Psychology Test 2

what is classical conditioning?

learning process in which a neutral stimulus (NS) comes to bring about a response after paired with an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) that would naturally bring about that response

what are the 5 primary components in classical conditioning?

neutral stimulus (NS)

unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

unconditioned response (UCR)

conditioned stimulus (CS)

conditioned response (CR)

what is neutral stimulus (NS)?

stimulus that, before conditioning, does not naturally bring about response of interest

what is unconditioned stimulus (UCS)?

stimulus that naturally brings about a particular response WITHOUT having been learned

what is unconditioned response (UCR)?

response that is natural and needs NO training

what is an example of unconditioned response (UCR)?

salivation at smell or sight of food

what is a conditioned stimulus (CS)?

neutral stimulus that has been paired with an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) to bring about response formerly caused only by the unconditioned stimulus

what is a conditioned response (CR)?

a response that, after conditioning, follows a previously neutral stimulus

what is an example of a conditioned response (CR)?

salivating at ring of bell

what are the 3 steps of classical conditioning?

1. neutral stimulus (NS): does not elicit a particular response (e.g. bell or metronome)

2. pair the NS repeatedly w/ unconditioned stimulus (UCS), which elicits an unconditioned response (UCR) i.e. meat powder (UCS) & salivation (UCR)

3. eventually the NS becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS), eliciting a conditioned response (CR) i.e. bell elicits salvation

conditioned = ________, unconditioned = __________

conditioned = learned, unconditioned = not learned

_____ leads to an ______

UCS leads to an UCR

during conditioning, a previously ___________ is transformed into the _______________ because it is being repeatedly ________ with the ____________

during conditioning, a previously NEUTRAL STIMULUS is transformed into the CONDITIONED STIMULUS because it is being repeatedly PAIRED with the UNCONDITIONED STIMULUS

what two stimulus are the same?

neutral & conditioned

what two responses are the same?

unconditioned & conditioned

what is the difference between unconditioned and conditioned response?

different is what triggers the response

unconditioned response is triggered by unconditioned stimulus while the conditioned response is triggered by the conditioned stimulus

what is extinction?

occurs when a previous conditioned response DECREASES in frequency and eventually disappears

how is extinction produced?

association between CS and UCS needs to be broken

when does extinction occur?

occurs when the conditioned stimulus is presented repeatedly without the subsequent UCS

what is an example of extinction?

the bell rings followed with absence of meat over and over again

is extinction permanent?

no, spontaneous recovery can occur

what is spontaneous recovery?

when behavior that is believed to be extinct unexpectedly and quickly returns after a period of rest or lessened response

what is stimulus generalization?

after a stimulus has been conditioned to produce a particular response, stimuli that are similar to that original stimulus produces a very similar response

what is the law of stimulus generalization?

the greater similarity between two stimuli, the greater likelihood stimulus generalization will occur

what is stimulus discrimination?

if a stimuli is very different from the original conditioned stimulus, it will not produce a similar response

what is the law of stimulus discrimination?

we are able to discriminate between the original conditioned stimulus and the new stimulus

what is evaluative conditioning?

changing the liking of a stimulus that results from pairing that stimulus w/ other positive or negative stimuli

how does evaluative conditioning work?

NS is paired with UCS that triggers positive reactions, such that the NS becomes a CS that also elicits positive reactions

what was little albert’s experiment?

• initially albert showed no reaction to the rat other than interest; rat = NS

• experimenters made loud noise as they showed Albert a white rat and noise (UCS) created fear (UCR)

• after a few pairings of noise and rat, Albert began to show fear of the rat by itself bursting into tears

• rat became CS, elicited CR, fear

• effects became generalized, Albert reacted with fear to objects that looked like the rat

what can classical conditioning lead to?

development of fears and phobias; intense rational fears

what is PTSD

• posttraumatic stress disorder

• people who have had traumatic experiences, can be explained by CC

• even years after traumatic experience, stimulus such as loud noise can trigger an emotional response of fear or panic

what are conditioned taste aversions?

people developing aversions to food that was followed by nausea or illness

what is seligman’s learned taste aversion

ingestion of a spoiled food item leads to a lasting aversion towards cues reminiscent of the item

what is the biological preparedness theory

our propensity to learn certain classically conditioned associations over others that is linked to our evolutionary history

how is evaluative conditioning used in advertising?

