Psychology: Classical and Operant Conditioning Key Terms

Phobias

irrational fears of specific objects or situations

Classical Conditioning

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

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

A stimulus that evokes an unconditioned response without previous conditioning.

Unconditioned Response

An unlearned reaction to an Unconditioned Stimulus that occurred without previous conditioning

Conditioned Stimulus

Originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus comes to trigger a response

Conditioned Response

a learned response to a previously neutral stimulus

elicited

to draw out or bring forth

Trial

In classical conditioning, any presentation of a stimulus or pair of stimuli.

Acquisition

the phase of classical conditioning when the CS and the US are presented together

Spontaneous Recovery

the reappearance, after a pause, of an extinguished conditioned response

renewal effect

sudden reemergence of a conditioned response following extinction

Stimulus Generalization

learning that occurs when stimuli that are similar but not identical to the conditioned stimulus produce the conditioned response

Stimulus Discrimination

a differentiation between two similar stimuli when only one of them is consistently associated with the unconditioned stimulus

Higher Order Conditioning

A type of conditioning in which a conditioned stimulus functions as if it were an unconditioned stimulus.

operant conditioning

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

Reinforcement

any event that strengthens the behavior it follows

Operant Chamber (Skinner Box)

a small enclosure in which an animal can make a specific response that is recorded while the consequences of the response are systematically controlled

Emit

to send out

reinforcement contingencies

the circumstances or rules that determine whether responses lead to the presentation of reinforcers

cumulative recorder

creates a graphic record of responding and reinforcement in a Skinner box as a function of time

Positive Reinforcement

Strengthens a response by presnting a stimulas AFTER a response

Preparedness

The species-specific biological predisposition to learn in certain ways but not others.

Primary Reinforcers

Events that are inherently reinforcing because they satisfy biological needs

Punishment

an event that decreases the behavior that it follows

resistance to extinction

occurs when an organism continues to make a response after delivery of the reinforcer has been terminated

Schedule of Reinforcement

A timetable for when and how often reinforcement for a particular behavior occurs

Secondary Reinforcers

learned stimuli that have no inherent biological value but gain value by being associated with primary reinforcers

Shaping

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

variable-interval schedule

In operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals

Variable-ration Schedule

in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after an unpredictable number of responses