Psychology

Unit 2 – Learning Approach

Basic Assumptions:

1. Attempts to adopt scientific approach by studying observable behaviour rather than the mind, because it claims that we can’t scientifically investigate what goes on in the mind.

2. All behaviour is learned the environment after birth, rather than the result of innate characteristics such as our genes:

Content:

Classical ConditioningThis is an aspect of the learning approach which largely focuses on the associations made between certain stimuli and the responses to these stimuli. It is largely based on Pavlov’s investigations of dogs which learned to associate the ringing of a bell with the presentation of food.

Principles of Classical Conditioning:

(Before conditioning):

Unconditioned Stimulus Unconditioned Stimulus Unconditioned Response Unconditioned Response

(During conditioning):

Conditioned Stimulus + Unconditioned Stimulus Conditioned Stimulus + Unconditioned Stimulus Unconditioned Response Unconditioned Response

(After conditioning):

Conditioned Stimulus Conditioned Stimulus Conditioned Response Conditioned Response

Application:

In the case of Pavlov’s dogs, the unconditioned stimulus would be the food which is presented to the dog. This would be followed by the unconditioned response which would be the salivation. The conditioned stimulus would be the bell that was rang when the food before the food was presented. Combining the conditioned stimulus (the bell) with the unconditioned stimulus (the food) leads to an unconditioned response (salivation). This process would later not require the unconditioned stimulus and the conditioned stimulus would lead to a conditioned response.

Other Features of Classical Conditioning:

• Extinction – If a conditioned stimulus is repeatedly presented without the unconditioned stimulus, the conditioned response will eventually disappear.

• Generalisation – A dog that has been conditioned to salivate to the sound of a bell will salivate to sounds similar to bells.

Operant Conditioning Operant conditioning involves learning through the consequences of an action. If an action performed has desirable consequences for us, then we are likely to repeat that behaviour. The concept is largely based on B.F Skinner’s research from the Skinner box test.

Principles of operant conditioning:

• Positive Reinforcement – A pleasant outcome that encourages repetition of a behaviour, I.E giving someone a gift or thanking them.

• Negative Reinforcement – Involves removing something unpleasant in response to a desired behaviour, for example; performing a certain action in order to not get punished.

• Punishment – An unpleasant outcome to not performing a behaviour, so we repeat the behaviour to avoid it I.E being shouted at.

Skinner’s ABC Model:

• Antecedent (what comes before the behaviour)

• Behaviour (what the animal does in response)

• Consequence (what follows the animal’s response)

Social Learning Theory This theory for learning involves learning through observation and imitation. An observer may have learned a new behaviour by watching and imitating another person or some kind of aspect of the media, for example; a character from a TV show that they like.

Principles of Social Learning Theory:•Bandura’s three principle sources of behaviour;- The Family- Sub Culture- The Media

•Bandura’s ‘ARRM’ criteria:- Attention – to the role model-Retention – of the observed behaviour -Reproduction – of the target behaviour-Motivation – to imitate the observed behaviour

Vicarious Reinforcement:Refers to repeating a behaviour because they have observed a role model receiving reinforcement for it.

Token Economy TreatmentPrinciples:Token economy uses operant conditioning to change behaviour for the better. Tokens are given for desired behaviour in

psychiatric institutions and they are exchangeable for primary reinforcer. E.G anorexics making certain weight gains or schizophrenics being able to do more self care. Eventually more natural reinforcers will be used such as praise to replace tokens.

Evaluation:• The programme has been seen to work quickly and effectively, especially in schools, where they produce the desired

behaviour the programme originally set out to achieve. • The programme has wide applications and can be used to improve behaviour of school children or to treat sufferers of

schizophrenia. • The programme can be very time-consuming and potentially expensive, especially in schools, where the time-

investment is too much for many teachers who would rather focus on the teaching than a rewards system.• The programme is only targeted at one certain situation, outside that situation the individual may not reproduce that

same desired behaviour.

