chapter 4 - Approaches to understand learning

Question 1

What is learning?

Answer 1

Learning is a relatively permanent change in behaviour due to experience

Question 2

What is classical conditioning?

Answer 2

Classical Conditioning is a form of associative learning that occurs in three phases – before conditioning, during conditioning and after conditioning

Question 3

What are the 3 stages of classical conditioning?

Answer 3

Before, during, and after conditioning

Question 4

What is before conditioning?

Answer 4

When the neutral stimulus (NS) produces no relevant response; unconditioned (unlearnt) stimulus (UCS) elicits the unconditioned response (UCR)

Question 5

What is during conditioning?

Answer 5

When the neutral stimulus (NS) is repeatedly paired with the unconditioned (unlearnt) stimulus (UCS) to produce the unconditioned response (UCR)

Question 6

What is after conditioning?

Answer 6

When the neutral stimulus (NS) becomes a conditioned (learnt) stimulus (CS); CS produces a conditioned (learnt) response (CR), which is usually similar to the previously unconditioned (unlearnt) response (UCR)

Question 7

What are the 5 key terms?

Answer 7

Neutral stimulus (NS)
unconditioned stimulus (UCS)
unconditioned response (UCR)
conditioned stimulus (CS)
conditioned response (CR)

Question 8

What is a neutral stimulus (NS)?

Answer 8

Any object or event that does not normally produce a predictable response. It becomes the conditioned stimulus through repeated association with the unconditioned stimulus

Question 9

What is a unconditioned stimulus (UCS)?

Answer 9

Any stimulus that consistently produces a particular naturally occurring, involuntary response. It produces the unconditioned responses (UCR)

Question 10

What is a unconditioned response (UCR)?

Answer 10

an involuntary response that occurs when the unconditioned stimulus is presented

Question 11

What is a conditioned stimulus (CS)?

Answer 11

the stimulus that is initially neutral and does not normally produce the unconditioned response, but eventually becomes associated with the unconditioned stimulus and elicits a conditioned response

Question 12

What is a conditioned response (CR)?

Answer 12

the learned or acquired response to the conditioned stimulus

Question 13

What are the factors that influence Classical Conditioning?

Answer 13

the nature of the response, association of stimuli, and timing of the NS and UCS pairing

Question 14

What is the nature of the response?

Answer 14

the UCR must be an automatic or involuntary response, such as salivating or blinking

Question 15

What is the association of the stimuli?

Answer 15

the individual must associate/link the NS with the UCS. Contiguity refers to the formation of a connection/association between two events generally through repeated pairings

Question 16

What is the timing of the NS and UCS pairing?

Answer 16

the NS should be presented before the UCS, and there should be a very short time between their presentations

Question 17

What is operant conditioning?

Answer 17

Operant Conditioning is a learning process whereby the consequences of behaviour determine the likelihood that it will occur again in the future

Question 18

What are the 3 phases of operant conditioning?

Answer 18

antecedent
behaviour
consequence

Question 19

What is the antecedent?

Answer 19

(what happened before)
A stimulus (object or event) that occurs before the behaviour

Question 20

What is the behaviour?

Answer 20

(what happens)
The voluntary action that occurs due to the antecedent.

Question 21

What is the consequence?

Answer 21

(what happens after)
The environmental event that occurs immediately after the behaviour and has an effect on the occurrence of the behaviour

Question 22

What is reinforcement?

Answer 22

when a stimulus strengthens or increases the frequency or likelihood of a response that it follows

Question 23

What is a positive reinforcement? Give examples.

Answer 23

presentation of a positive reinforcer (+ something pleasant) following a desired response. examples include: money, grades, applause, awards, gifts, and praise.

Question 24

What is a negative reinforcement? Give examples.

Answer 24

removal of a negative reinforcer (- something unpleasant) following a desired responses. examples include: taking a panadol for a headache, driving slow to avoid fines, and using an umbrella to avoid getting wet from rain

Question 25

What is a punishment?

