AP Psych Unit 6 Review - Learning

Full review of Myer's AP Psychology Unit 6 textbook for review for the AP exam.

Classical Conditoning

process of repeatedly pairing an unconditioned stimulus with a neutral stimulus so the neutral stimulus produces the same response as the unconditioned stimulus

Pavlov’s Dogs

experiment performed by Ivan Pavlov where he associated the ringing of a bell drooling in his dogs

Neutral Stimulus

stimulus that doesn’t trigger a response before conditoning (bells before conditioning in Pavlov’s experiment)

Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)

stimulus that triggers a natural response (food in Pavlov’s experiment)

Unconditioned Response

natural, unlearned response to an UCS (dogs drooling in Pavlov’s experiment)

Acquisition Phase

the initial learning of a conditioned behavior (associating bells with food time in Pavlov’s experiment)

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

neutral stimulus that triggers a conditioned response after acquisition (bells trigger hunger in Pavlov’s experiment)

Conditioned Response

a learned response to a conditioned stimulus (dogs drool at the bell in Pavlov’s experiment)

Extinction

in classical conditioning, not following a CS with an UCS; in operant conditioning, no longer reinforcing a response

Spontaneous Recovery

the reappearance, after a pause, of a conditioned response

Discrimination

learned ability to distinguish between a CS and similar stimuli

Generalization

tendency for stimuli similar to the CS to trigger the conditioned response

Operant Conditioning

method of learning developed by B.F. Skinner that uses punishment and reinforcement

Shaping

procedure in operant conditioning where reinforcers gradually guide a behavior to the desired behavior

Primary Reinforcer

reinforcer that satisfies a biological need (food)

Secondary Reinforcer

reinforcer that allows a person to satisfy a biological need (money)

Reinforcement Schedule

pattern of reinforcement that defines how often a desired response is reinforced

Fixed-Ratio Schedule

reinforces a response after a set number of responses

Variable-Ratio Schedule

reinforces a response after an unpredictable amount of responses

Fixed-Interval Schedule

reinforces a response after a set amount of time

Variable-Interval Schedule

reinforces a response after an unpredictable amount of time

Premack Principle

idea that offering a reward for a necessary but mundane task helps reinforce doing those tasks

First-Order Conditioning

pairing an UCS with a neutral stimulus

Second-Order Conditioning

using an established CS as an UCS to associate with a neutral stimulus

Punishment

event that decreases the behavior it follows

Law of Effect

Thorndike’s principle that said behaviors followed by rewards are more likely to occur

Escape Learning

learning to terminate an unpleasant stimulus

Avoidance Learning

learning a signal before an unpleasant stimulus to avoid it

Cognitive Map

a mental representation of a person’s environment

Learned Helplessness

giving up after a person’s inability to avoid repeated and uncontrollable demoralizing events

Little Albert Experiment

John B. Watson’s experiment in behaviorism that proved humans could be conditioned

Positive Reinforcement

adding a positive stimulus to get a desired response

Negative Reinforcement

taking away a negative stimulus to get a desired response

Positive Punishment

adding a negative stimulus to get a desired response

Negative Punishment

taking away a positive stimulus to get a desired response

Observational Learning

learning a new skill or behavior by observing others

Bobo Doll Experiment

experiment set up by Albert Bandura where children being shown aggressive behavior towards a doll were more likely to replicate it

Learning

the process of acquiring new skills or behaviors

Associative Learning

learning that certain events occur together (classical and operant conditioning)

Stimulus

an event or situation that triggers a response

Latent Learning

learning that unconsciously occurs but isn’t apparent until it needs to be demonstrated

Self-Control

the ability to control impulses and delay short-term gratification for greater, long term rewards