Gender Development Learning Approach

Explanation:

Explanation:Operant Conditioning: • Females children would receive positive reinforcement from parents and peers for playing with female toys and for

wearing clothes that are pink, purple (female colours). • They would see these things as negative reinforcement as it is avoiding something negative (I.E being chastised by

their parents) therefore they will continue the behaviour of playing with female toys, wearing female clothes, etc. • They would see being told off by their parents for playing with male toys as punishment therefore they will continue to

perform the behaviour of playing with girl’s in order to avoid this punishment. • Children are encouraged to perform stereotypical activities. They would gain positive reinforcement for playing

football.

Social Learning Theory: • This would state that gender development is learned through observation of Bandura’s three sources of behaviour, I.E

parents, friends, people in the media etc. A boy may observe the typical masculine, aggressive behaviour of his father and may imitate this behaviour. Likewise with females.

• They would also go through the 4 criteria. Attention – to role model and their behaviour, Retention - the possession of the behaviour they’ve observed, Reproduction – the reproduction of the observed behaviour, Motivation, the motivation to imitate the behaviour of the role model.

• The child may also get vicarious reinforcement that a sibling has received for performing certain action, for example; a little boy sees his older brother receive positive reinforcement for playing football, therefore the little boy obsevers this and performs the behaviour himself in order to get the same positive reinforcement.

Evaluation • The explanation has supporting evidence in Bandura, Ross and Ross’ study which found that male children would

imitate aggressive acts if they observed a male adult acting aggressively and likewise with the female children when they observed a female role model. Therefore this shows that children observe and imitate the observed behaviour of a same sex role model.

• The theory has applications into society as it offers an explanation as to why males generally may act in more aggressive manners and why females generally may act more emotionally than females

• Many experiments used to test the explanation used animal testing. This is a benefit as animal studies are quick, easy and convenient to use.

• The explanation is contradicted by the biological approach which states that our gender is developed through biological factors such as genes, hormones and brain lateralisation.

• Bandura, Ross and Ross’ study lacked ecological validity as it was a lab experiment therefore participants were in an artificial environment.

• David Reimer refutes the explanation, as despite being chromosomally a male, he was brought up as a female for the first 15 years of his life. However he showed male traits and didn’t fully develop into a female.

Studies:

Bandura, Ross & Ross (1961)Aim:To see whether young children imitate behaviour they have seen and whether aggression is learned through observation and imitation. Procedure: The study was a lab experiment, with a sample of 72 3-5 year old children (36 male, 36 female). 8 experimental groups of 6 children were formed (4 of these groups were boys, 4 were girls). The children were seated individually in a room, with an adult role model sitting in the opposite corner with toys and a bobo doll. There were two conditions; the aggressive condition in which the adult behaved aggressively towards the bobo doll and the non aggressive condition in which the role model would continue to play with the toys.Results:Aggressive Adult Role Model Condition: Female model – female children copied 21.3 acts, male children copied 16.2 actsMale model – female children copied 8.4 acts, male children copied 36.7 actsNon-aggressive Adult Role Model Condition: Female model – female children copied 7.2 acts, male children copied 26.1 actsMale model – female children copied 1.4, male children copied 22.3 acts Children exposed to an aggressive role model displayed more direct imitation than children exposed to the non-aggressive model. Conclusion: A child exposed to an aggressive model is likely to display aggression and imitate aggressive acts. Evaluation:• The study has high ecological validity as the children were surrounded by toys which are things that they would be surrounded by in everyday life.• Can be applied into real life as it shows that adult role models should not act in an aggressive manner around their children. • Is representative of both gender as the sample contained both male and female participants. • The study was a lab experiment and therefore lacks ecological validity as participants were put into an artificial environment. • The children were all from an American nursery therefore it is hard to generalise results beyond the sample. • The children may have been put under some stress when the toys were withdrew meaning the protection of participants ethic was breached.

Watson & Rayner, Little Albert Study (1920)

Aim:

To demonstrate that fear can be conditioned into a child using classical conditioning.

