AP PsychologyUnit: LearningBy Timothy D. Bradley, Jr.

Learning• How do classical and operant

conditioning each explain learning?• What impact does the cognitive

process have on learning?

Classical Conditioning

EQ: How is behavior affected by classical and operant conditioning?

Vocabulary

• Learning• Unconditioned• Conditioned• Stimulus• Response• Generalization• Extinction• Spontaneous Recovery• Higher-Order Conditioning• Taste Aversion

Learning The modification through experience of preexisting behavior and understanding

Habituation The process of adapting to stimuli that do not change.

Dishabituation The reappearance of your original response when a stimulus changes

Sensitization Increase in responsiveness to a stimuli

Define the Terms

Unconditioned Stimuli

Unconditioned Response

Neutral Stimuli

Conditioned Stimuli

Conditioned Response

Pavlov’s Experiment(Identify the Parts)

Unconditioned Stimuli

Unconditioned Response

Neutral Stimuli

Conditioned Stimuli

Conditioned Response

Pavlov’s Dog

Watson’s Experiment(Identify the Parts)

Unconditioned Stimuli

Unconditioned Response

Neutral Stimuli

Conditioned Stimuli

Conditioned Response

Generalization and Discrimination• Stimulus Generalization: A phenomenon in which a conditioned

response is elicited by stimuli that are similar but not identical to the conditioned stimulus

• Stimulus Discrimination: A process through which individuals learn to differentiate among similar stimuli and respond appropriately to each one

In pairs, complete CTA-Steps in Classical Cond.

Unconditioned Stimuli

Unconditioned Response

Neutral Stimuli

Conditioned Stimuli

Conditioned Response

Figure 6.5 Idealized curve of acquisition, extinction, and spontaneous recovery The rising curve shows that the CR rapidly grows stronger as the CS and US are repeatedly paired (acquisition), then weakens as the CS is presented alone (extinction). After a pause, the CR reappears (spontaneous recovery).

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Extinction and Spontaneous Recovery

Garcia and Koelling (1966) Study

NS UCS Learned (CR)

Food, Light, & Clicker Shock Avoid Light (CS) and Clicker (CS)

Food, Light, & Clicker Radiation (nausea) Avoid Food (CS)

• Biological preparedness: tendency of animals to learn certain associations, such as taste and nausea with only a few pairings due to the survival value of the learning.• Disproved Pavlov’s ideas concerning one trial learning,

close temporal proximity, & equipotentiality.

Learned Taste Aversions

• A.k.a The Garcia Effect• When it comes to food being

paired with sickness, the conditioning is incredible strong.• Even when food and sickness

are hours apart.• Food must be salient

(noticeable.)

Are there any foods that you cannot eat or could not eat at one time due to food poisoning or some other sickness that you had at the time?

Aversion Therapy• A form of behavior therapy in which an aversive

(causing a strong feeling of dislike or disgust) stimulus is paired with an undesirable behavior in order to reduce or eliminate that behavior. • Unpleasant sensations are associated with

behavior, and behavior decreases or stops. • Differs from principles of operant conditioning. • In operant therapy, the aversive stimulus, usually

called punishment, is presented after the behavior rather than together with it.

Operant Conditioning

EQ: How is behavior affected by classical and operant conditioning?

Review and Preview

Vocabulary

• Positive Reinforcement• Negative Reinforcement• Punishment• Discrimination• Shaping • Chaining• Fixed Ratio• Variable Ratio• Fixed Interval• Variable Interval

Edward Thorndike’s Puzzle Box

Law of Effect: If an action is followed by a pleasurable consequence , it will be repeated, and if followed by an unpleasant consequence, it will not be repeated.

Instrumental Conditioning: Responses are strengthened when they are instrumental in producing a reward

B.F. Skinner

Operant Conditioning: The focus is on the effect of consequences on voluntary (operant) behavior.

Reinforcement

Primary Reinforcer

Secondary Reinforcer(Token Economy)

Operant Conditionin

g

Reinforcement and Punishment

Big Bang Theory: Operant Conditioning

Find the Mistake

Mistake Explained

Partial Reinforcement Schedule

FIXED VARIABLE

RATIO(# of Occurrences)

INTERVAL(Passage of Time)

Partial Reinforcement Schedule

Figure 6.13 Intermittent reinforcement schedules Skinner’s laboratory pigeons produced these response patterns to each of four reinforcement schedules. (Reinforcers are indicated by diagonal marks.) For people, as for pigeons, reinforcement linked to number of responses (a ratio schedule) produces a higher response rate than reinforcement linked to amount of time elapsed (an interval schedule). But the predictability of the reward also matters. An unpredictable (variable) schedule produces more consistent responding than does a predictable (fixed) schedule.

© 2011 by Worth Publishers

Operant Conditioning at Work

Activator

•Other that through classical and operant conditioning, how else does one learn?

Cognitive Factors in Learning

EQ: How is behavior affected by cognitive learning?

Vocabulary

• Latent learning• Cognitive Map (Mental Map)• Insight• Learned Helplessness• Observational Learning• Albert Bandura• Edward Tolman• Wolfgang Kohler• Martin Seligman

Cognitive Maps and Latent Learning

• Edward Tolman’s Maze Study• Latent Learning: learning that remains hidden until its

application becomes useful• Challenged Skinner’s Theory (How?)• Cognitive/Mental Maps: Mental representations people

rely on to understand complex patters.• Examples???

Kohler’s Insight Learning

• How were the chimpanzees able to demonstrate insight?• Insight: a sudden

“coming together” of all elements of a problem in a kin of “aha” moment• Example of insight

learning

Seligman’s Learned Helplessness

• Martin Seligman’s (founder of positive psychology)• Dog Study: Original intent was to study escape or avoidance learning• Related it to Depression

Definition: Failure to continue exerting effort for an outcome because all previous attempts have failed

Albert Bandura and Observational Learning

Observational Learning: learning new behavior by watching a model perform that behaviorModeled: imitated the behavior that was observed

Cognitive Differences: Humans and ChimpanzeesAccording to the video, how does the learning behavior differ between human children and chimpanzees?