3A

Behavioral Perspective

A psychological approach that emphasizes observable behaviors and their relationship with the environment.

Classical Conditioning

A type of learning in which an organism learns to associate a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus, leading to a conditioned response.

Acquisition

The initial stage of learning when the neutral stimulus is consistently paired with the unconditioned stimulus and begins to trigger the conditioned response.

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

A stimulus that naturally triggers a response without prior learning.

Unconditioned Response (UR)

The natural, unlearned response to an unconditioned stimulus.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

A previously neutral stimulus that triggers a conditioned response after being paired with an unconditioned stimulus.

Conditioned Response (CR)

The learned response to the conditioned stimulus.

Extinction

The diminishing of a conditioned response when the conditioned stimulus is no longer paired with the unconditioned stimulus.

Spontaneous Recovery

The reappearance of a previously extinguished conditioned response after a rest period without further conditioning.

Stimulus Discrimination

The learned ability to differentiate between similar stimuli and respond only to the conditioned stimulus.

Generalization

The tendency for a conditioned response to be triggered by stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus.

Higher-order Conditioning

A form of learning where a neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus by being paired with an already established conditioned stimulus.

Counterconditioning

A behavioral therapy technique that replaces a negative response to a stimulus with a positive one.

Taste Aversion

A form of classical conditioning in which an organism associates the taste of a food with an unpleasant experience.

Biological Preparedness

The idea that organisms are naturally predisposed to learn certain associations more easily than others.

One-trial Learning

Learning that occurs after a single pairing of a stimulus and response.

Habituation

The decreasing response to a repeated stimulus over time.

Operant Conditioning

A form of learning in which behavior is strengthened or weakened based on its consequences.

Law of Effect

The principle that behaviors followed by satisfying consequences are more likely to be repeated.

Positive Reinforcement

The addition of a pleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior being repeated.

Negative Reinforcement

The removal of an unpleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior being repeated.

Positive Punishment

The addition of an unpleasant stimulus to decrease the likelihood of a behavior.

Negative Punishment

The removal of a pleasant stimulus to decrease the likelihood of a behavior.

Primary Reinforcer

A stimulus that satisfies a biological need.

Secondary Reinforcer

A stimulus that has gained reinforcing power through association with a primary reinforcer.

Shaping

The process of reinforcing successive approximations of a target behavior.

Instinctive Drift

The tendency of an animal to revert to instinctive behaviors that interfere with learned behavior.

Superstitious Behavior

A behavior that is accidentally reinforced due to coincidental association with a positive outcome.

Learned Helplessness

A condition in which a person or animal learns to believe they have no control over their situation.

Continuous Reinforcement

A reinforcement schedule in which every correct response is rewarded.

Partial Reinforcement

A reinforcement schedule in which only some correct responses are rewarded.

Fixed Ratio Schedule

A reinforcement schedule in which a behavior is reinforced after a specific number of responses.

Variable Ratio Schedule

A reinforcement schedule in which a behavior is reinforced after an unpredictable number of responses.

Fixed Interval Schedule

A reinforcement schedule in which a behavior is reinforced after a specific amount of time has passed.

Variable Interval Schedule

A reinforcement schedule in which a behavior is reinforced after an unpredictable amount of time has passed.

Pattern Graphing Schedules (VI Scalloped Graph)

A visual representation of reinforcement schedules showing a characteristic 'scalloped' pattern in variable interval schedules.

Social Learning

The theory that people learn behaviors by observing others and modeling their actions.

Vicarious Conditioning

Learning through observing the consequences of another person’s behavior.

Insight Learning

A sudden realization of the solution to a problem.

Latent Learning

Learning that occurs without reinforcement but is only apparent when there is an incentive to demonstrate it.

Cognitive Map

A mental representation of the layout of an environment.