Psychology

Study Section 3.2: Learning

Outcome 1: Describe the classical conditioning process and graphically
represent its various sub processes
Study guide: SS 3.2 (pp. 27-29).

Textbook: Weiten, Chapter 6, pp. 230-241

Learning is any relatively durable change in behaviour or knowledge that is due to

experience. It is the process behind observable behavioural change

Conditioning is the process of learning connections/associations between events

within the environment (Weiten, p. 230).

Classical conditioning (Pavlov, 1903 Pavlovian conditioning)

Classical conditioning is a type of learning in which a stimulus obtains the capacity to create a certain
response that was originally created by another stimulus (p. 230)

Terminology:
• Stimulus: An object, behaviour or event that triggers or is conditioned to trigger a response
• Trial: The presentation of a stimulus, or pair of stimuli to a subject on a classical conditioning
experiment
• Association: A link or relationship that is made between one or more event, object or subject
o Unconditioned association: Natural, unlearned association, not created through
conditioning
o Unconditioned stimulus (US): Stimulus that creates an unconditioned/spontaneous
response without previous conditioning.
o Unconditioned response (RS): Unlearned reaction to an unconditioned stimulus that occurs
without previous conditioning.
• Conditioned stimulus (CS): Previous neutral stimulus that has, through conditioning, acquired
the capacity to produce a conditioned response.
• Conditioned association: The relationship between a stimulus and a response that exists once
conditioning has taken place.
• Conditioned response (CR): Learned reaction to conditioned stimulus that occurs because of
previous conditioning.
 Classical conditioning in everyday life

❖ Fear: Listen to this. What do you hear? What type of reaction does it get
from you? This is an example where you might have been conditioned to fear
this sound due to your experience of pain during the dentist visit.

❖ Other conditioned emotional responses: the sound of the ocean makes you
feel relaxed; music creates a certain emotional response

❖ Conditioned physiological responses: Sexual arousal from lingerie, mood

music and candles. Or fetishes (leather, shoes, etc.)

❖ Evaluative conditioning of attitudes: changes in the liking of a stimulus that result from
pairing that stimulus with other positive or negative stimuli, e.g. pairing a car or perfume with a
beautiful girl.
 Basic processes in Classical Conditioning

• Acquisition refers to obtaining, gaining or acquiring knowledge/behaviour in the initial stage of

learning something.
• Extinction - the gradual weakening and disappearance of a conditioned response tendency
(example Pavlov only rings bell without food, bell loses capacity to create drooling effect)
• Spontaneous recovery refers to the reappearance of an extinguished response after a period of
non-exposure to the conditioned stimulus.

• Renewal effect - if a response is extinguished in a different environment that it was acquired,

the extinguished response will reappear if the animal/human is returned to the original
environment where acquisition took place.
• Stimulus Generalisation occurs when an organism that has learned a response to a specific
stimulus responds in the same way to new stimuli that are similar to the original stimulus (the
more similar the new stimuli are to the original stimulus, the greater the generalisation).{you
generalize things to similar things}

Little Albert - research by John Watson

 → Stimulus discrimination - occurs when an organism that has learned a response to a specific
stimulus does NOT respond in the sam way to new stimuli that are similar to the original
stimulus (the less similar the new stimuli are to the original stimulus, the greater the
likelihood of discrimination) {you can differentiate between 2 things}
→ Higher-order Conditioning occurs when a conditioned stimulus functions as if it were an
unconditioned stimulus. See the example below.

Outcome 2: Describe the operant conditioning process

Study guide: SS 3.2 Learning (pp. 27-29).

Textbook: Weiten, Chapter 6, pp. 241-250.

Operant conditioning: Skinner

Classical conditioning can't explain all types of learning because learning also occurs
because responses come to be influenced by the outcomes that follow them

Operant conditioning= is learning in which a voluntary response is strengthened or

weakened depending on its favourable or unfavourable consequences.
Example: If employees notice that their employers praise them or raise their salaries when they work
overtime, they will work harder, or keep on working hard. If there is no raise in spite of hard work, the
opposite is true.

Terminology and procedures

• Organisms tend to repeat those responses that are followed

by favourable consequences.
• Reinforcement occurs when an event following a response
increases an organism’s tendency to make that response.
• So, the response is strengthened because it leads to
rewarding consequences
• Jokes =laughter= more jokes
• Demonstrations of operant conditioning typically occur in a Skinner box, where an animal’s
reinforcement is controlled.
• The key dependent variable is the animal’s response rate, as monitored by a cumulative recorder,
with results portrayed in graphs.

• Primary Reinforcement (unlearned): Unlearned and inherently reinforced

because they satisfy a biological need (food, water, warmth, sex, affection)

• Secondary (or conditioned) Reinforcement: Learned and conditioned to

acquire reinforcing qualities by being associated with primary reinforcers (money, good
grades, attention, praise, flattery, etc.)and social connectedness

• Primary reinforcers are inherently reinforcing, whereas secondary reinforcer develop

through learning.

