LEARNING…

 Doesn’t refer to change resulting from maturation

 Any relatively permanent change in behavior resulting from
experience
 NOT temporary change
 Learning can result from vicarious as well as from direct
experience
 The changes produced by learning are not always positive
 Woodworth “ any activity can be called learning so far as it
develops the individual and makes him alter behavior and
experiences different from what they would otherwise have been.”
 Henry P. Smith(1962) learning is the acquisition of new behavior
or the strengthening or weakening of old behavior as the result of
experience
 Kingsley and R. Garry(1957)learning is the process by which
behavior is originated or changes through practice or training.
 Crow and Crow, “ learning is acquisition of habits, knowledge, and
attitudes. It involves new ways of doing things and it operates in
an individual’s attempts to overcome obstacles or to adjust to new
situation. It represents progressive changes in behavior .
 LEARNING….
Learning is process not a product
It involves all those experiences and training of
an individual (right from birth) which help him
to produce change in his behavior.
Learning prepares an individual for any
adjustment and adaption that may be necessary
Learning is purposeful and goal oriented
Learning is universal and continuous
Learning involves new ways of doing things but
there is no limit to adopting these ways and
means.
Learning does not include changes in behavior
on account of maturation, illness or drugs, etc.
Outcomes of Learning
Bringing desirable changes in behavior
Attaining of teaching learning objectives
Attaining of proper growth and development
Attaining balanced development of
personality
Attaining proper adjustment
Realizing of the goals of life
 Factors affecting
Factors related to learner
learning
Learner’s physical and mental health
The basic potential of the learner
The level of aspirations and achievement motivation
Goals of life
Readiness and will power
Factors associated with the Type of Learning Experience
Nature of learning experiences
Methodology of learning
Quality of teacher, teaching skills
Socio- emotional environment
Availability of appropriate learning material and facilities
Proper conducive environment and learning situation as
Proper seating arrangement, clam and peaceful
environment, cooperative and competitive group
situations,
Ivan Pavlov
Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936)
Pavlov, a Russian
physiologist, first
described classical
conditioning in 1899
while conducting
research into the
digestive system of
dogs.
He was particularly
interested in the role of
salivary secretions in
the digestion of food
and was awarded the
Nobel Prize for
Medicine or Physiology
in 1904.
Pavlov’s Research
Pavlov used an
apparatus to
measure the amount
of saliva produced
when a dog ate.
The flow of saliva
occurred naturally
whenever food was
placed in the dog’s
mouth, as salivation
is an involuntary,
reflex response.
Pavlov’s Method
 Dog was restrained in a
harness to avoid extraneous
variables.
 Meat powder was placed
directly on the dog’s tongue or
in the bowl.
 A tube was surgically attached
to the dog’s cheek near one of
the salivary glands and a
fistula was made so that the
saliva drained straight out
into a measuring device.
 Further on, more
sophisticated measuring
devices were used to measure
the speed of saliva flow.
What did Pavlov observe?
 Pavlov observed that the dogs  A stimulus is any event
salivated not only at the sight that elicits a response from
of the food, but also at the an organism.
sight or sound of the lab tech  A response is a reaction
who had been preparing the
food. by an organism to a
 Pavlov was intrigued by these stimulus. In Pavlov’s
unintentional observations & experiment, the stimulus of
he decided to conduct further food initially produced the
experiments. response of salivation.
 His subsequent experiments  Eventually the sight or
provided clear evidence of a sound of the tech became
form of learning based on the the stimulus.
repeated association of 2
different stimuli.
What is Classical Conditioning?
Also known as In classical condition,
respondent conditioning a response that is
refers to a form of automatically
learning that occurs
produced by one
through the repeated
association of 2 or more
stimulus becomes
different stimuli. associated, or linked,
Learning is only said to with another stimulus
have occurred when a that would not
particular stimulus normally produce this
