PSYC Unit 3

behaviorism (operant conditioning)

"black box approach": the only things we can study scientifically are the things that we can directly observe; can't directly observe cognition, internal processes, etc.; all behavior is learned

Bandura's bobo doll study 2 (observational learning)

1. model rewarded for aggressive behavior 2. model punished for aggressive behavior 3. model no consequences - like first study then children allowed to engage with bobo doll; children watching 1 and 3 more likely to exhibit aggressive behavior; children watching 2 still learned aggressive behavior - found out by rewarding children to engage in behavior; all groups learned behavior, but the behavior exhibited depended on what they thought their behavior would lead to; VICARIOUS REINFORCEMENT

simultaneous conditioning

CS and UCS occur at the same time

delayed (forward) conditioning

CS and UCS overlap, but CS occurs first

Premack's principle (operant conditioning)

activities/other behaviors can be used as reinforcers; reinforcer doesn't have to be an actual stimulus; conclusion of study: any activity can reinforce another activity that is performed less frequently

importance of stimulus generalization (why do we do it?)

adaptive to generalize; in our best interest; evolutionary perspective

schedules of reinforcement

continuous reinforcement, partial/intermittent reinforcement

punish the behavior (extinction)

designed to lower probability of response

Pavlov

discovered and studied classical conditioning; studied digestion (in dogs) - device in dog's chin to measure saliva produced when eating; dogs started salivating when they saw the food, then the empty dish, then just when Pavlov entered; developed basics of classical conditioning - animal learns to associate two stimuli that lead to a particular response

neuroanatomy

engram (memory trace); brain parts; neurons

brain parts (neuroanatomy)

frontal lobes; cerebellum; hippocampus; medial temporal area

trace conditioning

CS occurs before UCS

backward conditioning

UCS occurs before CS

critical components of observational learning

in order for observational learning to occur, individuals have to pay attention to model's behavior - characteristics of model and observers; retention; reproduction of behavior; motivation

learned behavior

most of what humans do is

stimulus generalization (setting)

respond to similarly to similar objects/stimuli; EX: can still drive different/new cars

vicarious reinforcement (Bandura and obs learning)

see someone else being reinforced and get the message

least effective type of pairing (pairing the UCS & CS)

simultaneous and backward

types of pairings (pairing the UCS & CS)

simultaneous conditioning, delayed (forward) conditioning, trace conditioning, backward conditioning

primary reinforcers (operant conditioning)

stimuli that are innately reinforcing; satisfy a basic physiological need; food, water, warmth, other people, social acceptance, etc.

stop reinforcing behavior (extinction)

time depends on schedule of reinforcement; easiest to extinguish continuous reinforcement; more difficult to extinguish fixed ration/interval because not every response is rewarded, but they know roughly when they're going to be rewarded; hardest to extinguish variable ratio/interval because it could just be a really long interval (don't know reinforcement stopped)

unconditioned response

a response to an unconditioned stimuli

kinds of learning

associative learning (classical conditioning, operant conditioning), observational learning

Tolman's research (latent learning and cognitive maps)

demonstrated that humans and other organisms develop cognitive maps; rats with complex maze - end goal box; DV = average number of wrong turns/errors over number of trials in a day; three conditions/groups: 1. rewarded control condition (every time the animal entered maze from start box, there was food in the goal box) 2. non-rewarded control group (never any food in goal box - no reward to go to goal box - the rats just wandered in maze) 3. experimental condition (first 11 days: identical to non-rewarded group; 12th day: changed to rewarded group)

setting (operant conditioning)

environmental stimuli all around us; most behaviors more likely to occur in presence of certain stimuli; discriminate stimulus (S^R) suggests response (R); response (R) leads to reinforcing stimulus (S^R); discrimination training; stimulus generalization

pairing the unconditioned stimulus with the conditioned stimulus

interstimulus interval; apparent contingency; types of pairings

observational learning

learning by observing other people engage in the behavior; involves more complex cognitive activity

motivation (critical comp of obs learning)

less likely to reproduce behavior unless motivated reason for you to do so; depends on whether you encounter a situation in which you believe the mental representation/behavior will pay off; vicarious reinforcement affects motivation: reinforced model = more motivation, punished model = less motivated

effects of direct reinforcement (observational learning)

when you imitate model, your personal experience of reinforcement after behavior affects likelihood of engagement in the behavior in the future; reinforcement helps improve reproduction of behavior because you get feedback

