LEARNING THEORY LAB ~ CHAPTER 5

INSTRUCTIONS: Before you do this lab, read chapter 5, watch the 4 videos online (Little Albert, Operant
Conditioning, Latent Learning, and the Bandura observational learning video. This shows you the four types of
learning in this chapter. SUBMIT THIS LAB IN THE LEARNING LAB DROP BOX BY THE DUE DATE. THE
ANSWER SHEET WILL OPEN FOR YOU TO DOWNLOAD AT THE DATE AND CLOSING TIME OF THE LEARNING
LAB ASSIGNMENT. STUDY THIS TO PREPARE FOR YOUR QUIZ! FILL IN THE BLANKS (THE WORD KEY IS
ON THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE) ~ Use the chart on the back for the operant conditioning exercises, part 2.

Pair a NEUTRAL STIMULUS (bell) with an UNCONDITIONED STIMULUS (UCS=MEAT). The UCS (MEAT) causes
SALIVATION (UNCONDITIONED RESPONSE (UCR) in the dog. After pairing the NS and the UCS several times,
the NS (bell) becomes a CONDITIONED STIMULUS (CS), which now causes a CONDITIONED RESPONSE (CR=
SALIVATION). This is how phobias are created.

1) Pavlovian Conditioning = CLASSICAL CONDITIONING (Learning by association and pairing things, pairing a
neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus that creates an unconditioned (unlearned) response.
Showing the dog meat automatically elicits salivation. The meat is unconditioned (unlearned) stimulus and
the salivation is the unconditioned (unlearned or automatic) response. We pair the bell (neutral stimulus)
with the unconditioned stimulus and after a few pairings it elicits the unconditioned response BY ITSELF!

Example 1: In Watson’s experiment with Little Albert

A) The rat was the ______________________________.
B) The loud noise was the ______________________________________.
C) The startle response in Little Albert following the loud noise was the ______________________________
D) The startle response in Little Albert following the rat is the ______________________________________
E) A white furry hat and Santa Claus beard elicits the startle response from Albert. The ____________
stimulus has now become ______________________________________.

Example 2: Little Sally goes to the dentist. The dentist gives her a shot and she cries. After 3 trips to the dentist, Sally
cries when the dentist walks in the room. In a month, when Little Sally returns to the dentist office for her check-up and
she sees the dental assistant, she beings to cry. However, when she sees the receptionist in the office, she doesn’t cry.
After 10 years of not going to the dentist, Sally is a teenager and she goes for a check-up at the dentist. She doesn’t cry
when she sees the dentist or the dental assistant. However, she needs a new filling and on her second visit to the dentist,
she begins to cry again.
At first, the dentist is the _____________________________.
A) The shot is the ______________________________________ and her tears after the shot are the
________________________________________.
B) Her tears when she sees the dentist after 3 visits are the _____________________________________
C) Now the dentist is said to have become the ________________________________________________
D) When Little Sally cries when she sees the dental assistant, the __________________ stimulus has
become ____________________________________.
E) The fact that she doesn’t cry when she sees the receptionist in the office means that she has some
___________________________________.
F) Her lack of tears after 10 year suggests that her response has been __________________________.
However, after 10 years and her second visit, her tears suggest that there is a
_________________________ of her ___________________________.
 Vocabulary: neutral stimulus ~ conditioned stimulus ~ unconditioned stimulus ~ conditioned
response ~ unconditioned response ~ extinction, extinquished or extinct ~ spontaneous
recovery ~ stimulus discrimination ~ stimulus generalization or generalized

2) Skinners Model of Operant Conditioning: LEARNING BY REINFORCMENT AND PUNISHMENT

Note: Behaviors have consequences. If the consequence is reinforcing, it will increase the chance of the
behavior happening in the future. If' the consequence is negative, it will decrease the chances of the behavior
happening in the future. I*n order to figure out if something is a reinforcer (increases behavior) or a
punishment (decreases the behavior), you have to see what it does to the behavior!

Example 1: Little Sally does her chores and gets a $1.00 allowance when she does them without being asked.
She quickly learns to do her chores herself. In several weeks, she has enough money to buy herself the doll
she’s been wanting. She continues to do her chores.

The allowance is a _______________ _________________ because it ____________ the chore behavior,

and something she likes is ________________.

Example 2: Johnny’s mother lectures him when he forgets to carry out the trash. He hates his mothers’
lectures. When he remembers to do his chore, she stops lecturing him. Realizing this, he remembers to carry
out the trash. (But, if he forgets to do his chores, his mother starts lecturing him again.) He rarely forgets.
His mother stopping her lecture is a ___________________ ________________ because stopping the
lecture _______________ his chore performance, and something he dislikes & doesn’t want is
______________.

Example 3: Johnny hits his sister. When he does, he gets a swat from Dad. Johnny stops hitting his sister.
The swat is a ________________ _______________ for Johnny’s hitting behavior.
We know this because it _________________________ his hitting behavior and something he dislikes is
_______________.

Example 4: Johnny gets an award in school for his science project. He shows it to Mom and Dad and neither
of them says much about it or show much delight over his success. Actually, both pretty much ignore him.
On the next science test, Johnny gets an F.
The ignoring behavior is a _______________ _______________ for Johnny’s positive school behavior.
We know this because it __________________________ his positive school behavior, and something that
he wants is ____________________.

Example 5: Johnny’s parents both work and have little time for Johnny and his little sister. Johnny hits his little
sister in front of his parents and Mom gives him a spanking. He hits his sister again and Dad spanks him. He
continues to hit his sister.
The spanking is a ________________ __________________ for Johnny.
 A) We know this because it ___________________ the hitting behavior, and something is __________.
Vocabulary: stimulus ~ reinforcer ~ punishment ~ positive reinforcer ~ positive punishment ~
negative reinforcer ~ negative punishment ~ increases ~ decreases ~
**Positive reinforce: something the person/animal likes is given. Negative reinforce: something the
person/animal dislikes is taken away. Positive punishment: something the person/animal dislikes is
given. Negative punishment: something the person/animal likes is taken away. (note remember that
this is only true depending upon what it does to the behavior in question.

REINFORCEMENT- PUNISHMENT
INCREASES BEHAVIOR IN QUESTION DECREASES BEHAVIOR IN
QUESTION

POSITIVE
(SOMETHING EXAMPLES: GIVING ALLOWANCE EXAMPLES: SPANKING,

IS GIVEN) FOR CHORES (IF IT INCREASES GROUNDING

BEHAVIOR) (IF IT DECREASES BEHAVIOR)

NEGATIVE
(SOMETHING EXAMPLES: STOPPING A SHOCK, EXAMPLE: Suspending drivers

TAKEN OR STOPPING NAGGING (IF IT License, grounding or jail (taking

AWAY) INCREASES Away freedom)

BEHAVIOR)

REINFORCMENT = INCREASES BEHAVIOR IN QUESTION or behavior continues

PUNISHMENT = DECREASES BEHAVIOR IN QUESTION or behavior stops.
POSITIVE = SOMETHING GIVEN
NEGATIVE = SOMETHING TAKEN AWAY

ASK 2 QUESTIONS:
1) IS SOMETHING GIVEN OR IS SOMETHING TAKEN AWAY.
If something is given, it's positive. If something is taken away, it's negative.
THEN ASK:
2) WHAT HAPPENS TO THE BEHAVIOR IN QUESTION? DOES IT INCREASE OR DECREASE?
If it increases the behavior in question, then it's a reinforcement. If it decreases it, it's a
punishment. If I GIVE JOHNNY a SPANKING and HE KEEPS HITTING HIS SISTER, the spanking is a
POSITIVE REINFORCER. Something was given, and the behavior kept going on!
III. SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY: OBSERVATIONAL LEARNING
Children (and people) learn from their situation, from their own person (including their own
biology, and from their own behavior. We watch others, our situation, and we watch our own actions.

We learn by observing others and our environment, by looking at our self, our own behaviors, feelings,
thoughts, etc, AND by actually behaving a certain way. All 3 of these components influence how we
learn! I watch another "alcoholic" stay sober and work a 12 Step Program (Environment). I believe
that I CAN DO THE SAME (Person). I behave (I model their behavior) the way I see my 12 Step friend
behave (Behavior). All aspects of this triad help me learn a new way of being, acting, feeling, thinking,
behaving.

LATENT LEARNING:
How do you get to your favorite restaurant? How do you get home from school? We learn and create
mental maps, but we may not actually demonstrate that behavior UNTIL WE HAVE THE INCENTIVE TO
DO SO! I am hungry so I find my way to the restaurant and am rewarded by a delicious dinner. I am
tired so I find my way home to rest! We can't help but learn things in some ways, whether we are
rewarded or not!