UWorld Learning, Memory, and Cognition

Continuous Reinforcerment Schedule

Provides a reward after every desired behavior, is most effective for training an animal a new behavior. Shaping (rewarding successive approximations of the desired behavior) is often needed initially. Depriving an animal of a reward (food) prior to training heightens its motivations, making training easier.

Operant Conditioning

Reinforcement is to encourage certain behaviors and punishment is used to discourage unwanted behaviors. Reinforcement (rewarding desirable behavior with food) tends to be more effective than punishment.

Types of Partial Reinforcement (Schedules)

Ratio (based on responses) and Interval (based on time)

Fixed Ratio: Reinforcement after consistent number of behaviors

Variable Ratio: Reinforcement after inconsistent number of behaviors

Fixed Interval: Reinforcement after consistent amount of time has passes

Variable Interval: Reinforcement after inconsistent amount of time passes

Fixed schedules are not an optimal way to train an animal to perform a behavior

Heuristics

Mental Shortcuts that save time and might laed to inaccurate results

Representativeness Heuristics

The tendency to compare things (people, and events) to mental prototypes (assuming woman in scrubs is a nurse and not a surgeon)

Availability Heuristic

The tendency to believe that if something is easily recalled from memory, it must be common or likely. (assuming shark attacks are common after seeing one reported on the news)

Actor-Observer Bias

An attributional bias that describes the tendency to attribute one’s own actions to external factors but the actions of others to internal factors.

Hindsight Bias

A cognitive bias in which an event is perceived as having been predictable after it has occurred.

Habituation

Decreased response to a stimulus over time ( no longer noticing a sweater is scratchy after a few minutes)

Dishabituation

A renewed response to a previously habituated stimulus (after taking off a sweater and then putting it back on it feels scratchy again)

Sensitization

Increased response to a stimulus over time (sweater’s scratchiness becomes so scratchy it is unbearable)

Desensitization

Decreased response to a previously sensitized stimulus over time (Irritation of scratchiness of sweater and diminishes over time)

Generalization

Occurs in classical conditioning (a type of associative learning) when a conditioned response is elicited by the stimuli similar to the original conditioned response. (a baby conditioned to fear a white toy also fears white hair)

Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Characterized by inattention (distractibility difficulty focusing) and impulsivity (acting without thinking about consequences)

Sensory Memory

Auditory: (echoic) few seconds

Visual: (iconic) less than a second

Short-Term Memory

Duration: 20 seconds

Capacity: 7 +/- 2 items

Long-Term Memory

Duration: Lifetime

Capacity: Unlimited

Explicit/Declarative Memory: Episode (eExperiences and memories) and Semantic (Facts and concepts)

Implicit/Nondeclarative Memory: Procedural (skills and tasks) and emotional/reflexive

Working Memory vs Short Term Memory

Working memory involves the manipulation and processing of information while short term memory does not.

Working Memory

Consists of the central executive (attention, task switching) and three lower subsystems: the visuospatial sketchpad (visual/spatial information), the phonological loop (linguistic information), and the episodic buffer (timeline and long term memory integration). The central executive controls the lower subsystems.

Biological Perspective

Explains behavior in terms of the development, structure, and function of the brain and central nervous system.

Prefrontal Cortex

Controls executive functions (working memory, reasoning, impulse inhibition, attention) and does not fully mature until she is in the mid twenties.

Monocular vs Binocular cues

Monocular (one eye) vs binocular (both eyes) are both important for visual perception.

Motion Parallax

(Relative motion) is a monocular cue important for the perception of motion and distance. Describes when objects in the foreground appear to be moving faster than objects in the background.

Retinal Disparity

Binocular cue for depth/distance. Occurs because each eye transmits a slightly different image to the brain, which infers distance from the disparity.

Convergence

Binocular cue for depth/distance. The extent to which the eyes converge (turn inward) to focus on an object, closer objects require more convergence, which helps the brain infer distance.

Phi Phenomenon

The motion picture effect, an optical illusion in which a series of still photographs presented in rapid succession appear to be moving.

Divided Attention vs Selective Attention

Divided attention (multitasking) describes attending to more than one stimulus/task at a time. Selective attention describes focuses on one stimulus and ignoring others.

Multitasking is impacted by:

Task similarity, difficulty, and practive.

Task Similarity

Easy: Dissimilar tasks (listening to audiobook while running)

Hard: Similar tasks (listening to audiobook while writing a paper)

Task Difficulty

Easy: Simple tasks (tapping foot while clapping hands)

Hard: Challenging tasks (performing surgery while doing complex mental math)

Task Practice

Easy: Well practiced task (talking on the phone while walking)

Hard: Unfamiliar tasks (practicing a new language while learning to knit)

Cocktail Party Effect

Describes when attention quickly shifts from an attended stimulus to an unattended stimulus when something significant occurs. Talking with someone (attended stimulus) and hearing someone else say your name (unattended stimulus). This is selective attention.

