ch 12-15

Question 1

define classical conditioning

Answer 1

is a form of learning in which a previously neutral stimulus comes to elicit a reflexive response by repeated association with a stimulus that automatically elicits the reflex response.

Question 2

what was the NS, UCS, CS, UCR and the CR in pavlov’s study?

Answer 2

NS- bell
UCS- food
CS- bell
UCR- salivation due to food 
CR- salivation due to the bell

Question 3

when may extinction occur in classical condition?

Answer 3

this will occur when the conditioned stimulus is presented yet it is not paired with the unconditioned stimulus for a number of times

Question 4

define spontaneous recovery?

Answer 4

it refers to the re-emergence of a previously extinguished conditioned response after a delay.

Question 5

explain graduated exposure and how it removes a fear response?

Answer 5

Graduated exposure involves The client working through a hierarchy with the lowest being a small anxiety provoking stimulus (cartoon picture) with the highest being a large anxiety provoking stimulus ( the actual object). the client learns to remain relaxed while they go through each stage on the hierarchy. This is repeated until the person can imagine each situation or object with little or no anxiety/fear. Essentially, the objective of graduated exposure (systematic desensitisation) is simple: to recondition people so that the feared object, animal or situation (the conditioned stimulus) elicits relaxation or a neutral response rather than fear or anxiety.

Question 6

explain flooding and how it removes a fear response?

Answer 6

Flooding, sometimes known as exposure therapy, is a behavioural psychotherapy where patients are actually exposed at once and for prolonged periods to the feared stimulus. Patients are subjected to high levels of anxiety that they seek to replace with feelings of relaxation.

Question 7

explain aversion therapy and how it removes a fear response?

Answer 7

aversion therapy is usually used for people with an unwanted behaviour, and it removes this behaviour by associating it with an unpleasant event or stimulus
eg bitter nail polish is put on finger nails to give the person a horrible taste when they bite their nails.

Question 8

what were the ethical principles involves in john b watson’s little albert study?

Answer 8

Do no harm. Psychologists have to reduce or eliminate the potential that taking part in a study may cause harm to a participant during and afterwards. Little Albert was harmed during and would potentially have suffered life-long harm as a result.
The participants’ right to withdraw. you have to be given the right that you can withdraw at any stage during the study without consequence to you. Albert and his mother were given no-such rights.
The principle of informed consent. Subjects have to be given as much information about the study as possible before the study begins so that they can make a decision about participating based on knowledge. If the research is such that giving information before the study may affect the outcome then an alternative is a thorough debrief at its conclusion. Neither of these conditions was satisfied by Watson’s treatment of Albert.

Question 9

define learning

Answer 9

this refers to a relatively permanent change in behaviour that occurs as a result of experience.

Question 10

name and describe some of the behaviours we may learn not through experience?

Answer 10

reflex action- an inborn and automatic reaction to a specific stimuli
eg withdrawing your hand from a hot surface
fixed action patters- every member of a species displays instinctive and permanent behaviour from birth
eg spider spinning web
behaviour dependent on maturation: behaviour that can only be displayed by an organism when it reaches the appropriate stage of its physical and genetically programmed development
eg toddler walking, may know how to walk before but does not have the physical capabilities

Question 11

what happens to neural pathways when learning occurs?

Answer 11

new neural connections are formed and existing ones are strengthened

Question 12

what is the difference between synapgenesis and synaptic pruning?

Answer 12

synapgenises is when experience causes physical changes in the brain through the formation of new synapses. whereas synaptic pruning is where experience results in the elimination if synaptic connections that are not used

Question 13

what neurotransmitter is released during learning?

Answer 13

glutamate

Question 14

what is plasticity?

Answer 14

this refers to the way the brain changes in response from stimulation from the environment

Question 15

what are the types of plasticity?

Answer 15

developmental and adaptive

Question 16

what is the process in developmental plasticity?

