PSYC A228

Introduction to Psychology
Unit 3:
Learning

Vanessa LAI
Overview

• Classical conditioning
• Operant conditioning
• Cognitive approaches to learning
 Classical Conditioning
The basics of classical conditioning

• Ivan Pavlov (1849–1936), a Russian physiologist:

o Focused on digestion in the early 1900 - Studied the secretion of stomach acids
and salivation in dogs in response to the presence of foods.
o Discovery: Dogs salivated in response to a number of stimuli associated with
foods (e.g. the sight of the experimenter who normally brought the food). Dogs
were responding not only on the basis of a biological need (hunger) but also as
a result of learning.
o Developed the 1st framework for learning called classical conditioning.

• Classical conditioning:
o A type of learning in which a neutral stimulus (e.g. experimenter’s footsteps)
comes to elicit a response after being paired with a stimulus (e.g. food) that
naturally brings about that response.

Source: http://totallyhistory.com/wp-
content/uploads/2014/01/Ivan-Pavlov.jpg
Classical Conditioning
The basics of classical conditioning
The basic process of classical conditioning:

(a) Before conditioning:

• Two unrelated stimuli: the ringing of a bell and meat.

• The sound of a bell does not produce salivation - the bell is a neutral
stimulus (NS).
o NS: A stimulus does not naturally bring about the response in which
we are interested.

• Meat naturally brings about salivation (inborn) - the meat is an

unconditioned stimulus (UCS) and salivation an unconditioned response
(UCR).
o UCS: A stimulus naturally brings about a particular response without
learning.
o UCR: A natural, innate response that occurs automatically and does
not require learning/ training.

• UCR are always brought about by the presence of UCS.

(Custom Textbook, 2022, p. 148)

Classical Conditioning
The basics of classical conditioning
The basic process of classical conditioning:

(b) During conditioning:

• A pairing process will take place. During pairing, the bell rings just before
the presentation of the meat.
• Goal: The dog to associate the bell (NS) with the meat (UCS) - to bring about
the same response as the UCS.

(c) After conditioning:

• After a no. of pairings of the bell and meat , the sound of the bell alone
causes the dog to salivate.
• The bell has changed from a NS to a conditioned stimulus (CS) that brings
about the conditioned response of salivation (CR).
o CS: A once-neutral stimulus that has been paired with an UCS to bring
about a response formerly caused only by the UCS.
o CR: A response that, after conditioning, follows a previously NS
• The CS brings about the CR.

(Custom Textbook, 2022, p. 148)

Classical Conditioning
The basics of classical conditioning

Summary:

• Conditioned = learned
• Unconditioned = not learned
(King, 2020, p. 179)
• An unconditioned stimulus (UCS) leads to an unconditioned response (UCR).
• UCS – UCR pairings are not learned and not trained but naturally occurring.
• During conditioning, a previously neutral stimulus (NS) is transformed into the conditioned stimulus (CS).
• A conditioned stimulus (CS) leads to a conditioned response (CR).
• A CS – CR pairing is a consequence of learning and training.
• An UCR and a CR are similar But the UCR occurs naturally, whereas the CR is learned.
 Classical Conditioning
The Little Albert Experiment

Source:
https://i0.wp.com/chronicle.com/img/photos/biz/AlbertBigbunnyLong.gif

Source: https://www.verywellmind.com/thmb/nMmtr11r8MSp4BMKJuv2n00bAIg=/750x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(webp)/the-
little-albert-experiment-2794994-a72ed3273c2448a2b5debc81a657dd26.png
 Classical Conditioning
The Little Albert Experiment
The “Little Albert” experiment - conditioned an 11-month-old
infant named Albert to be afraid of rats:

• Albert had no response to the rat (NS) initially but he was

frightened by loud noise.

• The loud noise (UCS) evoked Albert’s fear (UCR) naturally

without the need for learning.

• After a few pairings of loud noise and rat, Albert began to show
fear of the rat by itself, bursting into tears when he saw it. The
rat had become a CS that brought about Albert’s fear (CR).

• Albert reacted with fear not only when shown a rat but also
when shown objects with similar white and furry
characteristics. The extension of Albert’s fear to other similar
objects is called stimulus generalization.

Source: https://www.psychologywizard.net/uploads/2/6/6/4/26640833/6875091_orig.jpg
Classical Conditioning
Acquisition, extinction and spontaneous recovery

• Acquisition: The initial learning of the connection between the UCS and CS when these two stimuli are paired (as
with a bell and food). During acquisition, the CS is repeatedly presented followed by the UCS and produce a CR
eventually.