CS = products (i.e) jeans

US = sexual imagery

CR + UR = pleasant emotional response

what is operant conditioning?

learning in which a voluntary response is strengthened or weakened, depending on its favourable or unfavourable consequences

how is classical and operant conditioning different?

operant conditioning is contrary to classical conditioning which the original behaviours are natural, biological responses to the presence of some stimulus such as food, water, or pain (are thus involuntary)

what is thorndike’s law of effect?

• responses that lead to satisfying consequences are more likely to be repeated (responses followed by negative outcomes are less likely to be repeated)

what did thorndike believe?

believed that the machine he created would operate automatically & overtime and thru experience the organism would make a direct connection between the stimulus and the response w/o any awareness that the connection existed

what was the skinner box?

• a chamber w/ highly controlled environment used to study operant conditioning processes w/ lab animals

how was the skinner box created?

thorndike’s research influenced B.F. skinner

what was thorndike’s goal?

to get his cats to learn to obtain food by leaving the box

what did the skinner box do?

allowed animals to obtain food by operating on their environment within the box

what did skinner become interested in?

specifying how behaviour varied as a result of alterations in the environment

what is reinforcement?

process which a stimulus INCREASES probability that a preceding behaviour will be repeated

what is a reinforcer?

any stimulus that increases the probability that a preceding behaviour will happen again

what is a PRIMARY reinforcer?

satisfies biological need and works naturally regardless of a person’s prior experience such as food and warmth

what is a SECONDARY reinforcer?

stimulus that becomes reinforcing because of its association with a primary reinforcer such as money

what is shaping?

process of teaching a complex behaviour by rewarding closer and closer approximations of the desired behaviour

what is the steps of shaping?

• start by reinforcing any behaviour that is similar to the behaviour you want them to learn

• reinforce only responses that are closer to behaviour you ultimately want to teach

• reinforce only desired response

what is a POSITIVE reinforcer?

stimulus ADDED to the environment that brings about an INCREASE in a response

what is a NEGATIVE reinforcer?

unpleasant stimulus whose REMOVAL INCREASES the probability that a response will be repeated in the future

how are positive and negative reinforces similar?

negative reinforcers, like positives, increase the likelihood that certain behaviours will be repeated

what is a real life example of positive reinforcement?

companies use it in points and rewards to encourage brand loyalty; points are awarded to reinforce the behaviour of purchasing products

what is a real life example of negative reinforcement

pressing snooze on alarm; many of us have been conditioned to do it in our sleep

negative reinforcement of unpleasant sound of alarm stopping is very powerful; pressing the snooze button is reinforced by stopping the sound of the alarm

what is punishment?

stimulus that DECREASES the probability that a prior behaviour will occur again

what is POSITIVE punishment ?

introducing an UNPLEASANT stimulus DECREASES the likelihood that a certain behaviour will be repeated in the future

what is NEGATIVE punishment?

removing a PLEASANT stimulus DECREASES the likelihood that a certain behaviour will be repeated in the future

what is a real life example of positive punishment?

speeding ticket; receiving something unpleasant (ticket) as a punishment for behaviour of speeding

what is a real life example of negative punishment?

your car being towed from an illegal parking spot; removed to punish the behaviour of parking illegally

what are some disadvantages to use of punishment?

