Psych 10000 Exam 3 Textbook Vocab

Learning

the acquisition, from experience, of new knowledge, skills, or responses that results in a relatively permanent change in the state of the learner

Sensitization

when presentation of a stimulus leads to an increased response to a later stimulus

Habituation

a general process in which repeated or prolonged exposure to a stimulus results in a gradual reduction in responding

Classical Conditioning

a type of learning that occurs when a neutral stimulus produces a response after being paired with a stimulus that naturally produces a response

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

something that reliably produces a naturally occurring reaction in an organism

Unconditioned Response (UR)

a reflexive reaction that is reliably produced by an unconditioned stimulus

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

a previously neutral stimulus that produces a reliable response in an organism after being paired with a US

Conditioned Response (CR)

a reaction that resembles an unconditioned response but is produced by a conditioned stimulus

Second-order Conditioning

a type of learning in which a CS is paired with a stimulus that became associated with the US in an earlier procedure

Acquisition

the phase of classical conditioning when the CS and the US are presented together

Extinction

the gradual elimination of a learned response that occurs when the CS is repeatedly presented without the US

Spontaneous Recovery

the tendency of a learned behavior to recover from extinction after a rest period

Generalization

the CR is observed even though the CS is slightly different from the CS used during acquisition

Discrimination

the capacity to distinguish between similar but distinct stimuli

Biological Preparedness

a propensity for learning particular kinds of associations over other kinds

Operant Conditioning

a type of learning in which the consequences of an organism’s behavior determine whether it will repeat that behavior in the future

Law of Effect

the principle that behaviors are followed by a “satisfying state of affairs” tend to be repeated, and those that produce an “unpleasant state of affairs” are less likely to be repeated

Operant Behavior

behavior that an organism performs that has some impact on the environment

Reinforcer

any stimulus or event that increases the likelihood of the behavior that led to it

Punisher

any stimulus or event that decreases the likelihood of the behavior that led to it

Positive Reinforcement

When something is presented that increases the likelihood of a behavior

Positive Punishment

When something is presented that decreases the likelihood of a behavior

Negative Reinforcement

When something is removed, increasing the likelihood of the behavior

Negative Punishment

When something is removed, decreasing the likelihood of the behavior

Fixed-Interval (FI) schedule

reinforcers are presented at fixed time periods, provided that the appropriate response is made

Variable-Interval (VI) schedule

a behavior is reinforced on the basis of an average time that has expired since the last reinforcement

Fixed-Ratio (FR) schedule

reinforcement is delivered after a specific number of responses have been made

Variable-Ratio (VR) schedule

the delivery of reinforcement is based on a particular average number of responses, although the ratio of responses to reinforcements is variable

Intermittent Reinforcement

whereby only some of the responses made are followed by reinforcement

Shaping

learning that results from the reinforcement of successive steps to a final desired behavior

Intermittent Reinforcement Effect

the fact that operant behaviors that are maintained under intermittent reinforcement schedules resist extinction better than those maintained under continuous reinforcement

Observational Learning

a process in which an organism learns by watching the actions of others

Diffusion Chain

individuals initially learn a behavior by observing another individual perform that behavior, then become models from which other individuals learn the behavior

Implicit Learning

learning that takes place largely independent of awareness of both the process and products of information acquisition

Memory

the ability to store and retrieve information over time

Encoding

the process of transforming what we perceive, think, or feel into an enduring memory

Storage

the process of maintaining information in memory over time

Retrieval

the process of bringing to mind information that has been previously encoded and stored

Semantic Encoding

the process of relating new information in a meaningful way to knowledge that is already stored in memory

Visual Imagery Encoding

the process of storing new information by converting it into mental pictures

Organizational Encoding

the process of categorizing information according to the relationships among a series of items

Sensory Memory

a type of storage that holds sensory information for a few seconds or less

Iconic Memory

a fast-decaying store of visual information

Echoic Memory

a fast-decaying store of auditory information

Short-term Memory

a type of storage that holds nonsensory information for more than a few seconds but less than a minute

Rehearsal

the process of keeping information in short-term memory by mentally repeating it

Chunking

combining small pieces of information into larger clusters or chunks that are more easily held in short-term memory

Working Memory

active maintenance of information in short-term memory

Long-term Memory

a type of storage that holds information for hours, days, weeks, or years

Anterograde Amnesia

the inability to transfer new information from the short-term store into the long-term store

Retrograde Amnesia

the inability to retrieve information that was acquired before a particular date, usually the date of an injury or surgery

