Principles of Learning: Classical and Operant Conditioning

Vocabulary flashcards generated from the lecture notes on classical and operant conditioning principles.

Behaviourism

A psychological perspective that focuses on observable behaviour that can be measured objectively, holding that behaviour is influenced by the environment and can be modified by changing environmental factors.

Ivan Pavlov

A Russian scientist who won the Nobel Prize in 1904 for his work on digestive secretions and is best known for his research on classical conditioning with dogs.

Classical Conditioning

A type of learning in which a neutral stimulus comes to elicit a response after being paired with a stimulus that naturally brings about that response.

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

An event that naturally and automatically triggers a response without any prior learning.

Unconditioned Response (UR)

A natural, automatic reaction to the unconditioned stimulus.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

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

Conditioned Response (CR)

The learned response to the conditioned stimulus.

John Broadus Watson

An American psychologist who coined the term "behaviourism" in 1913 and demonstrated through his Little Albert experiments that emotional responses could be classically conditioned in humans.

Generalization

When an animal or person responds to a new stimulus that is similar to the original conditioned stimulus without prior training.

Discrimination

The ability to distinguish between different stimuli and respond differently to them.

Extinction

The gradual weakening and eventual disappearance of a conditioned response when the conditioned stimulus is repeatedly presented without the unconditioned stimulus; or in operant context, ignoring the behavior until it stops.

Counterconditioning

A technique used to reduce fear by associating a fear-evoking stimulus with a pleasant stimulus.

Spontaneous Recovery

The reappearance of a previously extinguished conditioned response after a period of rest.

Systematic Desensitization

A therapeutic technique used to reduce phobias by gradually exposing a person to fear-evoking stimuli while they remain relaxed.

Learning

A relatively permanent change in behaviour brought about by experience.

B.F. Skinner

A psychologist who pioneered operant conditioning, holding that behaviour is best understood by looking at the causes and consequences of actions.

Skinner Box

A controlled environment used to study operant conditioning, typically containing a lever or button that an animal can manipulate to receive a reward or avoid a punishment.

Positive Reinforcement

Adding a pleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behaviour.

Negative Reinforcement

Removing an unpleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behaviour.

Positive Punishment

Adding an unpleasant stimulus to decrease the likelihood of a behaviour.

Negative Punishment (Omission Training)

Removing a pleasant stimulus or reinforcer after a response to decrease the likelihood of a behaviour.

Shaping

Reinforcing successive approximations of a desired behaviour to gradually guide behaviour towards a target outcome.

Ratio Schedules

Schedules of reinforcement that provide a reward after a certain number of responses.

Interval Schedules

Schedules of reinforcement that provide a reward after a certain time interval.

Fixed Ratio (FR)

A schedule where rewards appear after a set number of responses.

Variable Ratio (VR)

A schedule where the number of responses required for a reward varies.

Fixed Interval (FI)

A schedule where the time period between rewards remains constant.

Variable Interval (VI)

A schedule where rewards appear after a certain amount of time, but that amount varies.

Punishment

An aversive consequence used to weaken the behavior that follows.

Premack Principle

Providing an incentive for doing an undesirable behavior (e.g., eat your dinner and get dessert).