Psychology 110 - The Fundamentals of Learning

learning

enduring change in behavior brought about by experience

learning (Domjan)

enduring change in mechanisms of behavior involving stimuli and responses due to prior experience

learning (Bouton)

process by which animals adapt to environments through experience

associative learning

formation of connections between stimuli, responses, or events

association

connection or relation between stimuli, ideas, or responses

pavlovian learning

learning to predict future events based on stimuli

instrumental learning

learning to control outcomes through behavior

conditioning

process of learning associations between events or behaviors

pavlovian conditioning

learning where stimuli predict outcomes independent of behavior

instrumental conditioning

learning where outcomes depend on subject’s behavior

unconditioned stimulus (US)

stimulus that elicits a response without prior learning

unconditioned response (UR)

automatic response to an unconditioned stimulus

conditioned stimulus (CS)

neutral stimulus that gains meaning through pairing with a US

conditioned response (CR)

learned response to a conditioned stimulus

experimental notation

format describing stimulus pairings like tone → food

inter-trial interval

time between conditioning trials

elicited behavior

automatic responses triggered by stimuli

reflex

fast, involuntary response mediated by neural pathways

reflex arc

pathway from sensory receptor to motor effector via interneurons

learning-performance distinction

behavior reflects both learning and non-learning factors

orienting reflex

attention response to sudden or novel stimuli

generalization

similar stimuli produce similar responses

discrimination

ability to respond differently to distinct stimuli

generalization gradient

decrease in response as stimuli differ from original

non-learning processes

behavior changes due to factors like fatigue or development

evolution

inherited traits shaping behavior over generations

development

changes due to growth and maturation

motivation

internal state influencing behavior

fatigue

reduced performance due to exhaustion

non-associative learning

change in response strength without forming associations

habituation

decreased response after repeated exposure to a stimulus

sensitization

increased response after repeated exposure to a stimulus

pseudo-conditioning

increased response due to prior exposure to a US

dishabituation

recovery of response after introduction of a novel stimulus

spontaneous recovery

return of response after time delay

frequency dependence

faster habituation with frequent stimulus presentation

specificity

habituation occurs to specific stimuli

modal action pattern

species-specific sequence of actions triggered by a stimulus

sign stimulus

trigger for a modal action pattern

deprivation experiment

test to determine if behavior is learned or innate

ethology

study of species-specific behaviors and adaptations

motivational significance

value of stimuli based on desire or aversion

appetitive stimulus

positive stimulus (e.g., food, water)

aversive stimulus

negative stimulus (e.g., shock, pain)

conditioned approach

movement toward location of expected reward

conditioned taste aversion (CTA)

learned avoidance of food associated with illness

one-shot learning

learning that occurs after a single pairing

anticipatory nausea and vomiting (ANV)

conditioned illness response to cues predicting nausea

Higher-order conditioning: conditioning where a CS is paired with another CS

first-order conditioning

CS paired directly with US

second-order conditioning

new CS paired with existing CS

sensory preconditioning

association formed between two neutral stimuli before pairing with a US

learning-performance distinction (SPC)

learning occurs without immediate observable response

inference learning

combining learned associations to predict new relationships

excitatory conditioning

CS predicts occurrence of US

inhibitory conditioning

CS predicts absence of US

conditioned exciter

stimulus that signals US occurrence

conditioned inhibitor

stimulus that signals US absence

summation test

inhibitor reduces response when paired with excitor

impaired acquisition test

inhibitor slows future learning of the association

compound stimulus

multiple stimuli presented together

elements

individual stimuli within a compound

compound training

pairing CS+ with US and compound CS with no US

negative correlation training

CS and US rarely occur together

differential conditioning

CS+ paired with US and CS− not paired

inhibition of delay

delayed onset of response within CS

latent inhibition

familiar stimuli are harder to condition than novel stimuli

CS pre-exposure effect

reduced learning due to prior exposure without US

difference from conditioned inhibition

not based on expectation of US