Behaviorists focus on your behaviors (actions) and figure out ways to change them.

1. Learning “Will this guy learn?” A relatively permanent change in behavior due to experience. Behaviorists focus on your behaviors (actions) and figure out ways to change them. 

2. Most of what we know about learning and what will be tested on the AP Exam comes from the Behaviorists, psychologists who believe that only observable external behavior is a valid topic of study. For example, lets say Billy is really depressed.  The depression causes Billy to stop sleeping and eating.  Billy is also drinking tequila as his only liquids.  A behaviorist would NOT analyze Billy's childhood and look into his unconscious (like the psychoanalytic school).  A behaviorist would not look at Billy's levels of serotonin and prescribe him medicine (like the biological school). A behaviorist would only look at Billy's behaviors, not his depression itself. 

3. Classical Conditioning began with Ivan Pavlov Lets meet “The Man” 5:40

4. Pavlov’s dogs are the Beatles of psychology! Let’s meet John, Paul, George & Ringo 5:07 Let me start by telling you how Pavlov discovered classical conditioning, then I will break it down (like Lil Bow Wow)  “Oww! Why you gotta put a fistula to my face?”

5. Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS): a stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response or reflex. Unconditional Response (UCR): the unlearned, naturally occurring response or reflex to the UCS.

6. Conditioned Stimulus (CS): an originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with the UCS, comes to trigger a response. Conditioned Response (CR): the learned response to a previously neutral stimulus.

8. Come up with your own examples of Classical Conditioning

9. Neutral UCS UCR + = CS CR =

10. Pavlov spent the rest of his life outlining his ideas. He came up with 5 critical terms that together make up classical conditioning. • Acquisition • Extinction • Spontaneous Recovery • Generalization • Discrimination

11. Acquisition • The initial stage of learning. • The phase where the neutral stimulus is associated with the UCS so that the neutral stimulus comes to elicit the CR (thus becoming the CS). Does timing matter? • The CS should come before the UCS • They should be very close together in timing.

12. Extinction • The diminishing of a conditioned response. • Will eventually happen when the UCS does not follow the CS. Is extinction permanent?

13. Generalization is when a stimuli is so close to the CS that it still causes the CR.  Discrimination is when we respond to original CS but not to similar stimuli. Spontaneous Recovery is the reappearance of the CR after apparent extinction. Second Order Conditioning/Higher Order is when the CS can condition another stimulus. Vicarious Conditioning is when we learn to respond to a stimulus by watching another persons reaction.

14. Little Albert Video7:19 John Watson wanted to take Pavlov’s findings one step further by attempting to condition human emotions to neutral objects. He was able to condition the emotions of fear, love and anger.

15. Taste Aversions

16. Classical Conditioning and Therapy Systematic Desensitization: Systematic Desensitization was developed by Joseph Wolpe and is a process that involves teaching the client to replace feelings of anxiety with relaxation. 

17. Aversive Conditioning: The process involves pairing a habit a person wishes to break, such as smoking or bed-wetting, with an unpleasant stimulus such as electric shock or nausea. If I wanted to stop Kenny from bed-wetting I could shock him every time he wewees.  The shock is the UCS and the pain is the UCR.  Once the whizzing becomes associated with the electric shock (acquisition), Kenny will experience pain when he tinkles, even without the shock.  Thus the full bladder will become the CS and the pain the CR (but only if the shock is no longer given).