Procedure:

The study was a lab experiment with a sample of one child. This child was Little Albert (a pseudonym). Researchers ensured that Albert was not afraid of white rats. They showed him the white rat and he displayed no fear. They then searched for stimuli that Albert was afraid of, until they eventually found that he was afraid of a loud banging sound. Researchers then paired this sound with the sight of the white rat. Eventually Albert began to associate the two together until every time he saw the rat, he would become very distressed. The loud noise was the unconditioned stimulus and Albert’s fear was the unconditioned response. The rat was the neutral stimulus and when it was paired with the unconditioned stimulus it lead to the unconditioned response. Eventually the rat became the conditioned stimulus and lead to fear which became conditioned response.

Results:

After a week Albert acquired a fear of rats as a learned emotional response. An association was created between the loud noise and the rat.

Conclusion:

An emotional response such as fear can be conditioned into a child using classical conditioning.

Evaluation:

• Results can be applied as it teaches parents not to associate every day objects with things that cause their child distress.

• It was a lab experiment therefore the researchers had full control over the extraneous variables.

• Little Albert was a pseudonym therefore the study’s ethics are good as the child’s real identity was kept confidential.

• The study’s sample was only one 11 month male boy therefore the results aren’t representative of the whole population.

• The study was a lab experiment therefore it lacks ecological validity as participants were in an artificial environment.

• The ethics of the study are questionable as Little Albert’s mother did not give real consent.

Key Issue:

Do Role Models Influence Anorexia?

Description:

Anorexia is a mental illness which is placed in the eating disorder category. Symptoms include; anxiety, body distortion, weighing of food and more. Surveys have found that; 8% of 14 year olds were happy with their bodies. 70% said they’d be happier to lose weight. A common accusation is that thin fashion models are to blame for the disorder. Two thirds of girls blamed models.

Explanation:

• The social learning theory would state that the sufferers of anorexia see people such as singers, actors, fashion models, etc as significant role models and would observe their behaviour and then imitate it. They may observe them and realise that they receive vicarious reinforcement for being thin. Or they may go through Bandura’s 4 criteria; attention, retention, reproduction, motivation. They would also obseve the behaviour of their peers who may also want to be thin and may even be anorexic themselves.

• Operant conditioning would suggest that the sufferers would see being thin as positive reinforcement, therefore they would repeat the behaviour of not eating, in order to receive this positive reinforcement. They would also see not eating as negative reinforcement as being overweight is being avoided by the performing of this behaviour, therefore they will continue to not eat. They may also receive punishment for being overweight therefore they would not eat in order to not receive this punishment.

• Token economy treatment may be used by sufferers as they may reward themselves in the form of what they percieve to be a token for making certain weight losses.

• Bandura, Ross & Ross found that children will copy aggressive acts when exposed to aggressive role models. This study has similar principles to the issue as it shows that sufferers of anorexia will copy the behaviour of not eating off the role models that they are exposed to.

Evidence of Practice:

My Study: Aim: To investigate the social theory in relation to gender and car sizes. Procedure: An opportunity sample of 50 car drivers was used. We observed the size and driver of the cars and noted whether the car

was small or large and whether the driver was male or female. The experimental design was independent groups.Results:The results show that the chi square observed value showed a significant result when compared to the critical value,

accepting our hypothesis. Conclusion:Overall, we found that more males drove large cars and more females drove small cars. Evaluation: • Results can be applied into society as car companies can advertise small cars to women and large cars to men in

order to make a profit. • The study used male and female participants therefore it’s results are representative of the whole population. • The study was a covert observation therefore it had ecological validity as participants don’t know they are being

studied.• The fact that the study was an observation meant that there wasn’t much control over extraneous variables,

decreasing the reliability of results. • The study took place in the north east of England therefore the results aren’t generalisable to people outside of the

region. • The study lacked ethics as we did not receive informed consent from the participants as it was a covert observation.