Learning

1. Learning Chapter 6

2. What is learning? • Process in which experience produces a lasting change in behavior or mental processes. • Can you measure mental or cognitive learning? • Thus behavioral learning vs. cognitive learning.

3. Learning vs. Instincts • Learning is important because we learn many things that make us human: language, no memory etc. • Instincts: behaviors that are innate; motivational • Human behavior is more influenced by learning rather than instincts.

4. Simple forms of learning • Habituation: Learning not to respond to the repeated presentation of a stimulus. • Mere Exposure effect: preference for stimulus to which we have been previously exposed to like ads or commercials.

5. Behavioral Learning • Forms of learning that can be described in terms of stimuli and responses. • Two examples are classical and operant conditioning. • Conditioned means learned and unconditioned means unlearned.

6. Classical conditioning • Form of learning in which 2 stimuli become associated. • Most famous experiment was Pavlov’s dogs. • His work focused on simple automatic responses known as reflexes. • His discovery was that these reflexes could be associated with a new stimuli. • Thus the connection between the reflex and new stimuli was learned.

7. Acquisition : initial learning stage of classical conditioning. • During this time, the strength of the CR (salivation) occurs quickly. • Timing makes a difference!

9. More on timing? • Extinction: the weakening of the CR (salivation)to the absence of an UCS. (food) • Does it go away forever? No! • You can have spontaneous recovery!

10. Spontaneous recovery • CR will reappear after a delayed time but with less strength. • Important in behavior modification because it is not a complete elimination in behavior. You are merely suppressing a CR. • At this point you are learning to not respond to the CS. (the bell)

11. Stimulus Generalization • The process that involves giving a conditioned response to similar stimuli. • Pavlov tested this idea by ringing similar bells and getting the same response with the dogs: salivation • Common among people who have had traumatic event. • Are you scared of only 1 spider or all sizes and kinds of spiders?

12. Discrimination Learning • Opposite of stimulus generalization. • Occurs when an organism learns to respond to one stimulus but not to another similar stimuli. • Pavlov tested this idea with the dogs but using two tones with different frequencies. Over a series of trials, the dogs learned to not respond to one stimulus.

13. Experimental Neurosis • A pattern in erratic behavior resulting from confusing and demanding discrimination learning. • This is common in both people and animals in stress.

14. Applications • The case of Little Albert: John Watson and Rosalie Rayner conditioned an infant to react fearfully to a white rat. • Little Albert • altoid theory

15. Taste Food Aversion • A biological tendency in an organism to learn to avoid food with a certain taste if a followed by an illness. • May have survival value. We learn to from an association with food and illness but not with other stimuli. • Innate, not a learned behavior. • Response can be over along extended time.

16. Coyotes • Toxic lamb burgers were placed in sheepskins. • Coyotes found meat and ate the meat. • Became sick and developed a distaste for lamb meat. • 30-50% reduction in sheep attacks but ranchers have not applied the research!

17. Key question? • What sort of learning does classical conditioning explain? • Conditioned responses involve both nature(biology) and nurture(learning). • Its just not a learned relationship but can be a way an organism is genetically programmed to certain stimuli in the environment. • Can be very powerful in changing behaviors!