psych exam 2: learning

tabula rasa + how it relates to the mind

erased/blank slate; we cannot think of the mind as a blank state as it does many things

types of learning + their definitions

1. nonassociative: learning about a stimulus

2. associative: learning the relationship between two pieces of information

3. social: learning by watching someone

habituation & sensitization

part of nonassociative learning

habituation: gradual decrease in response intensity over repeated exposure to a stimulus

sensitization: repeated exposure to a stimulus leads to an increased response over time

types of associative learning

1. classical conditioning: learning that a stimulus predicts another stimulus

2. operant conditioning: learning a behavior leads to a certain outcome

Classical Conditioning Properties (5)

1. unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

2. unconditioned response (UCR)

3. neutral stimulus (NS)

4. conditioned stimulus (CS)

5. conditioned response (CR) 

examples will be given in terms of Pavlov’s experiment

unconditioned stimulus

• stimulus eliciting an automatic, natural reflexive response (you don’t learn to have a response to this stimulus; just automatically causes one) 

  • EX: food

unconditioned response

response that is automatically produced after UCS

• ex: salivating

neutral stimulus (NS)

stimulus that is paired with the UCS that does not normally/automatically cause a response (the goal is to get it to cause a response)

• ex: bell ringing 

conditioned stimulus 

previously neutral stimulus that comes to elicit a (conditioned) response; ALWAYS the same as neutral stimulus 

• ex: bell ringing (except now its paired with something)

conditioned response

learned response to a stimulus that was previously neutral

• ex: salivating after hearing the bell alone 

How does Pavlov’s studies of dog salivation illustrate key principles of classical conditioning?

shows that learning can occur through association

shaping

successively rewarding behaviors that are closer and closer to the desired one until the desired behavior is produced 

• EX: pigeon video example in class 

True or False: given stimulus/response could be conditioned or unconditioned; it depends on the circumstances

true 

When are associations extinguished?

when associations are no longer valid

Extinction vs Inhibition

extinction (breaking the association): the CS is presented without the US over time; this breaks/weakens the association

• EX: dog doesn’t salivate after rest period

inhibition (temporary suppression):  CS and US are still linked but something temporarily blocks connection; spontaneous recovery 

• EX: dog salivates after rest period

spontaneous recovery 

reappearance of a conditioned response (CR) after a rest period following extinction, even though no new learning has happened

prediction error (role of expectation in learning)

the difference between the actual and expected outcome

positive prediction error

when something better than expected happens; strengthens association

• EX: you try a restaurant expecting a mediocre meal, but food is amazing → you’re pleasantly surprised, and now you want to go back.

negative prediction error

when something worse than expected happens; weakens association

• you order your favorite dish at a restaurant but they bring you bland food → you’re disappointed, and you’re less likely to order it again.

Rescorla-Wagner Model

cognitive model of classical conditioning; states that the strength of the CS-US association is determined by the extent to which the unconditioned stimulus is unexpected

What does classical Conditioning enable us to do? (2)

1. building associations from experience

2. extinguishing associations with experience

Does correlation equal causation?

no

prepared conditioning

idea that humans and other animals are biologically conditioned to form certain associations/fears more easily than others; helps with survival

EX: common phobias (snakes, spiders) VS uncommon phobias (car accidents)

fear conditioning

type of classical conditioning that turns neutral stimuli into feared stimuli; can result in phobias

Baby Albert Case: what was it and what does it illustrate about associative learning?

• Baby Albert was shown a furry rat. Loud noise was made with the rat to scare Albert, causing him to cry. Soon enough, Albert cried at the sight of the rat even without the noise. Scientists realized that Albert cried at the sight of other furry animals (EX: rabbit) afterwards.

• Significance: showed that stimulus generalization could happen and proved classical conditioning (how it forms)

stimulus generalization

when a stimulus like the original conditioned stimulus also causes the response

Stimulus Discrimination

learning to tell the difference between two similar things, and only responding to the one that actually predicts the outcome

How are associations between a CS and US extinguished? What happens when the CS is presented again after a delay?

Associations are extinguished when the CS is presented without the US repeatedly. There is spontaneous recovery when the CS is presented again after a delay.

How is prediction error computed? What are its effects?

how its computed 

• If the outcome is better than expected → positive prediction error

• If the outcome is worse than expected → negative prediction error

• If the outcome matches the expectation exactly → no prediction error

+ : strengthens connection

- : weakens

no prediction error = no change in learning

How is prediction error implemented in the brain?

dopamine neurons in the midbrain fire in a way that reflects prediction error

• something better or more surprising than expected

• know the monkey + juice experiment

Classical Conditioning and Drug Overdose (role of classical conditioning)

The environment can become a conditioned stimulus that prompts the body to prepare for other stimuli with which that environment is associated. Switching environments can be problematic 

• if a person takes a drug at a specific location every time, the body begins to prep to counteract the drug’s impacts whenever the person goes to that location. This leads to the person being able to consume higher amounts of the drug → a “tolerance” forms. However, if the person goes to a different location and takes their “normal amount”, they could overdose as the body wasn’t prepping to counteract the drug (no tolerance)

positive reinforcement

giving/adding something pleasant to reward a behavior

negative reinforcement

taking away something unpleasant to reward a behavior

positive punishment

adding something unpleasant after a behavior to make it less likely from happening again

negative punishment

taking something pleasant away to make a behavior less likely in the future

Thorndike’s Law of Effect (operant conditioning)

• any action that leads to a good outcome is likely to be repeated

• any action that leads to a bad outcome is less likely to be repeated

fixed interval schedule

reward is provided only after a specific amount of time has passed

• EX: every 12 hours, your friend will text you back if you text them at that time, regardless of how many texts you’ve sent in

fixed ratio schedule

reward is delivered after a specific, unchanging number of responses is completed

• EX: every 4 times you text your friend, you friend texts you back once

variable interval schedule

behavior is reinforced after an unpredictable, random amount of time has passed

• EX: checking messages: you don’t know when a new message will arrive, but when you check at the right time, you’re rewarded with a new message

variable ratio schedule 

reward is given after an unpredictable, varying number of responses

• EX: You friend responds to your text after an unpredictable number of texts from you. Sometimes you might have to text 2x to get a response; other times you might have to text 12x to get a response

prepared conditioning + evolutionary influences on learning

idea that we’re biologically predisposed to learn some associations more easily than other

• helps with survival (if we avoid food-related conditioning, higher chance of survival)

Rat (food vs light) Study

• two groups of rats were studied. first group was given tasty water and second group was shown a light. both groups got sick. rats that had water avoided the water after but rats that saw the light didnt avoid the light

• shows  idea of prepared conditioning

learned taste aversions

type of classical conditioning where an organism learns to avoid a food (or drink) after just one pairing with illness or nausea

blocking in associative learning

prior learning about one cue prevents (or blocks) learning about a new cue, even though both are paired with the same outcome

• if a stimulus already predicts the unconditioned stimulus (US), adding another stimulus at the same time doesn’t add any new information — so no new learning occurs

blocking experiment

• Phase 1 (Initial Learning):

  • Rats first learn that a tone (CS1) is always followed by shock (US).

  • They quickly associate tone → shock and show fear to the tone.

• Phase 2 (Compound Conditioning):

  • Now, a light (CS2) is presented together with the tone, followed by the shock.

  • The shock is not surprising — the tone already predicts it.

• Test Phase:

  • When the light alone is presented, the rats do not show fear.

  • Why? Because the light was blocked by the prior learning of tone → shock.