Behavioural Psychology (learning perspective?

Development and Cultural Contexts

• heinously large departure from psychodynamic theory (reaction, actually)
• very concentrated on observable behaviour as opposed to subjective theory (coughfreudcough)
• scientific study of observable behaviour (quoth the IB syllabus)
• debate on whether behaviour is learned (behaviourists) or inate (nativists)
◦ René Descartes = nativist. “innate knowledge can be assessed through introspection”
◦ Wilhelm Wundt = instrospectionist (?)
◦ John Locke = empiricist. Tabula rasa = blank slate, everything is learned
◦ DARWIN = win. Evolution (durrr)- justifies use of animals in psychological research
• Key Players
◦ Pavlov- classical conditioning- dog/meat/bell experiment
▪ evidence for simple learning
▪ based on stimuli
◦ Thorndike- Law of Effect
▪ repeat behaviour that has desirable consequence
▪ do NOT repeat behaviour that has undesirable consequence
◦ Skinner – operant conditioning
▪ “skinner box”
▪ trained small animals and birds
◦ Watson -
▪ critical of approaches centered around “the mind”
▪ LOVED observable behaviour
▪ proposed that psychology should only investigate observable behaviour and not bother
with internal constructs/processes
▪ back to Locke's extreme standpoint. TABULA RASA
• prevalent experimental psych. Until 1950s when COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY arose.
• Purely behaviourist psychology is not popular anymore.
• Modern behaviourism takes cognitive and biological influences into account
◦ Cognitive influences = Tolman (latent learning/cognitive maps) & Köhler (insight learning)
◦ Biological influences = counterprepared, nonprepared, prepared.
• Constributed to study of behaviour through use of animal models and strict laboratory
experimentation
Framework
• Basic Assumptions – occam's razor
◦ majority of behaviour is learned from the environment
◦ laws and products of learning are psychologically important
◦ free will is an illusion
◦ to keep psychology objective, only observable behaviour should be studied
◦ innate predisposition to learning exists
◦ learning can occur sans reinforcement
• Key Concepts
◦ conditioning forms association between stimulus and response
▪ classical conditioning- the study of learning which involves reflex responses, in which
 a neutral stimulus comes to elicit an existing reflex response
• neutral stimulus + unconditioned stimulus = unconditioned response.
• After repetition, neutral stimulus becomes conditioned stimulus and unconditioned
stimulus becomes unnecessary to elicit unconditioned response which is now the
conditioned response to the conditioned stimulus
• acuisition is the initial stage of learning when a neutral stimulus forms a connection
to the unconditioned response
• extinction is the decrease in strength between conditioned stimulus and response to
degree when conditioned stimulus no longer elicits said response
• spontaneous recovery is the sudden reappearance of a conditioned response after
apparent extinction
• stimulus generalisation is the tendency of stimuli similar to the conditioned to elicit
the same conditioned response
• stimulus discrimination is the OPPOSITE of stimulus generalisation; the ability to
distinguish between similar stimuli (can be learned)
• higher-order conditioning is the conditioning that takes place using a conditioned
stimulus in place of an unconditioned stimulus and linking a neutral stimulus thereto
• Watson used the theory of conditioned emotional responses to give Little Alpert a
fear of fuzzy white animals. Loud noise = fear, loud noise + rat = fear, rat = fear. We
call this aversive conditioning
▪ operant conditioning- the form of learning concerned with changes in emitted responses
(voluntary behaviour) as a function of their consequences
• learning curve is the graph of gradual improvement over a number of trials
• based on the Law of Effect
• positive enforcement is the process of enforcing a behaviour by immediately
following a response with a desirable stimulus or positive reinforcer
• negative enforcement is the process by which a behaviour is enforced by the removal
of an undesirable stimulus (negative reinforcer) after a response.
• Punishment is an all around psychologically terrible idea. It tends to increase
disruptive behaviour, cause repression, and enforce subversive tendencies.
Especially when used with children.
• Reinforcement is any even which increases the likelihood of a behaviour's repetition.
Involves pleasing consequences (see Law of Effect) and is presented after the desired
response is given
• reinforcement schedules can be continuous (after every correct response), partial
(after some correct responses), fixed ratio (after a set number of correct responses),
variable ratio (after a varying number of correct responses according to a general
mean)
▪ Punishment= response yields unfavorable event (not negative reinforcement)
• yields decrease in all behaviours, not just the undesirable one
• cause strong negative emotional response (can result in diminished learning
capacity)
• can lead to aggressive behaviour
• can lead to really screwed up kids if seen as reward
• may cause avoidance behaviour/lying
 • doesn't provide alternate behaviour
▪ shaping is the operant conditioning process by which successively approximate
responses are reinforced to produce an ultimate target behaviour
• selective reinforcement to mold behaviour
▪ observational learning- see actions and consequences (vicarious learning)
• attention must be paid to model
• observation must be retained
• observation must be reproducible
• learner must be motivated to reproduce observed behaviour
• BOBO experiment (violence to the clown)
▪ Latent learning occurs when individuals are influenced by perception of model and self
with no obvious reinforcement
▪ insight learning
1. preparation: gathering relevant information, testing possible solutions
2. incubation: mental time-out. No immediate conscious awareness of problem, but
it stews
3. insightful experience: the “aha” moment- correct solution is suddenly realized
4. verification: solution tested.
▪ Learning set:
• similar learning situations benefit eachother
• Applications!
◦ Educaiton (programmed learning)
◦ systematic desensitization of phobias
◦ behavioural shaping for autism
◦ institutionalized patients + token economy
◦ operant condition trains animals
◦ Watson = child rearing
◦ Skinner = manipulation of society
• Contribution
◦ language acquisition (skinner)
◦ creation of phobias via classical/aversive conditioning
◦ conditioned moral development
◦ attraction models ?
• Strengths:
◦ very scientific, yay methodology
◦ strong arguments against nature (in nature v nurture)
◦ very parsimonious (see: occam's razor)
◦ very practical and effective
• Weaknesses
◦ ignored biological bias of evolution
◦ biologically qualitative difference between human and animal
◦ ignores mental processes
◦ reject conscious mental experience
◦