6.3– What Classical Conditioning Teaches Us About Learning

Acquisition

the initial learning of an association between the conditioned and unconditioned stimuli during classical conditioning

Generalization

the tendency to respond to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus, so that learning is not tied too narrowly to a specific stimulus

Overgeneralization

a cognitive distortion where a single negative event turns into a broad, universal rule

Discrimination

learning to respond to a certain stimulus but not to similar stimuli, thus preventing overgeneralizations

Extinctions

an active learning process in which there is a weakening of the conditioned response to the conditioned stimulus in absence of the unconditioned stimulus 

Spontaneous recovery

the reappearance of an extinct behavior after a delay 

Savings

learning stored away in your brain bank, makes rapid relearning possible

Residual plasticity hypothesis

neural networks of learning persist even after extinction, providing a residual memory trace of the association, which can lead to savings if conditioning is reintroduced