LEARNING
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
WHAT IS LEARNING?
• Learning involves most aspects of our lives
for example how to handle anger, social
interactions. Social tendency is learned
and has a big role to play in one’s life.
• Learning is relatively permanent change in
behaviour resulting from experience. This
change does not show immediately but
later when required.
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
ARE ALL CHANGES IN BEHAVIOUR DUE TO
LEARNING?
• Not all changes in behaviour occur due to
learning. The following can induce
behaviour change:
Disease changes behaviour
Drugs also do the same
Maturation as a result of elapse of
time
Fatigue too does change behaviour
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
TYPES OF LEARNING
1. Associative Learning
• Classical conditioning
• Operant conditioning
2. Cognitive Learning
• Latent learning
• Insightful learning
• Observational learning
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
Classical Conditioning:
By Ivan Pavlov
• Conditioned a dog to salivate to the sound of a bell
• Classical conditioning (CC) results from learning an
association between two stimuli.
Terms:
• Unconditioned stimulus-Meat powder
• Conditioned stimulus-sound of a bell
• Unconditioned response- salivating
• Conditioned response- salivating
•
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
ACTUAL PROCEDURE
Before Conditioning
• CS produce no response
• UCS produce a response
During conditioning:
• CS paired with UCS and gives a response
After conditioning:
• CS produce a response that is salivating (CR)
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
Classical conditioning with Humans
John B. Watson extended Pavlov’s work and applied it to
human beings. In 1921, Watson studied Albert, an 11
month old infant child. The goal of the study was to
condition Albert to become afraid of a white rat by pairing
the white rat with a very loud, jarring noise (UCS). At first,
Albert showed no sign of fear when he was presented with
rats, but once the rat was repeatedly paired with the loud
noise (UCS), Albert developed a fear of rats. It could be said
that the loud noise (UCS) induced fear (UCR). The
implications of Watson’s experiment suggested that
classical conditioning could cause some phobias in humans.
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
SUMMARY
• Controlling a person’s response in a way that
old responses become attached to new
stimulus is called classical conditioning.
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
LAWS OF CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
• Acquisition: period of learning the association
between CS and the UCS
• Generalization: the tendency to respond to
stimulus that is similar to CS. The more new stimuli
are to the original, the greater the likelihood of
generalization. E.g. a child will call all four legged
animals ,dog
• Discrimination- the opposite of generalization. The
tendency to react differently to different stimuli.
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
CC LAWS CONTD.
• Extinction-the gradual death of CR. Pavlov
observed that if he stopped presenting food
after the sound, the sound gradually lost its
effect on the dog.
• Spontaneous recovery- is the resurrection of
the fully extinguished CR after a long period of
non exposure to the CS
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
APPLICATION OF CLASSICAL
CONDITIONING
• Most of our behaviours are shaped by CC. It
shapes most of our emotional responses such
as fear and anxiety.
• Advertising – the pleasant is paired with the
product or service e.g. Kalusha Bwalya used
for Colgate advertisement.
• Treatment of human behaviour disorders
including overweight, phobias, alcoholism,
anxiety reactions etc
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
OPERANT CONDITIONING
Advanced by Thorndike & B.F Skinner
• Form of learning in which a voluntary
behaviour is engaged in because its
occurrence is reinforced by a reward.
• In this type, learning occurs as a result of
the consequences of behaviour.
• It accounts for our voluntary behaviours
such as studying hard.
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
THORNDIKE’S EXPERIMENT
• Cat put in the cage and food placed outside the cage
• There was a door which could be opened using a clutch.
• Accidentally, the cat touched the clutch and the door open .
The cat got out and eat food. This is trial and error learning.
• After several trials, the cat learned to open the door .
• With time, the response became stronger, the principle he
called law of effect. The law states that behaviours that are
reinforced are much more likely to be repeated. The more
the cat was rewarded the more likely to open the door.
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
B.F SKINNER EXPERIMENT
• Skinner improved Thorndike’s work
Typical Procedure:
• Cat placed in Skinner box
• Cat explore the surrounding and accidentally press the
lever
• Food (reinforcement) given when the bar is pressed
• When cat explores near the bar food is given called shaping
• After several trials cat learnt that its behavior was
reinforced. The cat learnt that bar pressing was followed by
food and the more it pressed, the more it ate. Food
reinforced or strengthened bar pressing
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
REINFORCEMENT
• Reinforcement is any stimulus or
event that increases the likelihood of
the desired response
• Reinforcement follows the response.
In CC reinforcement produces the
desired behaviour.
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
CLASSIFICATION OF REINFORCERS
[Link] Reinforcers
e.g. food, water, sex, warmth etc.
these are not learnt
2. Secondary Reinforcers
e.g. money, good grades etc. these are
acquired by being associated with
primary reinforcers
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
POSITIVE VS NEGATIVE
REINFORCEMET
Positive reinforcement
• Pleasant stimulus e.g. food, water or
money. When given increases probability
of occurrence
Negative reinforcement
• Unpleasant stimulus e.g. electric shock,
scolding, fear etc. when terminated
increases operant response
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
REINFORCEMENT SCHEDULES
1. Continuous reinforcement
2. Partial reinforcement
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA
QUESTIONS
1. What is courteous?
2. What are audio visual materials? List them
3. Suppose you are the Psychology Lecturer
what audio visual materials would you use?
4. Being gender sensitive entails?
5. What are the elements of a disordered
lecture?
03/25/2025 ( NJOBO LILLIAN - MSc- PH; PG Dip. COUS.;
BA