Consolidation

the process by which memories become stable in the brain

Reconsolidation

memories can become vulnerable to disruption when they are recalled, thus requiring them to be consolidated again

Long-term Potentiation (LTP)

a process whereby repeated communications across the synapse between neurons strengthens the connection, making further communication easier

Engram

the enduring physical change in the brain that is produced by a particular experience

Retrieval Cue

external information that is associated with stored information and helps bring it to mind

Encoding Specificity Principle

states that a retrieval cue can serve as an effective reminder when it helps re-create the specific way in which information was initially encoded

State Dependent Retrieval

the process whereby information tends to be better recalled when the person is in the same state during encoding and retrieval

Transfer-Appropriate Processing

the idea that memory is likely to transfer from one situation to another when the encoding and retrieval contexts of the situations match

Retrieval-Induced Forgetting

a process by which retrieving an item from long-term memory impairs subsequent recall of related items

Explicit Memory

when people consciously or intentionally retrieve past experiences

Implicit Memory

when past experiences influence later behavior and performance even without an effort to remember them or an awareness of the recollection

Procedural Memory

the gradual acquisition of skills as a result of practice, or “knowing how” to do things

Priming

an enhanced ability to think of a stimulus, such as a word or object, as a result of recent exposure to the stimulus during an earlier study task

Semantic Memory

a network of associated facts and concepts that make up our general knowledge of the world

Episodic Memory

the collection of past personal experiences that occurred at a particular time and place

Transcience

forgetting what occurs with the passage of time

Retroactive Interference

situations in which later learning impairs memory for information acquired earlier (can’t remember Monday’s meal on Friday)

Proactive Interference

situations in which earlier learning impairs memory for information acquired later (looking for your car in a place you parked the last few weeks)

Absentmindednesws

a lapse in attention that results in memory failure

Prospective Memory

remembering to do things in the future

Phenomenology

the study of how things seem to the conscious person

Problem of Other Minds

the fundamental difficulty we have in perceiving the consciousness of others

Mind-Body Problem

the issue of how the mind is related to the brain and body

Cocktail-Party Phenomenon

a phenomenon in which people tune in one message even while they filter out others nearby

Minimal Consciousness

a low-level kind of sensory awareness and responsiveness that occurs when the mind inputs sensations and may output behavior (when someone pokes you awake)

Full Consciousness

when you know and are able to report mental state

Self-Consciousness

the distinct level of consciousness in which the person’s attention is drawn to the self as an object

Mental Control

the attempt to change conscious states of mind

Thought Suppression

the conscious avoidance of a thought

Rebound Effect of Thought Suppression

the tendency of a thought to return to consciousness with greater frequency following suppression

Ironic Processes of Mental Control

ironic errors occur because the mental process that monitors errors can itself produce them

Ironic Error

when trying to produce one mental state produces the opposite, most often when distracted or stressed (people who are distracted when trying to get into a good mood tend to become sad)

Dynamic Unconscious

an active system encompassing a lifetime of hidden memories, the person’s deepest instincts and desires, and the person’s inner struggle to control these forces

Repression

a mental process that removes unacceptable thoughts and memories from consciousness and keeps them in the unconscious

Cognitive Unconscious

all the mental processes that give rise to a person’s thoughts, choices, emotions, and behavior even though they are not experienced by the person

Dual Process Theories

suggest that we have two different systems in our brains for processing information: one dedicated to fast, automatic, and unconscious processing; and the other dedicated to slow, effortful, and conscious processing

Altered State of Consciousness

a form of experience that departs significantly from the typical subjective experience of the world and the mind

Circadian Rhythm

a naturally occurring 24-hour cycle

REM sleep

a state of sleep characterized by rapid eye movements and a high level of brain activity

Insomnia

difficulty in falling asleep or staying asleep

Sleep Apnea

a disorder in which the person stops breathing for brief periods while sleeping

Somnambulism (sleepwalking)

occurs when a person arises and walks around while asleep

Narcolepsy

a disorder in which sudden sleep attacks occur in the middle of waking activities

Sleep Paralysis

the experience of waking up unable to move

Sleep Terrors (night terrors)

abrupt awakenings in panic and intense emotional arousal

Activation-Synthesis Model

the theory that dreams are produced when the brain attempts to make sense of random neural activity that occurs during sleep

Psychoactive Drugs

chemicals that influence consciousness or behavior by altering the brain’s chemical message system

Drug Tolerance

the tendency for larger drug doses to be required over time to achieve the same effect

Physical Dependance

the pain, convulsions, hallucinations, or other unpleasant symptoms that accompany withdrawl from drug use