Unit 3: Learning Concepts (3.7a-3.9) Flashcards
learning
the process of aquiring through experience, new and relatively enduring information, or behaviors.
habituation CC
decreasing responsiveness with repeated stimulation
associative learning
learning that certain events occur together. The events may be two stimuli (CC) or a response and its consequence (OC)
stimulus
any event or situation that evokes a response
respondent behavior
behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus
operant behavior
behavior that operates on the environment, producing a consequence
cognitive learning
the acquisition of mental information, whether by observing events, watching others, or through language
classical conditioning
a type of learning in which we link two or more stimuli; as a result, to illustrate with Pavlov’s classic experiment, the first stimulus (a tone) comes to elicit behavior (drooling) in anticipation for the second stimulus (food).
behaviorism
the view that psychology should be an objective science that studies behavior without reference to mental processes.
Pavlov’s experiments
the first stimulus (a tone) comes to elicit behavior (drooling) in anticipation for the second stimulus (food); where the CR is the drooling, and the CS is the tone.
conditioned response (CR)
a learned response to a previously neutral (but now conditioned) stimulus (CS)
conditioned stimulus (CS)
causes the CR, was previously neutral
unconditioned response (UCR)
natural response to a unconditioned stimulus- changes into the CR after being conditioned to a previously neutral stimulus
unconditioned stimulus (UCS)
stimulus that causes a natural response before conditioning
NS
neutral stimuli- changes into a conditioned stimuli after classical conditioning
higher-order/second-order conditioning
a procedure in which the CS in one conditioning experience is paired with a new NS, creating a second (often weaker) CS.
3 examples of how Pavlov’s principles influences human health and well-being (not necessarily all in good ways):
1) drug cravings: classical conditioning may inform treatments for substance use disorder
2) food cravings: classical conditioning makes avoiding sweets difficult
3) immune responses: classical conditioning even works on the body’s disease-fighting immune system
Watson
Little Albert experiment: the child learned (was conditoned) to fear a white rat after a loud noise was experienced as the rat or other fluffy animals were presented.
UCS: loud noise, UCR: fear response
NS: rat before conditioning
CS: rat, CR: fear
biological preparedness:
a biological predisposition to learn associations, such as between taste and nausea, that have survival value. Ex) a monkey easily being conditioned to fear a rope rather than a flower because the rope resembles a snake, which they have a biological predisposition to be afraid of.
Garcia
Taste aversion experiment: plastic water: CS and sickness (UCR) triggered by radiation (UCS) caused rats to associate the taste with the sickness
Operant conditioning:
a type of learning in which a behavior becomes more likely to recur if followed by a reinforcement or less likely if followed by a punishment
Thorndike
Law of effect: principle that behaviors followed by reinforcing consequences become more likely, and that behaviors followed by punishing consequences become less likely
Skinner box/operant chamber
a chamber containing a bar or key that an animal can manipulate to obtain a food or water reinforcer; attached deices record the animal’s rate of bar pressing/key pecking
reinforcement
any event that strengthens the behavior it follows
shaping
an operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer successive approximations of the desired behavior
positive reinforcement
INCREASING BEHAVIOR by presenting a pleasureable stimulus.
negative reinforcement
INCREASING BEHAVIOR by stopping or reducing an unwanted stimulus.
primary reinforcer
an innately reinforcing stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need. EX) wanting food instead of a million dollars when stranded on an island
conditioned (secondary) reinforcer
a stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer. EX) wanting good grades because society praises those who accomplish it
reinforcement schedules
a pattern that defines how often a desired response will be reinforced
continuous reinforcement schedule
reinforcing the desired response every time it occurs
partial (intermittent) reinforcement schedule
reinforcing a response only part of the time; results in slower aquisition of a response but much greater resistance to extinction than does continuous reinforcement.
sometimes, the accidental timing of rewards can produce superstitious behaviors: pigeons repeating actions they had been doing when food appeared, believing those actions caused the reward.
fixed-ratio schedule (FR)
in operant conditoning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a SPECIFIED number of responses. EX) getting a free drink every 5 times you buy one from starbucks
variable-ratio schedules (VR)
a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after an UNPREDICTABLE number of responses. EX) gambling
Fixed-interval schedules (FI)
a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a SPECIFIED amount of time has passed. EX) baking cookies and only checking if the cookies are done around the 10 minute mark, not in the first two minutes.
the behavior increases as the time for the next reinforcer draws near, then there is a long pause after reinforcement.
