AP Psych Test Prep: Unit 3 (Development and Learning)

behavioral perspective

focuses on observable behaviors and what one can do to bring about behavior changes

associative learning

learning that certain events occur together
the events may be two stimuli or a response and its consequences
“Connections learning”

habituation (non-associative learning)

learning to decrease responses to a stimulus after repeated presentations

classical conditioning

a type of learning where a stimulus gains the power to cause a response because it predicts another stimulus that already produces that response
“Associations”

unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

in classical conditioning, a stimulus that unconditionally—naturally and automatically—triggers a response
“Automatic trigger”

unconditioned response (UR)

in classical conditioning, the unlearned, naturally occuring response to the unconditioned stimulus
“Automatic Response”

conditioned stimulus (CS)

in classical conditioning, an originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to trigger a conditioned response
“Learned Trigger”

conditioned response (CR)

in classical conditioning, the learned response to a previously neutral but now conditioned stimulus
“Learned Response”

acquisition

the intial stage in classical conditioning; the phase associating a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus comes to elicit a conditioned response

extinction

the diminishing of a conditioned response; occurs in classical conditioning when an unconditioned stimulus does not follow a conditioned stimulus

spontaneous recovery

the reappearance, after a pause, of an extinguished conditioned response

stimulus discrimination

in classical conditioning, the learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and stimuli that do not signal an unconditioned stimulus
“Differentiation Learning”

stimulus generalization

the tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses

higher-order conditioning

a procedure in which the conditioned stimulus in one conditioning experience is paired with a new neutral stimulus, creating a second (often weaker) conditioned stimulus
“Complex Conditioning”

counterconditioning

a behavior therapy procedure that conditions new responses to stimuli that trigger unwanted behaviors; based on classical conditioning

taste aversion

a learned avoidance of a particular food

one-trail conditioning

conditioning that occurs with only one pairing of the conditioned and unconditioned stimuli

biological preparedness

a propensity for learning particular kinds of associations over others

operant conditioning

a type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher

the law of effect

thorndike’s principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely, and that behaviors followed by unfavorable consequences become less likely

reinforcement

in operant conditioning, any event that strengthens the behavior it follows

primary reinforcers

an innately reinforcing stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need

secondary reinforcers

a stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer

reinforcement discrimination

occurs when only specific responses are reinforced
“Selective Reinforcement”

reinforcement generalization

the tendency to respond to stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus in operant conditioning

positive reinforcement

increasing behaviors by presenting positive stimuli (ex: food)

negative reinforcement

increasing behaviors by stopping or reducing negative stimuli

punishment

an event that tends to decrease the behavior that it follows

positive punishment

the administration of a stimulus to decrease the probability of a behavior’s recurring

negative punishment

the removal of a stimulus to decrease the probabiliyt of a behavior’s recurring

shaping

an operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior

instinctive drift

the tendency for animals to revert to instinctive behavior that interferes with learning

superstitious behavior

behavior repeated because it seems to produce reinforcement, even though it is actually unnecessary

reinforcement schedules

the patterns by which reinforcements are given for desired behaviors
“Reward patterns”

continuous reinforcement

reinforcing the desired response every time it occurs, leading to rapid learning
“Consistent reward”

partial reinforcement

reinforcing a response only part of the time; results in slower acquisition but much greater resistance to extinction
“Intermittent reward”

fixed interval

a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed
“Timed Reward”

variable interval

a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals
“Random time reward”

fixed ratio

a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses
“Count-based reward”

variable ratio

a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after an unpredictable number of responses
“Random count reward”

learned helplessness

the hopelessness and passive resignation an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events

social learning theory

the theory that we learn social behavior by observing and imitating and by being rewarded or punished

vicarious conditioning

learning the consequences of an action by watching others being rewarded or punished for performing the action
“Learning through others”

insight learning

a sudden realizaation of a problem’s solution
“Aha moment”

latent learning

learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it
“Hidden Learning”

cognitive maps

a mental representation of the layout of one’s environment

developmental psychology

the scientific study of physical, cognitive, and social change throughout the life span

cross-sectional research

a study in which people of different ages are compared with one another

longitudinal research

research in which the same people are restudied and retested over a long period

teratogens

agents, such as chemicals and viruses, that can reach the embryo or fetus during prenatal development and cause harm

milestones

major points in development that signify the achievement of certain physical, social, or emotional skills

