Module 1: Learning Flashcards
What is classical conditioning?
conditioning a neutral stimulus to elicit a conditioned response
What is an unconditioned stimulus?
elicits a reflexive response
What is an unconditioned response?
reflexive response
What is a conditioned stimulus?
a stimulus, when associated with an UCS, comes to elicit a conditioned response, similar to the UCR
What is a conditioned response?
response elicited by a conditioned stimulus
What is acquisition?
forming an association
What is extinction?
diminishing an association
What is spontaneous recovery?
extinct behavior returns periodically
What is preparedness?
some associations more readily developed
What did Garcia show in rats?
showed in rats that taste aversion conditioning which led to nausea was very effective, more preparedness
• What did Watson and Rayner want to prove with their experiment on ‘Little Albert’?
The phobias are a result of conditioning (extinction used to treat)
What is systematic desensitisation?
Systematic hierarchy of stimuli (based on anxiety response, eg. Word ‘snake’, toy snake, distant snake, near snake, hold snake
What did Siegel’s morphine conditioning experiments teach us about drug tolerance?
More efficient to treat an addiction in patient’s own home (usual environment) because people become more tolerant to higher doses in their usual environment
What is the difference between classical and operant conditioning?
CLASSCIAL: associating two stimuli with each other
OPERANT: associating responses with specific consequences, behavior influenced by the consequences that follow it
Describe the four main schedules of reinforcement and give an example for each.
Fixed interval: reward 1st response after every 5 min interval (eg. Salary)
Variable interval: intervals are on average 5 mins
Fixed ratio: reward every 5th response (eg. Commission)
Variable ratio: reward on average every 5th response
What was Skinner’s view on punishment?
Campaigned against it, resulted in escape and avoidance instead of learning behavior, negative emotions
Describe the two theories (goal-directed action versus S-R habit).
Goal-directed: performs an action with a goal in mind, prefrontal cortex
S-R: stimulus – response, habit, dorsolateral striatum
Describe a devaluation experiment and how one can test whether the subject’s behaviour is goal-directed or driven by a habit.
Training phase: right lever = orange sucrose, left lever = grape sucrose
Devaluation phase: orange sucrose = sickness
Test: access to L and R levers, no sucrose
Goal = left > right lever presses
Habit (S-R) = left = right presses
If training phase is short: left > right lever
Long: S-R takes over, devaluation no longer has an effect
What are the key differences between goal-directed action and S-R habits (how are they affected by overtraining, at what age do they seem to emerge in humans)?
Children below 2 = habit (prefrontal cortex may still be developing)
Children above 2 = goal
Describe Hebb’s cell assembly theory and his learning rule.
Cell assembly: set of neurons that are interconnected form a self-re-exciting circuit Synaptic plasticity (used more = increased efficiency) “what fires together, wires together”
What is the blocking effect and what does it demonstrate?
Learning rule assumes they will increase to infinity but Hebb’s learning rule can be blocked (association of one thing to another can block something else being associated with it)