Interference

A memory (not attention) process describing when old information prevents recollection of new information (proactive interference) or new information prevents the recollection of old information (retroactive interference)

Speech Shadowing

A selective attention process used in dichotic listening tasks (competing information presented in each ear) that involves repeating information presented in one ear while tuning out the competing information in the other ear.

instinctive Drift

Instincts are innate and fixed behaviors. Instinctive drift describe’s an animal’s reverting from a learned behavior to an innate behavior despite reinforcement. Instinctive drift involves behaviors related to food and exploration.

Flashbulb Memories

Memories that are vivid, detailed autobiographical memories of an event that was extremely emotional or distinct or personally significant. May be best defined by the degree to which individuals feel confident about their recollections even when the recollections are not accurate/consistent.

Encoding

Memory involves encoding, the transfer of information into long term memory; storage (retaining information) and retrieval (accessing the information). Some information is processed automatically with little effort (registering the characters on the license plate as numbers or letters)

Encoding information is used with attention and effort. (encoding a specific license plate)

Elaboration

An encoding strategy that enhances memory. New information is meaningfully associated with previously known information.

Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)

Describes a message’s persuasiveness based on how deeply or superficially it is processed and the characteristics of the audience (motivation.)

Associative Learning

The linking of two events or stimuli. In operant conditioning, a behavior is associated with a consequence (reinforcement or punishment).

The 3 Language Acquisition Theories

Learning, nativist, and interactionist perspectives/theories

Learning Theory

Language acquisition is learned via:

1. Operant conditioning

2. Language imitation and practice

Nativist Theory

Language acquisition is innate and biologically predetermined.

Occurs during a critical (time-sensitive) period early in life

Interactionist Theory

Biological (due to normal brain development) AND social (due to interaction, reinforcement, and motivation to communicate)

Linguistic Relativity Theory

Cognition is influenced and/or shaped by language. (Sapir Whorf Hypothesis). Children are unable to think of concepts for which they have not yet learned the words.

Primary Reinforcers

Naturally rewarding (food)

Secondary Reinforces

Conditioned to be desirable (money)

Token Economy

Uses tokens (gold stars) as secondary reinforcers to encourage certain behaviors (turning. in homework). Tokens can be exchanged for something the individual wants (5 gold stars = candy). Behavior increases next time (more homework turned in).

Modeling

Describes when an individual learns to perform a behavior by watching someone else (toddler combs hair after watching father comb hair)

Classical Conditioning

Occurs when a stimulus that did not previously elicit a meaningful response (neutral stimulus) takes on the properties of a biologically arousing stimulus (unconditioned stimulus) after being paired (dog gets hungry after it hears lunch time bell)

Operant Conditioning

Occurs when the likelihood of repeating a behavior is influenced by the outcome of that behavior

Observational Learning

Occurs as a result of watching others engage in a behavior

Unconditioned Responses

Occur naturally, without learning (nausea in response to medication)

Reinforcement

Increases a behavior.

Positive Reinforcement: Desirable stimulus added (Toddler gets candy for using the toilet)

Negative Reinforcement: Undesirable stimulus removed (Teen does not have to do chores after getting all A’s)

Escape Learning

A type of negative reinforcement. Current undesirable stimulus is removed. (Teenager fakes illness while doing dishes, gets to stop)

Avoidance Learning

A type of negative reinforcement. Future undesirable stimulus is prevented. (Teenager stays late at school to avoid doing chores)

Punishment

Decreases Behavior.

Positive Punishment: Undesirable stimulus added. (toddler gets spanked for not doing homework)

Negative Punishment: (Teen gets grounded for getting bad grades)

Taste Aversion

A type of classical conditioning that occurs after just one instance of becoming ill followed by food/beverage consumption. Taste aversions are long lasting and can develop despite many hours passing between consumption and illness.

Dog Eats poisoned steak (Unconditioned stimulus = poison and conditioned stimulus = steak) → Feels Ill (Unconditioned Response) → Avoids Steak for long time (Conditioned stimulus = meat and conditioned response = avoidance)

Extinction

When the conditioned stimulus no longer produces the conditioned response in the absence of the unconditioned stimulus. Dog stops salivating (conditioned response) when hearing the bell (conditioned stimulus) if food is not coming out.

Acquisition

The learning that takes place as association is formed between unconditioned stimulus (food) and neutral stimulus (bell)

Spontaneous Recovery

When an extinct response reappears after a period of time. (Dog salivates when hearing bell again after extinction has occured.)

