General Psychology Exam 2

Classical Conditioning

A learning mechanism in which an organism learns that one event predicts another, associating an environmental stimulus with an involuntary reflexive response without having control over the outcome. (When X happens, Y will happen)

Electrical charges inside/outside of a neuron at rest

The inside is more negatively charged than the outside

Neurological Basis of Split-Brain Findings

Driven by two main factors:

1. Contralateral Visual Processing: The right visual field connects to the left hemisphere, while the left visual field connects to the right hemisphere. Without an intact corpus callosum, these hemispheres cannot share information.

2. Hemispheric Specialization:

   • Left Hemisphere: Controls most of (but not ALL) speech/language. Also controls the right hand. It processes the right visual field, allowing the patient to say what they see.

   • Right Hemisphere: Controls most of (but not ALL) spatial skills. Also controls the left hand. It processes the left visual field, allowing the patient to draw or point to what they see, even if they can't speak it.

role of a neurons membrane in action potential

The neuron's membrane plays a crucial role in generating action potentials by regulating ion exchange. When depolarization occurs, sodium channels open, leading to an influx of sodium ions, followed by potassium channels opening to restore the resting membrane potential.

sensory neurons

They detect stimuli from the internal or external environment (such as light, sound, heat, pressure, or chemical odors) and send that information toward the Central Nervous System (CNS) (the brain and spinal cord).

Somatosensory Neurons

A specialized subset of sensory neurons dedicated to the somatosensory system. They handle conscious perception of touch, pressure, vibration, pain, temperature, and body position (proprioception) coming from the skin, muscles, and joints.

Interneurons

They are found entirely within the CNS (the brain and spinal cord). They act as middlemen or integrators that connect sensory neurons to motor neurons (or to other interneurons)

Motor Neurons

They carry command signals away from the CNS to effector organs—such as muscles, glands, and organs—to trigger an action or movement (like pulling your hand away from a hot surface)

action potential

Classical vs. Operant Conditioning (Control & Expectation)

Classical Conditioning: The organism has no control over the outcome and only learns to predict associations between events ("When X happens, Y will happen"). Operant Conditioning: The organism has control over its behavior and learns that its action produces a consequence ("If I do X, Y will happen").

stereoscopic vision

The three-dimensional perception of depth and spatial relationships created by the brain fusing two slightly different 2D images from each eye (retinal disparity) into a single 3D image

Basic Principles of Perception

Perceiving objects requires the organization of visual information. Illusions help us understand how the brain organizes information

Absolute threshold examples

Vision: The faintest light visible in complete darkness, such as a single candle flame seen from up to 30 miles away on a clear, dark night. Hearing: The quietest audible sound in a silent environment, like the ticking of a wristwatch from 20 feet away.

Cerebral Cortex: Hemispheres & Crossover

The cortex is split into two hemispheres. Information crosses over so that the left hemisphere controls the right side of the body and vice versa.

fMRI Pros and Cons

Pros: Safe and non-invasive (nearly anyone can participate).

Cons: Computationally intensive (storage and compute), expensive ($600/hour + compute costs), and provides only correlational evidence

EEG Pros and Cons

Pros: Safe, non-invasive (nearly anyone can participate), and inexpensive (~$30k–$65k).

Cons: Unclear exactly which specific brain region is responsible for the electrical activity (no pictures)

Ways to measure brain function

Electroencephalogram (EEG), Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

Schizophrenia drugs

Antagonists that block dopamine from binding to postsynaptic receptors. Used to treat schizophrenia. They have the opposite effect of L-DOPA, and so these drugs can cause involuntary muscle movements

Naloxone (Narcan)

An antagonist used to reverse opioid overdoses. It sits on opioid receptors and blocks heroin or fentanyl from activating them.

Agonist Drug Examples (SSRIs vs. Heroin)

SSRIs: Block reuptake to increase available serotonin in the synapse. Heroin: Mimics natural endorphins at opioid receptors to produce pain relief and euphoria.

Psychoactive Drugs

Chemical substances that alter brain function and behavior by interfering with how neurons communicate with each other across synapses.

Stimulants

Psychoactive drugs that increase neural activity and speed up body functions. (e.g., caffeine, nicotine)

Depressants

Psychoactive drugs that reduce neural activity and slow down body functions. (e.g., alcohol, Xanax)

autoreceptors

Specialized receptor proteins located on the presynaptic (sending) neuron that detect released neurotransmitters to regulate and suppress further release.

Reuptake, enzyme deactivation, auto-reception

Ways to terminate a neurotransmitters influence

Synaptic transmission

The biological process by which a neuron communicates with a target cell across a synapse by releasing chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) that bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, muscle, or gland, before the signal is terminated via reuptake, enzymatic degradation, or diffusion

Postsynaptic sensitivity in LTP

As a result of LTP, the postsynaptic neuron becomes more sensitive to glutamate, making it much easier for the presynaptic neuron to activate it in the future. ("cells that fire together, wire together")

Neural Networks

Networks of interconnected neurons that develop and strengthen through repeated firing and communication.

