PSY 2301 - MODULE 9: CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
Learning - relatively permanent change in behavior due to experience
Humans are most capable of all the species to change behavior through learning
Helps organism to adapt to its environment
Associative learning - learning through association of one stimulus to another: lightning to thunder
Acquisition - initial learning of response
Neutral stimulus should be followed immediately by UCS for best results
Reversing classically conditioned response by pairing CS with UCS to achieve response that cannot occur at same time as undesirable CR
Pairing feared white rabbit with cookies
Cannot eat cookie and cry at same time
Introduce cookie first, then rabbit
Conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus must be closely associated in time
Behavior is not new; association with different stimulus is new
If individual's behavior determines whether stimulus is presented, process not classical conditioning
Limited application because limited number of unconditioned stimuli/responses
Classical conditioning is one way all organisms learn to adapt to environment
Showed how learning (internal process) can be studied objectively
PSY 2301 - MODULE 10: OPERANT & COGNITIVE APPROACHES
Positive reinforcement must be given shortly following response
Greater delay between response and reinforcer, slower learning
Small but immediate reinforcement may be more effective than powerful but delayed reinforcement
Cigarette smoking vs. good health/longevity
2) Consistency in delivery of reinforcement essential in beginning of learning process
What is used as positive reinforcer must be desirable, have value to receiving person
Continuous reinforcement - desired response gets reinforced every time it occurs
Learning and extinction both occur rapidly
Partial reinforcement promotes slower learning but greater resistance to extinction than contin...