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82 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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How did Thorndike's "Puzzle Box" experiments change the way people thought about animal learning?
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Before the experiments, people believed that animals learned through reasoning. Following the experiment, people were forced to reason that animals were not that intelligent.
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what did Thorndike do? And what was his major finding?
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Thorndike did the Puzzle Box experiment. He discovered The Law of Effect
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What is the Law of Effect?
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Behavior is a statement of it's consequences.
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Why is the Law of Effect historically important?
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Thorndike was the first to show that behaviors is systematically strengthened or weakened by it's consequences
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What is a Skinner Box?
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Chamber for rats that's designed so that a food magazine could automatically drop a few pellets of food into a tray. The rat would be accustomed to the sound of food dropping and a lever would then be made that the rat would have to press.
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Why is the Skinner Box useful for Learning and Memory?
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The Skinner Box is a convenient way to provide consequences to the on-going behavior of an organism, without having to interrupt it by handling.
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What is Operant Learning?
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When consequences strengthen or weaken a behavior.
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What are the two main types of Operant Learning?
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Reinforcement & Punishment
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Define Reinforcement
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An increase in the strength of behavior due to it's consequence.
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Positive Reinforcement
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Behavior is followed by the appearance of or increase in the intensity of a stimulus.
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Example of Positive Reinforcement
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Cookies and words of encouragement and prizes. "Reward Learning".
Daughter gets and A on a test. I give her a cookie. She wants to get an A again so she gets another cookie. Cookie = + Reinforcer |
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Negative Reinforcement
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When a behavior is followed by removal or reduction in intensity of a stimulus.
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Examples of Negative Reinforcement
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Daughter gets and A on a test, I tell her she doesn't have to do the dishes since she got an A. She wants to get an A again so she doesn't have to do dishes. Dishes = - Reinforcer
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Reward vs. Reinforcer
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Reward is a non-technical term that should be avoided. Reinforcer is a technical term that implies a functional relationship between a behavior and a consequence.
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Aversive Stimulation & Negative Reinforcement
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Both are removing a stimulus to increase a behaviors.
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What are 2 types of negative reinforcement?
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Escape & Avoidance
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Escape - Negative Reinforcement
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Responding removes an aversive stimulus. Ex: Turn down blaring car stereo/Punching Will in the face.
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Avoidance - Negative Reinforcement
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Responding presenting onset of an aversive stimulus. Ex: Turn down volume knob before turning on car/avoiding where Will is.
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What is typically meant by the "strength" of a behavior?
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Typically we are referring to increases in rate of behavior, however, we could also be referring to persistence of a behavior once reinforcement is withheld or the behavior is otherwise disruptive.
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2 learning procedures
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Discrete trials & Free-Operant
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Discrete Trial
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Behavior ends a trial. Ex: Puzzle fucking box
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Free-Operant Learning
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Behavior is ongoing and can be repeated without disruption. Ex: Skinner's Box
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Operant vs. Pavlovian
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Pavlovian Conditioning involves stimulus stimulus learning, Operant conditioning involves behavior stimulus learning.
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How useful is the voluntary-involuntary distinction?
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Not very... >.>
Because it's hard to distinguish between the two. Sometimes behavior that seems involuntary(pavlovian) can be in fact voluntary (operant). The two can even overlap |
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3 term contingency
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Involves Stimulus-Behavior-Stimulus Learning :)
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Primary Reinforcers
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Are those that are naturally or innately reinforcing. Ex: Food, water, sex, warmth
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Secondary Reinforcers
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Are those that are effective due to association with other reinforcers. Ex: Praise, smiles, money. AKA Conditioned reinforcers
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Disadvantages to Primary Reinforcers.
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Tend to lose there effectiveness quickly. Ex: You can only eat so much.
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Advantages of Secondary Reinforcers
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Don't lose there effectiveness as quickly as Primary. Easier to deliver immediately. Don't interrupt ongoing behavior. Ex: Money is more useful than warmth because u can buy different forms of warmth.
