Classical Conditioning Flashcards

Flashcards on Classical Conditioning terms and definitions.

Behaviorism

Focuses on observable behaviors and the environmental forces that shape those behaviors; each person starts as a blank slate and develops in response to environmental stimuli.

Associative Learning

A process of learning in which an individual forms connections between events that occur together.

Classical Conditioning

A learning method where we associate two stimuli, enabling us to anticipate events.

Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)

A stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response without any learning needed.

Unconditioned Response (UR)

A natural and automatic reaction to a stimulus that occurs without any prior learning or conditioning.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

A previously neutral stimulus that, after being repeatedly paired with an unconditioned stimulus, evokes a conditioned response.

Conditioned Response (CR)

A learned response that occurs when a conditioned stimulus is presented, resulting from the association with an unconditioned stimulus.

Acquisition

The initial learning of an association between a conditioned stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus.

Extinction

The process in which the conditioned response weakens and eventually disappears when the conditioned stimulus is repeatedly presented without the unconditioned stimulus.

Spontaneous Recovery

The reappearance of a previously extinguished conditioned response after a period of rest, suggesting that extinction does not erase the association but suppresses it temporarily.

Stimulus Discrimination

The ability to differentiate between similar stimuli and respond differently to them, learned through the conditioning process.

Stimulus Generalization

The tendency to respond to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus, as a result of the conditioning process.

Habituation (Non-Associative Learning)

Occurs when organisms grow accustomed to and exhibit a diminished response to a repeated or enduring stimulus; getting used to something over time.

Higher-Order Conditioning

A process where a previously conditioned stimulus is used to create further associations with new neutral stimuli, resulting in those stimuli also eliciting a conditioned response.

Counterconditioning

Changing a learned response to something more preferred by pairing it with a different experience.

One-Trial Conditioning

Learning that happens quickly after just one pairing of two things.

Biological Preparedness

The innate tendency of organisms to quickly learn associations between certain stimuli and responses that are relevant to their survival, such as food and danger.

Taste Aversion

A learned association between the taste of a particular food and feeling sick, often occurring after only one pairing.