Learning Theories

Learning Theories

Learning To gain knowledge, understanding, or skill, by study, instruction, or experience.

Part 1 Classical Conditioning

Classical Conditioning • Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936) • Classical conditioning is a type of learning in which associations are made between a natural stimulus and a learned, neutral stimulus.

Step 1 • We begin with a natural stimulus/response pair. • No conditions are needed for this to occur. • Example: Food creates Saliva • Stimulus=Response • Classical Conditioning Terminology: • Unconditioned Stimulus: any stimulus that automatically elicits a response • Unconditioned response: a natural response to a natural stimulus Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)= Unconditioned Response (UCR) • Food (UCS) = Salivation (UCR)

Step 2 • In order for learning to occur a neutral stimulus is paired with the natural stimulus/response. • This is repeated multiple times, by doing this the subject begins to associate the two. NS+UCS=UCR • Classical Conditioning Terminology: • Neutral Stimulus (NS): a stimulus that has no effect on the response. experimenter (NS) + Food (UCS) = Salivation (UCR)

Step 3 • After being paired together multiple times the subject begins to anticipate the NS=the UCS. • And what was once neutral becomes learned or conditioned. Experimenter (CS)+ Food (UCS) = Salivation (UCR) • Terminology: • Conditioned Stimulus (CS): a stimulus that was once neutral but has become learned by associating two things together.

Step 4 • Eventually there is a response to the conditioned stimulus alone. • This makes the response a conditioned (learned) response (CR) Conditioned Stimulus (CS) = Conditioned Response (CR) experimenter (CS) = Salivation (CR) • Terminology: • Conditioned Response: a response to the learned stimulus.

Helpful Hints… • The Neutral Stimulus always becomes the Conditioned Stimulus. • NS turns into the CS • The Unconditioned response always becomes the conditioned response. • UCR turns into the CR

Key Words/People… • Acquisition: • The initial stage of learning during which a response is established and gradually strengthened. • John B. Watson • Discovered emotional conditioning. Example: Little Albert • Stimulus Generalization: • Tendency for stimuli similar to the CS to evoke a similar response • Extinction: • The diminishing of a response when, in CC an UCS does not follow a CS. • Spontaneous Recovery: • The reappearance, after a rest, of an extinguished conditioned response. • Mary Cover Jones: • Discovered that Classical conditioning could be used to rid fears and phobias.

Part Two Operant Conditioning

Operant Conditioning • B.F. Skinner (1904-1990) • Operant Conditioning: a type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by reinforcement or diminished if followed by punishment. Or actions and consequences.

Skinner Box

Key Words… • Shaping: • A procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of a desired goal. • Chaining: • Reinforcing the connection between the parts of a sequence • Punishment: • An aversive event that decreases the behavior it follows. • Discrimination: • Learning to tell the difference between two stimuli.

Reinforcement • Reinforcement: • Any event that strengthens the behavior it follows. • Primary • Secondary • Positive • Negative • Immediate • Delayed • Reinforcement Schedules • Continuous • Partial • Fixed-ratio • Variable-ratio • Fixed-interval • Variable-interval

Schedules of Reinforcement Number of responses Fixed Ratio 1000 Variable Ratio Fixed Interval 750 Rapid responding near time for reinforcement 500 Variable Interval 250 Steady responding 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 Time (minutes)

Classical Conditioning:Learning through a stimulus and response Operant Conditioning:Learning through rewards or punishments and our behavior Conditioning Comparisons:Both are learning by Association

Part 3 Social Learning

Social Learning… • Albert Bandura Social Learning: learning from the behavior of others or all learning in social situations. Observational Learning: learning by observing and imitating the behavior of others.

Bo-Bo Dolls Bandura’s experiments

Key Words… • Modeling: • The process by which a behavior is observed and imitated. -more affected by same sex models. -more affected by those we admire. • Pro-social Behavior: • Positive, constructive, helpful behavior. • The opposite of anti-social.

Part 4 Cognitive Approach

Cognitive Approach… An approach to the study of learning that emphasizes abstract mental processes and previous knowledge. • Helps explain more complex examples of learning. • Focus on how knowledge is… • Obtained • Processed • Organized

What makes it different? • Believes in cognition. • Classical conditioning and operant conditioning ignore this. • States that learning isn’t obvious • There is a big difference between learning how to do something and actually doing it.

Demonstrations of Cognition in learning… • Latent Learning: • Learning that goes on under the surface, but not obvious. • Expectancies: • Beliefs about our ability to perform an action and to get the reward. • Reinforcement Value: • Individualized preference for a certain type of reward. • Cognitive Map: • Mental image of where one is located in space. • Strategies • Methods for solving problems

Wrap-Up… • Classical Conditioning: • Learning by associating two events, a stimulus and response. • Operant Conditioning: • Learning to associate rewards and punishments with our behaviors • Social Learning: • Learning in any social situation. • Learning by watching and imitating others. • Cognitive Approach: • Learning through abstract reasoning and previous knowledge.

The End!!

Learning Theories