The Essentials of Conditioning and Learning

Now in its fourth edition, Michael Domjan amp rsquo s classic textbook offers an introduction to learning and conditioning in a concise and accessible style, including the latest influential research findings and theoretical perspectives.   Basic principles of learning and conditioning are relevant to an increasingly broad range of psychologists and neuroscientists. Yet in recent years, these core areas have become less prevalent in psychology and neuroscience curricula. As a result, many researchers today lack the training to understand key concepts that underlie human development and behavior.   Moreover, while the field of learning and conditioning is more than a hundred years old, new discoveries continue to be made and new applications of basic research are tackling major clinical problems. Domjan summarizes these developments as well as basic learning and conditioning principles using both human and animal examples. Students and scientists from multiple areas of psychology and neuroscience will value this succinct overview of the processes and mechanisms responsible for conditioning and learning.  

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 999 to 2 5 and was the founding director of the Imaging Research Center from 2 5 to 2 8. 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 2 4, he received the D. O. Hebb Distinguished Scientific Contributions Award from APA Division (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.

Review :
amp ldquo 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. amp rdquo -Doody amp rsquo s Review Service amp quot 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. amp quot -Andrew R. Delamater, PhD, Professor of Psychology, Brooklyn College, and Graduate Center of the City University of New York, New York amp quot 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. amp quot -Rick Bevins, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska, Lincoln amp quot 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. amp quot -Christopher A. Podlesnik, PhD, BCBA-D, Associate Professor, Schools of Psychology and Behavior Analysis, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne