Learning and Adaptation Flashcards
Historically how have behaviourists defined learning
The process by which experience produces a relatively enduring change in an organisms behaviour or capabilities
What role does the environment play in personal adaptation
Involves physiological, behavioral, or cultural changes that help an individual survive in their environment. This is short term and on an individual level
What role does the environment play in species adaptation
Happens over many generations through natural selection. This is long term and on an evolutionary level
What is Habituation
The decrease in the strength of response to a repeated stimulus
what is the adaptive significance of habituation
It helps organisms conserve energy and attend to other stimuli that are important
What is sensitization
An increase in the strength of response to a stimulus
What is the benefit to sensitization
To increase responses to a potentially dangerous stimulus
Classical Conditioning
An organism learns to associate two stimuli, such that one stimulus comes to produce a response that originally was produced by the other stimulus
What is the key adaptive function for classical conditioning
It alerts organisms to stimuli that signal the impending arrival of an important event
Acquisition
The period during which a response is being learned
Neutral Stimulus
Doesn’t elicit a response
Unconditional Response
Something that would happen without training
Conditioned response
A response that is learned
Under what circumstances are conditioned responses typically acquired the quickest
When there are repeated Condition Stimuli and unconditioned responses, the unconditioned response is more intense, the sequence involves forward pairing, and the time interval between the Conditioned stimulus and unconditioned response is short
Extinction
When the conditioned stimulus isn’t paired with the unconditioned Stimulus, then the conditioned response weakens and eventually disappears
Extinction trial
Every time the CS is presented without the UCS
Learning trial
When the UCS and UCR are paired together
Spontaneous Recovery
The appearance of a previously extinguished Conditioned Response after a rest period and without new learning trials
Generalization
Stimuli similar to the original conditioned response elicit a conditioned response
What is the adaptative function of generalization
Serves to protect organisms from harm
Discrimination
When a CR occurs to one stimulus but not to others
What is the adaptative function of discrimination
An animal that becomes alarmed at every stimulus would exhaust itself from stress. Discrimination prevents this
High order conditioning
A neutral stimulus becomes a CS after being paired with an established CS
How does classical conditioning explain fear acquisition
It explains fear acquisition by pairing neutral stimulus with a fear inducing stimulus
Aversion Therapy
Attempts to condition an an aversion to a stimulus that triggers unwanted behaviour by pairing it with a noxious UCS
Ivan Pavlov
Father of Classical Conditioning
Law of Effect
In a given situation, a response followed by a satisfying consequence will become more likely to occur, and vice versa
Operant Learning
A type of learning in which behaviour is influenced by it’s consequences
Reinforcement
A response is strengthened by an outcome that follows it
Reinforcer
The outcome that increases the frequency of a response
Punishment
When a response is weakened by an outcome that follows it
Punisher
A consequence that weakens the behaviour
Two key differences between Classical and Operant conditioning
Classical is between two stimuli, while Operant is between a behaviour and it’s consequences
Classical focuses on elicited behaviours, which are involuntary responses. Operant focuses on emitted behaviours, where the organism generates it’s own responses
Antecedent
Something that comes before and influences a behaviour
Discriminative Stimulus
A signal that a particular response will now produce certain consequences
Positive Reinforcement
A response is strengthened by the subsequent presentation of a stimulus
Negative Reinforcement
A response is strengthened by the removal or avoidance of a stimulus
Positive Reinforcers
The Stimulus that follows and strengthens the response
Examples of Positive reinforcers
Food, drink, comforting physical contact, attention, praise, and money
Operant Extinction
The weakening and eventual disappearance of a response because it is no longer reinforced
Positive/Aversive Punishment
A response is weakened by the subsequent presentation of a stimulus
Negative Punishment
A response is weakened by the subsequent removal of a stimulus
Primary Reinforcers
Stimuli that an organism naturally reinforcing because they satisfy biological needs. Examples include food, water, attention, social recognition and praise
Secondary Reinforcers
A learned reinforcer
Examples include money, tokens, performance feedback, and grades
Shaping
Involves reinforcing successive approximations towards a final response
Chaining
Used to develop a sequence of responses by reinforcing each response with the opportunity to preform the next response
Operant Generalization
An operant response occurs to a new antecedent stimulus or situation that is similar to the original one
Operant Discrimination
An Operant response will occur to one antecedent stimulus but not to another
Continuous reinforcement schedule
Every response of a particular type is reinforced
Partial Reinforcement
Only some responses are reinforced
Fixed-ratio schedule
Reinforcement is given after a fixed number of responses
Variable-Ratio schedule
Reinforcement is given after a variable number of correct responses, based on an average
Fixed-interval Schedule
The first correct response that occurs after a fixed time interval is reinforced
Variable-Interval Schedule
Reinforcement is given to the first response given after a variable time interval
Escape Conditioning
Organisms learn a response to terminate an aversive stimulus that is already occurring
Avoidance Conditioning
The organism learns to completely avoid an aversive stimulus
Two Factor theory of avoidance learning
classical and operant conditioning are involved in avoidance learning
Applied behaviour analysis
Combines a behavioural approach with the scientific method to solve individual and societal problems
Preparedness
Animals are biologically prewired to learn behaviours related to their survival
Instinctive Drift
A conditioned response drifts back towards instinctual behaviour
Insight
The sudden perception of a useful relationship that helps to solve a problem
Latent Learning
learning that occurs but is not demonstrated until there is an incentive to do so
social-cognitive/ social learning theory
People learn by observing the behaviour of models and acquiring the belief that they can produce behaviours to influence events in their lives
Observational Learning/ Modelling
The learning that occurs by observing the behaviour of the model
