
Psychological Processes: Learning and Conditioning
Code: 102605Credits: 6
| Degree programme | Type | Course |
|---|---|---|
| Psychology | OB | 2 |
Contact lecturer
- Name :
- Tomas Blasco Blasco
- Email :
- tomas.blasco@uab.cat
Teaching staff
- Albert Mercader Rovira
- Antonio Estrella Arraez
- Víctor Merino Expósito
- Corel Mateo Canedo
- Tomas Blasco Blasco
- F. Xavier Borras Hernandez
- Eva Parrado Romero
Group languages
You can consult this information at the end of the document.
Prerequisites
There are no prior prerequisites. However, it is recommendable that students should revise the contents from previous courses on psychological processes, undertaken during the previous year.
Objectives
This subject belongs to the group of Psychological Processes Courses (Motivation and Emotion, Memory, Attention and Perception, and Thought and Language). Contents provide students with the main features and research strategies used in this field of knowledge.
The primary aims of this subject are:
a) To make students aware of the fundamental aspects of the psychological processes related to learning and conditioning.
b) To enable students to address questions about learning, as well as to identify learning phenomena in human and animals both on laboratory and natural settings.
This course gives students the framework required to follow subsequent courses addressed to professional practice such as "Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy in Adults" and “Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy in Children and Adolescents”.
Learning outcomes
- Distinguish between the main non-associative learning processes.
- Identify the main processes of classical and instrumental conditioning.
- Write reports using the results of experiments on conditioning and learning.
- Design experiments in conditioning and learning.
- Analyse the results of experiments on conditioning and learning.
- Use different ICTs for different purposes.
- Apply knowledge, skills and acquired values critically, reflexively and creatively.
Contents
Introduction.
- Inherited behaviours.
- Reflexes.
- Definition of learning.
- Learning and execution.
- Learning and other causes of behaviour change.
- Types of learning.
Block I: Non-associative learning: Habituation and sensitisation
- Concept, properties and variables of habituation.
- Concept, properties and variables of sensitisation.
Block II: Associative learning I: Classical conditioning
- Paradigm and terms of classical conditioning.
- Basic phenomena of classical conditioning: acquisition, extinction, generalisation.
- Methodology for the study of classical conditioning.
- Quantification of the strenght of CR.
- Procedures for temporal presentation of stimuli.
- Experimental control.
- Experimental procedures.
- Classicla inhibitory conditioning.
- Variables involved in acquisition of classical conditioning.
- Other phenomena in classical conditioning (sensory preconditioning, second-order conditioning, counterconditioning, compound conditioning)
Block III: Associative learning II: Operant conditioning
- Introduction.
- Basic procedures of operant conditioning.
- Procedures, measures and variables of positive reinforcement.
- Schedules of reinforcement.
- Extinction of positively reinforced responses.
- Theoretical analysis of positive reinforcement.
- Procedures, measures and variables of negative reinforcement (escape and avoidance).
- Theoretical analysis of negative reinforcement.
- Extinction of discriminated avoidance behaviour.
- Punishment procedures, measures, and variables.
- Paradoxical and emotional effects of punishment.
Learning activities and methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moodle exercises | 11 | 0.44 | 2, 4, 6, 7 |
| Reading and study of manuals | 81.5 | 3.26 | 4, 6 |
| Simulation of classic and instrumental conditioning phenomena with Sniffy software | 10 | 0.4 | 1, 3, 7 |
| Laboratory and practical classes | 10 | 0.4 | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
| Lectures | 28.5 | 1.14 | 1, 2, 4, 6 |
| Seminar | 6 | 0.24 | 1, 2, 4, 6 |
Directed Activities (30%):
- Lectures: face-to-face sessions of 1.5h hours
- Seminars: 3 face-to-face sessions of 2 hours
- Laboratory and practical classes: 5 face-to-face sessions of 2 hours.
Supervised Activities (15%):
- Resolution of questions about the subject using the Moodle application.
- Simulation of classical and instrumental conditioning phenomena with the software “Sniffy”.
Autonomous Activities (55%):
- Reading and study of reference manuals.
Moodle will be used as the information platform to communicate any change at schedules during the season
Assessment
Continuous assessment activities
| Title | Weight | Hours | ECTS | Learning outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EV7. Written examination 2 | 40% | 1.5 | 0.06 | 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 |
| EV4. Written Report: Practice 4 | 4% | 0 | 0 | 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 |
| EV2. Written Report: Practice 2 | 4% | 0 | 0 | 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 |
| EV3. Written Report: Practice 3 | 4% | 0 | 0 | 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 |
| EV6. Written examination 1 | 40% | 1.5 | 0.06 | 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 |
| EV1. Written Report: Practice 1. | 4% | 0 | 0 | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 |
| EV5. Written Report: Practice 5 | 4% | 0 | 0 | 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 |
The subject competences will be assessed through different procedures (Table 1):
- Ev1: Report on the results of Practice 1. The report is a group report (4 persons). It will be presented in person, in writing and on paper, at the end of the practice session (consult the schedule of sessions established for each group). It is necessary to attend the practical session in order to be able to present the report. Its value is 0.4 points.
