PSYCHOLOGY UNIT 3 VOCAB REVIEW

learning

learning

a relatively permanent change in an organism’s behavior due to experience

associate learning

learning that certain events occur together. The events may be two stimuli [classical conditioning] or a response and its consequence [operant conditioning]

behaviorism

the view that psychology should be an objective science that studies behavior without reference to mental processes

classical conditioning

a type of learning in which an organism comes to associate stimuli. A neutral stimulus that signals an UCS begins to produce a response that anticipates and prepares for the unconditioned stimulus; Pavlovian conditioning

unconditioned response [UCR]

the unlearned, naturally occurring response to the UCS

unconditioned stimulus [UCS]

a stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response

conditioned response [CR]

the learned response to a previously neutral conditioned stimulus [CS]

conditioned stimulus [CS]

an originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an UCS, comes to trigger a conditioned response

acquisition

initial stage in classical conditioning; the phase associating NS with an UCS so that the NS comes to elicit a CR; in operant conditioning, the strengthening of a reinforced response

extinction

the diminishing of a CR; occurs in classical conditioning when an UCS doesn’t follow a CS; occurs in operant conditioning when a response is no longer reinforced

spontaneous recovery

the reappearance, after a rest period, of an extinguished conditioned response

generalization

the tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the CS to elicit similar responses

discrimination

in classical conditioning, the learned ability to distinguish between a CS and other stimuli that don’t signal an UCS

operant conditioning

a type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by reinforcement or diminished if followed by punishment

respondent behavior

behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus; Skinner’s term for behavior learned through classical conditioning

operant behavior

behavior that operates on the environment, producing consequences

law of effect

Thorndike’s principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely, and that behaviors followed by unfavorable consequences become less likely

operant chamber [Skinner box]

a chamber containing a bar or key that an animal can manipulate to obtain a food or water reinforcer, with attached devices to record the animal’s rate of bar pressing or key pecking. Used in operant conditioning research

shaping

an operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of a desired goal

reinforcer

in OC, any event that strengthens the behavior it follows

primary reinforcer

an innately reinforcing stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need

conditioned reinforcer [secondary reinforcer]

a stimulus that gains its reinforcing power though its association with a primary reinforcer

continuous reinforcement

reinforcing the desired response every time it occurs

partial [intermittent'] reinforcement

reinforcing a response only part of the time; results in slower acquisition of a response but much greater resistance to extinction than does continuous reinforcement

fixed-ratio schedule

a schedule of reinforcement that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses

variable-ratio schedule

a schedule of reinforcement that reinforces a response after an unpredictable number of responses

fixed-interval schedule

a schedule of reinforcement that reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed

variable-interval schedule

a schedule of reinforcement that reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals

punishment

an event that decreases he behavior that it follows

cognitive map

a mental representation of the layout of one’s environment

latent learning

learning that occurs but isn’t apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it

overjustification effect

the effect of promising a reward for doing what one already likes to do. The person may now see the reward as the motivation for performing the task

observational learning

learning by observing others

modeling

the process of observing and imitating a specific behavior

prosocial behavior

positive, constructive, helpful behavior; the opposite of antisocial behavior

memory

the persistence of learning over time through storage and retrieval of info

flashbulb memory

a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event

encoding

the processing of info into the memory system

storage

the retention of encoded info over time

retrieval

the process of getting info out of memory storage

sensory memory

the immediate, initial recording of sensory info in the memory system

short-term memory

activated memory that holds a few items briefly before the info is stored or forgotten; phone number

long-term memory

the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system

automatic processing

unconscious encoding of incidental info and of well-learned info

effortful processing

encoding that requires attention and conscious effort

rehearsal

the conscious repetition of info

spacing effect

the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice

serial position effect

our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list

semantic encoding

the encoding of meaning

acoustic encoding

the encoding of sound

visual encoding

the encoding of picture images

imagery

mental pictures; a powerful aid to effortful processing, especially when combined with semantic encoding

mnemonics

memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices

chunking

organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically

iconic memory

a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic memory lasting for a few tenths of a second

echoic memory

momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli

long-term potentiation

an increase in a synapse’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation; believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory

amnesia

the loss of memory

implicit memory

retention without conscious recollection of skills and dispositions; procedural memory

explicit memory

memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and declare; declarative memory

hippocampus

a neural center located in the limbic system that helps process explicit memories for storage

recall

a measure of memory in which the person must retrieve info learned earlier; fill-in-the-blank test

recognition

a measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned; multiple-choice test

relearning

a memory measure that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material for a second time

priming

the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory

deja vu

the eerie sense that “I’ve experienced this before;” cues from the current situation may subconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience

mood-congruent memory

the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s current good or bad mood

proactive interference

the disruptive effect of prior learning on the recall of new info

retroactive interference

the disruptive effect of new learning on the recall of old info

repression

in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banished anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness

misinformation effect

incorporating misleading info into one’s memory of an event

source amnesia

attributing to the wrong source an event that we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined; source misattribution; at the heart of many false memories

cognition

the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, and remembering

concept

a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people

prototype

a mental image or best example of a category

algorithm

a methodical, logical rule or procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem

heuristic

a rule-of-thumb strategy that often allows us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently; usually speedier but also more error-prone than algorithms

`insight

a sudden and often novel realization of the solution to a problem; it contrasts with strategy-based solutions

confirmation bias

a tendency to search for info that confirms one’s preconceptions

fixation

the inability to see a problem from a new perspective; an impediment to problem solving

mental set

a tendency to approach a problem in a particular way whether helpful or not to the new problem

functional fixedness

the tendency to think of things only in terms of their usual functions; an impediment to problem solving

representativeness heuristic

a rule of thumb for judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes; may lead one to ignore other relevant info

availability heuristic

estimating the likelihood of events based on their availability in memory; if instances come readily to mind, we presume such events are common

overconfidence

the tendency to be more confident than correct; to overestimate the accuracy of one’s beliefs and judgements

framing

the way an issue is posed; how an issue is framed can significantly affect decisions and judgements

belief bias

the tendency of one’s preexisting beliefs to distort logical reasoning, sometimes by making invalid conclusions seem valid, or valid conclusions seem invalid

belief perseverance

clinging to one’s initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited

artificial intelligence [AI]

the science of designing and programming computer systems to do intelligent things and to simulate human thought processes

computer neural networks

computer circuits that mimic the brain’s interconnected neural cells, performing tasks such as learning to recognize visual patterns and smells

language

our spoken, written, or gestured words and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning

phoneme

in a spoken language, the smallest distinctive sound unit

morpheme

in a language, the smallest unit that carries meaning; may be a word or part of a word

grammar

a system of rules in a language that enables us to communicate with and understand others

semantics

the set of rules by which we derive meaning from morphemes, words, and sentences in a given language; also, the study of meaning

syntax

the rules of combining words into grammatically sensible sentences in a given language

babbling stage

beginning 3 to 4 months, the stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds at first unrelated to the household language

one-word stage

the stage in speech development, from about age 1 to 2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words

two-word stage

beginning about age 2, the stage in speech development during which a child speaks mostly two-word statements

telegraphic speech

early speech stage in which the child speaks like a telegram using mostly nouns and verbs and omitting auxiliary words