Pavlovian conditioning

the type of learning, named after Pavlov, in which one event signals another and enables us to predict what will happen in the environment

Operant (or instrumental) conditioning

we can choose to respond to environmental events, but our behavior is still modified by its consequences, that is, we are more or less likely to respond because of what we get for responding.

Learning

A relatively permanent change in behavior as the result of experience ○ Our ability to learn to associate two different events is innate

Reflexes

automatic and simple responses

Pavlov's Classical Conditioning Experiment

stimuluses became associated with food for dogs, causing them to salivate. He created an experiment which created a conditioned response when he fed the dogs food and played sounds of a metronome, even when the food was taken away and the metronome was played, they would salivate

Stimulus

an event in the situation tells us about our environment and what to do

Neutral stimulus

a type of stimulus which has no meaning when conditioning starts; the stimulus does not indicate whether the unconditional stimulus will occur

Conditional stimulus (CS)

an event in Pavlovian conditioning that requires learning to be meaningful and is only meaningful because the event tells us something about the unconditional stimulus

Conditional response (CR)

a learned response that occurs to the conditional stimulus in preparation for the unconditional stimulus

Unconditional stimulus (UCS)

a type of stimulus in Pavlovian conditioning in which a biologically important event requires no conditioning to affect our behavior

Unconditional response (UCR)

a type of response in Pavlovian conditioning in which a biologically important response occurs because of an unconditional stimulus

Acquisition phase

generally the first phase of learning when the conditional stimulus (CS) is presented just before an unconditional stimulus (UCS)

Extinction

occurs when we learn that the unconditional stimulus (UCS) no longer follows the acquired conditioned stimulus (CS), causing the CS to lose some of its power over our behavior

Spontaneous recovery

when a conditional stimulus is presented alone after a rest period and it elicits a conditional response

Behaviorism

an approach to science that focuses on how we learn new behaviors and how those behaviors change across different situations

Little Albert

an experiment where a 9 month old was shown a variety of animals and objects. Albert was not afraid of them and seemed to like the rat. Watson and his graduate student, Rosalie Rayner, then made little Albert afraid by striking an iron bar with a hammer in the presence of a white rat. The loud, unexpected noise made little Albert cry. After several rat-loud noise pairings, Little Albert would start crying at just the sight of the white rat, the rat signaled the loud noise.

Stimulus generalization

when other stimuli that are not the conditional stimulus can elicit a conditional response

Stimulus discrimination

responding differently to different events • Its the opposite of stimulus generalization

Appetitive stimuli

pleasant stimuli such as freshly baked cookies and romantic partners

Aversive stimuli

unpleasant stimuli such as spoiled food and extremely hot surfaces

Evaluative conditioning

When we associate pleasant and unpleasant stimuli (UCS) with other people and objects (CS), which changes how we feel about those previously neutral people/objects

Higher-order conditioning

a neutral stimulus is paired with a conditional stimulus that reliably elicits the conditional response, such as a celebrity

Operant conditioning

describes situations where we learn that our behavior has consequences • Conger and Killeen found that people spent more time in conversation with partners who provided more supportive rather than fewer supportive comments

Instrumental learning

the process of interacting with some response option that has an effect on the environment-- why operant conditioning is also called instrumental conditioning

Edward L. Thorndike

studied how cats escaped from puzzle boxes

Thorndike's Law of Effect

Behaviors that yield satisfying consequences (stamping in) are more likely to recur. Behaviors that result in discomfort (stamping out) are less likely to be repeated

radical behaviorism

the philosophy of science that treats thinking and feeling the same as any other behavior

Antecedents

anything in the physical environment that tells us something about the consequences of our actions. Other people, inanimate objects, and signs are some of the many potential stimuli that we encounter every day

Behavior

anything that we can do that is affected by the environment, can also be repeated, and counted. Any behavior simply controlled by physics doesn't count by our definition. Sitting still or falling down are not behaviors, but raising your hand for attention or turning a door handle are examples

Consequences

stimuli that can increase or decrease the probability of future behavior. They are events that happen after and because of a response

Reinforcement

when behavior produces this consequence, that behavior will occur in the future

Punishment

when behavior produces this consequence, then that behavior will not continue to occur in the future

Contingencies

If-then rule; if you do this (behavior), then that will happen (consequence)

Positive reinforcement

behavior produces a consequence and that behavior will continue to occur in similar situations in the future

Negative reinforcement

behavior removes a consequence and makes your response more likely in the future

Positive punishment

behavior produces a consequence, and then your response will not continue to occur in similar situations in the future

Negative punishment

behavior removes a consequence and makes your response less likely in the future

Escape

an operant conditioning procedure in which something you want to stop is happening, your response makes it stop, and you are more likely to respond similarly in the future

Avoidance

an operant conditioning procedure in which something you don't want to happen will happen if you don't respond, so you respond to prevent it. Your response is more likely under similar conditions in the future.

