Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

Module 10

Operant & Cognitive Approaches

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

Operant Conditioning– the consequences that follow some behavior increase or

decrease the likelihood of that behavior’s occurrence in the future

– BICOC (behavior is contingent on consequences)– Goal-directed behavior– Goal: increase or decrease the rate of some response– Voluntary/emitted/performed response

• Edward Lee Thorndike (cats in the puzzle box)Law of Effect--behaviors followed by positive consequences

are strengthened, while behaviors followed by negative consequences are weakened

• Burrhus Frederic Skinner (Skinner box/rats)– Invented the Air Crib and a Pigeon-guided missile

Thorndike states a general principle-Skinner explained how it worked and provided a way to measure

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

Skinner Box

• Principles and procedures– Skinner box– automated to record the animal’s bar presses and deliver

food pellets– an efficient way to study how an animal’s ongoing

behaviors may be modified by changing the consequences of what happens after a bar press

– 3 factors in operant conditioning of a rat1. a hungry rat will be more willing to eat the food reward2. operant response: condition the rat to press the bar3. shaping: procedure in which an experimenter

successively reinforces behaviors that lead up to or approximate the desired behavior

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

p215 SKINNER BOX

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

OPERANT CONDITIONING (CONT.)

• Shaping (facing, touching, then pressing the bar)– Facing the bar

• rat is put in box. • when rat finally faces the bar, food pellet is released • rat sniffs the food pellet

– Touching the bar• rat faces and moves towards the bar• another pellet is released. • Rat eats then wanders. Returning to sniff for a pellet,

another pellet is dropped into the cup. Rat places a paw on the bar and another pellet is released.

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

OPERANT CONDITIONING (CONT.)

• Shaping– Pressing the bar

• When rat touches bar pellet is released. Rat eats and then puts paws back on bar and gets another pellet. Wait for rat to now push bar then release pellet.

• Rat soon presses bar over and over again to get pellets.

• Rat’s behavior was reinforced as the rat leads up to, or approximates, the desired behavior of bar pressing

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

Virtual Rat

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

Operant conditioning in the classroom

• Hot, hot…cold, cold activity

• Need one volunteer to step out of class for a moment

• Class chooses a behavior• Volunteer returns• Class shapes volunteer’s behavior by stating

“HOT, HOT” or “COLD, COLD”

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

OPERANT CONDITIONING (CONT.)

• Immediate reinforcement– reinforcer should follow immediately after the

desired behavior– if reinforcer is delayed, the animal may be

reinforced for some undesired or superstitious behavior

• Superstitious behavior– behavior that increases in frequency because its

occurrence is accidentally paired with the delivery of a reinforcer

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

OPERANT CONDITIONING (CONT.)

• Examples of operant conditioning– Toilet training, food refusal, increasing study

• target behavior• preparation• reinforcers• shaping

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

REINFORCERS (CONT.)

• Consequences– consequences are contingent on behavior

• Reinforcement– consequence that occurs after a behavior and

increases the chance that the behavior will occur again

• Punishment– consequence that occurs after a behavior and

decreases the chance that the behavior will occur again

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

REINFORCERS (CONT.)

• Reinforcement– Positive reinforcement

• refers to the presentation of a stimulus that increases the probability that a behavior will occur again

– Negative reinforcement• refers to an aversive stimulus whose removal

increases the likelihood that the preceding response will occur again

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

Reinforcement & Punishment

Positive Reinforcement

Negative Reinforcement

Negative Punishment

Positive Punishment

1. A child swears and is spanked.

2. A person takes an aspirin to get rid of a headache.

3. A teenager is put on restriction for taking the car without asking.

4. A student studies and gets an A.

Reinforcement = increases behaviorPunishment = decreases behavior

Positive = giving / adding toNegative = taking away

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

Reinforcement = increases behaviorPunishment = decreases behavior

Positive = giving / adding toNegative = taking away

Positive Reinforcement

A

Negative Reinforcement

Aspirin

Negative Punishment

Take-away

Positive Punishment

Spanking

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

REINFORCERS (CONT.)

• Reinforcers– Primary reinforcers

• stimulus such as food, water, or sex, that is innately satisfying and requires no learning on the part of the subject to become pleasurable

– Secondary reinforcers• any stimulus that has acquired its reinforcing

power through experience; secondary reinforcers are learned, such as by being paired with primary reinforcers or other secondary reinforcers (Examples: coupons, money, grades, praise, pizza party, etc.)

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

REINFORCERS (CONT.)

• Punishment– Positive punishment

• refers to presenting an aversive (unpleasant) stimulus after a response

– Negative punishment• refers to removing a reinforcing stimulus after

a response

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

Cognitive Learning

• Cognitive learning– involves mental processes, such as attention and

memory

Albert Bandura (Bobo doll)– children who had watched the film of an adult

modeling aggressive behavior played more aggressively than children who had not seen the film

– learning through observation or imitation

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

COGNITIVE LEARNING

• Three viewpoints of cognitive learning– against: B. F. Skinner– Skinner said, “As far as I’m concerned, cognitive

science is the creationism (downfall) of psychology”.

– in favor: Edward Tolman– explored hidden mental processes– cognitive map: a mental representation in the

brain of the layout of an environment and its features

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

COGNITIVE LEARNING (CONT.)

• Three viewpoints of cognitive learning– in favor: Albert Bandura– Bandura focused on how humans learn through

observing things• Social cognitive learning theory

– results from watching, and modeling and does not require the observer to perform any observable behavior or receive any observable reward

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

COGNITIVE LEARNING (CONT.)

• Four processes: Attention, Memory, Imitation, Motivation– Attention

• observer must pay attention to what the model says or does

– Memory• observer must store or remember the

information so that it can be retrieved and used later

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

COGNITIVE LEARNING (CONT.)

• Bandura’s social cognitive theory• Four processes (cont.)

– Imitation• observer must be able to use the remembered

information to guide his or her own actions and thus imitate the model’s behavior

– Motivation• observer must have some reason or incentive

to imitate the model’s behavior.

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

COGNITIVE LEARNING (CONT.)

• Insight learning– Insight

• a mental process marked by the sudden and expected solution to a problem: a phenomenon often called the “ah-ha!” experience.

• Thorndike tried to show cats learned through insight

Introduction to Psychology, 7th Edition, Rod PlotnikModule 10: Operant & Cognitive Approaches

BIOLOGICAL FACTORS

• Definition– Biological factors

• refer to innate tendencies or predispositions that may either facilitate or inhibit certain kinds of learning

– Imprinting• refers to inherited tendencies or responses that

are displayed by newborn animals when they encounter certain stimuli in their environment