19 TYPES of LEARNING in psychology

What is learning in psychology? Knowledge of the different types of learning could help us in various ways, especially when, for example, we should choose which teaching method is the best based on the context and the situation. But how many types of learning can we identify? With this Psychology-Online article we will see what are the types of learning in psychology, with examples. Among which we include the types of educational, significant, expected and cognitive learning.

Index

1. Habituation
2. Sensitization
3. Classical conditioning
4. Learning from trial and error
5. Operant conditioning
6. Imprinting
7. Imitation or vicarious learning
8. Active learning
9. Latent learning
10. Cooperative learning
11. Situated learning
12. Formal learning
13. Non-formal learning
14. Informal learning
15. Significant learning
16. Project-based or problem-based learning
17. Autonomous Learning
18. Learning by discovery
19. Service learning

If you want to first know the definition of learning according to authors, you will find it in this article about what is learning in psychology.

Habituation consists of reduced behavioral responsereflected after repeated presentation of a non-noxious stimulus. This phenomenon is very important because, like all forms of learning, it allows man and animal to adapt to the environment. Indeed, living things quickly learn to ignore repeated harmless stimuli and, therefore, to focus on stimuli that are instead harmful.

• In the human being a example classic habituation is the lack of response to a loud noise after it has been presented many times.

The phenomenon of sensitization consists of general increase in an organism's response to weak stimuli that follow a noxious stimulus.

• Let's see a example. Suppose that at night, while we sleep, for two seconds, due to a false contact, the alarm in our house begins to sound. We are going to wake up and we are going to explore the environment to see if someone has entered. Although we realize that the thieves have not entered, we cannot sleep: we feel with terror every noise in the house that we previously ignored. We have simply become sensitized to a harmful stimulus (the sound of the anti-theft device), so we respond in a amplified to any noxious stimulus (house noises): also this simple way of learning is revealed adaptive.

Another of the most relevant types of learning is classical conditioning. Conditioning is the process by which behavioral modifications occur, establishing a association between a certain stimulus and a certain response. The first to investigate conditioning was the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov: in its experiment more famously, he started from the consideration that the salivation of dogs in front of food was an unconditioned reflex, that is, an innate response of the organism. Later, he came to notice that the dog salivated not only when he came into direct contact with the food, but also simply by hearing an acoustic signal that the experimenter had managed to constantly associate with the delivery of the food. This reaction of the animal, in the absence of the relative stimulus, was called the conditioned reflex.

In this article you will find more information about the classical conditioning.

Even before Skinner's works, Thorndike had shown that learning is done by trial and error.

• A cat or a monkey, in a cage closed by a series of bolts that can be made in sequence, after a series of unsuccessful attempts came to the correct sequence, opening the cage. When they got back into the cage, they repeated the correct sequence without errors and came out.

On this basis, Thorndike developed what is known as the "law of effect", according to which an individual hangs associate to a certain situation or problem the answer, among those tested, that produced the greatest satisfaction for him.

It was mainly B. F. Skinner who continued the studies on conditioning, elaborating the so-called instrumental or operant conditioning. The purpose of this type of learning is produce new behaviors through a series of reinforcements.

• Skinner's best-known experiment concerns a hungry rat housed in a cage in which find a lever with an empty tray next to it: just press the lever to activate the mechanism of food input In the container. The rat will do this first accidentally, but then, being constantly reinforced by the food produced as a result of the pressure of the lever, will repeat the behavior more and more often. In this case it is the response of the subject (pressing the lever) to be instrumental with respect to the production of the reward (reinforcement).

Imprinting is a form of learning by which the offspring of some animal species, from the first days of life, develop a behavior of strong attachment to a precise object, which they also keep as adults. K. Lorenz (1935) observed that newly hatched nests follow the first moving object they see. The mechanism is based on the fixation of the attachment object for a certain critical time that varies from species to species and can range from first hours of life, for the more autonomous species, to a few weeks, for the "inept" (whose children need parental care to survive). The phenomenon has been called imprinting ("printing" or "printing on") because in this phase the small assimilates characteristic stimuli-signals of the attachment figure to the point of remaining conditioned in the future in a way that is difficult to reverse.

