Learning Exam 3

Edwin Thorndike

conducted animal research with cats in puzzle boxes

What did Thorndike’s puzzle boxes demonstrate?

The responses that lead to a successful escape are gradually strengthened while the responses that don’t are gradually weakened

Thorndike’s Law of Effect

behaviors leading to a satisfying state of affairs are strengthened while behaviors that lead to an unsatisfying state of affairs are weakened

Free Operant procedure

the rat freely responds with a particular behavior, and it may do so at any rate

Operant Behavior

behaviors that seem more voluntary in nature and are controlled by their consequences rather than by the stimuli that precede them

Operant Conditioning

a type of learning in which the future frequency of a behavior is affected by its consequences

Operant Conditioning Procedure

1. a response that produces a certain consequence

2. the consequence that serves to either increase or decrease the frequency of the response that preceded it

3. a discriminative stimulus that precedes the response and signals that a certain consequence is now available

Characteristics of Operant Behavior

emitted by the organism, is voluntary

Reinforcer

consequence that strengthens the behavior

Reinforcer Qualifications

follow a behavior and increase the future frequency of that behavior increases

Punisher

consequence that weakens a behavior

Punisher Qualifications

follow a behavior and decrease the future frequency of that behavior

reinforcement and punishment

refer to the process or procedure by which a certain consequence changes the strength of a behavior

Extinction

the weakening of a behavior through the nonreinforcement of a previously reinforced behavior

Discriminative stimulus

a stimulus in the presence of which responses are reinforced and in the absence of which they are not reinforced

Three-Term Contingency

the discriminative stimulus, the operant behavior, and the reinforcer or punisher

ABC

antecedent event, behavior, consequence

Discriminative Stimulus for Punishment

stimulus that signals that a response will be punished

Discriminative Stimulus for Extinction

a stimulus that signals the absence of reinforcement

Contingency of Reinforcement

the delivery of the reinforcer is contingent upon the response

Positive Reinforcement

presentation of a stimulus, usually considered pleasant, following a response which then leads to a increase in the future strength of that response

Negative Reinforcement

removal of a stimulus, usually considered aversive, following a response which then leads to an increase in the future strength of that response

Escape behavior

results in the termination of an aversive stimulus

Avoidance behavior

occurs before the aversive stimulus is presented and therefore prevents its delivery

Positive Punishment

presentation of a stimulus, usually considered unpleasant, following a response which then leads to a decrease in the future strength of that response

Negative Punishment

removal of a stimulus, usually considered pleasant, following a response which then leads to a decrease in the future strength of that response

the more immediate the reinforcer

the stronger its effect on the behavior

Primary Reinforcer

an event that is innately reinforcing

Secondary Reinforcer

an event that is reinforcing because it has been associated with some other reinforcer

Generalized Reinforcer

a type of secondary reinforcer that has been associated with several other reinforcers

Intrinsic Reinforcement

reinforcement provided by the mere act of performing the behavior

Extrinsic Reinforcement

the reinforcement provided by some consequence that is external or additional to the behavior

Natural Reinforcer

reinforcers that are an expected consequence of the behavior within that setting

Contrived Reinforcers

reinforcers that have been deliberately arranged to modify a behavior

Shaping

gradual creation of new behavior through reinforcement of successively closer approximations to that behavior

Schedule of reinforcement

the response requirement that must be met to obtain reinforcement

Continuous Reinforcement Schedule

each specified response is reinforced

Intermittent Reinforcement Schedule

only some responses are reinforced

Fixed Ratio Schedule

reinforcement is contingent upon a fixed, predictable number of responses

Fixed Ratio schedule produces

a high rate of response along with a short pause following the attainment of each reinforcer

Higher ratio requirements produce

longer post-reinforcement pauses

Stretching the Ratio

moving from a low ratio requirement to a high ratio requirement

Ratio Strain

if the ratio requirement is increased too quickly, there may be a breakdown in behavior

Variable Ratio Schedule

reinforcement is contingent upon a varying, unpredictable number of responses

Variable Ratio schedule produces

a high and steady rate of response, often with little or no post-reinforcement pause

Fixed Interval Schedule

reinforcement is contingent upon the first response after a fixed, predictable period of time

Fixed Interval schedules produces

a scalloped pattern of responding consisting of post-reinforcement pause followed by a gradually increasing rate of response as the interval draws to a close

Variable Interval Schedule

reinforcement is contingent upon the first response after a varying unpredictable period of time

Variable Interval schedules produce

a moderate, steady rate of response often with little or no post-reinforcement pause

These schedules produce higher rates of response

ratio (fixed, variable)

These schedules produce a post-reinforcement pause

Fixed (interval, ratio)

Fixed Duration Schedule

the behavior must be performed continuously for a fixed, predictable period of time

Variable Duration Schedule

the behavior must be performed continuously for a varying unpredictable period of time

How do duration schedules compare to the main four?