- Ev2: Report on the results of Practice 2. The report is a group report (4 people). It will be presented in person, in writing and on paper, at the end of the practice session (consult the schedule of sessions established for each group). It is necessary to attend the practical session in order to be able to present the report. Its value is 0.4 points.
- Ev3: Report on the results of Practice 3. The report is individual. It will be presented at the end of the practice session (consult the schedule of sessions established for each group). It is necessary to attend the practical session in order to present the report. Its value is 0.4 points.
- Ev4: Report on the results of Practice 4. The report is individual. It will be presented at the end of the practice session (consult the schedule of sessions established for each group). It is necessary to attend the practical session in order to be able to present the report. Its value is 0.4 points.
- Ev5: Report on the results of Practice 5. The report is individual. It will be presented at the end of the practice session (consult the schedule of sessions established for each group). It is necessary to attend the practical session in order to be able to present the report. Its value is 0.4 points.
- Ev6: Exam 1. In the first evaluation period there will be a theory exam with a format of 30 multiple-choice questions and duration of 1h, on the topics taught up to week 8. This exam will be corrected for the effect of chance (each wrong answer subtracts 0.33 from the total number of correct answers). Its value is 4 points.
- Ev7: Exam 2. In the second evaluation period there will be a theory exam with a format of 30 multiple-choice questions and duration of 1 hour, on the topics taught between weeks 10 and 15. This exam will be corrected for the effect of chance (each wrong answer subtracts 0.33 from the total number of correct answers). Its value is 4 points.
Table 1. Summary with the characteristics of the different Learning Evidence
| Code | Designation | Points | Format (Oral, written or both) | Autorship (individual, collective or both) | Via (Attended, virtual or both) |
| EV1 | Report Practice 1 | 0.4 | Written | Group | Attended |
| EV2 | Report Practice 2 | 0.4 | Written | Group | Attended |
| EV3 | Report Practice 3 | 0.4 | Written | Individual | Attended |
| EV4 | Report Practice 4 | 0.4 | Written | Individual | Attended |
| EV5 | Report Practice 5 | 0.4 | Written | Individual | Attended |
| EV6 | Examination 1 (contents given until week 9) | 4 | Written | Individual | Attended |
| EV7 | Examination 2 (contents given between weeks 10 and 18) | 4 | Written | Individual | Attended |
Model responses of EV6 and 7 will be not published. The results will be published on the virtual campus within a maximum period of 10 working days after their completion.
Studentswho havesubmitted evidence of learning with a weight equal to or higher than 4 points (ove 10 points), may not be recorded as \"Not assessable\".
In order to pass the course, the student must obtain a minimum of 1,6 points (over a maximum of 4 points) at Ev6 and Ev7, and must also obtain an overall grade of 5 points. The overall grade is the direct sum of the grades obtained in all the learning evidences (Ev1+Ev2+Ev3+Ev4+Ev5+Ev6+Ev7) and has a maximum value of 10 points.
Students with an overall grade equal to or higher than 3.5 and lower than 5 points or students with an overall grade equal to or higher than 5, but with less than 1,6 points at Ev6 and/or Ev7, and who have taken evidences with a weight equal to or higher than 2/3 of the overall grade will have the possibility of taking a final recovery assessment during the recovery period on the date established by the Faculty (and published on the website).
The recovery assessment will consist of a recovery of Ev6 and/or Ev7, exclusively. The grades obtained in Ev1, Ev2, Ev3, Ev4 and Ev5, corresponding to the practices, are excluded from the recovery test and will remain unchanged. If the points obtained at Ev6 or Ev7 are less than 1.6 points the maximum overall grade to be reported at final certification will be 4.5 points.
The student may develop the recovery assessment of the evidences with less than 1,6 points. In the case that the student has achieved 1,6 or more points at both Ev6 and Ev7, he/she may decide at the time of the recovery assessment to retake only Ev6, only Ev7, or both. The grade(s) obtained in this recovery assessment will in any case replace the grade(s) previously obtained and the overall grade willberecalculated.
Students who do not enrol for the first time in the subject will be assessed with the same activities as those who enrol for the first time. A synthesis test is not contemplated.
Students who choose the single assessment option waive the continuous assessment and will be assessed on all the contents of the subject in a single assessment event, which will take place on the same day and in the same place as Ev7.
This assessment event will consist of two face-to-face exams (Exam 1 and Exam 2) which will follow the same format and will include the same contents as Ev6 and Ev7 of the continuous assessment (respectively). At the end of the two exams, and during this same assessment event, students who have taken the single assessment system will have to solve a total of 5 situations that will involve the planning and interpretation of experiments equivalent to those worked on in the practices carried out throughout the semester. Students will have to write and hand in a report corresponding to each of the 5 practices (which will include the same contents as inEv1-5) in the same classroom. Under no circumstances may the student consult any type of subject material during the preparation of these reports.
