Basic principles of learning are always operating and always influencing human behavior. This module discusses the two most fundamental forms of learning -- classical (Pavlovian) and instrumental (operant) conditioning. Through them, we respectively learn to associate 1) stimuli in the environment, or 2) our own behaviors, with significant events, such as rewards and punishments. The two types of learning have been intensively studied because they have powerful effects on behavior, and because they provide methods that allow scientists to analyze learning processes rigorously. This module describes some of the most important things you need to know about classical and instrumental conditioning, and it illustrates some of the many ways they help us understand normal and disordered behavior in humans. The module concludes by introducing the concept of observational learning, which is a form of learning that is largely distinct from classical and operant conditioning.

This is a YouTube channel with about three dozen short (15 min) talks about various topics related to learning and behavior or conditioning and learning. The talks cover the full range of topics typically included in a course on learning, including habituation, classical conditioning, instrumental conditioning, schedules of reinforcement, theories of reinforcement, behavioral economics, the Premack principle, extinction, stimulus control, and memory, The talks were written and delivered by Michael Domjan, Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin and are based on Domjan's popular textbooks, The Principles of Learning and Behavior (published by Cengage) and The Essentials of Conditioning and Learning (published by the American Psychological Association). The number of talks and range of topics is sufficient to make up all of the lectures needed for a course on learning.

Psychology is designed to meet scope and sequence requirements for the single-semester introduction to psychology course. The book offers a comprehensive treatment of core concepts, grounded in both classic studies and current and emerging research. The text also includes coverage of the DSM-5 in examinations of psychological disorders. Psychology incorporates discussions that reflect the diversity within the discipline, as well as the diversity of cultures and communities across the globe.Senior Contributing AuthorsRose M. Spielman, Formerly of Quinnipiac UniversityContributing AuthorsKathryn Dumper, Bainbridge State CollegeWilliam Jenkins, Mercer UniversityArlene Lacombe, Saint Joseph's UniversityMarilyn Lovett, Livingstone CollegeMarion Perlmutter, University of Michigan

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Explain how classical conditioning occursSummarize the processes of acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, generalization, and discrimination

Video should be watched after the first video labeled "Classical conditioning..." as this video explains some more advanced concepts of classical conditioning that requires knowledge from the first video. Duration: 5:33.

A description of the learning phenomenon of classical conditioning, including unconditioned, conditioned, and neutral stimuli and responses.
Duration: 5:45.

A brief introduction to Pavlov's experimental work that led to the discovery of classical conditioning. Includes important terminology related to classical conditioning, including conditioned, unconditioned, and neutral stimuli/responses, acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, generalization, discrimination. Also a brief description of the famous experiment by Watson in which he conditioned fear of a rabbit in a child named Albert.