Learning and memory Flashcards
describe the difference between classical conditioning and operant conditioning
classical conditioning is with pavlov
- based on associating an involuntary response to a stimulus with a previously neutral stimulus
Ex. if you always eat a snack when the commercials are on, you will begin to associate commercials with a sweet treat
operant conditioning
- based on associating voluntary behavior with consequences and using positive and negative reinforcement or punishment to increase or decrease the behavior
aquisition
this is when a stimulus/response pair becomes conditioned (but this association may not last forever)
discrimmination
- this is when a person or animal learns to distinguish between similar stimuli
- this would be the dogs being able to tell the difference between different tones of bells and knowing that one means food and the other means nothing
what is the difference between escape learning and avoidance learning
these are both negative reinforcers
- escape learning is going to be someone doing something to release the immediate unpleasantness
ex. drinking coffee to wake up in the morning
avoidance learning is reducing something that will remove the unpleasantness in the future
ex. studying to avoid a bad score
what does a “fixed” reinforcement schedule mean
this means that the reward will be given after a set number of actions or a set amount of time
fixed interval: the reward will be given after a defined time interval
ex paychecks
fixed ratio: the reward will be given after a defined number of performance
ex. after so many pushes of a button, the dog will receive a food pellet
fixed approaches allow the participant or animal becomes aware of what needs to happen to get a reward so they adapt to meet the requirements so they so not always show a linear relationship
what does a “variable” reinforcement schedule mean
this means that the reward will be given at a random time or after a random number of performances
variable ratio: this means at random time intervals the food will be given to the rat as long as the rat pushed the button some time during the interval (it does not matter how many times)
variable reward: the reward is given after a random number of performances
- it could be five pushes or 35 pushes
variable approaches tend to show linear relationships because they are unaware of when they will get the reward so they just keep going
latent learning
this is learning that occurs free of reward or incentive and will be demonstrated once a reward is present
so a rat will wander through a maze and then if it is shown that that the end there is cheese the next time he will be able to get to the cheese faster because he learned while going through
preparedness
different species have predispositions for learning a subset of behaviors
- this can make them more easily to reinforce and harder to distinguish
instinctive drift
the tendency to revert back to an instinctive behavior when trying to condition animals because the action being taught to too similar to something they do instinctually
- ex. raccoons could not be trained to put coins in a piggy bank because it was too similar to dipping seeds into water and washing them, they would dip the coin in and take it out, but they were able to be trained to put basketballs in hoops because the size was so different
what is explicit memory
this is something that we can have conscious recall of
- episodic memory: this is recalling a wide array of events and expenses in our lives
- semantic memory: things we studied or worked to remember (facts concepts)
what is implicit memory
this is something that is unconsciously recalled
this is procedural memory: stimulated by environmental stimuli to perform skills/tasks
ex. riding a bike
arousal theory
performing actions to maintain the optimal level of arousal
-this has to do with yerkes-dodson
drive reduction theory
this is the idea that motivation comes from the desire to remove drives and uncomfortable states
primary vs secondary drives
primary drives are things we cannot live without, food, water, etc
secondary drives are things not related to biological processes
ex. money, achievement, career
describe maslow’s hierarchy of needs
physiological needs (bottom) - these are things we cannot live without (breathing, food, sleep, sex)
safety
- this is security in your body, job, housing, health
love/ belonging
- this is friendship, family, sexual intimacy
esteem
- confidence, achievement
self actualization (top) - morality, creativity, spontaneity
you need to satisfy the lower levels before moving up, and if one below suddenly becomes not satisfied you go back down
incentive theory
this is focusing on making behaviors to avoid punishment and get rewards
- at a job you will work toward a promotion and limit actions that could get you fired
expectancy- value theory
the amount of motivation to achieve a goal is dependant on that person’s expectation and value of success
what are the 7 universal emotions
anger fear surprise happiness sadness disgust contempt
james- lange theory
stimulus –> physiological arousal –>.emotional response
you see a spider, so your heart rate elevates, and then you recognise that you are scared because of your heart rate rise
cannon- bard theory
stimulus –> sensory processing –> physiological arousal + emotional response
you see a spider, your thalamus processes the stimulus, then you have a physiological response and get scared
schacter- singer theory
—> physiological arousal
stimulus —> emotional response
—> cognitive interpretation
the stimulus causes the physiological arousal and the cognitive interpretation which then leads to the emotional response
you see a spider, this increases HR and you recognise I feel afraid, and these lead to fear
what are the four stages cognitive development by piaget
- sensorimotor (0-2 years )
- preoperational (2-7 years )
- concrete operational (7-11 years )
- formal operational (11 years and up )
sensorimotor state
primary: body movements that are soothing so the baby repeats them
- the baby meets self needs by self
secondary circular reactions: this is through action focused outside the body (the baby will throw a toy so the parent goes and picks it up) this is
ends with object permanence
object permanence
understanding objects exist even when not in view
preoperational phase
- symbolic thinking (playing make believe)
- egocentrism (can really only think of themselves)
- centration (focus on one aspect only –> child will focus on the fact that he gets two pieces rather than one (even if it is the same amount just not cut in two)
concrete operational
logical thought is used to explain things but abstract ideas aren’t mastered
-will understand water in one glass transferred to another is the same amount
formal operational
children are able to logically think or reason through abstract ideas
stage one of sleep
theta waves
-irregular waveforms with slower frequencies and higher voltages
stage two of sleep
theta waves
- but also has sleep spindles and k complexes
stage 3 and 4 of sleep
sleep cycle: non-rapid eye movement sleep
- waves move slower and slower as delta waves
- these are the ahrdest to wake preople up in this sleep
what waves are there when you are alert
beta waves
what waves are there when you are awake and at rest
- this means awake but with eyes closed
- alpha waves
BATs sleep in the Day
beta –> alert
alpha –> awake and @ rest
theta –> 1 and 2
delta –> 3 and 4
NREM
this is non rapid eye movement sleep
-this is the four stages
sleep cycle
this is the NREW (four stages) + the REM sleep
- the cycle will be a 90 minutes
the longer amount of time you sleep the greater amount of time we spend in REM
REM sleep
mimics wakefulness
- on an EKG it has beta waves
- muscles are paralyzed but heart rate and breathing would be much like a person who’s awake
trust vs mistrust
this describes a level of Erikson’s psychosocial stages
- this is infancy (0-18 months)
- is my world safe? feeding comfort has a lot to do with it
children develop a senese of trust when caregivers provide reliability, care and affection. A lack of this will lead to mistrust
autonomy vs. shame and doubt
this describes a level of Erikson’s psychosocial stages
this is 2 - 3 years old
can I do things by myself or need I always rely on others?
