On Monday 25 May, a group of Year 12 students visited Perth Zoo as part of our Psychology ATAR course. The excursion gave us the opportunity to connect what we have been learning in class about classical conditioning, operant conditioning and social learning theory to real-life examples.
During the visit, we attended a lecture presented by the zoo educators, who explained how they train and care for animals using psychological learning principles. One of the most interesting things I learned was that the zoo only uses positive reinforcement when training animals. This means the animals are rewarded when they demonstrate the desired behaviour, increasing the likelihood that the behaviour will happen again. This linked directly to operant conditioning and helped make the concept much easier to understand.
The educators also explained how techniques similar to systematic desensitisation are used to prepare animals for potentially stressful situations such as injections, medical checks and veterinary procedures. By gradually exposing animals to these experiences in a calm and controlled way, the animals are less likely to become fearful or distressed. It was really interesting to see how psychological concepts can be applied ethically in animal care.
Throughout the day, we also explored examples of classical conditioning and observational learning, which helped bring many of the theories we study in class to life.
My friend Ariana said, “I didn’t realise animals could be trained using something like desensitisation.”
Valentina added, “It made the theory feel way less confusing than in class.”
Overall, the excursion was both enjoyable and valuable, helping us better understand how psychology can be applied in real-world settings.