Dr Jacqui McKechnie

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Learning Motivation

• Dr Jacqui McKechnie

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Learning
Learning is a relatively permanent change of
behaviour or knowledge that occurs as a result
of experience.
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Classical Conditioning
Pavlov (1927) Pavlov was interested in how
creatures made associations between events. He
produced salivation from dogs as a response to
the sound of a bell.
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Before conditioning (Part 1)
Reflex salivation
food
Neutral Stimulus bell
No response
During conditioning (Part 2)
bell sounded 0.5 - 1 sec before food
salivation
Evidence of conditioning (Part 3)
Rings bell (conditioned stimulus)
salivation
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• Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)
• a stimulus that has the ability to produce a
  specified response without conditioning (FOOD)
• Unconditioned Response (UCR)
• automatic unlearned reaction produced by the UCS
  (SALIVATION PRODUCED BY FOOD)
• Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
• an initially neutral stimulus that comes to
  produce a new response because it is associated
  with the UCS (BELL)
• Conditioned Response (CR)
• the response that results due to the association
  formed between the UCS the CS (SALIVATION
  PRODUCED BY BELL)

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Extinction
Repeatedly presenting the CS without the UCS
leads to extinction of the response.
Stimulus Generalisation Stimulus can be varied
and still elicit the response. Significance of
Stimulus If highly significant for safety of
individual - very long time to extinguish. Second
Order Conditioning Occurs when a CS is paired
with a NS
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Some Applications of Classical Conditioning

• Overcoming Phobias (systematic desensitisation)
• Aversion Therapy E.g Antabuse
• Fighting Disease
• Increases and decreases in immune responses can
  be classically conditioned
• Olness and Alder (1992) Buske-Kirschbaum (1994)
• Placebo (NS) Drug (UCS) -gt Beneficial Effects
  (CR)

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Operant Conditioning
Skinner (1938) Skinner was interested in how the
consequences of a behaviour affected its
repetition
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Operant - small action which can have an effect
on the surrounding environment.
A reinforcer will increase the probability that
the operant behaviour will recur.
Primary reinforcement
Using a reward which satisfies a primary need
such as food or sex.
Secondary reinforcement
Using a reward that doesnt satisfy a primary
need e.g. money. Token Economy Programme (Ayllon
and Azrin, 1968)
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Positive Reinforcement
getting a reward such as food or praise
Negative Reinforcement avoiding something
unpleasant such as pain
Both types of reinforcers INCREASE certain
behaviours.
Punishment
getting something unpleasant such as a smack
Cost Response removing something pleasant such as
a fine
These REDUCE or suppress behaviour.
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Shaping
Reward each successive approximation until the
desired behaviour is demonstrated. Discriminative
Stimulus Amount of change a stimulus can undergo
and still elicit the response. Learned
Helplessness Control is important in conditioning.
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Reinforcement Schedules How often the reward
is given for demonstrating the desired behaviour.
Continuous reinforcement - easy to
extinguish Partial reinforcement - difficult
Fixed Ratio E.g. Reward every 10 bar
presses Fixed Interval E.g. Reward every five
minutes Variable Ratio E.g. Reward a variable
number of bar presses Variable Interval E.g
Reward a variable interval of time
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Social Learning
Observational or social learning- process of
learning by watching others.
Bobo Doll Study
Bandura, Ross and Ross (1963)
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Vicarious Conditioning
Being influenced by seeing or hearing about the
consequences of others behaviour
ie - if the behaviour is seen to be rewarded then
it is more likely to be copied.
What influences whether behaviour is modelled or
not?
Attention
Ability to reproduce the behaviour
Retention
Motivation
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Motivation
Motivation refers to the influences that govern
the initiation, direction, intensity and
persistence of behaviour.
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Theories of Motivation
Instinct Theory McDougall (1908) Lorenz
(1937) Freud (1938)
biological factors behaviours present at
birth which are important for survival
Drive Reduction Theory Cannon (1932) Hull (1943)
biological factors based on homeostasis and
equilibrium
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Cognitive Consistency Theory Festinger (1957)
If a person has two thoughts which are
inconsistent -gt discomfort - cognitive
dissonance carry out behaviour to reduce this
discomfort
Arousal Theory
Geen (1984) maintain optimal level of arousal
differs from person to person People perform
best with a moderate level of arousal.
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Yerkes-Dodson Law (Hebb, 1955)
Efficiency of Performance
Optimal Level
Increasing alertness
Increasing anxiety
Level of Arousal