learning, memory, and behaviour Flashcards
What is non-associated learning?
when an individual learns something by being repeatedly exposed to a stimulus
what are the two types of non-associative learning? explain them.
Habituation –> the ability to tune out stimulus such as tuning out a loud noise after a given period of time.
Sensitization –> in contrast, their is an increase in response after the first few stimuli. the following stimuli will produce a more exaggerated response then normal (sort of like priming you to tick off)
e.g. at a rock concert the noise of the speakers get louder and more uncomfortable. The next day if you hear sirens you may actually respond more to them because you are sensitized
explain dis-habituation and desensitization
dishabituation is the process of loosing your habituated stimuli. If you go on vacation and then come home to a train noise you will notice it more.
Desensitization is the process of loosing your priming to a stimulus. You will stop having an exaggerated response to the stimuli
What is associative learning?
learning process in which you may associate an event, action, or object directly to each other
explain Classical conditioning. Explain the example
a process in which two stimuli are paired in such a way that one stimuli effects the other stimuli’s response.
ivan pavlov made dogs associate the sound of a bell with the sight of food.
Explain neutral stimulus, unconditioned stimulus (US), unconditioned response (UR), conditioned stimulus (CS), conditioned response (CR)
neutral stimuli –> does not elicit a response normally (bell sound)
US –> biological to the dog: the sight of food
UR –> biological to the dog: salivation
CS –> pair the neutral stimulus with the US
CR –> dog associates the bell with food therefore the bell makes it salivate
what are the 5 stages of classical conditioning, briefly explain each (first one is acquisition)
- Acquisition –> learning the CR
- Extinction –> after some time when the neutral stimuli and US are not paired, the CR will randomly disappear (e.g. the bell produces no salivation)
- Spontaneous recovery: randomly the bell produces salivation (CR recovered)
- Generalization: the individual associates similar stimuli with the CR. (door bell makes dog salivate)
- Discrimination: opposite in which individual can isolate the single stimulus with the CR
what is an example of a classical conditioning phenomena where the acquisition phase is short and extinction is almost eternal.
Taste - aversion: if you taste or smell something that gives you nausea or makes you feel poorly, you will associate that feeling with that taste immediately.
what two actions facilitate operant conditioning
punishment and reinforcement to mold behaviour
Who discovered operant conditioning?
B.F. skinner worked on rats
explain +/- reinforcement.
(+) –> you add something pleasurable upon appropriate behaviour
(-) –> you take way undesirable stimuli upon appropriate behaviour
think positive you add, negative you take away
what is the difference between primary and secondary reinforcers?
primary (unconditioned) reinforcer –> innately satisfying, i.e. we do not need to learn that they are pleasurable (food)
secondary (conditioned) –> we learn that they are desirable. A neutral stimuli is paired to a primary reinforcer. (e.g. if you read a book you get a stamp. after 5 stamps you get a pizza)
explain the difference in continuous reinforcement with intermittent
Continuous –> (reinforcement after every good behaviour) produce fast acquisition but fast extinction
intermittent –> slow A, Slow E
4 intermittent schedules: explain fixed-ratio
Reinforcement occurs after a set number of instances of good B. Once learned this leads to a high rate o response
4 intermittent schedules: explain Variable-ratio
reinforcement occurs at random number of instances of good B. Like gambling! This too creates a high response rate in the hope that reward is coming
4 intermittent schedules: explain Fixed-interval
reward comes after a given amount of time: produces workers who only respond more towards the end of the time cycle
4 intermittent schedules: explain Variable interval
reward after random amount of time: produces slow but steady workers
what is the best way to teach a new behaviour? What is he best way to ensure slowest extinction of a behaviour?
best way to teach at the start is by continuous reinforcement which can transition into other forms once they understand the behaviour
best way for slowest extinction: variable ratio (think gambling is an addiction - stays for life)
explain positive and negative punishment.
positive –> you add something undesirable such as pain upon poor behaviour
negative –> you take away something desirable “”
explain escape and avoidance: are they operant or classical conditioning?
they are both operant conditioning
In escape: individual learns how to escape an aversive stimulus (i.e. punishment) by engaging in a particular behaviour. For example if a baby screams b/c they dont want veggies and it works, they will do it again.
