Learning - Psychology 53.1
Dr. Delamater
Study Questions - Final Exam
Instrumental Conditioning: Schedules of Reinforcement
& Choice
1. How does the cumulative recorder measure instrumental
conditioning?
2. How is reinforcement earned on an interval schedule? on a
ratio schedule? and whats the difference between fixed and variable
schedules?
3. What patterns of responding are produced by each of the basic
schedules of reinforcement?
4. What is a concurrent schedule of reinforcement?
How would you use it to study choice?
5. What is Herrnstein's Matching Law? Also, describe an
experimental situation in which this law was discovered.
6. Explain the Matching Law using momentary maximizing and
melioration theories.
Instrumental Conditioning: Determining Conditions
1. Name 4 different determining conditions for instrumental learning.
2. Describe the study by Dickinson, Watt, & Griffiths (1992).
What is its importance?
3. Describe Skinner's "superstition" experiment. What was his
major claim about the factors that influence instrumental
learning? How does the idea of Pavlovian temporal conditioning
pose a problem for this interpretation?
4. What did Hammond (1980) try to demonstrate in his instrumental
contingency
experiment? What is the problem with his interpretation?
How
did Colwill and Rescorla (1986) control for this problem?
5. What was the point of the Pearce and Hall (1978) study?
Explain
what they observed and what conclusions were reached.
6. Explain what Shettleworth (1975) was after in her experiment with
hamsters. Discuss how her experiment addresses the major
issue. Can you think of any alternative explanations of her
results, or alternative experiments that might more convincingly
support her cause?
7. Descibe Melgren's (1972) incentive contrast study. What
important
point does it illustrate?
8. Describe
either the Balleine (1992) study or the Dickinson, Balleine, Watt,
Gonzalez, & Boakes (1995) study
(discussed in your book)? What
do the results from these studies mean? How can one explain the
difference between these
results and the
earlier
findings
of Clark (1958)?
Instrumental Conditioning: Associative structures
1. Distinguish between Thorndike's and Tolman's views on what is
learned
during instrumental conditioning.
2. What are the major conclusions to be derived from the Colwill
and Rescorla (1985) reinforcer devaluation study?
3. What interesting conclusion stems from the Adams (1982) study?
Explain.
4. What is the importance of the Dickinson, Nicholas, and Adams (1983)
experiment? Explain.
5. How does Dickinson's idea about the experienced response-reward
correlation (ie., the molar feedback function) help us understand the
results
from these studies?
6. Generally speaking, what did Killcross & Coutureau (2003) add to
the story about S-R
and R-O associations?
Stimulus Control
1. When do we know that instrumental behavior has come under stimulus
control?
2. Explain how the generalization test can be used to assess stimulus
control.
3. What three factors discussed in class have been shown to be
important determiners for stimulus control?
4. Understand the Jenkins & Harrison (1960) study, the Wagner,
Logan, Haberlandt, & Price (1968) study, and the Foree &
LoLordo (1973) studies.
5. Explain the difference between the absolute coding and the
relational coding views of stimulus control.
6. What was Kohler's transposition experiment, and how did he interpret
the results?
7. What was Spence's view of stimulus control? How did he explain
transposition? How did Hanson (1959) support Spence's view?
What is peak shift and why should it come about according to Spence?
8. Describe three types of associative structures that may account for
stimulus control in instrumental conditioning?
9. How did Trapold & Overmier (1972) embellish S-R theory?
Use this idea to explain the differential outcomes effect.
10. Describe the Colwill and Rescorla (1990) reinforcer devaluation
experiment on stimulus control. What is its chief implication for
understanding the associative structures underlying stimulus control?
Pavlovian
and Instrumental Learning Compared
1. Do you think Pavlovian and instrumental learning have a common
underlying mechanism or are their multiple learning mechanisms?
Explain.
2. How would you go about determining if associative learning was
a
truly general learning process?
3. Discuss one good example of a kind of learning process that
appears highly specialized. Describe the song learning study by
Marler and colleagues.