Reliability

The degree to which a measure or experiment is consistent (test produces a similar score for one person who takes it twice)

Validity

The accuracy of a measure or experiment (test accurately assesses what it is designed to measure)

Selective Attention

Focusing on one stimulus and ignoring the others.

Left Hemisphere

Language functions in the brain are lateralized to the left hemisphere.

Broca Area

(prefrontal cortex) is associated with the production of expressive language (both spoken and written). Lesions in this area (due to stroke) result in difficulty producing speech (Broca Aphasia) but can still understand spoken or written language.

Positron Emission Tomography (PET)

A functional imaging technique that measures the emission of positrons that result from the metabolism of a radioactive tracer (injected prior to the scan). To measure brain activity, a radiolabeled form of glucose is used as a tracer, because glucose is metabolized more quickly by active brain regions, which are hypermetabolic regions by the PET scanner.

Memory Construction

The process of recreating memories each time it is recalled. Memories are reconstructed when they are recalled and have alterations.

Source Monitoring Erroes

When a memory is attributed to the wrong source (a cousin’s funny story is mistakenly attributed to an aunt)

Fundamental Attribution Error

The tendency to blame others behavior on their internal (she is stupid) instead of external (the test is hard) factors.

Negative Priming

The impaired processing (slower response or reduced accuracy) that occurs when a stimulus is initially ignored and then later attended to (first being asked to pick a red pen and ignore other colored pens in a cup, and then when asked to pick a blue pen the response time is slower)

Intelligence

The ability to learn, apply, adapt, and reason.

Fluid Intelligence

Ability to apply logic and creative thinking to new situations. Fluid intelligence peaks in early adulthood and declines with age.

Crystallized Intelligence

Ability to apply facts and acquired knowledge to situations. Increases with age.

Selective Attention

Ability to focus on one stimulus or task despite distractions

Divided Attention

Ability to attend to two or more tasks or stimuli simultaneously

Memory

Involves three steps: encoding, storage, and retrieval. Retrieval refers to accessing the encoded information from storage. The three types of memory retrieval are recall, recognition, and relearning.

Recall

Retrieval of information from memory. (Fill in the blank test)

Recognition

Identification of previously learned information target. (multiple choice test)

Relearning

Re encoding of information learned but not forgotten. (Relearning algebra as an adult)

Episodic Memory

Buying first car or first day of college. Declines with age.

Flashbulb Memory

Where one was the day of 9/11. Declines with age.

Source Memory

What news source reported the story or who announced the information. Declines with age.

Semantic Memory

Names of people, colors, and vocabulary. Stable with age.

Procedural Memory

Riding a bike or driving a car. Stable with age.

Anterograde Amnesia

A form of pathological memory loss in which a person cannot form new memories after an incident that causes amnesia. (brain injury due to car crash)

Retrograde Amnesia

A form of pathological memory loss in which a person cannot access memories that were encoded before the incident that caused the amnesia (a stroke)

Retroactive Interference

When new information prevents the recall of old information.

Proactive Interference

When old information prevents the recall of new information.

Context Dependent Memory

The process where information is more easily recalled when an individual is in the same context (room/setting) where he or she first learned the information. Context refers to the physical environment in which the info/memory is encoded in.

Korsakoff Syndrome

Symptoms: Memory loss

Causes: Extreme vitamin B deficiency resulting from: chronic alcohol consumption, eating disorders, or chronic malnutrition

Treatment/Prognosis: Vitamin B supplementation can reverse most/all symptoms if caught early

Dementia

A decline in one or more aspects of cognitive functioning (memory, attention, executive functioning, perception, motor organization, language, and social cognition)

Hemispheric Lateralization

The brain is divided into the right and left hemispheres, each of which is specialized for certain processes.

Contralateral Control

Left hemisphere of the brain controls touch and movement of the right side of the body and right hemisphere the left.

Right Hemisphere

Crucial for processing visuospatial patterns. Is also important for artistic and musical abilities, visualization, and emotion.

Left Hemisphere

Important for language ability, including speaking, writing, and comprehension. Superior at analytical reasoning skills and logic, which is used in math and science.

Mirror Neurons

Located in various areas of the brain. Are specialized neurons that fire both while observing and performing a behavior. Mirror neurons are hypothesized to play a central role in observational learning.

Confidence Intervals

Graphically convey the uncertainty of statistics (mean); if Cl’s do not overlap , the two means are statistically different.

Cognitive Development

Is influenced by both heredity and environment. Biological factors affecting cognition are structural changes to the brain due to damage or illness or heredity (gene and protein expression). Environmental factors (drug use) also influences the physiology of the brain and impacts cognition.

Matching

Is meant to account for confounded variables. Ensures that only the independent variable has an effect on the dependent variable. Subjects may be matched for biological factors but it is harder to control for environmental factors (stress, chemicals, and social factors)