How dogs Learn Flashcards
Definition: Adaptation
Adjustment that an organism makes to the conditions of it’s environment
Definition: Allelomimetic
Innate tendency to follow the actions of others and do the same thing.
Definition: Baseline
Critical measurement from which a researcher can calculate changes in the rate or frequency of a particular behaviour.
Classical Conditioning
Type of learning in which a neutral stimuli is repeatedly paired with an uncondition response, animals learn what predicts what.
Definition: Conditioning
to modify the behaviour of a subject.
Definition: Conditions
Circumstances controlled by researchers in a lab.
Definition: Conditioned Reflex
Combination of Conditioned stimulus and conditioned response
CR
Conditioned Response, a learned response that results from pairing a conditioned stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus.
CS
Conditioned stimulus, stimulus that causes a conditioned response.
Definition: Consequence
Event that follows a behaviour
Definition: Contingency
Dependence of one event upon another.
Dependent Variable
What a researcher is interested in or trying to explain. Usually refers to animals response or change in behaviour. (ie sit)
Definition: Explanatory Fiction
False intervening variable introduced to explain a casual relationship between an independent variable and a dependent variable.
Definition: Extinction
Process by which a particular behaviour decreases or disappears.
Habituation
Gradual reduction of a response as a result of repeated stimulation.
Definition: Hyperkinetic
Defines an overly active animal
What is Imprinting?
Process by which a young animal bonds with another animal, usually of the same species.
Independent Variable
Something a researcher adds into an experiment to see the effect it has on the dependent variable (ie food)
Intervening Variable
Factor that cannot be seen but has an effect on the dependent variable (ie hunger)
Definition: Kinesis
Involuntary change or general activity level in response to external stimuli, type of tropism.
Latent Learning
Learning that occurs in the absence of reinforcement and remains hidden until it is required.
What does the law of effect state?
Behaviours that are followed by pleasant events are more likely to be repeated, behaviours that are followed by unpleasant events are less likely to be repeated.
What is a learning Set?
Method of solving problems acquired through experience.
Definition: Local Enhancement
Tendency of an animal to be attracted to a particular environmental stimuli or situation after watching the behaviour of other animals in a similar situation.
Definition: Modeling
Presenting an example to an animal to encourage that animal to behave in a particular fashion.
Definition: Negative Thigmotaxis
Movement away from the source of contact stimuli.
What is a neutral stimuli?
A stimuli that normally doesn’t stimulate a response (ie Pavlov’s bell)
Observational Learning
Learning that occurs when an animal watches another animal perform a task and then imitates the behaviour.
Definition: Operant Conditioning
Type of learning where behaviour is strengthened when it is followed by reinforcement and weakened when it is followed by punishment. Deals with non-reflexive behaviours.
Definition: Pairing
Presenting of a CS near or at the same time as an US.
Definition: Positive Thigmotaxis
Movement towards the source of contact stimulation. (Ie scared dog moves towards owners leg).
What is a the difference between a reflex and a tropism?
Both are involuntary actions, however tropism uses a bodily adjustment whereas reflexes use only a part of the body.
Definition: Reinforcer
Something that supports or strengthens something else.
Definition: Response Chain
Interlocking sequence of responses that enable an organism to perform a more complicated task
Definition: Response Latency
Time it takes an animal to respond to a stimuli.
Definition: Response Magnitude
Strength of an animals response to a stimuli.
When is the sensitive period for puppies?
Between 3 - 16 weeks of age.
Definition: Sensitization
Process in which one stimulus causes an organism to over react to another.
Definition: Social Facilitation
Increased vigor of response by that one dog causes in the behaviour of another.
What is social learning?
Learning that occurs when an animal interacts with people and other animals.
Socialization
Process by which puppies are familiarized with a variety of people and other animals.
Definition: Startle Response
Way in which an animal responds to a sudden new and/or intense stimuli.
What does stereotypic mean?
Describes an action that is performed the same way each time with little variation.
Definition: Taxis
Involuntary response that involves movement of the entire organism toward or away from a source of stimulation.
Threshold
Level of stimulation that must be reached for a response to occur.
Unconditioned Reflex
Combo of an US and UR
UR
Unconditioned Response, reflexive response to an unconditioned stimulus
US
Unconditioned Stimulus, stimulus that cause a specific reflexive response w/o required learning or conditioning.
Definition: Variable
Any factor in an experiment that changes or can be changed.
What are the two types of variables?
Dependent and Independent
What is a common type of Explanatory Fiction?
Describing a dog as lazy etc as a primary cause of behavioural issues.
What is the ultimate goal of Environmental Habituation?
To reduce extreme reactions to Environmental stimulus.
T/F Puppies can Imprint only on their mothers
FALSE Puppies have been known to also imprint on breeders/owners.
