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Related Concept Videos

Purposive Learning01:22

Purposive Learning

329
E. C. Tolman emphasized the purposiveness of behavior — the idea that much of our behavior is goal-directed. For instance, employees who aim for a promotion work diligently to meet their targets. Tolman argued that when classical conditioning and operant conditioning occur, the organism acquires certain expectations. In classical conditioning, a child might fear a dog because they expect it to bite. In operant conditioning, a person might consistently work overtime because they expect a...
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Observational Learning01:12

Observational Learning

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Albert Bandura's observational learning, also known as imitation or modeling, occurs when a person observes and imitates another's behavior. It is a quicker process than operant conditioning. A well-known example is the Bobo doll study, where children who saw an adult acting aggressively towards the doll were more likely to act aggressively when left alone, compared to those who observed a nonaggressive adult. Many psychologists view observational learning as a form of latent learning...
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Introduction to Learning01:18

Introduction to Learning

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Learning is the process of acquiring knowledge or skills through practice or experience, leading to long-lasting behavioral changes. This acquisition occurs through interaction with the environment and requires practice or experience. For instance, mastering a skill such as surfing requires considerable practice and experience, highlighting the essential role of repeated interactions with the environment in learning.
In contrast to learned behaviors, unlearned behaviors such as crying, sexual...
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Long-term Potentiation01:35

Long-term Potentiation

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Long-term potentiation, or LTP, is one of the ways by which synaptic plasticity—changes in the strength of chemical synapses—can occur in the brain. LTP is the process of synaptic strengthening that occurs over time between pre- and postsynaptic neuronal connections. The synaptic strengthening of LTP works in opposition to the synaptic weakening of long-term depression (LTD) and together are the main mechanisms that underlie learning and memory.
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Long-term Potentiation01:25

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Long-term potentiation, or LTP, is one of the ways by which synaptic plasticity—changes in the strength of chemical synapses—can occur in the brain. LTP is the process of synaptic strengthening that occurs over time between pre and postsynaptic neuronal connections. The synaptic strengthening of LTP works in opposition to the synaptic weakening of long-term depression (LTD) and together are the main mechanisms that underlie learning and memory.
Hebbian LTP
LTP can occur when...
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Cognitive Learning01:21

Cognitive Learning

896
Cognitive learning is based on purposive behavior, incidental learning, and insight learning.
E. C. Tolman's theory of purposive behavior emphasizes that much behavior is goal-directed. He argued that to understand behavior, we must look at the entire sequence of actions leading to a goal. For instance, high school students study hard, not just due to past reinforcement but also to achieve the goal of getting into a good college.
Tolman introduced the idea that behavior is influenced by...
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Related Experiment Video

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Study Motor Skill Learning by Single-pellet Reaching Tasks in Mice
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Study Motor Skill Learning by Single-pellet Reaching Tasks in Mice

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Extended Skill Learning.

Edward Baggs1, Vicente Raja1, Michael L Anderson1,2,3

  • 1Rotman Institute of Philosophy, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada.

Frontiers in Psychology
|September 14, 2020
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Skill learning extends beyond bodily changes, encompassing organism-environment interactions. This extended approach redefines learning as adaptive organization of environmental constraints on activity.

Keywords:
animal–environment systemecological psychologyembodied cognitionenactivismpsychological explanationskill learning

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Science
  • Ecological Psychology
  • Enactive Cognition

Background:

  • Tension exists between narrow (bodily change) and extended (animal-environment system) views of skill learning.
  • Ecological and enactive approaches offer differing perspectives on skill acquisition.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To resolve the tension in skill learning approaches by advocating for an extended understanding.
  • To propose that skill learning is fundamentally about the interaction between an organism and its environment.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of skill learning through the lens of ecological and enactive frameworks.
  • Examination of example cases: maintaining upright posture and walking in children.
  • Focus on the role of environmental structures as enabling constraints.

Main Results:

  • Bodily changes in skill learning are embedded within broader organism-environment interactions.
  • The unit of analysis for skill learning should be the activity, not just the body.
  • Learning involves establishing and adaptively organizing enabling environmental constraints.

Conclusions:

  • An extended approach to skill learning unifies ecological and enactive perspectives.
  • This framework offers a path toward understanding higher cognition through radically embodied principles.
  • Environmental structures are crucial, dynamically changing components of skill acquisition.