Psych Exam 4

What is nonassociative learning?

A type of learning that involves changes in response to a single stimulus, without forming associations between events.

What are the two types of nonassociative learning?

Fixed action patterns and habituation.

What is a fixed action pattern?

An inborn, automatic behavior pattern triggered by a specific stimulus.

How do humans differ from animals in terms of fixed action patterns?

Humans rely more on learning than on inborn fixed action patterns.

What is habituation?

A decrease in response to a stimulus after repeated exposure.

What is classical conditioning?

Learning through association between two stimuli.

What is the key principle behind classical conditioning?

Association—linking events that occur together in time or space.

Who discovered classical conditioning?

Ivan Pavlov.

What is an unconditioned stimulus (US)?

A stimulus that naturally triggers a response.

What is an unconditioned response (UR)?

A natural, unlearned reaction to a stimulus.

What is a conditioned stimulus (CS)?

A previously neutral stimulus that triggers a response after association.

What is a conditioned response (CR)?

A learned response to a conditioned stimulus.

In Pavlov’s experiment, what were the US, UR, CS, and CR?

US: Food
UR: Salivation to food
CS: Bell
CR: Salivation to bell

What is acquisition?

The process of learning the association between the CS and US.

What is extinction?

The weakening of a conditioned response when the CS is presented without the US.

What is spontaneous recovery?

The reappearance of a previously extinguished response.

What is stimulus generalization?

When similar stimuli trigger the same conditioned response.

What is discrimination in classical conditioning?

Learning to distinguish between different stimuli.

What does biological preparedness mean?

Organisms are naturally predisposed to learn certain associations more easily.

What is taste aversion?

A learned avoidance of a food that made the organism sick.

What is the main idea behind classical conditioning in behavior?

Learning that one event predicts another.

Give examples of classical conditioning in humans.

Development of fears, preferences, and social attitudes.

Can the immune system be classically conditioned?

Yes, studies show immune responses can be conditioned.

What is operant conditioning?

Learning based on the consequences of voluntary behavior.

How does operant conditioning differ from classical conditioning?

It focuses on behavior and consequences rather than stimulus association.

What is the law of effect?

Behaviors followed by positive outcomes are repeated; those followed by negative outcomes are not.

What is reinforcement?

Any stimulus that strengthens a behavior.

What is positive reinforcement?

Adding a desirable stimulus to increase behavior.

What is negative reinforcement?

Removing an unpleasant stimulus to increase behavior.

What is punishment?

A consequence that weakens a behavior.

What is positive punishment?

Adding an aversive stimulus.

What is negative punishment?

Removing a desirable stimulus.

What is shaping?

Reinforcing behaviors that gradually approach a target behavior.

What is the partial reinforcement effect?

Behaviors reinforced intermittently are more resistant to extinction.

What are the four reinforcement schedules?

Fixed interval, variable interval, fixed ratio, variable ratio.

What is a discriminative stimulus?

A cue that signals when reinforcement is available.

Why should punishment be used cautiously?

It can have unwanted side effects.

How do people generally behave according to reinforcement theory?

They act to maximize rewards.

What is a common problem in self-control?

Preferring small immediate rewards over larger delayed ones.

Do generalization and discrimination apply to operant conditioning?

Yes, they are important in both operant and classical conditioning.

What is nonassociative learning?

A type of learning that involves changes in response to a single stimulus, without forming associations between events.

What are the two types of nonassociative learning?

Fixed action patterns and habituation.

What is a fixed action pattern?

An inborn, automatic behavior pattern triggered by a specific stimulus.

How do humans differ from animals in terms of fixed action patterns?

Humans rely more on learning than on inborn fixed action patterns.

What is habituation?

A decrease in response to a stimulus after repeated exposure.

What is classical conditioning?

Learning through association between two stimuli.

What is the key principle behind classical conditioning?

Association—linking events that occur together in time or space.

Who discovered classical conditioning?

Ivan Pavlov.

What is an unconditioned stimulus (US)?

A stimulus that naturally triggers a response.

What is an unconditioned response (UR)?

