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Cal Poly Pomona PSY 402 - Chapter 6 Traditional Theories

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PSY402 Theories of LearningTwo Theoretical ApproachesHull’s Drive TheoryHull’s FactorsSources of DrivesHabit StrengthInhibitionIncentive MotivationImportance of Hull’s TheoryProblems With Hull’s TheoryDrive-Induction TheoryGuthrie’s Contiguity TheoryImpact of RewardGuthrie’s View of PunishmentImportance of PracticeCriticisms of Contiguity TheorySlide 17Single-Trial LearningSkinnerPSY402Theories of LearningMondayNovember 17, 2003Chapter 6, Traditional TheoriesTwo Theoretical ApproachesS-R associative theorists -- inflexible view of behavior.MechanisticStimulus acquires ability to elicit response through associations formed.Cognitive theorists – flexible view.MentalisticLearning involves recognition and understanding of environment.Hull’s Drive TheoryDrive motivates behavior and drive reduction is responsible for the S-R associative learning.Drive – an intense internal force.Behavior is the combined influence of several factors, which can be expressed mathematically.Hull’s FactorsExcitatory potential (expectation) SER – likelihood that an event will occur.Drive (D)Incentive motivation for reward (K)Habit strength (H) – strength of the S-R association (experience).Inhibition – also due to experience.Sources of DrivesUnconditioned:Physiological deprivation, metabolic imbalance.Intense environmental events with survival consequences.Pleasurable stimuli (such as saccharin) even without nutritional value.Acquired – Pavlovian conditioned cues to unconditioned drives.Habit StrengthSUR – an unconditioned or innate habit strength.SHR – habit strength acquired through prior learning experiences.If a response reduces a drive state, habit strength increases.Drive reduction strengthens the S-R bond until behavior becomes habitual.InhibitionReactive inhibition -- if a drive persists then all behavior is temporarily inhibited.Conditioned inhibition – continued failure to reduce drive resulting in a permanent decrease in behavior.The second strongest response in the habit hierarchy will be performed instead.Incentive MotivationHull initially assumed that only drive reduction influences the S-R bond.Crespi showed that reward magnitude affects responding.If reward only influenced learning, the change should be more gradual.Hull proposed that reward also influences motivation by increasing arousal.Importance of Hull’s TheoryTHE dominant theory in the 1930s-1960s.Correct in many respects:Intense arousal can motivate behavior.Environmental stimuli can develop the ability to produce arousal, motivating behavior.Value of the reward influences the intensity of behavior.Problems With Hull’s TheoryYou can get increases in behavior without drive reduction:Olds & Milner, direct brain stimulationSensory deprivation motivates behavior to obtain stimulation (Harlow).Hull’s theory does not explain how secondary rewards can acquire the ability to increase behavior.Drive-Induction TheorySheffield -- drive-induction not reduction strengthens behavior.Rewards produce excitement or arousal which motivates responding.When secondary rewards are associated with primary rewards they elicit the same arousal.Also explains Harlow’s findings.Guthrie’s Contiguity TheoryGuthrie rejected the necessity of reward.Contiguity is enough to establish an S-R association.A response that occurs when a stimulus is present will automatically become associated with it.Learning is entirely governed by co-occurrences – contiguity in time.Impact of RewardAccording to Guthrie, reward is important, but it does not strengthen the S-R association.The effect of reward is to change the stimulus context present prior to reward.New actions are conditioned to this revised stimulus context.Reward prevents further conditioning of the undesired behavior.Guthrie’s View of PunishmentPunishment is a stimulus that can either be escaped or avoided.If a response terminates punishment, it will replace the punished behavior next time that context occurs.Punishment works only if the response elicited by the punishment is incompatible with the punished behavior.Importance of PracticeAccording to Guthrie, learning occurs in a single trial.The strength of the S-R bond does not slowly increase with experience.Performance increases because subjects must learn which stimuli are consistently present.Over time, many different stimuli become associated with a response.Criticisms of Contiguity TheoryGuthrie conducted few studies to support his theory.Accurate parts:Punishment can intensify inappropriate behavior when it elicits a response compatible with the punished response.Contiguity is essential to prevent conditioning of competing associations.Not all environmental cues are noticed.Impact of RewardGuthrie’s view of reward has been disproved.If what happens after a response is not rewarding, an S-R association is not formed, even if the stimulus changes.Noble – reward size predicts response better than recency or frequency (contiguity measures).Single-Trial LearningAll-or-nothing (single-trial) learning has been difficult to demonstrate.Voeks – found single-trial learning of an eye-blink response in humans.Other studies report gradual learning.Spence proposed a threshold explanation of single-trial learning using incremental learning theory.SkinnerEmphasized the importance of environment (reinforcers & contingencies).Validation of hypothetical constructs interferes with analysis of the variables controlling


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Cal Poly Pomona PSY 402 - Chapter 6 Traditional Theories

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