I.

The content of learning and memory module:

1. Learning module:
The learning module focuses on the mechanisms and processes through which individuals acquire new
knowledge, skills, and behaviors
1.1. Types of learning:
1.1.1 Classical conditioning
a. Overview information
- In the early 1900s, Ivan Petrovich Pavlov, a Russian physiologist who had won a Nobel Prize
in physiology for his research on digestion, which offered a simple explanation for learning called
“classical conditioning” or “Pavlov conditioning”. Classical conditioning is the process by which
an organism learns a new association between two stimuli – a neutral stimulus and one that
already evokes a reflexive response.
- Pavlov believed that presenting two stimuli close to each other in time developed a connection
between their brain representations. However, animals do not treat the conditioned stimulus
similarly compared to the unconditioned stimulus. Also, being close in time is not enough.
Learning occurs if the first stimulus predicts the second stimulus
- Pavlov’s experiment involves the study of the digestive systems of dogs. During his research,
he noticed that a dog secreted digestive juices as soon as it saw the lab worker who customarily
fed the dog. In addition, he assumed that animals are born with automatic connections called
“unconditioned reflexes” between a stimulus such as food and a response such as secreting
digestive juices.
b. The process of experiment:
- Before training:
 At first, he gave a dog food -> the dog salivated. He called food unconditioned
stimulus (UCS) and he called the salivation the unconditioned response (UCR).
 The unconditioned stimulus (UCS) is an event that automatically elicits an
unconditioned response.
 The unconditioned response (UCR) is the action that the unconditioned stimulus
elicits.
 Next, he gave the dog a new stimulus (e.g. a metronome or other sound) -> the dog
had no response to the metronome, so the metronome was a neutral stimulus (NS)
with regard to salivation.
- During training:
 Pavlov sounded the metronome shortly before giving food to the dog -> the dog
salivated (UCR)
- After training:
 After a few trials, the dog began to salivate when hearing the sound of metronome
without giving food
 We called the metronome the conditioned stimulus (CS) because the response of the
dog depends on the preceding conditions. The salivation that followed the CS is the
 conditioned response (CR) – whatever response the conditioned stimulus elicits as a
result of the conditioning procedure.
c. Additional phenomena of classical conditioning:
- Acquisition is the process that establishes or strengthens a conditioned response (CR). An
acquisition of a response (CR) happens at the time the CS predicts the UCS.
- Extinction: If the CS (sound) is repeatedly presented without the UCS (food), the CR
(salivation) gradually diminishes and finally disappears. It is occurred because of a specific
experience that perceives the conditioned stimulus (CS) without the unconditioned stimulus
(UCS).
- Spontaneous recovery is a temporary return of an extinguished response after a delay. After a
period of rest, the CR (salivation) may reappear when the CS (sound) is presented again, even
without the UCS (food).
- Stimulus generalization is the extension of a conditioned response from the training stimulus
to similar stimuli. Conditioning generalizes more broadly after a strong unconditioned stimulus.
- Discrimination is the different response to stimuli that predicts different outcomes.
Discrimination training enhances sensitivity to sensory cues.
1.1.2 Operant conditioning
a. Thorndike and Operant conditioning
- Thorndike, a Havard graduate student, began training cats in a basement. He carried out an
experiment to give a simple behaviorist explanation of learning: He put cats into puzzle boxes
from which they could escape by pressing a lever, pulling a string or other means. He
sometimes gave food outside the box, but cats usually worked to escape from the box. They
learned through trial and error. Initially, cats tried various behaviors like pawing at the door
or scratching the walls. Eventually, they would accidentally trigger the mechanism to open
the door. Over many trials, the cats gradually and inconsistently improved their speed of
escape.
- Through the experiment, Thorndike concluded that learning happens because certain
behaviors are reinforced at the expense of others.
- He summarized his ideas in the law of effect: “Of several responses made to the same
situation, those which are accompanied or closely followed by satisfaction to the animal will,
other things being equal, be more firmly connected with the situation, so that, when it recurs,
they will be more likely to recur”.
- Operant conditioning (or instrumental conditioning) is the process of changing behavior by
providing a reinforce or a punishment after a response.
- In operant conditioning, the outcome produced by the subject’s behavior will affect the
future behavior. When the opposite is for the classical conditioning, the subject’s behavior
has no influence on the outcome.
- Generally, these two kinds of learning theory affect different behaviors. Classical
conditioning mainly has effect on visceral responses (e.g. salivation, digestion), whereas
operant conditioning is mainly applied for skeletal responses (e.g. movements of leg muscles).
However, this difference sometimes breaks down.
b. B. F. Skinner and his theory of operant conditioning
- Influenced by the “law of effect” made by Thorndike, B. F. Skinner introduced the study of
operant conditioning