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What is the contrived distinction?
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Contrived is explecitly arranged by someone to modify behavior. Ex: Food pellets for rats, access to grain fro pigeon, praise for baby.
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What is Natural Distinction?
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Are events that follow automatically from a behaviors. Ex: Light switch = Light, arriving at a destination after navigating there. They are important because they are expected and immediate.
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What are 3 ways reinforcers shape new behavior.
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Shaping, chaining, Direct Reinforcement
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What is Shaping?
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Reinforcement of successive approximations of an end behaviors. Ex: Parent can train more misbehavior by waiting longer to give into demands.
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What is Chaining?
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The process of training an interrelated series of acts or behavior chain. There are 2 types, forward and backward.
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What is Forward Chaining?
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The tasks are trained in the order that they will be in when the behavior is complete. Ex: Tying your shoes
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What is Backward Chaining?
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The tasks are trained in reverse order; the last part is trained first followed by adding the next to last act and so on. Ex: Marching Band steps.
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What is meant by Contingency? And how does it affect Operant Learning?
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Variable affecting reinforcement it refers to an if/then relationship between 2 things. In the case of Operant Learning, contingency refers to the degree to which the behaviors produces the reinforcer.
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How does Contiguity affect Operant Learning?
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Contiguity means the closeness of 2 events in time. In the case of Operant Learning, contiguity refers to the delay between the behaviors and the consequence.
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Reinforcers characteristics (3)
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1) Larger Reinforcers typically produce faster learning and higher response rates
2)Continuing to increase reinforcer magnitude will not result in continued increase in responding 3)Qualitative differences can play a role as well. Ex: Rats prefer icecream to water. |
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Motivating (Or establishing) operations
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Any situational arrangement that increases the effectiveness of a reinforcer.
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What is Extinction as it relates to Operant Learning?
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Allow the behavior to occur but cease to enforce it: The Behavior Stimulus ceases to exist.
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What is Extinction Burst?
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When previously reinforced behavior is no longer reinforced, there is often an initial increase in rate or intensity of the behavior before a decline. Problems - it can look like the behavior targeted for reduction is gettin' worse.
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What is Spontaneous Recovery?
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Behavior can occur even after thousands of un-reinforced responses.
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What is Resurgence?
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The reappearance of other previously reinforced behavior during extinction. Ex: counting on fingers
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What is Drive Reduction Theory?
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Drives are motivational states the produce tension in the organism when present. Ex: Hunger, horny, sleepy.
Reinforcer is reinforcing because it reduces 1 or more drives. |
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Weakness of the Drive Reduction Theory
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Food in reinforcing because it reduces food drive. How do u know it reduces food drive? Because it is reinforcing. Hmmmm.... It's circular reasoning.
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Relative Value Theory
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Theory of reinforcement that considers reinforcers to be behaviors rather than stimuli and that attributes are reinforcers effectiveness to it's probability relative to other behaviors.
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Problems with Relative Value Theory
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1) Does not explain why one behavior is more or less reinforcing than another.
2) It's hard to explain things like praise as a reinforcer. |
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Response Deprivation Theory
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The theory of reinforcement that says a behavior is reinforcing to the extent that the organism has been deprived of forming that behavior.
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Problems with Response Deprivation Theory
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It's hard to explain things like praise as a reinforcer.
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What is the Premack principle? And what theory does it belong to?
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The Premack Principle belongs to the Relative Value Theory. Premack Principle is the observation that high probability behavior reinforces low probability behavior.
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In what way does avoidance learning present a theoretical conundrum?
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When an organism learns to avoid an aversive stimulus, the aversive stimulus no longer occurs. So then, what maintains the avoidance behavior? There are 2 major theories, the 2-process theory and the 1-process theory.
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What is 2-Process theory?
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2 kinds of learning are involved in avoidance learning. Operant and Pavlovian.
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The problems with the 2-process theory?
