The Big Picture: Chapter Overview

Learning is a relatively permanent change in behavior due to experience. There are two general types of learning: observational and associative. Conditioning is the process of learning associations. There are two types of conditioning: classical and operant. Classical conditioning occurs when the person learns to associate two stimuli; operant conditioning occurs when the person associates a behavior with a consequence.

Pavlov discovered the principle of classical conditioning as he was investigating digestion in dogs. He found that dogs could be conditioned to salivate to various stimuli (e.g., a bell) in anticipation of eating meat powder. In this type of learning, an organism learns an association between an unconditioned stimulus and a conditioned stimulus. Before an association is learned, the unconditioned stimulus automatically produces an unconditioned response; in other words, it if is unconditioned, it is not learned. In Pavlov's study, the meat powder automatically produced the salivation. After an association has been established, the conditioned stimulus alone elicits a conditioned response. Extinction, spontaneous recovery, generalization, and discrimination are involved in classical conditioning. Many psychologists believe that, in humans, phobias and certain physical complaints are explained by classical conditioning. The case of little Albert illustrates how a fear of rats could be classically conditioned. Counterconditioning is a procedure for weakening a classically conditioned association. Classical conditioning can also explain associations with pleasant emotions. Since automatic body reactions and activities can become classically conditioned, a number of health problems can be produced due to the presence (or lack of) a conditioned stimuli. For example, for an alcoholic, the bar, the drinking buddies, the drinking glass, and other stimuli that are associated with drinking can trigger the body's reactions in anticipation of the excessive alcohol drinking that the body expects. Classical conditioning is also used by advertisers when they want their audience to associate certain positive emotions and experiences with their product.

In operant conditioning, the consequences of behavior produce changes in the probability of its occurrence. It is called operant conditioning because the behavior operates on the environment, and then the environment operates back to the behavior. Thorndike's law of effect states that behaviors followed by good consequences are more likely to be repeated than behaviors followed by bad consequences. Shaping is the process of rewarding approximations of desired behaviors. Reinforcement is the process of increasing the probability that a behavior will be repeated. While reinforcements are always desirable for the recipient, they can be classified as positive or negative. In the context of operant conditioning, positive refers to the offering or giving of something, while negative refers to the removal or taking away of something. A positive reinforcement increases the probability that the behavior will be repeated, because the behavior is followed by the offering of a desirable consequence. A negative reinforcement also increases the probability that the behavior will be repeated, but in this case through the removal of undesirable stimuli. Reinforcements can also be classified as primary (innate) or secondary (learned). Other important concepts in operant conditioning are time interval, shaping, and schedules of reinforcement (i.e. fixed-ratio, variable-ratio, fixed-interval, variable-interval). Like classical conditioning, the principles of operant conditioning also include extinction, generalization, and discrimination. Punishment refers to a consequence that decreases the probability of a behavior occurring since it weakens the behavior. Like reinforcement, punishment can also be classified as positive or negative, but remember that punishment is always undesirable for the recipient. Positive punishment refers to an undesirable consequence that results from giving an unpleasant stimulus, whereas in negative punishment a pleasant stimulus is removed. Reinforcement is usually recommended over punishment to change behavior. Some of the reasons why intense punishment should be avoided are that the parent is modeling inappropriate behavior; it might instill fear, rage and avoidance; and it can be abusive. In applied behavior analysis (or behavior modification), the principles of operant conditioning are used to change behavior.

Observational learning is also called imitation or modeling. According to Bandura, the following processes influence an observer's behavior after viewing a model: attention, retention, production, and reinforcement.Many contemporary psychologists believe that learning involves more than stimulus-response connections and that cognitive factors play a role in learning. Tolman argued that it is necessary to study entire sequences of behaviors to understand the learning process and the role of purposiveness. He argued that expectancies and cognitive maps are alternatives to the conditioning explanations of behaviors. Latent learning is learning that is not reinforced and that does not manifest immediately in behavior, but that may show up later when an appropriate reinforcement is offered. Insight learning is a form of problem solving in which the organism develops a sudden understanding of a problem's solution.

Learning is also influenced by biological and cultural factors. Biological factors include instinctive drift, preparedness and taste aversion. While the learning processes discussed here are considered to be universal, culture can influence the degree to which these learning processes occur and often determine the content of learning.