Chapter Six - Knapp 2000

reflex

A motor or neural reaction to a specific stimulus in the environment; simpler than instincts.

instinct

Innate behaviors triggered by broader events such as aging and seasons; involve complex patterns of behavior.

learning

A relatively permanent change in behavior or knowledge resulting from experience.

associative learning

Occurs when an organism makes connections between stimuli or events that occur together.

classical conditioning

A process of learning to associate stimuli, anticipating events unconsciously.

stimulus

Any event or situation that produces a response.

operant conditioning

A method of learning that involves reinforcement or punishment to increase or decrease a behavior.

Pavlov's experiment

Research in the 1890s by Ivan Pavlov on salivation in dogs through association with feeding.

respondent behavior

Automatic behavior occurring in response to a stimulus.

neutral stimulus

A stimulus that does not initially elicit a response but can become conditioned.

unconditioned stimulus

A stimulus that elicits a reflexive response without previous conditioning.

unconditioned response

A natural reaction to an unconditioned stimulus.

conditioned stimulus

A previously neutral stimulus that elicits a response after conditioning.

conditioned response

Behavior caused by a conditioned stimulus.

acquisition

The initial learning period in classical conditioning; connecting neutral and unconditioned stimuli.

forward conditioning

Learning is fastest; the conditioned stimulus precedes the unconditioned stimulus.

backward conditioning

Slower learning; the conditioned stimulus follows the unconditioned stimulus.

extinction

The decrease in conditioned response when the unconditioned stimulus is no longer paired.

spontaneous recovery

The return of a previously extinguished conditioned response following a rest period.

stimulus discrimination

Learning to respond differently to similar stimuli.

stimulus generalization

Demonstrating conditioned response to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus.

habituation

Learning not to respond to a stimulus that is presented repeatedly without change.

operant

Any active behavior that operates upon the environment to generate consequences.

Thorndike's Law of Effect

Behaviors followed by satisfying consequences are more likely to be repeated.

reinforcement

Implementation of a consequence to increase a behavior.

shaping

Rewarding successive approximations toward a target behavior.

positive reinforcement

Adding a desirable stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior.

negative reinforcement

Removing an undesirable stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior.

primary reinforcers

Reinforcers that have innate value, satisfying basic survival needs.

conditioned reinforcers

Stimuli that acquire value through association with primary reinforcers.

immediate reinforcers

Reinforcers that occur right after a behavior.

delayed reinforcer

Reinforcers that occur after a delay following a behavior.

reinforcement schedule

Rules stating which instances of a behavior will be reinforced.

continuous reinforcement

Reinforcement given every time a behavior is displayed.

partial reinforcement

Reinforcement given intermittently, not every time a behavior is displayed.

fixed-ratio schedule

Reinforcement delivered after a predictable number of responses.

variable-ratio schedule

Reinforcement delivered after an unpredictable number of responses.

fixed-interval schedule

Reinforcement delivered at predictable time intervals.

variable-interval schedule

Reinforcement delivered at unpredictable time intervals.

punishment

Any consequence that decreases the likelihood of a behavior occurring in the future.

positive punishment

Adding an undesirable stimulus to reduce a behavior.

negative punishment

Removing a pleasant stimulus to reduce a behavior.

preparedness

The predisposition to form certain associations more easily.

Conditioned Taste Aversion

Avoiding a substance after it has been followed by illness.

Single-trial learning

Learning that requires only one pairing of the neutral stimulus and unconditioned stimulus.

cognitive learning

Acquiring knowledge through observation, experience, or language.

observational learning

Learning by observing and imitating others.

live model

A real person demonstrating a behavior.

verbal model

Information conveyed through spoken instructions or explanations.

symbolic model

Learning through observing representations in media, like videos.

latent learning

Learning that occurs but isn't immediately observable.