Chapter 6

Learning

An enduring change in behavior resulting from prior experience

Associative learning

A form of learning that involves making connections between stimuli and behavioral responses

Nonassociative learning

A form of learning that involves a change in the magnitude of an elicited response with repetition of the eliciting stimulus

Habituation

A form of nonassociative learning by which an organism becomes less responsive to repeated stimulus

Ex: move from rural area to city and cannot sleep because of traffic sounds, but eventually you get used to it and sleep fine

Sensitization

A form of nonassociative learning by which an organism becomes more sensitive , or responsive, to a repeated stimulus

Dishabituation

The recovery of a response that has undergone habituation, typically as a result of the presentation of a novel stimulus

Associative Learning

A form of learning that involves making connections between stimuli and behavioral responses

Classical conditioning

A passive form of learning by which an association is made between a reflex-eliciting stimulus and other stimuli

Unconditioned stimulus (US)

A stimulus that produces a reflexive response response without prior learning

Unconditioned Response (UR)

The response that is automatically generated by the unconditioned stimulus

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

A stimulus that has no prior positive or negative association with but comes to elicit a response after being associated with the unconditioned stimulus.

Conditioned Response (CR)

A response that occurs in the presence of the conditioned stimulus after an association between the conditioned and unconditioned stimulus is learned

Acquisition

The initial learning of an association between the unconditioned and conditioned stimuli during classical conditioning

This is the phase where the pairing of the unconditioned stimulus and the neutral stimulus is introduced, such as the pairing of the food and the bell

Generalization

The tendency to respond to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus, so that learning is not tied too narrowly to a specific stimulus

• Ex: Dog salivating to a sound that is a little bit different from the bell

Discrimination

Learning to respond to a particular stimulus but not to similar stimuli, thus preventing overgeneralizations

Extinction

An active learning process in which there is a weakening of the conditioned response to the conditioned stimulus in the absence of the unconditioned stimulus

Ring the bell (CS) but no loner brought to food (US) after each ring, the dog would eventually stop salivating

Spontaneous Recovery

The reappearance of an extinct behavior after a delay

Blocking

A classical conditioning phenomenon that whereby a prior association with a conditioned stimulus prevents learning of an association with another stimulus because the second one adds no further predictive value

Little Albert Experiment

• Created by Watson and Raynor

• Everytime Albert touched the rat the researchers made a loud noise (US)

• This startled Albert and caused him to cry (UR)

• It took 7 pairings to successfully condition Albert to be afraid of the rat

• After the acquisition phase, whenever Albert saw the rat (CS) he would cry (CR)

  • Albert showed generalization of this fear to other white furry objects, such as a rabbit

What brain region is essential for classical conditioning of emotional responses

Amygdala

Preparedness

The species-specific biological predisposition to learn some associations more quickly than other associations
Example: human’s tendency to learn specific phobias

Conditioned taste aversion

A classical conditioned response where individuals are more likely to associate nausea with food than with other environmental stimuli

Operant conditioning

A mechanism by which our behavior acts as an instrument or tool to change the environment and, as a result, voluntary behavior are modified

Law of Effect

The idea that behavior is a function of its consequences– actions that are followed by positive outcomes are strengthened, and behaviors that are followed by negative outcomes are weakened.

Reinforcement

A consequence that increases the likelihood that a behavior will repeat

Punishment

A consequence that decreases the likelihood that a behavior will be repeated

Primary Reinforcers

A consequence that is innately pleasurable and/or satisfies some biological need

• Food, drink when thirsty, warmth when cold

Secondary Reinforcers

A learned pleasure that acquires value through experience because of its association with primary reinforcers
ex: Money

Positive Reinforcement

The presentation of a positive stimulus, leading to an increase in the frequency of a behavior

Children given stickers for hard work, hug for someone bringing you flowers

Negative reinforcement

The removal of a negative stimulus, leading to an increase in the frequency of a behavior

Eat to take away hunger, pain medication to get rid of headache

Positive Punishment

The presentation of a negative stimulus, leading to a decrease in the frequency of a behavior

Scolded by teacher (unpleasant stimuli) for using cell phone in class (behavior)

Negative Punishment

The removal of a positive stimulus, leading to a decrease in the frequency of a behavior

• Teacher taking away your cell phone after you using it too many times

Premack Principle

The idea that activities individual frequently engage in can be used to reinforce activities that they are less inclined to do

• You can’t have dessert (preferred behavior) until you eat your vegetables (less preferred behavior)

Shaping

The process by which random behaviors are gradually changed into a desired target behavior

Instinctive drift

An animal’s reversion to evolutionary derived instinctive behaviors instead of demonstrating newly learned responses

Continuous reinforcement schedule

A reinforcement schedule in which a behavior is rewarded every time it is performed

Partial Reinforcement Schedules

A reinforcement schedule in which a behavior is rewarded only some of the time

1. Ratio Schedule

   1. How many behaviors have to be performed

2. Interval Schedules

   1. How much time has to elapsed

Fixed-ratio schedule

A reinforcement schedule in which a specific number of behaviors are required before a reward is given

Variable-ratio schedule

A reinforcement schedule in which an average number of behaviors are required before a reward is given

Fixed Interval Schedule

A reinforcement schedule based on a fixed amount of time before a reward is given

Variable-interval schedule

A reinforcement schedule based on an amount of time between rewards that varies around a constant average

Superstitious Conditioning

A form of operant conditioning in which a behavior is learned because it was coincidentally reinforced, but has no actual relationship with reinforcement

Latent Learning

Learning that occurs without either incentive or any clear motivation to learn

Insight learning

A form of learning that occurs without trial and error and thus without clear reinforcement

Observational learning

A form of learning in which a person observes and imitates a behavior from a model

Imitation

The purposeful copying of a goal-directed behavior

Social Learning Theory

A theory of how people’s cognitions, behaviors, and dispositions are shaped by observing and imitating the actions of others

• 4 main steps

  • Attention, retention, motor reproduction and reinforcement

Mirror neurons

Neurons that are active both when performing an action and when the same actions are observed in others

Cultural transmission

The transfer of information from one generation to another that is maintained not by genetics, but by teaching and learning

Vertical transmission

The transmission of skills from parent to offspring

• Children learn a language, methods of food preparation, and forms of religious worship

Horizontal Transmission

The transmission of skills between peers

Diffusion chain

A process in which individuals learn a behavior by observing a model and then serve as models from whom other individuals can learn