PHSYC 100 chapter 6

Reflexes

motor/neural reactions to a specific stimulus.

simpler than instincts

-Involve primitive centers of the CNS (e.g., spinal cord and medulla).

Instincts

innate behaviors triggered by a broader range of events (e.g., aging, change of seasons).

-More complex.

-Involve movement of the organism as a whole (e.g., sexual activity,migration).

- Involve higher brain centers.

Learning

a relatively permanent change in behavior or knowledge that

results from experience.

-Involves acquiring skills/knowledge through experience.

- Involves conscious and unconscious processes

Associative learning

when an organism makes connections between stimuli or events that occur together in the environment.

1.Classical conditioning

2.Operant conditioning

3.Observational learning

Classical conditioning

– process by which we learn to associate stimuli and, consequently, to anticipate events.

unconditioned response

unlearned response

conditioned response

- learned response

classical conditioning before

Unconditioned stimulus (UCS) – stimulus that elicits a reflexive response

Unconditioned response (UCR) – a natural unlearned reaction to a stimulus

classical conditioning during

Neutral stimulus (NS) – stimulus that does not naturally elicit a response

• The NS and UCS are paired repeatedly

classical conditioning after

Conditioned stimulus (CS) – stimulus that elicits a response after repeatedly being paired with an unconditioned stimulus.

Conditioned response (CR) – the behavior caused by the conditioned stimulus

Higher-order conditioning

- an established conditioned stimulus is paired with a second-order stimulus (new neutral stimulus)

Acquisition

– The initial period of learning when a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus are paired

Extinction

– decrease in the conditioned response when the UCS is no longer presented with the CS.

Spontaneous recovery

– the return of a previously extinguished conditioned response following a rest period.

Stimulus discrimination

– when an organism learns to respond differently to various stimuli that are similar.

Stimulus generalization

– when an organism demonstrates the conditioned response to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus.

Habituation

– learning not to respond to a stimulus that is presented repeatedly without change.

OPERANT CONDITIONING

Proposed by B.F. Skinner (1930s)

Based on the law of effect- behaviors followed by satisfying outcomes are repeated, those followed by unpleasant outcomes are not (Thorndike, 1911)

-Pleasant consequence/desired result → behavior is more likely to occur again.

-Unpleasant consequence/undesired result → behavior is less likely to occur again.

terms when it comes to conditioning

Positive – to add something.

Negative – to take something away.

Reinforcement – increasing a behavior.

Punishment – decreasing behavior.

Positive reinforcement

– something is added to increase the likelihood of a behavior.

Negative reinforcement

– something is removed to increase the likelihood of a behavior.

Positive punishment

– something is added to decrease the likelihood of a behavior

Negative punishment

– something is removed to decrease the likelihood of a behavior.

SHAPING (training ) ( part of operant conditioning ) 

Instead of rewarding only the target behavior, we reward successive approximations (steps) of a target behavior

Primary reinforcers

those that have innate reinforcing qualities (e.g. food,water, sleep, sex, pleasure). ( instincts 

Secondary reinforcers

those that have no inherent value. Their value is

learnt and becomes reinforcing when linked with a primary reinforce

Continuous reinforcement

– when an organism receives a reinforcer each time it displays a behavior

-quickest way to teach behavior

Partial reinforcement

– intermittent reinforcement; the organism does not get reinforced every time they display the desired behavior

Predictability

-Fixed – the number of responses/time between reinforcements is set and unchanging.

-Variable – the number of responses/time between reinforcements varies or changes

Measure of reinforcement

-Interval – the schedule is based on the Time between reinforcements.

-Ratio – the schedule is based on the Number of responses between reinforcements.

Variable ratio schedule

- unpredictable and yields high and steady response rates, with little if any pause after reinforcement (e.g., gambler).

Fixed ratio schedule

Fixed ratio schedule

- predictable and produces a high response rate, with a short pause after reinforcement

Variable interval schedule

- unpredictable and produces a moderate, steady response rate

Fixed interval schedule 

- yields a scallop-shaped response pattern, reflecting a significant pause after reinforcement

Edward C. Tolman (1930s)

found that learning could occur without reinforcement. This introduced the idea that there is a Cognitive aspect to learning.

Cognitive map

a mental picture of the layout and environment.

Latent learning

learning that occurs but is not observable in behavior until there is a reason to demonstrate it.

Observational learning 

learning by watching others and then imitating.

Model

the individual performing the imitated behavior

SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY

Albert Bandura (1960s) believed that observational learning involved more than just imitation and that internal mental states must be involved.

Modeling Process

1.Attention– focus on the behavior.

2.Retention– remember what you observed.

3.Reproduction – be able to perform the behavior.

4.Motivation – must want to copy the behavior.

Vicarious reinforcement

– process where the observer sees the model rewarded, making the observer more likely to imitate the model’s behavior.

Vicarious punishment

– process where the observer sees the model punished, making the observer less likely to imitate the model’s behavior.