Answer to Question #271686 in Management for Kaka

Question

Nikita is a Change Manager with Nelson & Murdock. In the view of the way the business

landscape is evolving with more reliance on technology, she intends to bring about many

new initiatives which require employees to unlearn certain aspects and learn many new

approaches. Many learning theories have been prevalent which organizations use from

time to time.

a. If employees need to learn certain model behaviors demonstrated by leaders, which

learning theory should Nikita select for faster results?

b. How does learning through reinforcement bring about behavior modification in

employees?

Answer 1

a)     Learning is defined as a process of obtaining, enriching, or changing one's knowledge, skills, values, attitudes, behavior, and world views by combining personal and environmental experiences and influences. Nikita should choose cognitive psychology as the most influential learning theory for faster results. Employees are no longer seen as collections of responses to environmental stimuli, as behaviorists understand them, but as information processors, according to the idea. Unlike behaviorists, cognitive psychology will pay attention to complicated mental events. The emergence of the computer as an information-processing technology, which became similar to the human mind, affected the hypothesis. Learning is defined as the acquisition of knowledge in cognitive psychology: the learner is an information processor that absorbs data, performs cognitive operations on it, and stores it in memory. As a result, it will be employees' preferred means of learning particular model behaviors displayed by leaders.

b)     The importance of reinforcement in the learning process cannot be overstated. Reinforcement, according to the law of effect, is anything that raises the power of the response while also tending to inspire repetitions of the behavior that preceded the reinforcement. Reinforcement can also be described functionally: something is reinforcing if it strengthens the response before it and causes it to be repeated. Reinforcement is a technique that involves supplying or removing a stimulus immediately after a behavior to assist enhance the likelihood that it will occur again in the future. Positive reinforcement is when a pleasant stimulus is used to encourage a desired behavior. Positive punishment involves the introduction of an unfavorable stimulus in order to deter the conduct. Negative reinforcement is when a negative stimulus is removed in order to encourage a desired action.