COGNITIVE Associative Learning

Question 1

Why is classical and operant conditioning important?

Answer 1

-fundamental types of learning are very similar across species.
-important because it allows cross-species comparisons.
-functional analogues: how can the same function be implemented by differently structured brains?
-wider array of experimental techniques available for non-human animals (e.g. genetics, invasive measurements).

Question 2

What is the relation between memory and learning?

Answer 2

Classical and operant conditioning are experimental paradigms that have lead to highly influential frameworks for associative learning.
-Classical conditioning: stimulus- response associations.
-Operant conditioning: action- outcome associations.

Question 3

What is classical conditioning?

Answer 3

Pairing 2 stimuli:
conditioned stimulus (CS) and unconditioned stimulus (US).
-US= associated with ‘hardwired response’- not any conscious decision involved in this.
-Response becomes associated with the CS- through conditioning.
-CS + US can be temporally segregated or overlapping.
-typical time scales for the time intervals are 100s of milliseconds or a number of seconds.

Question 4

What are unconditioned stimulus (US) and unconditioned response (UR)?

Answer 4

-Unconditioned stimulus elicits a corresponding unconditioned response
-Unconditioned stimuli as controlled by the experimenter.
-Unconditioned responses are measured.
-term ‘unconditioned’ indicates that the response to this type of stimuli is hardwired/ innate so does not have to be learnt.

Question 5

Can you give an example of classical conditioning?

Answer 5

Unconditioned stimulus: chicken- gets response of unconditioned response (salivation).
Neutral stimulus- gets response of no conditioned response.
Chicken and whistle paired together- gets unconditioned response of salivation.
Conditioned stimulus gets response of conditioned response salivation.

Question 6

What is aversive conditioning?

Answer 6

Unconditioned stimulus can also be aversive. Common paradigms involve eye-blink conditioning, tail pinching, electrical shocks. Important to understand the formation of phobias, anxiety disorder, and protection mechanisms.

Question 7

Detail Watson and Raynor (1920)’s Little Albert Experiment?

Answer 7

Often single- trial (‘one-shot’) learning.
-e.g. food poisoning, longer time scales relevant.
-correlation vs causation.
-temporal correlation as proxy for causation.
-evolutionary principle seems to rather err on the safe side.

Question 8

What is extinction and spontaneous recovery?

Answer 8

Spontaneous recovery= re-emergence of a behaviour originally thought to be conditioned away.
Extinction= when someone picks up new response to a certain stimuli.

Question 9

What happens during extinction?

Answer 9

The conditioned response decreases.
In principle could be due to an unlearning or erasure of the original association.

Question 10

What is the issue with extinction as ‘unlearning’?

Answer 10

Spontaneous recovery suggests the original learning is not completely erased. So extinction is new learning, rather than ‘unlearning’.

Question 11

What happens in spontaneous recovery?

Answer 11

After a pause, inhibitory associations become weaker, excitatory associations become more persistent. Leads to spontaneous recovery of response.

Question 12

What is extinction learning?

Answer 12

Environments change over time- food may be available sometimes, but not always- not fully erasing enables some flexibility in line with changing world. Don’t’ have to start from scratch for acquisition. If associations wrong or not valid anymore- may want to get rid of learning.

Question 13

What is generalisation?

Answer 13

This is the ability to then also respond (with the CR) to the new stimulus. Important learning mechanism cause we are overtrained to specific examples and in real-life situations similar stimuli often have similar properties. E.g. sirens in different countries.

Question 14

What is discrimination in regards to classical conditioning?

Answer 14

Ability to not respond (with the CR) to the new stimulus, which resembles the original CS. Important cause it allows us to detect important differences.

Question 15

What is generalisation vs discrimination?

Answer 15

Opposite types of learning. Need both generalised and discriminate stimuli. Whether generalisation or discrimination prevails depends on many factors.
-also have interesting connections to cognitive abilities related to the formation of categories.

Question 16

What is Second- order conditioning?

Answer 16

After consistent pairing of Conditioned stimulus with unconditioned stimulus, conditioned stimulus can serve as unconditioned stimulus for further conditioning of another stimulus (CS2). CS2 then begins to trigger conditioned response. Leads to longer chains of associated stimuli.

Question 17

What is a trial, block and session?

Answer 17

Trial= single presentation of CS-US sequence.
Block= consists of several trials; typically has specific parameters (e.g. reward probability, trial types).
Session: consists of one or more blocks, different sessions are then usually separated by longer time intervals, often hours or days.

Question 18

What is partial reinforcement?

Answer 18

Slows down acquisition and extinction learning cause CS is only followed by US some of the time.

Question 19

How is randomisation a practical issue?

