States of Consciousness + Learning

Conscious Processing

Active awareness of thoughts and environment.

Non-Conscious Processing

Mental processes that are not in awareness, such as breathing and memory storage.

Preconscious Mind

Mental content that can be made conscious, such as memories.

Unconscious Mind (Freud)

Contains hidden desires, fears, and conflicts.

Circadian Rhythm

The 24-hour biological clock that regulates the sleep/wake cycle.

REM Sleep

A stage of sleep characterized by rapid eye movement, dreams, and body paralysis.

N-REM Sleep

Non-dream stages of sleep, including light sleep (N1), sleep spindles (N2), and deep sleep (N3).

Sleep Paralysis

A condition during REM sleep where the mind is awake but the body remains immobile.

Manifest Content

The storyline of a dream as defined by Freud.

Latent Content

The hidden, unconscious meaning of a dream as described by Freud.

Activation-Synthesis Theory

Suggests dreams are a result of random neural activity that the brain interprets.

Information Processing Theory

Suggests that dreams help sort and store memories.

Hypnosis

An altered state of focused attention and suggestibility; useful for pain relief and habit change.

Depressants

Substances that slow down brain activity, like alcohol and opiates.

Stimulants

Substances that increase body activity, such as caffeine and nicotine.

Hallucinogens

Drugs that alter perception, like LSD and marijuana.

Addiction

Physical or psychological dependence on a substance, characterized by tolerance and withdrawal.

Learning

Acquired behavior through experience.

Instinct

Inborn, automatic behavior.

Habituation

Decreased response to a repeated stimulus.

Neutral Stimulus (NS)

A stimulus that does not trigger a response before conditioning.

Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)

A stimulus that naturally causes a response.

Unconditioned Response (UCR)

An automatic reaction to an unconditioned stimulus.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

Initially neutral, but becomes able to trigger a learned response after conditioning.

Conditioned Response (CR)

A learned reaction to a conditioned stimulus.

Acquisition

The initial stage of learning when a conditioned stimulus is paired with an unconditioned stimulus.

Extinction

The process where a conditioned response fades when the conditioned stimulus is no longer paired with the unconditioned stimulus.

Spontaneous Recovery

The reappearance of a conditioned response after extinction.

Discrimination

The ability to distinguish between similar stimuli, only responding to the specific conditioned stimulus.

Generalization

The tendency for similar stimuli to also trigger a conditioned response.

Law of Effect

The principle that behaviors followed by favorable outcomes are more likely to be repeated.

Positive Reinforcement

Adding a pleasant stimulus to increase a behavior.

Negative Reinforcement

Removing an unpleasant stimulus to increase a behavior.

Punishment

An outcome that decreases the likelihood of a behavior being repeated.

Positive Punishment

Adding something unpleasant to reduce a behavior.

Negative Punishment

Taking away something pleasant to decrease a behavior.

Continuous Reinforcement

A reinforcement schedule where every response is rewarded.

Intermittent Reinforcement

Reinforcement that occurs only sometimes after a behavior.

Fixed Ratio Schedule

Reinforcement after a set number of responses.

Variable Ratio Schedule

Reinforcement after a random number of responses.

Fixed Interval Schedule

Reinforcement after a set period of time.

Variable Interval Schedule

Reinforcement after random time intervals.

Shaping

Reinforcing successive approximations towards a desired behavior.

Primary Reinforcers

Reinforcers that satisfy biological needs, such as food and water.

Secondary Reinforcers

Reinforcers that acquire value through learning, such as money and praise.

Token Economy

A system where tokens are used as secondary reinforcers that can be exchanged for rewards.

Cognitive Maps

Mental representations of physical locations, as demonstrated by Tolman’s rats in mazes.

Latent Learning

Learning that occurs but is not immediately evident.

Observational Learning

Learning that occurs by watching others.

Modeling

The process of learning behaviors or attitudes by observing others.

Bobo Doll Experiment

Bandura's study showing that children imitate aggressive behaviors observed in adults.