Types of neuron communication

Action Potentials: Electrical signals (within a neuron). Neurotransmitters: Chemical signals (between neurons)

Four main structural regions of a neuron

Dendrites, cell body, axon, and terminal buttons

Sensory, somatosensory, motor, and interneurons

four main functional types of neurons

strength of a signal

Determines firing frequency of action potential. Weak stimulus = less frequent action potentials. Strong stimulus = more frequent action potentials.

early attentional filter

the human brain screens and blocks out most incoming sensory information before it is analyzed for meaning

signal transmission

the electrochemical process by which neurons communicate with one another to process information, generate mental states, and drive behavior

example of transduction

Physical sound waves bend microscopic hair cells in the inner ear, converting mechanical vibrations into electrical signals the brain interprets as sound.

Synaptic Plasticity

The ability of synapses to strengthen or weaken over time, which is essential for learning and memory formation in the brain.

types of binocular depth cues

retinal disparity, convergence

types of monocular depth cues

occlusion, relative size, linear perspective

Types of learning

Nonassociative, Associative, Social.

Types of nonassociative learning

habituation, sensitization

Types of associative learning

classical conditioning, operant conditioning

Qualitative differences

variations based on the distinct type, category, or essential quality of a stimulus rather than its numerical amount. This kind of information describes what kind of feature is present by identifying separate, non-overlapping categories.

Types of selective attention

Inattentional blindness, Change blindness, Stroop effect (failure of selective attention)

Examples of qualitative differences

Red light vs green light, Salty vs sweet, Different receptors

Quantitative differences

variations based strictly on the amount, degree, or magnitude of a stimulus rather than its category. This type of information measures how much of a feature is present along a continuous or numerical scale.

Examples of quantitative differences

Brightness of the light, Relative saltiness/sweetness, Frequency of action potentials

foreground

the part of a perceptual experience, attention, or mental model that receives active, conscious focus

background

the part of a perceptual experience or mental model that remains in the periphery, often not receiving focused attention.

boundry allocation

the cognitive process by which the brain decides which side of a visual edge belongs to an object in the foreground and which side belongs to the background

co-activation

the simultaneous firing or activation of two or more neurons or neural networks.

excitatory signals

electrochemical messages that increase the likelihood that a receiving neuron will fire an action potential and pass the signal along

Inhibitory signals

electrochemical messages that decrease the likelihood that a receiving neuron will fire an action potential, thus inhibiting the signal transmission.

Endogenous

Made ("manufactured") right inside your own body and cells.

Common Neurotransmitters

Serotonin, dopamine, glutamate

serotonin psychological functions

is a neurotransmitter that contributes to feelings of well-being and happiness, regulating mood, appetite, and sleep/dreaming, and impulsiveness.

dopamine psychological functions

is a neurotransmitter that plays key roles in reward, motivation, pleasure, and motor control. It helps regulate emotional responses and is involved in the reinforcement of behaviors. Drives the desire or craving (wanting) for a reward rather than the actual pleasure or enjoyment (liking) experienced when receiving it.

glutamate

is the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain, playing a crucial role in synaptic plasticity, learning, and memory.

labled neuron

Classical Conditioning (Real-World Example)

Experiencing sudden nausea at the smell of seafood after previously getting food poisoning from eating contaminated shrimp.

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

An environmental event or trigger that naturally, automatically, and reflexively elicits a physiological or emotional response without any prior training.

Unconditioned Stimulus (US) (Real-World Example)

A sudden, startling blast of thunder or the presentation of appetizing food to an individual who has not eaten.

Unconditioned Response (UR)

An unlearned, automatic, and natural reaction triggered directly by an unconditioned stimulus.

Unconditioned Response (UR) (Real-World Example)

Jumping and crying in shock from an unexpectedly loud bang, or salivating upon tasting food.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

A previously neutral stimulus that, after repeated association with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to evoke a reflexive reaction on its own.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS) (Real-World Example)

The specific whirring noise of a dentist's drill, which elicits apprehension only after prior associations with painful dental work.

Conditioned Response (CR)

An acquired, learned emotional or physiological reaction elicited by a conditioned stimulus following classical conditioning.

Conditioned Response (CR) (Real-World Example)

Experiencing a spike in heart rate and sweating solely upon hearing the noise of a dental drill.

Little Albert Study (Key Finding)

Demonstrated that emotional reactions, specifically fear, can be acquired through classical conditioning by repeatedly pairing a neutral object with an aversive unconditioned loud noise.

