Week 6 — Readings & Resources · Learning

Course: Introduction to Psychology (PSYC 1) · Silver Oak University (fictional sample) · Prof. Bennett
Objective covered: Objective 5 — Compare the major models of learning and memory and apply them to everyday behavior (this week: learning).

How to use this page

Everything here is a link to an external resource — open it in your browser, the same way you'd open a YouTube link. Nothing needs to be downloaded.

This week's load is deliberately light: 4 short readings + 1 video, grouped by the ideas from the lecture, plus one optional full-chapter reference. Read or watch one item per group and you're ready for the quiz; do all of them and you'll be very comfortable. Total time is roughly 45–55 minutes if you do everything, far less if you pick one per group.

Reading order that matches the lecture: ① classical conditioning (UCS/UCR/CS/CR) → ② operant conditioning (reinforcement vs. punishment) → ③ schedules of reinforcement → ④ observational learning (Bandura).

A habit to start now: as you read, label what you see. Every example is either classical (an automatic response to a signal) or operant (a voluntary behavior with a consequence) — and whenever you read "negative reinforcement," ask the one question that beats the big trap: did the behavior go UP?

① Classical Conditioning · UCS / UCR / CS / CR

Maps to Lecture Segments 2–3. Learning an association between two stimuli, so a once-neutral signal (the bell, the office smell) comes to trigger a learned response.

Reading — "Classical Conditioning: How It Works With Examples" (Simply Psychology)
🔗 https://www.simplypsychology.org/classical-conditioning.html
Why it's assigned: the cleanest plain-language walkthrough of the UCS → UCR → neutral stimulus → CS → CR sequence, with everyday examples — exactly the labeling move we did in class.
⏱ ~9 min

Reading — "Pavlov's Dogs Experiment & Pavlovian Conditioning Response" (Simply Psychology)
🔗 https://www.simplypsychology.org/pavlov.html
Why it's assigned: the original study told as a story (Pavlov's accident), plus a clean UCS/UCR/CS/CR table and the processes — acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, generalization. The factual "Little Albert" note is here too.
⏱ ~8 min

② Operant Conditioning · Reinforcement vs. Punishment

Maps to Lecture Segment 4. Voluntary behavior shaped by its consequences. Hold the headline as you read: reinforcement INCREASES behavior, punishment DECREASES it; positive = add, negative = remove.

Reading — "Operant Conditioning: What It Is, How It Works, and Examples" (Simply Psychology)
🔗 https://www.simplypsychology.org/operant-conditioning.html
Why it's assigned: lays out Thorndike's law of effect and Skinner's four consequences with the same 2×2 logic from the board — and directly untangles the negative-reinforcement-≠-punishment trap that the quiz and assignment target.
⏱ ~10 min

③ Schedules of Reinforcement

Maps to Lecture Segment 5. Remember the memory hook: variable-ratio is the jackpot schedule — unpredictable payoff that produces the highest, most persistent behavior (slot machines, phone notifications).

Reading — "Schedules of Reinforcement in Psychology (Examples)" (Simply Psychology)
🔗 https://www.simplypsychology.org/schedules-of-reinforcement.html
Why it's assigned: walks the four schedules (fixed/variable × ratio/interval) one at a time with everyday examples, and explains why variable-ratio is the most resistant to extinction — the slot-machine point we made in class.
⏱ ~9 min

④ Observational Learning · Bandura

Maps to Lecture Segment 6. A third route to learning: we learn by watching a model, no direct reinforcement to us required.

Video — "How to Train a Brain: Crash Course Psychology #11"
🔗 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qG2SwE_6uVM
Why it earns the click: a fast, lively tour of the whole week — Pavlov and classical conditioning, Watson, Skinner and operant conditioning, positive vs. negative reinforcement, primary vs. conditioned reinforcers, and reinforcement schedules. The single best 10-minute review of Segments 2–5.
⏱ ~10 min

Reading — "Bandura's Bobo Doll Experiment on Social Learning" (Simply Psychology)
🔗 https://www.simplypsychology.org/bobo-doll.html
Why it's assigned: the classic observational-learning study told clearly — children imitating an aggressive model — plus vicarious reinforcement (we copy what we see rewarded). Read the aim, method, results, and the vicarious-reinforcement section.
⏱ ~9 min

Optional one-stop reference (free online text)

If you'd like one optional reference to skim all term, OpenStax Psychology 2e keeps its full text free to read online. Chapter 6 ("Learning") covers everything in this week — what learning is, classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and observational learning.
🔗 https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/6-introduction
Why it's here: a reputable, currently-available reference you can return to in later weeks — entirely optional this week.

Pick-one quick path (≈19 min total)

In a hurry? Do exactly these two and you'll be ready for the quiz:
1. Watch Crash Course Psychology #11 — How to Train a Brain (covers groups ①–③).
2. Read Operant Conditioning (group ②) for the reinforcement-vs-punishment logic, and skim the Bobo Doll intro + results (group ④).

Heads-up (links rot): these point to outside sites that occasionally move or rename pages. If a link ever fails, tell Prof. Bennett and use the OpenStax reference above in the meantime.