Task 4 - Classical Conditioning

Question 1

Unconditioned stimulus (US

Answer 1

a stimulus that naturally evokes some response (f.e. Food since is evoked a natural response, such as salivation)

Question 2

Unconditioned response (UR)

Answer 2

(their relationship does not depend on learning) they both occur unconditionally without prior training – the naturally occurring response to an unconditioned stimulus

Question 3

Appetitive conditioning

Answer 3

the name of the conditioning when the unconditioned stimulus is a positive event (such as food delivery for Pavlov’s dog or ice cream for Moira)
- In general, appetitive conditioning consists of learning to predict something that satisfies a desire or appetite

Question 4

Aversive conditioning

Answer 4

Conditioning in which the US is a negative event (such as a shock or an airpuff to the eye)

Question 5

Eyeblink conditioning

Answer 5

A classical conditioning procedure in which the Unconditioned Stimulus is an airpuff to the eye and the conditioned and unconditioned responses are eye blinks – perhaps the most thoroughly studied form of motor reflex

Question 6

Tolerance

Answer 6

A decrease in reaction to a drug so that larger doses are required to achieve the same effect

Question 7

Homeostasis

Answer 7

the tendency of the body (including the brain) to gravitate toward a state of equilibrium or balance

Question 8

Extinction

Answer 8

the process of reducing a learned response to a stimulus by ceasing to pair that stimulus with a reward or punishment

• Extinction does not involve the total loss of what was previously learned

Question 9

Delay

Answer 9

(less successful) - f.e. Not bringing the food out straight away

Question 10

Compound conditioning

Answer 10

The simultaneous conditioning of two cues, usually presented at the same time

• Many studies have shown that the tone will have less association with the US if it is trained in compound than if it had been trained alone in a tone

Question 11

Overshadowing

Answer 11

occurs when a more salient cue within a compound acquires far more of the share of attention and learning than the less salient cue – A effect seen in compound conditioning when a more salient cue within a compound acquires more association strength, and is thus more strongly conditioned, than does the less salient cue

Question 12

Blocking

Answer 12

a two-phase training paradigm in which prior training to one cue (CS1 → US) blocks later learning of a second cue when the two are paired together in the second phase of the training (CS1 + CS2 → US)

• it demonstrates that classical conditioning occurs only when a cue is both a useful and a nonredundant predictor of the future

Question 13

Prediction error
(Rescorla-Wagner Model of Conditioning)

Answer 13

the difference between what was predicted and what actually occurred

Question 14

Error-correction learning

Answer 14

a mathematical specification of the conditions for learning that holds that the degree to which an outcome is surprising modulates the amount of learning that takes place

Question 15

Three key situations to consider in interpreting a prediction error

Answer 15

1. A situation in which either no Conditioned Stimulus or a novel Conditioned Stimulus is presented followed by a Unconditioned stimulus, so that the unconditioned stimulus will be unexpected → this is considered a positive prediction error because there is more Unconditioned Stimulus than expected
2. a well-trained CS is followed by the expected US, there is no error in prediction (the US was fully predicted by prior presentation of the CS), and thus no new learning is expected
3. if the CS predicts a US and the US does not occur, the prediction error is considered negative, and Rescorla and Wagner expect it to be followed by a decrease in the CS US association

Question 16

Rescorla–Wagner theory

Answer 16

this theory expects that the CS US association should increase proportional to the degree that the US is surprising; that is, the larger the error, the greater the learning

Question 17

Associative weight

Answer 17

in the Rescorla-Wagner model of conditioning, a value representing the strength of association between a conditioned stimulus (CS) and an unconditioned stimulus (US)

Question 18

Latent inhibition

Answer 18

A conditioning paradigm in which prior exposure to a CS retards later learning of the CS–US association during acquisition training – impaired learning following cue pre-exposure

Question 19

US modulation theory

Answer 19

(this theory is correct) the Rescorla–Wagner model is often called a US modulation theory of learning because it proposes that the manner in which the US is processed determines what stimuli become associated with that US – measures strength of association to the stimulus

Question 20

CS modulation theories

Answer 20

(this theory is correct) Any of the theories of conditioning holding that the stimulus that enters into an association is determined by a change in how the CS is processed

Question 21

core idea of Mackintosh theory

Answer 21

that a previously conditioned stimulus derives its salience from its past success as a predictor of important events (Mackintosh, 1975), and this happens at the expense of other co-occurring cues that don’t get access to your limited pool of attention

Question 22

Cerebellum

Answer 22

only responsible for the conditioned response (because the unconditioned response is reflexiv) – still processes the unconditioned stimulus

Question 23

Purkinje cells

Answer 23

a type of large, drop shaped, and densely branching neuron in the cerebellar cortex

Question 24

Interpositus

Answer 24

one of the cerebellar deep nuclei

Question 25

Two major sensory-input pathways

Answer 25

1. CS input pathway

2. US input pathway

Question 26

Inferior olive

Answer 26

a nucleus of cells with connections to the thalamus, cerebellum, and spinal cord

relaying of sensory signals, including motor signals to the cerebral cortex, the regulation of consciousness, sleep and alertness

Question 27

Bouton’s work suggests three principles that can help guide anyone trying to extinguish a habit or association

Answer 27

1. Since extinction effects are highly context-sensitive, cue- exposure therapy should be conducted in as many different contexts as possible, including those that are part of the patient’s everyday life. This will prevent the extinction of drug craving from becoming dependent on any one context (such as a drug rehab center).
2. The extinction training should be spread out over time rather than conducted all at once, because time serves as a powerful context. A 2-week stint in a rehab clinic may not be enough to make a long-term difference. Multiple therapy sessions at different times and in different contexts are more effective.
3. Whenever possible, the cue-exposure therapy should take place in the same contexts in which the original drug habits were acquired. Thus, it is better to go through the cue-exposure therapy at home rather than in a very unfamiliar setting, such as a drug rehabilitation center

Question 28

conditioning theory of tolerance

Answer 28

conditional compensatory responses serve to adaptively attenuate the pharmacological assault when the drug is delivered

Question 29

Withdrawal symptoms (aka preparation symptoms)

Answer 29

the individual is displaying responses that would tend to cancel the pharmacologically-induced homeostatic imbalance usually experienced in these circumstances – happens when f.e. One is in the same place where one usually takes the drug but in this situation doesn’t

Question 30

Craving

Answer 30

the psychological or cognitive correlate of a subclinical conditioned withdrawal syndrome

Question 31

Negative error

Answer 31

extinction

Question 32

Positive error

Answer 32

when learning occurs

Question 33

No error

Answer 33

no learning occurs