This course explores the fundamental principles of learning theory and behaviorism, focusing on how experience shapes behavior. It begins with an introduction to classical conditioning, explaining how associations are formed between stimuli and responses. Learners will examine key concepts such as extinction, generalization, discrimination, and aversive conditioning through clear examples and classic research studies.

The course then moves to operant conditioning, where behavior is influenced by its consequences. Topics include reinforcement and punishment, operant conditioning chambers, schedules of reinforcement, shaping, chaining, and instinctive drift. The Premack Principle is introduced to explain how preferred behaviors can reinforce less-preferred ones.

Beyond traditional behaviorism, the course explores cognitive models of learning, including the Rescorla-Wagner model, which explains how prediction and expectation influence learning. Observational learning is examined through Bandura’s famous Bobo Doll study, highlighting how behavior can be learned by watching others.

Additional topics include latent learning, cognitive maps, abstract learning, and insight learning, demonstrating that learning is not always directly observable. Review questions are included to reinforce understanding. This course is ideal for beginners, psychology students, and anyone interested in understanding how behavior is learned, maintained, and modified.