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 - Operant conditioning, sometimes called instrumental conditioning or Skinnerian
conditioning, is a method of learning that uses rewards and punishment to modify behavior.
Through operant conditioning, behavior that is rewarded is likely to be repeated, while
behavior that is punished is prone to happen less.
- His theory was based on two assumptions. Firstly, the cause of human behavior relies on a
person’s environment. Secondly, the results of a behavior which is whether positive or
negative determine the possibility of being repeated in the future. During his research, Skinner
identified two kinds of responses that followed behavior, which are reinforcement and
punishment.
- Reinforcement is the process of increasing the future probability of a response that is
followed by a positive consequence or a negative consequence
- In contrast to a reinforce, a punishment is the process of decreasing the future probability of
a response. Punishment is most effective when it is quick and predictable. (e.g. the hot feeling
from touching a burning stove is highly effective in teaching you something to avoid)
- Categories of reinforcement and punishment:
The result of Reinforcement Punishment
behavior
Positive The behavior that leads to a positive It involves applying negative
outcome after being performed -> stimulus after an action to
increase in behavior decrease the probability of
(e.g. You go to work in order to earn that action happening again
money for a living) in the future.
(e.g. if a student skips class
many times, the teacher will
give his a minus mark -> he
will avoid skipping that
teacher’s class)
Negative A behavior is reinforced by removing or It involves removing or
avoiding a negative stimulus when the reducing a pleasant stimulus
behavior happens -> stimulate an to discourage a behavior
increase in behavior (e.g. A child has a falling
(e.g. Parents repeatedly tell their child to grade because of playing
clean their room. This only stops only game too much. His parents
when they finish cleaning. As a result, decide to take away his
this removal of repeated nagging serves computer)
as a negative reinforcement, which
encourages the children to clean)

1.2. The importance of learning:

Learning is the process of acquiring new knowledge, skills, behaviors or attitudes. The learning module
contains many theories, as I have listed above, classical conditioning and operant conditioning. These
theories play an important role in stimulating our learning. Classical conditioning explains how behaviors
and emotional responses affected by stimuli. Operant conditioning explains how our own behaviors
influenced by significant events such as reinforcement and punishment. The two types of learning have
powerful effects on behavior and they provide methods which allow scientists to analyze and develop
some useful ways to stimulate learning productivity. In addition, this module illustrates some of the many

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ways for us to have more insights about the unconditioned and conditioned responses on human
behaviors. To conclude, this learning module brings about many beneficial methods to enhance study as
well as our productivity in social lives.
2. The memory module:
2.1. The background information:
Memory is the retention of information. It comprises of skills such as riding a bicycle or typing a
shoelace. It also includes facts that never change (your birthday), facts that seldom change (your phone
number) and facts that frequently change (where you left your wallet/ your phone). In addition, memory
is defined as the psychological process that can acquire, store, retain and later retrieve information. It
involves three major processes such as encoding, storage and retrieval.
Memory reflects a human’s experience which are created by the process of memorizing in the form of
representations. Memory representations are images of objects or phenomena that arise in our minds,
which are both visually concrete and highly abstract compared to the images formed by sensation and
perception.
Hermann Ebbinghaus, a German psychologist, pioneered the scientific study of memory by observing
his own capacity for memorizing the list of nonsense syllables. He carried out an experiment to test his
own ability to memorize and retain information. He was the first one to explore memory capacity and
the forgetting process, laying the foundation for later research in psychology and memory.
2.2. Types of memory
Memory includes many types based on different kinds of characteristics of memory
2.2.1 Storing features
a. Procedural memory
Procedural memory (habit learning) is the process of retrieving information necessary to perform learned
skills. This kind of memory refers to skills and procedures that you have learned such as typing a shoe
or riding a bicycle. Procedural memory helps you remember how to perform actions, knowledge and
practical skills without needing to think too much.
b. Declarative memory
Declarative memory is memory that we can readily state in words. It relates to the ability to remember
and express information consciously in verbally or in writing. We need to remember intentionally and
makes an effort to recall.
2.2.2. The length of storing time
a. Short-term memory (STM)
Short-term memory is a temporary storage of recent events. It involves holding and processing
information for a short period of time. It is like the “waiting room” of the mind, where new information
arrives and stays shortly, waiting a decision on whether to retain or not.
b. Long-term memory (LTM)

