Learning theories

Psychology
• Psychology: It is a scientific study of mind
and behavior (or behavior and mental
processes), especially as it relates to
individual human beings.
• Psyche: Totality of human
mind, conscious and unconscious.
• Psychology is the scientific or objective
study of the psyche.

Learning
• Learning: relatively permanent change in an
individual's behavior or behavior potential (or
capability) as a result of experience or practice.
1. Change in behavior
2. Change takes place due to practice or experience
3. Change is relatively permanent

Theories of learning
• BehaviouralBehavioural
Classical conditioningClassical conditioning
Operant conditioningOperant conditioning
• CognitiveCognitive
Social learningSocial learning

Classical conditioning
• Also called ‘PAVLOVIAN’ orAlso called ‘PAVLOVIAN’ or
‘RESPONDENT’ learning‘RESPONDENT’ learning
• Explained by IVAN PAVLOV- a RussianExplained by IVAN PAVLOV- a Russian
Physiologist.Physiologist.
• A type of conditioning in which anA type of conditioning in which an
individual responds to some stimulus thatindividual responds to some stimulus that
would not ordinarily produce such awould not ordinarily produce such a
response.response.

Experiment of IVAN PAVLOV

Theories of classical conditioning
 Stimulus-Substitution
 Because of the pairing of US-
CS, CS acquires the capacity
to substitute for the US in
evoking the response.
 US and CS represents
different brain areas. After US-
CS pairing, CS acquires the
ability to excite the US area,
thus leading to the reflex
response.
 CS becomes equivalent to US
in eliciting response.
 Information-
Expectation theory
 When CS is presented US is
expected, and the learner
responds in accordance with
this expectation.
 CS becomes signal for the US.
 In brain, memory traces are
found that shows association
between US & CS.

Extinction
• When CS is presented without US for
number of trials, the strength and
magnitude of CR gradually decreases.
• Process of EXTINCTION is not
‘FORGETTING’
• Extinction does not remove entirely the
tendency to respond to stimulus.

Theories for Extinction
• Excitation-
Inhibition theory
• During acquisition,
excitatory tendency has
the upper hand
• During extinction,
inhibition builds up to
suppress the conditioned
responding
• Information-
Expectation theory
• During extinction, CS is
no longer paired with US,
the CS ceases to be a
signal for the US.
• So, CS becomes the
neutral stimulus.

Spontaneous recovery
• On the next day after extinction, if the dog
is taken to the laboratory and conditioned
stimulus is presented, there is conditioned
response which is greater than extinction
day before.
• So, it shows that extinction does not
remove the tendency to respond to the
CS.

Reconditioning
• After extinction when experiment is
repeated with lapse of few days,
conditioning occurs more rapid than
original conditioning.

Stimulus generalization
Sound of bell Salivation response
Buzzer Sound Salivation response
• Animal tends to generalize the conditioned
response to other stimulus that were
somewhat similar to the original
conditioned response.

Discrimination
• is the process of learning to make one
response to one stimulus and a different
response or no response to another
stimulus.

Significance of classical conditioning
• To study emotional responses that becomes
conditioned on a certain stimuli
• Extinction and alteration of disturbing emotional
responses by classical conditioning is one form
of Behavior Therapy.
• Systematic Desensitization, Flooding, Aversive
therapy are techniques used for behavior
therapy.

Operant conditioning
Instrumental conditioning: behavior of the animal
which leads to reward is done in instrumental manner, so
that due to reward desirable behavior is increased.
Operant conditioning: response operates on the
environment, it may have the consequences that can
affect the likelihood that the response will occure again.
 Reinforcement:
 Positive reinforcement
 Negative reinforcement

Reinforcement
Positive reinforcement
• Stimulus or event, when
its presentation is
contingent on a response,
increases the likelihood
that the response will
occur again
• Example- homework
completion-TV watching
for two hours
Negative reinforcement
• Stimulus or event, when
its cessation or
termination is contingent
on a response, increases
the likelihood that the
response will occur again.
• Example: tell daily good
morning-don’t clean your
room

Punishers
1. Punishment:
• Stimulus or event
which when its onset
is contingent on a
response, decreases
the likelihood that
the response will
occur again.
• e.g: traffic fines.
2. Omission of
reinforcement:
• Positive
reinforcement is
withdrawn following
a response.
• e.g: switches off TV
and send the child in
the room.

