Learning part 2 Flashcards
Does genetics completely determine behavior?
Genetic Determinism vs. Free Will
Genetics can predispose certain behaviors, but they don’t determine everything.
The environment, life experiences, and choices also shape behavior.
No, genetics predispose behaviors, but environment and choices also play a role.
It’s difficult to identify exactly how much each factor contributes.
Example:
A person may have high IQ genes, but without education, they won’t reach their full potential.
Nature vs. Nurture: The Combination of Genetics and Environment
Some traits are a mix of both:
Intelligence: Has a genetic basis but can be enhanced with enriched environments and cognitive stimulation.
Addiction: Has a genetic component, but social pressure and access to substances also play a role.
Mental Health: Conditions like depression and anxiety may have genetic roots, but stress and social relationships can trigger or modulate them.
Key Idea: Free Will vs. Determinism
Genetic Determinism = “You are what your genes say you are.”
Free Will = “You can shape your destiny.”
Reality? Both interact. Genetics may set limitations, but the brain’s plasticity and adaptability allow us to change.
What is brain plasticity?
The brain’s ability to adapt and change, even when damaged.
Example:
If the left brain is damaged, the right brain may take over some of its functions.
What is elicited behavior?
A behavior that is triggered by a stimulus.
Example:
Dust in the nose → Sneezing.
What is a reflex?
A fast, automatic response to a stimulus.
Reflexes follow a Stimulus → Response (S-R) pattern.
Example:
Touching fire → Pulling hand away immediately.
What are the three parts of the reflex arc?
Sensory neuron – Detects stimulus.
Interneuron – Passes signal to motor neuron.
Motor neuron – Activates muscles for response.
Example:
Step on a sharp object → Reflex arc pulls foot away instantly.
How is learning like sculpting a wooden statue?
Learning is easier and more effective when it works with natural tendencies, just like a sculptor must follow the natural shape and grain of the wood instead of carving against it.
Example:
Teaching a child to speak a language is easier at a young age because their brain is naturally wired to absorb language.
What are key survival reflexes in babies and mothers?
🔹 Feeding Reflex (Rooting & Sucking) – Baby turns toward touch and sucks to find milk.
🔹 Breathing Reflex – Baby moves head and cries if airflow is blocked. (RESPIRATORY OCCLUSION REFLEX)
🔹 Milk-Letdown Reflex – Mother’s body releases milk when baby suckles or cries.
📌 Key idea: These reflexes help babies feed and breathe automatically.
What are Modal Action Patterns (MAPs)?
Instinctive behaviors that are unique to a species and triggered by specific stimuli.
Example:
Gull chicks automatically peck at a red spot on their parent’s beak to get food.
What is a sign stimulus?
A specific external cue that triggers an automatic behavior.
Example:
A mother duck moving makes ducklings follow her (imprinting).
A newborn baby automatically starts sucking when something touches its lips.
This ensures that babies get food without needing to learn how to suckle.
What is a supernormal stimulus?
A stronger-than-normal version of a sign stimulus that causes an exaggerated response.
Supernormal stimuli are like junk food for the brain—they trigger extreme responses by exaggerating what we naturally like.
Example:
Fast food is loaded with sugar and fat, making it more tempting than natural food.
Artificially bright eggs make birds prefer them over their real eggs.
What did Tinbergen & Perdeck discover about gull chicks?
The key stimulus was a long, thin, downward-pointing object with a red spot.
The color of the bill (yellow), head shape, and parent’s sounds DIDN’T matter—only the red spot triggered pecking.
💡 Think of it like this:
Just as a vending machine only works when you insert the right coin, gull chicks only peck when they see the correct beak pattern
What is sequential organisation of behaviour?
Actions happen in structured steps to achieve a goal.
Actions don’t occur randomly—they follow a specific order.
These sequences are often automatic and predictable.
Example:
Squirrels follow steps to find and eat nuts.
What is the difference between appetitive and consummatory behaviour?
Appetitive = Finding/Preparing (Flexible).
Behaviours that bring an organism in contact with a goal or stimulus.
🔹 Characteristics:
More flexible and shaped by learning.
Can change based on the environment or situation.
Consummatory = Doing/Finishing (Instinctive).
