at the synapse when learning occurs strengthens the potential for neural firing. The more it is used the better is works.

o Adequate sleep is necessary for cementing memories!

STORAGE• Hormones released due to stress often enhance

memories. This explains why traumatic events are so memorable. (Along with reliving/retelling of the event.) This is in direct conflict with the idea of repression!

• It has been documented that flashbulb memories can be stored & retrieved very accurately. They are not error-proof, though, especially if the stress of the event is prolonger/intense.

• The hippocampus is the primary part of the brain involved in memory in conjunction with various parts of the cerebral cortex and amygdala for emotional links.

TYPES OF MEMORY• Implicit memory: retention without conscious

recollection, procedural memory, how to…impossible to explain

• Explicit memory: memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and declare, declarative memory…easy to explain.

RETRIEVAL• Tests show we are better at relearning and

recognition than recall.• Memories cannot be accessed without the right

cues. Priming helps activate the necessary associations. We are typically not aware of the priming when it occurs.

• Context effects help in remembering by giving environmental clues. Ex: revisiting an old school. May experience déjà vu. There are a variety of theories related to explaining déjà vu.

RETRIEVAL• State-dependent memory: Though being

depressed or chemically impaired doesn’t help memory, often things that occur in that state cannot be remembered unless again in that state.

• Mood congruent: tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s current good or bad mood. This often leads to a persistent good or bad mood.

• Note p. 354, improving memory

FORGETTING• Encoding failure…never got in there in the first

place• Storage decay….lose the pathway to the

information• Retrieval failure…its in there, but you just can’t

find your way down the patho Interference: proactive interfere (forward acting) old info prevents you

from remembering something new; retroactive (backward acting is when new learning prevents you from remembering old information like me with names….I’m sorry, but it is highly likely I won’t remember your name easily next semester when I meet my new students.

IMPAIRMENT TO MEMORY

• Marijuana usage…how and why:o http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120301143424.htm

• Amnesia…impaired memoryo Patient H.M., after a surgical procedure lost necessary tissue

for forming new memories. Older memories remained intact. Learning/training can still happen in these people, but they cannot teach or explain how they learned what they know. They can still form implicit memories (skills…impossible to explain)

o Clive Waring…cannot lay down new memories but can completely recall how to play music and to conduct.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120301143424.htm


• Damage to the hippocampus often disrupts the development of explicit memory (knowledge memory, explainable). Your left and right hemispheres seem to be specialized for certain tasks so damage to one or the other has different outcomes. (verbal vs. visual)

• Lack of language development & slow to mature hippocampus are contributing factors to infantile amnesia. (We tend to not remember information prior to age 3.)


• Alzheimer’s disease: A protein plaque builds up in the brain causing the death of neurons. Alzheimer’s patients also seem to lack acetylcholine.

THINKING AND LANGUAGE

CHAPTER 10

IMPORTANCE OF LANGUAGE

• It is the most tangible indication of our thinking power.

• Humans have proudly claimed that it is language that sets us above the animals

• http://www.learner.org/vod/vod_window.html?pid=1530

http://www.learner.org/vod/vod_window.html?pid=1530

http://www.learner.org/vod/vod_window.html?pid=1530

CHARACTERISTICS OF LANGUAGE

• Phonemes: set of basic sounds• Morpheme: smallest unit of language that

carries meaning (a, -ed, it, I, -est)• Grammar: a system of rules (semantics &

syntax)– Semantics: rules we use to derive meaning

from morphemes such as adding –ed for past tense

– Syntax: rules for ordering words in sentences

CONCEPT FORMATION

• We form concepts (mental groupings of similar objects) to simplify our world. Without concepts, every item would need a unique word.

• REMEMBER: Schema, assimilation & accommodation???

• To simplify further we arrange our concepts into hierarchies.

MENTAL SET

• Is like a perceptual set except it affects problem solving. – Assume that you’re the engineer of a

passenger train. At the first station, 20 passengers get on. At the next station, 5 passengers get off and 12 get on. At the next station, 7 get off and 10 get on. At the next station, 20 passengers get off and 5 get on. At the next station, 8 passengers get off and 3 get on.

MENTAL SET

• 1. How old is the engineer of the train?• 2. How many stations were there?• 3. How many passengers are left on the

train?• 4. Altogether, how many passengers have

gotten off the train since the first station?• 5. Altogether, how many passengers have

gotten onto the train anywhere along its route?

MENTAL SET

• ANSWERS:– 1. Your age– 2. 6– 3. 15– 4. 50– 5. 65

In terms of mental set, we pay attention to only some aspects of a problem and ignore others, hence most of us missing #1. Only what we are tuned into can be processed.

PROBLEM SOLVING• Problems may be solved using trial and error• By algorithms (step-by-step procedure that

guarantees and answer)• http://www.cut-the-knot.org/recurrence/

hanoi.shtml• By heuristics (basic rules of thumb strategy)• By insight (sudden flash of insight)

– “What occurs once in every minute, twice in every moment, but never in a thousand years?”

OBSTACLES TO PROBLEM SOLVING

• Confirmation bias: eagerness for information that confirms our ideas.

• Fixation: the inability to see a problem from a different perspective

• Heuristics: – Representativeness: judge based on how

well they represent our prototypes– Availability: judge based on available

information in our memories

OBSTACLES TO PROBLEM SOLVING

• Overconfidence: tendency to over estimate the accuracy of our knowledge and judgments.

• Framing: the way an issue is presented that may influence a person, “1 in 20” has much more impact than “10 in 200.”

• Belief perseverance: tendency to cling to beliefs in the face of contrary evidence.