Unit 4 Flashcards
Learning
Learning
A relatively permanent change in behavior through experience or practice. Some psychologists believe that everything we have ever learned is stored in our brains, we just cannot access all of it.
Habituation
Decrease in response to a stimulus after repeated presentations. Example: you love a new song on the radio, but listen to it so many times that you begin to skip it.
Dishabituation
When we respond to an old stimulus as if it is new again. Example: you haven’t heard the song you love in years. When it comes on the radio you turn it up.
Unconditioned Stimulus
Something in the environment that leads to an automatic response (food).
Unconditioned Response
The unconditioned response to the UCS (salivating).
Neutral Stimulus
Something else present in the environment that creates no response (bell).
Conditioned Stimulus
What the neutral stimulus becomes once an association is made (bell).
Conditioned Response
The automatic response to the NEW CS (salivating). Usually the same respone, just not as strong.
Ivan Pavlov
Termed classical conditioning as a form of learning, a stimulus that evokes a response, and the response can be modified. Discovered the principle while studying the digestive system in dogs- wanted to measure the amount of saliva present when given food. Food was the stimulus, salivation was the response. Noticed that other elements in the environment could be associated with the UCS and elicit the SAME response. Before presenting the food, Pavlov rang a bell. The dogs began to associate the bell with the food. They began to salivate at the sound of the bell.
Stimulus Generalization
The tendency to respond to a stimulus that is SIMILAR (generalized) to the original conditioned stimulus. Example: the dogs may begin to salivate at the sound of a clinking glass, a wind chime, or a bell ring on TV. Not as strong as the original conditioned stimulus’ response.
Extinction
Disappearance of a conditioned response to a stimulus when it is not reinforced. Example: stop ringing the bell when food is present and over time the bell loses the association.
Spontaneous Recovery
Reappearance of an extinct conditioned response when the original conditioned stimulus returns. Usually short lived and weak.
Higher Order Conditioning
A strong conditioned stimulus is paired with a new neutral stimulus. Now there are TWO conditioned responses. Example: a bell now makes a dog salivate and it is a strong association. Now you add the neutral stimulus of snapping your fingers right before ringing the bell. The dog will begin to associate the finger snapping with the bell. Both of which make the dog salivate without the presence of food.
Conditioned Emotional Response
When a conditioned stimulus is paired with an EMOTION producing unconditioned response. Commonly fears and phobias are conditioned. Example: shots (UCS) make toddlers cry (UCR). Doctor’s office (NS) doesn’t have any response. When toddlers get shots they’ll associate the pain with the location. Doctor’s offices (CS) now make a toddler cry (CR).
Learned Immune Responses
The immune system can be activated during conditioning. Example: mice were exposed to a strong odor. The experimental group received an injection of an acid that promotes activity of natural killer cells (immune response). The control group received no injection. In the EG, the next time they were exposed to the odor, their bodies NATURALLY boosted the amount of NK cells. CG showed no change.
Watson and Little Albert
John B. Watson wanted to study the fear response. Little Baby Albert had no fear of white rats (NS). Little Baby Albert cried (UCR) when he heard loud noises (UCS). Watson paired the white rat with the loud noises. Little Albert began to associate the rat with the loud noises and would cry at the sight of the rat. Generalization occurred- feared white rabbits and fuzzy animals.
Taste Aversions
Also known as the Garcia Effect. Biological form of conditioning. Getting sick from a certain food and avoiding that food in the future. Humans naturally wanted to avoid nausea. It is biologically embedded in humans to avoid things that make us sick for our survival.
Rescorla’s Experiment with Rats