Learning And Behavior Change in Humans

 

The very thing that seems to be constant in this world is change and unarguably it is brought about by learning. The more one commits oneself to learning then thus marks the imminence of behavioral change. Although it might not happen instantly ,or take longer than anticipated but the end result remains constant in all scenarios. Thus it is the ones devotion to learning that results in the total behavioral change though merely without the little resemblance of the past behavior as marked by cardinal traits. It being minded, learning is not a one day thing but is a process and requires both involved parties unwavering commitment and dedication as well as devotion to learning propelled by the desire to change for the better. Research in the field of behavioral change or behavior has highlighted that there are quite a number of ways we humans learn which include social learning (learning by observation and imitation of others) and cognitive learning ,brought about through studying and increasing in search of new skills and competences. With that being said this paper seeks to explore the change in behavior as a result of learning at length.

From the onset it must be indicated that  the learning behavior is an inherent thing that has evolved in humans and other species from the old days till today .Regardless of the scenario or situations , in order to survive humans and animals ought to learn to adapt to the new environment hence from there learning has been part of the day to day survival need  or skill that has kept the human race and other living species in existence against extinction. One may note that learning whether done directly , or indirect, one divot time to study an do courses or subliminally respectively all the end result is the same learning would have taken place as noticed by a shift or change in ones behavior. According to Darwin who propounded the Natural Selection theory , Darwin posed that Natural selection produces a repertoire of largely innate, adaptive forms of behavior that help organisms cope with the demands of their particular environment (Ruse,2000). The behavior falls into three categories: reflexes, modal action patterns, and general behavior traits which at many times are as a result of learning and the coded information through the DNA is passed to the next generation. However it must be indicated that one of the main problem though with the Darwin Natural Selection is that as a way of coping with change , it is slow and occurs over generations hence cannot accommodate abrupt changes, but yet marked the basis of learning and behavior as the foundations of behavior change (Quammen, 2005).

 

Unarguably, one can note that for learning to be said it has occurred or taken place, it is evidenced by the change in the observable behavior of the species. According to Moore, (2011) behavior can be conceptualized as anything a person or other animal  does   that can be measured. Buam (2011) extended the classification by proposing that actually anything an animal does might  qualify as behavior , whether measurable or not, however for scientific  analysis we tend to be limited to those behaviors, or things we can measure. It must be emphasized that change  does not necessarily mean acquisition; it simply means that some feature of a given behavior is modified. What is modified is behavior, which means anything a  person or other animal does that can be measured. Scholars in the field of learning  tend to agree that  the  changes in behavior are products of experience; that is, changes in the environment. One may pose that a  general rule of thumb is that , no change in the environment,  mean no change in behavior;  therefore   two forces contribute to behavior: natural selection, which modifies characteristics of the species, including behavior; and learning, which modifies the behavior of the individual.

 

In addition it must be indicated that to measure learning mean to measure a change in behavior and different ways can be used to measure such which include , error, topography, intensity, latency  and speed. It must be indicated that these natural selection methods tend to pave way for further study and theorization by Pavlov , Skinner and Tolman whose contribution in the study of learning immensely transformed the today’s perspective of learning and behavior change (Change 2014). Error, as a common measure of learning portrays that a reduction in the number of errors in completing a task can be an indicator of how much has been achieved or learned. For example the reduction of mistakes of wrong turns a rat makes in completing the maze run shows how much it has learned. More so, intensity as am measure of  change in behavior also can be measured  for instance ; When a laboratory rat learns to press a lever, the resistance of the lever may be increased so that greater force is required to depress it (Change 2014). Therefore the  increase in pressure exerted by the rat is a measure of learning or having taught a child to sing a song, one can then teach her to sing it more softly. In addition, a change in the speed with which a behavior is performed is another measure of learning. The rat that learns to run a maze reaches the goal faster than an untrained rat . In the same way, a first grader takes a long time to recite the alphabet at the beginning of the year but later runs through it with the speed of an auctioneer.

It must therefore be noted  that in these measures of learning the main focus is to observe the change in behavior which marks the occurrence of the process of learning, without such results (noticeable and measurable change in behavior) then learning would have not taken place.

 

Ivan Pavlov, building on the Darwin Approach  work in classical conditioning influenced  the contemporary understanding of learning .Like others in the field of learning Pavlov believed that learning is relatively permanent change in  behavior or knowledge due to experience .He posed that people learn primarily by identifying  relationships between events and noting the regularity of patterns in the world around them  and adaptation is  the adjustment  to changes in the environment which the process of development, from birth to death involves adapting to increasingly complex , ever changing environments  using continuously updated knowledge and skills gained through experience (Cuny,1962).. One can note that this links with  Darwin assumptions that events do not just  happen but they are a result of a cause  and effect, or caused by another thing or happening elsewhere although linked directly or indirectly.  Pavlov  experiment demonstrated classical conditioning , in which a neutral stimulus is repeatedly paired with a stimulus that already triggers a reflexive responses until the previous neutral stimulus alone provokes a similar response (Hollis,1997).. It must be indicated that the stimulus that already elicits a response without learning (paired association)  is the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) and the automatic response to this stimulus is the unconditioned response (UCR) (Angier, 2009). More so,  the conditioned stimulus (CS) begins as a neutral stimulus , but after pairing with the (UCS) it acquires the capacity  to elicit the learned conditioned response (CR).One may pose that this pave room for behavior modification and control as behavior change  is as a result of learning , it gave room for the today educators to influence positive behavior , and mold students behavior due to learning and associations as proved by Pavlov. Hence the famous quote that all behavior can be learned can also be unlearned.This leads one to the idea of extinction and spontaneous recovery as alluded by Pavlov.