• frequently ineffective; if punishment is not delivered shortly after the target behaviour

• fail to produce long lasting behavioural change

• physical punishment coveys that it is acceptable

• can decrease self-esteem of receipients

what is more appropriate for modifying behaviour? reinforcing or punishment?

reinforcing

what is schedules of reinforcement?

different patterns of frequency and timing of reinforcement following desired behaviour

what is CONTINUOUS reinforcement

reinforcing a behaviour everytime it occurs i.e working on an hourly based wage

what is PARTIAL (INTERMITTENT) reinforcement?

reinforcing a behaviour some, but not all the times it occurs i.e working on a commission based wage

what is the difference between partial and continuous reinforcement?

behaviour learned under partial reinforcement is more robust and longer lasting than behaviour learned under continuous reinforcement

what are the TWO main categories of scheduled reinforcement?

1. fixed-ratio & variable-ratio schedules

2. fixed-interval & variable-interval schedules

example of variable-ratio schedule in real life

slot machine; gamblers will develop a high-frequency, extinction-resistant behaviour — hence why it can become an addiction and hard to treat

what is a fixed-ratio & variable-ratio schedule?

schedules that consider the # of responses made before reinforcement is given

what is fixed-interval & variable-interval schedule?

schedules that consider the amount of time that elapses before reinforcement is given

what is fixed-ratio schedule?

schedule by which reinforcement is given only after a specific # of responses are made

what is variable-ratio schedule?

schedule by which reinforcement occurs after a varying # of responses

what is the difference between variable-ratio & fixed-ratio schedules?

variable-ratio schedules produce a high rate of response & more resistant to extinction than fixed-ratio schedules

what is a fixed-interval schedule?

schedule that provides reinforcement for a response only if a fixed time period has elapsed, making overall rates of response relatively low

what is a variable-interval schedule?

schedule by which the time between reinforcements varies rather than being fixed

what is the difference between variable-interval and fixed-interval schedules?

variable-interval schedules are more likely to produce steady rates of responding

fixed-interval schedules & responses take longer to extinguish after reinforcement ends

what does operant conditioning involve?

processes of discrimination and generalization

what is stimulus control training?

process which people learn to discriminate stimuli, where a behaviour is reinforced in the presence of a specific stimulus, but not in its absence

what does a discriminative stimulus do?

SIGNALS the likelihood that reinforcement will follow a response

what is an example of a discriminative stimulus?

pigeons learning that when a green light it on, food will follow, but when a red light is on, no food will follow

what is latent learning?

learning that isn’t apparent from behaviour when it first occurs

what did Tolman challenge and argue?

he challenged behaviourist view of learning, arguing that we engage in latent learning

learning can take place in ________ of reinforcement

learning can take place in ABSENCE of reinforcement

what is the rat maze study of latent learning?

3 conditions to experiment, rats to go through maze over 3 weeks

what are the 3 weeks to the rat maze study?

C1) rats got cheese as reward at the end of maze each day

C2) rats received no reward

C3) rats received no reward for first 10 trial days, then reinforced from 11th trial day onward

what is observational learning?

learning by observing the behaviour of another person and by watching whether they are rewarded or punished for it

what is Bandura’s Famous Bobo Doll experiment?

it demonstrated importance of models (particularly same sex models), and of whether the model is rewarded for their behaviour

what does violence in media do?

high levels of media violence makes viewers more susceptible to behave aggressively

what 3 effects does violence in media have?

1. lowers inhibitions against carrying out aggression

2. distorts our understanding of the meaning of others’ behaviour

3. desensitizes us to violence

what is memory?

retention of info overtime

what is memory illusion?

remembering things from the past that somewhat relate to the current occurrence

what is reconstructive memory?

omission or addition of details to a recalled event based on an individual's personal experience

what are the two kinds of reconstructive memory?

observer - seeing something as if viewing a photo of it

field - seeing the world through your own eyes

what is encoding?

initial process of recording info in a form usable to memory

what is storage?

maintenance of material saved in memory

• if material is not stored adequately, it cannot be recalled later

what is retrieval?

material in memory storage must be located and brought into awareness to be useful

what are some factors of encoding?

• to encode it, we must attend to it

• most events we experience are never encoded in the first place (cognitive misers)

• we focus our awareness or select certain input to attend to

who discovered the levels of processing?

Craik and Lockhart

what is the law of levels of processing?

deeper processing = longer lasting memory codes