prenatal development

the process of development from conception to birth

fine motor coordination

the ability to make small, precise movements, typically involving the coordination of the hands and fingers with the eyes

gross motor coordination

the ability to make large, general movements, such as crawling and walking

maturation

biological growth processes that enable orderly changes in behavior, relatively uninfluenced by experience

reflexes

specific patterns of motor response that are triggered by specific patterns of sensory stimulation

rooting reflex

a baby’s tendency, when touched on the cheek, to turn toward the touch, open the mouth, and search for the nipple

visual cliff

a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals

critical periods

optimal periods shortly after birth when an organism’s exposure to certain stimuli or experiences produces proper development

sensitive periods

times in development when a person is particularly open to certain kinds of experiences

imprinting

the process by which certain animals form strong attachments during early life

growth spurt

a rapid increase in growth, typically occurring during adolescence

puberty

the period of sexual maturation, during which a person becomes capable of producing

primary sex characteristics

the body structures (ovaries, testes, and external genitalia) that make sexual reproduction possible

secondary sex characteristics

non-reproductive sexual traits (ex: breasts and hips (female), voice quality and body hair (male))

menarche

first menstruation

spermarche

first ejaculation

menopause

the time of natural cessation of menstruation; also refers to the biological changes a woman experiences as her ability to reproduce declines

sex

the biologically influenced characteristics by which people define male and female

gender

the socially influenced characteristics by which people define men and women

jean piaget

swiss psychologist remembered for his studies of cognitive development in children

schemas

concepts or mental frameworks that organize and interpret information

assimilation

interpreting our new experiences in terms of our existing schemas

accommodation

adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information
“Adjusting mental models”

sensorimotor stage

in Piaget’s theory, the stage (from birth to about 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities
“Exploring through senses”

object permanence

the awareness that things continue to exist even when not perceived

preoperational stage

in Piaget’s theory, the stage (from 2 to about 6 or 7 years of age) during which a child learns to use language but does not yet comprehend the mental operations of concrete knowledge

pretend play

playing with imagination and creating scenarios, usually seen in the preoperational stage
“Imaginative play”

conservation

the principle (which Piaget believed to be a part of concrete operational reasoning) that properties such as mass, volume, and number remain the same despite changes in the forms of objects
“Understanding quantity stability”

reversibility

the ability to recognize that numbers or objects can be changed and returned to their original condition
“undoing actions”

animism

the belief that objects that are inanimate have feelings, thoughts, and have the mental characteristics and qualities of living things

egocentrism

in piaget’s thoery, the preoperational child’s difficulty taking another’s point of view

theory of mind

the ability to attribute mental states (beliefs, intents, desires, emotions, knowledge) to oneself and others and to understand that others have beliefs, desires, and intentions that are different from one’s own
“Understanding others’ minds”

concrete operational stage

in piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development (from about 7 to 11 years) during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events

formal operational stage

in piaget’s theory, the stage of cognitive development (normally beginning about age 12) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts

lev vygotsky

russian psychologist who emphasized the role of the social environment on cognitive development and proposed the concept of the zone of proximal development

scaffolding (vygotsky)

a framework that offers children temporary support as they develop higher levels of thinking

zone of proximal development

Vygotsky’s theoyr of the range of tasks that are too difficult for a child to master alone but that can be learned with guidance and assistance from adults or more-skilled children
“Potential development area”

crystallized intelligence

the accumulated knowledge and verbal skills that increase with age
"Knowledge that sticks”

fluid intelligence

the ability to reason speedily and abstractly, which tends to decrease during late adulthood

dementia

a decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with daily life, most often seen in older adults

language

a system of communication that combines symbols, such as words or gestural signs, in rule-based ways to create meaning

phonemes

the smallest units of sound in a language that are distinctive for speakers of the language
“Sound Units”

morphemes

the smallest units of meaning in a language

semantics

the set of rules by which we derive meaning from morphemes, words, and sentences in a given language; the study of meaning”
“Meaning Rules”

grammar

the system of rules in a language that enables us to communicate with and understand others
“Language rules”

syntax

the arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences in a language
"Sentence Structure”

nonverbal gestures

body movements, expressions, and other non-verbal behavior that communicate without words, often instinctively
“Body language”

cooing

early vowel-like sounds that babies produce

babbling

stage of language development at about 4 months when an infant spontaneously utters nonsense sounds
“Pre-language noises”