1 | Page
Athabasca University
Psychology Psychology 387 - Learning - Final
Study Guide - Long Answer Questions and
Answers Latest 2026s
Today, some psychologists argue that forgetting is learning.
Explain this idea. Ans: Some psychs say that behaviour comes
from stimulus control when we learning and the reason we learn is
because of those stimuli. But if those stimuli aren't present then
the behaviour that is associated with them originally will not
occur. It may not be forgetting but just a different learning
experience that results n different behaviour. Everything, learning
and forgetting included, is dependent on the context of the
situation and cues.
Does learning inevitable mean progress? Why or why not. Ans: The
whole premise behind learning is that we learn to adapt and
change to our environment and there for anything we learn has
some "value", even if it's just for a short period of time. But we can
learn in ways that are not product to ourselves or our
© 2025 All rights reserved
, 2 | Page
environments in the long runs. Which means that not all learning
can be considered progress.
Why has observational learning received less attention then other
forms of learning? Ans: Few different reasons, one is that early
research in observation learning (Thorndike and Watson) was
unable to demonstrate observational learning. It wasn't until the
30's that research had results showing animals can learn by
observation (Warden)
You hold the patent on a special beard-trimming razor, so it is to
you advantage if beards are popular. How would you use
modelling to increase the popularity beards? Ans: Peer modelling,
you start wearing a beard and then in theory people around you
would start also wearing beards and so on. Commercials could be
made to show that people with beards are found attractive and
receiving compliments for their beards.
Discuss DOE and its implications for discrimination training. Ans:
DOE or differential outcomes effect says that discrimination
© 2025 All rights reserved
, 3 | Page
training happens at a much faster rate when different behaviours
produce different consequences/reinforcers. DOE has proven to be
effective in learning a second language as demonstrated in
research by McClelland and colleagues when teaching Japanese
students english. Also, any type of job where you have to be
familiar with many different concepts and how those concepts
differ from one another, would benefit from DOE. Training animals
also requires the ability to discriminate between smells.
The chief limitation of natural selection as a means of adapting to
change is that____. Ans: NS is very slow. In Gordon's guppy study
it took up to 26 generations before any significant adaptations
were made and aided in survival. Humans take far longer to reach
sexual maturity then guppies so it could potentially take hundreds
of years to see successful adaptations. NS is unable to help us
adapt when there is a rapid change in the environment.
Learning is a change in behavior due to: Ans: A change in
behaviour due to experience. In order for a species to learn there
© 2025 All rights reserved
Athabasca University
Psychology Psychology 387 - Learning - Final
Study Guide - Long Answer Questions and
Answers Latest 2026s
Today, some psychologists argue that forgetting is learning.
Explain this idea. Ans: Some psychs say that behaviour comes
from stimulus control when we learning and the reason we learn is
because of those stimuli. But if those stimuli aren't present then
the behaviour that is associated with them originally will not
occur. It may not be forgetting but just a different learning
experience that results n different behaviour. Everything, learning
and forgetting included, is dependent on the context of the
situation and cues.
Does learning inevitable mean progress? Why or why not. Ans: The
whole premise behind learning is that we learn to adapt and
change to our environment and there for anything we learn has
some "value", even if it's just for a short period of time. But we can
learn in ways that are not product to ourselves or our
© 2025 All rights reserved
, 2 | Page
environments in the long runs. Which means that not all learning
can be considered progress.
Why has observational learning received less attention then other
forms of learning? Ans: Few different reasons, one is that early
research in observation learning (Thorndike and Watson) was
unable to demonstrate observational learning. It wasn't until the
30's that research had results showing animals can learn by
observation (Warden)
You hold the patent on a special beard-trimming razor, so it is to
you advantage if beards are popular. How would you use
modelling to increase the popularity beards? Ans: Peer modelling,
you start wearing a beard and then in theory people around you
would start also wearing beards and so on. Commercials could be
made to show that people with beards are found attractive and
receiving compliments for their beards.
Discuss DOE and its implications for discrimination training. Ans:
DOE or differential outcomes effect says that discrimination
© 2025 All rights reserved
, 3 | Page
training happens at a much faster rate when different behaviours
produce different consequences/reinforcers. DOE has proven to be
effective in learning a second language as demonstrated in
research by McClelland and colleagues when teaching Japanese
students english. Also, any type of job where you have to be
familiar with many different concepts and how those concepts
differ from one another, would benefit from DOE. Training animals
also requires the ability to discriminate between smells.
The chief limitation of natural selection as a means of adapting to
change is that____. Ans: NS is very slow. In Gordon's guppy study
it took up to 26 generations before any significant adaptations
were made and aided in survival. Humans take far longer to reach
sexual maturity then guppies so it could potentially take hundreds
of years to see successful adaptations. NS is unable to help us
adapt when there is a rapid change in the environment.
Learning is a change in behavior due to: Ans: A change in
behaviour due to experience. In order for a species to learn there
© 2025 All rights reserved
