LEARNING MODELS OPERANT CONDITIONING

https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=I_ctJqjl rHA O.C and Pigeons https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=I_ctJqjl rHA

OPERANT CONDITIONING A type of learning whereby the consequences of an action determine the likelihood that it will be performed again in the future.

Classical Conditioning is automatic (respondent behavior). C.C VERSUS O.C They both use acquisition, discrimination, SR, generalization and extinction. Classical Conditioning is automatic (respondent behavior). Dogs automatically salivate over meat, then bell- no thinking involved. Operant Conditioning involves behavior where one can influence their environment with behaviors which have consequences (operant behavior).

Is the organism learning associations between events that it doesn’t control? Is the organism learning associations between its behavior and resulting events?

B.F. Skinner Animals and people learn to ‘operate’ on the environment to produce desired or satisfying consequences.

THREE-PHASE MODEL Antecedent Behaviour Consequence A  B  C antecedent (A), a stimulus that occurs before the behaviour the behaviour (B) that occurs due to the antecedent The consequence (C) to the response

ANTECEDENT the stimulus (object or event) that precedes a specific behaviour, signals the probable consequence for the behaviour and therefore influences the occurrence of the behaviour. For example, your mobile phone ring tone when you are expecting a call from a friend is the antecedent stimulus that sets up the specific behavioural response of tapping ‘Accept’ on the screen for the desirable consequence of chatting with your friend. The antecedent stimulus is sometimes referred to as the antecedent condition to emphasise that it occurs before the relevant behaviour. It may also be called a discriminative stimulus because it helps us distinguish between the consequences we have associated with different behaviours in different situations, for example, to tell the difference between the likely consequences of driving through a red or green traffic light at a busy intersection.

BEHAVIOUR the voluntary action that occurs in the presence of the antecedent stimulus. One or a pattern of actions. It may be one specific action (e.g. tapping ‘Accept’ on your mobile’s screen) or a pattern of actions (e.g. checking the number of the incoming call, tapping ‘Accept’ and speaking).

CONSEQUENCE the environmental event that occurs immediately after the behaviour and has an effect on the occurrence of the behaviour. Skinner argued that any behaviour which is followed by a consequence will change in strength (become more, or less, established) and frequency (occur more, or less, often) depending on the nature of that consequence (reward or punishment)

Operant Conditioning Chamber Lever delivers food/water Rats were conditioned to press a lever and pigeons were conditioned to peck at a disk. 1938. Hungry rat is placed in a box, it scurries around and randomly touches floor and walls. Eventually it accidentally touches the lever and a food pellet is dropped into the chamber. Rat continues its movements and randomly presses lever again. Another pellet is dropped. After a while random movement disappears and more regular pressing occurs. Conditioning

Alex Alex is being toilet trained by his parents using O.C. His parents wait until he has had a drink and his bladder is full, then they put him on the toilet and wait. When Alex urinates, his parents provide verbal praise. He is also punished when he wets his pants by verbal disapproval.

Explain Alex’s successful training using the three-phase model. Gradually Alex learns enough bladder control to recognize when urination is imminent, and to withhold the response long enough for a trip to the toilet, thus obtaining reward and avoiding punishment. Explain Alex’s successful training using the three-phase model.

Alex Antecedent Behaviour Consequence Effect on future behaviour Full bladder

Big Bang Theory 1. Explain Penny’s conditioning through O.C. using the three- phase model. https://www.youtube.com/watc h?v=qy_mIEnnlF4

REINFORCERS

Any event that STRENGTHENS the behavior it follows. REINFORCERS Any event that STRENGTHENS the behavior it follows. Two Types of Reinforcement: Positive and Negative

POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT Strengthens a response by presenting a stimulus after a response. A reward.

Positive reinforcer: A stimulus that strengthens or increases the likelihood or frequency of a desired response by providing satisfying consequences. Positive reinforcement: Occurs from giving or applying a positive reinforcer after the desired response has been made.

NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT Strengthens a response by reducing or removing an aversive stimulus.

Negative reinforcement Negative reinforcer Any unpleasant or aversive stimulus that when removed or avoided strengthens or increases the frequency or likelihood of a desired response. Negative reinforcement Is the removal or avoidance of an unpleasant stimulus. E.g. some Skinner boxes had mild shocks running through the floor, when the rat pressed the lever the shock would stop.

REMEMBER Positive reinforcers are given Negative reinforcers are avoided or removed

PUNISHMENT An event that DECREASES the behavior that it follows.

PUNISHMENT Delivery of an unpleasant consequence OR the removal of a pleasant consequence following a response.