• Extinction: Occurs when a previously conditioned response decreases in frequency and eventually disappears.
o Example: We trained a dog to salivate (CR) at the ringing of a bell (CS). Extinction could be produced by
repeatedly ringing the bell but not providing meat (UCS). After a few such instances, the amount of salivation
declines, and the dog stops responding to the bell eventually.

o A helpful phenomenon – helps relieve negative feelings or fear elicited by a CS through extinguishing our
unwanted CR.

• Pavlov discovered that even though the CR (the dog’s salivation) had seemingly been extinguished, after a period of
time, if he rang a bell, the dog salivated again - an effect known as spontaneous recovery.
o A reemergence of an extinguished conditioned response after a period of time and with no further
conditioning.
Classical Conditioning
Acquisition, extinction and spontaneous recovery

(Custom Textbook, 2022, p. 151)

Classical Conditioning
Generalisation and discrimination

• Stimulus generalization: A process in which after a stimulus has been conditioned to produce a particular response,
other stimuli that are similar to the original stimulus produce the same response.

o The greater the similarity between two stimuli, the greater the likelihood of stimulus generalization.
o E.g. In Little Albert experiment, Albert was conditioned to be fearful of white rats, grew afraid of other furry white
things (e.g. a furry doll, a white rabbit) as well.
o The CR elicited by the new stimulus is usually not as intense as the original CR, although the more similar the new
stimulus is to the old one, the more similar the new response will be.

• Stimulus discrimination: Occurs if two stimuli are sufficiently distinct from each other such that one evokes a
conditioned response but the other does not. It provides the ability to differentiate between stimuli.

o E.g. A dog runs into the kitchen when she hears the sound of the electric can opener, which she has learned is
used to open her dog food when her dinner is about to be served. She does not bound into the kitchen at the
sound of the food processor, although it sounds similar - she discriminates between the stimuli of can opener and
food processor.
Operant Conditioning
• Operant conditioning: Learning in which a voluntary response is strengthened or weakened, depending on the
response’s favorable or unfavorable consequences.

o Classical conditioning - the original behaviors are the natural, biological responses to the presence of a stimulus
(e.g. food, water, or pain) VS operant conditioning applies to voluntary responses that an organism performs
deliberately to produce a desirable outcome.

o “Operant” emphasizes the organism operates on its environment to produce a desirable result.

(King, 2020, p. 179)

Operant Conditioning
Thorndike’s puzzle box and the law of effect

(King, 2020, p. 190)

• Thorndike devised this puzzle box to study the process of a cat learns to press a paddle to escape from the box and receive
food.
o The cat would take less time to step on the paddle and escape the next time. After a few trials, the cat would
deliberately step on the paddle as soon as it was placed in the cage.
o The cat would learn that pressing the paddle was associated with the desirable consequence of getting food.
• The law of effect: Responses that lead to satisfying consequences are more likely to be repeated.
o The organism would make a direct connection between the stimulus and the response without any awareness that
the connection existed over time and through experience.
Operant Conditioning
The basics of operant conditioning
• Thorndike’s research served as the foundation of operant conditioning, and influenced B. F. Skinner (1904–1990) further.

A Skinner box - To study operant conditioning:

• A rat is placed in the Skinner box. The rat wanders

around the box and press the lever by chance. When it
does, it will receive a food pellet.

• The first time this happens, the rat would not learn the
connection between pressing a lever and receiving food
and would continue to explore the box. Sooner or later,
the rat presses the lever again and receives a pellet, and
in time the frequency of the pressing response
increases.

• The rat presses the lever continually until it satisfies its

hunger - it has learned the association between the
response (pressing the lever) and the favourable
outcome (the receipt of food).
(Custom Textbook, 2022, p. 155)
Operant Conditioning
The basics of operant conditioning: Reinforcement
• Skinner called the process that leads the rat to continue pressing the key “reinforcement.”
o Reinforcement: The process by which a stimulus increases the probability that a preceding behavior will be
repeated.
o Any stimulus that increases the probability that a preceding behavior will occur again is called a reinforcer.
o E.g. The food is a reinforcer that increases the frequency of pressing the lever.

• Positive reinforcement: A pleasant stimulus (a positive reinforcer) added to the environment that brings about an
increase in a preceding response.
o E.g. Workers get the paychecks at the end of the week would increase the likelihood that they will return to their
jobs the following week.

