Learning & Behavior Modification Chapter 1

Learning & Behavior Modification Chapter 1 / Notes Learning Learning is a Reasonably permanent Change in The organism to perform a set of Behavior Based on experience The Nature of Behaviors ●​ Preexisting tendencies ●​ Reflexes ●​ Modal Action Patterns (MAPS) Reflexes ●​ Simple ●​ Elicited -​ Reflections of the stimulus -​ Always present in the presence of the stimulus -​ Related to stimulus ●​ Reflex arc ●​ Examples ●​ Ethology Modal Action Patterns ●​ Coordinated sets of responses ●​ Sequenced and/or complex ●​ Species-typical ●​ Complex sign stimuli elicitation ●​ Organized - Motivational state - Sequential - Behavioral systems Measuring Learning Defining learning Again ●​ Learning is a relatively enduring change in the potential to engage in a particular behavior, resulting from experience with environmental events specifically related to that behavior Response Events ●​ Simple or complex ●​ Inferred from behavior ●​ Operational definitions important Stimulus Events ●​ Intensity ●​ Duration ●​ Contingency ●​ Contiguity - temporal contiguity - spatial contiguity Ways to Measure Learning 1.​ Errors as a measurement of learning 2.​ Topography is one way to measure learning 3.​ Response intensity as a measure of learning 4.​ Speed as a measure of learning 5.​ Rate as a measure of learning 6.​ Cumulative record and response rate 1/28/25 Basic Procedures of Associative Learning ●​ Unconditioned Reflex ●​ Unconditioned Stimulus (US, UCS) elicits Unconditioned Response (UR, UCR) ●​ Unconditioned Stimulus Stimulus is repeatedly preceded by Conditional Stimulus (CS) ●​ Over time, the Conditional Stimulus elicits a response of its own, a Conditioned Response (CR), in the absence of the Unconditioned Stimulus ●​ Key Difference between Classical and Instrumental Conditioning: UCS-CS pairing occurs independent of subject’s behavior ●​ S-R learning (Rescorla called S-S learning ●​ CR usually similar to UCR, but not necessarily the same, and may be very different or opposite Pavlovian Laws ●​ Equipotentiality ●​ Repetition needed for association ●​ Brief Temporal Contiguity -​ Some exceptions, esp. due to species specific behavior Types of casual conditioning ●​ Appetitive - Sign tracking - autoshaping ●​ Aversive - Conditioned suppression (CER) Variables Affecting Conditioning ●​ Contiguity of pairing ●​ Contingency ●​ Perfect Positive Contingency ●​ Perfect negative Contingency ●​ Zero Contingency ●​ Blocking ●​ Temporal Contiguity ●​ Interstimulus interval ●​ Optimum delay ●​ Temporal encoding ●​ Stimulus features ●​ Temporal Contiguity ●​ Overshadowing ●​ Prior Experience ●​ Latent inhibition ●​ Novel Stimuli ●​ Sensory Preconditioning ●​ Repetition (practice makes perfect) ●​ Inter-trial interval ●​ Other variables - Age, Temperament, Emotional State ●​ Concerns - Accidental pairing, background cues Extinction ●​ Extinction procedure ●​ Extinction effect Techniques for Extinction (Guthrie) ●​ Fatigue ●​ Threshold ●​ Incompatible Stimuli Theories of Extinction ●​ Extinction in Pavlovian vs. in Habituation ●​ Extinction as unlearning? - no ●​ Spontaneous Recovery Theories of Classical Conditioning ●​ Stimulus Substitution Higher-Order Conditioning ●​ Learning & Behavior Modification / Study guide What is Learning? ●​ Learning is when you change how you act because of something you’ve experienced. ●​ Once you learn something, it usually sticks with you for a long time. Kinds of Behaviors 1.​ Preexisting Tendencies ○​ These are things you’re born knowing how to do, like blinking or sneezing. 2.​ Reflexes ○​ Reflexes are super simple actions. ○​ They happen automatically when something makes them happen (like your knee jerking when the doctor taps it). ○​ Reflexes always happen when the thing that causes them is there. ○​ Example: A baby sucking when something touches its lips. ○​ Scientists study reflexes to understand animals and people better (this is called "ethology"). 3.​ Modal Action Patterns (MAPs) ○​ These are more complicated actions than reflexes. ○​ They are like little "action plans" that animals use to do specific things. ○​ Example: A bird building a nest or a spider spinning a web. ○​ MAPs are special because only certain species can do them, and they happen in a certain order. ○​ MAPs need two things to happen: 1.​ Motivation: The animal has to want to do it (like being hungry or needing a home). 2.​ Steps in Order: The actions follow a plan (first this, then that). How Reflexes and MAPs are Different Reflexes Modal Action Patterns (MAPs) Simple and quick More complicated and take longer Happens automatically Follows a plan or steps Not special to one species Unique to certain animals Measuring Learning Quiz Multiple Choice Questions 1.​ How is learning defined?​ a) A temporary change in behavior due to environmental changes​ b) A relatively enduring change in potential behavior resulting from experience​ c) A change in behavior due to instinct​ d) None of the above 2.​ Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of stimulus events?​ a) Intensity​ b) Topography​ c) Duration​ d) Contingency 3.​ What does temporal contiguity refer to?​ a) Events occurring close together in time​ b) Events happening in the same physical space​ c) The intensity of a stimulus over time​ d) The duration of a behavior 4.​ What does a cumulative record measure?​ a) The topography of responses​ b) The rate of responses over time​ c) The intensity of a stimulus​ d) Errors made during a task True/False Questions 5.​ Learning can only be measured through observed behavior.​ (True / False) 6.​ Contiguity can involve both time and space.​ (True / False) 7.​ Response intensity is a way to measure learning.​ (True / False) Fill-in-the-Blank Questions 8.​ Errors, topography, and response rate are all examples of ________ of learning. 9.​ ________ contiguity refers to the closeness of events in physical space. 10.​The potential to engage in a particular behavior is inferred from ________. Short Answer Questions 11.​ Explain the importance of operational definitions when measuring learning. 12.​Provide an example of how response intensity could be used as a measure of learning. 13.​Why might measuring errors be useful in determining learning progress?