Psychological Foundation Theories

What is Learning ? “a relatively permanent change in behavior that

results from practice.” (Atkinson et al 1993).

Learning is acquiring new knowledge, behaviors, skills, values, preferences or understanding, and may involve synthesizing different types of information.

Learning categories Through Säljö (1979) research, learning fell into five

main categories: Learning as a quantitative increase in knowledge. Learning as memorizing. Learning as acquiring facts, skills, and methods. Learning as making sense or abstracting meaning. Learning as interpreting and understanding reality in a

different way.

Psychology Learning Theories

Instructional

Design

Cognitive Theories

Instruction Theory

Constructivism

Situated Learning Theories

Behavioral Learning Theories

The process / flow ..

Psychological Theories

Learning process & outcomes

Effective Instructional Design

Cognitive Behavioral Instructional Situated Constructivi

sm

ID Designer

Designing

Behavioral Theories

Behavioral Perspective

Classical Conditioning:Ivan Pavlov 1849-1936 Classical Conditioning Theory

Behaviorism:John B. Watson 1878-1958 Behaviorism Edward L. Thorndike 1874-1949 Connectivism Edwin Guthrie 1886-1959 Contiguity Theory B. F. Skinner 1904-1990 Operant Conditioning William Kaye Estes 1919 - Stimulus Sampling Theory

Neo-behaviorism: Edward C. Tolman 1886-1959 Sign Theory & Latent Learning Clark Hull 1884-1952 Drive Reduction Theory Keneth W. Spence 1907-1967 Discrimination Learning

Behavioral Perspective• categorize the unconditioned stimulus /

response and conditioned stimulus / response• unconditioned stimulus / response and

• Eg : Dog salivate (salivate unconditioned respond) when they eat (food – unconditioned stimulus)

• conditioned stimulus / response• Eg : Bell rang (bell unconditioned stimulus) and dog

salivate (salivate unconditioned respond)

Classical Conditioning:

Stimulus/ Response

• is more concerned with behavior than with thinking, feeling, or knowing. It focuses on the objective and observable components of behavior.

• The behaviorist theories all share some version of stimulus-response mechanisms for learning

Behaviorism:Stimulus, Response,

Reinforcement

• The neo-behaviorists, then, were a transitional group, bridging the gap between behaviorism and cognitive theories of learning.

Neo behaviorism:Stimulus-Response; Intervening

Internal Variables; Purposive Behavior

Behavioral Learning Theories The behavioral learning theory generated by B.F

Skinner that is based upon the idea that learning is a function of change in behavior.

Changes in behavior are the result of an individual’s response to events (stimuli) that occur in the environment.

B.F Skinner

B.F Skinner Burrhus Frederic Skinner (March 20,

1904 – August 18, 1990) was born in Susquehanna, Pennsylvania to Grace and William Skinner

He was an American psychologist, author, inventor, social philosopher, and poet.

Skinner received a PhD from Harvard in 1931, and remained there as a researcher until 1936.

B.F Skinner He then taught at the University of Minnesota at

Minneapolis and later at Indiana University, where he was chair of the psychology department from 1946–1947, before returning to Harvard as a tenured professor in 1948.

In 1948, he joined the psychology department at Harvard University where he remained for the rest of his life

B.F Skinner He became one of the leader of behaviorism and his

work contributed immensely to experimental psychology.

He also invented the “Skinner BOX”, in which a rat learn to obtain food by pressing a lever

Operant Conditioning

BF Skinner

Operant Conditioning As a behaviorist, Skinner believed that internal

thoughts and motivation could not be used to explain behavior

He suggested to look only at the external, observable causes of human behavior.

Skinner used the term “operant” to refer to any active behavior that operates upon the environment to generate consequences

Operant Conditioning Operant conditioning (sometimes referred to as

instrumental conditioning) is a method of learning that occurs through rewards / reinforcement and punishments for behavior.

Through operant conditioning, an association is made between a behavior and a consequence for that behavior

Examples of Operant Conditioning Increasing Behavior Decreasing Behavior

We can find examples of operant conditioning at work all around us in increasing the behavior Children completing

homework to earn a reward from a parent or teacher

Operant conditioning can also be used to decrease the behavior by removal of an undesirable outcome or the use of punishment The children are required

to attend the retention class if they did not completed their homework

Operant Conditioning Key Concepts

• In an attempt to increase the likelihood of a behavior occurring in the future,

• presentation of an appetitive stimulus.

• In an attempt to decrease the likelihood of a behavior occurring in the future,

• presentation of an aversive stimulus.

• In an attempt to decrease the likelihood of a behavior occurring in the future,

• the removal of an appetitive stimulus.

• In an attempt to increase the likelihood of a behavior occurring in the future,

• the removal of an aversive stimulus.

+ reinforce

ment

+punishm

ent

-punishm

ent

- reinforce

ment

Increase behavior Decrease behavior

Stimulus presentation

Stimulus Removal

Operant Conditioning Key Concepts

Operant Conditioning

Increase Behavior

Positive Reinforce

ment

Negative Reinforce

ment

Decrease Behavior

Positive Punishmen

t

Negative Punishmen

t

If you stroke a cat's fur in a manner that is pleasing to the cat it will purr. The cat's purring may act as a positive reinforcer, causing you to stroke the cat's fur in the same manner in the future.

When a child says "please" and "thank you" to his/her mother, the child may not have to engage in his/her dreaded chore of setting the table. Therefore, not having to set the table will act as a negative reinforcer and increase the likelihood of the child saying "please" and "thank you" in the future.

