Learning and Conditioning MARINA SANGKAVICHAI LECTURE 6 Classical Conditioning in Ads Gucci Fragrance Louis Vuitton Coach Bags What does this symbol stand for? A Famous Symbol Famous Coffee Famous Soda MAC Make-up Learning Aristole summed it up best when he said: “When two things commonly occur together, the appearance of one will bring the other to mind.” What comes to mind with these terms? Terrorism, USA, Immigrants, Crime, Good neighborhoods, bad neighborhoods. Learning Learning is a relatively permanent change in behavior, knowledge, capability or attitude that is acquired through experience and cannot be attributed to illness, injury or maturation. For example: If you go out with a certain type of person, it doesn’t work out, you decide not to go out with those “types” anymore. If you cram for an exam at the last minute and then receive an “F” you learn ( hopefully) that cramming doesn’t work Just Recently If I eat a peanut butter sandwich before bed time and then can’t get to sleep, I may attribute the insomnia to the peanut butter sandwich We form these associations automatically! Psychologists say learning is about making associations Real life examples? Learning Learning involves reinforcement and responses Reinforcement: any event that increases the probability that a particular response will occur. For example, studying ahead of time and getting an “A” (which makes me feel good) will increase the probability that I’ll do it again. Classical Conditioning Classical conditioning is about the formation of associations between stimuli and responses. Aristole summed it up best when he said: “When two things commonly occur together, the appearance of one will bring the other to mind.” An unconditioned stimulus (UCS) is an event, object, or substance that naturally evokes a response. For example, pizza makes a person hungry. Sharks are scary. Steaks makes dogs salivate naturally. Classical Conditioning An unconditioned response (UCR) is the reaction to the unconditioned stimulus. These unconditioned responses occur NATURALLY. For example the unconditioned responses are: pizza makes a person hungry, sharks are scary Classical Conditioning A neutral stimulus being paired with the unconditioned stimulus will form an association ( which will elicit a response ) Sample neutral stimuli are a doorbell and music. Let’s form associations! Assocations The doorbell rings when the pizza delivery person arrives/pair the bell and pizza The music plays when the shark is approaching ( Jaws )/pair music and shark When doorbell rings (CS) you will get hungry (CR) When the music plays (CS) you will feel nervous(CR) Pavlov and his Dogs Russian researcher Ivan Pavlov was studying digestion. He observed that meat powder made his dog salivate. He rang a bell ( which of course elicited no response from the dog )at first. Then he would ring a bell and then place meat powder on the dogs tongue which caused the dog to salivate. Pavlov and his dogs Pavlov, continued with this sequence many times, bell, meat powder, and dog salivating.Bell, meat powder and dog salivating. Eventually as conditioning took place, the dog began to salivate at the sound of the bell. Remember UNCONDITIONED STIMULI and RESPONSES are ones you don’t have to learn. They are innate! CONDITIONED STIMULI and CONDITIONED RESPONSES are learned. Neutral stimulus produced no responses until paired with an unconditioned stimulus ( which produced a response) What were the UCS, UCR, and CS and CR? Water Experiment Classical Conditioning Acquisition is demonstrated. At first, the word can, by itself causes no special response. After repeated pairings of the word and the water, the word by itself gradually becomes a more likely to cause a CONDITIONED REPONSE. What was the unconditioned stimulus? What was the unconditioned response? The conditioned stimulus? Video: Big Bang Theory Ivan Pavlow J.B. Watson’s Little Albert JB Watson proposed that emotions such as fear can be conditioned in a human being. He conditioned a nine month old orphan (Albert B) to be afraid of certain objects. At 11 months old, he showed baby Albert several objects, like a rat, rabbit and masks. He verified that he had no fear of these objects. Then he paired these items with a loud noise ( a hammer bang against a bar) He paired the rat and this loud noise together. The loud noise made Albert cry and he grew frightened. Pretty soon, Albert developed a fear of the rat alone. Paired seven times in one week, rat and loud noise. When given the rat, Albert would be stricken with fear and try to get away from the rat. Little Albert Conditioning Little Albert John B. Watson Little Albert Experiment Watson’s Experiment The goal of Watson’s experiment was to show that behavior is learned and trained into our minds and to also show that our behavior did not come from the “unconscious.” Unethical study Psychology Question Describe the phenomenon of classical conditioning. What is the significance of classical conditioning? Have you been classically conditioned to respond to certain objects? Please identify the Unconditioned stimulus, the Unconditioned response, and the conditioned stimulus with the conditioned response? Operant Conditioning Operant conditioning is used to shape voluntary behavior through the use of reinforcers ( to make a behavior happen more) and punishment ( to make a behavior decrease or disappear). Operant conditioning can be used to alter the behavior of pets, children, other adults, and your own behavior too. Examples of Operant Conditioning in everyday life Operant conditioning is active! Animal trainers use these principals all the time. For example, teaching SHAMU to jump through hoops. They start real low, placing the hoop at a low level and feeds her when she’s successful. Then they place the hoop higher and higher. Start small. Rewards each step she makes. Operant Conditioning Parents who take away privileges when children misbehave. They hope their children will lessen this behavior. For example, taking away a child’s phone privileges after receiving an F grade. Shaping Animal trainers use shaping. Shaping involves gradually molding responses to a final desired pattern. Mickey the Rat. We want to teach him to press the bar. First we get him to face the bar, Any time he turn toward the bar we give him food. If he takes a step toward the bar we reinforce him with food. If he takes a step in the other direction he gets nothing. When he walks toward the bar, he’ll get food. His responses are being shaped. Shamu and trainers Shamu’s Posing Observational Learning Observational learning is learning by watching and imitating the actions of another person or by noting the consequences of the person’s actions. Watching and imitating! Seeing a wrestling move on TV and using it Hearing certain phrases on TV and using it Imitating what you see on television or movies. BOBO DOLL Bobo Doll Experiment Three groups of children. Group 1: Children watch an adult attack a large blow up BoBo the clown doll. This adult sat on it, kicked it, and punched it. Group 2: Children saw a movie of these actions. Group 3: Children saw a cartoon version of the aggression. Bobo Doll Experiment Later the children were frustrated by having some toys taken away. They were then allowed to play with BoBO the clown doll. Most of these children imitated the adults attack and some even added new moves on their own. What can these results tell you? Violent video game playing can have an affect on you, desensitizing you to violence and acts of aggression Bobo Doll Experiment Amazing Study An amazing study in Northwestern Canada took place. This part of town did not receive TV broadcasts was about to receive TV broadcasting. Researchers seized this opportunity to test the effects of television on aggressive behavior. Researchers carefully tested residents of the town just before TV arrived and again 2 years later. Results of study After television was introduced two years later: Reading development among children declined Children’s score on creativity dropped Children’s perceptions of sex roles became more stereotyped There was a significant increase in both verbal and physical aggression. I wonder what this town did before television came? End of lecture