Learning Theory Flashcards
Freud’s Topographical Model
*conscious vs preconscious vs unconscious
*id vs ego vs superego
Freud’s Topographical Model - the unconscious
mental contents that are not censored, repressed, and not easily brought into conscious awareness
Freud’s Topographical Model - the preconscious
mental contents that can easily be brought into conscious awareness by shifting one’s attention
Freud’s Topographical Model - the conscious
mental contents which an individual is generally aware of
Freud’s Topographical Model - id
*instinctual drives (sex or libido, aggression)
*limbic system
*need to be “kept at bay”
Freud’s Topographical Model - ego
*the manager of mental life
*balances the influences of the Id, the Superego, and reality
Freud’s Topographical Model - superego
*aka “conscience”
*begins with the word “No!” and becomes the source of shame and then guilt
*frontal cortex
defense mechanism - denial
*avoiding awareness of aspects of external reality that are difficult to face by disregarding sensory data
*ex = “that spot doesn’t mean anything. stop worrying so much”
defense mechanism - repression
*involuntarily blocking unacceptable ideas or impulses from entering consciousness
*ex: a 20yo does not remember going to counseling during parents’ divorce 10 yrs earlier
defense mechanism - splitting
*compartmentalizing or seeing the self and/or others as all good or all bad
*believing that people are either all good or all bad at different times due to intolerance of ambiguity
*major defense used in borderline personality disorder
*ex: a pt says that all the nurses are cold and insensitive, but the physicians are warm and friendly
defense mechanism - projection
*putting one’s own affects (unacceptable impulses) onto another
*attributing an unacceptable internal impulse to an external source
*ex = “I’m not worried about this, you are”; a man who wants to cheat on his wife accuses his wife of being unfaithful
defense mechanism - dissociation
*disrupting one’s sense of continuity in areas of identity, memory, consciousness, or perception
*temporary, drastic change in personality, memory, consciousness, or motor behavior to avoid emotional stress; pt has incomplete or no memory of traumatic event
*major defense in dissociative identity disorder
*ex: a survivor of sexual abuse sees the abuser and suddenly becomes numb and detached
defense mechanism - regression
*return to an earlier level of maturational functioning to avoid conflicts or tensions at one’s present level of development
*involuntarily turning back the maturational clock to behaviors previously demonstrated when under stress
*ex = tantrums, bedwetting
defense mechanism - reaction formation
*transforming an unacceptable wish or impulse into its opposite
*replacing a warded-off idea or feeling with an emphasis on its opposite
*loving something you hate
*experiencing the opposite of what you initially feel
*ex: a stepfather treats a child he resents with excessive nurturing and overprotection
defense mechanism - rationalization
*justification of unacceptable attitudes, beliefs, or behaviors to make them tolerable to oneself
*asserting plausible explanations for events that actually occurred for other reasons, usually to avoid self-blame
*ex = “I didn’t like that job anyway. I was going to quit”
defense mechanism - isolation of affect
*separating an idea from its associated affect state to avoid emotional turmoil
*separating feelings from ideas and events
*ex = calmly recounting details of a traumatic event
defense mechanism - sublimation
*transforming socially objectionable or internally unacceptable aims into socially acceptable ones
*replacing an unacceptable wish with a course of action that is similar to the wish, but socially acceptable
*redirecting unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable ones
*ex: a teenager’s aggression toward her parents because of their high expectations is channeled into excelling in sports
*MATURE defense mechanism
defense mechanism - altruism
*committing oneself to the needs of others over and above one’s own needs to resolve guilt
*alleviating negative feelings via unsolicited generosity, which provides gratification
*“I’ll take care of him. Not sure how, but I’ll figure out a way”
*ex: a mafia boss makes a large donation to charity
*MATURE defense mechanism
defense mechanism - suppression
*consciously deciding not to attend to a particular feeling, state, or impulse
*intentionally withholding an idea or feeling from conscious awareness; temporary
*ex: an athlete focuses on other tasks to prevent worrying about an important upcoming match
*MATURE defense mechanism
defense mechanism - humor
*finding comic elements in difficult situations to reduce unpleasant affect or personal discomfort
lightheartedly expressing uncomfortable feelings to shift the internal focus away from the distress
*“Well, at least chemo will help me lose weight!”
*ex: a nervous medical student jokes about the boards
*MATURE defense mechanism
transference and countertransference
feelings projected between patient and doctor based on important relationships in their respective pasts:
*transference: patient projects feeling about formative or other important persons onto physicians (eg. psychiatrist is seen as parent)
*countertransference: physician projects feelings about formative or other important persons onto patient (eg. patient reminds physician of younger sibling)
classical conditioning
*aka Pavlovian Conditioning (from Ivan Pavlov)
*control of action based on antecedent events
- before conditioning: uncontrolled stimulus (food) leads to unconditioned response (salivation)
- before conditioning: neutral stimulus (whistle) leads to no conditioned response
- during conditioning: neutral stimulus (whistle) + uncontrolled stimulus (food) leads to unconditioned response (salivation)
- after conditioning: conditioned stimulus (whistle) leads to conditioned response (salivation)
operant conditioning - overview
*based on the work of B.F. Skinner
*control of action based on postcedent events
*behavior changes as a function of reinforcement and punishment
positive reinforcement
something is GIVEN (positive) that INCREASES (reinforces) the likelihood of a behavior being repeated
negative reinforcement
something is TAKEN (negative) that INCREASES (reinforces) the likelihood of a behavior being repeated
positive punishment
something is GIVEN (positive) that DECREASES (punishment) the likelihood of a behavior being repeated
negative punishment
something is TAKEN (negative) that DECREASES (punishment) the likelihood of a behavior being repeated
shaping (operant conditioning)
*producing a new behavior by rewarding successive approximations of the desired behavior
extinction (operant conditioning)
*eliminating (or decreasing) a behavior by discontinuing the reinforcement that had been associated with that behavior
*extinction is slower following acquisition of a response to a partial reinforcement schedule than a continuous reinforcement schedule
immediate vs. delayed reinforcement
IMMEDIATE reinforcement is more effective for learning than delayed reinforcement
variable reinforcement
*highly reinforcing (causes a high level of the reinforced behavior, and the behavior is slow to extinguish)
*gambling is a variable ratio reinforcement schedule and can be quite addictive (difficult to extinguish)
principles of punishment
*can be effective in extinguishing behavior in the short-term, less effective over time
*negative side effects include unintended emotional reactions, escape or avoidance behavior, or aggression
*use sparingly and IN CONJUNCTION WITH REINFORCEMENT
