Module 26

learning

learning

how our behavior changes through interaction with our environment

associative learning

 learning that certain events occur together

classical conditioning

the process in which an automatic, conditioned response is paired with specific stimuli

cognitive learning

the acquisition of mental information, whether by observing events, by watching others, or through language

stimulus

any event or situation that evokes a response

unconditioned stimulus

a stimulus that unconditionally–naturally and automatically–triggers a response

unconditioned response

an unlearned, naturally occurring response to an unconditioned stimulus

conditioned stimulus

an originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to trigger a conditioned response

conditioned response

a learned response to a previously neutral stimulus

neutral stimulus

a stimulus that elicits no response before conditioning

acquisition

the process of developing a learned response, NS occurs right before UCS, NS becomes CS

extinction

the gradual weakening of a CR as a result of the CS losing power

spontaneous recovery

the reappearance, after a pause, of an extinguished conditioned response

higher order conditioning

occurs when a conditioned stimulus becomes associated with a new unconditioned stimulus

Ivan Pavlov

a Russian physiologist best known in psychology for his discovery of classical conditioning (during his studies on the digestive systems of dogs, Pavlov noted that the animals salivated naturally upon the presentation of food)

generalization

the tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses

discrimination

when an organism produces different responses to two stimuli

John Watson

famous for having founded behaviorism, criticized psychoanalysis, claimed that behavior is based on environmental stimulus (not the mind)

behaviorism

a theory of learning based on the idea that all behaviors are acquired through conditioning, and conditioning occurs through interaction with the environment

Little Albert

demonstrated that classical conditioning—the association of a particular stimulus or behavior with an unrelated stimulus or behavior—works in human beings (in this experiment, a previously unafraid baby was conditioned to become afraid of a rat or any other small, white animal because of a loud noise that preceded)

taste aversion

biologically predisposed to develop an aversion to the taste of food we ate before getting sick, meant to protect human from poison over time

advertising

spending millions to classically condition a product for an emotional desire (ex: LeBron, Nike, and athletic greatness/ability)