Ap psych Unit 3 test P.2

conditioning

a simple form of learning involving the formation, strengthening, or weakening of an association between a stimulus and a response.

associative learning

a fundamental psychological process where an organism establishes a connection between two or more stimuli or events

unconditioned stimulus

A stimulus that naturally and automatically trigger a response without any prior learning or conditioning

conditioned stimulus

previously neutral stimulus that, after becoming associated with the unconditioned stimulus, eventually comes to trigger a conditioned response

unconditioned response

a natural, involuntary, and automatic reaction to an unconditioned stimulus 

conditioned reponse

The learned response that occurs in response to the CS (salivation when hearing the bell). 

extinction

the gradual disappearance or weakening of a learned behavior or response when it is no longer reinforced

spontaneous recovery

the unexpected reappearance of a previously extinguished conditioned response (a learned behavior) after a period of rest or lessened response

stimulus discrimination

the ability to distinguish between one stimulus and similar stimuli. In both cases, it means responding only to certain stimuli, and not responding to those that are similar.

stimulus generalization

responding in the same way to similar stimuli after being conditioned to respond to a specific one (if a dog salivates to a particular tone, it might also salivate to similar tones.)

counterconditioning

conditioning someone to change their response from fear to excitement or excitement to fear

taste aversions

a strong dislike or avoidance of a specific food or taste developed after a negative experience, like illness, associated with that food, even if the food wasn't the cause

biological preparedness

the innate/ evolutionary predisposition of organism to learn certain association more easily than other, particularly those that enhance survival and reproduction.

operant conditioning

a method of learning that uses rewards and punishment to modify behavior.

positive reinforcement

adding a desirable stimulus/ rewarding after a behavior to increase the likelihood of that behavior occurring again

negative reinforcement

the idea of taking away an unwanted stimulus in order to encourage good behavior (teacher taking away homework because the class was well behaved)

primary reinforcement

things that motivate behavior because they satisfy an individuals’ survival need (food, water, sleep)

secondary reinforcement

a stimulus that becomes reinforcing after being paired with a primary reinforcer.

positive punishment

adding something unpleasant to decrease bad behavior (spanking or chores)

negative punishment

remove a pleasant stimulus to decrease bad behavior (taking away a child’s favorite toy after they misbehave)

reinforcement discrimination

learning to respond differently to different stimuli

reinforcement generalization

tendency of individuals to respond to stimuli that are similar to the original conditioned stimulus or situation.

instinctive drift

the tendency of some trained animals to revert back to instinctual behaviors. In other words, they will behave in accordance with evolutionary contingencies, as opposed to the operant contingencies of their training

learned helplessness

when an individual continuously faces a negative, uncontrollable situation and stops trying to change their circumstances, even when they have the ability to do so

continuous reinforcement

the repeated reinforcement of a behavior every time it happens

fixed interval

a schedule of reinforcement where the first response is rewarded after a specified amount of time has elapsed.

variable interval

rewards a behavior after an unpredictable amount of time has passed, leading to a slow, steady rate of response

fixed ratio

a reward is given after a fixed number of responses

variable ratio

reinforces a behavior after an unpredictable number of responses

acquisition

the initial stage of learning or conditioning where a response is first established and gradually strengthened through repeated pairings of stimuli

social learning theory

 People learn by observing, modeling, and imitating the behaviors of others, particularly those they perceive as credible or successful.

vicarious learning

emphasizes that individuals can learn by watching others and observing the outcomes of their actions. 

observational learning

learning that occurs through observing the behavior of others.

modeling

process where individuals learn by observing and imitating the behaviors of others

insight learning

the sudden realization of a solution to a problem, often without extensive trial-and-error or gradual learning

latent learning

the sudden understanding or realization of a solution to a problem, often without extensive trial-and-error or gradual learning

cognitive map

a mental representation of one's physical environment