Following the types of learning, we find the vicarious learning. Learning by imitation or "observatory" as Bandura calls it, promotes acquiring skills, information and behaviors simply by observing and listening to other people. Even if Bandura do not consider reinforcement necessary, it does not exclude its occurrence; Indeed, the punishment or praise that the model receives is also a reinforcement for the observer, a reinforcement called vicariant. The vicarious reinforcement contributes to develop the capacity of self-regulation in the subject, which observing the behavior of others collects information that helps you abstract the rule, evaluate actions and acquire norms of conduct.

Active learning occurs when a person takes control of their own learning experience: Since understanding information is the fundamental aspect of learning, it is important to recognize what is understood by what is not understood. Active learning fosters a internal dialogue in which the agreements are verbalized. Studies within the metacognition they have demonstrated the value of active learning; Furthermore, people have more incentive to learn when they have control not only over how they learn, but also over what they learn. Active learning is a fundamental characteristic of the learner-centered learning; on the contrary, passive learning and direct education are the characteristics of teacher-centered learning (or traditional education).

We can ride a bicycle without being able to say how and why, or we can learn a foreign language using its grammar rules without knowing them. These latent learnings play a central role in our daily lives, as they allow us to learn and learn once and for all and repeat automatically highly complex actions. Not infrequently these unconscious forms of learning are much more effective and persistent than conscious ones.

Social constructivism is the epistemological paradigm that more than any other has demonstrated the importance of cooperative learning or collaborative learning. It maintains that our approach to reality is mediated by the relationships we establish with others and considers learning as a personal interpretation of the world derived from the experiences of each of U.S. In this model, the negotiation of meanings with others is particularly important, since learning involves both individual and social processes: the construction of individual identities and, at the same time, the construction of a symbolic universe, shared collectively, is done through dialogue interaction.

Another important approach in the field of constructivism is situated or localized learning, which states that learning develops as a result of participation in activities, in specific contexts and in relationships with people. Authentic learning is always situated: that is why there cannot be an abstract learning of a situation; furthermore, from the learner's point of view, it is usually unintentional and characterized as a natural derivation of an authentic interaction.

This type of learning takes place in structured environments, trainers (such as schools, institutes, universities, etc.), with a defined curriculum and an institutional faculty. It leads to the obtaining of recognized diplomas and qualifications. It is part of the logic of intentional learning processes on the part of the subject.

Non-formal learning takes place outside the main education and training structures.

• For example, at work, in associations, in unions ...

In general, this type of learning does not lead to official certificates. This category includes activities that complement formal systems (such as elective or learning pathways) that are not taken into account for accreditation purposes. This typology is also part of the logic of an intentional type.

Informal learning is the set of all daily experiences that generate learning in various contexts work, family and free time, which do not present any conscious and explicitly educational intentionality. This category includes peer groups, communities, communicative and relational exchanges and all those less socially codifiable experiences. Unlike formal and non-formal learning, informal learning is not necessarily deliberate and therefore Therefore, it may not be recognized, sometimes by the interested party, as a contribution to her knowledge and competencies.

Another type of learning is Ausubel meaningful learning. David Paul Ausubel is the psychologist and pedagogue who created the theory of meaningful learning, which says that learning depends on prior knowledge. That is the new information is linked to what is already known, to form new learning. This type of learning argues that pre-existing knowledge must be taken into account.

Project-based learning or project-based learning in problems is a type of learning that occurs during the process of solving a challenge, question, problem or case. Since to solve the problem or find answers to the questions, it is necessary to investigate and learn. Today, it is considered one of the most successful educational methodologies.

This type of learning is a way of acquire knowledge independently and self-directed. That is, the person directs, regulates and evaluates their own learning process, which is carried out through research, reading, preparation of work ...

Discovery learning is a type of learning that consists of direct interaction with reality. In this case, learning occurs when something is discovered by personal experience that was not known. There are different types of discovery: inductive, deductive, and transductive.

Finally, another type of learning can be service learning, which consists of learn while performing a task that helps society. The great advantage of this type of learning is that it is live, that the person who learns is doing it in a real context and not simulated. The person learns through experience, while his work and her effort have an impact on reality.

• For example, when secondary school students help primary school students with homework. Or, instead of studying the types of leaves in a book, help the waste collection staff during leaf collection to notice the different types.

This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to Types of learning in psychology, we recommend that you enter our category of Cognitive psychology.

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