Basic Processes in operant conditioning

Acquisition-occurs when a response gradually increases due to contingent reinforcement,

learning established through a gradual process
• Acquisition may involve shaping – the reinforcement of closer and closer approximations of the
desired response (until it's achieved).
➢ This technique essentially entails dividing the behaviour that is to be learnt into a
number of small steps, so that each step is part of a
successive approximation of the total behaviour
➢ Used in teaching both animals and humans.
➢ Training animals to perform unnatural tricks (Priscilla,
the Fastidious Pig; Pigeons playing Ping-Pong)
 Extinction- occurs when responding gradually slows and stops after reinforcement is
terminated.

o Resistance to extinction –when an organism continues to make a response after

delivery of the reinforcer has been terminated. e.g. gamblers continue to gamble
even if they don't win anything in a long time
• Generalisation- occurs when responding increases in the presence of a stimulus that
resembles the original discriminative stimulus.
• Discrimination- occurs when responding does not increase in the presence of a stimulus that
resembles the original discriminative stimulus.

Comparison between the basic processes in Classical conditioning and operant

conditioning.
 Reinforcement and punishment

Positive reinforcement- is the strengthening of a response because it is followed by a

rewarding stimulus.
SO: a positive (pleasant) stimulus follows the behaviour and increases the chances that the
behaviour will be repeated (Giving a child a star in his book for good work, good grades,
promotions, etc.)
Negative reinforcement- is the strengthening of a response because it is followed by the
removal of unpleasant stimulus.
SO: a negative (unpleasant) stimulus is removed (taken away) after the behaviour and therefore
increasesthe chances of repeating that behaviour. E.g. using medicine –feel better, use it in
future again.
Escape learning - When a response is learned to decrease or end unpleasant stimulation
(escape chamber with shocks). Escape learning can lead to avoidance learning
Avoidance learning - a response is acquired that prevents unpleasant stimulation from
occurring (when warning light goes off, rat runs before shock comes)
Punishment - involves the presentation of an unpleasant stimulus or the removal of a pleasant
stimulus → weakens the tendency to make that response

↓Positive punishment - Weakens a response through the application of an unpleasant stimulus (spanking
a child, classmates laugh at your outfit, horrible meal at a restaurant, jail)
↓Negative punishment - Taking away something pleasant rewarding (no TV) → lead to weakening the
response

Review Concept Chart

Operant conditioning is a type of learning in which responses come to be controlled by their consequences.

Reinforcement occurs when an event following a response increases an organism’s tendency to make that response.

Primary Reinforcement (unlearned): Unlearned and inherently reinforced because they satisfy a biological need (food, water,
warmth, sex, affection)
Secondary (or conditioned) Reinforcement: Learned and conditioned to acquire reinforcing qualities by being associated with
primary reinforcers (money, good grades, attention, praise, flattery, etc.)
Acquisition occurs when a response gradually increases due to contingent reinforcement.
Acquisition may involve shaping – the reinforcement of closer and closer approximations of the desired response.

Extinction occurs when responding gradually slows and stops after reinforcement is terminated.

Generalisation occurs when responding increases in the presence of a stimulus that resembles the original discriminative stimulus.

Discrimination occurs when responding does not increase in the presence of a stimulus that resembles the original discriminative stimulus.

Positive reinforcement is the strengthening of a response because it is followed by a rewarding stimulus.

Negative reinforcement is the strengthening of a response because it is followed by the removal of unpleasant stimulus.
Escape learning - When a response is learned to decrease or end unpleasant stimulation (escape chamber with shocks).
Escape learning can lead to avoidance learning
Avoidance learning - a response is acquired that prevents unpleasant stimulation from occurring (when warning light goes off, rat runs before shock comes)
Punishment involves the presentation of an unpleasant stimulus or the removal of a pleasant stimulus which leads to a
‘weakened’ tendency to make that response

Positive punishment - Weakens a response through the application of an unpleasant stimulus

Negative punishment - Taking away something pleasant, lead to weakening the response

Outcome 3: Describe the observational learning process as well as the basic

subjacent processes
Study guide: SS 3.2 Learning (pp. 27-29).

Textbook: Weiten, Chapter 6, pp. 256-261.

Observational learning: Albert Bandura

Classical and operant conditioning can't explain all learning. For example, conditioning wouldn't
really explain how one learns to drive. Most new drivers observe experienced drivers to start
learning the skills. This is what we are looking at in this last section.

Observational learning-occurs when an organism's responding is influenced

by the observation of others, who are called -models.

