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Assignment: Assignment #1

2020 Spring Term (1) General Psychology PSY 101 316A[18053] (Hostos CC)

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Upload Assignment: Assignment #1 

   ASSIGNMENT INFORMATION

Due Date

Thursday, March 26, 202011:59 PM

Points Possible

50

For Assignment #1, please list the major Learning Theories presented in Chapter 5 of your textbook.  Then explain each one,   Please be sure that your explanations are accurate, complete and clear in order to achieve the most credit for this assignment.  

Also, think about the discussions we have had in class on the first few Learning Theories,  Please recall that sometimes including a  diagram can help to clarify what is being presented.  

For now, you do not need to deal with Positive and Negative reinforcement and punishment, although you should, of course, fully explain reinforcement and punishment in regard to the appropriate Learning Theory.  In addition, you do not need to deal with Schedules of Reinforcement. 

psychology 101

Answer 1

There are three popular learning theories that explain how human beings absorb, process, and retain knowledge. They are the theory of classical conditioning, the theory of operant conditioning, and the theory of observational learning. All three of them falls under behaviourism (the study of human psychology that can be analysed through observable actions).

1) Theory of classical conditioning

The theory of classical conditioning is one of the most influential theories in the study of human psychology. It was coined by Ivan Pavlov. His theory stated that learning happens through associations. His experiments proved that a stimulus can initiate a behaviour once the person or the animal is conditioned to do so.

Pavlov conducted his ground-breaking experiments with dogs. He observed that the dogs will salivate when they were given food. But they also began to salivate when they heard sounds associated with food. For example, the footsteps of the person who brought food or the sound of a bell (in the latter stages of the experiment, a bell was rung right before food was served).

He categorised stimuli and behaviour into two - conditioned and unconditioned. Food is an unconditioned stimulus and salivation related food is an unconditioned response. However, the sound of the bell is a conditioned stimulus and the salivation at the sound of the bell is a conditioned response, which is a learnt behaviour.

The theory of classical conditioning stated that the dogs learnt the association between the sound of the bell and food which led them to behave accordingly. Salivation was a neutral stimulus. After the dogs learnt the association, it became a conditioned stimulus. Pavlov concluded that for such an association between two stimuli (food and bell) to be made, they have to presented closer in time.

Before conditioning

Food (UCS) ---- Salivation (UCR)

Bell ---- No response

During Conditioning

Bell + food (UCS) ---- salivation (UCR)

After conditioning

Bell (CS) ----- Salivation (CR)

2) Theory of operant conditioning

The theory of operant conditioning is known for emphasising changes in animal behaviour. B F Skinner proved that an existing behaviour can be changed with the influence of environmental factors. He also introduced the concepts of reward and punishment. B F Skinner's theory states that learning is a change in behaviour and it is a response to the stimuli in the environment.

Skinner's theory of operant conditioning said that a learnt behaviour can be the result of rewards and punishments. The theory is popular for 'Skinner's Box'. The box was a maze designed for mice. The box had a food pellet dispenser at one end and an outlet of electric shock at one end. The food pellet dispenser was the reward and electric shock is the punishment. Once the subjects (mice) understood where they were getting food, they became more efficient in learning the path to that point.

He proved that a behaviour that resulted in pleasant consequences (food) was likely to be repeated. On the other hand, a behaviour that resulted in unpleasant consequences (electric shock) is less likely to be repeated.

Skinner's theory of operant conditioning says that a reinforcement can prompt the behaviour to be strengthened. Stimuli from the environment that encourages behaviour to be repeated are called reinforcers. And the stimuli from the environment that discourages a behaviour are punishers.

3) Theory of observational learning

The theory of observational learning is probably the simplest one. Created by Albert Bandura, it states that human beings learn behaviour by observing fellow human beings. This theory is known as social learning theory as well. It led to more research on how human beings learn and created ideas from their experiences. It also concluded that the environment in which an individual spends time shapes their behaviour.

Bandura proved his theory with an experiment called Bobo Doll. His hypothesis was that children learn their behaviour by observing people who are around them. In his experiment, three sets of children were left to watch three different videos of other children playing with a doll and were not given any instructions. In the video, children were acting aggressively towards the doll. But three sets of children received three different consequences for their actions. One set was rewarded, one set was punished, and the last set was ignored. The participating children ended up adapting the same behaviour as the children they saw on videos.

The experiment pointed out the importance of influential models and identification as well. An influential model is a person that the individual comes in contact with. This is mostly parents, friends, and characters on TV. Identification happens when the individual associate with the person. Children are more likely to identify with other children or primary caregivers. Bandura also split the process of learning into four stages - attention, retention, and reproduction, and reinforcement.