Extinction

behavior which was previously reinforced now produces no consequence and goes away; the response is not reinforced and decreases

Three behavioral effects of extinction

1. Temporary increase in responding-- an extinction burst 2. Emotional and aggressive responding 3. Responding eventually stops

Target behavior

a type of behavior, specifically, the response in which we're interested

Frequency

number of times a response occurs

Duration

amount of time behavior occurs

Intensity

the magnitude or how big a response is along some physical dimension

Partial reinforcement extinction effect

an effect in which behavior reinforced only occasionally lasts longer without consequence than behavior reinforced every time when consequences are no longer available

Shaping

an operant conditioning procedure to generate new behavior in which you get new responses by breaking down a complex response into smaller steps and reinforcing responses that look more and more like the final form and no longer reinforcing earlier approximations • Most obvious use of shaping is in training service animals • To teach complex motor movements such as dance, golf, and yoga

Schedules of reinforcement

a description in words and numbers of how and when we'll learn reinforcers - Most of what we know about schedules of reinforcements comes from Ferster and Skinner, who found that these orderly patterns of behavior exist for all intermittent reinforcement schedules

Continuous reinforcement

when a response is reinforced every time

Intermittent reinforcement

only some responses are reinforced

Fixed ratio

a specific number of responses is required to receive reinforcement

Variable ratio

the required number of responses changes with each trial

Fixed interval

In psychology, a fixed interval refers to a schedule of reinforcement where a reward is given after a set amount of time has passed, regardless of the number of responses made during that time.

Variable interval

reinforcement schedule in which a response is rewarded after an unpredictable amount of time has passed, producing a steady and consistent rate of behavior.

Sort the intermittent schedules of reinforcement in order from lowest to highest rate of responding

1. Fixed interval 2. Variable interval 3. Fixed ratio 2 and above 4. Variable ratio

Cognitive Perspective of Learning

Behaviorism has expanded to reintroduce mental events to the study of behavior, and this tradition of hypothesizing unobservable causes for behavior continues today

Edward Tolman

psychologist who felt that explanations for behavior should include more than environmental stimuli and publicly observable behavior, and he is credited with the establishment of cognitive psychology • His approach to studying behavior is called mediational neobehaviorism, or operational behaviorism

Latent learning

learning that we can't see until we're motivated to show it; that is, there is no change in our performance until we receive a reward

Albert Bandura

departed from a strict methodological behavioral orientation and discovered a new type of learning--one different from either Pavlovian or operant conditioning--based on studies he conducted with kindergarten students

Social learning

also known as observational learning, we understand what to do by watching others

Imitation

a phase of social learning in which a model demonstrates behavior, and an observer copies it

Bandura's classic study

observational learning showed that children who observed an adult aggressively interact with a Bobo doll were more aggressive and engaged in new aggressive behavior toward the doll more than a children who observed an adult gently playing with the doll or the control children who were not exposed to an adult model interacting with a Bobo doll.

Attentional phase

we must notice the model's behavior. Additionally, we are more likely to imitate the model when we like and respect that person. Sometimes children with autism spectrum disorder have trouble with this phase, so they don't always benefit from social learning

retention phase

we think about performing the model's actions ourselves

production phase

we actually perform the model's actions

motivational phase

our imitated behavior produces the same reward that the model earned. If we earn the same reward that we thought we would, we're more likely to repeat this behavior in the future

biological preparedness

the result in which some events serve as better signals or conditional stimuli than others due to evolution. ex) fear goes with dangerous, not safe stimuli

Learned helplessness

experiencing an aversive situation, you can't control prevents you from learning to control other aversive situations

Pavlovian learning

also known as classical conditioning, is a type of learning process where an individual develops an involuntary response to a given stimulus.

3 characteristics of all learning processes

- Relatively permanent - Change in behavior or mental processes (eventually) - Occurs from our interactions with the environment

reflex

a stimulus triggers a response

Excitatory conditioning

signals the unconditional stimulus ○ Short-delayed and long-delayed conditioning ○ Trace conditioning

Inhibitory conditioning

signals no unconditional stimulus ○ Simultaneous conditioning ○ Backward conditioning

Signal Strength

Strong signal strength leads to faster learning. Ex) a dog that ALWAYS bites vs a dog that SOMETIMES bites

Predictability

UCS and CS must reliably appear together to best predict learning. Ex) A dog that ALWAYS bites vs a dog that SOMETIMES bites

Attention

whether or not you actually are paying attention to the stimulus will affect the learning of conditioned responses

Pavlovian Taste Aversion Learning

• Conditional stimulus that occurs a few hours before the unconditional stimulus • Effective only with taste or flavor conditioning

fear hierarchy

when a client ranks what produces the most fear to the least

relaxation technique

client learns to use and practice techniques to use with the items in the fear hierarchy, working from the least to the most fear-provoking

antecedent

environmental stimuli that set the occasion to respond

consequence

events that modify future behavior

reinforcers

events that follow behavior and increase the future likelihood of that behavior

Primary reinforcers

events that you'll work for without prior conditioning (ex. food, water, activity, warmth)

secondary reinforcers

events that you'll work for only after prior conditioning (ex. tokens, stickers, passing grades)

Generalized conditioned reinforcers

secondary reinforcers that have been paired with multiple events (ex. money and social approval)

Which of the following correctly describes the sequence of steps involved in the Observational Learning process according to Albert Bandura?

1. Attentional, 2. retention, 3. production, 4. motivational

cognitive map

a mental representation that allows you to mentally walk through a place