Lecture 4

Question 1

What are biological predispositions?

Answer 1

Inborn predispositions to learn were demonstrated with respect to:

1. the separation in time between the CS and US = critical determinant of conditioning
2. “equipotentiality” premise - it does not matter what stimuli are used in conditioning (any CS will be equally good in all contexts)

Question 2

Steps involved in learned taste aversion

Answer 2

1. exposed rats to flavoured water and bright noisy water
2. exposed rats to x-ray gastrointestinal disturbance and nausea
3. tested drinking of the 2 waters after X-ray exposure
4. control experiment with foot shock

Nausea could not be conditioned to light noise, nor could fear could be conditioned to taste
–> one CS will always be a better predictor for a certain US

Question 3

Explain flavour-illness associations

Answer 3

1. conditioned taste avoidance

2. conditioned disgust test

Question 4

Explain conditioned taste avoidance

Answer 4

• measured by consumption test

- appetite and consummatory

Question 5

Explain conditioned disgust test

Answer 5

Measured by taste reactivity test:

1. flavoured solution = CS (sucrose –> tongue protrusions)
2. drug = US –> sickness = UR
3. pairCS with US
4. present CS and measure CR (sucrose –> gaping)

Question 6

What is preparedness?

Answer 6

animal/human seem prepared to associated some CS-US combinations more readily than others

Question 7

What is preparedness defined by?

Answer 7

the amount of inputs (# of trials) that are necessary to develop a reliable output (response)

Question 8

Example of prepared associations

Answer 8

taste aversion

- only takes a few trials

Question 9

Example of unprepared association

Answer 9

light and food

• biology isn’t going with/against you
• takes a number of conditioning trials

Question 10

Example of counter-prepared association

Answer 10

Pigs of Breland & Breland

• “instinctive drift”
• what you’re trying to get animal to do can’t be done
• completely unnatural

Question 11

Determinants of the CR

Answer 11

For responses mediated by the somatic NS, the CR can be very complex

CS+ –> central fear state –> defensive reactions, heart rate change, analgesia, instrumental avoidance behaviour

CS+ –> central appetitive state –> appetitive behaviours, salivation, insulin secretion, instrumental appetitive behaviours

Question 12

For responses mediated by the automatic NS, the CR can be:

Answer 12

• identical to the UR (eye blink)

- opposite of the UR

Question 13

What is opposite to the primary effect?

Answer 13

Compensatory response

- body’s withdrawal response (in the absence of drugs)

Question 14

Direct conditioning is composed of?

Answer 14

• conditioning of a process

- conditioning of b process

Question 15

The a process is associated with?

Answer 15

drug-like responses

- similar to acute effects

Question 16

The b process is associated with?

Answer 16

drug-opposite responses

- similar to withdrawal

Question 17

Dr. Shirley Spragg - Drug-like conditioned responses led to?

Answer 17

Conditioned place preference = a process

–> needle freaks (conditioned to injection itself, not even the drug)

Question 18

Dr. Shirley Spragg - Conditioned withdrawal led to?

Answer 18

Conditioned place aversion = b process

Question 19

Injections of naltrexone resulted in?

Answer 19

Responsible for associating drug from receptor –> precipitates withdrawal

• huge avoidance of compartment where naltrexone was given
• conditioned to particular environment
• smell of naltrexone –> huge disgust response weeks later

Question 20

Why does body loo for environmental predictors of drug?

Answer 20

• to respond faster
• respond more appropriately

Over time:

• b process is actually larger and occurs earlier (body trying to mount response to a)
• a-b = composite of 2 effects happening at the same time
• no drug effect and a lot of pain –> people use more to feel same effect

Question 21

Is tolerance the result of compensatory CRs and context dependent?

Answer 21

Yes

Examples:

• decreased salvation when drinking decaf coffee
• increase in alcohol intoxication when drinking green beer (missing yellow cue)
• decrease in alcohol intoxication when drinking in bar (conditioned response to bar atmosphere)
• increase in heroin overdose in unfamiliar environment

Question 22

Examples of cue reactivity

Answer 22

1. conditioned cues - bag of heroin, enough cash to buy heroin
2. automatic arousal - skin temperature, conductance, heat rate, blood pressure
3. motivational arousal - desire for drugs, changes in mood
4. behavioural arousal - drug seeking and taking
5. neural activation - limbic system

Question 23

What is the amygdala involved in?

Answer 23

emotional learning

Question 24

Cue-reactivity refers to?

Answer 24

responses to drug conditioned stimuli

Question 25

Conditioned compensatory responses:

Answer 25

result from the association between a CS and the “b” process

Question 26

Which of the following is true about direct drug conditioning?

Answer 26

the “b” process is a form of withdrawal

Question 27

Which of the following does not belong?

- compensatory, unconditioned, homeostatic, learned

Answer 27

learned

Question 28

The concept of preparedness refers to the extent to which?

Answer 28

the response to be learned is a natural one from an evolutionary perspective

Question 29

In taste reactivity:

• the taste is the US
• the drug is the CS
• sickness is the CR that is measured
• taste avoidance is the CR

Answer 29

None of the above