BEHAVIORISM

By: ANA MARIE E. DOMINGO BSED-FIL.

The Theory of BEHAVIORISM:

 focuses on the study of observable and

measurable behavior.
 It emphasizes that behavior is mostly
learned through conditioning and
reinforcement (reward and punishment).
 It does not give much attention to the
mind and the possibility of thought
processes occurring in the mind.
BEHAVIORISM:
 Ivan Pavlov
 Edward L. Thorndike
 John Watson
 Burrhus Frederick Skinner
 BEHAVIORISM

Classical Conditioning Connectionism Operant Conditioning

(Pavlov/ Watson) (Thorndike) (Skinner)

Primary Laws Reinforcement

Law of effect Shaping of

Behavior

Law of
Exercise

Law of
Readiness
 Ivan Pavlov

a Russian physiologist is well known for

his work in classical conditioning or
stimulus substitution.
He measures the dog’s salivation in
order to study digestion.
 CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
Stage 1- Before Conditioning
Bell
Neutral Stimulus No Response

Stage 2- During Conditioning

Bell
(Neutral Stimulus)

Salivation
Meat (Unconditioned
(Unconditioned
Stimulus
Response
Stage 3- After Conditioning
Bell ( Conditioned Salivation (Conditioned
Stimulus) Response)
PAVLOV’S FINDINGS:
Stimulus Generalization. Once the dog
has learned to salivate at the sound
of the bell, it well salivate at other
similar sounds.
Extinction. If you stop pairing the bell
with the food, salivation eventually
cease in response to the bell.
Spontaneous Recovery. Extinguished
responses can be “recovered” after an
elapsed time, but will soon extinguish
again if the dog is not presented with
food.
Discrimination. The dog could learn to
discriminate between similar bells
(stimuli) and discern which bell would
result in the presentation of
food and which would not.
Higher Order Reasoning. Once the dog has
been conditioned to associate the bell with
food, another unconditioned stimulus, such
as a light may be flashed at the same time
that the bell is rung. Eventually, the dog will
salivate at the flash of the light without the
sound of the bell.
 EDWARD L. THORNDIKE
He proposed the “Theory of
Connectionism.”
Learning is the result of associations
forming between STIMULI (S) and
RESPONSES (R).
EDWARD L. THORNDIKE
Such associations, or “habits” become
strengthened or weakened by the nature
and frequency of the S-R pairing.
Theory of Connectionism- states that
learning has taken place when a strong
connection or bond between stimulus and
response is formed.
The main principle of Connectionism ( like
all behavioral theory) was that learning
could be adequately explained without
considering any unobservable internal
states.
Three Primary Law:
 Law of Effect- states that a connection
between a stimulus and response is
strengthened when the consequence is
POSITIVE (reward) and the connection
between the stimulus and the response is
weakened when the consequence is
NEGATIVE.
Law of Exercise- the more S-R (stimulus-
response)bond is practiced the stronger it
will become. “Practice Makes Perfect.”

The law has been revised:

Thorndike found that practice without
feedback does not necessarily enhance
performance.
Law of Readiness- the more readiness the
learner has to respond to the stimulus, the
stronger will be the bond between them.
When a person is ready to respond to a
stimulus and is not made to respond, it
becomes annoying to the person.
Likewise, if the person is not at all ready to
respond to a stimuli and is ask to respond,
that also becomes annoying.
Principles Derived from Thorndike’s Connectionism:
1. Learning requires both practice and reward
(laws of effect / exercise)
2. A series of S-R connections can be chained
together if they belong to the same action sequence
(law of readiness)
3. Transfer of learning occurs because of previously
encountered situations.
4. Intelligence is a function of the number of
connections learned.
 JOHN WATSON
First American Psychologist to work with
Pavlov’s ideas. He considered that humans
are born with a few reflexes and the
emotional reactions of LOVE and RAGE.
All other behavior is learned through
stimulus-response associations through
conditioning.
JOHN WATSON
Experiment on Albert.
Watson applied classical conditioning in his
experiment concerning Albert, a young
child and a white rat.
Watson’s work did clearly show the role of
conditioning in the development of
emotional responses to certain stimuli. This
may help us understand the fears , phobias,
and prejudices that people develop.
 BURRHUS FREDERICK SKINNER
 Like Pavlov, Watson, and Thorndike,
Skinner believed in the stimulus-response
pattern of conditioned behavior.
 Walden Two (1948)- is about a utopian
society based on operant conditioning.
 Science and Human Behavior (1953)- in
which he pointed out how the principles
of operant conditioning function in social
institutions such as government, law,
religion, and education.

Operant Behavior- voluntary behaviors used

in operating on the environment.
His theory came to be known as Operant
Conditioning.
Operant Conditioning- is based upon the
notion that learning is a result of change in
overt behavior.
Changes in behavior- are the result of an
individual’s response to events (stimuli)that
occur in the environment.
Reinforcement- is the key element in
Skinners S-R theory.
Reinforcer- is anything that strengthens the
desired response.
a. Positive reinforcer
b. Negative reinforcer
Positive reinforcer- is any stimulus that is
given or added to increase the response.
Negative reinforcer- is any stimulus that
result in the increased frequency of a
response when it is withdrawn or removed.
The Negative reinforcer is not a punishment,
in fact it is a REWARD.
A negative reinforcer is different from a
punishment because a punishment is a
consequence intended to result in reduced
reponses
Extinction or Non-reinforcement- responses
that are not reinforced are not likely to be
repeated.
Shaping of Behavior- an animal on a cage may
take a very long time to figure out that pressing
the lever will produce food. To accomplish such
behavior, successive approximations of the
behavior are rewarded until the animal learns
the associations between the lever and the food
reward.
SHAPING OF BEHAVIOR
Behavioral Chaining- comes about when a
series of steps are needed to be learned.
Reinforcement Schedules- once the desired
behavioral response is accomplished,
reinforcement does not have to be 100%; in
fact, it can be maintained more successfully
through what Skinner referred to as partial
reinforcement schedules.
Partial Reinforcement- schedules include
interval schedules and ratio schedules.
Fixed Interval Schedules- the target
response is reinforced after a fixed amount
of time has passed since the last
reinforcement.
Variable Interval Schedules- is similar to
fixed interval schedules but the amount of
time that must pass between reinforcement
varies.
Fixed Ratio Schedules- a fixed number of
correct responses must occur before
reinforcement may recur.
Variable Ratio Schedules- the number
correct repetitions of the correct response
for reinforcement varies.
Variable interval and Variable ratio- are
schedules that produce steadier and more
persistent rates of response because the
learners cannot predict when the
reinforcement will come although they know
that they will eventually succeed.
Implications of Operant Conditioning / given
for PROGRAMMED INSTRUCTION:
1. Practice should take the form of question
(stimulus)- answer ( response) frames
which expose the student to the subject
in gradual steps.
2. Require that the learner makes a
response for every frame and receives
immediate feedback.
3. Try to arrange the difficulty of the
questions so the response is always correct
and hence, a positive reinforcement.
4. Ensure that good performance in the
lesson is paired with secondary reinforcers
such as praise, prizes, and good grades.