General Psychology Exam 3

What is acquistion?

The stage of conditioning in which the association between 2 stimuli (US & CS) is being learned

What is generalization?

Conditioned response to stimuli that are not the conditioned stimulus (but are similar to the CS)

What is discrimination?

Conditioned response occurs only to a specific stimulus

What is spontaneous recovery?

Reappearance of the CR to the original CS after extinction 

What is extinction?

Failure to exhibit the CR to the CS (because the CS no longer predicts the US)

What is second-order (higher-order) conditioning?

New neutral stimulus becomes associated with previously conditioned stimulus - becomes new CS

What is a conditioned aversion?

Classically conditioned association between a CS and a US that causes an unpleasant response

What are some examples of conditioned aversions in use?

Usually associated with food. For example, you eat a pizza today and get the stomach flu tonight. You automatically revert pizza to the sickness.

What was Watson and Raynor’s study with Little Albert?

Designed to show that emotional connections could be classically conditioned in humans. The researchers conditioned Little Albert to fear a white rat by pairing it with a loud startling noise, causing Albert to develop a phobia of the rat and other furry objects.

What is counter conditioning?

Replacing unwanted CR with wanted response 

What was Mary Cover Jones’s study?

To eliminate a young boy's phobia of rabbits and replace it with a positive response. Jones used counterconditioning by gradually reintroducing the feared object (a rabbit) while simultaneously providing a positive stimulus (like food) to create a new, positive association. The study demonstrated that fears could be unlearned, paving the way for desensitization and exposure therapies

What is operant conditioning?

A learning method where behavior is modified by its consequences, such as through rewards and punishments

What is Thorndike’s law of effect?

The tendency of an organism to produce a behavior depends on the effect the behavior has on the environment

What was Thorndike’s puzzle box?

A cat was placed inside a box and motivated to escape by a reward, such as food, located outside. Initially, the cats escaped through random trial-and-error behaviors, but with each attempt, the time taken to escape decreased, demonstrating learning through consequences and forming the basis for his Law of Effect.

What is a Skinner box?

Used for studying instrumental conditioning in animals (typically rats or pigeons) in which the animal is isolated and provided with a lever or switch which it learns to use to obtain a reward, such as a food pellet, or to avoid a punishment, such as an electric shock.

What are reinforcements?

Consequence of behavior that increases the probability that the behavior will occur

What are punishments?

Consequence of behavior that decreases the probability that the behavior will occur

What is shaping?

Reinforcing closer and closer approximations of the desired response

What are successive approximations?

Responses that are increasingly similar to the desired response

What is positive reinforcement?

Presentation of a pleasant stimulus after a behavior - increases probability of behavior

What is negative reinforcement?

Removal of an unpleasant stimulus after a behavior - increases probability of behavior

What is positive punishment?

Unpleasant stimulus follows behavior - decreases probability of behavior

What is negative punishment?

Removal of pleasant stimulus after a behavior - decreases probability of behavior

What is generalization?

After a behavior is reinforced in one situation, it is performed in a different situation

What is discrimination?

A behavior that is reinforced in one situation is not performed in a different situation

What is extinction?

After the reinforcer is withdrawn, the behavior decreases

What is spontaneous recovery?

After extinction, the behavior reappears

What is continuous reinforcement?

Consequences are the same each time a behavior occurs

What is intermittent (partial) reinforcement?

Consequences are given only some of the times the behavior occurs

What is the ratio schedule of reinforcement?

Reinforcement is given after the behavior is exhibited a certain number of times

What is a interval schedule of reinforcement?

Reinforcement is given after a certain amount of time

What is a fixed-ratio?

Reinforcement for a fixed proportion of responses emitted - you have to do a behavior a certain number of times (e.g. frequent buyer card - buy 10, get 1 free)

What is a variable-ratio?

Reward for some percentage of responses, but unpredictable number of responses required before reinforcement (e.g. job interviews)

What is a fixed-interval?

Reinforcement for responses after a fixed amount of time (e.g. getting paid by the hour)

What is a variable-interval?

Reinforcement for responses after an amount of time that is not constant (e.g. random drug testing & pop quizzes)

What are some problems with punishment?

It may be difficult to identity which behavior is being punished or an individual may come to fear person giving harsh punishment

What is intrinsic motivation?

The pursuit of activity for its own sake

What is extrinsic motivation?

The pursuit of goal for external rewards

What is the over justification effect?

Too much reward - undermines intrinsic motivation

What is observational learning?

Learning by observing the behavior of others - learning by imitating and observing

What is modeling?

Imitating others’ behavior

What was Bandura’s Bobo doll study?

Demonstrated that child can learn aggressive behaviors by observing and imitating an adult model

What are the implications of observational learning for aggressive behavior? 

Some of us are more vulnerable to becoming aggressive than others

What are the implications of observational learning for prosocial behavior?

Observation of others providing help, more likely to help

What is encoding?

Getting information into memory

What is storage?

Maintaining encoded information over time

What is retrieval?

Pulling previously encoded and stored information from memory

What is sensory memory?

System that holds sensory information (e.g., visual, auditory) for a brief time after the stimulus disappears 

What is iconic memory?

