Learning and Conditioning Vocab Flashcards
the process of acquiring through experience new and relatively enduring information or behaviors
ex: knowing not to do a behavior after being negatively punished
learning
decreasing responsiveness with repeated exposure to a stimulus
ex: a squirt of water causes a sea slug to withdraw its gills; if the water repeatedly squirts, eventually the slug will not withdraw its gills (it gets used to it)
habituation
learning that certain events occur together; the events may be two stimuli (as in classical conditioning) or a response and its consequence (as in operant conditioning)
ex: the sea slug associates the squirt with an impending shock (if it is shocked after the squirt of water, its response grows stronger)
associative learning
any event or situation that evokes a response
ex: we learn a flash of lightning signals an impending crack of thunder
stimulus
behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus
ex: when lightning flashes, we start to brace ourselves
respondent behavior
behavior that operates on the environment, producing consequences
ex: a child uses good manners and gets rewarded, therefore they become a well-mannered adult
operant behavior
the acquisition of mental information, whether by observing events, by watching others, or through language
ex: chimpanzees learn behaviors by watching others perform
cognitive learning
a type of learning in which we link two or more stimuli; as a result, to illustrate with Pavlov’s classic experiment, the first stimulus (a tone) comes to elicit behavior (drooling) in anticipation of the second stimulus (food)
ex: dog associates a tone with food
classical conditioning
the view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes; most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2)
ex: Watson hated mentalistic concepts and thought that all references to inner thoughts, feelings, and motives should be discarded when it comes to psychology
behaviorism
in classical conditioning, a stimulus that elicits no response before conditioning
ex: when the tone is first presented to the dog it means nothing; eventually it makes the link between it and food
neutral stimulus (NS)
in classical conditioning, an unlearned, naturally occurring response (such as salivation) to an unconditioned stimulus (US) (such as food in the mouth)
unconditioned response (UR)
in classical conditioning, a stimulus that unconditionally-naturally and automatically-triggers an unconditioned response (UR)
ex: food to dog
unconditioned stimulus (US)
in classical conditioning, a learned response to a previously neutral (but now conditioned) stimulus (CS)
ex: dog eventually associates tone with food
conditioned response (CR)
in classical conditioning, an originally neutral stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus (US), comes to trigger a conditioned response (CR)
ex: previously meaningless tone that now triggers salivation
conditioned stimulus (CS)
in classical conditioning, the initial stage, when one links a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus begins triggering the conditioned response; in operant conditioning, the strengthening of a reinforced response
ex: research where repeatedly presenting a female quail and turning a red light on causes a male quail to become turned on just from the light (increasing reproduction)
acquisition
a procedure in which the conditioned stimulus in one conditioning experience is paired with a new neutral stimulus, creating a second (often weaker) conditioned stimulus
ex: an animal that has learned that a tone predicts food might then learn that a light predicts the tone and begin responding to the light alone
higher-order conditioning (also called second-order conditioning)
the diminishing of a conditioned response; occurs in classical conditioning when an unconditioned stimulus (US) does not follow a conditioned stimulus (CS); occurs in operant conditioning when a response is no longer reinforced
ex: researchers stop playing the tone when presenting food
extinction
the reappearance, after a pause, of an extinguished conditioned response
ex: after a few hours, the researchers play tone again when presenting the food
spontaneous recovery
the tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses; (in operant conditioning, this occurs when responses learned in one situation occur in other, similar situations)
ex: a slightly different tone is played to dogs when presenting food, they still give the conditioned response (drool); a toddler learns to fear moving cars, so they also fear trucks and motorcycles
generalization
in classical conditioning, the learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and similar stimuli that do not signal an unconditioned stimulus; (in operant conditioning, the ability to distinguish responses that are reinforced from similar responses that are not reinforced)
ex: occasionally, a dog might distinguish the original tone from the slightly different tone
discrimination
a type of learning in which a behavior becomes more likely to recur if followed by a reinforcer or less likely to recur if followed by a punisher
ex: a parent gives their child a time out after the child was throwing tantrums
operant conditioning
Thorndike’s principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely, and that behaviors followed by unfavorable consequences become less likely
ex: if you work hard and receive a promotion, you will be more likely to continue putting in more effort
law of effect
in operant conditioning research, a chamber (also known as a Skinner box) containing a bar or a key that an animal can manipulate to obtain a food or water reinforcer; attached devices record the animal’s rate of bar pressing or key pecking
operant chamber
in operant conditioning, any event that strengthens the behavior it follows
ex: praise, attention, a paycheck
reinforcement
an operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior
ex: when a baby is learning to walk step by step
shaping
in operant conditioning, a stimulus that elicits a response after association with reinforcement (in contrast to related stimuli not associated with reinforcement)
ex: pigeon’s learn to recognize human faces, the face is an example
discriminative stimulus
increasing behaviors by presenting these; this is any stimulus that, when presented after a response, strengthens the response
ex: a child does their homework on time therefore they get a piece of candy
positive reinforcement
increasing behaviors by stopping or reducing aversive stimuli; this is any stimulus that, when removed after a response, strengthens the response (this is not the same as punishment)
ex: a child portrays good behavior, therefore they get a night off of doing homework
