Learning Unit 4

Classical conditioning

a type of learning in which one learns to link two or more stimuli and anticipate events

Acquisition

the initial stage of conditioning in which one links neural stimulus and unconditioned stimulus

High-order conditioning

a process in which the conditioned stimulus in one conditioning experience is paired with a new neural stimulus, creating a second conditioned stimulus

Extinction

the diminishing of a conditioned response

Spontaneous Recovery

the reappearance after a pause, of an extinguished conditioned response

Generalization

The tendency once a response has been conditioned for stimuli similar to the CS to elicit similar responses

Discrimination

the learned ability to distinguish between a CS and stimuli that do not signal an US

Cognitive variables

thoughts, perceptions and expectations that impact learning

Learned helplessness

the passive resignation an organism learns when they are unable to avoid repeated adverse events.

Biological predispostion

biological responses impact behavior and learning

What did Martin Seiglemen’s study find?

That dogs administered an inescapable shock eventually stopped trying to escape even when conditions where changed

What did John Garcia’s study find?

He did a taste aversion study that showed rats would avoid food and water sources that would make them sick

Operant conditioning

a type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher

Respondent behavior

behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus

Operant behavior

behavior that operates on the environment producing consequences

Law of effect

Thorndike’s principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely, vice versa

Shaping

procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior

Successive approximations

Rewarding responses that are ever closer to the final desired behavior and ignore all others

Discriminative stimulus

stimulus that elicits a response after association with reniforcement

Reinforcer

something that increased the likelyhood that a behavior or response will occur

Positive reinforcement

Increasing behaviors by presenting positive reinforcers

Negative reinforcement

increases behaviors by stopping or reducing a negative stimuli

Primary reinforcer

reinforcer stimulus that satisfies a biological need

Secondary reinforcer

a stimulus that gains its power through the primary reinforcer

Delayed reinforcers

a reinforcer that is not given immediatly following desired behavior

Continuous reinforcement

reinforcing the desired response every time it occurs

Partial reinforcement

reinforcing a response only part of the time

Fixed ratio

a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses

Variable ratio

a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after a random number of responses

Fixed interval

a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after specificed time has elapsed

Variable interval

a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response at random time intervals

Punishment

an event that decreases the behavior that it follows

Positive punishment

add consequence to unwanted behavior

Negative punishment

to remove a pleasant stimulus to decrease a behavior

Latent learning

learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it

Insight learning

a sudden and often novel realization of the solution to a problem

Intrinsic motivation

a desire to perform a behavior effectively for its own sake

Extrinsic motivation

a desire to perform a behavior to receive promised rewards or avoid threatened punishment

Mirror neurons

front lobe neurons that fire when performing certain actions or when observing another doing so-may enable imitation and empathy

Modeling

the process of observing and imitating a specific behavior

What did Albert Bandura’s experiment find?

He found that when a child watched an adult treat the doll a certain way, they would mimick that behavior

Prosocial modeling

modeling positive behaviors can encourage learning

Antisocial modeling

modeling negative behavior can encourage learning-hypocrisy is taught