PSYCH 1X03 Chapter Notes -Reinforcement
5 Dec 2014
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Document Summary
Instrumental conditioning: the learning of a contingency between behaviour and consequence. Thorndike"s experiment: measured time it took cat to learn to open door by pulling string. Frequency of random behaviours gradually decreased over time. Suggests that animals follow a simple stimulus-response type process with little credit for consciousness. Stamping in: behaviours like pulling the role were stamped in because they were followed by the favourable consequence of access to food. Stamping out: random behaviours such as turning in a circles. Eventually, general process leads to refinement and the cat learns the contingency between the specific behaviour of rope pulling and the specific consequence of food reward. The law of effect: behaviours with positive consequences are stamped in. Presentation of a positive reinforcer, presentation of a negative reinforcer. Removal of a negative reinforce, removal of a positive reinforce. Must consider ethics of experiencing fear or pain in the recipient. Learning the contingency between a response and its consequence.