Answer 25

the delivery of an unpleasant consequence following a response, or the removal of a pleasant consequence following a response, in order to weaken a response or decrease the likelihood of it occurring again

Question 26

What is a positive punishment?

Answer 26

presentation of an unpleasant stimulus (+ Bad) that weakens a response or decreases the likelihood of the response occurring again

Question 27

What is a negative punishment?

Answer 27

the removal or loss of a desirable stimulus (- Good) thereby weakening or decreasing the likelihood of a response recurring again

Question 28

What is the comparison between a reinforcement and a punishment?

Answer 28

Positive and Negative Reinforcement INCREASE the likelihood of the response occurring again. Positive and Negative Punishment DECREASE the likelihood of the response occurring again.

Question 29

What are the factors that influence operant conditioning?

Answer 29

the order of presentation, timing, and appropriateness of the reinforcer

Question 30

What is the order of presentation?

Answer 30

Reinforcer or Punisher needs to occur after the response/behaviour not before! This is to make sure the organism associates the reinforcement or punishment with the particular behaviour

Question 31

What is the timing?

Answer 31

Reinforcer or Punisher needs to occur immediately after the response/behaviour. This is to ensure that there is no interference from other factors, and the organism associates the reinforcement or punishment with the particular behaviour

Question 32

What is the appropriateness of the reinforcer?

Answer 32

For a stimulus to be a reinforcer it must provide a pleasing or satisfying consequence for its recipient

Question 33

What is observational learning?

Answer 33

Learning is said to occur when someone uses observation of another person’s (model) actions and the consequences to guide their future actions. Observational learning is a more active process than either classical or operant conditioning

Question 34

What is a model?

Answer 34

Who or what is being observed is referred to as a ‘model’. As observational learning involves watching models, it is often called ‘modelling'

Question 35

What is vicarious conditioning?

Answer 35

In observational learning, when an individual observes a model displaying behaviour that is either reinforced or punished and later behaves in the same way, does so as a result of the observation

Question 36

What is a vicarious reinforcement?

Answer 36

Viewing a model being reinforced can strengthen behaviour in an observer. It occurs indirectly

Question 37

What is a vicarious punishment?

Answer 37

Viewing a model being punished can weaken a behaviour in an observer. It occurs indirectly

Question 38

What is the 6 step sequence of observational learning?

Answer 38

Model Attention Retention Reproduction Motivation - Reinforcement Matched performance to model

Question 39

What is attention?

Answer 39

learner pays attention in order to observe the modelled behaviour

Question 40

What is retention?

Answer 40

learner mentally represents and retains what has been observed

Question 41

What is reproduction?

Answer 41

depending on their physical abilities, learner converts the mental representation into action

Question 42

What is motivation - reinforcement?

Answer 42

learner must be motivated to reproduce. reinforcement influences motivation to perform the observed behaviour

Question 43

Give examples of influences on attention.

Answer 43

kinds of distractors or competing stimuli present during the observation. the social context in which the observed behaviour occurs.

Question 44

Give examples of influences on retention.

Answer 44

strength and accuracy of the mental representation of the observed behaviour. learners ability to accurately recall key details of the observed behaviour.

Question 45

Give examples of influences on reproduction.

Answer 45

the learners ability (physical and/or psychological) to actually perform (reproduce/imitate) the observed behaviour

Question 46

Give examples of influences on motivation.

Answer 46

the learners level of desire and want to reproduce the observed behaviour. self - efficiency - the learners belief in their ability to reproduce the observed behaviour.

Question 47

Give examples of influences on reinforcement.

Answer 47

external reinforcement (rewards secured within the environment). self-reinforcement (rewards secured within the individuals).

Question 48

What is the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples approach to learning?

Answer 48

learning is viewed as being embedded in relationships where the learner is a part of a multimodal system of knowledge patterned on country

Question 49

What is relational to country?

Answer 49

the land, waterways, and seas to which they are connected through ancestral ties and family origins.