Little Albert Study (Stimulus-Response Breakdown)

The unconditioned stimulus was a loud noise, the unconditioned response was fear and crying, the conditioned stimulus became the white rat, and the conditioned response was crying at the white rat.

Operant Conditioning

A type of associative learning in which an organism learns to link a voluntary behavior to its consequence (if I do X, Y will happen), modifying the behavior's future likelihood—making it more frequent through reinforcement or less frequent through punishment.

Operant Conditioning (Real-World Example)

A student studying consistently each evening because good study habits reliably result in high exam grades.

Classical vs. Operant Conditioning (Control Over Behavior)

In classical conditioning, the organism has no control over events and forms conditioned responses; in operant conditioning, the organism controls its voluntary actions to produce outcomes.

Skinner Box

An operant conditioning chamber featuring a lever and a food dispenser, created by B. F. Skinner to systematically measure voluntary behavior and reinforcement schedules.

"Positive" vs. "Negative" in Operant Conditioning

These terms do not signify good or bad; positive denotes the addition or presentation of a stimulus, whereas negative denotes the subtraction or removal of a stimulus.

Reinforcement

Any consequence following a behavior that increases the probability and future frequency of that behavior being repeated.

Positive Reinforcement

The presentation (addition) of a desirable or pleasant stimulus following a behavior to strengthen and increase that behavior.

Positive Reinforcement (Real-World Examples)

Earning money for receiving top grades, getting verbal praise for extra effort, or a child gaining attention by acting out.

Negative Reinforcement

The removal (subtraction) of an aversive or unpleasant stimulus following a behavior to strengthen and increase that behavior.

Negative Reinforcement (Real-World Examples)

Buckling a seatbelt to silence an annoying warning chime, picking up a crying infant to halt the crying, or turning in coursework early to avoid reminder emails.

Punishment

Any consequence following a behavior that decreases the probability and future frequency of that behavior being repeated.

Positive Punishment

The presentation (addition) of an unpleasant or aversive stimulus following a behavior to weaken and decrease that behavior.

Positive Punishment (Real-World Examples)

Receiving a speeding ticket for driving excessively fast, or getting a parking ticket for parking in a faculty spot.

Negative Punishment

The removal (subtraction) of a desirable or pleasant stimulus following a behavior to weaken and decrease that behavior.

Negative Punishment (Real-World Examples)

Losing driving privileges for bringing home poor grades, or forfeiting points on an assignment for violating exam rules.

Negative Reinforcement vs. Negative Punishment (Shared Mechanism)

Both conditioning procedures involve the removal (subtraction) of a stimulus, but negative reinforcement increases a behavior while negative punishment decreases a behavior.

Social Learning

The process of acquiring or altering behaviors, attitudes, or emotional reactions through observing, modeling, or receiving verbal communication from others. It relies on internal cognitive processes (attention, retention, reproduction, and motivation) rather than direct personal experience or conditioning alone.

Social Learning (Real-World Example)

A child learning to avoid certain insects after observing a parent display intense panic and avoidance around them.

Observational Learning

A branch of social learning whereby an organism acquires or alters a behavior solely by watching someone else carry it out. Types include: modeling, vicarious learning

Observational Learning (Real-World Example)

An apprentice carpenter learning how to operate a specialized tool by watching an experienced mentor use it.

Bobo Doll Experiment (Key Finding)

Demonstrated observational learning; children who watched an adult attack an inflatable doll were more than twice as likely to imitate aggressive behaviors toward the doll.

Modeling

The cognitive and behavioral process of directly imitating actions and behaviors that were witnessed in another person. Works best when the person is attractive, high status, and somewhat similar to ourselves. Type of observational learning

Characteristics of Effective Models

Imitation occurs most readily when the observed model is perceived as attractive, holds high social status, and shares similarities with the observer.

Modeling (Real-World Example)

An adolescent taking up cigarette smoking after watching an admired movie star smoke on screen.

Vicarious Learning

Learning the likely outcomes of an action by watching whether another individual receives a reward or a punishment for performing that action. Type of observational learning

Vicarious Learning in the Bobo Doll Study

Children who observed an aggressive adult model receive rewards were significantly more aggressive toward the doll than children who saw the adult get punished.

Vicarious Learning (Real-World Example)

A driver slowing down on the highway after observing another motorist ahead get pulled over by law enforcement.

Instructed Learning

Acquiring behaviors, associations, and behavioral guidelines entirely through direct verbal communication rather than direct conditioning or observation.

Instructed Learning (Real-World Examples)

Following verbal guidance to say "please" and "thank you", learning to wash hands after being told about germs, or staying away from a stove because a parent warns it is hot.

Attention

Focusing awareness on a narrowed aspect of the environment

Posner Spatial Cueing Task

Demonstrated that presenting a valid spatial cue speeds target detection, showing that mental focus enhances sensory processing at designated locations.