2210 Animal Cognition

Comparative Cognition

The study of the cognitive abilities of different species, comparing human and non-human animals through an evolutionary lens.

Learning (Domjan, 2015)

An enduring change in mechanisms of behavior involving specific stimuli and/or responses due to prior experience.

Animal Learning

The process through which animals acquire new behaviors, often discussed in the context of classical and operant conditioning.

Animal Cognition

An extension of animal learning, addressing higher order cognitive abilities, such as memory and spatial navigation.

Ethology

The scientific study of animal behavior, focusing on naturalistic observation and evolutionary factors.

Behavioral Ecology

The study of the evolutionary basis for animal behavior due to ecological pressures.

Behavioral Neuroscience

A field that explores the relationship between behavior and the brain, utilizing various neuroscientific techniques.

Cartesian Dualism

Descartes' theory proposing that human behavior is divided into voluntary and involuntary actions, with only involuntary behaviors considered reflexive in non-human animals.

Nativism

The philosophical belief that certain ideas or concepts are inherent in the human mind, independent of experience.

Empiricism

The theory that all knowledge is derived from sensory experience; expressed through the notion of 'tabula rasa' or the clean slate.

Hermann Ebbinghaus

A psychologist who studied memory and associations using nonsense syllables to determine recall strength.

Natural Selection

Darwin's principle asserting that organisms best adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce.

Speciation

The evolutionary process by which populations evolve to become distinct species, often due to adaptation to different environments.

Continuity Hypothesis

Darwin's idea that cognitive and emotional traits in humans and animals differ quantitatively rather than qualitatively.

Cognition

The processes involved in acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses.

Fixed Action Patterns (FAPs)

Species-typical behaviors that are rigidly patterned and triggered by specific environmental stimuli.

Imprinting

A form of learning where young animals form attachments to the first moving object encountered, often seen in birds.

Tinbergen's Questions

Four scientific questions proposed by Tinbergen to analyze behavior: Adaptive value, Evolution, Ontogeny, and Immediate causation.

Behavioral Ecology

The study of animal behavior in relation to ecological pressures and evolutionary context.

Behaviorism

A psychological approach that emphasizes observable and measurable behaviors over mental processes.

Comparative Psychology

The branch of psychology that studies the similarities and differences in behavior among species.

Tony the Terrier

An example used by C. Lloyd Morgan to illustrate trial and error learning in animals.

Clever Hans effect

A phenomenon where an animal responds to subtle cues from a human rather than understanding a task.

Sign Stimuli

Key features of stimuli that elicit specific behavioral responses in animals.

Sensation

The process by which sensory receptors detect stimuli and transmit signals to the brain.

Perception

The organization and interpretation of sensory information to understand the environment.

Echolocation

A process used by bats and certain other animals to navigate and hunt by emitting sound waves and interpreting the echoes.

Visual System

The part of the central nervous system that enables organisms to process visual information.

Depth Perception

The ability to perceive the distance of objects, significantly aided by binocular vision.

Photoreceptors

Specialized cells in the retina (rods and cones) that convert light into neural signals.

Dichromatic Color Vision

A type of color vision limited to two color receptors, typical in dogs.

Trichromatic Color Vision

A type of color vision that allows the perception of three primary colors, typical in humans.

Sensory Drive Hypothesis

The idea that sensory abilities evolve based on environmental requirements and evolutionary pressures.

Sensory Bias

A tendency of certain species to respond more strongly to exaggerated stimuli.

Supernormal Stimuli

Enhanced versions of stimuli that elicit a stronger response than normal stimuli.

Psychophysics

The study of the relationship between physical stimuli and the sensations and perceptions they produce.

Just Noticeable Difference (JND)

The smallest difference in stimulus intensity that can be detected by an observer.

Weber's Law

A principle that states the change in a stimulus that will be just noticeable is a constant ratio of the original stimulus.

Sign Tracking

A behavioral response where an animal follows and interacts with a stimulus that indicates the availability of rewards.

Goal Tracking

The behavior in which an animal focuses on the reward itself rather than the stimuli associated with it.

Classical Conditioning

A learning process where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a meaningful stimulus, eliciting a conditioned response.

Conditioned Response (CR)

The learned response to a previously neutral stimulus after conditioning.

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

A stimulus that naturally triggers a response without prior learning.

Extinction (in conditioning)

The reduction or elimination of a conditioned response when the conditioned stimulus is presented without the unconditioned stimulus.

Latent Inhibition

A phenomenon where prior exposure to a conditioned stimulus without reinforcement hampers later learning.

Operant Conditioning

A learning process where behavior is modified through reinforcement or punishment.

Thorndike's Law of Effect

The principle that behaviors followed by satisfying outcomes are likely to be repeated, while those followed by discomfort are less likely to occur.

Taste Aversion

A learned avoidance of a particular food following a negative experience associated with that food.

Associative Learning

A form of learning where an association is formed between two stimuli or a behavior and a stimulus.

Fear Conditioning

A learning process in which an animal learns to associate a neutral stimulus with an aversive event, leading to fear responses.

Memory

The cognitive process that involves encoding, storing, and retrieving information.

Selective Attention

The process of focusing on a specific stimulus while ignoring others.

Sustained Attention

The ability to maintain focus on a specific stimulus over an extended period.

Divided Attention

The ability to process information from multiple sources simultaneously, often resulting in decreased performance.

Prospective Memory

The capacity to remember to perform actions in the future.

Retrospective Memory

The ability to recall past experiences and information.

Encoding

The initial step in memory formation, where sensory information is transformed into a format that can be stored.

Consolidation

The process by which encoded information is stabilized and stored in the brain.

Retrieval

The process of accessing stored memories when needed.

Chunking

A memory technique that involves grouping information into larger, more manageable units.

Habituation

A decrease in response to a repeated, benign stimulus over time.

Sensitization

An increased response to a stimulus following an aversive event.