In avoidance: individual performs a behaviour prior to a stimulus to avoid that stimulus. This would be pretending your stomach hurts prior to being served gross food.
explain insight learning.
when an individual combines two separately learned behaviours to accomplish something
explain latent learning.
something is learned but never expressed. in contrast, in insight learning, typically both behaviours were learned through some associative mechanism in which the individual has practiced the method.
in latent learning the learned behaviour is never expressed but upon needing it, it manifests quickly
what is consolidation?
the process of a short-term memory being turned into a long term memory
What is long-term potentiation?
following brief periods of stimulus, an increase in synaptic strength between involved neurons leads to stronger electrochemical responses.
long term potentiation makes the neurons more sensitive to firing then before.
synaptic strength is thought to be the mechanism by which short term memories are consolidated
What is observational learning?
observational learning is learning through watching and imitating
what is social learning? what is vicarious learning?
vicarious and social learning are alternative names for observational learning
explain social modelling.
modelling is the most basic mechanism of vicarious learning. In this process an individual watches someone else do something, and then later, with that model in their mind, tries to imitate it.
this is how lions learn to hunt
t or f, modelling only occurs when the observed behaviour proves to be successful.
false!! modelling can occur even when the observed individual fails in the eyes of the observer
who is Albert Bandura?
Albert Bandura did an experiment on modelling by making a bunch of kids watch different videos of an adult and a play doll. In every situation the kids mimicked the adult.
what are mirror neurons?
these are neurons that fire when you perform a task and when you observe another person perform that task.
what is vicarious emotion?
vicarious emotion is emotion felt through the feelings of somebody else. the best example of this is empathy. It is thought that mirror neurons are responsible for this.
What is reciprocal determinism?
the concept that people shape the environment and environment shapes people.
i.e. person/environment interaction
what is behavioural genetics?
determining how genes effect our behaviour
essentially, heredity + experience molds behaviour. We can study both.
This study helps us determine nature vs. nurture (i.e. heredity vs. environment)
what are monozygotic and dizygotic twins?
Monozygotic - identical twins (consist of same DNA)
Dizygotic - fraternal twins (share 50% of DNA) these are no more similar then normal siblings
explain Twin studies and behavioural genetics.
twin studies examine MZ and DZ twins who are in similar environments.
they asses variance in phenotype in a large group in oder to estimate the genetic effects in a given environment.
If identical twins share the phenotype of interest more than fraternal ones do, then genetics rather than the environment must play a big role
explain adoption studies
These studies are advantageous since you can compare the adopted child to two groups.
- its environmental group (adoptive family)
- its biological / heredity group (biological family)
explain the personality traits seen by an adopted child in terms of genetics and environment.
traits such as: extraversion, agreeableness, etc. are linked to biological parents
traits such as: attitude, manners, faith etc. are linked to adoptive parents
true or false, genetic differences account for 50% of the variation in intelligence among all ppl?
true!!
Explain the elaboration likelihood model of persuasion? What are the three elements of persuasion involved?
This model explains how people may be persuaded by content of info or persuaded by superficial factors such as the speakers attractiveness.
1) message characteristics: content, logic, speech length
2) source characteristics: persons enthusiasm, trust-worthiness, expertise
3) target characteristics: audience’s intelligence, open-mindedness etc.
what does the elaboration likelihood model say about central and peripheral routes of persuasion? What are these?
central route –> listening to content
peripheral route –> accounting more for superficial factors (length of speech, attractiveness, etc)
the elaboration likelihood model explains that people will only take the central route if they are motivated to listen to the speech logic AND are free from distraction
what is social cognitive theory?
social cognition theory tries to explain how we interpret and respond to the environment and how our past experiences, memories, and EXPECTATIONS OF HOW TO ACT influence behaviour.
social cognition theory shows that our attitude is influenced by our peers, family, etc. called social factors
PERCEPTION OF SOCIAL INTERACTIONS INFLUENCES BEHAVIOUR = SOCIAL COGNITIVE THEORY
what is temperament?
emotional excitability
what is intellectual disability?
someone with intellectual disability will score a 70 or below on the IQ test and have difficulty adapting to everyday demands in life.
the average score of the IQ test is 100.
what is the prenatal stage of human development?
from conception to birth (the fetus)
what are the 7 reflexes of infants?
