Defining Learning

Defining Learning

1. Experience that causes a permanent change.

   • Conscious and deliberate
     • Memorising names of US presidents-explicit awareness of learning process as it takes place.
     • Can become implicit over time-driving a car.
   • Unconscious

2. Memories and learning-inextricably linked. Learning produces memories and existence of memories implies that learning has taken place.

3. Habituation

   • General process in which repeated or prolonged exposure to a stimulus results in a gradual reduction in responding.
   • Simple form of learning-an experience results in a change in the state of the learner.
     • Car back firing. First time you will produce a startled response. Second time response less dramatic and subside more quickly. This time you will likely not respond at all-have become habituated to the sound.
       • This kind of change isn't usually permanent. In most cases a person will exhibit the orginial behaviour as time goes by. If another car backfires a week later you will most likely revert to your original response.
   • Key Study: Leaton 1976. How robust could habituation to a loud sound be?
     • One group of rats exposed to several hundred loud tones within a 5 minute span. Another group exposed to one day tone each day over 11 days.
       • Findings: Groups reacted differently. Rats in first group showed expected startled reaction, however this quickly gave way to a rather indifferent attitude. However this reaction didn't last-when the tone was presented 24 hours later the rats showed a full blown startled response.
         • Rats in other group showed slow continuous decline in the startled response over entire 11 days. This reflects the basic principle underlying most types of learning-change in behaviour has some permanence.

4. Learning and Behaviourism

   • Most fundamental work on learning theory took place through 1930-1950. A time where behaviourism was dominant.
     • Surprised? learning seems abstract? Something intangible happens and you think/behave differently afterwards.
   • Most behaviourists argue that the permanent change in experience could be demonstarted in any organism.
     • Learning seen as a purely behavioural, observable activity that didn't warrant any mental activity
       • Behaviourists overstated their case: There are important cognitive considerations that need to be addressed.