Transcript Remaining Notes for Chapter 7&8

Chapters 7 & 8: Learning &
Memory
What the heck is Learning anyhow?

How would you define learning?

How does it happen?
Classical Conditioning
1.
Who has heard of this before?

What do you know about it?
2.
Psychologists consider conditioning to be
one of the most basic forms of learning
3.
However, Pavlov, the researcher who
discovered classical conditioning was not a
psychologist
Pavlov & the Mutts
1.
He was originally interested in the physiology
of digestion

2.
Started noticing that animals experienced
‘psychic salivation’
From this observation came his most famous
contribution to science: classical conditioning
Conditioning Simplified

The unconditioned stimulus (UCS) is the thing
that evokes the unconditioned response (UCR)



Pairing the conditioned stimulus (CS) and the UCR

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
UCS = food
UCR = is the natural response the animal has to the
UCS = drooling
CS = tone
Tone + drooling
The switch of the UCR to the CR = animal drools in
response to the tone
More conditioning terminology
1.
Acquisition
2.
Extinction
3.
Spontaneous recovery
Generalization and Discrimination
1.
Generalization
2.
Discrimination
Does Conditioning Work in Humans?



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Flu and what you last ate
Cancer patients & their treatment rooms
Drug use
Therapy
Operant Conditioning
1.
What is it?

B.F. Skinner is the father of operant conditioning
Skinner’s Tools
1.
Unlike Watson, Skinner concentrated on animal
behavior in his research
2.
To do his research he built chambers called operant
chambers or Skinner boxes
Skinner Box
How did these boxes shape behavior?
1.
What was used as the reward?
2.
What was the punishment?
3.
What was the operant behavior?
Properties of Reinforcing Stimuli
1.
2.
3.
Primary reinforcers
Secondary reinforcers
Timing of reinforcement
More about timing: Schedules of
Reinforcement
1.
Continuous reinforcement
2.
Partial reinforcement
1.
2.
3.
4.
Fixed ratio
Variable ratio
Fixed interval
Variable interval
Punishment
1.
Punishment is an adverse consequence that
reduces the likelihood that a behavior will
recur
2.
There are two kinds of punishment:
Positive punishment
2. Negative punishment
 Examples?
1.
Operant Conditioning and Parenting
1.
Do you have any thoughts on how parents
can use reinforcement and punishment to
shape their kids’ behavior?
2.
What are the most effective techniques?
3.
You MUST use a combination of both, not
just reinforcement or punishment alone
Observational Learning
1.
I bet you can guess what this means…
2.
Watching and imitating  modeling
3.
Memes
•
what are some examples?
Biological Basis of Observation
1.
In the frontal lobe of the brain, you have a
group of neurons called ‘mirror neurons’
2.
These neurons don’t just help us learn, they
also help us feel empathy
Albert Bandura
1.
Bandura is the father of social learning
theory
2.
He says we are likely to imitate the people
around us, especially those we see as either
similar to ourselves or as
successful/admirable
3.
The famous Bobo experiment
Learning Disabilities


There are 4 general types of learning
disabilities
What are some learning disabilities that you
guys know about?
Memory
1.
How would you define it?
2.
What is it’s relationship to learning?
3.
The three steps of memory
Types of Memory
1.
2.
3.
4.
Flashbulb memories
Sensory memory
Short-term/Working memory
Long-term memory
Types of Memory continued…
5.
Explicit (declarative) memory
6.
Implicit (procedural) memory
Examples of each kind of Memory
1.
Where were you and what were you doing when
you learned about the attacks of 9-11?
2.
Conversation: What did I just say??
3.
Close your eyes and remember these numbers (in
order)…
4.
Long-term memory – we all know what this is
5.
Riding a bike
Encoding
1.
2.
3.
How do we get information into our brains?
Automatic processing
Effortful processing
‘Rules’ of Encoding
1.
2.
3.
Spacing effect
Serial position effect
Bad at encoding right before sleep, doesn’t
happen during sleep
More about Encoding
1.
We have an easier time encoding
information that has meaning
2.
We are much better at encoding and
recalling images than information
3.
We remember organized material more
easily than unorganized info
Ways we Organize
1.
Mnemonics
2.
Chunking
3.
Hierarchies
Brain Areas Important for Memory
1.
Lashley & the engram
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2.
Cerebellum, not cortex for
association/conditioning
But cortex IS important for long-term memory
storage
The other big ‘name’ in memory is a structure
in the limbic system: the hippocampus
What about us?
1.
We know that memory seems to occur at the
synapse.
2.
We call lasting changes in the synapse longterm potentiation (LTP)
Retrieval
1.
Recall vs. Recognition – what is the
difference?
2.
Exposure to one stimulus can increase the
speed with which we can retrieve other
information

This is called priming - Let’s try an example
The effect of mood
1.
We have what is called mood-congruent
memory

Any guesses as to what this means?
The effect of context
1.
We often associate material that we learn
with the environment where we learn it

Ex. Switching seats for an exam
2.
Also, you may have had the experience of
being flooded with memories when going to
a certain place
3.
Some researchers believe context effects
explain the déjà vu phenomenon
Amnesia
1.
Amnesia – means memory loss. There are
two kinds:


2.
3.
Retrograde amnesia
Anterograde amnesia
Damage to the hippocampus can result in
both kinds of amnesia
Anterograde amnesia video
The case of H.M.
1.
H.M. was a patient suffering from severe
epilepsy
2.
His hippocampus was removed as treatment
3.
His memory was severely impaired,
especially bad anterograde amnesia
4.
His short-term/working memory &
procedural/implicit memory abilities are
somewhat intact
What H.M.’s Brain Looked Like
Korsakoff’s Syndrome
1.
This syndrome results from prolonged and
severe thiamine (vitamin B1) deficiency

2.
3.
Usually the result of severe alcoholism
Results in both kinds of amnesia, apathy,
confusion
Confabulation is a hallmark symptom
Brain Damage from Alcoholism
Alzheimer’s Disease
1.
Progressive memory loss with eventual depression,
hallucinations/delusions, sleeplessness and loss of
appetite
2.
Caused by generation of plaques and tangles in the
brain

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Plaques are build up between cells caused by cell death
Tangles are caused by degradation of structures within a
cell
Alzheimer's video
Alzheimer’s
Brains