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MCAT: Behavioural Sciences > Chapter 3: Learning and Memory > Flashcards

Chapter 3: Learning and Memory Flashcards

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MCAT flashcards
1
Q

Define habituation.

A

Repeated exposure to the same stimulus can cause a decrease in response

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2
Q

Define dishabituation.

A
  • The recovery of a response to a stimulus after habituation has occurred
  • The second stimulus interrupts the habituation process and thereby causes an increase in response to the original stimulus
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3
Q

Dishabituation refers to change in response to which stimulus (original or new)?

A

Original stimulus

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4
Q

Define associative learning.

A

The creation of a pairing, or association, either between two stimuli or between a behaviour and a response.

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5
Q

What are the two types of associative learning?

A
  • Classical conditioning

- Operant conditioning

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6
Q

What is classical conditioning?

A
  • Type of associative learning

- Takes advantage of biological, instinctual responses to create associations between two unrelated stimuli

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7
Q

What experiment is an example of classical conditioning?

A
  • Pavlov’s experiment

- Food = Saliva + Bell = No response –> Bell = Saliva

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8
Q

In classical conditioning, an instinctive, unconditioned response is paired with a neutral stimulus. What happens with repetition?

A

The neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus that produces a conditioned response

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9
Q

What do unconditioned stimuli cause? What do conditioned stimuli cause?

A

Unconditioned stimuli = ONLY unconditioned response

Conditioned stimuli = ONLY conditioned response

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10
Q

How does extinction occur in classical conditioning?

A

If the conditioned stimulus is presented without the unconditioned stimulus enough times, the organisms can become habituated to the conditioned stimulus and extinction occurs.

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11
Q

How does spontaneous recovery occur?

A

If an extinct conditioned stimulus is presented again, a weak conditioned response can sometimes be exhibited

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12
Q

Define generalization.

A

Broadening effect by which a stimulus similar enough to the conditioned stimulus can also produce the conditioned reponse

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13
Q

Define discrimination.

A
  • Organism learns to distinguish between two similar stimuli

- Opposite of generalization

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14
Q

What is operant conditioning?

A
  • Type of associative learning

- Links voluntary behaviours with consequences in an effort to alter the frequency of those behaviours

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15
Q

Who is the father of behaviorism? What does his theory state?

A
  • B. F. Skinner

- Theory that all behaviors are conditioned

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16
Q

Define reinforcement.

A

The process of increasing the likelihood that an individual will perform a behaviour.

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17
Q

Compare positive and negative reinforcers.

A

Positive reinforcers: increase a behaviour by adding a positive consequence or incentive
Negative reinforcers: increase the frequency of a behaviour by REMOVING something unpleasant.

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18
Q

Negative reinforcers can be subdivided into two categories. What are they?

A

Escape learning and avoidance learning

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19
Q

What is escape learning? Give an example.

A
  • The role of the behavior is to reduce the unpleasantness of something that already exists
  • Taking an aspirin when you have a headache
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20
Q

What is avoidance learning? Give an example.

A
  • Meant to prevent the unpleasantness of something that has yet to happen
  • Studying before a test
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21
Q

Define punishment.

A

Uses conditioning to reduce the occurrence of a behaviour.

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22
Q

Compare positive and negative punishments.

A

Positive punishment: adds an unpleasant consequence in response to a behavior to reduce that behavior
Negative punishment: reduction of a behavior when a stimulus is removed

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23
Q

Provide examples for positive and negative reinforcements and punishments.

A

Positive reinforcement: money for work
Negative reinforcement: aspirin for headache
Positive punishment: thief arrested for stealing, stops him from stealing again
Negative punishment: parents forbidden their child from watching TV as a consequence for bad behaviour

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24
Q

What are the two different factors of reinforcement schedules?

A
  • Whether the schedule is fixed or variable

- Whether the schedule is based on a ratio or interval

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25
Q

What are fixed-ratio schedules? Give an example.

A
  • Reinforce a behavior after a specific number of performances of that behavior
  • Rewarding a rat every 3rd time it presses a bar to its cage
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26
Q

What is continuous reinforcement? What type of reinforcement schedule does it follow?

A
  • Fixed-ratio schedule

- Behavior is rewarded every time it is performed

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27
Q

What are variable-ratio schedules? Give an example.