Answer 19

Issue of how to randomises trials when there are different trial types? If 50% of trials rewarded, but problematic pattern makes trial type predictable.
Issue that some random sequences may contain spurious sequences.

Question 20

What is operant conditioning?

Answer 20

Action- outcome associations.

Question 21

What is a key difference between classical conditioning and operant conditioning?

Answer 21

In classical conditioning the presentation of the unconditioned stimulus does not depend on what the animal is doing. In operant conditioning the the unconditioned stimulus is contingent on behaviour of the animal- e.g. only occurs when lever is pressed.
-Operant conditioning= beyond hard-wired unconditioned responses and incorporates more complex behaviours.

Question 22

Outline operant conditioning?

Answer 22

The ‘action’ created is more general (sometimes term response is also used).
E.g. actions- pressing a lever, opening a door, pushing a button etc. Operant behaviour- under stimulus control, so that the action can be a response to a certain stimulus/ situation.
Outcomes can be ‘reinforcement’ or ‘punishment’.

Question 23

What is the Thorndike Law of Effect?

Answer 23

‘responses that create a typically pleasant outcome in a particular situation are more likely to occur again in a similar situation, whereas responses that produce a typically unpleasant outcome are less likely to occur again in the situation’.

Question 24

What is an example of operant conditioning?

Answer 24

Skinners Box.

Question 25

What are reinforcers?

Answer 25

An event that increases the likelihood of the action. -'positive' or 'negative'- used to indicate whether the outcome was presented (+) or removed (-).

Question 26

What are punishers?

Answer 26

An event that decreases the likelihood of the action.

Question 27

What is the differences between reinforcers and punishers?

Answer 27

Reinforcers: increase behaviour. Punishers: decrease behaviour.

Question 28

How does partial reinforcement effect classical conditioning?

Answer 28

Slows down both acquisition and extinction learning. As the CS is not always followed by the US. Creates slower initial learning- but greater resistance to extinction.

Question 29

Outline Fixed ratio effect on operant conditioning?

Answer 29

This is continuous reinforcement, probability of reinforcement increases with successive responses. Pause in responses after each reinforcement before responses begin again. Graph in 'stair-step' pattern.

Question 30

Outline variable ratio (vr) schedule effect on operant conditioning?

Answer 30

Responding reinforced after randomly determined number of responses have been emitted (VR). In VR15- average number of reinforcements between 1-29. Response rates are relatively constant over time.

Question 31

Outline the effect of fixed interval (FI) schedule?

Answer 31

First response after certain amount of time followed by reinforcement. E.g. FI60- every 60 second. Produce characteristic pattern of responding observable across species. PRP followed by slow rates of responding + high rates of responding toward end of interval. Scallop shape on graph.

Question 32

Outline the variable interval schedule effect on operant conditioning?

Answer 32

Responding gets reinforced after randomly determined amount of time. E.G. VI 60s- average 60 seconds between reinforcements- individual intervals will differ from one another. -Most commonly used schedule in operant research- produces steady predictable performance.

Question 33

What is shaping in conditioning?

Answer 33

Shaping- process of guiding behaviour to desired outcome using intermediate stages. Divides learning goals into subgoals/ smaller steps. Reinforcers steps rather than complete goal. Time consuming but allows learning of complex sequences.

Question 34

How are conditioned reinforcers/ second reinforcers used?

Answer 34

Decrease delay between behaviour + delivery of primary reinforcers. Previously neutral stimuli that becomes a reinforcer after being paired with primary reinforcer.

Question 35

What is the effects of reward magnitude on learning? (Rose et al, 2009).

Answer 35

Reinforcers- rewards- often food pellets. Rose made parrots peck keys for a reward, peck different keys to receive a large or small reward. Exposed to learning situation where they have to peck the key that leads to a reward. Condition A: -Animal placed in bow with food dispenser + keys. -Pecking one key will provide a large reward. -Pecking one key will provide small reward. =Now some learning applied to task. Condition B: -Receive small reward for pecking blue stimulus. (learning applied to the task). -If peck the wrong key the lights in the box go out. -First set of stimuli applied to each animal- 2 conditions. Condition C: selecting red key gives no rewards, lights out. Animals learning operant learning paradigms with action- outcome associations. Bigger reward leads to faster learning across sessions. Small rewards- slower learning. But both end up at approx., same rate of performance by 10th session.

Question 36

What is the neural basis of classical conditioning?

Answer 36

Based on dopamine. Make the dopamine more excited. (look at diagrams on word document).

Question 37

How do pavlovian and operant components combine?

Answer 37

Combined in most learning situations. Some can be applied to both and some can be combined.