Learning Principles and Conditioning Self-Test

Flashcards covering classical and operant conditioning principles, types of learning, behavioral modification techniques, and specific scenarios from the learning self-test handouts.

Classical Conditioning

A learning process where an unconditioned stimulus that produces an automatic response is paired with a neutral stimulus until the neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus eliciting a conditioned response, as seen when Barbara developed anxiety around cats after being bitten at age 8 or when Sarah felt relaxed hearing the hit song “Buckets of Love.”

Operant Conditioning

A method of learning in which behaviors are influenced by their consequences, such as 4-year-old Alison speaking up more frequently after earning stars toward Baskin-Robbins ice cream or Tom ceasing a method of holding a nail after hitting his thumb with a hammer.

Insight

A form of cognitive problem-solving marked by a sudden realization of a solution rather than gradual trial-and-error, demonstrated when 6-year-old Scott figured out that creating long-necked hangers would allow him to reach a high closet bar.

Observational Learning

Learning that takes place by watching the behaviors and outcomes of others, exemplified by 4-year-old Susie mimicking her mother with a toy vacuum or a student deciding not to request an extension after watching an instructor angrily reject a peer.

Positive Reinforcement

The process of increasing the frequency of a behavior by presenting a desirable stimulus following that behavior, such as Dr. Smith at Doe College giving full credit to motivate students to turn in papers or Jeff playing with his food more often due to parental attention.

Negative Reinforcement

The process of strengthening a behavior by removing or preventing an unpleasant stimulus, demonstrated when Jesse installs a new battery in the smoke detector to stop its annoying chirp.

Punishment

A consequence that decreases the likelihood of a behavior recurring, seen when Jeff's mother takes his food away and leaves him hungry all night after he plays with his food, stopping the behavior completely.

Extinction

The reduction and eventual disappearance of a behavior when reinforcement is discontinued, illustrated when Robert stops putting money into a Coke machine after inserting $\$0.85$ and receiving neither a soda nor a refund.

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

A stimulus that naturally and automatically evokes a response without prior conditioning, such as the bacteria or illness-causing agent from oysters in New Orleans or the physical beatings inflicted on Trudy.

Unconditioned Response (UR)

An unlearned, natural physiological or emotional reaction to an unconditioned stimulus, such as the upset stomach and illness Art experienced after eating oysters or the distress Trudy felt when being beaten.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

An initially neutral stimulus that comes to elicit a conditioned response after being associated with an unconditioned stimulus, such as the thought of oysters for Art or the sight of a yardstick for Trudy.

Conditioned Response (CR)

A learned response elicited by a conditioned stimulus after learning has occurred, such as Art feeling nauseous at the mere thought of oysters or Trudy becoming very upset upon seeing a yardstick.

Alison's Star Chart (Scenario 4)

An operant conditioning system where 4-year-old Alison earns a star on her chart each time she speaks up loudly in class, receiving an ice cream reward at Baskin-Robbins after accumulating 25 stars.

“Invent America” Contest (Scenario 5)

The school competition in which 6-year-old Scott and his father entered a set of long-necked hangers that Scott conceived to reach clothes on a closet bar that was too high.

“Buckets of Love” (Scenario 7)

A summertime hit song that acted as a conditioned stimulus (CS) for Sarah, later eliciting feelings of relaxation and contentment (CR) originally experienced with Jeremy.

Trudy's Yardstick Scenario (Scenario 15)

A conditioning case where a yardstick had no effect at age 4, but parental beatings between ages 5 and 8 turned the yardstick into a conditioned stimulus that produced emotional distress.