The total duration of this single evaluative face-to-face event will be approximately 3h 20m (See Table 2).
The conditions for passing the subject, access to the recovery and the recovery assessment for students who take the single assessment will be the same as for students who follow the continuous assessment.
THE SINGLE EVALUATION IS REQUESTED TELEMATICALLY (E-FORM) IN THE SPECIFIC PERIOD (more information on the Faculty's website).
Table 2. Description of the activities, duration and dates for students taking the single assessment.
| TABLE OF SINGLE ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES | |||
| Description of the activities | Points | Duration in hours (of the face-to-face event) | Date of completion |
| Ev6. Written Examination 1 (1h) | 4 | 3h 20m | Second assessmentperiod |
| Ev7. Written Examination 2 (1h) | 4 | ||
| Ev1-5. Resolution of situations that will involve the planning and interpretation of experiments equivalent to those carried out in the practices. (1h40min) | 2 |
THE DELIVERY OF THE TRANSLATION OF THE FACE-TO-FACE EVALUATION TESTS WILL TAKE PLACE IF THE REQUIREMENTS SET OUT IN ARTICLE 263 ARE FULFILLED AND THE APPLICATION IS MADE ON WEEK 4 TELEMATICALLY (E- FORM) (more information on the Faculty's website).
The Faculty's evaluation guidelines can be consulted at the following link: https://www.uab.cat/web/estudiar/graus/graus/avaluacions-1345722525858.html
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| Tutor | EV 1 WRITTEN ATTENDED | EV 2 WRITTEN ATTENDED | EV 3 WRITTEN ATTENDED | EV 4 WRITTEN ATTENDED | EV 5 WRITTEN ATTENDED | EV 6 WRITTEN ATTENDED | EV 7 WRITTEN ATTENDED | 7 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 15 | 11 | 20 |
Use of AI and electronic devices:
On time assistance to the course sessions is required, and electronic devices such as mobile phones or computers must be used properly.
AI technologies are authorized only for activities other than those used for assessment of learning evidences. AI can be used for searching bibliography or informations, but always verifying that these records are according with the matherials provided by the course.
Copy or plagiarism, as well as the use of any device not authorized by the professor, will imply that the evidence will be qualified with 0 points, and recovery will not be allowed.
Bibliography
Essential bibliography (reference manuals):
Domjan, Michael i Delamater, Andrew R. (2023). The essentials of conditioning and learning. Fifth edition. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
(This manual updates the main learning and conditioning phenomena and describes them in a summarized way. It can be considered a key text for a thorough understanding of the contents of the subject, together with the Domjan's manual described next).
Domjan, Michael (2010). Principios de aprendizaje y conducta. Sexta edición. Mèxic: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning (Versió original en anglès, 2010).
(Comprehensive manual covering a vast majority of learning and conditioning phenomena with many examples and illustrations.There is a 7th edition in spanish published by Cengage Learning in 2016. However, we recommend to use the original english version because of deficiencies in the translation to spanish language).
Complementary bibliography:
Cándido, Antonio (2000). Introducción a la psicología del aprendizaje asociativo.
Madrid: Biblioteca Nueva.
De Vicente, Francisco (2010). Psicología del aprendizaje. Madrid: Síntesis.
Froufe, Manuel (2004). Aprendizaje asociativo. Principios y aplicaciones. Madrid: Thomson.
Pellón Suárez de Puga, Ricardo. (Coord.). (2014). Psicología del aprendizaje. Madrid: UNED.
Rosas, Juan M., García, Ana i Callejas, José E. (2005). Fundamentos del aprendizaje humano. Jaén: del Lunar.
Software
Alloway, Tom; Wilson, Greg; and Graham, Jeff (2006). Sniffy. La Rata Virtual. Pro Versión 2.0. Madrid: Thomson Editores (Original English Version, 2005).
Course groups and languages
The information provided is provisional until November 30. After this date, you will be able to consult the language of each group through this link. To access the information, you will need to enter the course CODE
| Type of teaching | Group | Language | Semester | Shift |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (TE) Theory | 1 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (TE) Theory | 2 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (TE) Theory | 3 | Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (TE) Theory | 4 | Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (TE) Theory | 5 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 111 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 111 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 112 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 112 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 113 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 113 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 114 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 114 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 211 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 211 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 212 | Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 212 | Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 213 | Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 213 | Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 214 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 214 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 311 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 311 | Catalan/Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 312 | Catalan/Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 312 | Catalan/Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 313 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 313 | Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 314 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 314 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 411 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 411 | Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 412 | Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 412 | Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 413 | Catalan/Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 413 | Catalan/Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 414 | Catalan/Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 414 | Catalan/Spanish | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 511 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 511 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 512 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 512 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (PLAB) Practical laboratories | 513 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (SEM) Seminars | 513 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |