Behaviorist Theory

Classical conditioning

-learning that results from repeated co-occurences of two stimuli -a previously neutral stimulus is paired with an unconditioned stimulus to elicit a conditioned response

4 processes of observational learning

1. attention 2. retention 3. motor reproduction 4. reinforcement

chaining

a stimulus is a reinforcer for one event becomes a discriminative stimulant for the next step

positive reinforcement

adding a stimulus which strengthens a response and makes it more likely to recur (ex: praise)

interval schedule

based on amount of elapsed time

ratio schedule

based on the number of responses made

neutral stimulus (NS)

before conditioning does not naturally elicit a response of interest (ex: tone bell)

reinforced behaviors

behaviors are strengthened due to satisfying results or consequences

punished

behaviors are weakened due to the unsatisfying result or consequence

what do behaviorists emphasize?

both biological and environmental influences

extinction

gradual weakening or suppression of a previously conditioned response

generalization

occurs when a conditioned stimulus results in a response that is similar to the original conditioned response. Ex) a child with nightmares may refuse to enter any dark areas

continuous schedule of reinforcement

reinforcing every response

B.F. Skinner and free will

we have no free will we are the result of our conditioning behavior is a result of consequence

response

tends to follow the stimulus and is an observable reaction of some psychological subsystem to a stimulus

self-system

the set of cognitive processes by which a person observes, evaluates and regulates his/her social behavior

Bobo Doll study

-children observed adults playing aggressively with bobo doll -all children demonstrated social learning b/c they all imitated the adults aggressive behaviors -as children grow they become more selective in what behaviors they imitate

Ivan Pavlov

-classical conditioning -the process of learning in which one stimulus is the signal for another stimulus

bi-directional effect on learning

-environment influences individual -individual influences environment

reciprocal determinism

-learning not a simple process of reinforcement for directly copying behavior -complex set of actions that include internalization of what the model and behavior represent

John Watson

-psychology is a science: it should be based on concepts that are objective -only observable behavior should be the focus of study

imitation

-strength of reinforcement (immediacy and schedule) -informative qualities (act of reinforcement tells which is "best", become more skilled at predicting what behaviors are likely to be reinforced , learning is more effective) -motivational qualities: anticipate consequences of behaviors (vaccinations) -occurs through observation model -introduces the idea of internal mediating operations

bandura's social learning theory

-we are active learners -effect is bi-directional -the theory developed to explain how we learn complex behaviors

self-efficacy

a judgement of ones effectiveness in dealing with particular situations and plays a major role in determining our behavior

ABA design

a single case experimental design in which an initial baseline stage (A) is followed by an intervention stage (B) a return to baseline conditions (A) -the researcher observes whether behavior changes with the introduction of the intervention and reverses when the intervention is withdrawn -baseline stage: the first stage in which a record is makes of the individuals behavior prior to any intervention

higher order conditioning

a stimulus is first made meaningful or consequential for an organism through an initial step of learning, and then that stimulus is used as a basis for learning about some new stimulus. For example, an animal might first learn to associate a bell with food (first-order conditioning), but then learn to associate a light with the bell

positive

a stimulus is presented

negative

a stimulus is removed

positive punishment

adding a stimulus that weakens a response and makes it less likely to recur (shouting)

stimulus

any form of energy that excites a sensory organ

albert bandura

argues that most human learning is inherently social in nature

low self efficacy

associated with depression, anxiety and helplessness

unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

elicits UCR without prior conditioning (causes a reflexive response) (ex: meat powder)

high self efficacy

is associated with self-confidence, positive outlook and minimal self doubt

conditioned response (CR)

learned reaction to a CS occurring because of prior repeated pairings with an UCS (salivation)

vicarious learning

people learn from one another via, observation imitation and modeling

conditioned stimulus (CS)

previously NS that through repeated pairings with UCS now causes a CR (ex: tone)

spontaneous recovery

reappearance of a previously extinguished conditioned response

acquisition

refers to the strengthening of the reinforced operant response

fixed interval (FI)

reinforced occurs after a predetermined time has elapsed the interval is fixed

partial schedules of reinforcement

reinforcement behavior only part of the time (harder to extinguish)

shaping

reinforcement is delivered after successive approximations of the desired response

fixed ratio (FR)

reinforcement occurs after a predetermined set of responses the ratio is fixed

variable interval (VI)

reinforcement occurs unpredictably the interval varies

variable ration (VR)

reinforcement occurs unpredictably the ratio varies

negative punishment

subtracting a stimulus that weakens a response and makes it less likely to recur

Negative reinforcement

subtracting a stimulus which strengthens a response making it more likely to recur

fixed schedule

the number of responses required for a ratio or interval schedule is fixed

variable schedule

the number of responses required for a ratio schedule and amount of time for an interval schedule varies on each trial

Behaviorism

the process of development can be explained through learning principles

Watson and Rayner

the study of ringing a bell near baby albert very loudly to frighten him whenever he was near a rat. This eventually lead to him being afraid of rats and other similar objects that were either white, furry or both

differentiation

the way in which one stimulus is discriminated from another and takes place through selective reinforcement of certain associations and the lack of reinforcements in others ex) child may be fearful of dark in the house but not at movie theaters

unconditioned response (UCR)

unlearned reaction to UCS occurring without prior conditioning (a reflexive response) (ex: salivation)