Classical Conditioning

Classical Conditioning

Introduction • Classical conditioning • Ivan Pavlov • John B. Watson • Behaviorism

Pavlov’s Experiments • Parts of Classical Conditioning • Unconditioned stimulus (US) • Unconditioned response (UR) • Conditioned stimulus (CS) • Conditioned response (CR)

Through direct experience with animals, we come to anticipate that dogs will bark and that birds will chirp. This best illustrates: A. the law of effect. B. spontaneous recovery. C. respondent behavior. D. associative learning.

Ivan Pavlov noticed that dogs began salivating at the mere sight of the person who regularly brought food to them. For the dogs, the sight of this person was a(n): A. primary reinforcer. B. unconditional stimulus. C. immediate reinforcer. D. conditioned stimulus.

Conditioning seldom occurs when a(n) ________ comes after a(n) _____. A. CS; US B. UR; CS C. secondary reinforcer; operant behavior D. negative reinforcer; operant behavior

The predictability of an association between a CS and a US facilitates an organism's ability to anticipate the occurrence of the US. This fact is most likely to be highlighted by a(n) ________ perspective. A. evolutionary B. behaviorist C. cognitive D. neuroscience

Researchers condition a flatworm to contract when exposed to light by repeatedly pairing the light with electric shock. The electric shock is a(n): A. negative reinforcer. B. conditioned stimulus. C. conditioned reinforcer. D. unconditioned stimulus.

If you get violently ill a couple of hours after eating contaminated food, you will probably develop an aversion to the taste of that food but not to the sight of the restaurant where you ate or to the sound of the music you heard there. This best illustrates that associative learning is constrained by: A. intrinsic motivation. B. spontaneous recovery. C. biological predispositions. D. conditioned reinforcers.

After getting ill from eating her friend’s Thanksgiving turkey, Natalia couldn’t stand the the sight or smell of turkey. However, when her friend baked a whole chicken, Natalia thought it sounded good. This illustrates: A. generalization. B. discrimination. C. extinction. D. acquisition.

Brian ate a tuna salad sandwich that had become tainted from being in the sun too long. Not long after eating, Brian became extremely nauseated and felt awful. After that, even the sight of a tuna sandwich caused Brian to feel nauseated. In this scenario, what is the conditioned response (CR)? A. tuna B. nausea C. mayonnaise D. sight of any sandwich

Extinction occurs ___________ in classical conditioning and ___________ in operant conditioning. A. when the CS is presented with the US; when reinforcement increases B. when the CS is presented alone repeatedly; when reinforcement increases C. when the CS is presented alone repeatedly; when reinforcement stops D. when the CS is presented with the US; when reinforcement stops

Operant Conditioning

Introduction • Respondent behavior • behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus • Classical conditioning • Operant conditioning • Associate own actions with consequences • Behavior that operates ON the environment to produce rewarding or punishing stimuli

Skinner’s Experiments • Edward Thorndike’s Law of Effect • 1874-1949 • Rewarded behavior is likely to recur • Puzzle box • B.F. Skinner (1904-1990) • Behavioral technology • Behavior control • Teach pigeons unpigeon-like behavior

Skinner’s Experiments • Operant Chamber (Skinner Box)

Skinner’s ExperimentsShaping Behavior • Shaping • reinforcers guide successive approximations • Discriminative stimulus • in operant conditioning, a stimulus that elicits a response after association with reinforcement (in contrast to related stimuli not associated with reinforcement). • Teach pigeon to peck after seeing human face but not other images, pigeon learns to recognize faces…faces= discriminative stimulus Which type of stimulus gets the reaction that is reinforced

Skinner’s ExperimentsTypes of Reinforcers • Reinforcer • Positive reinforcement • Negative reinforcement

Skinner’s ExperimentsTypes of Reinforcers • Reinforcer • Anything that strengthens the behavior it follows • Positive reinforcement – adds a positive • Negative reinforcement – removes a negative • Not punishment • Removes a punishing event

Negative Reinforcement • Taking aspirin to relieve headache • Putting mittens on because it is cold • Giving in to a whining child • Fanning oneself to escape the heat • Leaving a movie theater if the movie is bad • Smoking in order to relieve anxiety • Feigning stomachache to avoid school • Putting up umbrellas to escape the rain • Saying “uncle” to stop being beaten

Skinner’s ExperimentsTypes of Reinforcers • Primary reinforcer • Satisfies a biological need • Conditioned reinforcer • Gains its reinforcing power through its association w/ the primary reinforcer • Secondary Reinforcer • Immediate vs Delayed Reinforcers • immediate best in animals • Humans respond to delayed • Social competent & high-achieving

Reinforcement Schedules • Continuous Reinforcment • Learning occurs rapidly, but… • Extinction occurs rapidly • Partial (intermittent) Reinforcment • Slower to learn but more resistant to extinction • Fixed-Ratio • Variable-Ratio • Fixed-Interval • Variable-Interval

Skinner’s ExperimentsReinforcement Schedules subject must be behaving at the right time to get reinforcement • Ratio • dependent on the behavior itself; a certain number of behaviors are needed before reinforcement will occur • FIXED –RATIO • reinforce behavior after set # of responses • VARIABLE-RATIO • reinforce behavior after unpredictable # of responses…slot machine • Interval • involves a TIME element; time must pass before reinforcement will occur • FIXED –INTERVAL • reinforce 1st response after set time…produces stop-start behavior (more as reward draws near) • VARIABLE-INTERVAL • reinforce 1st response after varying time intervals high rate of responding slow/steadyrate of responding

Skinner’s ExperimentsReinforcement Schedules

Reinforcement Schedules • VR • FR • VI • FI • VI • VR • FI 8. FR 9. VR 10. VI 11. FR 12. FI

Skinner’s ExperimentsPunishment • Punishment • Positive punishment • Negative punishment Negative Reinforcement encourages behavior. When something unpleasant ceases, the behavior that caused it to stop is reinforced

Sensitivity to Punishment & Reward Questionnaire Are some of us more sensitive to punishment? Are some of us more sensitive to reward? Sensitivity to Punishment • Assign 1 point for each yes answer for odd #s • 0-24 range Sensitivity to Reward • Assign 1 point for each yes answer for even #s High punish. Score vulnerable to anxiety. High reward score = impulsivity.

Skinner’s ExperimentsPunishment

Skinner’s ExperimentsPunishment • Negatives of using punishment • Punished behavior is suppressed not forgotten • Punishment teaches discrimination • did child learn not to curse or just not to curse in house? • Punishment can teach fear • Physical punishment may increase aggression

Punishment tells you what not to do; reinforcement tells you what to do

Extending Skinner’s UnderstandingCognition and Operant Conditioning • Latent learning • Cognitive map • Insight learning • Intrinsic motivation • Extrinsic motivation overjustification effect

Extending Skinner’s UnderstandingBiological Predispositions • Biological constraints predispose organisms to learn associations that are naturally adaptive • Instinctive Drift

Skinner’s LegacyApplications of Operant Conditioning • At school • In sports • At home • For self- improvement

Contrasting Classical and Operant Conditioning • Similarities between classical and operant conditioning • Differences between classical and operant conditioning

Contrasting Classical and Operant Conditioning

Classical Conditioning