Untitled Flashcards Set

Learning

Process of acquiring, through experience, new information or behaviors.

Behaviorism

An approach to psychology that emphasizes the study of observable behavior and the role of the environment as a determinant of behavior.

Conditioning (associative learning)

Learning that involves associations between environmental stimuli and the organism’s responses.

Classical conditioning

Process by which a previously neutral stimulus acquires the capacity to elicit a response through association with a stimulus that already elicits a similar response.

Unconditioned stimulus (US)

Stimulus that already elicits a response without additional learning.

Unconditioned response (UR)

The response elicited by an unconditioned stimulus.

Neutral stimulus (NS)

Stimulus that elicits no response before conditioning.

Conditioned stimulus (CS)

An initially neutral stimulus that comes to elicit a conditioned response after being paired with an unconditioned stimulus.

Conditioned response (CR)

A response that is elicited by the conditioned stimulus after association with the unconditioned stimulus.

Extinction (in classical conditioning)

The weakening and eventual disappearance of a learned response when the CS is no longer paired with the US.

Spontaneous recovery

The reappearance, after a pause, of an extinguished conditioned response.

Higher-order conditioning

A neutral stimulus can become a conditioned stimulus by being paired with an existing conditioned stimulus.

Stimulus generalization

In classical conditioning, occurs when a new stimulus that resembles the conditioned stimulus elicits the conditioned response.

Stimulus discrimination

The tendency to respond differently to two or more similar stimuli.

Operant conditioning

The process by which a response becomes more or less likely to occur depending on its consequences.

Reinforcement

Makes a behavior more likely to recur.

Punishment

Makes a behavior less likely to recur.

Positive reinforcement

Adding a desirable stimulus to increase a behavior.

Negative reinforcement

Removing an aversive stimulus to increase a behavior.

Positive punishment

Adding an aversive stimulus to decrease a behavior.

Negative punishment

Removing a desirable stimulus to decrease a behavior.

Primary reinforcers

Inherently reinforcing stimuli, such as food or water.

Secondary (conditioned) reinforcers

Stimuli that have acquired reinforcing properties through associations with primary reinforcers.

Extinction (in operant conditioning)

A decrease in behavior when reinforcement is no longer provided.

Shaping

Reinforcers gradually guide behavior toward closer approximations of desired behavior.

Continuous reinforcement

Reinforces desired response every time it occurs.

Partial (intermittent) reinforcement

Reinforces a response only some of the time, leading to more resistance to extinction.

Fixed-ratio schedule

Reinforcement after every nth behavior.

Variable-ratio schedule

Reinforcement after an unpredictable number of behaviors.

Fixed-interval schedule

Reinforcement for behavior after a fixed time.

Variable-interval schedule

Reinforcement for behavior after a random amount of time.

Cognitive perspectives on learning

Focuses on the role of mental processes in understanding how we learn.

Social learning theory

Learning can occur through observation and imitation of others.

Observational learning

Learning new responses by observing the behavior of another rather than direct experience.

Memory

The capacity to retain and retrieve information.

Encoding

The initial registration of information.

Storage

Maintaining information over time.

Retrieval

The ability to access information when needed.

Sensory memory/register

A memory system that momentarily preserves extremely accurate images of sensory information.

Working (short-term) memory

A limited capacity memory system involved in the retention of information for brief periods.

Long-term memory

A memory system involved in the long-term storage of information.

Explicit (declarative) memory

Conscious, intentional recollection of an event or information.

Implicit (nondeclarative) memory

Unconscious retention in memory.

Priming

Associations activated without our awareness.

Episodic memories

Memories of events or experiences.

Semantic memories

General knowledge, including facts, rules, and concepts.

Long-term potentiation (LTP)

The physical basis for learning and memory, involving enhanced synaptic transmission.

Memory retrieval

The process of accessing and bringing stored information into consciousness.

Encoding specificity principle

Cues and contexts specific to a particular memory will be most effective in helping recall.

State-dependent memory

Recall is improved when the psychological or biological state at encoding and retrieval are the same.

Serial position effect

The tendency to recall best the last (recency effect) and first (primacy effect) items in a list.

Forgetting: Encoding failure

Insufficient processing during the encoding stage.

Forgetting: Storage decay

Forgetting that is rapid initially, then levels off as the physical memory trace fades.

Forgetting: Retrieval failure

Insufficient retrieval cues to access memories.

Interference

Proactive interference occurs when older memories disrupt new learning; retroactive interference occurs when new learning disrupts older memories.

Anterograde amnesia

Inability to form new memories after the event causing amnesia.

Retrograde amnesia

Inability to remember past information before the event causing amnesia.

Cognition

All mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating.

Metacognition

Cognition about our cognition; evaluating our mental processes.

Prototype

Mental image or best example of a category, used for assigning items to categories.

Algorithm

Methodical, logical rule, or procedure that guarantees a solution to a problem.

Heuristic

Simpler thinking strategy that is usually speedier but more error-prone than an algorithm.

Confirmation bias

Predisposition to verify rather than challenge our hypotheses.

Mental set (fixation)

The tendency to approach problems using a mindset that worked previously.