• Negative reinforcement: An unpleasant stimulus (a negative reinforcer) whose removal leads to an increase in the
probability that a preceding response will be repeated in the future.
o E.g. Taking an aspirin when you have a headache. A reduction of pain reinforces the act of taking an aspirin.
Operant Conditioning
The basics of operant conditioning: Punishment
• Punishment: A stimulus that decreases the probability that a prior behavior will occur again.
o Unlike negative reinforcement (produces an increase in behavior), punishment reduces the likelihood of a prior
response.

• Positive punishment: Adding an unpleasant stimulus to decrease the frequency of the previous response/ behavior.
o E.g. Spanking (unpleasant stimulus) a child for misbehaving

• Negative punishment: The removal of a pleasant stimulus to decrease the frequency of the previous response/
behavior.
o E.g. A person receive a pay cut (more pay is a pleasant stimulus that is being removed) because of a poor job
evaluation.
o E.g. A child is asked to sit in a quiet and boring corner for certain time after misbehaving. Time-out is a form of
negative punishment as a child is removed from a positive reinforcer (e.g. toys, sense of enjoyment)

• Reinforcement increases the frequency of the behavior preceding it VS punishment decreases the frequency of the
behavior preceding it.
Operant Conditioning

(King, 2020, p. 197)

Operant Conditioning
Mechanisms of reinforcement and punishment:

Source: https://sites.psu.edu/intropsychf19grp7/files/2019/11/yjh0qdsqlzlkxwt2zwgs-300x145.jpg
Operant Conditioning
Schedules of reinforcement

• Schedule of reinforcement: The pattern of the frequency and timing of reinforcement that follow desired behavior.

• Behavior that is reinforced every time it occurs is on a continuous reinforcement schedule.

o E.g. candy vending machine

• Behavior that is reinforced some but not all of the time is on a partial (or intermittent) reinforcement schedule.
o E.g. slot machine

• Learning occurs more rapidly under a continuous reinforcement schedule, but behavior lasts longer after
reinforcement stops when it was learned under a partial reinforcement schedule.

• Four main schedules of partial reinforcement: fixed ratio, variable ratio, fixed interval, and variable interval.
o Ratio schedules: The number of behaviors that must be performed prior to reward
o Interval schedules: The amount of time that must pass before a behavior is rewarded
 Operant Conditioning
Schedules of reinforcement
• Fixed-ratio schedule: Reinforcement is given only after a
specific number of responses.
o E.g. A rat receive a food pellet every 10th time it
pressed a lever (Ratio: 1:10).

• Variable-ratio schedule: Behaviors are reinforced after an

average number of responses, but when reinforcement will
occur is unpredictable.
o E.g. A telephone salesperson’s job - make a sale during
the 3rd, 8th, 9th & 20th calls without being successful
during any call in between.

• Fixed-interval schedule: Provides reinforcement for a

response only if a fixed time period has elapsed.
o E.g. You take a class that has four scheduled exams –
you might procrastinate most of the semester and cram
just before each test.

• Variable-interval schedule: The time between reinforcements

varies around some average rather than being fixed.
o E.g. Pop quizzes
(Custom Textbook, 2022, p. 161)
Operant Conditioning
Schedules of reinforcement

(King, 2020, p. 196)

Operant Conditioning
Shaping

• Shaping: The process of teaching a complex behavior by rewarding closer and closer approximations
of the desired behavior.

o Teaching animals to perform tricks (e.g. a dolphin jumps through a hoop held high above the
water), learning of many complex human skills

o Example: Train a rat to press a bar to obtain food - the experimenter start off by giving the rat a
food pellet if it is in the same half of the cage as the bar -> reward the rat’s behavior when it is
within 2 inches of the bar -> then when it touches the bar -> finally when it presses the bar.
Classical Conditioning VS Operant Conditioning

(Custom Textbook, 2022, p. 164)

Behavior Modification
• Behavior modification: A technique for increasing the frequency of desirable behaviors and decreasing the
incidence of unwanted ones.

• Reinforcement scheduling, shaping, generalization training, discrimination training, and extinction are involved in
behavior modification.

