Animal Learning

by Roger Abrantes

Course Description

Animal learning is the science that studies how animals learn the various behaviors they display. We review all the fundamental principles of learning that you need to master for training animals or to implement behavior modification. Animal Learning is a course based on scientific evidence and research and independent of political agendas or trends. It is indispensable for animal trainers and instructors.

In lesson one, we deal with motivation; lesson two reviews classical and operant conditioning; lesson three goes into detail with learning, signals, discrimination, generalization, stimulus control, and much more.

Course Level

Intermediate to advanced. It is an essential course for an animal trainer. Some of the content is at an advanced level and may require an extra effort on your part. Join the course forum and pose any question you may have. Your tutors will answer you. You should, preferably, have taken Evolution and Anatomy and Physiology before you take Animal Learning.

Course Textbook

“Animal Learning”

by Roger Abrantes, Ph.D. in Evolutionary Biology and Ethology.

 

Book contents

Chapter 1 Learning.
Chapter 2 Signals.
Chapter 3 Discrimination, generalization, and stimulus control.
Chapter 4 Increasing and decreasing behavior.
Chapter 5 Reinforcement schedules.
Chapter 6 Advanced operant procedures.
Chapter 7 Plan of action.

Supplementary Literature

Although not mandatory, we recommend that you supplement your readings with:

Online Studying and Tutoring

Watch the movie(s) and read the book(s). Join the course forum where you can read our tutors’ answers to questions previously posed by your colleagues. If you have a new question, do not hesitate in posting it.

The course forum is solely for academic questions. For administrative matters or difficulties accessing the functionality of the site, please submit a ticket.

Once you’re ready for it, take the quizzes. You may take a quiz as many times as you like. We recommend you re-take quizzes once a year as a self-imposed quality control.

Supplementary Literature

Although not mandatory, we recommend that you supplement your readings with:


Roger Abrantes

Ph.D. in Evolutionary Biology and Ethology, BA in Philosophy. Author to 27 books, speaks seven languages. Retired in 2016, lectured on Ethology, Evolutionary Biology, and Epistemology. Currently writing articles and blogs and occasionally sailing and diving in Thailand.

View all articles by Roger Abrantes


Ethology Institute