consistently produces a response.
response that it did not
previously produce.
There are 4 key elements that are used to describe
the process of classical conditioning.
1. Unconditioned Stimulus
The unconditioned
stimulus (UCS) is any
stimulus that
consistently produces
a particular,
naturally occurring,
automatic response.
In Pavlov’s
experiment, the UCS
was the food (meat
powder).
2. Unconditioned Response
The unconditioned
response (UCR) is the
response that occurs
automatically when the
UCS is presented.
A UCR is a reflexive,
involuntary response
that is predictably
caused by a UCS.
In Pavlov’s
experiments, the UCR
was the salivation.
3. Conditioned Stimulus
The conditioned  Association refers to the
stimulus (CS) is the pairing or linking of 1
stimulus with another
stimulus that is neutral stimulus.
at the start of the  In Pavlov’s experiments, the
conditioning process bell and subsequently other
and does not normally stimuli were initially neutral,
produce the UCR. but each became associated
Yet, through repeated with the meat powder.
 Once conditioning has
association with the occurred and the originally
UCS, the CS triggers a neutral stimulus produces
very similar response to the response of salivating,
that caused by the UCS. then it is called the CS.
4. Conditioned Response
The conditioned Pavlov’s dogs displayed
response (CR) is the a CR (salivation) only
learned response that is when they began to
produced by the CS. salivate to a CS.
The CR occurs after the  When the dog
CS has been associated responded to a CS, such
with the UCS. as the sound of a bell,
The behaviour involved classical conditioning
had taken place because
in a CR is very similar
salivation would not be a
to that of the UCR, but
usual response to the
it is triggered by the CS sound of a bell.
alone.
Pavlov distinguished several key processes that are
involved in classical conditioning. These are known as:
•Acquisition, extinction, stimulus, generalisation,
stimulus discrimination and spontaneous recovery.
Acquisition
Each paired  Timing of the CS and UCS
presentation of the CS pairing is critical.
with UCS is referred to  Pavlov found that a very
as a trial. short time between
Acquisition is the overall presentations of the 2
stimuli was most effective.
process during which  Acquisition is more rapid
the organism learns to when the CS occurs and
associate 2 events. remains present until the
The rate of learning is UCS is presented.
often very fast in the  The end of the acquisition
early stages of the stage is said to occur when
acquisition phase. the CS alone produces the
CR.
Extinction
 A conditioned stimulus-  E.g. Pavlov’s dogs eventually
response association can ceased salivating (CR) in
fade over time or response to the bell (CS)
presented alone after a
disappear altogether.
number of trials in which the
 Extinction is the gradual food (UCS) did not follow the
decrease in the strength or sound of the bell).
rate of a CR that occurs  There is some variation
when the UCS is no longer between individuals in the rate
presented. at which extinction of the same
 Extinction is said to have conditioned response will
occur.
occurred when a CR no  There is also considerable
longer occurs following variation between the rates at
presentation of the CS. which different response will
be extinguished.
Spontaneous Recovery
Extinction of a CR is Spontaneous
not always recovery does not
permanent. always occur and
Spontaneous recovery when it does it is
is the reappearance of often short-lived.
a CR when the CS is Furthermore the CR
presented, following a tends to be weaker
rest period after the
than it was
CR appears to have
originally.
been extinguished.
Stimulus Generalisation
 Pavlov observed that his dogs  However, the amount of saliva
salivated to other noises that produced by the dog would
sounded like a bell. tend to be less than the
 This is known as stimulus amount produced by the
generalisation which is the original bell to which the dog
tendency for another stimulus to
was conditioned.
produce a response that is similar
to the CR.
 The greater the similarity
between stimuli, the greater the
possibility that a generalisation
will occur.
 E.g. is a stimulus generalisation
to the sounds of a bell occurred
with one of Pavlov’s dogs, the dog
might also salivate in response to
the ringing of the front-door bell.
Stimulus Discrimination
 Stimulus discrimination occurs when a person or animal
responds to the CS only, but not to any other stimulus
that is similar to the CS.