Visual sensory memory (1/2 seconds)

What echoic memory?

Auditory sensory memory - memory with hearing

What is short-term memory?

For information that is available to consciousness for about 20-30 seconds

What is long-term memory?

Relatively permanent memory

How did Sperling study iconic memory? 

Flashed 12 letters for 1/20 secs, then signaled participants to recall top, middle, or bottom row

What is explicit memory?

Conscious recollection of material from long-term memory (declarative) - memory for things that we’re consciously aware of

What is implicit memory?

Not brought to mind consciously, but expressed in behavior (non declarative) - memory for things that we are not consciously aware of

What is semantic memory?

Memory of general knowledge

What is episodic memory?

Memory of personally experienced events

What is procedural memory?

Memory for the performance of skills (e.g. typing your shoes, riding a bike)

What is priming?

Prior exposure to a stimulus affects responses to a later stimulus - someone mentions something and it affects them later

What are classically conditioned associations?

Automatic, examples of implicit memory

What is recall?

Producing memories using minimal retrieval cues (e.g. taking an exam that’s open-ended/short answer, you have to retrieve the memory directly from your head)

What is recognition?

Knowledge of whether one has previously been exposed to information (e.g. taking an exam that’s multiple choice, you just have to recognize the correct answer)

What is relearning?

Learning occurs more quickly the second time it is learned (e.g. playing violin)

What is chunking?

Organizing information into smaller, meaningful pieces to facilitate memory (e.g. phone numbers)

What are mnemonics?

Strategies and tricks for improving memory

What is maintenance rehearsal?

Rote repetition of material - revisiting the info without processing

What is elaborative rehearsal?

Thinking about the meaning of the information - engaging with the meaning and putting in effort

What is Craik and Tulving’s (1975) levels of processing theory?

Information can be processed at different depths, from shallow to deep

What is shallow processing?

Superficial features, such as physical appearance - just processing what it looks like

What is deep processing?

Meaning - understanding what it means

What was Craik and Tulving’s study with CHAIR?

Elicited coding depth by asking different types of questions:

Is the word in capital letters?
Does the word rhyme with train?

What is context-dependent memory?

Environment in which something is learned serves as cue for retrieval - things in your environment are attached to your memory (e.g. learning in a specific classroom)

What is state-dependent memory?

Physical or mental state in which something is learned serves as cue for retrieval (e.g. highly caffeinated when studying = highly caffeinated when taking an exam, mood affects performance)

What is encoding failure?

Memory fails to form due to lack of attention or processing (e.g. reading and not understanding what you’re reading)

What is storage decay?

After memory has been stored, may fade

What is retrieval failure?

Stored memories cannot be accessed (e.g. tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon)

What is Ebbinghaus’s forgetting curve?

After forming a memory, majority of forgetting occurs initially - if you’re going to forget it, you’re more likely to forget it soon

What is anterograde amnesia?

Memory loss for information encountered after head injury - unable to form new conscious memories 

What is retrograde amnesia?

Memory loss for information before head injury - old memories are lost

What type of amnesia and memory impairment did H.M. experience?

Anterograde amnesia - could form implicit memories + involves the hippocampus

What was found in Loftus’s (1974) study (hit vs. smashed)?

Evidence of memory reconstruction - eyewitness memory is wrong 1/3 of the time

What is the testing effect?

Where taking a test to retrieve previously learned material improves long-term retention more than simply restudying it

What is the spacing effect?

Where learning is stronger and more effective when study sessions are spread out over time, rather than crammed into a single session

What is representativeness heuristic?

When we’re putting someone into a category/schema - we judge them on how they fit into that certain category

What are base rates?

Frequency with which given events or cases occur in the population - numbers

What is the base-rate fallacy?

When we fall to use the base-rate

What is the availability heuristic?

Making a judgement on how available something is to you (e.g. people are more scared of being in a plane than in a car)

What is the simulation heuristic?

Also known as counterfactual thinking - imaging alternative version of actual events shapes emotional response (e.g. wanting more after an exam)

What are the outcomes of bilingualism?

Greater cognitive flexibility, higher academic achievement in upper grades, additional area of brain activation

What is the perseverance effect (belief perseverance)? 

Beliefs tend to persist in the face of disconfirming information (e.g. teenagers are rude)

What is confirmation bias?

Our bias towards info that we already believe - opposite beliefs don’t stick to the brain

What are the effects of stimulating and non-stimulating environments on intellectual abilities?

Enriched experiences —> spur brain development

Healthy & stimulating environment —> increases IQ

What is stereotype threat?

Threat felt when stereotype is salient to targets of negative stereotypes

How can stereotype threat be combatted?

Education about stereotype threat, role models, self-affirmation, growth mindsets

What is a fixed mindset? 

Performance is assumed to reflect ability that is interchangable

What is a growth mindset?

Performance is assumed to reflect effort that is modifiable

What is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?

List of ascending needs from basic to more complex

What is self-actualization?

Need to find self-fulfillment and realize one’s potential

What is the James-Lange theory of emotion?

First, we experience physiological arousal or behavior in response to stimuli

What is the Cannon-Bard theory of emotion?

Emotion and physiological reactions occur at the same time