Chapter 7 Flashcards
learning
- the acquisition of new knowledge, skills, or responses from experience that results in a relatively permanent change in the state of the learner
- based on experience, produces changes in the organism, these changes are relatively permanent
habituation
a general process in which repeated or prolonged exposure to a stimulus results in a gradual reduction in responding
sensitization
a simple form of learning that occurs when presentation of a stimulus leads to an increased response to a later stimulus
classical conditioning
- a type of learning that occurs when a neutral stimulus produces a response after being paired with a stimulus that naturally produces a response
- foundation for a model for human behavior
- can involve some degree of cognition
unconditioned stimulus (US)
something that reliably produces a naturally occurring reaction in an organism
unconditioned response (UR)
a reflexive reaction that is reliably produced by an unconditioned stimulus
Pavlov’s experiments
- involved cradling dogs in a harness to administer food and measure their salivary response
- study of classical conditioning
conditioned stimulus (CS)
a previously neutral stimulus that produces a reliable response in an organism after being paired with a US
conditioned response (CR)
a reaction that resembles an unconditioned response but is produced by a conditioned stimulus
acquisition
the phase of classical conditioning when the CS and the US are presented together
second-order conditioning
conditioning where a CS is paired with a stimulus that became associated with the US in an earlier procedure
extinction
the gradual elimination of a learned response that occurs when the CS is repeatedly presented without the US
spontaneous recovery
the tendency of a learned behavior to recover from extinction after a rest period
generalization
the CR is observed even though the CS is slightly different from the CS used during acquisition
discrimination
the capacity to distinguish between similar but distinct stimuli
biological preparedness
a propensity for learning particular kinds of associations over others
cerebellum plays an important role in _____________, whereas the amygdala is important for ______________.
- Eyeblink conditioning
2. Fear conditioning
evolutionary aspects of classical conditioning
- each species is biologically predisposed to acquire particular CS-US associations
- has adaptive value
operant conditioning
a type of learning in which the consequences of an organism’s behavior determine whether it will be repeated in the future
- complex behaviors are shaped through reinforcement
- contingencies between actions and outcomes are critical in determining how an organism’s behaviors will be displayed
Law of Effect
behaviors that are followed by a “satisfying state of affairs” tend to be repeated and those that produce an “unpleasant state of affairs” are less likely to be repeated
operant behavior
behavior that an organism produces that has some impact on the environment