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The Rat Pack

No rat was harmed in the making of this blog.

  • Home
  • Intro
    • Defining Psychology
    • Research Studies in Psychology
  • Brain
    • Introduction to the Brain
    • Split-Brain Experiments
    • Brain Plasticity
  • Lifespan
    • Piaget and a Child’s Mind
  • Sensation / Perception
    • An Introduction to Perception
    • The Human Eye
    • The Gestalt Principles
    • Perceiving Depth
    • The Müller-Lyer Illusion
    • Perceptual Set/Expectancy
  • Social Psych
    • Prosocial Behaviour
    • Milgram’s Study of Obedience
  • Research Methods
    • Case Studies in Psychology
  • Rat’s History
    • Little Albert
    • Rat Feeding Frenzy

Introductory Topics

[Page still under construction]

Defining Psychology

Research Studies in Psychology

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Blog Author – Roslyn Green

About this blog:

Originally, I created this blog purely for the day-to-day use of my students, but as they grow up and I grow inexorably older, I have begun to design pages specifically for the use of other teachers and students as well. In the page menus under the header picture, you can locate many units with downloadable handouts, recommended activities, online quizzes, interactive crosswords and the like. Feel free to make use of anything that comes in handy!

All the very best from Roslyn Green

(High School Teacher, Victoria, Australia)

My Other Blogs:

  • Emit Repoons on a Mission – Junior History
  • German Island – German
  • Teachers die, but books live on – Junior English

Recent Posts

  • Welcome to Psychology January 7, 2019
  • The Müller-Lyer Illusion – A Research Activity July 10, 2018
  • Perceptual Set/Expectancy July 9, 2018
  • Perceiving Depth June 22, 2018
  • The Gestalt Principles June 20, 2018
  • A Perceptual Walk June 18, 2018
  • Distinguishing Sensation and Perception June 16, 2018
  • Mental Health, Mental Illness and Classification February 12, 2018
  • Research Investigation – Unit 1, 2017 February 1, 2017
  • People in Groups August 21, 2016
  • Sensation and Perception June 24, 2016
  • Mental Well-Being and Mental Disorders May 16, 2016
  • Development | Piaget and a Child’s Mind March 24, 2016
  • Ethical issues | More on the brain March 13, 2016
  • Your brain and your dancing neurons… February 21, 2016

Blog Avatar

The humble rat has had plenty to do with the history of psychology. Some might say too much. At this blog we show our appreciation for the work of rats, who have demonstrated that they can learn, play basketball, ride on skateboards, press levers and run mazes - all with a certain bright-eyed eagerness and patience towards their human oppressors.

Pages

  • A Rat’s History of Psychology
    • Little Albert
    • Rat Feeding Frenzy
  • Brain
    • Brain Plasticity
    • Introduction to the Brain
    • Split-Brain Experiments
  • Introductory Topics
    • Defining Psychology
    • Research Studies in Psychology
  • Lifespan
    • Piaget and a Child’s Mind
  • Research Methods
    • Case Studies in Psychology
  • Sensation and Perception
    • An Introduction to Perception
    • Perceiving Depth
    • Perceptual Set/Expectancy
    • The Gestalt Principles
    • The Human Eye
    • The Müller-Lyer Illusion
  • Six Interactive Options for Teachers and Bloggers
  • Social Psychology
    • Milgram’s Study of Obedience
    • Prosocial Behaviour
  • Unit 2 Revision – 2018

The Salivating Dog


Ivan Pavlov was studying biology and digestion when he noticed something odd: the dogs in his experiment salivated BEFORE they were given the meat powder. Pavlov had identified a form of learning that makes it possible to condition people to respond in a reflex way.

That means, you can LEARN to respond INVOLUNTARILY. Spooky, but true.

A Modern Replication of Milgram’s Experiment


This chilling experiment from the 1960s is replicated in the modern day.

At one stage one of the participants, with a little giggle, says to the experimenter, "Have we killed him?"

Recommended viewing for all those who do not wish to follow too slavishly the commands of a malevolent authority figure...

A Sleep Laboratory

This footage provides a step-by-step description of what happens in a sleep laboratory, showing the measures of physiological responses that are used.

A Reenactment of Milgram’s Obedience Experiment

Below are the second and third parts of a Milgram-like experiment.
Part 2


Part 3

Teaching a Rat to Play Basketball

Complex behaviours can be taught through SHAPING - rewarding something that is a small step towards the behaviour you finally want the organism to display.

For instance, if I wanted my daughter to clean her room, I could reward her at first just for making her bed, then for picking up an item from the floor...This shaping process can take a while. My daughter and I are still working on it.

But thankfully the little rat in the video below is pretty quick on the uptake.

What is Alzheimer’s Disease?

This little video will give you a clear introduction to this devastating disease.

The Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease

This is a brief video about the effects of Alzheimer's Disease.

A Pecking Pigeon

In this form of learning the organism acts on the environment in order to gain a reward (or avoid something unpleasant).

A simple introduction to this idea is provided in the video below:

Teaching Pigeons to Play Ping-Pong

No, they can't hold the little racquets; they have to use their beaks. But they are very dedicated players, for all that. These pigeons have learned to play a version of table tennis, with the help of the principles of operant conditioning.

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