VCE psychology warmup questions Flashcards
1) Learning the motor skill of teeth brushing involves interactions between the basal ganglia and neocortex. Discuss how the Bansal ganglia and the neocortex are involved in this example. Refer to role of the brain in each region and interaction between the two brain regions. 3 marks
Basal ganglia involves formation and consolidation of implicit memories, including procedural memories. Teeth brushing is a procedural memory as it involves knowing how to carry out a task that involves a motor skill. The basal ganglia creates the memory of how to brush your teeth where it is then stored in the neocortex, which stores both implicit and explicit memories through its connection to the basal ganglia.
The farther in the picture remembers learning to brush his teeth when he was young as it was often an enjoyable experience. As his child’s teeth start to grow, he imagines how he would teach the same teeth brushing skills to his son.
Describe the role of episodic and sematic memory in constructing the possible imagine future of teaching his son to brush his teeth? (3 marks)
Episodic memory allows the father to recall the enjoyable experience of brushing his teeth as a kid. The semantic memory aspects allow him to picture teaching his son the same brushing technique. By combining the two, he is able to construct a possible imagined future in which he will teach his son how to brush his teeth.
Many species of birds can be conditioned to avoid predators by pairing the sound of the predator with an unpleasant
stimulus, such as a puff of air. Over time, the birds learn that the sound of the predator alone is dangerous.
Name the behaviourist approach to learning that is discussed in this scenario and outline the three-phase process of
conditioning to avoid predators.
This scenario discusses classical conditioning as a behaviorist approach to learning, where learning occurs through the repeated association between 2 or more different stimuli to produce a naturally occurring response. Before conditioning, the birds sound of the predator was the NS which produced no response and a puff of air was the UCS which naturally produced the UCR of danger/fear of the puff of air.
Many species of birds can be conditioned to avoid predators by pairing the sound of the predator with an unpleasant
stimulus, such as a puff of air. Over time, the birds learn that the sound of the predator alone is dangerous.
Name the behaviourist approach to learning that is discussed in this scenario and outline the three-phase process of
conditioning to avoid predators.
part 2
. During conditioning, the NS and UCS were repeatedly associated, with the NS of predator sound presented immediately before the UCS of the puff of air to produce a fear response UCR. After conditioning, due to acquisition occurring, the NS of the predator sound is now the CS which produces the CR of danger/fear to the sound of the predator. The sound of the predator was now able to produce the CR without the UCS being presented after. Since danger/fear now automatically occurred when hearing the sound of the predator, birds were conditioned to avoid the predators due to the feeling of fear.
