learning

Definition:
Learning may have a number of meanings, depending upon the context in which it is used, and Sperling (in Psychology, 1967) comments that 'the process of learning can consist of all, or some, or one of three steps: inventing an original solution to a problem. or thinking: committing a solution to memory, or memorizing: becoming efficient at applying the solution to a problem, or forming a habit.' In essence there are two schools of thought concerning what is learned - the stimulus-response (S-R) school, and the cognitive school. Although there are some divisions within the S-R camp, the basic theory is that we learn to associate given responses to specific stimuli and these become habitual. One group of S-R theorists subscribes to the view that learning occurs only when there are rewards or punishments to reinforce the correct response, while others believe that learning is the result of an association between a stimulus and response occuring together, i.e. they are contiguous, and that reinforcement is not necessary. In contrast to the S-R theorists, the cognitive school argue that we learn cognitive structures, i.e. more broadly based interpretations of the association between stimuli and alternative courses of action. In a marketing context there would seem to be support for both theories, in that some consumption behaviour is routinized and habitual (S-R school), while other purchasing decisions are subject to extensive problem-solving generalizing from past experience (cognitive school). The division of opinion about what we learn also exists in the case of how we learn. S-R theorists maintain that learning occurs through a process of trial and error - ' a view based on extensive experimental evidence using animals. However, some leading members of the cognitive school (notably Wolfgang Kohler) developed what is termed the GESTALT explanation of learning as being based on insight. While it seems likely that the truth is a combination of both schools of thought, in which some actions are learned through direct personal experience based upon trial and error, while others are the product of explanations tend to dominate consumer-behaviour research in marketing. In turn the most sophisticated statement of S-R theory which underlies much of this consumer-behaviour research is that developed by Clark Hull in Principles of Behavior: An Introduction to Behaviour Theory (1943), whose basic model is as follows: E = D x K x H x V where E = behaviour and is a multiplicative function of D = drive, K = incentive potential, H = habit strength, and where V intensity of the cue. Drives are discussed at greater length under MOTIVATION, where a distinction is made between a drive which is viewed as the initial stimulus and a motive which is a tendency to activity. It is not felt that this distinction is important in the context of Hull's model. The remaining terms are essentially self-explanatory, and it is clear that in a marketing situation two of the variables - the incentive potential, or satisfaction offered by the product, and the intensity of the cue - are controllable to a considerable degree by the seller. It should also be noted that as the equation is multiplicative no reaction will occur if any of the variable has a zero value. At first sight this would seem to suggest that consumers would never try new products, for if they have not consumed them before, then H (or habit) would be expected to have a zero value. However, this possibility is negated by the principle of generalization, whereby we extrapolate from past experience to a new situation. This potentiality is exploited by companies with generic brand names, where satisfactory experiences with one product group creates a favourable predisposition towards new product groups. Of course generalization is only potential, and past experience soon teaches us that it is not always true that all the products introduced by a company will automatically yield the same level of satisfaction as the one which we originally approved of. In other words we learn to discriminate between very similar cues or stimuli. Before leaving this brief overview of some learning-theory concepts which have been incorporated into studies of consumer behaviour, it should be noted that Howard and Sheth's Theory of Buyer Behaviour (1969) is essentially a learning model. It should also be noted that two important areas of research in marketing draw heavily upon learning theory for their conceptual framework - namely, the study of ADVERTISING EFFECTIVENESS and of BRAND LOYALTY.

Cross-References:
[brand loyalty] [gestalt psychology] [motivation] [advertising effectiveness]

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