A
  • Reinforce a behavior after a varying number of performances of the behavior, but such that the average number of performances to receive a reward is relatively constant
  • Rewarding a rat every 2 button presses, then 8, then 4, then 6
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28
Q

What are fixed-interval schedules? Give an example.

A
  • Reinforce the first instance of a behaviour after a specified time period has elapsed
  • Rewarding a rat every 60 seconds for pressing a button. Pressing in between the time-frame accomplishes nothing.
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29
Q

What are variable-interval schedules? Give an example.

A
  • Reinforce a behaviour the first time that behavior is performed after a varying interval of time
  • Rewarding a rat 90 seconds, then 30 seconds, then 3 minutes. Once the interval elapses, the next press gets the rat a reward.
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30
Q

Which reinforcement type works the fastest and is the most resistant to extinction?

A

Variable-Ratio (VR)

Very Rapid and Very Resistant to extinction

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31
Q

Define shaping.

A

The process of rewarding increasingly specific behaviors. It can allow for the training of extremely complicated behaviors.

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32
Q

What is latent learning?

A

Learning that occurs without a reward but that is spontaneously demonstrated once a reward is introduced

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33
Q

What is a method of learning that steps outside the standard behaviorist approach?

A

Problem-solving: trial-and-error approach, testing behaviors until they yield a reward

34
Q

The difficulty in overcoming instinctual behaviors is called what?

A

Instinctive drift

35
Q

Is observational learning imitation?

A

No, because it can be used to teach individuals to avoid behaviors as well

36
Q

Where are mirror neurons located? When do they fire?

A
  • Located in the frontal and parietal lobes

- Fire when an individual performs an action and when that individual observes someone else performing that action

37
Q

When is observational learning (modeling) the strongest?

A

When the words said MATCH the actions (actions are stronger than words)

38
Q

The formation of memories can be divided into three major processes. What are they?

A

Encoding, storage and retrieval

39
Q

Define encoding.

A

Process of putting new information into memory

40
Q

Compare automatic and controlled (effortful) processing.

A

Automatic: Information that is gained without effort
Controlled: active memorization

41
Q

What are the three ways to encode? Which is the strongest? Which is the weakest?

A
  • Visual encoding
  • Acoustic encoding
  • Semantic encoding (meaningful context)
  • Semantic encoding is the strongest
  • Visual encoding is the weakest
42
Q

What is the self-reference effect?

A

We tend to recall information best when we can put it into the context of our own lives

43
Q

What is maintenance rehearsal?

A

The repetition of a piece of information to either keep it within working memory (to prevent forgetting) or to store it in short-term and eventually long-term memory

44
Q

What is the method of loci?

A

Involves associating each item in the list with a location along a route through a building that has already been memorized

45
Q

What is the peg-word system?

A

Associates numbers with items that rhyme with or resemble the numbers

46
Q

What is chunking (sometimes referred to as clustering)?

A

Memory trick that involves taking individual elements of a large list and grouping them together into groups of elements with related meaning

47
Q

What is the shortest type of memory? How long does it last?

A
  • Sensory memory

- Generally under one second

48
Q

What does sensory memory consist of?

A

Iconic (visual) and echoic (auditory) memory

49
Q

If you asked a participant to recite all 9 letters in a 3x3 block, what is this procedure called? What about just a row?

A
  • All letters: whole-report (will have difficulty)

- One row: partial-report (will do it with 100% accuracy), iconic memory

50
Q

How long does short-term memory last? It is limited to approximately how many items? How can the duration be extended?

A
  • 30 seconds
  • 7 items (7+- 2 rule)
  • Maintenance rehearsal
51
Q

What is working memory? What does it allow us to do?

A
  • Enables us to keep a few pieces of information in our consciousness simultaneously and to manipulate that information
  • Allows us to do simple math in our heads
52
Q

Compare maintenance and elaborative rehearsal.

A

Maintenance: keeping the information at the forefront of consciousness
Elaborative: association of the information to knowledge already stored in the long-term memory

53
Q

What are the two types of long-term memory? Differentiate them.

A 
Implicit memory (unconscious): consists of our skills and conditioned responses
Explicit memory (conscious): consists of those memories that require conscious recall
54
Q

Compare procedural and declarative memory.