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Avoidance behavior itself should start to extinguish but it doesn't.
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What is 1-Process theory?
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Only Operant Learning is involved in avoidance; avoidance can be understood as reducing the overall frequency of averse stimulation.
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What is a Schedule Reinforcer?
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Different rules by which reinforcers are delivered
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What is a Schedule Effect?
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Changes in behavior due to schedules of reinforcement
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What is Continuous Reinforcement?
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The simplest schedule of reinforcement. Where every instance of the behavior is reinforced.
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What good is Continuous Reinforcement for?
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Best schedule for training new behavior.
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What is an Intermittent (or partial) reinforcement schedule?
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Any reinforcement schedule that doesn't reinforce every instance of a behavior.
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Name and describe each of the 4 main simple schedules and give examples.
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Fixed Ratio (Every 5 times u hit the lever, u get a treat), Variable Ratio (Golf or gambling), Fixed Interval (Morphine drip), Variable Interval (Predator waiting for prey)
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Fixed Ratio (Effect on behavior)
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High rate of response is typical. Post-reinforcement pause is usually observed in animals
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Variable Ratio (Effect on behavior)
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Very high rate of response is typical. Post-reinforcement pause is sometimes observed in animals
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Fixed Interval (Effect on behavior)
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Between reinforcers, changing rate of response from low to high is typical
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Variable Interval (Effect on behavior)
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Moderate, steady rate of response is typical. Post-reinforcement pausing does not occur.
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Fixed Ratio (What it looks like on graph)
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Overall pattern is then pause-run-pause-run, which produces a step-like cumulative record
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Variable Ratio (What it looks like on graph)
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Overall pattern is generally run-run-run, which produces a steep, straight cumulative record.
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Fixed Interval (What it looks like on graph)
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Overall pattern of response is pause-run-pause-run, which averages into the familiar scallop shape
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Variable Interval (What it looks like on graph)
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More steep, few pauses
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What is a Duration Schedule?
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Reinforcer is contingent upon doing something continuously for a specific length of time. Can be fixed or variable. Ex: Praise contingent upon 15 minutes of continuous excercise.
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What is a Rate Schedule?
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Reinforcer is contingent upon emitting behavior either quickly or slowly enough.
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Rate Schedule - Differential Reinforcement of Low Rate (DRL)
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Reinforcer is contingent upon emitting an inter-response time (IRT) above t s.
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Rate Schedule - Differential Reinforcement of High Rate (DRH)
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Reinforcer is contingent upon emitting an IRT below t s OR emitting a certain number of responses within a specified time period.
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Rate Schedule - Differential Reinforcement of paced responding schedule (DRP)
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Reinforcing only IRTs with minimum and maximum constraints
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What is a Non-contingent Reinforcement (NCR)
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Reinforcer is delivered regardless of behavior.
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Why do some object the term "Non-contingent Reinforcement"?
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Some object to even referring to this as a schedule of "Reinforcement" because there is no contingency between behavior and reinforcer.
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What is a Progressive Schedule?
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Some parameter is increased in a regular manner.
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Partial Reinforcement Extinction Effect (PREE)
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Animals trained to complete a particular task using partial reinforcement (as opposed to Continuous reinforcement) show resistance to extinction: that is they persist in responding when the reinforcement is no longer being delivered for greater lengths of time than animals that were trained with continuous reinforcement.
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What are four theories that attempt to explain Partial Reinforcement Extinction Effect (PREE)?
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1) Discrimination Hypothesis
2) Frustration Hypothesis 3) Sequential Hypothesis 4) Response Unit - Hypothesis |
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What is the Discrimination Hypothesis of PREE?
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Harder to distinguish the transition from partial reinforcement to extinction than from continuous to extinction.
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What is the Frustration Hypothesis of PREE?
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Extinction engenders frustration, which is relieved by not responding.
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What is the Sequential Hypothesis of PREE?
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During continuous reinforcement, the reinforcer is a cue to continue responding.
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