Answer 16

proliferation - this is where foetal neurons divide and multiply (250000 cells a minute)
migration- where these neurons move to their relevant location in the brain.
circuit formation- when axons of new neurons grow out of target cells and form synapses with them
circuit pruning- involves the elimination of excess neurons and synapses, that have not established a connection with a target cell.
myelination- where axons of the neurons become covered by myelin.

Question 17

explain adaptive plasticity

Answer 17

this is the ability of change, adapt and grow throughout life which involves the function of damaged brain areas ti be relocated and reassigned to other areas of the brain.

Question 18

what is the sensitive period?

Answer 18

this is a specific time in development when an organism is more responsive to learning and developing particular functions given that they are exposed to relevant experiences

Question 19

what is the difference between experience expectant learning and experience dependent learning

Answer 19

experience dependent learning can occur at any time in an organisms life while experience expectant learning is only for a particular time.

Question 20

explain experience dependent learning

Answer 20

this refers to adaptive plasticity, as it encodes new experiences that occur throughout life, fostering new brain growth and the refinement of existing brain structures

Question 21

what is the critical period?

Answer 21

this is a very narrow period if time in an animals development when it must have a particular experience for something very specific to be learned.

Question 22

define operant conditioning

Answer 22

this is a form of learning where the consequences of a particular response or behaviour determine the likelihood of that behaviour being repeated.

Question 23

explain the ABC of operant conditioning with an example

Answer 23

Antecedent condition (skinner box)
makes the conditions right for 
Behaviour (pecking button) 
which is followed and reinforced by a 
Consequence (receiving food)

Question 24

what is the difference between a reinforcer and a punisher

Answer 24

a reinforcer is any stimulus that strengths or increases the likelihood of a response while a punisher is any stimulus that aim to weaken the likelihood of a response

Question 25

name and describe each type of reinforcer using an example.

Answer 25

positive reinforcer- involves a reward which strengthens a response by providing a pleasant or satisfying consequence. eg you get $10 every time you get an A so you continue to work hard at school

Negative reinforcer- involves the removal or reduction of an unpleasant stimulus, that increases the likelihood of a response. eg leaving home early one day and finding there is no traffic so you continue to leave early

Question 26

name and describe each type of punisher using an example.

Answer 26

punishment- involves a behaviour followed by a negative consequence
eg showing up late to training so you have to do 50 push ups

response cost- involves something desirable being removed, which decreases the likelihood of a response recurring in the future
eg get your phone taken away for sneaking out of the house

Question 27

what is schedules of reinforcement and what are the types?

Answer 27

this is the frequency and manner in which a response is reinforced
there is continuous and partial reinforcement

Question 28

describe continuous reinforcement

Answer 28

when a correct response is reinforced every time it is given

has a low resistance to extinction

Question 29

what are the types of partial reinforcement?

Answer 29

fixed interval schedule- reinforcement is delivered after a fixed time period, as long as at least one correct response has been given

fixed ratio schedule- reinforcement id delivered after a fixed number of correct responses

variable interval schedule- reinforcement takes place on an average of a set time interval but not with regular frequency eg fishing

variable ration schedule- reinforcement takes place on the basis of a set average number of correct responses but not on its occurrence. eg pokies

Question 30

explain stimulus generalization and discrimination with the aid of an example

Answer 30

generalization is where a behavior is elicited as a result of a discriminative stimulus that is similar but not identical to the original
eg a dog comes running to the sound of a blender as it thinks its the can opener
discrimination: this takes place when a human or animal learns to know the circumstances under which responses and when they will not.
eg dog will realise that the blender does not lead to food and soon doesnt respond

Question 31

define shaping

Answer 31

this is a procedure in which a reinforcer is given for any response that gets closer and closer and eventually leads to the desired response or target behavior.

ie continuing to give yourself encouragement every time you try an attempt at a task, each time encouraging yourself every time you get closer.

Question 32

what is the procedure for shaping in animal training?

Answer 32

• identify the target
• identify the steps that lead to that present behaviour to the target
• reinforce the first step, then do not reinforce until the second step is performed

Question 33

explain token economy with the aid of an example?

