Mastering the World of Psychology: Chapter 5

learning

a relatively permanent change in behavior, knowledge, capability, or attitude that is acquired through experience and cannot be attributed to illness, injury, or maturation

classical conditioning

a type of learning through which an organism learns to associate one stimulus with another

stimulus

any event or object in the environment to which an organism responds; plural stimuli

unconditioned response (UR)

a response that is elicited by an unconditioned stimulus without prior learning

unconditioned stimulus (US)

a stimulus that elicits a specific unconditioned response without prior learning

conditioned stimulus (CS)

a neural stimulus that, after repeated pairing with an unconditioned stimulus, becomes associated with it and elicits a conditioned response

conditioned response (CR)

the learned response that comes to be elicited by a conditioned stimulus as a result of its repeated pairing with an unconditioned stimulus

higher-order conditioning

neutral stimulus could become a conditioned stimulus simply by pairing it with a previously acquired conditioned stimulus

extinction

in classical conditioning, the weakening and eventual disappearance of the conditioned response as a result of repeated presentation of the conditioned response as a result of repeated presentation of the conditioned stimulus without the unconditioned stimulus

spontaneous recovery

the reappearance of an extinguished response (in a weaker form) when an organism is exposed to the original conditioned stimulus following a rest period

generalization

in classical conditioning the tendency to make a conditional response to a stimulus that is similar to the original conditioned stimulus

discrimination

the learned ability to distinguish between similar stimuli so that the conditioned response occurs only to the original conditioned stimulus but not to similar stimuli

biological predispositions

genetically programmed tendencies to acquire classically conditioned fear responses to potentially life-threatening stimuli

taste aversion

the intense dislike and/or avoidance of a particular food that has been associated with nausea or diecomfort

law of effect

one of Thorndike's laws of learning, which states that the consequence, or effect, of a response will determine whether the tendency to respond in the same way in the future will be strengthened or weakened

operant conditioning

a type of learning in which the consequences of behavior are manipulated so as to increase or decrease the frequency of an existing response or to shape an entirely new response

operant

a voluntary behavior that accidentally brings about a consequence

reinforcer

anything that follows a response and strengthens it or increases the probability that it will occur

punisher

anything that follows a response and weakens it or decreases the probability that it will occur

shaping

an operant conditioning technique that consists of gradually molding a desired behavior (response) by reinforcing any movement in the direction of the desired response, thereby gradually guiding the responses toward the ultimate goal

Skinner box

a soundproof chamber with a device for delivering food to an animal subject; used in operant conditioning experiments

successive approximations

a series of gradual steps, each of which is more similar to the final desired response

discriminative stimulus

a stimulus that signals whether a certain response or behavior is likely to be rewarded, ignored, or punished

reinforcement

key concept in operant conditioning and may be defined as an increase in behavior that occurs as a result of a consequence

positive reinforcement

any pleasant of desirable consequence that follows a response and increases the probability that the response will be repeated

increased behavior, added consequence

negative reinforcement

the termination of an unpleasant condition after a response, which increases the probability that the response will be repeated

increased behavior, removed consequence

primary reinforcer

a reinforce that fulfills a basic physical need for survival and does not depend on learning

(examples: food, water, termination of pain, and sex)

secondary reinforcer

a reinforcer that is acquired or learned through association with other reinforcers

(examples: praise, good grades, attention, approval, etc.)

continuous reinforcement

gives a reinforcement every time the right procedure is performed

(example: ATM always gives money)

partial reinforcement

gives a reinforcement only intermittently

(example: slot machine only gives money sometimes)

schedule of reinforcement

a systematic process for administering reinforcement

fixed-ratio (FR) schedule

a reinforcer is given after a fixed number of correct, nonreinforced responses

variable-ratio (VR) schedule

a reinforcer is provided after a varying number of nonreinforced responses

partial reinforcement effect

once learned, behaviors that are acquired through variable reinforcement are highly resistant to extinction

fixed-interval (FI) schedule

a specific period of time must pass before a response is reinforced

variable-interval (VI) schedule

a reinforcer is given after the first correct response that follows a varying time of non-reinforcement, based on an average time

punishment

it is a decrease in the frequency of a behavior that follows some kind of consequence

positive punishment

behavior decreases after the addition of a consequence, usually an unpleasant one

negative punishment

happens when a behavior decreases after the removal of a consequence

escape learning

learning to perform a behavior because it prevents or terminates an aversive event

avoidance learning

learning to avoid events or conditions associated with aversive consequences or phobias