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Long-term memory is a more permanent store. It refers to the system of retaining information in our
brain during a long period of time with a large storage. This includes the ability to remember and recall
knowledge, skills, events and other information that can last a whole life. There is no limit on the capacity
or duration that the long-term memory can hold and preserve.
Long-term memory comprises of two categories: semantic memory (memory of principles and facts) and
episodic memory (memory for specific events in your life)
+ Semantic memory: it mainly focuses on storing information relating to general knowledge, meanings
and concepts. It is the storage of abstract information that individuals accumulate from learning
experiences, social interactions and information learned from books, schools.
+ Periodic memory: it relates to the process of storing and recalling of specific events and personal
experiences that individuals have gone through in the past. It is the ability to remember information about
the time, space and other specific details of a specific event happened.
2.2.3 Working memory:
It is the process of the brain to temporarily store and process information during performing tasks such
as learning, working and daily activities. Working memory is usually used in situations requiring
thinking, problem-solving and performing tasks that demand concentration. It plays a crucial role in
learning when we have to retain and make use of short-term information while processing new
information.
2.3. The importance of memory.
In its simplest form, memory refers to the process of retaining information over time. It is an integral part
of human cognition, because it helps individuals to remember and recall past events to shape their
understanding and behavior in the present. Therefore, memory plays an important role in teaching and
learning. It helps us to retain and recall information, concepts, theories and skills through study and
practice. Without memory, study and education can be very challenging because people can’t absorb new
information based on previous knowledge. In addition, memory provides necessary information and
experiences to solve problems and make decisions. This is because it helps to evaluate different options
and predict future outcomes based on past experiences. Moreover, procedural memory (a type of long-
term memory) enables us to learn and become proficient soft skills that are very crucial in social lives
such as interaction, communication, riding a bicycle, swimming or learning foreign languages. This form
of memory helps us to perform complex tasks efficiently without conscious thought. In conclusion,
memory is a basis aspect of human cognition and experience, which has a big influence on every field of
our lives.
II. Explanation for the influence of learning and memory on personal behavior.
1. The influence of learning on personal behavior:
Learning is not just about acquiring knowledge, it also has a profound influence on personal behavior
which shapes how individuals responds to their environment, acquire new skills and adapt to new
situations. Firstly, a positive learning environment fosters growth and encourages positive behavioral
changes. This positive environment can motivate the students’ attitude towards studying, which increases
the productivity and efficiency. According to Astalini et al., (2019), attitude factors are an important
aspect of learning. This is because students’ positive learning attitudes contribute to good learning

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outcomes while improving their academic performance (Astalini et al., 2019; Kurniawan et al., 2018).
For example, students who have a positive learning attitude towards mathematics will consider
mathematics as an important subject, resulting in their trying to improve their math’s learning. Secondly,
learning enables individuals to adapt their behavior to changes in the environment. By acquiring new
information and skills, people can respond effectively to new changes and opportunities. Learning a new
language helps to communicate and easily adapt in a different culture. In addition, learning principles
such as reinforcement and punishment can be used to make changes in human behavior. This is often
applied in behavior therapy and educational settings. Positive or negative reinforcement can increase
behavioral changes, while the opposite is for positive or negative punishment. For instance, a teacher
uses positive reinforcement to encourage students to express their opinions in class by giving them bonus
points. Fourthly, one of other important impacts of learning on human behavior is self-regulated learning.
Learning motivation makes people become more disciplined and promote self-management in study.
Self-regulated learning, according to Pintrinch (2000), is defined as an active, constructive process
whereby learners set goals for their learning and then attempt to monitor, regulate and control their
cognition, motivation and behavior, guided and constrained by their goals and contextual features of the
environment. When adapting self-regulated learning, students can plan better learning strategies and
increase their productivity in studying. Hence, with the right assistance and guidance, learners can be
successful in applying self-regulated learning in their own life-long learning process according to “The
influence of learners’ motivation and self-regulated learning behavior”. In conclusion, learning is a
lifelong process that can influence individuals’ behavior in many ways. By learning new knowledge,
skills and change attitudes, beliefs and self-perception, we can adjust our behavior to become better
versions of themselves and achieve their goals.
2. The influence of memory on personal behavior
Memories are a part of all of us. Our memories influence how we perceive the world around us, how we
respond to new situations, perceive ourselves and interact with others. Over many times in life, we
accumulate various types of memories from everyday events to facts, subconscious behaviors and even
emotional patterns. It brings many positive changes in individuals’ behavior. Firstly, memory allows us
to recall the outcomes of previous behaviors, which enables us to learn from experience gained in the
past. Behaviors that previously led to positive outcomes tend to be repeated in the future, while negative
behaviors are avoided. In addition, memory plays an important role in decision-making. When we need
to make up our mind, memory provides us knowledge we earned from the past experience, which helps
to compare different choices based on past experiences to make better decision. Moreover, memory also
helps us to control our behavior through reminding us of our own rules, norms and goals. Memory makes
it easier to acquire new knowledge and skills. A strong memory leads to an increasing probability to
retain and recall information, which is essential for both theoretical understanding and the development
of soft skills. Memory is also indispensable for performing work smoothly. It helps us to remember tasks
we have done, are doing and need to do in the present and future, which can affect our behavior to be
suitable in work environment. In conclusion, memory is an important tool that helps us regulate our
behavior. By remembering experiences, learning from mistakes, planning, controlling behavior and
maintaining motivation, we can easily achieve success and live a meaningful life.
III. Recommend solutions:
3.1. Recommendations for enhancing positive effects of learning and memory on personal behaviors in
study and social environment

