Learning From Experience I. Learning about events: Noticing and ignoring A. Habituation and sensitization 1. Orienting response 2. Habituation 3. Sensitization B. Short- and long-term effects II. Learning what events signal: Classical Conditioning A. Terminology of classical conditioning 1. Unconditioned stimuli and unconditioned responses 2. Conditioned stimuli and conditioned responses B. Acquiring the conditioned stimulus-unconditioned stimulus connection C. Conditioned responding: Why does it develop? D. Second-order condition E. Stimulus generalization F. Stimulus discrimination G. Extinction and spontaneous recovery
III. Learning about the consequences of behavior: Instrumental conditioning A. The law of effect B. B.F. Skinner and radical behaviorism C. The discriminative stimulus D. The nature of reinforcement 1. Positive & negative reinforcement 2. Bliss point and response deprivation theory 3. Conditioned reinforcers E. Schedules of reinforcement 1. Fixed ratio schedules 2. Variable ratio schedules 3. Fixed interval schedules 4. Variable interval schedules F. Shaping the desired behavior G. Biological constraints on learning H. Punishment 1. Positive and negative punishment 2. Practical considerations IV. Learning from others: Observational learning A. Modeling: Learning through example B. Practical considerations
Learning in Pigeons, Monkeys, and People
The Conditioned Stimulus- Unconditioned Stimulus Connection Rule: A conditioned stimulus will acquire signaling properties, leading to the production of the a conditioned response, whenever it provides information about the occurrence of the unconditioned stimulus (Rescorla, 1992).
Experimental Findings on Conditioning 1. For an effective association to form, the conditioned stimulus needs to be presented before the unconditioned stimulus. 2. The unconditioned stimulus needs to follow the conditioned stimulus closely in time. 3. The conditioned stimulus needs to uniquely predict the unconditioned stimulus. 4. The conditioned stimulus needs to provide new information about the occurrence of the unconditioned stimulus.
Types of Reinforcement Consequence Description Example Positive Reinforcement The presentation of an event after a response increases the likelihood of the response occurring again Bob s parents reward him for cleaning his room by giving him $5. The presentation of $5 increases the likelihood that Bob will clean his room Negative reinforcement The removal of an event after a response increases the likelihood of the response occurring again Karen s parents nag her continually about cleaning her room. When she finally cleans her room, her parents stop nagging her. The removal of the nagging increases the probability that Karen will clean her room again
Schedules of Reinforcement Type Description Example Effect Continuous Partial Fixed Ratio Variable Ratio Fixed Interval Variable Interval Response is followed by reinforcement every time it occurs Response is followed by reinforcement some of the time The number of responses required for reinforcement is fixed The number of responses required for reinforcement varies Reinforcement is delivered for the first response after a fixed interval of time Reinforcement is delivered for the first response after a variable interval of time Every time you clean your room your parents give you $5 Sometimes you get $5 for cleaning your room You get $5 every 3 times you clean your room You get $5 after cleaning your room a certain # of times, but the exact number varies Every Tuesday you get $5 if your room is clean On some random weekday you get $5 if your room is clean Fast acquisition of response, with response easily extinquished Acquisition is slower, but response is more resistant to extinction You clean your room consistently, but stop cleaning quickly if reward stops You clean your room consistently, and continue to clean your room even if reward isn t delivered for a while You don t do much cleaning until Tuesday, and you stop quickly if reward stops You clean your room consistently and don t stop even if the reward isn t delivered for a while
Schedules of Reinforcement, con t