Unit 6 - Learning

- Classical conditioning - Ivan Pavlov

Here an unconditioned response is added to a conditioned stimulus to cause a conditioned response.
The subject is made to associate the conditioned stimulus with the stimulus that causes the unconditioned
response and hence give the same unconditioned response to the conditioned stimulus, without the presence
of the initial stimulus.
➢ (Learning to associate a bell sound with food, and hence salivating when only presented with the bell
sound because you learn to associate it with food being presented). The unconditioned response is
the same as the conditioned response, only the stimulus to which the response is given changes.
➢ The unconditioned stimulus is the stimulus that already produces the unconditioned response
instinctively (innate property).
➢ The conditioned stimulus is the one that the subject learns to give the initial unconditioned response to
over a period of time which is called acquiring, the conditioned response is the same as the
unconditioned response it is only to a new stimulus.
➢ Delayed Conditioning - Conditioned stimulus first (bell ringing) and then unconditioned stimulus
(food) second, when the conditioned stimulus is still present when the unconditioned stimulus is
added.(bell will be present when the food is paired).
➢ Trace Conditioning - Conditioned stimulus is presented then after a short break the unconditioned
stimulus is presented, the conditioned stimulus is still present when the unconditioned stimulus is
added. (Bell will be present when the food is paired).
➢ Simultaneous conditioning is when they are presented at the same time.
➢ Backward conditioning is when the unconditioned stimulus is presented first and then the
conditioned stimulus is presented (the food will be presented before the bell is rung) this is considered
the least effective process.
Extinction is when reinforcement of the procedure is not done then after a period of time the behavior will
become extinct from the subject as it is not routinely reinforced , unlearning the behavior. Hence when the
conditioned stimulus is presented (the bell) there will be no response (no salvation) as they have unlearnt to
salivate at the sound of the bell. - This can be done by producing the conditioned stimulus (the bell) without
following it with the unconditioned stimulus (the food) the subject will then forget the behavior.
Spontaneous Recovery is when after a period of extinction the conditioned response will briefly repeat itself
when the conditioned stimulus is presented - this will only occur after a lengthy period of extinction.
Generalization is when the conditioned response is generalized to other similar stimuli (if the dog who is
conditioned to salivate at the sound of the bell, salivates at the sound of a buzzer).
Discrimination is when the subject only produces the conditioned response to a particular conditioned
stimulus and discriminates between that stimulus and those that are similar (opposite of generalization).
- Aversive Conditioning - It is a form of classical conditioning where the subject learns to dislike a particular
stimulus. This can be connected back to the garcia effect (stronger taste = greater aversion).
The little albert experiment (top 5 most unethical experiments) is an example of this. -
- Conducted by John B watson and Rosaile Reiner in 1920 in John Hopkins University
The researchers conditioned little Albert to be afraid of a white rat by presenting a loud noise every
time he touched the rat, over a period of time he would automatically sense fear the moment he was
presented with the rat and even before the sound was showcased, he would start crying. He got
conditioned to not only be fearful to the white rat but also any white furry object. This experiment
showcased how classical conditioning can be used to make someone aversive towards certain
objects, and fears and phobias to foods/spaces can be learned through association with a negative
experience. - The ethics were questioned as it was about instilling fear in an infant.
This experiment taught society that this form of conditioning can be harmful and should not be used on
children/adolescents.
 However aversive conditioning can also help cope with bad habits (nail biting, smoking etc).
These processes of connecting instinctive responses to a conditioned stimulus is first order conditioning.
Second order/Higher order conditioning is when a response that has been conditioned is used as the new
unconditioned stimulus (once the subject has learned to salivate the sound of the bell, if that sound is used to
make the subject salivate at the sight of a white light it would be second order conditioning).
- John Garcia and Robert Koeling tried an experiment where they shocked a rat and then gave it weird tasting
water to see if the rat was able to link the two situations to the Nausea it was feeling, however this experiment
was a failure.
- Conditioned stimulus is dependent on unconditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus is dependent on
conditioned stimulus.
- Operant Conditioning - Positive and Negative reinforcement + Positive and Negative punishment
This is when subjects acquire skills by associating it with consequences for the behavior.
An experiment conducted by Edward Thorndike - the Cat in a puzzle box. In order to get food the cat
needed to get out of the cage.
- Over a period of trials the amount of time it took for the cat to get out of the puzzle box reduced. This
is because the cat was able to critically think and learn, and was incentivized by the food (reward) for
accomplishing the intended behavior (getting out of the cage).
- Law of effect - Instrumental learning
If there is a consequence for the behavior that is conditioned then the stimulus-response connection
will be strengthened. → Likelihood of the behavior will increase/decrease.
Consequences are vital to shape behavior (behaviorism) especially at developmental stages.
B.F Skinner- Skinner box experiment -
➢ There is a mechanism to deliver food (reinforcement) to the cat, the cat just needs to learn to press
the lever or button and keep repeating the learned behavior in hope for the food.
Types of reinforcement and punishment -
➢ Positive Reinforcement - This is when something positive is added to reinforce the behavior (eg - if
you do your homework I will give you pizza)
➢ Negative Reinforcement - This is when something negative is removed from the equation as an
outcome of desired behavior (eg - If you do your homework I will remove the TV ban in the house)
➢ Positive punishment - This is when something negative is added to reinforce desired behavior (eg - I
will add a phone timer if you do not complete your homework)
➢ Negative punishment - This is when something desirable is removed to reinforce desired behavior
(eg - Taking away a child's gadgets because they did not do their homework, incentivizing them to do
their homework in the future).