POSITIVE PUNISHMENT Involves the addition of a stimulus and thereby decreasing the likelihood of a response occurring again.

NEGATIVE PUNISHMENT The removal or loss of a stimulus and thereby decreasing the likelihood of a response occurring again. e.g. No dessert after dinner or taking away TV permission

RESPONSE COST Removal of any valued stimulus, whether or not it causes the behavior. There is a ‘cost’ for making a ‘response’. E.g. You get a speeding fine, money is taken away from you. So the speeding fine is both negative punishment but also a response cost.

Positive Reinforcement Negative Reinforcement Remove or take away something Add or give something Positive Reinforcement Negative Reinforcement Positive Punishment Negative Punishment O.C The behaviour happens more often The behaviour happens less often

Factors that influence effectiveness Order of presentation Has to be presented after response Timing Most effective when given immediately following the response If there is a delay then learning will be slow If you know that the reward is coming (e.g. VCE results) then this overcomes the effect of delay Appropriateness Reinforcer – must be pleasing OR satisfying Punishment – must be negative for the individual

Distinguishing between reinforcement and punishment Identify the operant conditioning process that is being illustrated in each of the following examples. Choose from positive reinforcement (PR), negative reinforcement (NR), positive punishment (PP) and negative punishment (NP).

When Lina turns the shopping trolley down the lolly aisle, her two-year-old son, Ali, starts screaming, ‘Want lollies! Lollies!’ Lina moves to another aisle, but Ali continues to scream. As other customers begin staring and Lina starts to feel embarrassed, she finally gives Ali a bag of lollies. Ali is now more likely to scream in a supermarket when he wants lollies because he has experienced ____________.

If Lina is more likely to give in to Ali’s temper tantrums in public situations in the future, it is because she has experienced ____________.

Feeling sorry for an apparently homeless person sitting outside a bakery, Christopher offers him a $2 coin. The person snarls at Christopher and tries to grab his leg in a threatening manner. Christopher no longer offers money to homeless people in the street because of ____________.

Justin is caught using Facebook on his work computer and is reprimanded by his team leader. Justin no longer accesses Facebook on his work computer because of ____________.

As you walk down the corridor between classes, you spot a student you greatly dislike. You immediately duck into an empty classroom to avoid an unpleasant interaction with them. Because __________ has occurred, you are more likely to take evasive action when you encounter people you dislike in the future.

Having watched Superman fly in a movie, three-year- old Tran climbs onto the kitchen table, then launches himself into the air, only to fall onto the tiles and hurt himself. Because Tran experienced ____________, he tried this stunt only once.

Thinking she was making a good impression in her new job by showing how knowledgeable she was, Sana corrected her team leader in two different meetings. Not long after the second meeting, Sana lost her job because the company said it was making her position redundant. Because she experienced ____________, Sana no longer publicly corrects her superiors.

KEY PROCESSES ACQUISITION EXTINCTION SPONTANEOUS RECOVERY STIMULUS GENERALISATION STIMULUS DISCRIMINATION

The establishment of a response through reinforcement ACQUISITION The establishment of a response through reinforcement

EXTINCTION The gradual decrease in the strength or rate of the conditioned response following consistent non- reinforcement

SPONTANEOUS RECOVERY Showing the response after extinction in the absence of any reinforcement. Weak and will not last long.

STIMULUS GENERALISATION Correct response is made to another stimulus that is similar (e.g. pecking both green and red lights)

STIMULUS DISCRIMINATION Correct response is made to a stimulus and is reinforced, but does not respond to any other stimulus, even when stimuli are similar (e.g. only pecking green not red lights)

Comparing Classical Conditioning and Operant Conditioning

Timing of stimulus and response Role of learner Timing of stimulus and response Nature of the response

Timing of stimulus and response Role of learner C.C. = passive Learner does not have to do anything O.C. = active Learner must operate the environment Timing of stimulus and response C.C. – response depends on the presentation of the UCS occuring first E.g. response needs to occur even with stimulus is not presented (e.g. food) Needs to very close in time O.C. – The response occurs first, and in the presence of a stimulus. The reinforcement/punishment strengthens/weakens the association between the S and R. E.g. pushing the lever ® occurs in the presence of the lever (S). Reinforcer/punisher strengthens or weakens the response. Can be less close Nature of the response C.C – usually reflexive, usually involves ANS and the association of 2 stimuli O.C – usually voluntary, may involve ANS but usually involves CNS (e.g. brain) and is conscious, intentional and often goal-directed.