• Observational learning was pioneered by Albert Bandura, who showed that conditioning
does not have to be a product of direct experience.
• Essentially observational learning involves being conditioned indirectly by observing
another’s conditioning.
• This is a very important form of learning since people learn only a small part of their
behaviour via direct experience.
• Both classical and operant conditioning can take place through observational learning.
 Basic Processes in Observational Learning

• Attention – in order to learn, one must pay attention to others’ behaviour and the consequences
• Retention - remember what you saw, store a mental representation in your memory for later
• Reproduction – converting the stored memory into overt behaviour in order to reproduce the modelled response
• Motivation – motivated to reproduce, situation where the response is likely to pay off

Effect of media violence

❖ Do violent media images increase the level of aggression in human beings? YES!
▪ Short-term:
❖ –Increases likelihood of physical aggression, verbal aggression, aggressive thoughts and aggressive emotions in children AND adults
❖ –Desensitise people to the effects of aggression in the real world (numbing effect)→less likely to help
▪ Long-term:
❖ –The more violence children watch on TV, the more aggressive they tend to be at home & school

The association between media violence and aggression is nearly as great as the correlation between
smoking and cancer
 Outcome 4: Illustrate your knowledge of these three learning processes by
making use of your own examples
Study guide: SS 3.2 Learning (pp. 27-29)

Textbook: Weiten, Chapter 6.

3 types of learning
Examples:

Classical Conditioning: alarm going off so i need to wake up

dog barking need to go look for what

Operant Conditioning: you didn’t clean your mother is shouting so you start cleaning

you study hard so u get good marks then a reward

Observational Conditioning: A child see and observerd to hit eg a doll so he is going to hit
something afterwards.

A girl sees her mother is putting on make-up so later she is going to try and put make-up on.
Unconditioned response

• Is n outomatiese reaksie wat natuurlik gebeur soos om te huil of om te spring as jy skrik-

niemand het jou geleer hoe om dit te doen nie

Unconditioned stimulus

• Is die ding wat die outomatiese reaksie trigger- so dink aan wat het gebeur dat jy begin huil
het of wat het jou laat skrik dat jy agter toe moes spring

Conditioned response

• Is iets wat jy geleer het om te doen- dis basies om uit jou foute uit te leer- soos byvoorbeeld
toe die hond die klokkie (Conditioned stimulus) hoor toe begin hy salivate want hy het al
*geleer* dat hy gaan kos kry as hy die klokkie hoor

Conditioned stimulus

• Is iets wat jou Conditioned response trigger byvoorbeeld die klokkie in die eksperiment was
die conditioned stimulus want die hond het *geleer* dat hy gaan kos kry elke keer wat die
klokkie lui

According to Bandura, your motivation to perform an observed response depends on

=your expectation of being reinforced for the response. / jou verwagting om versterk te word vir die
reaksie.

Case study/Gevallestudie

Can you apply the theory? Read the case study below and answer the questions that follow. / Kan
jy die teorie toepas? Lees die onderstaande gevallestudie en beantwoord die vrae wat volg.

Mary goes outside to play in her tree house. A swarm of bees has nested near her
tree house, and she gets stung when she climbs up to the tree house. This happens
3 times in a week. Mary becomes afraid to go near the tree and cries violently when
her dad tries to get her to climb up to the tree house.

Identify the unconditioned stimulus, unconditioned response, conditioned stimulus and

conditioned response in the case study of Mary provided above. Think carefully. Give reasons for
your answers.

=Mary's unconditional response will be she is crying,the emotion,no body learned her to do it,
unconditional stimulus is the pain she experienced from the bee sting. conditioned response that
she learned not to go near the tree becuase of the bees, and conditioned stimulus is the bees

In the case of Mary, the unconditioned stimulus is

1 : the bees / die bye

2 : the tree house / die boomhuis

3 : Mary crying/escaping from pain / Mary wat huil/ontsnap van pyn

4 : the bee sting (pain) / die bysteek (pyn)

5 : avoiding the tree house / om die boomhuis te vermy

6 : the father / die pa

In the case of Mary, the unconditioned response is

1 : the bees / die bye

2 : the tree house / die boomhuis

3 : Mary crying/escaping from pain / Mary wat huil/ontsnap van pyn

4 : the bee sting (pain) / die bysteek (pyn)

5 : avoiding the tree house / om die boomhuis te vermy

6 : the father / die pa

In the case of Mary, the conditioned stimulus is

1 : the bees / die bye

2 : the tree house / die boomhuis

3 : Mary crying/escaping from pain / Mary wat huil/ontsnap van pyn

4 : the bee sting (pain) / die bysteek (pyn)

5 : avoiding the tree house / om die boomhuis te vermy

6 : the father / die pa

In the case of Mary, the conditioned response is

1 : the bees / die bye

2 : the tree house / die boomhuis

3 : Mary crying/escaping from pain / Mary wat huil/ontsnap van pyn

4 : the bee sting (pain) / die bysteek (pyn)

5 : avoiding the tree house / om die boomhuis te vermy

6 : the father / die pa