Thorndike's law of effect (operant conditioning)

when you link an action to a pleasant experience, the organism is likely to repeat that action; link with unpleasant = unlikely to repeat

preparedness (applications)

Seligman noticed some phobias are more common than others; biologically prepared to develop some phobias more readily than others (form with less trials); decreased(?) through evolution - develop phobias of threats to our survival in our evolutionary past: heights, spiders, etc.

latent learning and cognitive maps (cognitive perspectives)

Tolman's research; cognitive maps; learning that occurred = latent learning; highlights importance of difference between learning and performance

example of higher-order conditioning

UCS = noxious smells; UCR = discomfort; CS1 = Matilda (in smelly room); CR = dislike Matilda, because associate her with smelly room; CS2 = Eliza (not in smelly room - absence of UCS); CR = like Eliza less because she's paired with Matilda

unconditioned stimulus

a stimulus that naturally elicits a particular/unconditioned response

classical conditioning

a type of associative learning; unlearned, involuntary behaviors (blink, emotional response); Pavlov (discovered and studied by; the basics

interstimulus interval (pairing the UCS & CS)

amount of time between presentation of UCS and CS; want it short; higher interval = less likely the subject will associate the two

basics of classical conditioning

animal learns to associate two stimuli that lead to a particular response; unconditioned stimulus (UCS), unconditioned response (UCR), conditioned stimulus (CS), conditioned response (CR)

definition of learning

any relatively permanent change in performance potential that is brought about through experience

operant (instrumental) conditioning

associate stimuli to events; voluntary behavior; arose from behaviorism

variable ratio schedule (partial reinforcement)

average number of responses before reinforcing; number of reinforcements/responses vary above/below average; EX: slot machine, some sports (golf - # of strokes); pattern of behavior: produce the highest rate of steady responding; produces permanent learning IMPORTANT

fixed ratio schedule (partial reinforcement)

based on number of responses emitted; after x number of responses, next response reinforced; EX: ratio 5:1, every 6th response reinforced; examples: paid for every thing you make, frequent flyer programs, mail carrier (fixed number of houses before mailman can go home); pattern of responses: increased rate of responding than the interval schedule; like fixed interval, small drop in responses immediately after reinforcement; then rapid increase in response because want to get non reinforced responses out of the way

fixed interval schedule (partial reinforcement)

based on passage of time/interval of time between reinforced behaviors; predetermine amount of time that has to elapse before a response is reinforced; reinforce first response, then wait a certain time, don't reinforce responses, then after that, reinforce behavior; EX: paycheck at the end of the week; produces a pattern of behavior where at at beginning of interval = relatively few responses and at end = rapid increased rate of responding; easy to figure out if you've been placed on one

Premack's reinforcement hierarchy (operant conditioning)

can be constructed for any organism; top: reinforcers/activities engaged in most frequently; bottom: performed least often; in between: gradual change from most to least preferred; what A? do B first; any activity in a hierarchy can be used to reinforce activities lower in hierarchy and can be reinforced by activities higher in the hierarchy

observational learning (continued)

can learn to do something by watching some else (model) do it; Bandura's bobo doll studies; critical components of observational learning process; effects of direct reinforcement

spontaneous recovery (extinction)

complete extinction takes training sessions (present UCS without CS); second sessions - get CR in first few trials - spontaneously appeared; soon get rid of CR more quickly then first sessions; get rid of CR after a number of training sessions

discrimination training (setting)

condition animal to do behavior when discriminate stimulus is present but not when it's not present; reinforce behavior only when discriminate stimulus present

reproduction of behavior (critical comp of obs learning)

convert mental images and verbal code into behavior; not always easy; achieve only rough approximation of model's behavior

generalization gradient

decreased/less reaction as time goes on; stimulus farther away from/less like CS = decreased response

punishment (operant conditioning)

decreases the probability of response occurring in the future by making a noxious stimulant occur; NOT negative reinforcement

types of reinforcement (operant conditioning)

defined by behaviorists by its effect; positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, punishment; primary reinforcers, secondary reinforcers,

most effective type of pairing (pairing the UCS & CS)

delayed; because close in time (overlap) and the CS seems to predict the UCS

phobias (applications)

develop them through classical conditioning - neutral stimulus paired with something that frightens us; difficult to get rid of because we avoid them, so no extinction trials; COUNTER CONDITIONING

Skinner's box (operant conditioning)

developed a paradigm; special cage - push level and the foot appears; the rat engages in a response that leads to a reinforcing stimulus; response (R) --> reinforcing stimulus (S^R); responses associated with a reinforcing stimulus are likely to be repeated

Food aversions (applications)

developed dislikes of particular food; usually develop because an upset stomach resulting from another source is paired with a food; get sick and associate the sickness with that food even though the food was not the cause; stop eating that food; interstimulus interval can be long, because from an evolutionary perspective, we need to associate illness with recently eaten food so we don't eat it again and die

experience

due to things other than biological factors; as you get older - result of maturation

higher-order conditioning

establish an initial CS, then use it to condition a second CS; once established first CS, pair it with second CS in absence of UCS; over time, second CS conditioned to elicit CR; third order really difficult, and fourth order almost impossible

results of Tolman's research

first 11 days: group 1 ran maze with fewer errors than other groups (they learned correct route to food/reward); 12th day: group 3 ran were just as good as group 1; CONCLUSIONS: rats in group 3 learned/developed internal representation of maze while wandering around and used it on the 12th day (when they needed it), learning that occurred = LATENT LEARNING, highlights importance of difference between learning and performance (review definition = change in performance POTENTIAL - use knowledge when given a reason to)

Bandura's bobo doll study 1 (observational learning)

half of the children watched adult (model) exhibit unusual (unseen by children) aggressive behavior toward bobo doll; other half did not; all children let into room with toys and one bobo doll; first half of children were more aggressive toward the doll and imitated model's behavior and the children came up with their own unusual aggressive ways

what is used as reinforcer must be reinforcing (reinforcement)

hard to know what's going to be reinforcing beforehand; lost of individual differences - people need different things to make them want to/do as expected; sometimes what we think is reinforcing/punishment is not - won't increase probability of behavior

variable interval schedule (partial reinforcement)

harder to figure out; based on passage of time, but interval between reinforced responses is varied; use average intervals, with some intervals below and above average - randomly generated so no fixed pattern; less predictability, so different pattern of responding; steady rate of response; don't know how long interval is, so keep trying/steadily engaging in behavior; EX: watching for shooting stars, random drug testing, pop quizzes, checking jello in fridge; in general, short intervals = higher response rate

retention (critical comp of obs learning)

have to store a mental representation of what was witnessed in memory - stored so can be accessed in the future

two ways to store in memory (retention - obs learning)

imaginal representation and verbal representation; use combination of both for best storing in memory

cerebellum (brain parts - neuroanatomy)

implicit memory (memory for procedures and classical conditioning)

frontal lobes (brain parts - neuroanatomy)

involved in episodic memory, including retrospective memory (memories from past) and prospective memory (remembering things you need to do in the future)

cognitive maps (latent learning and cognitive maps)

learning not evident to observer, but subjects develop mental images of surroundings

shaping (operant conditioning)

method of successive approximation; reinforce behaviors that successively become more similar to desired behavior; gradually move to desired behavior/outcome; EX: dog retrieving ball

factors that influence attention (critical comp of obs learning)

model characteristics: competent/good at behavior, social power, relationship of model to observer; observer characteristics: perceives similarity with model, self esteem/belief that they can do it, interest in activity

engram (memory trace) (neuroanatomy)

must be spots in brains where memory is stored; if cut out, cut out memory; like section of computer's memory (THINK POI AND THE MACHINE IN THE BRIEFCASE); research failed to identify them; bits of one memory can be stored in multiple places in the brain

apparent contingency (pairing the UCS & CS)

occurrence of UCS seems to depend on occurrence of CS

stimulus generalization

occurs once animal is conditioned; animals elicit CR when similar stimuli are presented; the more likely the stimulus to the original stimulus, the more likely they are to elicit the conditioned response; generalization gradient

dangers of punishment (extinction)

often reinforcing to the punisher (negatively reinforces punisher's behavior); can have a generalized inhibitory effect (can stop/produce other similar behavior); can serve as a model for aggression; can be reinforcing (what is punishment for one may not be punishment for another), only a punishment if it decreases the probability of behavior, punishment may be a means of getting attention (which is reinforcing - neg attn > no attn); punishment by itself doesn't teach appropriate behaviors

stimulus discrimination

opposite of generalization; individual emits CR only when in the presence of specific stimuli; reaction to differences (as opposed to similarities with generalization); discrimination training

discrimination training

pair CS with UCS but do not pair other conditioned stimuli with UCS; present other (similar) stimuli but not the UCS; get CR only in response to CS and UCS

three components of learning

permanent change in behavior, performance potential, experience

applications (of learning?)

