Behavioral Theories Of Learning

1. Behavioral Theories Of Learning EDU 6303 Psychology of Teaching and Learning

2. Overview • Definition of learning • Pavlov • Thorndike • Skinner • Principles of Behavioral Learning Theory • Bandura • Meichenbaum

3. What is learning? • Learning is usually defined as a change in an individual caused by experience not by reflexes (Slavin, 2003).

4. Pavlov • Unconditioned stimulus – elicits a response automatically • Unconditioned response – occurs automatically unconditioned stimulus • Neutral stimulus – does not automatically elicit a response, but can become a • Conditioned stimulus during • Classical conditioning

5. Thorndike – Law of Effect • Thorndike went beyond Pavlov by showing that stimuli that occurred after a behavior had an influence on future behaviors • An act that is followed by a favorable effect is more likely to be repeated in similar situations; an act that is followed by unfavorable effect is less likely to be repeated.

6. Skinner • Skinner’s work focused on the relationship between behavior and its consequences. • Operant conditioning – the use of pleasant and unpleasant consequences to change behavior. • Skinner Box – allows the study of behavior in a controlled environment.

7. Principles of Behavioral Learning • Behavior changes according to its immediate consequences (immediacy of consequences is key). • Reinforcers – consequences that are likely to increase the frequency of the behavior, i.e., strengthen the behavior. • Primary reinforcers – satisfy basic human needs. • Secondary reinforcers acquire their value for being associated with primary reinforcers.

8. Principles (continued) • Shaping – guiding behavior toward goals by reinforcing the many steps that lead to success. • Extinction – removing reinforcers from previously learned behavior until the behavior disappears. • Extinction burst – the increase in levels of behavior in the early stages of extinction.

9. Principles (continued) • Positive reinforcement – are usually things given to students that they value, e.g., praise. • Negative reinforcement – escape from an unpleasant or a way of preventing unpleasant behavior from occurring.

10. Principles (continued) • Punishment – consequences that weaken behavior; punishment like reinforcement is in the eye of the receiver and the impact on behavior.

11. Principles (continued) • Removal punishment – forbidding a desirable task or situation; • Presentation punishment (aversive stimulus) – imposing an undesirable task or situation; and • No reinforcement discourage behaviors. • However, positive reinforcement generally works better to shape behavior than punishment.

12. Principles (continued) • Premack principle (grandma’s rule) – you can encourage less-desired (to the individual by linking them to a desired behavior. • Intrinsic motivators – behaviors that people enjoy for the pleasure of the behavior. • Extrinsic motivators – rewards given to people to motivate them to engage in behavior that they might not engage in otherwise.

13. Schedules of Reinforcement • Fixed interval – reinforcer is given after a fixed number of behaviors. (Fixed ratio schedules are effective in motivating individuals to do a great deal of work especially with high requirements for reinforcement

14. Schedules of Reinforcement • Variable interval –variable number of behaviors are necessary for reinforcement. This reinforcement schedule is very effective for maintaining a high rate of behavior and are highly resistant to extinction.

15. Schedules of Reinforcement • Fixed interval schedule – reinforcement is available on at certain times - can encourage cramming, e.g., end of grade test.

16. Schedules of Reinforcement • Variable interval – reinforcement is available at some times, but not at others – spot checks

17. Maintenance • Some behaviors that have been acquired through reinforcement become intrinsically motivating, e.g., reading, soccer. • Variable interval schedules produce behaviors that are resistant to extinction.

18. Role of Antecedents • Cueing – antecedent behavior or cues tell people what behavior will be reinforced • Discrimination is the use of cues, signals, or information to know when behavior is likely to be reinforced – learning is largely a matter of mastering more and more complex discriminations.

19. Generalization • Is the transfer of behavior under one set of conditions to other situations. • Generalization must be planned for; it is most likely to occur across similar settings or similar concepts. • It is more likely to occur is using many relevant examples. • The instruction is repeated in a variety of settings.

20. Social Learning Theory • Bandura and observational learning – he noted that Skinnerian emphasis of the consequences of behavior largely ignored the phenomena of modeling – the imitation of others. • Observational learning involves four phases:

21. Social Learning Theory • Attentional phase – the first phase of observational learning is paying attention to model. • Retention phase – once teachers have students’ attention, it is time to model the behavior they want the students to imitate and then give students a chance to practice and rehearse.

22. Social Learning Theory • Reproduction phase – student’s try to match their behavior to the model’s. • Motivational phase – students will imitate a model because they believe that doing so will increase their own chances of being reinforced.

23. Social Learning Theory • Vicarious Learning - People learn in this process learn by seeing other people rewarded or punished. • Self-regulation – people can observe their own behavior, judge it against their own standards, and reinforce or punish themselves.

24. Social Learning Theory • Meichenbaum’s model of self regulated learning argues that students can be taught to monitor and regulate their own behavior, which is often called cognitive behavior modification.

25. Michenbaum’s Model of Self-Regulated Learning • An adult model performs a task while talking to self out loud (cognitive modeling). • The child performs the same task under the direction of the model’s instructions (overt, external guidance). • The child performs the task while instructing self aloud (overt, self-guidance).

26. Michenbaum’s Model of Self-Regulated Learning • The child whispers instructions to self as he or she goes through the task (faded, overt self-guidance). • The child performs the task while guiding his or her performance via private speech (covert self-instruction).

27. Strengths and Limitations of Behavioral Learning Theories • The basic principles are as firmly established as any in psychology and have been demonstrated under many different conditions. • However, the theories only deal with observable behavior. • In some ways in complements cognitive theories of learning.

28. Reference • Slavin, R. E. (2003). Educational Psychology: Theory and Practice, 7th Edition.