The Psychology of Learning

Kendra Cherry (2020)

Psychologists often define learning as a relatively permanent change in behavior as a

result of experience. The psychology of learning focuses on a range of topics related
to how people learn and interact with their environments.
One of the first thinkers to study how learning influences behavior was
psychologist John B. Watson who suggested that all behaviors are a result of the
learning process. The school of thought that emerged from Watson's work was known
as behaviorism. The behavioral school of thought proposed studying internal
thoughts, memories, and other mental processes that were too subjective.

Psychology, the behaviorists believed, should be the scientific study of observable

behavior. Behaviorism thrived during the first half of the twentieth century and
contributed a great deal to our understanding of some important learning processes.

Are you preparing for a big test in your psychology of learning class? Or are you just
interested in a review of learning and behavioral psychology topics? This learning
study guide offers a brief overview of some of the major learning issues including
behaviorism, classical, and operant conditioning.

Let's learn a bit more about the psychology of learning.

On the other hand, learning can be defined in many ways, but most psychologists would
agree that it is a relatively permanent change in behavior that results from
experience. During the first half of the twentieth century, the school of thought known
as behaviorism rose to dominate psychology and sought to explain the learning
process.

The three major types of learning described by behavioral psychology are classical

conditioning, operant conditioning, and observational learning.

Behaviorism

Behaviorism was the school of thought in psychology that sought to measure only
observable behaviors.

Founded by John B. Watson and outlined in his seminal 1913 paper Psychology as the
Behaviorist Views It, the behaviorist standpoint held that psychology was an
experimental and objective science and that internal mental processes should not be
considered because they could not be directly observed and measured.

Watson's work included the famous Little Albert experiment in which he conditioned a

small child to fear a white rat. Behaviorism dominated psychology for much of the
early twentieth century. While behavioral approaches remain important today, the
latter part of the century was marked by the emergence of humanistic psychology,
biological psychology, and cognitive psychology.

 Overview of Behaviorism
Classical Conditioning
Classical conditioning is a learning process in which an association is made between a
previously neutral stimulus and a stimulus that naturally evokes a response.

For example, in Pavlov's classic experiment, the smell of food was the naturally
occurring stimulus that was paired with the previously neutral ringing of the bell.
Once an association had been made between the two, the sound of the bell alone
could lead to a response.

 How Classical Conditioning Works

Operant Conditioning
Operant conditioning is a learning process in which the probability of a response
occurring is increased or decreased due to reinforcement or punishment. First studied
by Edward Thorndike and later by B.F. Skinner, the underlying idea behind operant
conditioning is that the consequences of our actions shape voluntary behavior.

Skinner described how reinforcement could lead to increases in behaviors where

punishment would result in decreases. He also found that the timing of when
reinforcements were delivered influenced how quickly a behavior was learned and
how strong the response would be. The timing and rate of reinforcement are known
as schedules of reinforcement.

Schedule of Reinforcement
A schedule of reinforcement is basically a rule stating which instances of behavior will
be reinforced. In some cases, a behavior might be reinforced every time it occurs.
Sometimes, a behavior might not be reinforced at all.

Either positive reinforcement or negative reinforcement may be used as a part of

operant conditioning. In both cases, the goal of reinforcement is to strengthen a
behavior so that it will likely occur again.

Reinforcement schedules take place in both naturally occurring learning situations as

well as more structured training situations. In real-world settings, behaviors are
probably not going to be reinforced every time they occur. In situations where you
are intentionally trying to reinforce a specific action (such as in school, sports, or in
animal training), you would follow a specific reinforcement schedule.

Some schedules are better suited to certain types of training situations. In some
cases, training might call for one schedule and then switch to another once the
desired behavior has been taught.

Types of Reinforcement Schedules

The two foundational forms of reinforcement schedules are referred to as continuous
reinforcement and partial reinforcement.
Continuous Reinforcement
In continuous reinforcement, the desired behavior is reinforced every single time it
occurs. 1 This schedule is best used during the initial stages of learning to create a
strong association between the behavior and response.

Imagine, for example, that you are trying to teach a dog to shake your hand. During
the initial stages of learning, you would stick to a continuous reinforcement schedule
to teach and establish the behavior. This might involve grabbing the dog's paw,
shaking it, saying "shake," and then offering a reward each and every time you
perform these steps. Eventually, the dog will start to perform the action on its own.