phobias, preparedness (Seligman noticed); Food aversions

performance potential

potential behavior; the ability to engage in a specific behavior; can learn something without engaging in the behavior

negative reinforcement (operant conditioning)

produces a desired outcome; sensation of a noxious stimulus increases probability of a response (neg stimulus going away = increased probability of repeated); cold - put on a sweater - no more cold - cold = negative reinforcement; headache - take aspirin - no more headache - headache = negative reinforcement' disappearance of an unpleasant stimulant is the desired outcome

positive reinforcement (operant conditioning)

produces a desired outcome; when the occurrence of a stimulus increases probability of a response in the future; a subjectively pleasant thing; reinforcement depends on who/what the organism is - in cage example: made rat hungry, food + effect

continuous reinforcement

reinforce behavior every time the response occurs

consistency of delivery (reinforcement)

reinforce response every time it occurs (produces most efficient learning); after learning/conditioning set: don't want to consistently reinforce behavior - move to partial reinforcement (need different schedule of reinforcement)

partial (intermittent) reinforcement

reinforcement only some of the time; four schedules: fixed interval schedule, variable interval schedule fixed ratio schedule, variable ratio schedule

timing (reinforcement)

reinforcement or punishment must occur within a short amount of time after the response; time delay = slow/nonexistent learning; why? - other behaviors because they think that's what's producing the reinforcement

stop pairing UCS with CS (extinction)

remove contingency - CS no longer predicts UCS; number of trials necessary; stop associating UCS with Cs; rate of CR in response to CS will decrease/drop off; time needed to drop off depends on strength of condition, but relatively rapid

after pairing/conditioning (pairing the UCS & CS)

should be able to present CS without the UCS and get a CR (conditioned response)

conditioned response

similar/identical to unconditioned response; learned response to initial (new) stimulus

secondary reinforcers (operant conditioning)

stimuli that the organism has learned to value; have no inborn value, but learn to value them over time; good grades, money, etc.; learned via classical conditioning - multiple trials, associate (these) things with unconditioned stimuli; still have a lot of meaning

conditioned stimulus

stimulus that initially elicits no particular response; over the course of trials, pair this with unconditioned stimulus; after a while, this produces a conditioned response

extinction

stop pairing UCS with CS; spontaneous recovery

extinction (operant conditioning)

stop reinforcing behavior; punish the behavior (punishment); dangers of punishment

imaginal representation (store observational learning)

store and retrieve a sensory image

Premack's study (operant conditioning)

study phase 1: children alone in a room with candy and a pinball machine, let the children do/eat as much as they want, they preferred one of the two; study phase 2: children who liked candy more would play more pinball in order to get the candy - reinforcing stimulus = candy, vice versa for those who preferred pinball (reinforcing stimulus);

important aspects of reinforcement

timing, what is used as the reinforcer must be reinforcing, consistency of delivery

counter conditioning (phobias)

to get rid of phobias, pair CS (fear) with new UCS that produces a response incompatible with fear; replace fear

second most effective type of pairing (pairing the UCS & CS)

trace; because CS seems to predict the UCS; effectiveness depends on length of interstimulus interval; more effective if less time

verbal representation (store observational learning)

translate what we see into verbal labels/instructions

cognitive perspectives

understand how individuals mentally use, store, represent information/past experiences; zoo experiment; latent learning and cognitive maps

basic premise (operant conditioning)

we learn to do things that bring about/are associated with desired outcomes; behavior is instrumental to getting what you want - a means to a desired end

punishment most effective when

when combined with reinforcing desired behaviors

Blocking

when pair second CS to predict first CS which predicts UCS (go backwards); test trials; turn on CS2 - does not produce CR; why not? - CS2 provides no additional information/predictive value; animal only tends to CS1 because it is closest in time to UCS

associative learning

when the organism forms a new association between two events; two things are connected in their mind; two kinds: classical conditioning, operant conditioning