Ch 06: Learning Flashcards
acquisition
period of initial learning in classical conditioning in which a human or an animal begins to connect a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus will begin to elicit the conditioned response
associative learning
form of learning that involves connecting certain stimuli or events that occur together in the environment (classical and operant conditioning)
classical conditioning
learning in which the stimulus or experience occurs before the behavior and then gets paired or associated with the behavior
cognitive map
mental picture of the layout of the environment
conditioned response (CR)
response caused by the conditioned stimulus
conditioned stimulus (CS)
stimulus that elicits a response due to its being paired with an unconditioned stimulus
continuous reinforcement
rewarding a behavior every time it occurs
extinction
decrease in the conditioned response when the unconditioned stimulus is no longer paired with the conditioned stimulus
fixed interval reinforcement schedule
behavior is rewarded after a set amount of time
fixed ratio reinforcement schedule
set number of responses must occur before a behavior is rewarded
habituation
when we learn not to respond to a stimulus that is presented repeatedly without change
higher-order conditioning
(also, second-order conditioning) using a conditioned stimulus to condition a neutral stimulus
instinct
unlearned knowledge, involving complex patterns of behavior; instincts are thought to be more prevalent in lower animals than in humans
latent learning
learning that occurs, but it may not be evident until there is a reason to demonstrate it
law of effect
behavior that is followed by consequences satisfying to the organism will be repeated and behaviors that are followed by unpleasant consequences will be discouraged
learning
change in behavior or knowledge that is the result of experience
model
person who performs a behavior that serves as an example (in observational learning)
negative punishment
taking away a pleasant stimulus to decrease or stop a behavior
negative reinforcement
taking away an undesirable stimulus to increase a behavior
neutral stimulus (NS)
stimulus that does not initially elicit a response
observational learning
type of learning that occurs by watching others
operant conditioning
form of learning in which the stimulus/experience happens after the behavior is demonstrated
partial reinforcement
rewarding behavior only some of the time
positive punishment
adding an undesirable stimulus to stop or decrease a behavior
positive reinforcement
adding a desirable stimulus to increase a behavior
primary reinforcer
has innate reinforcing qualities (e.g., food, water, shelter, sex)
punishment
implementation of a consequence in order to decrease a behavior
reflex
unlearned, automatic response by an organism to a stimulus in the environment
reinforcement
implementation of a consequence in order to increase a behavior
secondary reinforcer
has no inherent value unto itself and only has reinforcing qualities when linked with something else (e.g., money, gold stars, poker chips)
shaping
rewarding successive approximations toward a target behavior
spontaneous recovery
return of a previously extinguished conditioned response
stimulus discrimination
ability to respond differently to similar stimuli
stimulus generalization
demonstrating the conditioned response to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus
unconditioned response (UCR)
natural (unlearned) behavior to a given stimulus
unconditioned stimulus (UCS)
stimulus that elicits a reflexive response
variable interval reinforcement schedule
behavior is rewarded after unpredictable amounts of time have passed
variable ratio reinforcement schedule
number of responses differ before a behavior is rewarded
vicarious punishment
process where the observer sees the model punished, making the observer less likely to imitate the model’s behavior
vicarious reinforcement
process where the observer sees the model rewarded, making the observer more likely to imitate the model’s behavior
bandura
the guy that experimented with observational learning; 4 phases
behavior modification
uses the principles of operant conditioning to accomplish behavior change so that undesirable behaviors are switched to more socially acceptable ones
bobo doll experiment
children watching adults beat up a bobo doll; if they got punished then the children would treat the bobo doll differently; if the adult wasn’t punished then the child would also beat up the bobo doll
conditioned emotional response
any negative emotional response, typically fear or anxiety, that becomes associated with a neutral stimulus as a result of classical conditioning
learned helplessness (ch 14)
pretty self-explanatory
the sad dog story
little albert
the experiment with the kid that ended up with him having a phobia for furry things because Watson conditioned him
pavlov
the classical conditioning guy
skinner
operant conditioning guy
taste aversion
eating something bad one time and never eating it again
watson
believed human emotions could be conditioned; little albert experiment
4 phases of observational learning
attention, retention, reproduction, motivation
social learning theory
suggests that social behavior is learned by observing and imitating the behavior of others