they are imprecise comparative to the four basic schedules, as the reinforcer would be received in spite of effort

Response-Rate Schedule

reinforcement is directly contingent upon the organism’s rate of response

Differential Reinforcement of High Rates

reinforcement is contingent upon emitting at least a certain number of responses in a certain period of time

Differential Reinforcement of Low Rates

a minimum amount of time must pass between each response before the reinforcer will be delivered

Differential Reinforcement of Paced Responding

reinforcement is contingent upon emitting a series of responses at a set rate

Noncontingent Schedule of Reinforcement

reinforcer is delivered independently of any response; a response is not required for the reinforcer to be obtained

Fixed Time Schedule

reinforcer is delivered following a fixed, predictable period of time regardless of the organism’s behavior

Variable Time Schedule

reinforce is delivered following a varying, unpredictable period of time regardless of the organism’s behavior

Noncontingent reinforcement is related to

some forms of superstitious behavior

Complex Schedue

combination of two or more simple schedules

Conjunctive schedule

the requirements of two or more simple schedules must be met before a reinforcer is delivered

Adjusting Schedule

the response requirement changes as a function of the organism’s performance while responding for the previous reinforcer

Chained Schedule

a sequence of two or more simple schedules

Goal Gradient Effect

an increase in the strength and/or efficiency of responding as one draws near to the goal

Preparatory-Response theory

the purpose of the CR is to prepare the organism for the presentation of the US

Example of Preparatory Response Theory

accounts for cases where the CR seems to be doing the opposite of the UR

Heroin cues (NS): Heroin (US) —> BP decreases (UR)

Heroin cues (CS) —> BP increases (CR)

Compensatory-response model

a CS that has been repeatedly associated with the primary response to a US will eventually come to elicit a compensatory response

Rescorla-Wagner theory

a given US can support only so much conditioning, and this amount of conditioning must be distributed among the various CSs that are present

Assumption of Rescorla-Wagner

stronger stimuli support more conditioning than weaker stimuli

Overexpectation effect

the decrease in a CR that occurs when two separately conditioned CSs are combined into a compound stimulus for further pairings, leading to each CS of the compound to lose some of its associative value

λUS

asymptote of learning/max associative strength for US

K

learning rate constant

ΣVcs

associative value of stimuli preceding the US

ΔVcs

change in associative strength between each trial

What internal process does Rescorla Wagner measure

surprise

Rsecorla Wagner formula

ΔVcs = K(λUS-ΣVcs)

Overgeneralization

a conditioned fear response to one event has been overgeneralized to other harmless events

Observational Learning and Phobias

phobias may be acquired when observing fearful reactions of others

Snake (NS): Display of fear by others (US) —> Fear in oneself (UR)

Snake (CS) —> Fear in oneself (CR)

Temperament and Phobia

an individual may be more susceptible to the development of conditioned fears

Preparedness and Phobias

an innate tendency to learn certain behaviors or make certain types of associations more easily than others; some may have a inherited tendency to make aversive associations

US Revaluation and Phobias

exposure to a US of a different intensity can alter the strength of the response to a previously conditioned CS

Selective Sensitization and Phobias

an increase in one’s reactivity to a potentially fearful stimulus following exposure to an unrelated stressful event

Systematic Desensitization

a behavioral treatment for phobias that involves pairing relaxation with a succession of stimuli that elicit increasing levels of fear

Counterconditioning

a CS that elicits one type of response is associated with an event that elicits an incompatible response

Reciprocal inhibition

the occurrence of one response can be inhibited by the simultaneous occurrence of an incompatible response

Three part desensitization procedure

1. training in relaxation

2. creation of a hierarchy of imaginary scenes that elicit progressively inter levels of fear

3. pairing of each item in the hierarchy with relaxation

Flooding

involves prolonged exposure to a fear stimulus, thereby providing maximal opportunity for the conditioned fear response to be extinguished

aversion therapy

treatment procedure that reduces the attractiveness of a desired event by associating it with an aversive stimulus

Covert sensitization

the use of imaginal stimuli instead of real stimuli

Immunosuppressed drug conditioning

the hospital environment had become associated with the immunosuppressive event of chemotherapy and was now a CS for a conditioned immunosuppressive response

Shaping

the gradual creation of new behavior through reinforcement of successively closer approximation to that behavior

Response Rate Schedule

reinforcement is directly contingent upon the organism’s rate of response

Different Reinforcement of High Rates (DRH)

reinforcement is contingent upon emitting at least a certain number of responses in a certain period of time/reinforcement is provided for responding at a fast rate

Differential Reinforcement of Low Rates

a minimum amount of time must pass between each response before the reinforcer will be delivered/reinforcement is provided for responding at a slow rate

Differential Reinforcement of Paced Responding

reinforcement is contingent on emitting a series of responses at a set rate/reinforcement is provided for responding neither too fast nor too slow

Drive Reduction theory

an event is reinforcing to the extent that it is associated with a reduction in some type of physiological drive