If you stroke a cat's fur in a manner that the cat finds unpleasant, the cat may attempt to bite you. Therefore, the presentation of the cat's bite will act as a positive punisher and decrease the likelihood that you will stroke the cat in that same manner in the future

When a child "talks back" to his/her mother, the child may lose the privilege of watching her favorite television program. Therefore, the loss of viewing privileges will act as a negative punisher and decrease the likelihood of the child talking back in the future.

Skinner Box

B.F Skinner

Skinner Box A Skinner Box is a often small chamber that is used to

conduct operant conditioning research with animals It is an experimental environment that is better

suited to examine the more natural flow of behavior. B.F Skinner became famous for his work with rats

using his “Skinner Box” (is also referred to as an operant conditioning chamber).

Skinner Box Within the chamber, there is usually a lever (for rats)

or a key (for pigeons) that an individual animal can operate to obtain a food or water within the chamber as a reinforcer.

The chamber is connected to electronic equipment that records the animal's lever pressing or key pecking, thus allowing for the precise quantification of behavior.

Skinner BoxA Skinner box typically contains one or more levers which an animal can press, one or more stimulus lights and one or more places in which reinforcers like food can be deliver

The animal’s presses on the levers can be detected and recorded and a contingency between these presses, the state of the stimulus lights and the delivery of the reinforcement can be set up, all automatically.

Schedules of Reinforcement ComponentReinforcement component

Partial Reinforcement

Ratio Reinforcement

Fixed ratio schedules

Variable ratio schedules

Interval Reinforcement

Fixed interval Schedules

Variables Interval Schedules

Continuous Reinforcement

reinforcement is given every time they gives the desired response.

reinforcement is given only part of the times they gives the desired response.

Partial reinforcement is when you're reinforced after a number of the desired behaviors.

With interval schedules you're reinforced only after a certain interval of time

Fixed Reinforcement

Schedules of Reinforcement ComponentRatio Reinforcement

Fixed ratio

Schedules deliver

reinforcement after every

specific number of response

Fixed interval Schedules

deliver reinforceme

nt for the first

response after a

fixed length of time

since the last

reinforcement, while

premature responses

are not reinforced.

Variable ratioschedules

deliver reinforceme

nt after a random

number of responses

(based upon a

predetermined

average)

Variable

intervalSchedules

deliver reinforceme

nt for the first

response after a random average length of

time passes since the

last reinforceme

nt

Fixed ratio Example: every second

response is reinforced Lab example: rat

reinforced with food after each 5 bar-presses in a Skinner box.

Real-world example: The student must make three requests using the word “please” before being reinforced.

AdvantagesBuilds a high response rate. The higher the ratio, the higher the rate.

DisadvantagesAn irregular burst of responding can occur if the reinforcement is stopped.

Variable ratio Example: on average, every

third response is reinforced Lab example: 1st times 3 times

pedal 1 food /2nd times 5 times 1food / on average, a rat is reinforced for each 10 bar presses

Real world example: The student may be reinforced on the average three requests. Thus, he may be reinforced following four requests using the word “please” or following two appropriate requests.

AdvantagesBecause of its unpredictable. Reinforcement schedule, the student’s rate of responding remains essentially constant and resistant to extinction.

DisadvantagesNot effective for teaching new behaviors

Fixed interval Example: reinforcement

provided for the first response after 1 second Lab example: rat is reinforced

for the first bar press after 15 seconds passes since the last reinforcement

Real world example: After 5 minutes has passed, the teacher reinforces the next request in which the student uses the word “please.”

AdvantagesEase of implementation

DisadvantagesThe student stops performing following the reinforcement and begins to work again just prior to the next reinforcement period

Variable interval Example: reinforcement is

provided for the first response after an average of 3 seconds since the last reinforcement. Lab example: rat is reinforced for

the first bar press after an average of 10 seconds passes since the last reinforcement

Real world example:The student receives reinforcement on the average of every 5 minutes for using the word “please” when making a request. Sometimes the reinforcement occurs after 3 minutes or sometimes after 6 minutes.

AdvantagesEase of implementation. Because the time intervals are of different lengths, the student never knows which response will be reinforced. This unpredictability creates a steady pattern of respondingDisadvantagesNot effective for teaching new behaviors

Conclusion When teaching new skills or behaviors, make sure the student understands what behavior is required to earn the reward. Then, each time he performs the behavior, immediately reinforce him. Timing is everything. • The shorter the delay between the behavior and

reinforcer, the greater the chance the behavior will be strengthened or increased.

• In contrast, the longer the delay between the behavior and reinforcer, the greater the risk that another behavior will be inadvertently reinforced.

Reference

Reference Boeree, D. C. (1998). B. F. SKINNER . Retrieved 2006, from

http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/skinner.html Brittan Barker, J. K. (n.d.). Glossary of Terms for the Experimental

Analysis of Behavior. Retrieved from http://www.psychology.uiowa.edu/Faculty/Wasserman/Glossary/homepage.html#home

Cooper, S. (2009 ). Theories of Learning in Educational Psychology. Retrieved 2009 , from http://www.lifecircles-inc.com/Learningtheories/learningmap.html

Ferguson, T. J. (n.d.). The basic Process of Learning. Retrieved from http://www.usu.edu/psycho101/lectures/chp4learning/learning.htm

(n.d.). Retrieved from http://inst.usu.edu/~mimi/courses/6260/theorists/Skinner/Skinner.html