Behaviours that complete a goal, often instinctive.
🔹 Characteristics:
More fixed and less flexible.
Happens the same way in all members of a species.
(seen as the end of a sequense)
Example:
A tiger stalks prey (appetitive), then bites and eats it (consummatory).
How is making coffee an example of sequential behaviour?
It follows a step-by-step process to reach the goal.
Example:
1️⃣ Get a cup.
2️⃣ Add coffee & water.
3️⃣ Brew, pour, stir, and drink.
Why do appetitive behaviours change more than consummatory behaviours?
Appetitive behaviours depend on the situation and can be learned, while consummatory behaviours are instinctive and stay the same.
Example:
Finding food varies, but eating food does not.
A human may hunt, farm, or go to a grocery store to find food (appetitive).
But no matter how they get the food, they still chew and swallow it the same way (consummatory).
📌 Key idea: The way you search for food may change, but the way you eat is always the same.
What happens to behavior when we experience the same thing repeatedly? Habituation
It changes—it can either decrease (habituation = We stop reacting as much.) or increase (sensitization = we react even more).
What is habituation?
A decrease in response after repeated exposure to the same stimulus. The opposite is sensitization where it increases.
Example: Birds stop reacting to a scarecrow over time.
What is sensitization?
An increase in response to a repeated stimulus.
Example: A dripping faucet gets more annoying the longer you hear it.
How did Epstein et al. (1992) study habituation?
People salivated less after repeated exposure to lemon/lime juice (habituation), but salivation returned when the flavor changed.
Example:
First bite of chocolate is amazing, but the 10th bite isn’t as exciting.
What is (hedonic rating)
How much they liked the taste
How do babies show habituation?
They look at new objects longer but lose interest in repeated ones.
Example:
A baby stares at a new toy but ignores it after seeing it many times.
What did Bashinski’s study on visual attention in infants find?
Babies lost interest in simple patterns faster than complex ones.
Example:
A baby stares longer at a colorful picture than a plain white wall.
What does it mean that habituation is stimulus-specific?
If a person gets used to one stimulus, their response doesn’t generalize to a new one.
Example: Someone gets bored of lemon juice but reacts again to lime juice.
How does habituation help babies learn?
It helps them filter out repetitive information and focus on new important details.
How Attention Affects Habituation
Epstein et al. (2005) Study
Child study
Children were given a taste stimulus while doing a problem-solving task.
Findings:
Distracted children showed less habituation (they kept responding to the taste).
Focused children showed more habituation (they lost interest in the taste faster).
Example: Eating While Watching TV
If you focus on food, you get full faster (habituate to taste).
If you watch TV, you don’t pay attention and keep eating longer.
Habituation and Eating Behavior
Study: Repeatedly gave lemon yogurt to overweight and normal-weight women.
Findings:
Normal-weight women showed habituation → They lost interest in the yogurt.
Overweight women did not habituate → They kept enjoying and salivating.
4-month-old infants a black-and-white checkerboard pattern
Babies get used to (habituate to) simple stimuli faster than complex ones.
✅ Complex stimuli first increase interest (sensitization) before they start to habituate.
✅ Infants can tell the difference between simple and complex images—even though they can’t talk, their eyes tell us what they are thinking!
How Do Babies Recognize Faces?
What Did Babies Do?
If they recognized the person, they looked at them for less time (because they were already familiar).
If the person was new, they looked at them longer (because it was something different).
What is the startle response?
A defensive reflex triggered by a sudden or unexpected stimulus (like a loud noise). It causes a jump, muscle tension, raised shoulders, and eye blink.
🛠 Example: If someone claps loudly behind you when you aren’t expecting it, you will flinch, blink, and possibly jump.
Why is the startle response important?
It helps protect the body by allowing a rapid reaction to potential danger.
🛠 Example: If you hear a loud bang while walking in the dark, your body reacts instantly, preparing you to either run or defend yourself.
How can the startle response be measured in animals?
By placing a rat on a pressure sensor in a stabilimeter chamber. The rat jumps when startled, and the sensor detects increased pressure when it lands.
🛠 Example: Just like when you jump in surprise and your feet hit the ground harder than usual.