• Typical six-step behavior modification programme:

1. Identifying goals and target behaviors.

2. Designing a data-recording system and recording preliminary data.
3. Selecting a behavior-change strategy – e.g. reinforcement or punishment?
4. Implementing the program.
5. Keeping careful records after the program is implemented.
6. Evaluating and altering the ongoing program - compared with baseline, pre-implementation data to
evaluate its effectiveness.
Cognitive Approaches to Learning

• Cognitive learning theory: An approach to the study of learning that focuses on the thought
processes, or cognitions, that underlie learning – examine the mental processes occur during
learning.

• Cognitive learning approach focuses on the internal thoughts and expectations of learners VS
classical and operant conditioning approaches focus on external stimuli, responses, and
reinforcement.

• Two types of learning have no obvious prior reinforcement is present - latent learning and
observational learning.
Cognitive Approaches to Learning
Latent learning
• Latent learning: A new behavior is learned but not demonstrated until some incentive is provided for displaying it -
occurs without reinforcement.

The rat maze experiment (Tolman & Honzik, 1930):

• A group of rats was allowed to wander around the

maze once a day for 17 days without ever receiving
a reward (the unrewarded group) - rats made many
errors and spent a long time reaching the end of the
maze.

• A 2nd group was always given food at the end of the

maze (the rewarded group) – rats learned to run
quickly and directly to the food box, making few
errors.

(Custom Textbook, 2022, p. 169)

Cognitive Approaches to Learning
Latent learning
The rat maze experiment (Tolman & Honzik, 1930):

• A 3rd group of rats (the experimental group) started out in the same
situation as the unrewarded rats but only for the first 10 days. On the
11th day, a manipulation was introduced: the rats were given food for
completing the maze.

• Results: The previously unrewarded rats (wander about aimlessly

earlier), showed such reductions in running time and declines in error
rates that their performance almost immediately matched that of the
group that had received rewards from the start.

• The unrewarded rats had learned the layout of the maze early in their
explorations but never displayed their latent learning until the
reinforcement was offered. Those rats seemed to develop a cognitive
map of the maze - a mental representation of spatial locations and
directions.

(Custom Textbook, 2022, p. 169)

Cognitive Approaches to Learning
Observational learning
• Observational learning: Learning by watching the behavior of another person, or model. (also call this a social cognitive
approach to learning).

• The Bobo doll study by Albert Bandura (1963):

o Young children saw a film of an adult wildly hitting an inflatable punching toy called a Bobo doll. Later the children
were given the opportunity to play with the Bobo doll themselves. Most displayed the same kind of behavior by
mimicking the aggressive behavior they observed from the video.

• Positive behaviors are also acquired through observational learning – e.g. children who were afraid of dogs were exposed
to a model who playing with a dog. After exposure, observers were considerably more likely to approach a dog.

• Observational learning is important in acquiring skills where the operant conditioning technique of shaping is
inappropriate. E.g. Piloting an airplane and performing brain surgery could hardly be learned by using trial-and error
methods without grave cost.

• Reward is a crucial factor involved in learning - determines whether we later imitate a model.
o Reward for a given behavior is more likely to be imitated than the models who are punished for the behavior.
Cognitive Approaches to Learning
Observational learning

According to Bandura (1986), there are four main processes involved in observational learning:

Observational Learning

(Motor)
Attention Retention Motivation
Reproduction
Cognitive Approaches to Learning
Observational learning
Stage 1: Attention
• To reproduce a model’s actions, a learner must attend to what the model is saying or doing.
• E.g. You take a class to improve your drawing skills. To succeed, you need to attend to the instructor’s words and hand
movements.

Stage 2: Retention
• To hold the information in memory. The learner must encode the information and keep it in memory so that it can be
retrieved. A simple verbal description, or a vivid image of what the model did, assists retention.
• E.g. Taking a class to sharpen your drawing skills, you will need to remember what the instructor said and did in modeling
good drawing skills.

Stage 3: (Motor) reproduction

• It is the process of imitating the model’s actions. Practice is need to replicate the behavior skillfully.
• E.g. In the drawing class, if you lack fine motor reproduction skills, you might be unable to follow the instructor’s example.

Stage 4: Motivation
• Personal motivation is required for learning. The learner must be motivated to produce the desired behavior. Motivation
can be intrinsic (e.g. enjoyment) or extrinsic (e.g. rewards or punishment) to the learner.
References
Feldman, R. (2020). Understanding psychology (15th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.

Hong Kong Metropolitan University School of Arts and Social Sciences. (2022). PSYC A228 Introduction to
psychology: Volume I. McGraw Hill Education.

King, L. A. (2020). The science of psychology: An appreciative view (5th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.