toilet training/dressing
children need to develop a sense of personal control over physical skills and sense of independence
initiative vs. guilt
this describes a level of Erikson’s psychosocial stages
- this is preschool (3-5)
am I good or am I bad?
children need to begin asserting control and power over the environment. Success here leads to a sense of purpose
industry vs inferiority
this describes a level of Erikson’s psychosocial stages
6 to ll years old
how can I be good
school and activities
children need to cope with new social and academic demands. Success can lead to competence
identiry vs role confusion
this describes a level of Erikson’s psychosocial stages
12-18 years adolescense
who am I and where am I going
social relationships and identity
teens need to develop a sense of self and personal identity. Success leads to an ability to stay true to yourself.
intimacy vs isolation
this describes a level of Erikson’s psychosocial stages
19-40 years young adulthood
am I loved and wanted
intimate relationships
young adults need to form intimate, loving relationships with other people. Success leads to strong relationships
generativity vs stadnation
this describes a level of Erikson’s psychosocial stages
40-60 years middle adulthood
will I provide something of real value
work and parenthood
adults need to create or nurture things that will outlast them, often by having children or creating positive change that benefits others
ego identity vs despair
this describes a level of Erikson’s psychosocial stages
65 to death
have I lived a full life
reflection of life
older adults need to look back on life and feel a sense of fulfilment
oral
this is a freudian psychosexual stage of development
0 - 18 months
sucking/mouth, biting, chewing
anal
this is a freudian psychosexual stage of development
18-36 months
anus/bowel and bladder control
phallic
this is a freudian psychosexual stage of development
3-6 years
genitalis masturbation
latency
this is a freudian psychosexual stage of development
6 - puberty
repression of sexual feelings
genital
this is a freudian psychosexual stage of development
puberty +
maturation of sexual orientation
freud’s psychosocial theory
Freud proposed that personality development in childhood takes place during five psychosexual stages, which are the oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital stages. During each stage sexual energy (libido) is expressed in different ways and through different parts of the body
erikson’s theory
this is a theory that looks at people’s egos and personalities and how they require development through a series of eight stages
the individual faces a conflict at each stage, which may or may not be successfully resolved within that stage
iconic memory
this is memory that has to do with visual sensations
echic memory
this is memory that has to do with auditory sensations
flashbulb memory
this is a memory that has high detail and is often remembered well due to emotional ties because it was a significant event (when a president was assassinated, when you heard about 9/11, etc)
prospective memory
this is something that you are remembering in the future
you remember to watch the water so that the water doesn’t boil over
remembering to take a pill each day
remembering to get groceries on the way home from work
Eidetic memory
photographic memory
top down vs bottom up processing
top-down approach goes from the general to the specific, and the bottom-up approach begins at the specific and moves to the general
bottom up: the perception begins with the stimulus itself and this is often data driven
Top-down processing refers to the use of contextual information in pattern recognition.
psychophysical discrimination testing
directly assess our perception of stimuli in relation to their true physical properties.
varying a physical stimulus slightly and observing the effect on a subject’s experience or behavior in order to better understand perceptual processing. (ex change the size slightly between two objects until subject notices a difference)
word association testing
a test in which the tester gives the patient words and the patient responds with the first thing that comes to mind; used by psychoanalysts like Jung to infer subconscious thoughts or personality traits
operational span testing
testing of the capacity of working memory;
researchers alternate between presenting a word to be remembered, then asking participants to verify a simple math equation (to interrupt rehearsal), after which the participants are tested to see how many words they remember
partial report technique
relates to Sperling’s experiments on sensory (iconic) memory;
he would flash a grid of numbers at participants and then immediately ask them to recite a particular row or column; it is in contrast with a full report technique, where he would just ask them to report anything they could remember
social capital
this is who you know
this typically is referring to your social circle
cultural capital
this is more about how you act
slightly more abstract qualities like education, knowledge, the way you dress, the way you speak
medicalization
the process in which a social problem comes to be defined as a disease or disorder.
id
consists of all basic, primal, inborn urges to survive and reproduce; functions according to the pleasure principle which aims to achieve immediate gratification in order to relieve pent up tension
ego
takes into account objective reality and acts as a guide or inhibits activity of id, and id’s please principle as well as desires of super ego; understood as organizer of the mind
super ego
acts as personality’s perfectionist by judging our actions and responding with pride at our accomplishments or guilt at our failures
