PSYD13 Delkurs 1 - Learning Flashcards
Define learning
Process by which experience produces a relatively enduring and adaptive change in an organism’s capacity for behaviour
Habituation?
A decrease in the strength of response to a repeated stimulus, i.e. less synapses between sensory and motor neuron = decrease in strength of response
Sensitisation?
An increase in the strength of response to a repeated stimulus, i.e. more synapses between sensory and motor neuron
Classical conditioning?
An organism learns to associate two stimuli such that one stimulus comes to elicit a response that was originally elicited only by the other stimulus
Unconditioned stimulus (UCS)?
A stimulus that elicits a reflexive or innate response (the UCR) without prior learning
Unconditioned response (UHR)?
A reflexive or innate response that is elicited by a stimulus (the UCS) without prior learning
Conditioned stimulus (CS)?
A stimulus that, through association with a UCS, comes to elicit a conditioned response similar to the original UCR
Conditioned response (CR)?
A response elicited by a conditioned stimulus
What is the acquisition phase in classical conditioning?
The conditioned stimulus paired with the unconditioned stimulus, i.e. where the organism learns to associate the CS with the UCS
What is the extinction phase in classical conditioning?
The conditioned stimulus alone - over time the CR decreases in intensity (ex, drops of salvia with pavlov’s dogs)
What is the first spontaneous recovery phase?
Still the CS alone, however because of the 24h rest between extinction and this phase, there is initially an increase in the CR intensity, however it decreases over time
What is the second spontaneous recovery phase?
After another 24h after the first recovery phase, the organism is exposed to the CS again, however there is now a low intensity in CR
Stimulus generalisation?
Stimuli similar to the initial CS elicit a CR
Stimulus discrimination?
When a CR occurs to one stimulus but not to others
Higher-order conditioning?
A neutral stimulus becomes a CS after being paired with an already established CS
Explain exposure therapies with classical conditioning
A patient is exposed to a stimulus (CS) that aroused an anxiety response without the presence of the UCS, allowing extinction to occur
What is aversion therapy?
It attempts to condition an aversion (a repulsion) to a stimulus that triggers unwanted behaviour by pairing it with a noxious UCS
Anticipatory nausea and vomiting (ANV)?
When you become nauseated and may vomit anywhere from minutes to hours before a treatment session (ex. cancer treatment + hospital)
How can you use classical conditioning to trigger a reduced immune response?
Sweet water + drug (UCS) -> immune suppression (UCR) —-> sweet water = CS and immune suppression = CR
What is Thorndike’s Law of effect? (Instrumental learning)
In a given situation, a response followed by a satisfying consequence will become more likely to occur and a response followed by an annoying consequence will become less likely to occur
With is operant conditioning?
A type of learning in which behaviour is influenced by the consequences that follow it
Skinner box?
A special chamber used to study operant conditioning experimentally (with rats and buttons)
Reinforcement?
Is when a response is strengthened by an outcome that follows it, can either be positive or negative
Punishment?
Occurs when a response is weakened by outcomes that follow it, can either be positive or negative
Discriminative stimulus?
Signal that a particular response will now produce certain consequences, ex. the light in the skinner box
Primary reinforcers?
Stimuli, such as food and water, that an organism naturally finds reinforcing because they satisfy biological needs
Secondary (conditioned) reinforcers?
Stimuli that acquire reinforcing properties through their association with primary reinforcers
Operant extinction?
The weakening and eventual disappearance of a response because it is no longer reinforced
Aversive punishment?
= same as positive punishment, ex. hitting a child:(
Response cost?
= same as negative punishment, ex. taking away a kids xbox
What is shaping?
i.e. methods of successive approximations, involves reinforcing successive approximations towards a final response, ex. learning a dog a complicated trick
What is chaining (in relation to shaping)?
Used to develop a sequence of responses by reinforcing each response with the opportunity to perform the next response
Operant generalisation?
An operant response to a new antecedent stimulus or situation that is similar to the original one
Operant discrimination?
An operant response will occur to one antecedent stimulus but not to another
Stimulus control?
A behaviour that is influenced by discriminative stimuli is said to be under stimulus control, ex a police siren when driving a car
Schedules of reinforcement?
When reinforcement comes in different patterns and frequencies -> we create schemas of behaviour/what to expect
Continuous reinforcement?
Every response of a particular type is reinforced
Partial (intermittent) reinforcement?
Only a portion of the responses of a particular type is reinforced
Ratio schedule?
A certain % of responses are reinforced
Interval schedule?
A certain amount of time must elapse between reinforcements
Fixed schedule?
Reinforcement always occurs after a fixed time interval
Variable schedule?
The required number of responses, or the time interval between them, varies at random
Escape conditioning?
The organism learns a response to terminate an aversive stimulus
Avoidance conditioning?
The organism learns a response to avoid an aversive stimulus
Two-factor theory of avoidance learning?
Both classical and operant conditioning are involved in avoidance learning (classical -> fear, avoiding the fear = negative reinforcement
Relational Frame Theory (RTF)
Posits that we learn language through interactions with the environment. The post-Skinnerian and behaviourist approach identifies principles that are useful in cognitive interventions such as acceptance and commitment therapy
Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT)?
An approach where clients are taught to notice, accept and embrace their thoughts and feelings
What does preparedness refer to?
Through evolution, animals are biologically pre-wired to learn some associations more easily than others
Conditioned taste aversion?
A conditioned response to which the taste (and sometimes sight and smell) of a particular food becomes disgusting and repulsive
How is the phenomenon insight a problem for behaviorism?
Insight = cognitive function, if monkey learns something by insight, behaviourists cannot explain it
Cognitive map?
A mental representation of the spatial layout, ex. rats learn a cognitive map, which is hard to explain by reinforcement
Latent learning?
Learning that occurs but is not demonstrated until later, when there is an incentive to perform - an argument against behaviourism
What is the expectancy model?
A theory that states that classical conditioning creates expectation in the organism, and it is the expectation that actually elicits the CR.
Blocking?
Obstruction of conditioning of CR, because that response has already been conditioned to a different stimulus, ex.
Rescorla-Wagner theory?
A theory of classical conditioning which states the the strength of conditioning is determined by how surprising the UCS is
Latent inhibition?
The weakening of classical conditioning due to the prior presentation of the CS on its own
Attentional theories of classical conditioning?
State that the strength of conditioning is determined by how much attention is paid to the CS during the learning episode
Observational learning?
Learning that occurs by observing the behaviour of a model
Bandura’s Social-cognitive theory?
= social-learning theory = emphasises that people learn by observing the behaviour of models and acquiring the belief that they can produce behaviours to influence events in their lives
Self-efficacy?
People’s belief that they have the capability to perform behaviours that will produce a desired outcome
Neural network (connectionist) models?
Each memory is represented by a unique pattern of interconnected and simultaneously activated nodes
