Lecture 5: Learning

Lecture 5: Learning

1. Learning is the process by which individuals acquire the purchase and consumption knowledge and experience that they apply to future related behavior.

2. Learning Theories: Classical Conditioning, Instrumental/ Operant Conditioning, Observational Learning

   • Behavioral Learning Theories - Behavior Meaning, Learning has taken place and they explain learning in terms of stimuli and responses.
   • Observational Learning - mental change has occurred and that this is necessary for mental learning. This is learning through a process called modelling you observe behaviour and imitate that behaviour
   • Classical Conditioning (Pavlov)
     • Form of learning in which a stimulus that produces an innate reflex becomes associated with a neutral stimulus, which acquires the power to elicit the same response (Ivan Pavlov).
       • When you pair 2 different stimuli, the stimulus that is able to trigger a certain response in an individual and a trigger that was not able to trigger a certain response, by putting them together they will both be able to trigger a response.
     • Application in Marketing: Emotions to differentiate a product, that you can communicate a whole consumer experience, important for homogenous products b/c not many chance to differentiate them.
       • Use emotion to attach someone to a brand. Brand name is neutral (unconditional) so it just creates a cognitive perception. If you couple the brand with an emotional appeal (conditional) a few times the stimuli can trigger a response.
     • Restricted to fairly simple automatic or involuntary responses. Repeated exposures increase the strength of the stimulus-response associations and prevent the decay of these associations in memory. When you stop doing this people quickly start to forget about the response.
   • Operant/ Instrumental Conditioning (Thomdike, Skinner)
     • is a form of behavioural learning in which the probability of a response is changed by its consequences (e.g. by the stimuli that follows the response). If behaviour is rewarded people tend to repeat behaviours, when it is punished - individuals stop these behaviours.
       • Trial & Error: Consequences of actions matter most/ + consequences lead to repetition/ - or no consequences lead to no repetition/ Conscious decision
     • Operant response: an observable , voluntary behaviour that an organism shows to have meaningful (that you get a reward or avoid punishment) effect on the environment. Skinner said Reward = Reinforce. Two Types of Reinforcements:
       • Primary Reinforcements:
         • Stimuli that are innately rewarding to an organism, so they fulfil some basic biological need for instance food, sex.
       • Secondary Reinforcements:
         • Stimuli that acquire reinforcement value through association with a primary reinforce: Money. status. grades etc. B/c the assumption is that you can buy or exchange secondary reinforces for primary reinforces.
     • Four different outcomes:
       • + Reinforcement:
         • Rat gets a reward; behaviour is + reinforced, most likely to show a similar behaviour again.
       • - Reinforcement
         • Rat gets electrical shocks several times, rat performs certain behaviour so that shocks stop.
       • Punishment
         • E.g. Electro shock experiment with rats – Shock them when they choose the right exit. Next time: They will not choose that exit.
       • Extinction
         • When the rat had learnt that on the left exit there is cheese as a reward, and the cheese stops, the rat will stop choosing the left exit as well as there is no reward to gain. He will unlearn this, as there is no reward
       • With punishment and extinction you will stop someone from doing something. They both weaken behaviours
         • Differences between C and O Conditioning
           • With operant conditioning, you have an unconditional and conditional stimulus and you trigger a response. This works through the consequences of behaviour, punishment or reward, +/- reinforced behaviour. With operant conditioning, you can teach animals and people more complex behaviours not innate reflexes like with classical conditioning.
       • Application in Marketing: Product Offering, Try it - get a reward part of a loyalty program, + reinforced which leads to a higher chance of purchase in the next round
         • `examples: Payback system, Miles & More, Loyalty card from a coffee vender
   • Observational Learning
     • Is a form of cognitive learning in which new responses are acquired after watching others’ behaviour and the consequences of their behaviour.
       • Important in sit. where individuals did have a chance to gather personal experiences. Learning is based on observation or imitation. we observe and imitate the behaviour of another person e.g. a model
         • Four Processes: Attention, Retention, Production Process, Motivation
           • Attention
             • You direct your attention towards a model (Voorbeeld). The greater the attractiveness, competence, status or similarity of the model the more likely attention is directed towards the model‘s behaviour.
               • Celebrity endorsement
           • Retention
             • You retain this behaviour in memory. More likely if the task is of low complexity, the less complex a task it is. The higher the likelihood that observational learning will work.
           • Production Process
             • You have to have the ability to be in the same situation
           • Motivation
             • To do the behaviour

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