Post on 23-Apr-2018
Behavior: Big Questions • Is learning just a change
of behavior?•Can learning happen
without intent? •Can new behavior be
shaped by manipulating the environment?
3.1 Classical Conditioning
3.2 Operant Conditioning
3.3 Practical Applications of Behavioral Psychology
Pavlov: Stimulus and Response 1• Seeing food, dog salivates
[Unconditioned Stimulus ➔ Unconditioned Response] •Ring a bell when food comes •Now bell causes salivation!
[Conditioned Stimulus ➔ Conditioned Response] • Similar bell ➔ salivation due
to stimulus generalization
Pavlov: Stimulus and Response 2Limited practical application of Pavlov’s findings • For overcoming phobias •Associate stimulus with
pleasant response • For overcoming obsession •Associate stimulus with
unpleasant response
Thorndike: Trial and error and its effects
•Organisms use trial and error to solve problem • If effect of behavior is
pleasant, organism will repeat behavior •Might repeat even when
behavior no longer works!
Watson: Shaping new feelings •Albert neutral about rat •Unpleasant sound when rat
is near •Now Albert is afraid of rat
(emotional conditioning) •Now Albert is afraid of
anything white and furry! (overgeneralized response)
Skinner: Reinforcing by increments •Want dog to dance •Reward dog (food) for
every approximation of desired behavior • Later reward only for
closer approximations •Now dog “dances” on cue
Types of reinforcers • Positive = something desired•Negative = remove
undesired thing• Punishment = something
undesired • Primary = essential to life • Secondary = symbol or
currency for reward
Types of reinforcement•Continuous reinforcement ➔ subject expects reward for every performance•Until behavior is automatic
• Intermittent reinforcement ➔ random and decreasing rewards•Usually gets better/faster
results than continuous
When to reinforce • Fixed ratio = reinforce
every nth time • Variable ratio = reinforce at
no set number of times • Fixed interval = reinforce
after a set amount of time • Variable interval = reinforce
at no set amount of time
Punishment categories • Positive = adding or
issuing something unpleasant •Negative = removing
something pleasant •Meant to be a scientific
procedure, without emotion!
For extinguishing undesired behavior • Ignoring = not reacting to
incorrect behavior • Time out (and other removal
punishments) = taking away social contact, privileges •Corporal punishment =
physical pain ➔ Meant to be a scientific procedure, without emotion!
For promoting desired behavior • Premack principle = get
thing you want by doing thing you don’t like • Shaping = reinforcing
partial or approximate correct behavior •Meant to be a scientific
procedure, without emotion!
Other behavior modification strategies •Contingency contract with
reward incentives • Token economy with reward
objects to be redeemed•With or without potential
for reward removal• Individual or group
incentives and rewards
What about praising? “I like the way Jack is sitting quietly.” “I like the way Jill did her project neatly and correctly.”•Ripple Effect can get
students to work/behave better to earn same reward•Can backfire if students feel
they can’t meet expectations ➔ give up trying
Cognitive learning theory •Hybrid of behaviorism and
cognitive theory • Learner observant of
others, not acted upon • Learning by observing
behavior and consequences (peers, adults, etc.)
Bandura: Vicarious learning •Combination of behavior,
environment, and attitude •Direct modeling: adults
and peers in environment• Symbolic modeling:
movies, celebrities, TV, ads, etc.
Vicarious learning effects • Self-regulation by learning
from observation• Self-motivation and self-
reinforcement to study and emulate model•Mastery of emulation ➔
self-efficacy about abilities •Helps future performance
goals for self
Vicarious learning errors •Misperception of model or
environment•Acting on incomplete
information• Faulty information
processing (physiological or learned)
➔ Inaccurate expectations and self-assessment
Learning through direct or indirect shaping•Behaviorism: shaping
behavior by association or by consequences •Cognitive learning:
shaping behavior by observation of models
➔ Emphasis on learning by shaping behavior vs. conscious processing