Psychology Lecture Topics: Dreams, Drugs, and Learning

Dreams

Mental experiences during sleep.

Common themes in dreams

Recurring subjects or motifs that occur

External events in dreams

Real-life occurrences that can become part of the dream.

Wish fulfillment

Freud's theory that dreams represent unfulfilled desires.

Manifest content

The actual storyline and imagery of a dream as recalled by the dreamer.

Latent content

The underlying meaning or symbolism of a dream.

Activation-synthesis model

The theory that dreams result from the brain's attempt to make sense of random neural activity.

Information Processing

The theory that dreams may help store memories.

Cognitive Development

The theory that dreams may play a role in cognitive and neural development.

Drug Dependence

A condition characterized by a compulsive pattern of drug use.

Tolerance

A condition where increasing amounts of a drug are needed to achieve the same effect.

Physical dependence

A state where the body adapts to a drug, leading to withdrawal symptoms when not taken.

Psychological dependence

A condition where individuals feel a strong desire to continue using a drug.

Risks of drug use

Potential negative consequences such as overdose, physical damage, and indirect behavioral effects.

Psychoactive Drugs

Substances that affect mental processes and behavior.

Depressive drugs

Drugs that calm neural activity and reduce body functions.

Stimulants

Drugs that increase CNS (central nervous system) activity.

Hallucinogens

Drugs that distort sensory and perceptual experience.

Sedatives

Drugs that decrease CNS activity and induce sleep.

Narcotics (Opiates)

Highly addictive depressants that relieve pain and reduce anxiety.

Effects of Alcohol Use

Includes slowed neural processing, impaired judgment, disinhibition, and disrupted memory.

Cocaine

A stimulant that blocks reuptake of dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine.

Methamphetamine

A stimulant that triggers sustained release of dopamine, leading to prolonged euphoria.

Ecstasy (MDMA)

A drug that produces a short-lived high and increases dopamine and serotonin levels.

Hallucinogens examples

LSD (acid) and THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) found in marijuana.

Mechanisms of Drug Action

The ways in which drugs alter neurotransmitter activity in the brain.

Glutamate

An excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain.

GABA

An inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain.

Associative Learning

Learning that certain events occur together.

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

A stimulus that normally triggers a response.

Unconditioned Response (UR)

The natural, unlearned response to the US.

Neutral Stimulus (NS)

A stimulus that elicits no response before conditioning.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

An originally neutral stimulus that after pairing with the US, triggers a conditioned response.

Conditioned Response (CR)

The learned response to the previously neutral CS.

Acquisition

Learning the association between the US and the CS.

Stimulus Generalization

Responding to stimuli similar to the CS after acquisition.

Stimulus Discrimination

The ability to differentiate between the CS and significantly different stimuli.

Extinction

When the CS and US are no longer paired, leading to a decreased likelihood of performing the CR.

Spontaneous Recovery

Reappearance of the CR after a time delay post-extinction.

Doctor's Office Example - US

Injection.

Doctor's Office Example - UR

Pain response.

Doctor's Office Example - CS

Needle.

Doctor's Office Example - CR

Nervous response.

Real World Example - US

Peyton Manning.

Real World Example - UR

Positive Attitude.

Real World Example - CS

MasterCard.

Real World Example - CR

Positive Attitude.

Pavlov

A psychologist known for his work in classical conditioning.

Idealized Curve of Acquisition, Extinction, and Recovery

Graphical representation of the process of learning and unlearning conditioned responses.

Biological Constraints on Classical Conditioning

Animals and humans seem biologically prepared to learn some associations rather than others.

Garcia and Rayner's Rat Studies

Rats were given irradiated food (which made the rats sick).

Strange Taste and Delayed Illness

Avoidance.

Strange Lights or Noises and Delayed Illness

No effect.

Law of Effect

Behaviors that have positive outcomes are strengthened (more likely to be repeated) and behaviors that have negative outcomes are weakened (less likely to be repeated).