• Thorndike’s experiment:
• Cat in a puzzle box with wire loop
attached to the door, kept one handle at
roof.
• Food outside the door

• Shaping: teaching a chain of simple responses
leading to the final response.
• Also called ‘Method of successive
approximation’
• Extinction: Procedure of not reinforcing a
particular response is known as extinction
• Extinction tends to be slower for scheduled
reinforcement than for continually reinforced
ones

Reinforcement
schedules
Nature of
reinforcement
Effects of
reinforcement
Example
continuous Reward given after each
desired behaviour
Fast learning of new
behaviour but rapid
extinction
Compliments
Fixed-
Interval
Reward given at fixed
time intervals
Average and irregular
performance with rapid
extinction
Weekly pay checks
Variable
Interval
Reward given at variable
time interval
Moderately high and
stable performance with
slow extinction
Pop quizzes
Fixed Ratio Reward given at fixed
amount of output
High and stable
performance attained
quickly but also with
rapid extinction
Every three lever press
Variable Ratio Reward given at variable
amount of out put
Very high performance
with slow extinction
1- two response
2- five response

Conditioned positive
reinforcers• Primary Reinforcers
• Are reinforcers that work
from the first time they
are made contingent on a
response.
• They work naturally, no
previous training is
necessary.
• Secondary or
Conditioned
Reinforcers
• Does not work naturally
• Their ability to reinforce
instrumental responses
depends upon learning.
• Stimuli become
conditioned reinforcers in
instrumental conditioning
by being paired with
primary reinforcers.

Conditioned positive
reinforcers
• Secondary Reinforcers:
• Click occurs each time a food pellet (primary
reinforcers) is delivered
• Thus click becomes the conditioned reinforcer
• Initially click stimulus has no reinforcing
properties, but by it presence every time the
primary reinforcer is delivered, it becomes
reinforcer in its own right.

Stimulus
generalization
• In instrumental conditioning tendency to
respond depends upon degree of similarity
between the original training situation and
changed one.
• Situation of operant chamber is changed
(light)

Little Albert’s experiment

Stimulus discrimination
• In Instrumental conditioning experiment,
Discrimination is achieved simply by reinforcing
a particular response to one stimulus and not
reinforcing it for another stimulus.
• Positive stimulus: S+
• Negative stimulus: S-
• E.g: Pigeon-yellow green illumination of light-
pecking key-food but if red light-pecking key-no
food
• Also called ‘Stimulus control of behavior’

Stimulus discrimination

Negative Reinforcement
• Escape learning:
• E.g: rat in box with two compartment: A &
B. A is white and B is black with small
hurdle in between. A chamber has metal
rods under it.
• Shock given-Jumps the hurdle and goes
into another compartment.

Avoidance learning
• Similar to the escape learning, but here before
shock is given there is buzzer sound
• Duration between electric shock and buzzer
sound is about 5 seconds
• Gradually animal learns to avoid the noxious
stimuli (shock) by producing the response
(crossing the hurdle)

Significance
• Socialization of children
• Programmed learning: School education
• Personalized system of instruction: educational
application-course is divided in to easy units- each unit
must be mastered at highest level of proficiency
• Business operations
• Behavior therapy and behavior modification: extinction,
shaping, differential reinforcement, punishment, token
economies, covert sensitization

Cognitive learning
• Cognition: processing of the information
about the environment that is received
through senses.
• Cognitive learning: a change in the way
information is processed as a result of
experience a person or animal has had.

Cognitive learning
• Latent Learning: learning that occurs but is not
evident in behavior until later, when conditions for its
appearance are favorable.
• Insight Learning: In a typical insight situation, a
problem is posed, a period follows during which no
apparent progress is made, and then the solution comes
suddenly.
• Simply what has been learned can be applied easily to
other, similar situations.
• Imitation Learning: a person or animal watches or
hears another do or say something, then responds in the
same way.

Cognitive process in classical and
operant conditioning
• Classical conditioning: pairing of the
stimulus CS-US, when CS is presented
US is expected.
• Operant conditioning: Expectation of
reward
• Avoidance learning: warning stimulus is
considered signal for impeding shock.

Thank you for your warm listening
• Everyone wanted a change in me, so I learned myself
and tried to identify problems within me, now I have
changed myself, ultimately what I got is these words ‘you
have changed completely’, now they have nothing to do
with me.
• I wondered a lot for these behaviors and I found out that
no one wants any change in you, what they actually want
is expression of emotions in a different way, but one
should not change for anyone apart from his own self,
ultimately what we need is pleasure from within not from
outside……………Ravi

Learning theories

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