AP PSYCHOLOGY Lecture Notes Module 3.7-3.9 (Unit II) Learning Professor L. Gilbert

Learning

Relatively permanent change in immediate or potential behavior that results from experience.

Behavioral perspective

Identifies behavior as something that is observable and measurable.

Behavioral Change

Immediate or potential change in behavior.

Permanency

A relatively long-lasting change.

Experience

Learning is due to experience, not maturation, drugs, or illness.

Classical Conditioning

Learning that results from the association of two stimuli in the environment.

Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)

Causes a reflex/behavior naturally, an unlearned behavior.

Unconditioned Response (UCR)

The reflex response to an unconditioned stimulus.

Neutral Stimulus

A stimulus that naturally causes no response.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

A previously neutral stimulus that, after being paired with an unconditioned stimulus, now elicits a response.

Conditioned Response (CR)

Behavior that results from the pairing of the unconditioned stimulus and the now conditioned stimulus.

Acquisition

Learning a new response through repeated pairings of the UCS and neutral stimulus.

Generalization

Reaction to similar stimuli; similar stimuli produce the conditioned response.

Discrimination

Learning to respond to certain stimuli but not to others.

Extinction

The conditioned response gradually disappears when the unconditioned stimulus is removed.

Spontaneous Recovery

The conditioned response returns after apparent extinction.

Higher Order Conditioning

A conditioned stimulus in one experience is paired with a new neutral stimulus, creating a second conditioned stimulus.

Preparedness (Seligman)

The idea that certain associations are easier for organisms to learn due to natural selection.

Biological Preparedness

The predisposition to learn associations that affect survival quickly.

Taste Aversion

Learning to associate a negative response to a taste after one trial due to illness.

One-Trial Learning

Learning that occurs in a single pairing of a response and stimulus.

Habituation

Decreasing responsiveness with repeated exposure to a stimulus.

Operant Conditioning

Learning associated with behavior and its consequences (reinforcement or punishment).

Law of Effect

Behaviors followed by favorable consequences are more likely to be repeated.

Positive Reinforcement

Adding a pleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of behavior.

Negative Reinforcement

Removing an aversive stimulus to increase the likelihood of behavior.

Positive Punishment

Adding an unpleasant stimulus to decrease the likelihood of behavior.

Negative Punishment

Removing a pleasant stimulus to decrease the likelihood of behavior.

Shaping

Reinforcing behaviors that are increasingly similar to the desired goal behavior.

Instinctive Drift

The tendency of learned behavior to revert to biologically predisposed patterns.

Chaining

Producing a series of complex behaviors by linking simpler behaviors together.

Learned Helplessness

The sense of no control over one's environment leading to inactivity.

Continuous Reinforcement

Reinforcing a desired response every time it occurs, resulting in rapid learning.

Partial Reinforcement

Reinforcement that occurs intermittently, leading to slower learning but greater resistance to extinction.

Fixed-Ratio Schedule

Reinforcement after a set number of responses.

Variable-Ratio Schedule

Reinforcement after an unpredictable number of responses, such as gambling.

Fixed-Interval Schedule

Reinforcement after the first response following a set amount of time.

Variable-Interval Schedule

Reinforcement after varying amounts of time.

Observational Learning

Learning by observing behaviors of others and the consequences they receive.

Vicarious Conditioning

Learning to anticipate the consequences of a behavior by observing others.

Memory and Expectancy

The cognitive process where organisms expect a reinforcer based on memory.

Insight Learning

A sudden realization or knowledge that occurs spontaneously.

Latent Learning

Learning that occurs without reinforcement and is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it.

Cognitive Map

A mental representation of the layout of one’s environment.