C81IAP: Lecture 2

Introducing Learning Theory

Jessica S. Dunn jessica.dunn@nottingham.edu.my

Overview of Learning ObjectivesDefine LearningDevelopments in Research, Principles and Theories of Learning:Behaviourist Views of Learning: Pavlov and Watson Operant Conditioning: Thorndike and SkinnerReinforcement vs. PunishmentSocial-Cognitive Theory of Learning: Observational Learning - BanduraApplications in Everyday Life

What is Learning?

To identify and understand key principles and Theories of Learning, including Classical Conditioning, Operant Conditioning, Social-Cognitive Theory and Observational Learning.

To examine examples of how Learning Theory can be applied to everyday life.

Learning:

A relatively permanent change in behaviour or mental processes as a result of practice or experience.

Learning is key to understanding everyday life. Non-psychologists often take it for granted, but...Developmental Psychologists can use it to better understand how children learn language, learn to walk and other cognitive skills.Educational Psychologists can use it to enhance the teaching and learning process; to understand special learning needs and resolve learning challenges.Social psychologists study how attitudes, phobias, social behaviours and prejudices are learned through socialisation and experiences.

This reflects a Behaviourist perspective on learning and is still regarded in mainstream psychology as a breakthrough in understanding the process of human learning.Perspective suggests that there are specific causes for behaviour. Thus the same causes should produce the same effects on behaviour.Is all behaviour automatic or predictable though?No. But, when they posit that event A causes behaviour B, what is really meant is that behaviour B is more likely to occur when event A happens.(Machado & Silva, 2004)

Behaviourism as a theory was primarily developed by B. F. Skinner. It loosely encompasses the work of pioneers like Thorndike, Tolman, Guthrie, and Hull.

In essence, three basic assumptions are held to be true. Learning is manifested by a change in behaviour. The environment shapes behaviour.

The principles of contiguity (how close in time two events must be for a bond to be formed) and reinforcement (any means of increasing the likelihood that an event will be repeated) are central to explaining the learning process. For behaviorists, learning is the acquisition of new behaviour through conditioning.

The earliest challenge to the behaviourists came in a publication in 1929 by Bode.

Bode thought Behaviourists were too dependent on overt behaviour to explain learning. They proposed looking at the patterns rather than at isolated events.

Gestalt views of learning have been incorporated into what have come to be labeled cognitive theories. Two key assumptions underlie this approach: (1) that the memory system is an active organized processor of information and (2) that prior knowledge plays an important role in learning. Cognitive theories look beyond behaviour to explain brain-based learning.

Constructivism - learning is a process in which the learner actively constructs or builds new ideas or concepts based upon current and past knowledge or experience. Here learning is viewed as a very personal endeavour, whereby internalized concepts, rules, and general principles may consequently be applied in a practical real-world context. (Driver et al., 1994)Related to structuralism.

The history of science and its many achievements provide evidence that this approach is worth taking on board.Why study behaviour if there are no causes to our actions? Pointless...Assuming that there is a cause-and-effect dynamic in behaviour, provides hope that the behaviour of people and animals can be predicted, understood, improved upon and even possibly changed through further research and practice.

Learning - relatively permanent change in behaviour or mental processes resulting from practice or experience.

Conditioning - process of learning associations between environmental stimuli and behavioural responses.

Behaviour Potential - once something is learned, an organism should be able to exhibit a change in behaviour that indicates learning has occurred.

Learning is exhibited by "performance" of a corresponding behaviour.

This means that behaviour changes that are temporary or due to things like drugs, alcohol etc are not "learned".

Classical Conditioning Operant Conditioning Cognitive-Social Learning Observational Learning

Classical Conditioning is Associative Learning i.e. Learning that two events are related or linked.

Classical Conditioning is learning that occurs when a neutral stimulus (NS) becomes paired (associated) with an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) to elicit a conditioned response.

Neutral Stimulus (NS): stimulus that, before conditioning, doesnt naturally bring about a response of interest. Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS): stimulus that elicits an UCR occurring without previous conditioning.Unconditioned Response (UCR): unlearned (automatic) reaction to an Unconditioned stimulus occurring without prior conditioning

Conditioned Stimulus (CS): is a previously NS that, through repeated pairings with an UCS, now causes a CR

Conditioned Response (CR): is a learned reaction to a CS occurring because of previous repeated pairings with an UCS

ReflexesAutomatic stimulus-response connections that are hardwired into the brain.

Example: Accidentally touching the fire on a lit stove and feeling the heat and possibly pain from burning skin.