negative reinforcement
an innately reinforcing stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need
ex: water, shelter, food, sex, touch
primary reinforcer
a stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer
ex: tone that is associated with food
conditioned reinforcer (or secondary reinforcer)
a pattern that defines how often a desired response will be reinforced
ex: when we stop playing the tone when delivering food to the dog and when it starts again, etc
reinforcement schedule
reinforcing the desired response every time it occurs
ex: giving a treat to an animal every time it displays good behavior
continuous reinforcement
reinforcing a response only part of the time; results in slower acquisition of a response but much greater resistance to extinction than does continuous reinforcement
ex: a fisherman waits by the shore for certain amount of time, and he most likely catches same number of fishes every day, but the interval between catches isn’t same
partial (intermittent) reinforcement
in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses
ex: a coffee shop giving a free drink after every 10 purchased
fixed-ratio schedule
in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after an unpredictable number of responses
ex: slot-machine players/gamblers experience this
variable-ratio schedule
in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed
ex: people check more frequently for the mail as the delivery time approaches
fixed-interval schedule
in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals
ex: when the longed-for-message that finally rewards persistence in checking our phone (there is no knowing when the waiting will be over)
variable-interval schedule
an event that tends to decrease the behavior that it follows
ex: discourages behavior rather than encourages it
punishment
a system for electronically recording, amplifying, and feeding back information regarding a subtle physiological state, such as blood pressure or muscle tension
ex: mirror the results of a person’s own efforts; a person uses this system to record their physiological state while meditating
biofeedback
a biological predisposition to learn associations, such as between taste and nausea, that have survival value
ex: being afraid of things such as snakes, heights, or death with no previous knowledge/experience (biological)
preparedness
the tendency of learned behavior to gradually revert to biologically predisposed patterns
ex: pigs trained to pick up wooden dollars and deposit them in a piggy bank began to drift back to their natural ways (dropping the coin, pushing it, wandering, etc)
instinctive drift
a mental representation of the layout of one’s environment
ex: after exploring a maze, rats act as if they have learned it
cognitive map
learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it
ex: as a boy, Billy watched his dad work with tools all the time, yet never picked one up; in adulthood, he is asked to perform a task with tools which he does easily with no instruction
latent learning
a sudden realization of a problem’s solution; contrasts with strategy-based solutions
ex: Sally is taking a math test and she has been stuck on the same problem for ten minutes; she can’t think of a solution when suddenly it just comes to her
insight
a desire to perform a behaviors effectively for its own sake
ex: Bailey reads books all the time for fun just because she loves it
intrinsic motivation
a desire to perform a behavior to receive promised rewards or avoid threatened punishment
ex: Bailey’s teachers begin making her read a certain amount of pages every night for homework; this unmotivates her to the point where she doesn’t even want to read anymore
extrinsic motivation
attempting to alleviate stress directly-by changing the stressor or the way we interact with that stressor
ex: if our impatience leads to a family fight, we may go directly to that family member to work things out
problem-focused coping
attempting to alleviate stress by avoiding or ignoring a stressor and attending to emotional needs related to our stress reaction
ex: if, despite our best efforts, we cannot get along with that family member, we may relieve stress by reaching out to friends for support and comfort
(can also be harmful, ex: eating comforting but fattening foods or burying emotions)
emotion-focused coping
our sense of controlling our environment rather than feeling helpless
ex: choosing to control how we react rather than how others react
personal control
the hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or person learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events
ex: a dog was strapped in a harness and given shocks with no way to avoid them; later on when the harness removed, the dogs didn’t try to avoid them and gave up hope
learned helplessness
the perception that chance or outside forces beyond our personal control determine our fate
ex: a student believes that they are failing due to random luck, fate, bias, etc
external locus of control
the perception that we control our own fate
ex: a student believes they are failing because of their own lack of studying and knows they can do better next time
internal locus of control
the ability to control impulses and delay short-term gratification for greater long-term rewards
ex: going to bed early so that you’ll be well rested in the morning even though you want to stay up later
self-control
learning by observing others
ex: a child who sees his sister burn her fingers on a hot stove learns not to touch it
observational learning (also called social learning)
the process of observing and imitating a specific behavior
ex: a child mimics her mother brushing her hair
modeling
frontal lobe neurons that some scientists believe fire when we perform certain actions or observe another doing so; the brain’s mirroring of another’s action may enable imitation and empathy
ex: when you see someone smile, these neurons for smiling fire up too, creating a sensation in your own mind of the feeling associated with smiling
mirror neurons
positive, constructive, helpful behavior; the opposite of antisocial behavior
ex: volunteer work, donating money
prosocial behavior
created classical conditioning
Pavlov
conditioning and behaviorism; Little Albert experiment; operant chamber
Watson and Skinner
contributed to conditioning and behaviorism; created law of effect
Thorndike
research on taste aversion
Garcia
specialized in the involvement of cognitive processes in classical conditioning focusing on animal learning and behavior
Rescorla
created concept of cognitive map
Tolman
suggests that observation and modeling play a primary role in how and why people learn; bobo doll experiment
Bandura
