Chapter 6: Behaviorist and Learning Aspects

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Chapter 6:

Behaviorist and Learning

Aspects

Friedman, H. S., & Schustack, M. W. (2014). Personality: Classic theories and modern research (5th ed.). Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

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The Classical Conditioning of

Personality

Ivan Pavlov

Unconditioned

Stimulus

(Food)

→Unconditioned

Response

(Salivation)

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Personality

Unconditioned

Stimulus

(Food)

Neutral Stimulus

(Bell)

Unconditioned

Response

(Salivation)

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Personality

Conditioned

Stimulus

(Bell)

→Conditioned

Response

(Salivation)

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Classical Conditioning

Generalization

◦ Conditioned responses can occur in response to

stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus

Discrimination

◦ Learning to tell the difference between different

stimuli, responding only to the conditioned stimulus

and not to similar stimuli

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Classical Conditioning

Extinction

◦ When the pairing of the conditioned and

unconditioned stimulus stops

◦ Gradual decrease in the response to the conditioned

stimulus

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Origins of a Behaviorist Approach

Classical conditioning can be used to explain

emotional aspects of personality

◦ neurotic behavior

◦ phobias

◦ superstitious behavior

◦ etc.

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Origins of a Behaviorist Approach

John B. Watson

◦ Founded behaviorism

◦ Applied conditioning principles to humans

◦ Rejection of introspection

◦ Tabula rasa approach

John Locke

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The Example of Baby Albert

Unconditioned

Stimulus

(Loud Noise)

→Unconditioned

Response

(Cry)

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Unconditioned

Stimulus

(Loud Noise)

Neutral Stimulus

(Rat)

Unconditioned

Response

(Cry)

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Conditioned

Stimulus

(Rat)

→Conditioned

Response

(Cry)

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The Radical Behaviorism of

B. F. Skinner Personality IS a group of responses to the

environment

Radical determinism

◦ All behavior is caused

Operant Conditioning

◦ Behavior is changed by its consequences

◦ “Skinner box” (operant chamber)

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Operant Conditioning

The status of a consequence as reinforcement or

punishment is empirically determined

◦ If the preceding response increases after the consequence

occurs, it is a reinforcement

◦ If the preceding response decreases after the consequence

occurs, it is a punishment

Reinforcement or punishment can occur through

adding or removing a stimulus

◦ For rats: food, noise, electric shock

◦ For humans: money, praise, hugs, candy, chores, spanking,

prison

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Skinner’s Walden Two

Applied the principles of operant conditioning to design a society

Sets up a controlling environment by using positive reinforcement

Several communities were founded on behaviorist principles

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Applying Behaviorism: An Example

Modifying Type A personality

◦ By using operant conditioning people are able to

learn to reduce their negative behaviors

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Other Learning Approaches to

Personality

Clark Hull

Role of drive alleviation

Habits

Associations between a stimulus and a response

Emphasized both internal states and the

environment

Describes how distant goals can be learned

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Dollard and Miller

Combined psychoanalytic theory with

behaviorism

Social Learning Theory

Habit hierarchy

◦ Personality is the probability that particular responses

will occur

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Dollard and Miller

Secondary drives

◦ The drives that are learned by association with the

satisfaction of primary drives

Aggression

◦ Occurs as a result of blocking efforts to attain a goal

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Dollard and Miller

Mental illness explanations

Internal conflicts

◦ Approach-avoidance conflict

◦ Approach-approach conflict

◦ Avoidance-avoidance conflict

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Modern Behaviorist Approaches

to Personality Behaviorism’s limitation to observable behavior is

inconsistent with the focus of most personality

approaches

Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory connects individual

differences in the nervous system to the response to

reward versus punishment

◦ Reward works through Behavioral Activation System (Behavioral

Approach System)

◦ Punishment works through Behavioral Inhibition System

Act Frequency Approach as a way to connect

observable actions to traits

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Timeline: The Behaviorist and

Learning Approach

Behaviorist and Learning Aspects

Societal and Scientific Context

Philosophers and theologians view individual deviations as games of the gods or possession by the devil

Ancient times and Middle Ages

Humans are seen primarily in religious terms, as created by a divine presence

Individual is increasingly understood to be shaped by social class and by work (Locke’s tabula rasa)

1700s -1800s

Increasing emphasis on reason and rationality, philosophers search for the core of human nature

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Learning Approach



Pavlov studies classical conditioning; other studies of animal learning begin in earnest

1880s-1900s

Darwin’s evolutionary approach leads to experimental studies in animals in search of universals applicable to people

Watson founds behaviorism

1900-1920

Experimental psychology develops; increased industrialization of society

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Learning Approach



Skinner dramatically expands behaviorism; Hull develops broader learning theory

1920s-1940s

Experimental psychology is increasingly dominated by behaviorism; attempts to combine behaviorism and psychoanalysis

Influence of social psychology increases; child rearing practices are studied

1940s-1950s

In reaction to world war, studies of propaganda and attitude-formation increase

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Learning Approach



Existentialists challenge behaviorists; cognitive psychology grows; behaviorism declines

1950s-1960s

Economic boom with huge new middle class; new affluence removes old fears from workers

Learning approaches increasingly combined with cognitive and social approaches; personality seen as interacting with the demands of social situations

1970s-1980s

Societal problems of crime, delinquency lead to searches for more sophisticated models of teaching and learning

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The Behaviorist and Learning

Approach

Analogy

Humans as intelligent rats learning life mazes

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Approach

Advantages

◦ Requires rigorous empirical study

◦ Looks for general laws that apply to all organisms

◦ Forces attention to the environmental influences on

behavior

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Approach

Limits

◦ Ignores insights and advances from cognitive and

social psychology

◦ May tend to dehumanize unique human potentials

◦ Explains all differences between individuals as a

consequence of their reinforcement histories

◦ Views humans as objects to be trained

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Approach

View of free will

◦ Behavior is determined by environmental

contingencies

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Approach

Common assessment technique

◦ Experimental analysis of learning (often in non-human

animals)

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Approach

Implications for therapy

◦ Since personality is conditioned and learned, therapy

is based on teaching desirable habits and behaviors,

and on extinguishing undesirable ones

Documents

Chapter 6: Behaviorist and Learning Aspects