PSY 201 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Flip Book, Reinforcement, Observational Learning
psychology exam 2 9/20/2016 9:33:00 PM
Chapter 6: Learning
Behaviorism: the role of environmental forces in producing observable
behavior
~ environment: everything around you (other people or objects)
~ observable: what other people can see one do (actions)
• John B. Watson was the father/founder of behaviorism
~ made sure psychology was treated as a science
~ concerned with using the scientific method
~ huge proponent of observable behavior
• He developed a theory of learning
• Learning: relatively enduring change in behavior, resulting from
experience
• 3 types of learning
1. nonassociative learning
• changes in the response to a stimulus in the environment, after
repeated exposure
• two common types:
1. habituation: a decrease in behavioral response after repeated
exposure to a stimulus (“tuning it out” or “getting used to it”)
2. sensitization: an increase in behavioral response after exposure
to a stimulus
- does not have to be from repeated exposure
- becoming more alert/ sensitive
- noticing more than usual
2. associative learning
• linking two stimuli (events) that occur together
~ ex: Going to the dentist + pain
~ ex: Lamar building + psychology class
• associative learning takes place through conditioning
• conditioning: environmental stimuli and behavioral responses be
come connected (become something you do regularly)
• two types of associative learning:
1. classical conditioning
- Ivan Pavlov: famous for study with dogs
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
- Unconditioned stimulus: something you don’t have to
learn to respond to
- Unconditioned response: not learned response/comes
naturally
- Neutral stimulus: something that doesn’t produce a
natural response
- Pavlov condition dogs through paring (US [food] + NS
[bell]) → dog starts to associate the two together
- Conditioned stimulus: after he paired food with bell,
when a rung bell dogs began to drool
- Condition response: learned response through
conditioning and pairing
2. operant conditioning
- the consequence of a behavior determines the likelihood
of that behavior being repeated
- consequences mean what happens after (not always
something bad)
- good consequences → more likely (Reinforcement)
- bad consequences → less likely (Punishment)
- reinforcement: increases the frequency of desirable
behavior
- two types of reinforcement:
1. positive reinforcement: increasing the likelihood of
the behavior by adding something pleasant to the
situation (ex: giving dog a treat when they do as told)
2. negative reinforcement: increasing the likelihood of
the behavior by removing something unpleasant form
the situation (ex: take out trash to remove unpleasant
smell)
- Punishment: decreases the likelihood of a behavior
being repeated
- Two types of punishment:
1. Positive punishment: decreasing the likelihood of the
behavior by adding something unpleasant to the
situation (ex: getting a speeding ticket for driving too
fast/ being yelled at or criticized)
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
2. Negative punishment: decreasing the likelihood of
the behavior by removing something pleasant form the
situation (ex: time out [removing time to get to play]/
taking phone away if texting in class)
- Shaping: reinforce behaviors that are increasingly
similar to the desired behavior
3. observational learning
- acquiring or modifying a behavior from watching
another individual perform that behavior
- ex: watching someone do something and learning from
them
- vicarious learning: learning to engage in a behavior or
not, after seeing others being rewarded or punished for
that behavior
Chapter 7: Memory
Three stages of memory:
1. Encoding: process of acquiring information so that it can be stored
~ learning it for the first time
2. Storage: retention of encoded information
~ studying/ making sure it stays in your brain
3. Retrieval: recalling or remembering stored information when needed
~ performing/ remembering the actual information that is stored
Types of memory
1. Sensory: holds a large amount if information for a very brief period
(less than a few seconds)
~ typically comes from 5 senses
~ movement of a sparkler/ flipbook/ movement of car lights: seeing
light in different spots and brains pieces them together to make one
solid movement
2. Short term: briefly holds a limited amount of information for a brief
duration (1-20 seconds)
~ trying to read a phone number then immediately type them down
~ bartenders having to remember all drink orders
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Behaviorism: the role of environmental forces in producing observable behavior. ~ environment: everything around you (other people or objects) ~ observable: what other people can see one do (actions: john b. watson was the father/founder of behaviorism. ~ made sure psychology was treated as a science. Does not have to be from repeated exposure. Noticing more than usual: associative learning linking two stimuli (events) that occur together. ~ ex: going to the dentist + pain. ~ ex: lamar building + psychology class: associative learning takes place through conditioning, conditioning: environmental stimuli and behavioral responses be come connected (become something you do regularly, two types of associative learning: classical conditioning. Unconditioned stimulus: something you don"t have to learn to respond to. Neutral stimulus: something that doesn"t produce a natural response. Pavlov condition dogs through paring (us [food] + ns. [bell]) dog starts to associate the two together.
