CLASSICAL AND OPERANT CONDITIONING

CLASSICAL AND OPERANT CONDITIONINGGROUP 1SHRAVAN ABRAHAMASHWINI SINDURA SADANANDANSNEHA JOHNLearning is often defined as a relatively permanent change in behavior that is the result of experience.

Any knowledge or behavior that we now possess that we were not born with, was somehow "learned".

Psychologists have studied learning in a variety of ways. Classical Conditioning and Instrumental/Operant conditioning are two important theories used to explain the process of learning.

LEARNINGFirst described by Ivan Pavlov, a Russian physiologist

A form of learning in which one stimulus comes to serve as a signal for the occurrence of a second stimulus.

CLASSICAL CONDITIONING

PAVLOVS EXPERIMENT

WATSONS EXPERIMENTAcquisition is the initial stage in classical conditioning in which an association between a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus takes place.

The conditioned stimulus gradually acquires the capability to elicit a conditioned response.Basic Principles of CCTendency to respond to stimuli similar to the CS is called generalization.

Discrimination is the learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and other stimuli that do not signal an unconditioned stimulus.

After a rest period, an extinguished CR (salivation) spontaneously recovers Spontaneous Recovery

When the US (food) does not follow the CS (tone), CR (salivation) begins to decrease and eventually causes extinction.

Classical conditioning is effective in a number of therapeutic treatments in humans, such as- aversion therapy, systematic desensitization, and flooding.

Classical conditioning is used not only in therapeuticinterventions, but in everyday life as well, such as by advertising agencies.

Understanding and treating phobias (Usually by counter conditioning -attempting to replace the unpleasant response (fear) with a more pleasant response (happiness).

Applications of CCConditioned Immunosuppression as a Treatment for LupusOlness & Ader (1992) treated an 11-year old girl with severe lupus

Standard treatment is cyclophosphamide (an immunosuppressant drug), once per month for 1 year

They gave the girl a compound CS (taste of cod liver oil & smell of rose) followed by cyclophosphamide on 6 occasions, and on alternating months gave her just the CS

She showed a significant reduction in symptoms and still looked good 5 years later.Introduced by B.F Skinner

A form of learning through which organisms learn to repeat behaviours that yield positive outcomes or permit them to avoid or escape from negative outcomes.OPERANT CONDITIONING

A Skinner box is a chamber that contains a bar or key that an animal can press in order to obtain food as a type of reinforcement. The box also had a device that recorded each response provided by the animal as well as the unique schedule of reinforcement that the animal was assigned.

Using the device researchers could carefully study behavior in a very controlled environment. For example, researchers could utilize the Skinner box to determine which schedule of reinforcement led to the highest rate of response in the study subjects.SKINNER BOX EXPERIMENT

The application or removal of a stimulus to increase the strength of a specific behaviour.

Positive Reinforcement- Application of a desirable stimulus. (E.g. Food, praise etc)

Negative Reinforcement- Application of an undesirable (aversive) stimulus. (E.g. heat, cold, harsh criticism)

REINFORCEMENTA procedure by which the application or removal of a stimulus decreases the strength of a behaviour.

Positive punishment application of an undesirable stimulus.

Negative punishment- Loss or postponement of a desirable stimulus.PUNISHMENTDefined as determination of when reinforcers are applied i.e Continuous or Partial/Intermittent Reinforcement

SCHEDULES OF REINFORCEMENT

Shaping- A technique in which closer and closer approximations to a desired behaviour are required for the delivery of positive reinforcement.

Chaining- A procedure that establishes a sequence of responses, which lead to a reward following the final response in the chain.