Types of Learning

• Behaviorists’ Style• Classical conditioning• Operant conditioning• Observational learning

• Learning is a relatively permanent change.• Mental activity is irrelevant and unknowable

(‘30s-50s)

Other Classical Conditioning: Examples

• Sound of a dentist’s drill: sweaty palms

• Smell of mom’s laundry: smiling

• Sight of certain restaurant: nausea

• Noise of a can opener: cat comes running

• Smell of a hospital: weakened immunity

How does this happen?

Classical Conditioning

• Discovered (accidentally) by Ivan Pavlov (‘20s)

Pavlov’s Observation• Studied digestion in dogs• Noticed something out of the

ordinary.

• Components– Unconditioned Stimulus (US)– Unconditioned Response (UR)– Conditioned Stimulus (CS)– Conditioned Response (CR)

Pavlov’s Experiment: Phase 1• Before Conditioning • Food (US) salivation (UR)

– Reflexive (or natural) response. UNlearned

• Tone (CS) nothing (CR)

Pavlov’s Experiment: Phase 2

• CS is repeatedly paired with the US– A tone is sounded before the food is

presented

Pavlov’s Experiment: Phase 3

• Eventually, the CS elicits a new CR– Hearing the tone by itself causes salivation

Demonstration

Pre-test: I say “Pavlov”How much do you drool?

Acquisition: I say “Pavlov” Eat a piece of smarties

Test: I say “Pavlov -test trial” No smarties; How much do you drool?

Classical Conditioning• Our demo

– Unconditioned Stimulus (US)?– Smartie

– Unconditioned Response?– Salivate to candy

– Conditioned Stimulus?– “Pavlov!”

– Conditioned Response?– Salivate to Pavlov

Classical Conditioning

• Stimulus generalization

• Stimulus discrimination

Classical Conditioning

• Terms to check:

• Acquisition

• Extinction– Pavlov test trials

• Reacquisition or Spontaneous recovery

Time to learn:

• Generally people show CC after 10-15 trials.

• OCD after 3-5 trials.• Autism condition faster.• If you encourage the association.• The more predictable the association,

the stronger the response.

Classical Conditioning Applied

• Drug overdoses• Smoking: environmental cues• Systematic desensitization• Advertising:

Advertisers

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Other associations

• Weather forecasters receive hate mail.

• “Tupperware!” rather than “Bingo!”

• Politicians holding babies.

• Dirty by association: would you eat off a clean toilet brush?

• Guilty by association.

Higher Order Conditioning

• Ex: Clap my hands and say “Pavlov” and test your response to my clapping hands

• Pair CS1 with a new CS2

• CS2: CR• But, CR will be weaker

CTA: single trial• More likely with foods that are less familiar to

us.• More likely if the illness corresponds with time it

takes to digest. • Positive correlation b/w the intensity of the

illness, and intensity of the learned response.• Complexities can occur i.e. smoking, drinking.

– Very familiar (other associations already formed)– Blame on nausea producing pills.

Operant Learning

• Law of Effect

• Positive ReinforcerQuickTime™ and a

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Types of Learning

• Classical Conditioning• Operant Conditioning• Observational learning

Operant Conditioning: Examples

• Tantrums are punished: fewer tantrums

• Tantrums bring attention: more tantrums

• Slot machine pays out: gamble more

• Reward dog for sitting: dog is likely to sit

How does this happen?

Operant Conditioning

• Law of Effect: actions that have positive outcomes are likely repeated

• Skinner box chamber with a bar or key that an animal

manipulates to obtain food or water as reinforcer

• Shaping reinforcers guide behavior toward closer

approximations of a desired goal

Operant Conditioning: Principles

• Reinforcement– Positive reinforcement– Negative reinforcement

• Punishment– Positive punishment– Negative punishment

Negative Reinforcement?!

• The words “positive” and “negative” are not used as in ‘good’ or ‘bad’, but rather mathematically “add” or “subtract”

• Therefore Negative reinforcement - takes something away to reinforce behavior

• Reinforcement increases the chances the behavior will happen again.

• Handout

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Extinction

• Must you be reinforced every time in order for the behavior to continue?– Interval (time) and Ratio (# of responses)

Schedules– Which do you think produce most

responses?– Fixed and Variable– Which type is more resistant to extinction?

Schedules of Reinforcement

Observational Learning Observational Learning

learning by observing others Modeling

process of observing and imitating a specific behavior

Vicarious learning. Canned laughter on TV shows Phobia t-ment Bartenders putting tips in an empty jar.

• Increases in times of uncertainty and when we see a similarity b/w self and model.

Observational Learning of Aggression

• Bandura’s Bobo doll study

Free Will• illusion?

• Skinner: the only freedom we have is to arrange our own consequences (environment) and not leave it up to government or fate.

• Only by identifying the external factors that give rise to “doing good” can we bring them under control so that more people will do good more often.

Classical versus Operant Conditioning

Classical conditioning– Learned association

between US and CS– Organism is passive– Response automatic

Operant conditioning– Associate response

and reinforcement– Organism is active– Produces

consequences

Some Shared features– Avoidance learning

– Extinction and spontaneous recovery

– Generalization and discrimination

Using a scale from -10 (most unpleasant experience you can imagine) though 0 (neutral experience) to +10 (most

pleasant) rate:

• Imagine a bowl of your favorite soup• Imagine a bowl of your favorite soup served in a brand-

new bedpan.• Imagine your favorite pizza• Imagine your favorite pizza served to you on a brand-

new fly swatter.• Imagine your favorite drink.• Imagine your favorite drink stirred with a brand-new toilet

brush.

Television and Observational Learning: Just a bit weaker than cigs and cancer correlation

Negative Reinforcement?!

• Taking aspirin - removes headache and increases chances you’ll take aspirin again.

• Hurry home to get out of the cold - removes cold, increases chances you’ll hurry outside.

• Give into whining: removes annoying cries, increases chances dog will whine again.

• Explain these: putting up an umbrella to stay dry, putting your seatbelt on to stop annoying sound, smoking to relieve anxiety.

• Be sure to explain what is being removed!