Learning

Your cat comes running when you open the can of cat food.

What has he learned? Classical or operant conditioning? Conditioned stimulus? Conditioned response? Unconditioned stimulus? Unconditioned response?

At the grocery store, you see a child having a screaming fit because she wanted some candy. First the mother said “no” several times, but finally gave in and bought the candy.

Positive or negative reinforcement? For child? For mother?

Child screaming in the store (cont.)

Primary or secondary reinforcer ?

The child is taken to another store by grandmother. She sees different candies, but still screams for the candy.

What is happening with a different store, different person, and different candy?

Generalization

Both Jim and Tim work 8 hours a day. Jim is a therapist and says he loves

his work. Tim works at the factory and says he

just works for the money. Intrinsic or extrinsic motivation?

Jim? Tim?

You want to shape your boyfriend into picking you up on time. In the past, he has always been two hours late.

How would you do this? Discuss:

Shaping Primary reinforcer Secondary reinforcer Intrinsic motivation Extrinsic motivation

What competing factors are there?

You work at a pizza place. The manager shows you how to make

the pizza. What type of learning is going on?

At the pizza place, you get paid once a month.

Delayed or immediate reinforcement? Primary or secondary reinforcer? Secondary What reinforcement schedule are you

on? Fixed interval

You drive a truck, and get paid $1 for every two miles you drive.

What reinforcement schedule are you on?

Fixed ratio

You tell your seven year old daughter, that every time she makes her bed she will get a dollar.

What reinforcement schedule is she on?

Continuous reinforcement

Your Psychology instructor stamps the exam concepts at various times, even if you did all of them on the same day.

What reinforcement schedule is he using?

Variable interval reinforcement

You are in Las Vegas playing the slot machines. Sometimes you pull the handle many times and get nothing, then you get paid the next 2 times in a row. What reinforcement schedule are you

on? Variable ratio

You give your child $1 for getting ready on time for the bus each day.

After he has been doing this for a month, you stop the payments. Very soon he stops being ready when the bus comes.

What happened? Extinction A month later, you start paying him again, and he

very quickly learns to get ready for the bus. What happened? Spontaneous recovery

You offer to give your son $10 immediately after he finishes washing the car. He wants the money, but he does not wash the car.

Why not? Instead of washing the car, he goes to

a job interview for a new job. What does this demonstrate?

Johnny, Sally, and Jimmy are 3,4,and6 years old. They are little terrors, hitting each other, climbing on the furniture, jumping on the couch, and screaming.

How could you use reward, punishment and shaping to get the kids to mind you and quietly watch T.V.?

How can you increase the value to them of getting your attention and praise?

How are they being rewarded for not minding you?

How is observational learning involved in their behavior?

How does inconsistent punishment or reinforcement affect their behavior?

Why does time out in the corner not work? They just get up and keep running around.

What would you do?

Grand Theft Auto

Movie Type of learning? Additional risk factors? Who do you think are most likely to re-enact

the scripts of violent video games? Catharsis hypothesis

We become less aggressive if we vent our anger.