What is the relationship between startle, jump, and pressure in the stabilimeter chamber? (rat experiment)
Greater Startle → Greater Jump → Greater Pressure
🛠 Example: Imagine stepping on a scale and jumping suddenly—when you land, your weight (pressure) briefly increases on the scale.
What was the goal of Leaton’s (1976) study on the startle response?
To investigate how the startle response changes over time with repeated exposure to a loud sound.
What happened in Phase 1 of Leaton’s study?
A rat was exposed to one loud tone per day for 11 days. The startle response was highest on the first day but gradually decreased over time.
🛠 Example: The first time you hear thunder, you might jump. But if it keeps thundering all day, your reactions become weaker.
What happened in Phase 2 of Leaton’s study?
The rat heard the tone every 3 seconds for 300 trials (25 minutes). The startle response decreased rapidly due to short-term habituation.
🛠 Example: If your neighbor keeps honking their car horn repeatedly, you stop noticing it after a while.
What happened in Phase 3 of Leaton’s study?
After a break, the rat was exposed to the single tone again for 3 days. The startle response returned to the level of the last days of Phase 1.
🛠 Example: After a vacation, hearing your alarm clock again feels startling, but soon your response weakens again.
What did Leaton’s study demonstrate?
Habituation—with repeated exposure, the startle response gradually decreases over time.
🛠 Example: A city dweller might stop reacting to loud traffic sounds, while a visitor finds them shocking.
What are the two types of habituation?
Long-Term Habituation: Happens when stimuli are widely spaced in time and persists after 24 hours.
Short-Term Habituation: Happens when stimuli are closely repeated and fades quickly when the stimulus is removed.
🛠 Example:
Long-Term: If you live near a train track, after a while, you stop noticing the train passing every night.
Short-Term: If someone repeatedly taps on your shoulder, you stop reacting, but if they wait a while and tap again, you notice it again.
What is spontaneous recovery in the startle response?
After a break from the stimulus, the startle response partially returns when the stimulus is reintroduced.
🛠 Example: If you move back to the countryside, city noises like sirens might startle you again.
What evidence from Leaton’s study supports spontaneous recovery?
In Phase 3, after a break from the stimulus, the startle response returned to the level of day 11 in Phase 1, showing spontaneous recovery.
🛠 Example: If you stop drinking coffee for a week, your first sip afterwards might hit you harder than usual. (same goes for nicotine lovers)
How does habituation relate to fear, PTSD, and anxiety?
Understanding habituation helps explain how fear responses weaken over time and can be useful in treating phobias, PTSD, and anxiety disorders.
🛠 Example: Exposure therapy for phobias involves gradually exposing someone to their fear until they stop reacting as strongly.
What types of stimuli are most likely to cause sensitization?
Strong, emotional, or painful stimuli.
ntensity of stimulus → Stronger stimuli are more likely to cause sensitization.
Emotional arousal → If a stimulus is emotionally charged (like a scream), it is more likely to cause sensitization.
🛠 Example:
A person who keeps getting bullied becomes more sensitive to insults over time.
Sensitization in Rats (Davis, 1974)
What Happened?
Rats with soft background noise → Habituation 💤 (They got used to the tone, and their startle response decreased over time).
Rats with loud background noise → Sensitization 🚀 (The more they heard the tone, the more they reacted to it!).
📊 Conclusion:
If the environment is already noisy/stressful, your reaction to a sudden sound becomes stronger (sensitization).
If the environment is calm, you get used to the sound (habituation).
Arousal & Sensitization: The Role of Loud Sounds
ver wonder why:
Rock concerts are so loud? 🎸
Movie theaters blast sound effects? 🎬
💡 Loudness increases arousal → which intensifies emotions (whether excitement or fear!). This is why movies, concerts, and even car races use high volume to heighten experience.
📢 More noise = More excitement or more stress
👂 The same stimulus feels stronger depending on how aroused you are.
Sensitization & Sexual Behavior (tactile cues = touch)
Example:
A gentle touch on the hand from a friend feels different from a gentle touch on the hand from a romantic partner.
A study showed that heterosexual males who watched an erotic movie became more sensitive to touch on their index finger.
How does sensitization relate to the startle response?