- moro reflex
- rooting reflex
- sucking reflex
- Babinski reflex
- tonic neck reflex
- grasp reflex:
- walk reflex
- moro reflex: startle reflex to loud noises
- rooting reflex: act of turning its head to a nipple
- sucking reflex: sucking anything in its mouth
- Babinski reflex: baby moves its toes
- tonic neck reflex: touch babies neck and it extends its arms
- grasp reflex: touch its palm and it clamps its hands
- walk reflex: touch its food and it prepares to walk (although it cannot)
what are the 5 phases of motor development? what year of life do they occur?
0-1 reflex stage (infancy reflexes which prime your neuromuscular junctions)
0-2 rudimentary stage: first signs of voluntary movement
2-7 fundamental stage: advanced rudimentary skills
7-14 specialized movement: split into two other substages: transitional and application
14 + life lone application phase
Explain the characteristics of rudimentary, fundamental, and specialized movement. Give an example of each.
rudimentary movement is highly genetic. These voluntary skills include crawling, grabbing, rolling.
fundamental: in contrast to rudimentary skills, fundamental skills are more influences by the environment.
Specialized movement
1) transitional: combining fundamental movements (such as jumping and shooting a ball)
2) application: cognitively choosing how and when to combine movement
what is infantile amnesia?
we forget everything that e experience roughly 3.5 years old and younger
what is stranger anxiety?
from age 8-13 months babies have developed recognition of faces. When they see a face they don’t understand they may be anxious and cling to their moms
explain Harlow’s monkeys?
Harry and Margaret Harlow performed experiments on monkey’s to see if babies cried when their moms leave since they provide nourishment. They discovered that this was not the reason and really intimate contact was more sought after.
who is Mary Ainsworth?
she performed the strange experiments where she separated children from their mother in different settings to see how they would react.
What is secure vs insecure attachment?
- An secure attached child will be playful and adventurous when a child is with its mom. When the mom leaves the secure child will be distressed until the moms return
- secure children are products of attentive moms - insecure attached child will be quiet when around the mom. When the mom leaves the child will either burst out and cry or be indifferent (distressed is in between)
- insecure children are the product of inattentive moms
Parenting: explain authoritarian style
authoritarian parenting is when parents try to control their children and enforce rules strictly. Typically not very loving.
parenting: permissive style
permissive parents are very loving, tend to be very lenient and do no enforce rules strictly
parenting: authoritative style
authoritative parents support and love their children. They motivate and encourage them and enforce rules fairly and follow through with consequences
best form of parenting
explain Alan Baddely’s theory of working memory, phenological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, episodic buffer, and central executive?
working memory is a way to better define short-term memory. Baddeley explained that there are 4 aspects of the working memory
- phenological loop –> repetition of verbal info to aid in remembering it
- visuospatial sketchpad –> picture an image in our head
- episodic buffer –> integrates 1 and 2 with a sense of time
- central executive –> in contact with all three above and orchestrates processing by dividing attention
What is the serial position effect of memory?
the serial position effect explains that when hearing a list we remember the beginning and end well.
- primacy effect -> we remember the first word b/c it had time to be put in long term memory
- recency effect –> we remember the last word since its still in the phenological loop
what is the dual coding hypothesis of memory?
explain that it is much easier to remember words when they are associated with an image rather then the words or image alone. This alludes to the episodic buffer of the working memory
what is the method of loci for memory?
using images to help remember things
what is sensory, Iconic, and Echoic memory
Sensory memory –> initial recording of sensory info thats briefly stored in the brain. Sensory memory has 2 main subclaesses
Iconic memory –> short photographic memory
Echoic –> short auditory memory
What are Broadbent and Anne Treisman’s attention models? How do they interact with sensory info?
they are both models of selective attention
Broadbent model of attention explains how sensory info is first sensed then enters a buffer then enters a selective filter and is then processed.
Treisman has the same model but it accounts for the cocktail party effect i.e. unattended channels.
Iconic and Echoic sensory signals will be placed into short term memory if they pass these filters. If not, they decay
What is an implicit vs. explicit memory? What about procedural memory?
implicit (Procedural) –> conditioned association on how to do something b/c you have done it.
Explicit (declaration) –> ability to voice what you know. this memory has conscious recall
what is semantic and episodic memory? (forms of explicit memory)
semantic memory –> fact based memory
episodic memory –> memory based on emotion and personal importance
explain how someone may not be able to explain a skill they have just learned but can perform it just fine?
they have a poor explicit memory, but their implicit memory is fine.
true or false, the hippocampus is most responsible for explicit memory?
true
What are nodes and associations of the brain?
In order to have high level or organisation in the brain, the brain groups things together. Area’s of general ideas are called nodes. Areas that connect ideas are called associations (cities and roads)
What is nodal response threshold? what is the spreading activation theory?
each node has many synapses with other associations. when multiple input signals to that node summate they cause the node to fire.
Spreading activation theory –> when you try to retrieve information, you start at a single node which became activated upon being asked. This node follows its association pathways stimulating other nodes until the full answer is found
what is mood-dependent memory?
memory that is most easily recalled when you are in the same mood that you experienced the memory. Explains the depression cycle
what is prospective memory?
memory to do things in the future. I.e. having to take food out of the oven at a given time
What is Anterograde and Retrograde Amnesia ? what causes it?
damage to the hippocampus causes antero and retro grade amnesia.
Anterograde amnesia is the inability to encode new memories (encode = take sensory stimulus and remember it)
Retrograde amnesia is the inability to recall pre-existing memories (need a cue to remember)
damage to explicit memory essentially
what is the learning curve and forgetting curve?
both are curved graphs that with the beginnings of the graph being quite rapid. (i.e. things are learned quickly and forgotten quickly)
what is proactive and retroactive memory interference?
proactive –> old memories interfere with learning new ones due to similarity
Retroactive –> new memories interfere with old ones
what is the misinformation effect?
when people are exposed to misinformation they tend to give incorrect answers.
for example: eye witness test a cop asks what did you see when the cars SMASHED together rather than collided. The witness may exaggerate what they saw based on expectation
what is neural plasticity?
refers to the malleability of the brain’s pathways and synapses based on behaviour, environment, and neural processes. Essentially it explains that the brains development is not fixed. Cases of neurogenesis have also been observed!
what is encoding?
transferring sensory information into our memories
what is chunking?
a strategy for memorization in which you organize information into discrete groups of data.
what is the self reference effect?
it is easier to remember information that is relevant to you
t or f, stronger memories are consolidated in areas with more dendrites
true
what is priming?
prior activation of nodes and associations (spreading activation theory) which may influence decisions later.
seeing many red items then being asked to name a fruit –> will likely name a red fruit
what is positive transfer in terms of memory interference?
it is the opposite of interference. This is when a memory previously learned may help you learn and encode a new memory
knowing how to play football may help you learn rugby
what is a schema?
mental blueprint of how we believe the world works
recall jean Piaget’s theory of assimilation and accommodation
what is a source monitoring error?
A source-monitoring error is a type of memory error where the source of a memory is incorrectly attributed to some specific recollected experience. For example, individuals may learn about a current event from a friend, but later report having learned about it on the local news, thus reflecting an incorrect source attribution.
t or f, adult brains can’t perform neurogenesis.
false!! they can actually perform neurogenesis in the hippocampus (explicit memory centre) and cerebellum (implicit memory centre)