Classical Conditioning: associative learning that occurs when a neutral stimulus (NS) becomes paired (associated) with an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) to elicit a conditioned response (CR)

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Conditioned Emotional Response (CER): Watson demonstrated how emotions can be classically conditioned to a previously neutral stimulus (NS).

John B. Watson

This demonstrated that an originally neutral stimulus when combined with an unconditioned noxious (unpleasant) stimulus can become a conditioned (learned) stimulus (trigger) that evokes a conditioned emotional response.

Watson and Rayner (1920, 2000) proved that our fears can be classically conditioned.CS (White Rat)UCS(Loud Noise)CER(Fear)

So now we understand the basics of Classical conditioning, it is important that we understand its related principles.

These include:Stimulus Generalization Stimulus DiscriminationExtinctionSpontaneous Recovery

Stimulus Generalization: learned emotional responses to stimuli that are similar to the original conditioned stimuli (CS)

ALL Snakes bite!

Stimulus Discrimination: learned response to a specific stimulus, but not to other, similar stimuli.

Here, we learn to distinguish between original and similar stimuli.Now I know that some snakes are nice!

Classical Conditioning, like all learning, is only relatively permanent. (Huffman, 2000)

This means our responses can be weakened or suppressed over time with further learning, development and maturity.

This process is known as Extinction.

Extinction doesnt mean that classical conditioning has been reversed. Simply means that we no longer respond to the stimulus in the same way.

Extinction: gradual weakening or suppression of a previously conditioned response (CR)

Spontaneous Recovery: reappearance of a previously extinguished conditioned response (CR)

A baby is bitten by a dog and is afraid of all small animals, this is an example of_______?

If you wanted to get Little Albert to fear lollipops, you would present him with a lollipop and______?

Operant Conditioning:learning in which voluntary responses are controlled by their consequences

Operant conditioning is the use of a behaviour's antecedent and/or its consequence to influence the occurrence and form of behaviour.

Operant conditioning deals with the modification of "voluntary behaviour" or operant behaviour which is maintained by its consequences ANDClassical conditioning deals with the conditioning of reflex behaviours which are elicited by antecedent conditions.

Thorndikes Contribution

Was interested in the probability of an action being repeated is strengthened when followed by a pleasant or satisfying consequence.

Consequences of behaviour produce changes in the probability of the behaviours recurrence.

Here, the association is between a RESPONSE and its CONSEQUENCES

Thorndikes Law of EffectBehaviours followed by positive outcomes are strengthened, whereas behaviors followed by negative outcomes are weakened.This is called S-R theory because the organisms behaviour is due to a connection between a stimulus and a response.

B.F SKINNERbelieved that mechanisms for learning are the same for all species.

Positive reinforcementThe frequency of a response increases because it is followed by a rewarding stimulus

Negative reinforcementThe frequency of a response increases because it is followed by the removal of an aversive (unpleasant) stimulus

Burrhus Frederic Skinners Contribution

Conducted systematic research using a Skinner box

BehaviourConsequence

Could automatically detect the occurrence of a behavioural response or action through a response lever; if the subject pressed the lever, the opposite end would move and flick a switch, monitored by a computer or other programmed device.

Chamber then delivers a primary reinforcer or unconditioned stimulus like food (usually pellets) or water and it registers the delivery of a conditioned reinforcer.

This allowed Skinner to explore and track the subjects rate of response to the reinforcer.

Reinforcement: process of strengthening a response

Primary Reinforcers: normally satisfy an unlearned biological need (e.g., food)

Secondary Reinforcers: learned value (e.g., money, praise)

Positive Reinforcement:adding (or presenting) a stimulus, which strengthens a response and makes it more likely to recur (e.g., praise)

Negative Reinforcement: taking away (or removing) a stimulus, which strengthens a response and makes it more likely to recur (e.g., headache removed after taking an aspirin)

Shaping: teaches a desired response by reinforcing a series of successively improving steps that eventually lead to the desired response.

Example: Driving a manual/standard shift car. We learn step by step and our driving instructor may only give praise when you master each skill.

Positive Punishment: adding (or presenting) a stimulus that weakens a response and makes it less likely to recur (e.g. shouting)

Negative Punishment: taking away (or removing) a stimulus that weakens a response and makes it less likely to recur (e.g. restriction)

Positive RPositive PNegative RNegative P

Satiation/Deprivation: The effect of a consequence will be reduced if the individual's "appetite" for that source of stimulation has been satisfied.

- Likewise it may increase as the individual becomes deprived of that stimulus. Example: If someone is not hungry, food will not be an effective reinforcer for behaviour.

Immediacy: After a response, how immediately a consequence is then felt determines the effectiveness of the consequence. More immediate feedback will be more effective than less immediate feedback.