If a person is exposed to multiple startling sounds, they become even more reactive (sensitive) instead of adapting (habituation)
🛠 Example:
If you keep hearing loud bangs at night, instead of calming down, you get even more anxious.
Daniel
Gilbert said what about sentizitation?
“Among
life’s cruelest truths is this one: wonderful things are especially wonderful the first
time they happen, but their wonderfulness wanes with repetition, when we have an
experience such as hearing a particular sonata, making love with a particular person, watching
the sunset with a particular person on successive occasions, we quickly begin to adapt to it,
and the experience yields less pleasure each time”.
How does sensitization explain PTSD?
PTSD makes people more sensitive to trauma-related stimuli.
🛠 Example:
A war veteran hears fireworks and reacts as if they are in danger.
How is chronic pain related to sensitization?
The nervous system becomes more sensitive to pain, making even mild stimuli painful.
🛠 Example:
Fibromyalgia patients feel pain from light touches.
How does sensitization play a role in addiction?
Repeated drug use sensitize the brain’s reward system, making people more reactive to drug-related cues, making cravings stronger over time.
🛠 Example:
A smoker craves cigarettes more intensely after repeated exposure to smoking cues.
How do allergies relate to sensitization?
The immune system becomes more sensitive to an allergen over time.
🛠 Example:
The first time you eat peanuts, you have mild swelling. After more exposure, you develop a life-threatening allergy
How does sensitization affect driving?
If you are driving for hours, you become habituated to irrelevant stimuli (e.g., road signs, background noise).
However, if you suddenly see an accident, you become highly alert and pay more attention to the road (sensitization).
📌 Example: If a car suddenly swerves in front of you, you become hyper-aware of nearby traffic.
What is the evolutionary purpose of sensitization?
To help prioritize and focus behavior by responding more to important stimuli.
📌 Example:
A predator’s growl gets more alarming each time you hear it, preparing you to flee.
A baby’s crying becomes more urgent to a parent over time.
How do images affect the startle response?
Seeing pleasant or unpleasant images in a state of high arousal (threat of shock) leads to a greater startle response.
📌 Example:
Viewing a disturbing image makes you blink harder when startled.
If you’re told you might receive a shock, your startle response increases.
How is sensory adaptation different from habituation?
Sensory adaptation: A physical decrease in sensitivity (e.g., your eyes adjust to the dark).
Habituation: A mental decrease in response to a stimulus over time.
Exaample:
If you walk from a dark room into bright sunlight, you may initially be blinded. Your decreased response is not habituation but rather sensory adaptation, as your eyes adjust.
What is Sensory Adaptation?
Sensory adaptation is a physiological response at the level of your sensory organs (like your eyes adjusting to brightness), whereas habituation is a psychological process where your brain stops responding to a repeated stimulus.
How does sensitization affect sexual behavior?
When someone is more emotionally or physically aroused, their sensitivity to touch and other sensations increases.
📌 Example:
A hug from a partner feels more intimate than a hug from a friend.
Watching a romantic movie can make someone more responsive to touch, while a regular movie does not.
How does arousal influence sensitization?
When arousal is high, experiences feel more intense, making both pleasant and unpleasant sensations stronger.
📌 Example:
Loud music at a party makes the atmosphere more exciting and energetic.
Jump scares in horror movies feel scarier when suspense and tension build up.
Habituation vs. Sensitization at the Neural Level
Habituation:
The brain suppresses the sensory (afferent) neuron, meaning that repeated exposure to a stimulus makes you respond less over time.
Example: If you hear the ticking of a clock repeatedly, your brain starts ignoring it, and you stop noticing it.
Sensitization:
The brain enhances motor (efferent) neuron activity, making you respond more to the same stimulus over time.
Example: If you hear a dripping faucet while trying to sleep, it starts bothering you more and more.
What does it mean that habituation is stimulus-specific?
Habituation only applies to a specific stimulus and does not generalize.
📌 Example:
If you habituate to the taste of lime, tasting lemon still feels new.
How can a habituated response be recovered?
Presenting a new stimulus can bring back a previously habituated response.
📌 Example:
If you stop noticing a background noise, a new sound makes you aware of it again.
Can habituation and sensitization happen at the same time?
✅ Yes! Both processes compete to determine the final response.
