Task 4

Question 1

What is compound conditioning?

Answer 1

Simultaneous conditioning of two cues, usually presented at same time.

Question 2

What is overshadowing?

Answer 2

Effect seen in compound conditioning, when a more salient cue within a compound acquires more association strength than less salient cue.

Question 3

What is Blocking?

Answer 3

Classical conditioning that occurs only when a cue is a useful and a nonredundant predictor of the future.

Question 4

How did Kamin’s Blocking study look like?

Answer 4

1. Control group: did not receive phase 1 pre-training and in second phase, the rats were trained with compound cue (light and tone). -> response not as strong as to both light and tone together
2. Experimental group: in phase one they were conditioned to light, in phase two the rats were exposed to compound cue but the additional presence of tone did not provide new information

Question 5

How does the Rescorla-Wagner model assume?

Answer 5

Amount of change that occurs in association between a CS and a US depends on prediction error.

Question 6

What is the prediction error?

Answer 6

Difference between whether animal expects the US and whether the US actually occurs.

Question 7

What is the Negative Error?

Answer 7

Unconditioned stimulus does not take place even if it is predicted.

Question 8

What is the Error-correction rule?

Answer 8

X Equation 1 -> Prediction error = Actual US – Expected US -> Result is positive.
X Equation 2 -> Negative error = Actual US – Expected US. -> Result is negative.
X When Actual US and expected US are equal -> No error -> No learning.

Question 9

What three assumptions does the Rescorla-Wagner model make?

Answer 9

1. Each CS has association weight that describes strength of association between cue and US.
2. Animal’s expectation of US can be described by sum of weights of all cues that are presented during trial.
3. On each trial, learning is proportional to difference between outcome expected by animal and what actually occurs – Prediction error.

Question 10

What is latent inhibition?

Answer 10

Conditioning paradigm in which prior exposure to CS retards later learning of the CS – US association during acquisition training.

Question 11

What is the US modulation theory of learning?

Answer 11

It argues that manner in which US is processed, determines what stimuli become associated with that US.
X Ability of US to promote learning is modulated by how unexpected the US is, given the potential CS preceding it.
-> Rescorla-Wagner

Question 12

What are the CS modulation theories of learning?

Answer 12

They propose that way in which different potential CSs are processed, determines which becomes associated with US.
X Class of learning theories that focus on CSs, suggesting various mechanisms that modulate the ability of potential CSs to enter into associations.
X Mackintosh theory – Based on observation that people and animals have limited capacity for processing incoming information. This limited capacity means that paying attention to one stimulus, diminishes ability to attend to other stimuli.

Question 13

What are the main pathways in classical conditioning?

Answer 13

1. CS input pathway: pontine nuclei in brainstem -> mossy fibers in deep nuclei of cerebellum branch into 1. Interpositus nucleus and 2. project towards cerebellar cortex (by the way of Granule cells) across parallel fibers, then connecting to dendrites of Purkinje cells.
2. US input pathway: neurons in inferior olive in brainstem -> two pathways: 1. activate interpositus nucleus and 2. project to cerebellar cortex with climbing fibers.
3. CR output pathway: starts at purkinje cells -> project into deep nuclei where inhibitory synapse is formed with interpositus -> project to muscles

Question 14

Why might former addicts relapse according to the historical paper?

Answer 14

• Capacity of drug-associated stimuli to elicit craving/withdrawal distress has not been reduced during treatment
• Likelihood of relapse should be reduced if drug-associated stimuli are prevented from eliciting craving and withdrawal distress

Question 15

What are possible treatment methods according to the historical paper?

Answer 15

• Extinguishing drug-associated cues
• Extinguishing association between emotional cues and drug
• If small quantities of alcohol are administered during treatment without being followed by binges
• Also, a patient can be taught about conditioning

Question 16

What are the pro’s of the Rescorla Wagner Model?

Answer 16

• Simple model
• Explains a range of empirical results
• Can explain blocking
• in congruence with connectionist network and category learning models

Question 17

What are the con’s of the Rescorla Wagner Model?

Answer 17

Due to its simplicity,it cannot explain every type of learning
(e.g. latent inhibition)

Question 18

Conditioning in the Cerebellum: Inputs, Outputs, Location of learning, prediction error, connecting fibers?

Answer 18

Inputs: Pontine nucleus (CS), Inferior olive (US)
Outputs: Interpositus (Eye blink)
Location of learning: Purkinje cell
Prediction error: Inferior olive
Connecting fibers: Mossy fibers, granule cell (parallel fibers), climbing fibers

Question 19

What is the Purkinje cell, interpositus and inferior olive’s activity before learning?

Answer 19

Purkinje cell: always active, always inhibit
interpositus
Interpositus: inhibits inferior olive, but is
itself inhibited by the PC
→untrained: only slight response to US
(but still strong eye blink!)
→ ONLY responsible for CR, not for UR
Inferior Olive: compares excitation input
from air puff and the input from the
interpositus
→calculates PE: Do inputs match?

Question 20

What is the Pontine nuclei, Inferior olive, Purkinje cell, Interpositus and inferior olive’s activity during learning?

Answer 20

Pontine nuclei: receive sensory input about the
NS (light/tone)
→sends signal to granule cells via mossy fibers
→granule cells project the NS-information to the
PC via parallel fibers
Inferior olive: receives sensory input about the
US (air-puff)
→ projects US-information to the PC via climbing
fibers
Purkinje cell: receives input from both NS (via
parallel fibers) and US (via climbing fibers)
→NS-signal leads to AP in PC
→over time, NS-US pairing will lead to LTD in PC
(see next slide)
Interpositus: is inhibited by PC, so it will not
send signal to Inferior olive
Inferior olive: activated by US (air-puff) but it
was unexpected! (NS is not yet informative of US)
→positive PE!

Question 21

What process happens in the Purkinje cell during long-term potentation? (6 steps)

Answer 21

Input from the CS via parallel fibers
2. Ionotropic receptors →Depolarization;
Metabotropic receptors →
Hyperpolarization
3. Metabotropic glutamate receptors
release PKC proteins
4. PKC marks (phosphorylates) the
ionotropic AMPA receptors
5. Sensory information about the US via
climbing fibers use (NT = aspartate)
allow calcium-influx
6. Calcium activates PKC proteins
7. PKC proteins cause internalization of
ionotropic AMPA receptors

Question 22

What are the results of LTP in the Purkinje cell?

Answer 22

→less ionotropic receptors!

→CS will lead to hyperpolarization, making AP in PC less probable!

Question 23

How does the activity in the Cerebellum look like after learning?

Answer 23

Due to LTD in Purkinje cells, CS does not
lead to AP anymore!
→As a consequence, the interpositus is less
inhibited
→ The CS information of the pontine
nucleus can now activate the interpositus
Now, the interpositus does two things:
1. It initiates the CR (eye-blink) in
response to only the CS
2. It inhibits the inferior olive, thus
inhibiting its response to the US (no
prediction error anymore!)