learned helplessness

a passive resignation to aversive conditions that is learned through repeated exposure to inescapable or unavoidable aversive events

biofeedback

a way of getting information about internal biological states

behavior modification

a method of changing behavior through a systematic program based on the learning principles of classical conditioning, operant conditioning, or observational learning

token economy

a program that motivates socially desirable behavior by reinforcing it with tokens that can be exchanged for desired items or privileges

cognitive processes

mental processes such as thinking, knowing, problem solving, remembering, and forming mental representations

insight

the sudden realization of the relationship between elements in a problem situation which makes the solution apparent

latent learning

learning that occurs without apparent reinforcement and is not demonstrated until the organism is motivated to do so

cognitive map

a mental representation of a spatial arrangement such as a maze

observational learning (social-cognitive learning)

learning by observing the behavior of others and the consequences of that behavior; learning by imitation

model

the individual who demonstrates a behavior or whose behavior is imitated

4 processes that determine whether observational learning will occur

1. Attention
2. Retention
3. Reproduction
4. Reinforcement

modeling effect

learning a new behavior

facilitation effect

an observer learns a behavior that is similar to that of a model in an unfamiliar situation

inhibitory effect

suppressing a behavior because a model is punished for displaying the behavior

disinhibitory effect

When observers see models get away with or be rewarded for exhibiting socially unacceptable behavior

Wolfgang Köhler

major contributor on the research of insight; banana-chimpanzee experiment

Edward Tolman

major contributor on the research of latent learning; rat maze experiment

Albert Bandura

major contributor on the research of observational learning; behavior in children after watching models

B.F. Skinner

major contributor on the research of shaping; skinner box; rat lever experiment

stimulus that has ecological relevance

more likely to function as a conditioned stimulus

True

ecologically valid conditioned stimuli are acquired much more quickly than arbitrary stimuli and are more resistant to extinction

shaping

animals learn their tricks in small steps rather than all at once

skinner box

soundproof apparatus designed by Skinner

successive approximations

small steps in behavior, one after the other, that lead to a particular goal behavior

True

In operant conditioning, extinction occurs when reinforcers are withheld
True or False?

True

Skinner found that generalization occurs in operant conditioning, just as in classical conditioning

Discrimination in operant conditioning

learning to distinguish between a stimulus that has been reinforced and other stimuli that may be very similar

discriminative stimulus

A stimulus that signals whether a certain response or behavior is likely to be rewarded, ignored, or punished

Positive reinforcement

Food, money, praise, attention

negative reinforcement

Removing or terminating pain-producing or other aversive stimulus, e.g., electric shock

Positive punishment

Delivering a pain-producing or otherwise aversive stimulus, e.g., spanking

Negative punishment

Taking away privileges, e.g., TV watching, using of automobile

timing, consistency, and intensity

Factors that influence the effectiveness of punishment

procrastination

a maladaptive avoidance behavior that plagues many students

True

Operant conditioning can also be used intentionally by one person to change another person's behavior.

"one-subject" design

the study includes only one participant

time-out

a behavior modification technique in which a child who is misbehaving is removed for a short time from sources of positive reinforcement

insight

the sudden realization of the relationship between elements in a problem situation, which makes the solution apparent

Modeling

Learn to solve a math problem from a teacher's demonstration

Facilitation

Improve performance when playing a sport by imitating the techniques of professional athletes

Inhibitory

Slow down when you see another driver receiving a ticket

Waste time at work surfing the Internet based on observations of coworkers who do so without being admonished by supervisors

Disinhibitory

Attention

The observer must attend to the model.

Retention

The observer must store information about the model's behavior in memory.

Reproduction

The observer must be physically and cognitively capable of performing the behavior to learn it

Reinforcement

an observer must be motivated to practice and perform the behavior on his own.

Insight

Observation of chimpanzees' attempts to retrieve bananas suspended from the top of their cages
Wolfgang Kohler

Latent learning

Comparisons of rats that were rewarded for learning to run a maze with others that were allowed to explore it freely but were not rewarded
Edward Tolman

Observational learning

Comparisons of children who observed an adult model behaving aggressively with those who did not observe such an aggressive model
Albert Bandura

multitasking environment

the environment that we create for ourselves when we attempt to manage several different sources of information at once

true

simultaneous exposure to multiple information sources diminishes our ability to attend to one or more of these competing streams of information

Bandura

suspected that aggression and violence on television programs, including cartoons, tend to increase aggressive behavior in children

flipped classroom

combines in-person and online instruction

10 yrs old

children have difficulty recognizing online advertising until they are: