🐘 Comprehensive Study Notes: Fagen et al. (Elephant Learning) (2014) 🐘
Welcome to the Learning Approach!
Hello! This core study, Fagen et al., is a fantastic example of how psychological theories, specifically the Learning Approach, can be applied in real-world settings—in this case, improving the welfare and management of working elephants in Nepal. You will see Operant Conditioning in action!
Section 1: The Psychology Being Investigated
1.1 The Learning Approach Assumptions
Remember, the Learning Approach assumes that all behaviour is acquired through experience and interaction with the environment. This study focuses heavily on Operant Conditioning.
What is Operant Conditioning?
Operant conditioning is learning based on the consequences of voluntary actions. The elephant performs a behaviour (operant), and the consequence determines if the behaviour is repeated.
- Reinforcement: A consequence that makes a behaviour more likely to happen again. Fagen et al. rely almost entirely on this.
- Punishment: A consequence that makes a behaviour less likely to happen again (e.g., traditional harsh training methods, which Fagen et al. aimed to replace).
1.2 Key Concepts in Operant Conditioning (Fagen et al.)
The study specifically uses three core concepts to achieve complex training:
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Reinforcement Types:
- Primary Reinforcement: Satisfies a biological need (e.g., food, water). For the elephants, this was tasty rewards like sugar cane or rice balls.
- Secondary Reinforcement: Has no biological value but has been learned through association with a primary reinforcer (e.g., money, praise, or a clicker sound). In this study, verbal praise and a whistle/clicker were used.
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Shaping: This is the process of rewarding successive approximations of a desired behaviour. You reward small steps that move closer to the final, complex behaviour.
Analogy: Teaching a dog to roll over. First, you reward lying down. Then, lying down and turning slightly. Finally, the full roll. - Behavioural Chaining: Linking several smaller, already-learned behaviours together in a specific sequence to form one complex routine. The elephant must learn the sequence of actions for the trunk wash task.
Section 2: The Core Study: Fagen, Acharya & Kaufman (2014)
2.1 Background to the Study
Traditionally, working elephants in places like Nepal were often trained using aversive methods (punishment or negative reinforcement). These methods can cause stress and aggression in the animals.
The specific behaviour investigated—the trunk wash—is necessary veterinary care to prevent infections, but elephants often resist it if trained aggressively. Fagen et al. sought a humane, effective alternative.
2.2 Aim(s) of the Study
The main aim was to investigate the use of Positive Reinforcement Training (PRT) to teach working elephants a specific, complex veterinary behaviour (the trunk wash) in order to improve their captive management and welfare.
2.3 Procedure and Methodology
Research Method:
The study primarily used a structured observation method to measure the elephant's progress, but it was carried out as a training intervention programme.
Sample:
Eight working Asian elephants (cows and bulls) based in Nepal. This is a relatively small, specific sample of animals.
Key Features of the Procedure:
The procedure relied heavily on shaping and behavioural chaining using primary and secondary reinforcers.
Step-by-step Training Process (Using Shaping):
- Goal: Teach the elephant to tolerate having its trunk washed (a necessary veterinary procedure).
- Initial Stage (Target Training): The elephant was rewarded (with treats/praise) simply for placing its trunk on a specified 'target' (a piece of rubber matting). This starts the foundation for the behaviour.
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Successive Approximations: The trainers gradually increased the requirement. Rewards were only given when the elephant:
- Held the target for longer.
- Allowed the trainer to touch the trunk while on the target.
- Allowed a small amount of water to be poured near the trunk.
- Final Behaviour: The elephant places its trunk on the target, tolerates the full water wash, and holds the position until the trainer signals the end. This sequence of actions is the behavioural chain.
Data Collection (The Measurements):
The researchers used a behavioural checklist to objectively measure success.
- Quantitative Data: Measures included accuracy (did the elephant perform the task correctly?) and latency (how long did it take the elephant to initiate the behaviour after the command?).
- Qualitative Data (Welfare): Observations included notes on the elephant's physical state (e.g., struggling, signs of stress), which indicated their welfare improvement.
Section 3: Results, Findings, and Conclusions
3.1 Key Results (Quantitative Findings)
- The elephants learned the complex trunk wash behaviour rapidly.
- The elephants showed consistently high accuracy rates (often over 90%) in performing the task after training was complete.
- The average latency (time taken to start the behaviour) decreased significantly over the training period, showing that the elephants responded quickly and reliably to the command.
- The success rate was high even when the secondary reinforcer (the whistle/praise) was used without the immediate primary reinforcer (food). This shows strong secondary reinforcement training was successful.
3.2 Main Conclusions
Fagen et al. concluded that Positive Reinforcement Training is an effective, non-aversive method for teaching complex behaviours like veterinary procedures to working elephants. Furthermore, this method improves elephant welfare by replacing harsh, traditional methods with cooperative, positive interactions.
Section 4: Evaluation and Debates
4.1 Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths:
- High Application to Everyday Life: The findings have immediate practical use in improving the management and welfare of captive animals globally (zoos, sanctuaries, working animals).
- High Ecological Validity: The study took place in the elephants’ natural, working environment in Nepal, not a sterile lab, making the results highly representative of real-life behaviour.
- Objective Measurement: Using a structured behavioural checklist to record accuracy and latency meant the data collected was objective and reduced the risk of subjective interpretation.
Weaknesses:
- Low Generalisability: The sample size was small (8 elephants) and specific (working Asian elephants in Nepal). The results might not apply to African elephants or elephants in different captive settings (e.g., European zoos).
- Potential for Observer Bias: The trainers/researchers were involved in the training, and their close relationship with the animals might have led them to subtly interpret behaviours more positively (although the structured checklist helps mitigate this).
4.2 Issues and Debates
The Use of Animals in Psychological Research
This study scores highly ethically regarding animal research because its primary purpose was to minimise harm and maximise benefit.
- Minimising Harm: The study actively replaced potentially harmful, negative training techniques with gentle, positive reinforcement methods, improving the elephants' quality of life.
- Procedures: No pain or suffering was inflicted; rewards were used throughout.
- Housing/Species: The study was conducted in the elephants' established working home, and the methodology was tailored specifically to the intelligence and social nature of the elephant species.
Nature Versus Nurture
This study strongly supports the Nurture side of the debate. It shows that complex behaviours (like tolerating a trunk wash) are learned through environmental interaction and systematic training (operant conditioning), rather than being purely innate (Nature).
Individual and Situational Explanations
The study emphasizes the Situational Explanation. The elephants' behaviour (learning the trunk wash) is explained by the external environment—specifically, the systematic application of reinforcements and the careful training structure. However, individual differences in learning speed were observed, suggesting some influence from individual factors (e.g., personality or prior learning history).