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Both learning and memory are complex functions of brain. Even though learning and memory maintain
an interdependent relationship, they are closely related concepts and both of them are fundamental to the
human behavior. It is not only important to learn new information but also necessary to store that
information in human’s working memory systems. Therefore, finding solutions to improve positive
functions of learning and memory is very important in controlling personal behavior. First of all, getting
enough sleep and reducing stress can have a positive impact on learning and memory. Sleep has a
powerful influence over our physical, mental and emotional well-being. Therefore, having enough sleep
is very beneficial for focus on learning, memory creation and memory retrieval. People can create good
sleep habit by getting daily exercises, avoiding screens before bedtime and keeping a regular sleep
schedule. Secondly, if you are having difficulty in learning and memory, you can train your brain by
reading books. During reading time, you can improve your ability to concentrate and increase the
functions of working memory. By reading books regularly, you may boost your cognitive abilities such
as focus, memory, attention, language skills and imagination. It can be better to spend some spare time
each day reading favorite books in a quiet, no distraction environment. Another useful method that can
develop human learning and memory is meditation. This kind of exercise can help reduce anxiety,
improve attention and focus, promote emotional control. According to some studies, findings show that
meditation can increase gray matter in the brain, particularly in areas associated with learning, memory
and executive function. Meditation can help broaden working memory capacity and enhance cognitive
flexibility, which are essential to adapt to new environment and study more efficiently. These methods
above are necessary in developing learning and memorizing skills, which bring positive influences on
changing personal behaviors.
3.2. Recommendations for reducing negative effects of learning and memory on personal behaviors in
the study and social environment.
While learning and memory have many positive effects on personal behavior, they also have negative
influences on behavior. Such as, somebody may learn negative behaviors or habits that can adversely
affect personal behavior. For example, learning to cope with stress through unhealthy behaviors such as
smoking or overeating. Or, learning fixed information in the past although that fixed mindset is harmful.
People may sometimes reinforce a fixed mindset, where individuals believe their abilities are
unchangeable. For example, a person who was bad at math previously may avoid improving in that area
in the future. This also leads to low problem-solving because learning harmful problem-solving gained
from past experiences can negatively impact behavior. They may rely on avoiding rather than facing to
solve the problems directly, which can result in unresolved issues. In addition, individuals can suffer
from traumatic memories that can cause long-psychological issues such as PTSD (posttraumatic stress
disorder). Facing to negative past experiences can prevent individuals from moving forward and taking
positive actions. These negative effects of learning and memory that I have listed above can be cut down
on by many kinds of ways. Firstly, to reduce the negative effects caused by memory on behaviors, we
can apply CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) to address negative memories by working with a
therapist. This kinds of technique can help to challenge ourselves and get over negative past experiences
in order to start a new life more meaningfully. In addition, people should encourage themselves to step
out of their comfort zones compared to the past by setting new goals and absorbing new insights.
Secondly, people can reduce harmful learning by adapting to innovative learning strategies or learning
critical thinking skills to helps them evaluate and reflect on their learning experiences. Besides,
individuals can promote healthy ways to cope with stress and challenges by participating in social
activities to make more friends relationship or focusing on healthy hobbies such as reading, playing

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sports instead of harmful behaviors like smoking or overeating. By implementing these
recommendations, people can get rid of negative effects brought by learning and memory on personal
behavior. It is very essential to develop a growth mindset, promote critical thinking and provide
therapeutic support in fostering healthier behaviors and more positive life outcomes.