 E.g. in a CC experiment, stimulus discrimination would

be observed when a dog salivated only in response to the
sound of the ‘experimental bell’, and not in response to
any other similar sound such as a door bell.
 0PERANT
CONDITIONING

SKINNER,
Burrhhuss
Frederick
 B F. Skinner Is Best Known For:
Operant conditioning
Schedules of Reinforcement

► He received a B.A. in English literature in 1926

from Hamilton College, and spent some time as
a struggling writer before discovering the
writings of Watson and Pavlov.

► Inspired by these works, Skinner decided to

abandon his career as a novelist and entered
the psychology graduate program at Harvard
University.
► In 1945, B.F. Skinner moved to Bloomington, Indiana and
became Psychology Department Chair and the University of
Indiana. In 1948, he joined the psychology department at
Harvard University where he remained for the rest of his life.

► He became one of the leaders of BEHAVIORISM and his work

contributed immensely to experimental psychology. He also
invented the 'Skinner box,' in which a rat learns to obtain food
26
by pressing a lever.
OPERANT
- Any active behavior that
operates upon the environment
to generate consequences

 OPERANT CONDITIONING
- The behavior is followed by a consequence, and
the nature of the consequence modifies the
organisms tendency to repeat the behavior in the
future

27
 OPERANT CONDITIONING
 -learning occurs as the result of
consequences. The components of
learning expand to include a key
characteristic:
 REINFORCEMENT

 The new equation for learning now looks

like this: Stimulus-Response-
Reinforcement.

28
Operant Conditioning
A process through which organisms learn to repeat
behaviors that yield positive outcomes or permit them
to avoid to escape from the negative outcomes.
Reinforcement: the application or removal of a
stimulus to increase the strength of a specific behavior.
Are of two types:
Positive Reinforcement: Stimulus that strengthen
responses that precede them.
Negative Reinforcement: Stimulus that strengthen
responses that permit the organism to avoid or escape
from their presence.
Punishment: A procedure by which the application or
removal of a stimulus decrease the strength of a
behavior.
 EXPERIMENTS

- A cage that has a

bar pedal on one
wall that when
pressed, causes a
little mechanism
to release a food
pellet into the
cage

30
31
SKINNER’S OBSERVATION
2. RATE OF RESPONSE

32
Procedure Stimulus event Effects Behavioral
outcome
Positive Application of Strengthen Organisms learn
reinforcement desirable responses that to perform
stimulus(food, precede responses that
praise, sexual occurrence of produce positive
pleasure) stimulus reinforcers
Negative Application of Strengthen Organisms learn
Reinforcement undesirable responses that to perform
stimulus(heat ,col permit escape responses that
d) from or permit them to
avoidance of avoid or escape
stimulus from negative
reinforcers

Positive Application of an Weakens Organism learn

Punishment undesirable(avers responses that to suppress
ive) stimulus precede responses that
occurrence of lead to
stimulus unpleasant
consequences
Negative Loss or Weakens the Organism learn
Punishment postponement of responses that to suppress
Basic Principles of Operant
Conditioning
Shaping: A Chaining: A
technique in which procedure that
close and closer establishes a
approximations to sequence of
desired behavior are responses which
required for the lead to a reward
delivery of positive following the final
reinforcement response in the
chain.
 Schedules of reinforcement:
rules determining when and how reinforcements will be
delivered
Continuous Fixed Interval
Reinforcement Schedule:
Schedules: A schedule of
A schedule of reinforcement in
reinforcement in which which a specific
every occurrence of a interval of time must
particular behavior is elapse before a
reinforced response will yield
Variable Interval reinforcement
Schedule Fixed Ratio Schedule
The same behavior was shown by the children
as they watched.
The one from the first group show aggression
with the doll when they were presented in front
of them
And the second group rarely showed aggression
against the doll.
 Observational Learning
The kind of learning resulted from acquisition of new
information, forms of behaviour or even abstract rules
and concepts from watching the actions of other
people and the consequences they experience.
The most famous experiment is was the Bobo Doll
experiment by Bandura.
Two groups of children were shown two different
types of movies.
One group saw an adult engage in aggressive actions
against a large inflated Bobo doll.
The adult who was serving as a model knocked the
doll down sat on it , insulted it verbally , and
repeatedly punched it on the nose.
In the other group the children were exposed to a
model who behaved quietly and nonaggressive
manner.
 Basic Principles
Attention:
The extent to which we focus on others’ behavior
observation of others’ behavior of performing activity
those who attract us.
Retention
our ability to retain a representation of others’
behavior in memory
Production Processes
our ability to act on these memory representations
it depends on : Ones own physical abilities and
capacity to monitor one’s own performance and
adjust it until it matches that of the model
Motivation
The usefulness to us of the information required