 

It must be indicated that as a conditioned stimulus (CS) and a unconditioned stimulus (UCS) are paired repeatedly , a conditioned  response is gradually learned , or acquired .Extinction occurs as a result of eliminating the unconditioned stimulus and repeatedly presenting the conditioned stimulus alone, one may note eventually the conditioned  stimulus will no longer  elicit the conditioned response (Moore,2011).. One may note that this means the desired learned result of learning in behavior will no longer be evident. However Pavlov stressed that  there is a possibility of reconditioning , which is a quick relearning of a contained response  after extinction .Because  reconditioning tend to take less time than the original conditioning , extinction must not have completely erased  the association between the conditioned stimulus and the conditioned response, hence Spontaneous recovery may occur. Spontaneous recovery is conceptualized as the temporary reappearance  of the conditioned response  after extinction  but without further paring (Change 2014). One may note that  the longer the Tim between extinction and the reappearance of the CS , the stronger the recovered conditioned response. For instance when they learned behavior can be elicited even though there is no conditioned stimulus  presented.

 

Worth noting is the stimuli generalization and discrimination. It must be indicated that stimulus generalization occurs when  the stimuli similar to the conditioned stimuli also elicit the conditioned response , the strongest the conditioned responses are elicited by stimuli that are most similar to the original conditioned stimuli. It must be indicated that this happens as a result of the individual failure to differentiate the stimuli from the conditioned stimuli resulting in the eliciting of a conditioned response yet to the wrong signal or stimuli.  Therefore, In the same line, stimuli discrimination  complements generalization in the sense that  through stimulus discrimination one learns to differentiate between similar stimuli. 

 

A close analysis of the Pavlov an conditioning indicates that organisms and humans  acquire conditioned responses when one even reliably predicts or signals the unconditioned stimuli, hence such learned associations helps to construct mental representations of the relationships between events in their environment. Also worth noting  is that there are conditions that are a prerequisite for classical conditioning to  occur, which include timing, predictability   and signal strength. One may note that timing as applied in classical conditioning, works best when the conditioned stimulus precedes ( predicts) the unconditioned stimuli. There is no single best interval for every situation  hence classical conditioning will always be weaker if the interval between the conditioned stimulus and the unconditioned is longer than what is ideal for the stimuli and response in a given situation. Furthermore, predictability portrays that , it  may be insufficient for a conditioned stimuli   to merely come before the unconditioned stimuli. Hence classical conditioning proceeds most rapidly when the conditioned stimulus  always signals the unconditioned  stimuli and only the unconditioned stimulus .  lastly being signal strength, which  poses that a conditioned response is learned faster when the unconditioned stimuli is strong ,hence the conditioned response will be learned more quickly if the cue or conditioned stimuli attracts attention (Moore,2011)..Unarguably attention plays a crucial role in classical conditioning  as the stimulus that is most closely attended to and perceived is most likely to become a conditioned  stimuli that later triggers a conditioned response.

 

Applicability of the theory with regards to learning and behavior change one can highlight that some instance, irrational fears of objects or situations called phobias may be classically conditioned. For instance, dangerous situations can produce   for long lasting fears and at best they are treated by systematic desensitization a procedure   that associates a new response such as relaxation with a feared stimulus. Pavlov believed that the CR and UR were the same and that the CS merely substituted for the US; hence the name stimulus substitution theory. Subsequent research showed that the CR and UR are often quite different; sometimes even the opposite of one another. Other theories account for this by proposing that the CR prepares the organism for the US or helps it compensate for its effects. The Rescorla-Wagner model suggests that whether a particular stimulus becomes a CS depends on the salience of the stimulus and the US and on the total amount of conditioning that can occur. None of the theories of Pavlovian conditioning has provided a satisfactory explanation of all conditioning phenomena. However, each has generated a great deal of research, which has, in turn, enriched our understanding of conditioning and may one day lead to a more successful theory.

 

To sum up as indicated above, behavioral change is as a result of learning, without learning there is no change as per the rule of the thumb, and both animals and humans learn from experience and at best is usually associations as posed by Pavlov. Hence one’s ability to learn from the association of events plays an important role in survival, and it also enriches individual lives. Therefore as our understanding of Pavlovian conditioning has improved, we have found myriad ways of putting it to practical use. Many of them greatly enrich our lives and understanding of behavior change.