📌 Example:
If you’re repeatedly exposed to a loud sound, your initial response might be sensitization (you get more startled), but over time, habituation kicks in (you stop reacting to it).
Explain The Neural Processes
Habituation occurs in the S-R (Stimulus-Response) system, which is directly activated by the stimulus.
Sensitization occurs in the state system, which controls your general level of alertness.
💡 Think of the S-R system as a direct reaction to a stimulus (like flinching at a loud noise). The state system, on the other hand, changes based on overall arousal (e.g., being nervous or excited makes you react more strongly to stimuli).
What’s the difference between effects and processes?
✅ Effects = What we observe (behavior changes).
✅ Processes = The hidden neural activity shaping the behavior.
📌 Example:
Someone stops reacting to a buzzing sound, so it looks like habituation.
But their brain might still process it, meaning habituation and sensitization can coexist.
Where do these processes occur in the nervous system?
✅ Habituation → S-R (Stimulus-Response) system
✅ Sensitization → State system. The state system controls general arousal and readiness to respond.
It is only activated by arousing events.
📌 Example:
A fan’s background noise triggers the S-R system, leading to habituation.
A sudden bang activates the state system, leading to sensitization.
What determines whether habituation or sensitization dominates?
✅ The stronger process determines the final response.
📌 Example:
If you’re calm, you habituate to distractions.
If you’re anxious, sensitization makes you react more strongly.
Can responses change over time?
Yes! Both habituation and sensitization can fade if the stimulus is removed.
📌 Example:
After a vacation, a city’s noise feels loud again → Spontaneous recovery of response.
Are habituation and sensitization stimulus-specific?
✅ Habituation is stimulus-specific, but sensitization is not.
📌 Example:
Habituation: You tune out the sound of one bell but still hear another.
Sensitization: A loud noise makes you react to all sudden sounds.
How do external and internal cues affect sensitization?
✅ External cues (e.g., shocks) and internal cues (e.g., nausea) activate different state systems.
📌 Example:
A loud noise makes you more jumpy to all stimuli.
Nausea makes you more sensitive to food smells but not sounds.
How do the S-R system and state system work together?
✅ S-R system = Direct link between stimulus and response.
✅ State system = Adjusts overall sensitivity to stimuli.
Example:
Think of a car:
The S-R system is the steering wheel—it controls specific movements based on input (turn left or right).
The state system is the engine’s power—if it’s revved up, even small inputs (stimuli) can cause big reactions.
What does the Dual-Process Theory explain?
✅ It explains how habituation (decreased response) and sensitization (increased response) interact to shape behavior.
✅ These processes depend on the S-R system (specific reactions) and state system (overall arousal).
📌 Example:
If you’re in a quiet café, you might ignore background chatter (habituation).
But if you’re already stressed, a small noise might feel overwhelming (sensitization).
What is primary and secondary effects in drug use?
Primary effects pleasant/sedation.
Secondary effects irritability,
headaches, nausea (i. hangover).
What is the role of habituation and sensitization in emotions?
💡 Answer: They explain changes in behaviors like eating, aggression, exploration, addiction, and relationships.
📌 Example: A new relationship is exciting at first, but the excitement fades and transforms into deeper affection.
What happens to primary and secondary responses over time?
Answer: Primary responses (e.g., pleasure) decrease, while secondary responses (e.g., withdrawal) increase.
📌 Example: The more someone drinks alcohol, the less they enjoy it, but withdrawal symptoms get worse.
What does the Opponent Process Theory explain?
💡 Answer: It explains why emotions shift over time – an initial high is followed by an opposing reaction
Love 💕 – Exciting in the beginning, but becomes a stable connection over time.
🔹 Drugs 💊 – First-time users feel a strong high, but over time, they need more for the same effect, and withdrawal gets worse.
Why do addicted individuals keep using despite less pleasure?
💡 Answer: They use drugs to avoid withdrawal, not for pleasure.
📌 Example: Long-term users take drugs to feel “normal” rather than to get high.
Primary vs. Opponent Processes
With repeated exposure, the primary process weakens, and the opponent process strengthens.
This explains why:
Drug users need higher doses over time (tolerance).
Exciting experiences become less thrilling (habituation).
Fear responses diminish with repeated exposure (desensitization).
