Chapter 1 Vocab Flashcards
learning
acquisition, maintenance, and change of an organism’s behavior as a result of lifetime events
changes in behavior and conditions that maintain behavior in a steady state
behavior
everything that an organism does
neuroplasticity
alterations of neurons and neural interconnections during a lifetime by changes in environmental contingencies
experimental analysis of behavior
involves intensive experimentation with a single organism over an extended period, rather than statistical assessment of groups exposed to experimental treatments.
verified by arranging experimental procedures that reveal the underlying basic principles and controlling variables.
breaking down complex environment-behavior relations into component principles of behavior
reinforcement
an increase in the rate of operant behavior as a function of its consequences; the procedure of presenting a reinforcing event when a response occurs
behavior analysis
a comprehensive experimental approach to the study of behavior of organisms
objectives: discovery of principles and laws that govern behavior, the extension of these principles over species, and the development of an applied technology
applied behavior analysis
aka behavioral engineering;
branch of behavior analysis that uses behavior principles to solve practical problems
reflex
when an unconditioned stimulus elicits an unconditioned response
respondent
behavior that increases or decreases by the presentation of a conditioned stimulus that precedes the conditioned response
respondent behavior is
elicited, in the sense that it reliably occurs when the CS is presented
respondent conditioning
when an organism responds to a new event based on a history of pairing with a biologically important stimulus
if a conditioned stimulus (CS) comes to regulate the occurrence of a conditioned response (CR), respondent conditioning has occurred
operant conditioning
an increase or decrease in operant responses as a function of the consequences that have followed these responses
operant
behavior that operates on the environment to produce a change, effect or consequence
emitted rather than elicited
selection by consequences
kind of like natural selection
immediate causation
process where we try to isolate a chain of events that directly result in some effect
remote causation
where we explain a phenomenon by pointing to remote events that made it likely
contingency
respondent- a correlation between a conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus (positive correlation required)
reinforcement- defines the relationship between the occasion, the operant class, and the consequences that follow (SD: R->Sr)
behavioral neuroscience
integrates science of behavior with the science of the brain
effects of drugs on behavior, neural imaging and complex stimulus relations, choice and neural activity, and the brain circuitry of learning and addiction
culture
all the conditions, events, and stimuli arranged by other people that regulate human action
conditioned reflexes
an arbitrary stimulus is associated with an unconditioned stimulus that elicits reflexive behavior; after many repeats if the stimulus is presented alone and elicits a response the stimulus is the conditioned stimulus and the response is the conditioned response
behaviorism
the scientific philosophy of behavior analysis
trial-and-error learning
make fewer errors over repeated trials
law of effect
principle of reinforcement: operants may be followed by a consequence that increase or decrease the probability or rate of response
correlation
the percentage of conditioning trials in which the CS is followed by the US
behavior analysts
researchers and practitioners of behavior analysis
private behavior
only accessible to the person who emits it (thinking)