B.F. Skinner and Operant Conditioning

Studied how behaviors are learned.

Reinforcement

Any event that increases how often a specific behavior is performed.

Punishment

Any event that decreases how often a specific behavior is performed.

Positive Reinforcement

Present a desired stimulus after a response.

Negative Reinforcement

Remove an unpleasant stimulus after a response.

Positive Punishment

Present an unpleasant stimulus after a response.

Negative Punishment

Remove a desired stimulus after a response.

Example of Positive Reinforcement

You work hard at your job and earn a promotion.

Example of Negative Reinforcement

Hit snooze on the alarm clock and the annoying noise goes away.

Example of Positive Punishment

After you tease your brother, mom makes you do his chores as well as yours.

Example of Negative Punishment

If you are caught drunk driving, your driver's license will be suspended.

Getting an ice cream for cleaning your room

An example of positive reinforcement.

Not being able to play with your friends if you do not clean your room

An example of negative reinforcement.

Example of Negative Reinforcement

Smoking to relieve anxiety.

Example of Positive Punishment

Going to jail for stealing money.

Example of Negative Punishment

Having to pay a fine for speeding.

Negative Reinforcement

If you do what I want, I will eliminate a negative stimulus.

Punishment

If you do not do what I want, I will give you a negative stimulus (positive punishment) or take away a good thing (negative punishment).

Primary reinforcers

Positive on own merits, e.g., watching a movie, headache going away.

Secondary reinforcers

Positive because they become associated with a primary reinforcer, e.g., movie ticket, aspirin.

Continuous reinforcement

Get the reward every time you do the behavior.

Partial reinforcement

Get the reward some of the time you do the behavior.

Acquisition

Learn faster with continuous reinforcement.

Extinction

Is faster with continuous reinforcement.

Ratio Schedules

Rewards are based on how often you do the behavior.

Fixed Ratio

Get a reward after a specific number of behaviors are performed, e.g., buy five, get the sixth one free.

Variable Ratio

Get a reward after a varying amount of behaviors are performed, e.g., playing slots.

Interval Schedules

Rewards are based on doing the behavior after some time has passed.

Fixed Interval

Get a reward when you perform the behavior after a specific amount of time has passed, e.g., waiting for a restaurant to open.

Variable Interval

Get a reward when you perform the behavior after a varying amount of time has passed, e.g., calling to see if your car is ready.

Intermittent reinforcement schedules

Rate of responses of Skinner's (1961) laboratory pigeons when reinforced.

Fixed ratio schedule

A baseball player gets a hit on average 3 times out of every 10 at bats.

Fixed interval schedule

Ben and Noah get a five dollar allowance every week.

Variable ratio schedule

Buying state lottery tickets and winning.

Variable interval schedule

You text your friend but she does not respond.

Fixed ratio schedule

In a second grade class, the students get 1 star put on the board for every 2 books they read.

Fixed interval schedule

Checking the oven to see if the cookies are done when you know the baking time.

Operant Conditioning

A learning process through which the strength of a behavior is modified by reinforcement or punishment.

Shaping

A technique in operant conditioning where successive approximations of a desired behavior are reinforced.

Successive Approximations

Gradually reinforcing behaviors that are closer to the desired behavior.

Chaining

A method in operant conditioning where multiple behaviors are linked together to form a complex behavior.

Problems with Punishment

Issues that arise from using punishment, such as serving as a model, causing negative emotions, and only suppressing behavior.

Instinctive Drift

The tendency for instinctive behaviors to reappear and interfere with learned behaviors after conditioning.

Motivation

A stimulus or force that directs behavior, thoughts, and persistence.

Intrinsic Motivation

The drive to continue a behavior because of internal rewards, such as enjoyment or a desire to learn.

Extrinsic Motivation

The drive to continue a behavior due to external rewards, such as money or grades.