Introduction to Psychology

Learning and Behavior Analysis

Learning

Learning: the process, based on experience, that results in a relatively consistent change in behavior (or behavior potential).

Learning-Performance Distinction: the difference between what has been learned (cognitively) and what is expressed (behaviorally)

Some behaviorists (Skinner) only believe learning has occurred when the behavior is observed; while others (Bandura) say that learning can occur even without seeing it.

Learning and Stimulus

Habituation (boredom): a decrease in behavioral response when a stimulus is presented repeatedly. Used to study how animals and non-verbal humans

remember stimuli Typically occurs with neutral or pleasant stimuli

Sensitization (on-edge): an increase in responsiveness to a stimulus when it is presented repeatedly. More likely to occur with stimuli that are irritating or painful

Behaviorism

John Watson Argued that the study of private experiences (cognition,

perceptions, emotions) was NOT scientific

Defined the chief goal of psychology was to predict and control [observable] behavior

Famous for the “Little Albert” experiment Classical conditioning of fear in an orphan infant

12-infants scenario

Behavioral Conditioning

Classical Conditioning Discovered, by accident, by Ivan Pavlov Classical conditioning is a basic form of learning that

depends on the temporal association between two stimuli 1) The unconditioned stimulus (UCS) elicits an

unconditioned response (UR; reflex) 2) The neutral stimulus (NS) is paired simultaneously with

the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) 3) after successful pairing or acquisition, the neutral

stimulus becomes the conditioned stimulus, and elicits the same response/reflex (now conditioned response or CR)

Behavioral Conditioning

Behavioral Conditioning Stimulus Generalization: the automatic extension of the

conditioned response to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus. Little Albert & all the little fuzzy things

Stimulus Discrimination: the organism responds different to stimuli that are distinctly different from the conditioned stimulus.

Extinction: when the conditioned stimulus no longer elicits the conditioned response Can occur when the CR is presented frequently without the

original UCS

Behavioral Conditioning Applications of classical

conditioning

Organisms can’t help it! Classical conditioning happens all the time! Any reflex can be conditioned!

Food aversion One of the powerful forms of classical

conditioning As few as 1 pairing can result in lifetime

behavioral changes

Advertising

Emotions

Classical Conditioning

Classical Conditioning

Behaviorism

B.F. Skinner Founded radical behaviorism

Not only are mental or internal events not the cause of behavior; rather these “under the skin” events are the result of environmental stimuli (unidirectional)

Walden II A novel about a utopian society based on manipulating

environmental consequences for all behavior

Served as the father of behavior analysis Focus on how environmental stimuli determine behavior

(functional analysis)

Behavioral Conditioning

The Law of Effect (Thorndike): the ability or power of a stimulus to evoke a behavioral response is dependent on a history of reinforcement

Operant Conditioning (Skinner): learning in which the probability of behavior is changed by it’s consequences (reinforcement or punishment)

Both rely on the organism first emitting a behavior spontaneously, then receiving the consequences

Behavior Analysis

Behavior Analysts rely on Functional Analysis to determine the environmental contingencies that are either perpetuating or preventing behaviors The structure of the behavior matters very little; it

is the function or contingency of the behavior that matters

Behavior Analysis

The Three Term Contingency Consists of A-B-C

Antecedent stimulus (Stimulus Control) The opportunity for the behavior needs to be present

Behavior Consequence

Behavioral Conditioning

Reinforcement: increases probability of the behavior Positive reinforcement: + good (reward) Negative reinforcement: - bad (avoidance)

Punishment: decreasing the probability of the behavior Positive punishment: + bad (corporal punishment) Negative reinforcement: - good (removing pleasant)

What makes a reinforcer reinforcing? A punishment, punishing?

Behavioral Conditioning

What if you don’t want to use punishment? Differential reinforcement

Reinforce the absence of the behavior Reinforce a different behavior Reinforce a physically incompatible behavior

Behavioral Conditioning

Motivating Operations: The effectiveness of a certain consequence based on the organism’s features at a particular moment

Establishing Operations: makes the consequence MORE desirable Hunger

Abolishing Operations: makes the consequence LESS desirable Already full

Behavioral Conditioning

Operant conditioning is most effective when the consequence immediately follows the behavior

Consequences given later may accidentally alter the probability of another behavior that is more proximal to the consequence Dog training Hangover v. Antibuse

Verbal humans are able to “understand” delays in consequences – which is sometimes good (biweekly paycheck) or bad (getting arrested for a crime)

Shaping Behavior

Chaining Reinforcing small, distinct sequential parts of the

behavior until the entire behavior is achieved Teaching a child to brush their teeth

Successive approximation The organism’s behavior is reinforced as it

becomes closer and closer to the desired behavior Teaching a dog to roll over

Behavioral Conditioning

Operant Extinction: when a behavior no longer produces predictable consequences, the behavior will return to the previous level before conditioning Extinction burst

Toddler in the grocery store Spontaneous recovery

Fading: when the behavior analyst gradually reduces the rate of extrinsic or artificial reinforcement Relies on the environment having a natural, built-in contingency

for the behavior

Behavioral Conditioning Primary Reinforcers: have reinforcing properties all on their own

Typically biologically rooted, such as food or avoidance of pain

Secondary (conditioned) Reinforcers: have been paired with a primary reinforcer to elicit the same response Mixes classical and operant conditioning Animal training “clicker”

Generalized Reinforcer: have been paired with many primary reinforcers to elicit various responses Token Economy What is an example of a generalized reinforcer?

Premack’s Principle: one behavior can be used to reinforce another behavior Homework v. Video Games

Schedules of Reinforcement

In operant conditioning, a pattern of delivering and withholding consequences of behavior Behaviors given partial reinforcement are much harder to

extinguish than those with continuous reinforcement Fixed-Ratio (i.e. every 5 behaviors) Fixed-Interval (i.e. every 5 minutes) Variable-Ratio (i.e. an average of every 10 responses –

could be at 5 responses, 7 responses, 15 responses, etc) Variable-Ratio is the hardest to extinguish

Variable-Interval (i.e. an average of every 10 minutes, could be at 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15 minutes, etc)

Observational/Social Learning Albert Bandura

Bobo Doll Experiment

Simply watching another organism perform a behavior is enough to elicit the behavior Can be with or without vicarious reinforcement or

vicaious punishment Influenced by the model’s attributes

Authority Similarity

Bandura believed that social learning can occur without the learner producing the behavior (Latent Learning)

Applications of Behavioral Analysis

Marketing & Advertising Industrial & Organizational Animal training Child-rearing Training individuals with developmental disabilities Treatment of substance abuse Treatment of specific phobias And much more!