THE THEORETICAL PROCESSES OF LEARNING

1-BEHAVIORIST THEORIES

(a) CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
Ivan Pavlov, a Russian Physiologist, pioneered this theory of the learning process. He
gave a piece of meat to a dog in the experiment and noticed salivation in great deal. Since
food causes automatic salivation, both food and salivation are unconditioned stimulus and
response respectively. When the dog saw the meat it salivated. Subsequently, Pavlov rang
a bell but the dog did not salivate. So he started ringing the bell every time the meat was
given. The dog did salivate again. Later, when Pavlov started ringing the bell every time
the dog salivated. The dog learnt to salivate even when there was no meat. This means
that the dog has been conditioned to respond to a learned stimulus. Behavior can be
learned by repetitive association, according to Thorndike, between a stimulus and
response. This is S-R association. But when it comes to human being, classical
conditioning is a very insignificant part of the total learning, as per Skinner You must
note that classical conditioning is only passive. You react in a specific fashion for an
event that can be anything. In other words, the response is elicited to a specific
identifiable event. The reaction (behavior) hence is only reflexive and simple. However,
in an organization the behaviors of people are voluntary and not reflexive. Also the
behavior in an organization is emitted rather than elicited.
Classical conditioning introduces cause and effect relationship between one stimulus and
one response. It also makes the response involuntary or reflexive once the relationship
between the stimulus and response is established. Ivansevich has given another
illustration. This is in connection with the air pilot learning the newly installed warning
system. The behavior to be learned here is to respond to a warning light that indicates that
there is a drop below the critical altitude of the plane. The proper response is to increase
the planes altitude. The pilot has been already trained to respond to the trainers warning.
In this case the trainers warning is an unconditioned stimulus and the corrective action of
increasing the height is the unconditioned response. The main training is the warning to
increase the height of the plane every time the warning light goes on. With repeated
pairing of warning light and the trainers warning, the pilot learns to adjust the planes
altitude in response to warning light even if the trainer is not present. In classical
conditioning there are only involuntary responses. Hence it cannot explain situations
where people rationally and objectively choose a course of action. But in an organization
managers are more interested in free and voluntary responses from employees rather than
involuntary or reflexive responses. This led to the approach by B.F.Skinner to the study
in real organizational setting. This study is known as operant conditioning.

(b) OPERANT CONDITIONING
Operand means a behavior that produces effects. This Skinnerian psychology
(B.F..Skinner) is of the view that individuals emit responses that are rewarded and will
not emit responses if the responses are not rewarded or punished. Operand conditioning is
a voluntary behavior and
it is determined, maintained and controlled by its consequences. In contrast respondent
behavior is an involuntary response to an environmental stimulus.
But operant conditioning induces a voluntary change in behavior and learning occurs as a
consequence of such change. This is also known as reinforcement theory and holds the
view that behavior is a function of its consequences. This means behavior can be
controlled by manipulating its consequences. It also goes to confirm that job performance
or behavior is not a function of feelings, thoughts, emotions or perceptions but is linked
to only the nature of outcome of such behavior. Managers can utilize this relationship and
try to modify the and control behavior. This concept also supports the view that behaviors
that are rewarded are going to be repeated and those that are not rewarded are not going
to be repeated. Hence based on consequences behavior can be predicted and controlled.
Therefore, certain types of consequences can be used to increase the occurrence of some
desired behavior and other types of consequences can be used to decrease the occurrence
of some types of undesired behavior. You imagine that you are a manager in an
organisation. You can observe that any stimulus can result in responses from the workers
from the environment. Now the nature of the future responses to the same stimulus
depends on the consequence of the original response. Thus a worker continues to work
hard as, he knows, the consequence of working hard ends up in promotion.
Though the environment determines a mans behavior. Individuals learn by producing
alterations in their environment. Operant conditioning presupposes that human beings
explore the environment and then act on that. While in classical conditioning
consequence is independent of behavior, the converse is true in operant conditioning.
Further in operant conditioning reinforcement is given only when correct response is
made. A passenger in a railway station sees a weighing machine. The machine is a
stimulus and his inserting a coin is the response. When he inserts only one coin , nothing
happens no consequence. When he inserts two coins in the machine, he gets the weight
cardconsequence. Thus you can conclude that consequence will determine that a given
operant will be repeated in future.

2-SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY
As per this theory learning cannot take place only because of environmental stimuli or
individual decision as pronounced by classical conditioning and operand conditioning or
cognitive learning theories respectively but it believes that learning is a blend of both the
views. In fact, social learning believes in the integration of operand conditioning and
cognitive learning. In social setting imitating others or observing others also can impart
learning. And when you have an inner desire to acquire skills or knowledge irrespective
of outside rewards and consequences, learning occurs. Moreover discipline and self
control if practiced well, that can also impart learning. The quality of self control in man
is partly a contribution of society and culture as he grows and matures.
You also tend to imitate the behavior of a person who is a role model in society. This
learning can be through observation of others also. Such learning is called vicarious
learning. It is your common experience to watch the subordinates trying to imitate their
seniors in their efforts and approaches and try to learn from them. They also try to be like
them. But Albert Bandura puts it as follows, Although behavior can be shared into new
patterns to some extent by rewarding and punishment consequences, learning would be
extremely laborious and hazardous if it proceeded slowly on this basis. It is difficult to
imagine a socialization process in which the languages, vocational activities, family
customs, educational, political and religious practices of a culture are taught to each new
member by selective reinforcement of fortuitous behaviors, without benefit of models
who exemplify the cultural patterns in their own behavior. Most of the behaviors that
people display are either learned deliberately or inadvertently through the influence of
example. People can also change their behavior by thinking about their behavior but in
accordance with the norms of society or organization. This change can be towards
betterment of behavior. This is possible because human beings have the capacity of self-
regulation. The process of self-thinking can be reinforced by psychiatric evaluation and
assistance.