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PSY 445: Learning & Memory
Chapter 1: Introduction
Origins of the Study of Learning
Epistemology Evolution Contemporary Influences
Epistemology
The branch of philosophy concerned with the theory of knowledge, which seeks to inform us how we can know the world
What distinguishes true knowledge from false knowledge?
Evolution
Charles’s Darwin’s idea of how organisms change of generations in order to better adapt to the environment they are exposed to
Evolutionary PsychologyThese psychologists study ways in which adaptation and natural selection are connected with mental processesMen and women by nature must differ in their optimal mating behaviorsWomen must be highly selective because they are biologically limited in the number of children they can bear and raise in a lifetimeMen can father an unlimited number of children and ensure their reproductive success by inseminating many women
Contemporary Influences
Biological Preparedness The idea that people and animals are inherently
inclined to form associations between certain stimuli and responses
This concept plays an important role in learning, particularly in understanding the classical conditioning processSome associations form easily because we are
predisposed to form such connections, while other associations are much more difficult to form because we are not naturally predisposed to form them
Are all these phobias biologically innate?
To have a fear of:
Clowns Darkness Planes Heights Guns Open spaces The # 13 or the # 666 Bacteria Strangers
Definition of Learning
Learning A relatively permanent change in behavior
brought about by experience
Distinguishes between maturation and experience
Distinguishes between short-term changes in performance and actual learning
Behavior Repertoire
All behaviors that might be performed Potential vs. actual changes in behavior
Behavior Repertoire
Bandura, Ross, & Ross (1963)ProcedurePhase 1
Pre-schoolers were divided into two groups and put into two separate rooms and allowed to play with "attractive" toys while “Bobo” an unattractive inflatable, adult-sized, egg-shaped balloon creature (the kind that bounces back after it's been knocked down) sat by itself at the far end of the rooms
The “Bobo" Doll Experiment
Behavior Repertoire
ProcedurePhase 2
Group 1: While playing with the attractive toys the children witnessed adults enter the room and start beating the daylights out of the clown
Group2: While playing with the attractive toys the children witnessed adults enter the room and play nicely with Bobo
Phase 3 The attractive toys were
taken away from each group
Bandura, Ross, & Ross (1963)
Behavior Repertoire
ResultsChildren modeled violent behavior and even added to itPicked up toy weapons, etc.
Bandura, Ross, & Ross (1963)
Behavior Repertoire
ProcedureIn the 1965, version kids watched films of adults beating on Bobo – but each had different endings…Film 1:
Adult praised and rewarded with candy and soda by another adult who was heard saying, “You’re a strong champion”
Film 2: Adult is scolded by another adult, “You’re very bad” or
“Hey there, you big bully, you quit picking on that clown” Bandura (1965)
Bobo Doll Replication
Behavior Repertoire
ResultsInitial difference between groupsThis difference disappeared when incentives were offered
InterpretationAggressive behaviors had entered the behavior repertoire of each group; even though they were not initially displayed by the scolded group Bandura (1965)
Bobo Doll Replication
Some caveats in the study of learning…
Inseparable interplay between biology and environment Attribution of behavior changes to a specific cause is difficult Interaction of the two makes interpretation difficult
Learning and Maturation Distinction The two seem to coexist and interact with one another Difficult to tell where one leaves off and the other begins
Gesell & Thompson (1929)Procedure Infant twins (one practiced stair climbing; the other no practice) ; 4
weeks Week 5 both practicedResults No difference by the end of Week 5 Interpretation Maturation not learning
The Learning/Performance Distinction
There is not always a one-to-one correspondence between what the organism knows and what the organism does
Tolman & Honzik (1930)
Procedure Took three groups of rats and had them run a maze
Group 1: Reinforced every time they found their way out of the maze (food box) for several days
Group 2: Never reinforced (no food at the end) Group 3: Reinforced only after several days into
the experiment
The Learning/Performance Distinction
Tolman & Honzik (1930)Results Group 3 began running just as fast as Group 1 InterpretationGroup 3 had the behavior repertoire However, learning remained latent at first
The relationship between learning and memory…
Learning Acquiring knowledge or behavior
Memory Retaining or recalling the knowledge or
behavior
Acquisition Retention
The relationship between learning and memory…
Measurement Learning
Learning Curve Memory
Forgetting Curve
The relationship between learning and memory…
Keppel (1964)
ProcedureDistributed practice (spacing of study trials) vs. massed practice (study trials in succession)
ResultsMassed practice was better for learning (acquisition)Spacing was better memory (retention)
Results
More Issues…
Schmidt & Bjork (1992) Measured differently but there is a
connection They argue that the effectiveness of learning
is revealed by the level of retention shown
Basic and Applied Research
Basic Research An interest in understanding the
fundamental processes of learning and memory
Applied Research Relevant to solving specific practical
problems
Common sense and common knowledge…
Houston (1983)Procedure & ResultsAcademic setting: UCLA undergrads given real world situations involving learning principles; students correctly predicted 75% of theseNaturalistic setting: people in a park were given the same real world situations and correctly predicted 75% of these Interpretation: We may be teaching the obvious; all you need is common sense
Common sense and common knowledge…
Klatzky (1984)Memory Myths
Distorted beliefs about amnesia – always a loss of one’s identity; happens a lot
Memory can be improved by training Hypnosis is effective in uncovering
hidden memories that are otherwise inaccessible
Forgetting is a weakness
Conceptual approaches to the study of learning…
The Functional ApproachStudies how learning and remembering aid survivalThe Behavioral ApproachEmphasizes the relationship between observable behaviors and the antecedent stimuli that precede the behavior as well as the consequences that follow the behavior
Conceptual approaches to the study of learning…
The Cognitive ApproachProposes that an organism is said to form an internal representation that is used as the basis for further processing or for guiding behaviorInformation-processing approach to the mindComputer models are usedThe Neuroscience ApproachThis approach seeks to determine the underlying biological basis for learning and memory
Credits
Some slides of this presentation prepared with the help of the following websites: www.health.bcu.ac.uk/webmodules/.../Epistemology.ppt http://cmweb.pvschools.net/[email protected]/
FOV2-0003C700/FOV2-0003D488/AP%20Psy%20Ch3.ppt?FCItemID=S02351D01&Plugin=Box#349,17,Sexuality Why do women’s and men’s sexuality differ?
http://psychology.about.com/od/bindex/g/biological-preparedness.htm
stmaryspsyweb.files.wordpress.com/.../biological-explanations...
www.pathiggins.net/psychweb/w2learninghig.ppt