A natural, unlearned reaction to a stimulus.

What is a conditioned stimulus (CS)?

A previously neutral stimulus that triggers a response after association.

What is a conditioned response (CR)?

A learned response to a conditioned stimulus.

In Pavlov’s experiment, what were the US, UR, CS, and CR?

US: Food; UR: Salivation to food; CS: Bell; CR: Salivation to bell

What is acquisition?

The process of learning the association between the CS and US.

What is extinction?

The weakening of a conditioned response when the CS is presented without the US.

What is spontaneous recovery?

The reappearance of a previously extinguished response.

What is stimulus generalization?

When similar stimuli trigger the same conditioned response.

What is discrimination in classical conditioning?

Learning to distinguish between different stimuli.

What does biological preparedness mean?

Organisms are naturally predisposed to learn certain associations more easily.

What is taste aversion?

A learned avoidance of a food that made the organism sick.

What is the main idea behind classical conditioning in behavior?

Learning that one event predicts another.

Give examples of classical conditioning in humans.

Development of fears, preferences, and social attitudes.

Can the immune system be classically conditioned?

Yes, studies show immune responses can be conditioned.

What is operant conditioning?

Learning based on the consequences of voluntary behavior.

How does operant conditioning differ from classical conditioning?

It focuses on behavior and consequences rather than stimulus association.

What is the law of effect?

Behaviors followed by positive outcomes are repeated; those followed by negative outcomes are not.

What is reinforcement?

Any stimulus that strengthens a behavior.

What is positive reinforcement?

Adding a desirable stimulus to increase behavior.

What is negative reinforcement?

Removing an unpleasant stimulus to increase behavior.

What is punishment?

A consequence that weakens a behavior.

What is positive punishment?

Adding an aversive stimulus.

What is negative punishment?

Removing a desirable stimulus.

What is shaping?

Reinforcing behaviors that gradually approach a target behavior.

What is the partial reinforcement effect?

Behaviors reinforced intermittently are more resistant to extinction.

What are the four reinforcement schedules?

Fixed interval, variable interval, fixed ratio, variable ratio.

What is a discriminative stimulus?

A cue that signals when reinforcement is available.

Why should punishment be used cautiously?

It can have unwanted side effects.

How do people generally behave according to reinforcement theory?

They act to maximize rewards.

What is a common problem in self-control?

Preferring small immediate rewards over larger delayed ones.

Do generalization and discrimination apply to operant conditioning?

Yes, they are important in both operant and classical conditioning.

What was Skinner interested in regarding operant conditioning?

Practical applications of operant conditioning.

Where are operant conditioning principles commonly applied?

Clinical settings, the workplace, and the classroom.

What can interfere with shaping new behaviors according to animal studies?

Species-specific biological dispositions.

What is latent learning?

Learning that occurs without reinforcement.

What influences behavior more than objective contingencies?

The perception of control over reinforcement.

How can rewards sometimes affect intrinsic motivation?

They can undermine intrinsic motivation.

What is observational learning?

Learning by observing and imitating others.

Who proposed the concept of observational learning?

Albert Bandura.

What are models in observational learning?

Individuals whose behavior is observed and imitated.

What types of behaviors can be learned through observational learning?

Both desirable (helping) and undesirable (aggressive) behaviors.

What are the four steps of observational learning?

Attention, retention, reproduction, and motivation.

What is vicarious reinforcement?

Learning by observing the rewards or punishments of others.

When are people most likely to imitate a model?

When the model is rewarded for their behavior.

What is the information-processing model of memory?

Memory is a system in which sensory input is stored briefly, then processed in short-term memory, and encoded into long-term memory.

What is sensory memory?

A brief storage system that holds sensory information for a moment.

What happens to information that captures attention?

It is transferred to short-term memory.

What is the sensory register?

The first stage of the information-processing system.

What is iconic memory?

A type of sensory memory that stores visual images.

What did Sperling discover using the partial-report technique?

Many items briefly enter consciousness but fade quickly within a fraction of a second.

What is echoic memory?

A type of sensory memory that stores auditory information.