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Unit 4: Learning

Unit 4: Learning. Part 2 - Operant Conditioning. What connects these images?. What connects these images?. Answer: They all have to do with ways to motivate behavior through punishments and rewards. Definition:.

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Unit 4: Learning

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  1. Unit 4: Learning Part 2 - Operant Conditioning

  2. What connects these images?

  3. What connects these images? • Answer: They all have to do with ways to motivate behavior through punishments and rewards.

  4. Definition: • Operant Conditioning is a kind of learning in which the consequences that follow some behavior increase or decrease whether that behavior will happen again.

  5. Classical vs. Operant Conditioning

  6. Classical or Operant? A very bright (mildly painful) light is turned on a rat. The rat has learned that he can turn off the light by pressing a lever on the other side of his cage. As soon as the light comes on, the rat runs across the room and presses the lever.

  7. Classical or Operant? When a mother strokes her infant’s skin, the stroking creates pleasure responses in the baby. After this goes on for many days, the baby begins to show pleasure responses simply at the sight of her mother (even before being touched).

  8. Classical or Operant? Imagine you have a friend who keeps the temperature in her home so high that each occasion on which you visit her you find yourself perspiring. The last time you visited her, you noticed that you began to perspire and became uncomfortable as soon as you saw her house (even before you got inside).

  9. Classical or Operant? A patient in a mental hospital is very disruptive at mealtimes. She grabs food from the plates of those sitting near her and tries to cram the food in her mouth. Because this behavior of stealing food is very undesirable, a plan is developed whereby every time the patient steals food from other plates, she is immediately taken to a room without food.

  10. Classical or Operant? Alice leaves her clothes and toys all over her room. It seems that the only time she cleans up her room is when her mother yells at her. When she yells at her, Alice picks up her clothes and put away her toys.

  11. What, a video curveball? You mean I have to think for myself? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYxUdPj-EEY

  12. No more crying! • How can operant conditioning apply to babies?

  13. John Watson’s Childcare Advice:

  14. Reinforcement vs. Punishment • Reinforcement – any event that encourages a behavior • Punishment – any event that discourages a behavior

  15. Types of Reinforcment • positive (adding) or negative (taking away) • How can these two types apply to our daily lives?

  16. Reinforcement Schedules • fixed ratio – set number (every three times you raise your hand I call on you) • variable ratio – unpredictable number of responses (slot machine) • fixed interval – set amount of time (pay you every hour) • variable interval – unpredictable amount of time (fishing)

  17. Superstition • BF Skinner – “radical behavioralist” • Wanted to demonstrate that uniquely human behaviors were the product of conditioning. • Starved 8 pigeons. Then rewarded them with food every 15 s, no matter what they did.

  18. Results: • 6 of 8 bird developed superstitions • Turning counter-clockwise in a circle • Thrusting head toward a specific corner of cage • “tossing” an imaginary ball with its head • Head bobbing with accompanying steps (2 birds) • “fake” pecking

  19. Superstition (cont) • Follow up studies: • Gradually increased time between rewards to 1 min – bird behaviors became more pronounced (head bobbing/stepping looked like a dance) • Removed reward altogether to create extinction – pigeons showed resistance to extinction (one pigeon repeated behavior over 10,000 times before quitting). • What are your superstitions? How are they rewarded? • Bowling superstitions

  20. Can reward go too far? • Overjustification Effect • What happens when there is a ridiculously high reward for something you might do anyway?

  21. Overjustification Effect • When we are rewarded for behaviors that we naturally enjoy, we sometimes lose our intrinsic motivation. • How can this relate to learning and grades? • What about professional athletes?

  22. Criticism: • Biggest problem: • With the theory of behaviorism and operant conditioning: it assumes we lack free will. • Can you think of examples of when someone would forego reward or endure pain when they do not have to?

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