What is learning in psychology? Knowledge of different types of learning could help us in several ways, especially when, for example, we should choose which teaching method is best depending on the context and situation. But how many types of learning can we identify? With this Psychology-Online article we will see what the types of learning in psychology, with examples. Among which we include the types of educational, meaningful, expected and cognitive learning.
Habituation
If you want to first know the definition of learning according to authors, you will find it in this article about .
Habituation consists of reduction of a behavioral response reflected after repeated presentation of a non-noxious stimulus. This phenomenon is very important because, like all forms of learning, it allows man and animal to adapt to the environment. Indeed, living beings quickly learn to ignore repeated harmless stimuli and, therefore, to concentrate on stimuli that are harmful.
- In the human being a example Classic habituation is the lack of response to a loud noise after it has been presented many times.
Sensitization
The phenomenon of sensitization consists of general increase in an organism’s response to weak stimuli that follow a noxious stimulus.
- Let’s see a example. Suppose that at night, while we are sleeping, the alarm in our house starts ringing for two seconds due to a false contact. We are going to wake up and we are going to explore the environment to see if anyone has entered. Even though we realize that the thieves have not entered, we cannot sleep: we feel with terror every noise in the house that we previously ignored. We have simply become sensitized to a harmful stimulus (the sound of the lock), so we respond in an amplified way to any harmful stimulus (house noises): this simple form of learning also proves to be adaptive.
Classical conditioning
Another of the most relevant types of learning is classical conditioning. Conditioning is the process by which behavioral modifications are produced, establishing a association between a certain stimulus and a certain response. The first to investigate conditioning was the Russian physiologist: in his experiment More famously, he started from the consideration that the salivation of dogs when faced with food was an unconditioned reflex, that is, an innate response of the organism. Later, he came to notice that the dog salivated not only when he came into direct contact with the food, but also simply when hearing an acoustic signal that the experimenter had managed to constantly associate with the delivery of the food. This reaction of the animal, in the absence of the relative stimulus, was called the conditioned reflex.
In this article you will find more information about it.
Trial and error learning
Even before Skinner’s work, Thorndike had shown that learning is done by trial and error.
- A cat or a monkey, in a cage closed by a series of locks that can be made in sequence, after a series of unsuccessful attempts they arrived at the correct sequence, opening the cage. When they got back into the cage, they repeated the correct sequence without errors and came out.
On these bases, Thorndike developed what is known as the “law of effect”, according to which an individual tends to associate with a certain situation or problem the response, among those tested, that produced the greatest satisfaction for him.
Operant conditioning
It was mainly BF Skinner who continued studies on conditioning, developing the so-called . The purpose of this type of learning is produce new behaviors through a series of reinforcements.
- Skinner’s best-known experiment involves a hungry rat housed in a cage in which there is a lever with an empty tray next to it: simply press the lever to activate the mechanism. food input In the container. The rat will do this first accidentally, but then, being constantly reinforced by the food produced as a result of the lever press, will repeat the behavior more and more often. In this case it is the subject’s response (pressing the lever) to be instrumental with respect to the production of the reward (reinforcement).
Imprinting
Imprinting is a form of learning through which the offspring of some animal species, from the first days of life, develop a behavior of strong attachment to a specific object, which they also maintain as adults. K. Lorenz (1935) observed that nests fresh from the shell follow the first moving object they see. The mechanism is based on the fixation of the object of attachment for a certain critical time that varies from species to species and can range from the first hours of life, for the most autonomous species, to a few weeks, for the “inept” ones (whose children need parental care to survive). The phenomenon has been called imprinting (“impression” or “printing on”) because in this phase the small assimilates the characteristic stimulus-signals of the attachment figure to the point of remaining conditioned in the future in a way that is difficult to reverse.
Learning by imitation or vicarious
Following the types of learning, we find the . Learning by imitation or “observatory”, as Bandura calls it, promotes acquisition of skills, information and behaviors simply by observing and listening to other people. Although reinforcement is not considered necessary, it does not exclude its occurrence; In fact, the punishment or praise that the model receives is also a reinforcement for the observer, a reinforcement called vicariant. Vicarious reinforcement contributes to developing the capacity for self-regulation in the subject, who, by observing the behavior of others, collects information that helps him to abstract the rule, evaluate actions and acquire standards of conduct.
Active learning
Active learning occurs when a person takes control of their own learning experience: Since understanding information is the fundamental aspect of learning, it is important to recognize what is understood from what is not understood. Active learning encourages internal dialogue in which the agreements are verbalized. Studies within the have demonstrated the value of active learning; Furthermore, people have more incentive to learn when they have control not only over how they learn, but also over what they learn. Active learning is a fundamental characteristic of student-centered learning; On the contrary, passive learning and direct education are the characteristics of teacher-centered learning (or traditional education).
latent learning
We can ride a bicycle without being able to say how and why, or we can learn a foreign language using its grammatical rules without knowing them. These latent learnings play a central role in our daily lives, as they allow us to learn and learn once and for all and repeat automatically highly complex actions. Not infrequently these unconscious forms of learning are much more effective and persistent than conscious ones.
Cooperative learning
Social constructivism is the epistemological paradigm that more than any other has demonstrated the importance of cooperative learning or collaborative learning. It maintains that our approach to reality is mediated by the relationships we establish with others and considers learning as a personal interpretation of the world derived from the experiences of each of us. In this model, the negotiation of meanings with others is particularly important, since learning involves both individual and social processes: the construction of individual identities and, at the same time, the construction of a symbolic universeshared collectively, is carried out through dialogue interaction.
Situated learning
Another important approach in the field of constructivism is situated or localized learning, which states that learning develops as a result of participation in activities, in specific contexts and in relationships with people. Authentic learning is always situated: that is why there cannot be abstract learning of a situation; Furthermore, from the learner’s point of view, it is normally unintentional and characterized as a natural derivation of an authentic interaction.
Formal learning
This type of learning is carried out in structured environments, trainers (such as schools, institutes, universities, etc.), with a defined curriculum and an institutional teaching staff. It leads to the achievement of recognized diplomas and qualifications. It is part of the logic of the subject’s intentional learning processes.
Non-formal learning
Non-formal learning takes place outside the main education and training structures.
- For example, at work, in associations, in unions…
Typically, this type of learning does not lead to official certificates. This category includes activities that complement formal systems (such as elective or learning pathways) that are not taken into account for accreditation purposes. This typology is also part of the intentional type logic.
Informal learning
Informal learning is the set of all everyday experiences that generate learning in diverse contexts work, family and free time, which they do not present any conscious and explicitly educational intentionality. This category includes peer groups, communities, communicative and relational exchanges, and all those less socially codifiable experiences. Unlike formal and non-formal learning, informal learning is not necessarily deliberate and, therefore, may not be recognized, sometimes by the interested party themselves, as a contribution to their knowledge and skills.
Significant learning
Another type of learning is . David Paul Ausubel is the psychologist and pedagogue who created the theory of meaningful learning, which says that learning depends on prior knowledge. That is new information is linked to what is already known, to form new learning. This type of learning advocates that pre-existing knowledge must be taken into account.
Project-based or problem-based learning
Project-based learning or problem-based project-based learning is a type of learning that occurs during the process of solving a challenge, question, problem or case. Since to solve the problem or find answers to the questions, it is necessary to investigate and learn. Nowadays, it…