Learning and Memory - Chapter 11

Asperger's syndrome

A condition that affects social interaction and communication, mentioned in context of imitation deficits

contagion

Automatic replication of behaviors without conscious control

copying

The act of reproducing observed behaviors

echolalia

Involuntary repetition of words or phrases, common in autism and frontal lobe damage

emulation

Learning to achieve a goal by observing others, without necessarily copying their exact methods

mirror neurons

Brain cells that activate both when performing and observing actions

modeling

Demonstrating behaviors for others to learn from

observational conditioning

Learning through watching others' responses to stimuli

observational learning

Learning that occurs through watching and copying others

perspective taking

The ability to understand situations from another's viewpoint

social conformity

Adjusting behavior to match group norms

social learning

Learning that occurs in a social context

social learning theory

Theory explaining how people learn through observation and imitation

social transmission of information

Transfer of knowledge between individuals through social interaction

stimulus enhancement

Increased attention to objects or areas others interact with

stimulus matching

Matching observed patterns or behaviors

template model of song learning

Model explaining how birds learn songs through matching to internal templates

true imitation

Exact copying of novel actions

two-action test

Test to determine if animals can truly imitate by copying specific methods

vocal learning

The ability to learn and reproduce sounds