Transcript behaviorism and classical conditioning

Behaviorism and
Classical Conditioning
The Beginnings

Behaviorism developed
out of criticisms of
“mentalism”.
 The feeling was the
psychology was too
based in theoretical
concepts that could not
be supported by
research.
 “The brain is not always
the best way to
understand behavior.”
Behaviorism
 Perspective
focuses on
external stimuli and
responses.
 Behavior is
understood in
terms of external
causes (not
internal ones).
Principles of Behaviorism
1.
2.
3.
In order to understand a behavior it must
be observable.
Rejects “mentalist” ideas about
psychology.
Views learning and experience as central
in understanding behavior.
Criticisms?
How do we learn?



Learning is a relatively
permanent change in an
organism’s behavior due to
experience.
Conditioning - the process of
learning associations.
Observational learning learn from the experiences of
others.
Some terms
– an event, etc. that is
measurable and which may affect
behavior.
 Response – any reaction to a stimulus
(that can be measured)
 Stimulus
Ivan Pavlov

Initially studied
digestion, until he
realized that dog
salivation was a
simple form of
learning.
CS --> CR

Unconditioned stimulus
(US)- normal or natural
stimulus.
 Unconditioned
Response (UR) normal / natural
response.
 Neutral Stimulus (NS) would not normally
cause a response.
 NS + US = UR
 The neutral stimulus
becomes conditioned,
to produce the
conditioned response.
Conditioning
 Associating
neutral stimulus with
unconditioned stimulus
 Conditioned Stimulus = CS
 Conditioned Response = CR
 A previously Neutral Stimulus (NS)
produces a response in the animal/human
How did Pavlov’s experiment
work?
 Food
= US
 Salivation = UR
 Light= NS → CS
 Associating light with food = CS
 Salivating to the light = CR
What about our Squirt Bottle
experiment?
Unconditioned Stimulus (US):
Squirt of water
Unconditioned Response (UR):
Eye Flinching
Neutral Stimulus (NS) → (CS):
Word “can”
Conditioned Response (CR):
Flinching to word “can”
Acquisition and Extinction
 Acquisition
- The initial learning.
 Present the CS right before (.5 second)
the US.
 Extinction - diminishing of a CS, happens
if a CS is repeatedly presented without the
US.
Generalization and
Discrimination
 Generalization
- tendency to respond to
stimuli similar to the CS.

Very difficult to operationally measure
“similar”
 Discrimination
- ability to distinguish
between a conditioned stimulus and
others.

Tends to involve training – default response is
to generalize.
Second Order Conditioning
 Learning
can be conditioned beyond the
original stimulus


Meat  Tone  Light as a conditioned
stimulus
Example of child cancer patients
Little Albert

Teaching a baby to
fear rats – how
could you unlearn a
fear?
 Are emotions
reflexes that can be
conditioned?
Applications today

Used in animal training,
understanding phobias,
bedwetting
 Basis in evolution –
pairing fear with
dangerous stimuli/taste
aversions.
Cognitive Factors
 Cognitive
perspective argues that CC
works because the animal becomes aware
of the relationship between stimuli

Rescorla study demonstrates contingency is
more important than contiguity of stimuli
Constraints
Stimulus – response
learning is not
absolute. There are
biological constraints.
 Taste aversions and
light aversions
develop differently*