- Escape.Avoidance behavior - Avoiding a certain unpleasant consequence by following a particular behavior
(following a schools code of conduct to not get suspended).
- Punishment is often used for aversive conditioning while reinforcement is used to incentivize someone
to repeat certain behaviors by rewarding them with a pleasant experience.
- Shaping one's response -
➢ Visual Learning- This is considered priming or shaping one's behavior. The bobo doll experiment
was conducted to understand this phenomenon. Children who were exposed to adults hitting the bobo
doll normalized the behavior and repeated that behavior when presented with the bobo doll, children
who were exposed to adults caring and being gentle towards the bobo doll repeated that behavior
when presented with the bobo doll.
➢ Chaining - multiple responses to obtain a certain reward - Once the behavior has been learned
during the shaping process (where each step is reinforced with positive & negative reinforcement
and punishment) the subject needs to learn to follow the steps in a particular order to get a reward for
a fluent chain of behavior to occur. → Rats in a Maze experiment
➢ Token Economy - Is a reward system usually used in prisons & schools, where for every desired
behavior the individual gets a “token” that they can collect and exchange for wanted items such as -
 pens, food, drinks etc. It incentivizes the people to follow good behavior to gain access to primary
reinforcers (eg - food, water)., it acts as a secondary reinforcer ( eg - money).
➢ Premack principle states that probable behavior can be used to reinforce less probable behavior,
reinforcers are subjective to each individual and may differ for each individual. Eg - If a child does not
like to play the piano and likes to play video games instead, the mother can say that only if you
practice the piano for 30 minutes will you gain access to the video games again. Reinforcing behavior
by incentivizing the person through their own preferences.
- Reinforcement Schedules
➢ Continuous reinforcement schedule - Every time the subject presents the desired behavior they are
presented with a reward reinforcement, for shaping/learning the behavior this is vital.
➢ Partial reinforcement schedules - Once the behavior is learned it is reinforced with reward
sometimes, this is less susceptible to extinction. As if after learning a continuous reinforcement
schedule is used, if they are not presented with a reward 1-2 times after they are likely to forget the
behavior (extinction). Which is why partial reinforcement teaches them not to expect it every time, but
still know that they will be rewarded for their behavior.
➢ Fixed Ratio Interval - Every specific amount of time the behavior is rewarded or reinforced. If the
pattern is broken too often it would quickly lead to extinction of the behavior.
➢ Variable Ratio Interval - The behavior is reinforced at random times, hence it is less
susceptible/resistant to extinction. Because there is no pattern to break.
Animals do not have the tendency to perform behaviors that go against their instinctints or innate nature - eg
a Pig can not be conditioned to do a backflip because it does not have the ability to do so.
- Instantaneous drift is the tendency for a subject's response rate to increase or decrease immediately after
the delivery of a reinforcer, even if the reinforcement schedule remains the same. → It is connected to the
subject's motivation state and the perceived “cost”/energy required to obtain the reinforcer. They may feel
temporarily less or more motivated to showcase the desired behavior which results in an observed drift in
response rate. (Applicable to any ratio interval or schedules).
- Cognitive Learning - Eclectic perspective
BF. Skinner said that learning has no thought. (classical conditioning and operant conditioning - behaviorism)
➢ The pavilion model states that parking concepts would lead to better learning (contiguity model). -
Cognitive architecture. Where the brain processes information in a modular compartmentalized
manner (cognitive architecture/pavilions functions in a house). To form different schemas.
➢ Robert Rescorla - Learning only occurs when pairing is done, if pairing is stopped learning will not
occur (extreme perspective).
➢ The Presence of one event/subject predicts the presence of another (when people pair information
they are able to gain greater cognitive understanding of it).
➢ Observational learning & Modelling - Learning is species specific, and children learn through
observation and imitation of the behavior → Clear cognitive application. Normalizing the behavior.
Perception → Processing → Outward behavior. The Bobo doll experiment helped understand this.
➢ Latent Learning - Hidden
Subjects have the cognition to repeat hidden behavior especially when they are rewarded for it. The
rat in a maze experiment helps understand this, 3 groups were made to go through a maze. One
group was rewarded, one group was rewarded after the second round and one group was never
rewarded, the performance of the first group increased due to their hidden learning of the Maze space
(cognitive map). → Forming mental representations to guide behavior, Tolman's work was vital to
cognitive revolution is psychology and the importance of mental processes in human and animal
behavior.
➢ Abstract Learning - Cognitive function to understand concepts and theories. Understanding theories
requires connecting concepts and schemas that one already has in their mind and forming new ones,
because these are no physical events or objects that can be learned through sensory skills. This
further proves the vital role of cognition in learning and understanding.
➢ Insight Learning - Wolfgang Koher - Chimpanzees
Subjects are able to learn when they suddenly gain an “insight” or “eureka” moment for the work they
are doing and apply it. After gaining that insight people have the tendency to apply it to what they did
not initially understand.
● Koher placed a bunch of boxes and chimpanzees in a cage and hung a banana from the
ceiling, after multiple unsuccessful attempts at jumping continuously to get it. They suddenly
gained the insight to use the boxes which they then stacked and were able to get the banana.
Understanding the relationship between available concepts and the goal, gaining insight.
Rather than relying on trial and error or learned responses.