Continuous reinforcement schedules are most effective when trying to teach a new
behavior. It denotes a pattern to which every narrowly-defined response is followed
by a narrowly-defined consequence.
Partial Reinforcement
Once the response is firmly established, a continuous reinforcement schedule is
usually switched to a partial reinforcement schedule. 1 In partial (or intermittent)
reinforcement, the response is reinforced only part of the time. Learned behaviors are
acquired more slowly with partial reinforcement, but the response is more resistant
to extinction.

Think of the earlier example in which you were training a dog to shake and. While you
initially used continuous reinforcement, reinforcing the behavior every time is simply
unrealistic. In time, you would switch to a partial schedule to provide additional
reinforcement once the behavior has been established or after considerable time has
passed.

There are four schedules of partial reinforcement:

Fixed-Ratio Schedules
Fixed-ratio schedules are those in which a response is reinforced only after a specified
number of responses. This schedule produces a high, steady rate of responding with
only a brief pause after the delivery of the reinforcer. An example of a fixed-ratio
schedule would be delivering a food pellet to a rat after it presses a bar five times.
Variable-Ratio Schedules
Variable-ratio schedules occur when a response is reinforced after an unpredictable
number of responses. This schedule creates a high steady rate of responding.
Gambling and lottery games are good examples of a reward based on a variable ratio
schedule. In a lab setting, this might involve delivering food pellets to a rat after one
bar press, again after four bar presses, and then again after two bar presses.
Fixed-Interval Schedules
Fixed-interval schedules are those where the first response is rewarded only after a
specified amount of time has elapsed. This schedule causes high amounts of
responding near the end of the interval but slower responding immediately after the
delivery of the reinforcer. An example of this in a lab setting would be reinforcing a
rat with a lab pellet for the first bar press after a 30-second interval has elapsed.

Variable-Interval Schedules
Variable-interval schedules occur when a response is rewarded after an unpredictable
amount of time has passed. This schedule produces a slow, steady rate of response.
An example of this would be delivering a food pellet to a rat after the first bar press
following a one-minute interval; a second pellet for the first response following a five-
minute interval; and a third pellet for the first response following a three-minute
interval.

Using the Appropriate Schedule

Deciding when to reinforce a behavior can depend on a number of factors. In cases
where you are specifically trying to teach a new behavior, a continuous schedule is
often a good choice. Once the behavior has been learned, switching to a partial
schedule is often preferable.

In daily life, partial schedules of reinforcement occur much more frequently than do
continuous ones. For example, imagine if you received a reward every time you
showed up to work on time. Over time, instead of the reward being a positive
reinforcement, the denial of the reward could be regarded as negative reinforcement.

Instead, rewards like these are usually doled out on a much less predictable partial
reinforcement schedule. Not only are these much more realistic, but they also tend to
produce higher response rates while being less susceptible to extinction.
Partial schedules reduce the risk of satiation once a behavior has been established. If
a reward is given without end, the subject may stop performing the behavior if the
reward is no longer wanted or needed.

For example, imagine that you are trying to teach a dog to sit. If you use food as a
reward every time, the dog might stop performing once it is full. In such instances,
something like praise or attention may be more effective in reinforcing an already-
established behavior.

 What Is a Secondary Reinforcer?

Operant conditioning can be a powerful learning tool. The schedule of reinforcement

utilized during training and maintenance process can have a major influence on how
quickly a behavior is acquired, the strength of the response, and how frequently the
behavior is displayed.

In order to determine which schedule is preferable, you need to consider different

aspects of the situation, including the type of behavior that is being taught and the
type of response that is desired.

Observational Learning
Observational learning is a process in which learning occurs through observing and
imitating others. Albert Bandura's social learning theory suggests that in addition to
learning through conditioning, people also learn through observing and imitating the
actions of others.
 
Basic Principles of Social Learning Theory
As demonstrated in his classic "Bobo Doll" experiments, people will imitate the actions
of others without direct reinforcement. Four important elements are essential for
effective observational learning: attention, motor skills, motivation, and memory.
 How Observational Learning Works
Influential People
The following are some of the major figures associated with learning and the
behavioral school of psychology.

 Edward Thorndike
 Ivan Pavlov
 John B. Watson
 B.F. Skinner
 Albert Bandura

Guide Questions for Oral Recitation On January 4-5, 2022

1. How people Learn? Explain by giving real life situation

2. What is classical, Operant, and Observational learning? Give real life situation to
each concept.
3. What is the contribution of the following influential people to Learning;
a. Edward Thorndike
b. Ivan Pavlov
c. John B. Watson
d. B.F Skinner
e. Albert Bandura ( choose only 3)