Example: If someone's license plate is caught by a traffic camera for speeding and they receive a speeding ticket in the mail a week later, this consequence will not be very effective against speeding. What happens if they are caught in the act by an officer who pulls them over?

Contingency: If a consequence does not reliably, or consistently follow the target response, its effectiveness upon the response is reduced. But, if a consequence follows the response consistently after successive instances, its ability to modify the response is increased. - The schedule of reinforcement, when consistent, leads to faster learning. When the schedule is variable the learning is slower.

Size: If the size, or amount, of the consequence is large enough to be worth the effort, the consequence will be more effective upon the behaviour.

Example: An unusually large cash prize (RM$1M) might be enough to get someone to attempt to climb the mountains at Kota Kinabalu in under 6 hours, but if the reward is small (RM300), the same person might not feel it to be worth the effort of physical training, driving out, and gearing up to mountain climb. In this example, it's also useful to note that "effort could be regarded as a punishing consequence.

Activity

Challenged behaviourist ideals. Emphasizes the roles of thinking and social learning in behaviour

Khlers chimps demonstrated insight learning (sudden understanding of a problem that implies the solution).

Tolmans rats built a cognitive map (a mental image of a three-dimensional space).

They also displayed latent learning (hidden learning that exists without behavioural signs).

Learning new behaviours or information by watching others.

E.g. Bandura's Famous Bobo Doll study to demonstrate learned aggression in kids.

Bandura hoped that the experiments would prove that aggression can be explained, at least in part, by social learning theory.

Aggressive adult model scenario (24 children) Same-sex adult model Different-sex adult model Non-aggressive adult model (24 children)Same-sex adult model Different-sex adult model

Control Group (24 children)

Attention we must be watching to learnRetention involves mentally noting and remembering the information (storing it in memory)Motor Reproduction we need to utilize and develop the motor skills required to imitate the model.Reinforcement we are drawn to the idea of modelling behaviour that is reinforced.

How do advertisers exploit psychological learning theory to make you feel passion and loyalty toward their products?

Boeree, C.G. (2006). Personality Theories: Albert Bandura. Retrieved October 6, 2010 from the world wide web: http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/bandura.htmlGerrig, R.J. and Zimbardo, P.G. (2010). Psychology and Life. Boston: Pearson. (Chapter 6).Huffman, K. (2005). Living Psychology. Hoboken, N.J.:John Wiley. (Chapter 6)Huffman, K. (2007). Psychology in Action, 8th Ed. MA: John Wiley and Sons Inc.

Bandura, A., Ross, D., & Ross, S. A. (1961). Transmission of aggression through imitation of aggressive models. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 63, 575-582.

Hart, K.E. (2006). Critical Analysis of an Original Writing on Social Learning Theory: Imitation of Film-Mediated Aggressive Models By: Albert Bandura, Dorothea Ross and Sheila A.Ross (1963). Retrieved October 6, 2010 from http://www.nationalforum.com/Electronic%20Journal%20Volumes/Hart,%20Karen%20E,%20Imitation%20of%20Film-Mediated%20Aggressive%20Models.pdf

Isom, M.D. (1998). Albert Bandura: The Social Learning Theory. Retrieved October 6, 2010 from the world wide web: http://www.criminology.fsu.edu/crimtheory/bandura.htmSharon & Woolley 2004). Do Monsters Dream? Young Childrens Understanding of the Fantasy/Reality Distinction. Journal of Developmental Psychology, 22, 293-310. Worthman, C., & Loftus, E. (1992). Psychology: McGraw-Hill: New York.

This ranges from learning to speak a language; use a knife and fork, a spoon or chopsticks for eating to learning how to design a piece of machinery (in the case of an engineer).We learn both good and bad habits e.g Good: picking something up on the floor that another person beside us has dropped without realising it to our bad habits: like prejudice, racism.

The good news is though that, although we regard this as permanent change, it can be unlearned. New knowledge that we acquire can reverse the impact that old knowledge has on our behaviour.N11130 AISL1 Intro*Dewey, Bode and Gestalt*Medication, reflexes*N11130 AISL1 Intro*N11130 AISL1 Intro*N11130 AISL1 Intro*N11130 AISL1 Intro*Satiation is generally only a potential problem with primary reinforcers, those that do not need to be learned such as food and water.*Speeding behaviour is more likely to be affected.*Extinction is more difficult when learning occurs during intermittent reinforcement and more easily extinguished when learning occurs during a highly consistent schedule.*This is a "cost-benefit" determinant of whether a consequence will be effective in changing behaviour through learning. How these opposing expected consequences (reinforcing and punishing) balance out will determine whether the behaviour is performed or not.*eliminates tedious trial and error learning**