Module 7 Flashcards

Behaviorism

learning only has to do with observable behavior

Habituation

The decline in an organism’s response to a stimulus once the stimulus has become familiar.

Unfamiliar stimulus

important and we should pay attention to it as it may signal danger or unexpected opportunity

Dishabituation

An increase in response caused by a change in something familiar.

Classical conditioning

the association between a stimulus and a response.

Unconditional stimulus

something that elicits an unconditioned response; produces a natural conditioned response.

Conditional stimulus

a signal that has no importance until it is paired with something that does have importance.

Conditioned response

a trained reaction depended with the conditioned stimulus; strength of conditioned response slowly grows as the organism experiences more and more pairings of the conditioned and unconditioned stimulus; once relationship is established, the conditioned stimulus can be used in other procedures to establish other condition stimuli

Second-Order Conditioning

when a neutral stimulus is paired with something that is already established.

Stimulus Generalization

similar enough stimuli will elicit the conditioned response.

Extinction

conditioned responses diminish without reconditioning.

Spontaneous recovery

sometimes, long after extinction, re-exposure to the CS evokes the CR  

Operant conditioning

a behavior is associated with the occurrence of a significant event.

Thorndike’s Law of Effect

when a behavior has a positive effect, it is likely to be repeated; when a behavior has a negative consequence, it it less likely to be repeated

Reinforcers

elements that increase behavior.

Positive reinforcers

factors that strengthen responses through reward.

Negative reinforcers

factors that strengthen responses through removal of an upsetting stimulus.

Punishers

elements that decrease behavior, distinct from negative reinforcers.

Fixed ratio schedules

reinforce behavior after a set number of responses

Variable ratio schedules

reinforce behavior after an unpredictable number of responses 

Fixed interval schedules

reinforce the first response after a fixed time period

Variable interval schedules

reinforce the first response after an unpredictable time period  

Shaping

series of successive approximations of the desired behavior

Cognitivism

learning also has to do with inner mental activity

Observational learning

individuals can learn novel responses by observing the behavior of others; does not necessarily require reinforcement, but relies on the presences of others; people observe a social model performing a behavior and the consequences of that behavior they remember a sequence of events and use this information to guide subsequent behaviors

Constructivism

learning is more than acquisition. It is an active process; humans create meaning rather than acquiring it

Humanism

learning is a personal act to fulfill one’s potential