Answer 33

this is a form of behaviour modification in which tokens are earned for performing target behaviours and then these tokens can later be exchanged for some reward that is valued by the learner

eg a coffee company gives you a token every time you buy a coffee from them(desired behaviour) and after 5 tokens you exchange it for a free cookie (reward)

Question 34

define social learning

Answer 34

according to Bandura, social learning occurs within a social context: you observe another persons actions and this to guide your own future actions, through imitation of the models behaviour

Question 35

list and briefly describe the process of observational learning

Answer 35

• attention: must be paid to the models behaviour and its consequences
• retention (in memory): the learnt behaviour must be stored in memory as a mental representation (understanding what to do in the mind if the learner) so the observed behaviour can be utilised at a later time
• reproduction (of the behaviour): the individual must have the physical and intellectual capabilities to convert these representations into actions
• motivation: the learner must want to imitate the behaviour
• reinforcement: when there is a prospect of a positive result for imitating the behaviour, it is likely the learner will do so, and visa versa if there is punishment for that behaviour

Question 36

explain with an example for each the different sources a models behaviour can come from

Answer 36

the model: a parent praises a child for imitating that behaviour
A third person: a child may imitate actions from someone like a TV presenter then a parent or teacher may praise them
Personal: the imitator gets a satisfying consequence like happiness as a result of imitating the models behaviour
vicariously: positive consequences received by the model increase the likelihood of the observer imitating the models behaviour. whereas negative consequences will decrease the likelihood of the observer imitating the behaviour.

Question 37

what is the difference between observational learning and operant conditioning

Answer 37

direct vs indirect learning
observable vs unobservable evidence of learning
the role of cognition in learning

Question 38

explain the difference between observational learning and operant conditioning in terms of direct and indirect learning.

Answer 38

• operant conditioning emphasises the importance of organisms direct experience when learning
• observational learning may occur indirectly through observation
  eg an employee sees a co-worker work hard and get a promotion, so they work hard.

Question 39

explain the difference between observational learning and operant conditioning in terms of observable vs unobservable evidence of learning

Answer 39

unlike operant conditioning, in observational learning there is a distinction between learning and performance.
learning is not usually demonstrated or observed unless there is a motivation for the organism to demonstrate learnt behaviour.
ie people can learn through observation but never perform the behaviour

Question 40

explain the difference between observational learning and operant conditioning in terms of the role of cognition in learning

Answer 40

• unlike operant conditioning, observational learning includes the role of cognition in the learning process
  ie this is because we are required to pay attention to and remember the models behaviour.

Question 41

explain the similarities between operant conditioning and observational learning

Answer 41

• active learning: the role of the learner
  the learner in both observational learning and operant conditioning in that the learner is ACTIVE in both learning process
• reinforcement
  as with operant conditioing, in observational learning reinforcement rather than learning itself influences the likelihood of the observed behaviour being imitated by the learner

Question 42

what are the factors of whether we imitate a model

Answer 42

• model is familiar to us through previous observation
• similar features to ourselves
• the model’s response can be physically imitated by the learner
• high status of the model
• the model ‘stands out’ from other similar models

Question 43

explain vicarious conditioning

Answer 43

-this is where the likelihood of that observed behaviour being repeated is dependent on whether that behaviour is either reinforced (vicarious reinforcement) or punished (vicarious punishment)
vicarious reinforcement: one student sees another student get a gold star for working hard, so the other student works hard
vicarious punishment: one student sees another student get a detention for cheating in a test so the student does not cheat to avoid punishment.

Question 44

what was learned through banduras bobo doll experiment

Answer 44

• aggressive behaviour through observational learning may not be demonstrated until the learner gets an opportunity to do so
• there are sex differences in aggressive behaviour learnt through observational learning
• observational learning is influenced by the form of consequences the observed model receives
• children can learn aggressive behaviour through observation learning if either real life or those portrayed in TV or film.