Psychology: Principles of Learning and Conditioning

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering classical conditioning, operant conditioning, schedules of reinforcement, cognitive and latent learning, and observational learning based on the lecture notes.

Learning

A relatively permanent behavior change as a result of experience, through which new and relatively enduring information or behaviors are acquired.

Associative Learning

Learning that certain events occur together, which may involve linking two stimuli or associating a response with its consequences.

Cognitive Learning

The acquisition of mental information by observing events, watching others, or through language.

Classical Conditioning

A type of learning discovered by Ivan Pavlov in which an organism learns to link two or more stimuli and anticipate events, associating events that are not controlled by the learner.

Stimulus

Any event or situation that evokes a response.

Respondent Behavior

Behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus.

Neutral Stimulus (NS)

In classical conditioning, a stimulus that elicits no response prior to conditioning (such as a bell or a white rat before training).

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

A stimulus that unconditionally, naturally, and automatically triggers an unlearned reflex or response (UR).

Unconditioned Response (UR)

An unlearned, naturally occurring automatic response to an unconditioned stimulus (such as salivating in response to food).

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

An originally neutral stimulus that, after association and conditioning with an unconditioned stimulus (US), comes to trigger a conditioned response (CR).

Conditioned Response (CR)

A learned response to a previously neutral stimulus (CS), consisting of the same action as the unconditioned response but triggered by the CS alone.

Extinction

The weakening and gradual disappearance of a conditioned response when an unconditioned stimulus does not follow a conditioned stimulus.

Spontaneous Recovery

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

Generalization

The tendency to respond similarly to stimuli that resemble the conditioned stimulus after conditioning has taken place.

Discrimination

The learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and other irrelevant stimuli.

Little Albert Experiment

A classic experiment conducted by John Watson in which an infant was conditioned to fear a white rat by pairing it with a loud, startling noise, demonstrating fear conditioning and stimulus generalization.

Operant Conditioning

A form of learning associated with B.F. Skinner in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher; the learner associates their own actions with consequences.

Operant Behavior

Behavior that operates on the environment, producing rewarding or punishing consequences.

Skinner Box

An operant conditioning chamber used by B.F. Skinner containing a lever or mechanism that an animal presses to dispense food as a reward, used to study operant conditioning.

Shaping

An operant conditioning procedure where successive approximations of a target behavior are reinforced by breaking actions down into small, achievable steps until only the desired behavior is reinforced.

Reinforcement

Any event or consequence that follows a behavior and increases the frequency or likelihood of that behavior occurring again.

Positive Reinforcement

Increasing the frequency of a behavior by adding something desirable or positive (such as giving extra screen time or a treat).

Negative Reinforcement

Increasing the frequency of a behavior by removing or taking away an unpleasant or aversive stimulus (such as lifting a restriction after a room is cleaned).

Primary Reinforcer

An innately reinforcing stimulus that is unlearned and often satisfies a basic biological need (such as food).

Conditioned Reinforcer (Secondary Reinforcer)

A stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its learned association or link with a primary reinforcer.

Continuous Reinforcement

Reinforcing a desired response every single time it occurs, leading to rapid acquisition but also rapid extinction.

Partial (Intermittent) Reinforcement

Reinforcing a response only part of the time, resulting in slower initial acquisition but much greater resistance to extinction.

Partial Reinforcement Schedules Graph

A graphical representation showing cumulative responses over time across ratio and interval schedules, illustrating differing response rates and post-reinforcement pauses.

Fixed-Ratio Schedule

A reinforcement schedule that delivers reinforcement after a predictable, set number of responses, yielding high response rates with a short pause immediately after reinforcement.

Variable-Ratio Schedule

A reinforcement schedule that delivers reinforcement after an unpredictable number of responses, yielding high and steady response rates with little or no pause (e.g., slot machines or lottery).

Fixed-Interval Schedule

A reinforcement schedule that delivers reinforcement after a specified, fixed passage of time, yielding a characteristic scallop-shaped response pattern with significant pauses after reinforcement.

Variable-Interval Schedule

A reinforcement schedule that delivers reinforcement at unpredictable time intervals, producing a moderate and steady rate of response (e.g., surprise quizzes).

Punishment

Any consequence that follows a behavior and decreases the frequency or likelihood of that behavior recurring.

Positive Punishment

Decreasing a behavior by administering or adding an unpleasant, aversive consequence (such as adding a strict new rule).

Negative Punishment

Decreasing a behavior by removing or taking away a desirable, pleasant stimulus (such as taking away a child's phone).

Cognitive Map

A mental representation of the physical layout of an environment, identified by Edward C. Tolman in rats exploring a maze.

Latent Learning

Learning that occurs without immediate reinforcement and is not observable in behavior until there is an incentive or reason to demonstrate it.

Observational Learning

A learning process in which an individual acquires new information or behaviors by observing and imitating others.

Bobo Doll Experiment

A landmark study by Albert Bandura examining observational learning and modeling, where children imitated aggressive actions toward a 5-foot Bobo doll after observing adult models.

Mirror Neurons

Neurons in the brain that fire both when an individual performs an action and when they observe another person performing that same action, providing a neural mechanism for observational learning and imitation.