A

Procedural (implicit): skills and tasks

Declarative (explicit): facts and events

55
Q

What are the two types of declarative memory? Differentiate them.

A

Semantic memory: facts, concepts

Episodic memory: experiences, events

56
Q

Define retrieval.

A

The process of demonstrating that something that has been learned has been retained

57
Q

Define recognition.

A

The process of merely identifying a piece of information that was previously learned

58
Q

What is relearning?

A

Way of demonstrating that information has been stored in long-term memory

59
Q

What is the spacing effect? Who discovered it?

A
  • Hermann Ebbinghaus

- The longer the amount of time between sessions of relearning, the greater the retention of the information later on

60
Q

The brain organizes ideas into a semantic network. What does that mean?

A

Concepts are linked together based on similar meaning

61
Q

What is the spreading action?

A

When one node of our semantic network is activated, the other linked concepts around it are also unconsciously activated

62
Q

What is priming? What is at the heart of priming?

A
  • Spreading action is at the heart of priming

- Recall is aided by first being presented with a word or phrase that is close to the desired semantic memory

63
Q

What are context effects?

A
  • Common retrieval cue

- Memory is aided by being in the physical location where encoding took place

64
Q

What is state-dependant memory?

A

People who learn facts or skills while intoxicated will show better recall or proficiency when performing those same tasks while intoxicated than while sober

65
Q

What is the serial position effect?

A

Retrieval cue that appears while learning lists: people will memorize the first few and last few items best

66
Q

The tendency to remember early and late items is known as what?

A

Primary and recency effect, respectively

67
Q

Alzheimer’s is thought to be linked to what?

A

To a loss of acetylcholine in neurons that link to the hippocampus

68
Q

What is Alzheimer’s marked by?

A

Progressive dementia (loss of cognitive function) and memory loss, with atrophy of the brain

69
Q

What is sundowing?

A
  • Occurs in individuals with middle-to-late-stage Alzheimer’s
  • Increase in dysfunction in the late afternoon and evening
70
Q

What is Korsakoff’s syndrome caused by?

A

Thiamine deficiency in the brain?

71
Q

What is Korsakoff’s syndrome marked by?

A

Both retrograde amnesia (loss of previously formed memories) and anterograde amnesia (inability to form new memories), confabulation

72
Q

What is confabulation?

A
  • The process of creating vivid but fabricated memories, typically though to be an attempt made by the brain to fill in the gaps of missing memories
  • Present in Korsakoff’s syndrome
73
Q

What is agnosia? What is it usually caused by?

A
  • The loss of the ability to recognize objects, people, or sounds, though usually only one of the three
  • Usually caused by physical damage to the brain (stroke, multiple sclerosis)
74
Q

When do people forget lists? Does it continuously decrease?

A
  • A day or two after learning

- Levels off

75
Q

What is interference?

A
  • Common reason for memory loss

- Retrieval error caused by the existence of other (usually similar) information

76
Q

Compare proactive and retroactive interference.

A

Proactive: old information is interfering with new learning (when its 2017 but you still write 2016)
Retroactive: when new information causes forgetting of old information (learning new names, forgetting old ones)

77
Q

What is prospective memory? What are the two types? Which type declines with age?

A
  • Remembering to perform a task at some point in the future
  • Event-based (buying milk when walking past grocery store)
  • Time-based (taking a pill at 7:00 AM)
  • Time-based declines with age
78
Q

Can memories be influenced by bad information? What is this called?

A
  • Yes

- Misinformation effect

79
Q

What is source amnesia?

A

Memory construction error involving confusion between semantic and episodic memory

80
Q

What is neuroplasticity? Which age group has more plastic brains?

A
  • The ability of the brain to form new connections rapidly

- Young children

81
Q

What is synaptic pruning?

A

As we grow older, weak neural connections are broken while strong ones are strengthened, increasing the efficiency of our brains’ ability to process information

82
Q

What is long-term potentiation? It is the basis for what?

A
  • Basis for long-term memory
  • As the stimulus is repeated, the stimulated neurons become more efficient at releasing their neurotransmitters and at the same time receptor sites on the other side of the synapse increase, increasing receptor density

MCAT: Behavioural Sciences (12 decks)

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