Learning Flashcards
_____________ is any relatively permanent change in behaviour brought about by experience or practice.
Learning
______________ is defined as changes like an increase in height or size of the brain that are controlled by a genetic blueprint or due to biology, and not experience.
Maturation
______________ are unlearned, involuntary responses to a specific stimulus in the environment.
For example, dogs salivating when food is placed in the mouth, or the constriction/dilation of pupils when exposed to light.
Reflexes
____________ ____________ ____________, or ___________, are motivated, complex behaviours that have a strong innate basis, and are triggered by a broad range of events.
For example, when newborns cry when they are hungry or need attention, or when birds migrate during seasons.
Fixed action patterns, instincts
What is associative learning?
Associative learning refers to associations between environmental events and behavioural stimulus-response & action-consequence.
A dog owner opening his cupboard and the dog reacting to it because it’s associated with food is an example.
The ___________ ____________ in learning considers that some forms of learning result in changes in our mental processes. We then seek to make inferences about these processes to understand our behaviour.
cognitive approach
What is the behavioural approach in learning?
This approach focuses more on the stimulus and the response and how they are associated.
______________ ________________ is the process by which a stimulus (e.g. food in mouth) produces an innate response (e.g. salivation) becomes associated with a previously neutral stimulus (e.g. bell ring) which then acquires the power to elicit the same innate response.
An example would be Pavlov’s dog.
Classical conditioning
What are the 4 key elements that must be present in classical conditioning?
Unconditioned Stimulus, Unconditioned Response, Conditioned Stimulus, Conditioned Response
What are the 4 basic principles about the process of classical conditioning?
- The CS must come before the UCS.
- The CS and UCS must come very close together in time—ideally, no more than 5 seconds apart.
- The NS must be paired with the UCS several times, often many times, before conditioning can take place and the NS becomes a CS
- The CS is usually some stimulus that is distinctive or stands out from other competing stimuli.
What is stimulus generalisation?
Stimulus generalisation is the tendency to respond to a stimulus that is only similar to the original CS with the CR.
_______________ _____________ is the tendency to stop making a generalised response to a stimulus that is similar to the original CS, because the similar stimulus is never paired with the UCS.
Stimulus discrimination
What is extinction in terms of conditioning?
Extinction is the disappearance or weakening of a CR following the removal or absence of the UCS (in classical conditioning) or of a reinforcer (in operant conditioning). It is not permanent.
What is spontaneous recovery?
Spontaneous recovery is the reappearance of a learned response or CR after extinction has occurred. It is also called reacquisition.
What is exposure therapy?
Exposure therapy involves directly confronting the anxiety/fear-provoking stimulus paired with an attractive stimulus.
What is higher-order conditioning?
Higher-order conditioning occurs when a strong CS is paired with a NS, causing the NS to become a second CS.
In other words, one CS is used to create another, “higher” CS.
_____________ ______________ is a form of classical conditioning of an involuntary response or emotion by watching the reaction of another person.
Vicarious conditioning
What is a conditioned taste aversion?
Conditioned taste aversion is the development of an aversive response to a particular taste because the taste was followed by a nausea reaction, occurring after only one association.
____________ _____________ refers to the tendency of humans and animals to learn certain associations, such as taste and nausea, with only one or few pairings due to the survival value of the learning.
Biological preparedness
____________ ____________ is the learning of voluntary behaviour through the effects of pleasant and unpleasant consequences to responses.
Operant conditioning