Variable-interval schedule
reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals
EX) studying each night of the week because your teacher said there would be a pop quiz on one of the weekdays, but did not tell you which day.
punishment, positive punishment, and negative punishment
an event that tends to decrease the behavior it follows.
positive punishment: application: something you DISLIKE added to environment
negative punishment:
removal: removing something you LIKE from the environement
5 drawbacks to physical punishment
1) punished behavior is suppressed, not forgotten. this temporary state may negatively reinforce parents’ punishing behavior
2) physical punishment does not replace the unwanted behavior
3) punishment teaches discrimination among situations
4) punishment teaches fear
5) physical punishment may increase aggression by MODELING violence as a way to cope with problems
Why did Skinner’s ideas cause controversy?
because his critics believed he dehumanized people by neglecting their personal freedom and by seeking to control their actions.
Basic rule for shaping people’s behavior
notice people doing soemthing right and affirm them for it
instinctive drift
the tendency of learned behavior to gradually revert to biologically predisposed patterns- EX) a trained lion biting the man’s neck who trained him after a long time
Basic ideas of Operant Conditioning and Classical Conditioning
C: learning associations between events we don’t control
O: learning associations between our behavior and its consequences
(keep in mind that “consequences” does not always have a negative meaning)
Responses of Operant Conditioning and Classical Conditioning
C: involuntary, automatic
O: voluntary, operates on the environment
acquisition of Operant Conditioning and Classical Conditioning
C: associating events; NS is paired with UCS and becomes the CS.
O: associating a response with a consequence- either a reinforcer or a punisher
extinction of Operant Conditioning and Classical Conditioning
C: CR decreases when CS is repeatedly presented alone
O: Responding decreases when reinforcement stops
spontaneous recovery of Operant Conditioning and Classical Conditioning
C: the reappearance, after a rest period, of a weakened CR
O: the reappearance, after a rest period, of a weakened response.
generalization of Operant Conditioning and Classical Conditioning
C: the tendency to respondd to stimulus similar to the CS
O: responses learned in one situation occurring in other, similar sitiations
discrimination of Operant Conditioning and Classical Conditioning
C: learning to distinguish between a CS and other stimulus that do not signal a UCS
O: learning that some responses, but not others, will be reinforced
E.C. Tolman
Rat maze experiment: consisted of rats exploring a maze, given no rewards. The rats seemed to develop a COGNITIVE MAP. when these rats ran the maze against rats reinforced with food, the results were the same. THe rats seemingly experienced LATENT READING.
Latent reading
learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it.
Insight learning
solving problems through sudden insight: contrasts with strategy-based solutions. EX) puzzle over a problem, the suddenly precieve the solution!!
Modeling
the process of observing and imitating a specific behavior. EX) Bobo doll experiment
Learned helplessness
An individual, after repeated exposure to uncontrollable and adverse situations, begins to believe they have no control over their circumstances, even when they later have the power to change their situation.
memes
cultural elements passed on by imitation: ideas, fashion, etc
vicarious conditioning/ vicarious learning
the act of learning things through OBSERVING the reactions, attitudes, and emotions of others.
Mirror neurons
neurons that some scientists believe fire when we perform certain actions or WATCH others doing so. EX) adult looking left, baby follows the adult’s gaze and looks left too.
Theory of Mind (children)
“share” another’s experience and empathize: children’s brains enable their empathy and their ability to infer another’s mental state. EX) seeing someone break their leg online and empathizing, feeling slighly like you also broke your leg
prosocial effects
people’s modeling of positive behaviors have prosocial effects. EX) ripple effect of kindness, kind parents=kind children
antisocial effects
observational learning can also increase antisocial behavior. EX) abusive parents = aggressive children
Rescorla & Wagner
Rat study: when a beep and a shock are presented together, rats learn to be scared of beep. In the second group, the shocks and beeps were random, so rats in group two don’t learn that the beep is a reliable predictor like group one did.
this pointed out that subjects had to determine (think) whether the NS/CS was a reliable predictor of the UCS. Ex) in Pavlov’s experiments, the bell was a reliable predictor that food could follow.
4 modeling requirements
1) Attention
2) memory
3) apply memory into actions you’re capable or reproducing
4) modivation
Bandura
Bobo doll experiment, observational learning
