James E. Mazur - Böcker

First published in 1986. This is Volume V of six in a series on Quantitative Analyses of Behavior. Quantitative analysis now generally refers to the fact that theoretical issues are represented by quantitative models. An analysis is not a matter of fitting arbitrary functions to data points. The volumes in the present series have been written for behavioral scientists. Those concerned with issues in the study of how behavior is acquired and then allocated in various environments-biologists, psychologists, economists, anthropologists, and other researchers, as well as graduate students and advanced undergraduates in those areas-should find volumes in this series to be state-of the-art readers and reference works. Each volume of the series examines a particular topic that has been discussed at the annual Symposium on Quantitative Analyses of Behavior held at Harvard University. This volume, V, addresses the topic of how reinforcement value is affected by delay and intervening events. Self-control studies are also presented and discussed.

Learning and Behavior reviews how people and animals learn and how their behaviors are changed because of learning. It describes the most important principles, theories, controversies, and experiments that pertain to learning and behavior that are applicable to diverse species and different learning situations. Both classic studies and recent trends and developments are explored, providing a comprehensive survey of the field. Although the behavioral approach is emphasized, many cognitive theories are covered as well, along with a chapter on comparative cognition. Real-world examples and analogies make the concepts and theories more concrete and relevant to students. In addition, most chapters provide examples of how the principles covered have been employed in applied and clinical behavior analysis. The text proceeds from the simple to the complex. The initial chapters introduce the behavioral, cognitive, and neurophysiological approaches to learning. Later chapters give extensive coverage of classical conditioning and operant conditioning, beginning with basic concepts and findings and moving to theoretical questions and current issues. Other chapters examine the topics of reinforcement schedules, avoidance and punishment, stimulus control and concept learning, observational learning and motor skills, comparative cognition, and choice.Thoroughly updated, each chapter features many new studies and references that reflect recent developments in the field. Learning objectives, bold-faced key terms, practice quizzes, a chapter summary, review questions, and a glossary are included. The text is intended for undergraduate or graduate courses in psychology of learning, (human) learning, introduction to learning, learning processes, animal behavior, (principles of) learning and behavior, conditioning and learning, learning and motivation, experimental analysis of behavior, behaviorism, and behavior analysis.