The Essentials of Conditioning and Learning

by Michael Domjan, Andrew R Delamater PhD

Overview

This concise and accessible summary of the essentials of conditioning and learning by Michael Domjan, one of the top researchers in the field, quickly guides students to key topics. Domjan summarizes contemporary perspectives and makes research results understandable. This book is perfect for professors and students who want an accurate account of learning and conditioning—the "essentials"—without excessive detail.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781433840142
Publisher:	American Psychological Association
Publication date:	08/22/2023
Edition description:	Fifth Edition
Pages:	306
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 10.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Michael Domjan, PhD, is a professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, where he has taught learning to undergraduate and graduate students for four decades. He also served as department chair from 1999 to 2005 and was the founding director of the Imaging Research Center from 2005 to 2008. Dr. Domjan is noted for his functional approach to classical conditioning, which he has pursued in studies of sexual conditioning and taste aversion learning. His research was selected for a MERIT Award by the National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. Domjan is a past president of the Pavlovian Society and also served as president of the Society for Behavioral Neuroscience and Comparative Psychology of the American Psychological Association (APA). In 2014, he received the D. O. Hebb Distinguished Scientific Contributions Award from APA Division 6 (Society for Behavioral Neuroscience and Comparative Psychology). Dr. Domjan also enjoys playing the viola and is the director of the Tertis/Pavlov Project, which consists of a series of minilectures (available on YouTube) that describe how learning is involved in musical experience and performance.

Table of Contents

Preface
Chapter 1. Basic Concepts and Definitions
Chapter 2. The Substrate for Learning: Unconditioned Behavior
Chapter 3. Habituation and Sensitization
Chapter 4. Pavlovian Conditioning: Basic Concepts
Chapter 5. Stimulus Relations in Pavlovian Conditioning
Chapter 6. Pavlovian Conditioning Mechanisms and Theories
Chapter 7. Instrumental or Operant Conditioning
Chapter 8. Schedules of Reinforcement
Chapter 9. Theories of Reinforcement
Chapter 10. Extinction of Conditioned Behavior
Chapter 11. Punishment
Chapter 12. Avoidance Learning
Chapter 13. Stimulus Control of Behavior
Chapter 14. Memory Mechanisms
Glossary
References

What People are Saying About This

Beth Ann Rice

This is a comprehensive yet accessible textbook about learning mechanisms. Written with both undergraduate and graduate students in mind, this book offers a wealth of information that is easy to grasp and practical to apply in behavior analysis. And now, with new resources, this edition is even more appealing to faculty teaching the material for the first time.

Laurence J. Nolan

The 5th edition remains an excellent core text to build a course around. It provides a clear, concise, and contemporary presentation of critical learning phenomena and theory. The application of learning research to human experience is particularly appealing to psychology students.

Robert C. Honey

This book provides a cohesive and accessible introduction to the essential features of conditioning and learning: from the design of well controlled behavioral experiments to the theoretical and applied perspectives that bear on their results. Each chapter provides an engaging and authoritative account of a given topic, accompanied by links to other chapters and a pathway to further study through well-chosen additional readings and supplemental videos. I have no hesitation in recommending this book to students from a broad range of disciplines, including psychology and neuroscience.

Editorial Reviews

A core text for an introductory course in conditioning and learning; a supplementary text for courses in behavior modification, behavioral neuroscience, special education, and related areas; or a foundation for an advanced course requiring students to read specialized articles. Domjan (psychology, U. of Texas-Austin) succinctly summarizes the essentials. No date is mentioned for the first edition. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews

Reviewer: Gary Kaniuk, PsyD (Cermak Health Services)
Description: This introduction to conditioning and learning uses examples from both animals and humans to clinical health challenges. The previous edition was published in 2004.
Purpose: The purpose is to offer "a concise introduction to learning and conditioning that describes the most influential research findings and theoretical perspectives." This edition also "describes how the latest discoveries in the field are being applied to tackle major clinical health problems."
Audience: In addition to serving as a textbook for an introductory course on conditioning and learning, the book "can also serve as a supplemental text for courses in neuroscience, clinical psychology, applied behavior analysis, developmental psychology, and psychopharmacology. The author, a professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, has over 40 years of teaching and clinical experience and has received an award for his work from the American Psychological Association."
Features: The book begins with basic concepts and definitions of behavioral psychology. It discusses the features of learning and distinguishes between naturalistic and experimental observations. The author describes Pavlovian conditioning, with an emphasis on conditioned stimuli vs. unconditioned stimuli. The temporal relationship between conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus is reflected in simultaneous conditioning, delayed conditioning, and trace conditioning. The author also explores Skinnerian theory, also known as operant or instrumental conditioning. The schedules of reinforcement determine rates of behavior. Thorndike introduced the Law of Effect, where reinforcement makes a connection between response and stimuli. Avoidance learning results in avoiding an aversive stimulus. When the organism learns to respond to certain stimuli and avoid others, it is called differential responding. The book ends with a discussion of the difference between learning and memory. The book includes a glossary of terms and numerous figures.
Assessment: This excellent book walks readers clearly through behavioral psychology, both classical and operant conditioning. The basic concepts are fully explained, making the book appropriate for beginning and advanced classes in behavioral psychology. The chapters in this edition have been updated with new information, including clarifications, new references, and more suggested readings.

Doody's Review Service

This excellent book walks readers through behavioral psychology, both classical and operant conditioning. The basic concepts are full explained, making the book appropriate for beginning and advanced classes in behavioral psychology.” —Doody’s Review Service

"Highly engaging and accessible, this concise text reviews the most essential discoveries in the study of the psychology of animal learning. The issues are examined from a variety of perspectives — ethological, associative, behavior analytic, and behavioral economic. Psychology students and investigators in related disciplines looking to acquaint themselves with the key concepts and phenomena driving our understanding of basic learning processes will benefit greatly from this book." —Andrew R. Delamater, PhD, Professor of Psychology, Brooklyn College, and Graduate Center of the City University of New York, New York

"In this thoughtfully revised edition, Domjan's writing is carefully constructed to avoid as much jargon as possible in a jargon-prone and jargon-rich field. The learning and conditioning processes are contextualized so that readers without particular expertise can appreciate the role of such processes in everyday life, as well as the importance of research in the area to solve significant health problems faced by society." —Rick Bevins, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln

"Domjan expertly delivers on what the book's title promises. Each chapter integrates the fundamentals of learning with evolutionary processes through conversational text and clear diagrams and figures — a well-balanced text for undergraduate courses on learning and behavior." —Christopher A. Podlesnik, PhD, BCBA-D, Associate Professor, Schools of Psychology and Behavior Analysis, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne

 

From the Publisher