AP Psychology 2024-2025 Review - Learning Unit

Ivan Pavlov

The father of classical conditioning; Dogs learned to salivate upon presentation of a cue (bell).

Classical Conditioning

The organism learns the association between the two stimuli; an automatic process.

Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)

Stimulus that naturally elicits (brings) a reflexive behavior.

Unconditioned Response (UCR)

Biological, involuntary behavior elicited by the UCS without prior learning.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

A previously neutral stimulus that, after being paired with the UCS, elicits a conditioned response.

Conditioned Response (CR)

A learned response to the conditioned stimulus after conditioning. Formerly the NS.

Neutral Stimulus (NS)

Something that normally doesn’t bring a response.

Extinction

Weakening of a conditioned response after the UCS stops.

Spontaneous Recovery

Reappearance of an extinguished CR after a time delay.

Stimulus Generalization

The tendency for a CR to be evoked by stimuli that are similar to the original CS.

Aversive Conditioning

A behavioral treatment that involves pairing an unpleasant stimulus with undesirable behaviors to reduce those behaviors.

Learned Taste Aversions

A learned response in which a person associates the taste of a particular food with illness, leading to an aversion to that food.

Second-Order or Higher Order Conditioning

Extending the conditioning one more level; the conditioning is happening by pairing the stimulus with something that has been conditioned to produce a response already.

Operant Conditioning

The procedure in which behavior is strengthened through reinforcement or consequence; conditioning where the learning is based on consequences.

Positive Reinforcement

Strengthens a response by adding something the learner likes.

Negative Reinforcement

Strengthens a response by removing something you don’t like.

Positive Punishment

Decreases behavior by adding something you don’t like.

Negative Punishment

Decreases behavior by removing something you like.

The Law of Effect

Rewarded behavior is likely to occur again.

Shaping

Reinforcing small steps on the way to the desired behavior.

Primary Reinforcers

Things that are in themselves rewarding; biological needs (food, water, sex).

Secondary Reinforcers

Things that are not by themselves naturally satisfying, i.e.: Money.

Reinforcement Schedules

Patterns that determine how often reinforcements are earned.

Fixed-Ratio Schedule

Reinforcement after every [x]th behavior.

Variable-Ratio Schedule

Reinforcement after a random number of behaviors.

Fixed-Interval Schedule

Reinforcement is given after a fixed number of time.

Variable-Interval Schedule

Reinforcement is given after a random amount of time.

Observational Learning

Learning by watching others & mimicry.

Latent Learning

Learning that remains hidden until it’s useful

Insight Learning

Suddenly understanding the relationships of various parts of a problem without model of consequences; “Ah ha!”

BF Skinner

The father of operant conditioning.