It defines conditioning learning as the process by which a change in behavior is effected through experience or the association of events or stimuli.
The ability to learn enables the adaptation of every individual to changes in the environment and the recognition of signals from the external world. Of course, important differences are distinguished between classical conditioning and operant conditioning learning models.
This article proposes a historical and conceptual overview of both approaches.
Learning according to behaviorism
Classical conditioning theory
The theory of classical conditioning derives from the experiments of Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov, who during the study of the canine digestive system noticed that animals salivated when exposed to stimuli associated with food without the physical presence of food being necessary.
The ringing of a bell or the researchers’ footsteps were enough to trigger a physiological mechanism in dogs related to the first phase of digestion, which led Pavlov to direct his research towards an important scientific conclusion: dogs salivated when listening to the song. bell because they had learned that the sound of this preceded feeding, so the immediate response at the organic level was the preparation of the salivary glands.
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Key factors intervened in this conditioning process:
- He unconditioned stimulus (US)which is the one that invariably produces a reaction (in this case, food).
- The unconditioned response (IR)which is caused by the unconditioned stimulus (salivation).
- He conditioned stimulus (CS), which is considered neutral because it does not produce any response unless the pairing (the bell) has occurred.
- The conditioned response (CR)which is the result of mixing the unconditioned stimulus and the conditioned stimulus (food + bell = salivation when hearing the bell).
Learning by classical conditioning is one of the most transcendental theories of scientific psychology, and also one of the most controversial in that it served as a basis for conducting experiments on humans, something that, of course, had a lot to do with the Manifesto promoted by John B. Watson.
Before a formally formulated Behaviorist Manifesto, psychology limited its experiments to animals. It was John B. Watson who referred in writing to an urgent need to abandon this bias in order to carry out comprehensive studies. of behavioral processes in the individual.
Learning by classical conditioning is one of the most transcendental theories of scientific psychology, and also one of the most controversial
Starting from conditioning and against the background of overt behaviorism, Watson spearheaded Douglas Merritte’s experiment, nicknamed “AAlbert B” or “Little Alberto”, whose objective was to establish a phobia of white rats and furry objects in a 9-month-old child through classical conditioning using as a conditioned stimulus the sound of a metal rod being hit against the wall, while the child was shown the white rat and the furry items.
Little Albert’s conditioning prompted a series of experimental investigations into learning in human subjects, including research into the eradication of phobias and the treatment of anxiety.
Review of Little Alberto’s experiment
Operant Conditioning Theory
After classical conditioning, a variant was developed that introduced factors called reinforcers (rewards or punishments), with the purpose of reaffirming a desired behavior or suppress an unwanted one.
This version promoted mainly by Thorndike and Skinner is known as operant conditioning either instrumental.
Operant conditioning proposes, then, that the subject does not learn from a mere stimulus based on biological needs (such as being fed) but rather it is necessary to apply the use of positive reinforcers (rewards) or negative reinforcement, which consists of the subtraction of a element within the learning scheme that is sufficient to “persuade” the individual to continue the desired behavior.
Thus, an example would be operant conditioning of a child to increase his hours of piano study through positive reinforcement (rewarding him with his favorite candy) or negative reinforcement (telling him that he will not have to do a previously assigned task if he dedicates more hours of study to the piano). piano).
In addition to reinforcers as a method to “curl” the learning of a desired behavior, operant conditioning considers the use of punishment with a function of weakening an unwanted behavior, by adding an unpleasant element to the learning scheme.
Operant conditioning proposes that the subject does not learn from a mere biological stimulus, but rather it is necessary to apply reinforcements or punishments.
Within operant conditioning we also find the superstitious behaviorwhich implies that individuals tend to repeat those actions (although fortuitous) prior to receiving positive reinforcement (reward), or that have been related to it.
For example, a subject may adopt the superstitious behavior of wearing the same pants every day if, while wearing them, he was previously fortunate enough to find a hundred-dollar bill.
Another phenomenon that is part of operant conditioning is learned helplessness. This consists of an acquired inability to learn certain behaviors that involve obtaining a reward or avoiding an aversive stimulus.
A very popular example is the experimental research carried out with two groups of dogs (one control and one experimental), in which the first was subjected to electric shocks (punishment) with the possibility of suspending the shocks by pressing a button with the nose.
The experimental group, meanwhile, was subject to the same conditions except that it was not possible to stop the shocks.
Later, it was found that the control group learned more easily under similar circumstances and that the experimental group not only had difficulties in learning but also presented symptoms associated with human depression.
This suggests a considerable influence of negative experiences on the learning process.
Operant conditioning can be used to modify biological behavioral traits such as heart rate and body temperature, a technique called biofeedbackas well as to eradicate evils such as anxiety and concentration problems through the monitoring and control of brain waves, a procedure called neurofeedback.
How long does conditioning learning last?
The extinction and recovery of learning depends on whether we are able to overcome the interference
The learning acquisition time varies depending on the behavior established.
A distinction can be made between natural behaviors (in biological terms, such as salivation in Pavlov’s dogs) and acquired behaviors (such as teaching a cat to jump from chair to chair). Learning behaviors of biological origin, of course, involves a shorter acquisition period than learning non-biological behaviors.
But once the learning has taken place, what happens? How long is it kept? How is a behavior extinguished and recovered?
Suppose a child fears the sound of the front door at night because he knows that his father will arrive drunk and hit his mother. Later, the marriage is dissolved and the boy stays with his mother while his father leaves. A few months go by without the child hearing the sound of the front door at night, but if suddenly, fortuitously, the arrival of a visitor coincided with the time when the father usually arrived, the child would probably feel afraid again, although on a smaller scale.
The same thing happens with operant conditioning, except that the interference (false stimuli) that could occur in the extinction process in the absence of reinforcement.
If we teach a cat to jump from chair to chair by reinforcing it with a treat but eventually stop rewarding it after completing the exercise, it is very likely that it will gradually stop doing it or opt for a different behavior, such as walking on the table.
The extinction and recovery of learning, in this case, depends on whether we are able to overcome the interference.
Money is a secondary reinforcer par excellence, since it is associated with all primary reinforcers.
Other elements that play an important function during conditioning, whether classical or operant, are generalization and the discrimination.
The first of these refers, as its name indicates, to a universal conception of the stimulus or response in question that can lead to drastic conditioning. For example, in the Little Alberto experiment there was an association that led the subject to develop a phobia of white, hairy rats, but also of any white, hairy object (stimulus generalizationbecause the EI is universalized).
The same thing happens in operant conditioning: the cat that learns to jump from chair to chair because it is given a treat can also be seen jumping from table to table, hoping to get the same reward. Unless this occurs only when he jumps from chair to chair, which was the behavior to be learned initially, there is a response generalization.
In addition to the stimulus-response or stimulus-response-reinforcement factors observed depending on the type of conditioning, the possibility of applying a higher order conditioningwhereby a new object is introduced based on EC and the original EC is used as EI. For example: Pavlov used a bell as EI (originally used as CS) and as CS, a black square that, when shown prior to the ringing of the bell, produced salivation.
There are also the secondary reinforcerswhich are determined after having been associated with primary type reinforcers: food, water and sex.
Money, for example, is a secondary reinforcer par excellence, since it is associated with all primary reinforcers.
It is also important contingency of the conditioning facts, which consists of the necessary establishment of a causal relationship between the EI and the CS, so that the subject can assume that one thing precedes the other.
In Pavlov’s experiment it is essential that the CS (the bell) precedes the EI (food) so that the dogs learn that the sound of the bell announces food and, eventually, they salivate just by hearing the bell.
It can happen…