Psychology Unit 1 Flashcards - Learning and Cognition

Unit 1: Learning and Cognition

Classical Conditioning

Main Idea

Classical conditioning is an unconscious associative learning process where initially, a neutral stimulus (NS) is paired with an unconditioned stimulus (UCS), which naturally elicits a reaction known as the unconditioned response (UCR). When this pairing occurs consistently over time, the NS eventually becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS) and has the ability to elicit the same UCR on its own with just the presence of the stimulus. This reaction is now called the conditioned response (CR).

Key Concepts

Explained through Pavlov’s Dogs

Neutral Stimulus (NS):

A stimulus in an environment that does not lead to any natural response (e.g. the sound of a bell)

Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS):

A stimulus that naturally and automatically releases a reaction without any prior training (prompts a natural, unlearned response) (e.g. the presence of food)

Unconditioned Response (UCR):

The natural, automatic reaction to the unconditioned stimulus (e.g. salivating when seeing food)

Conditioned Stimulus (CS):

The previously neutral stimulus that eventually triggers a learned reaction after being paired with the unconditioned stimulus (e.g. sound of bell triggered excitement in the dog)

Conditioned Response (CR):

The response that is learned by pairing a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus repeatedly (e.g. salivating at the sound of the bell alone)

Example

Pavlov’s Dogs (late-1890s)

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