LEARNING

Learning Styles

Different approaches individuals use to learn, such as visual, auditory, or kinesthetic.

Synaptic Pruning

The process of reducing the number of neuronal connections in the brain to make it more efficient.

Classical Conditioning

A learning process that involves pairing a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus to elicit a conditioned response.

Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)

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

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

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

Unconditioned Response (UCR)

An unlearned response that occurs naturally in reaction to an unconditioned stimulus.

Conditioned Response (CR)

A learned response to a previously neutral stimulus that has become conditioned.

Extinction

The diminishing of a conditioned response when the unconditioned stimulus no longer follows the conditioned stimulus.

Spontaneous Recovery

The reappearance of a conditioned response after a period of extinction.

Generalization

The tendency to respond to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus.

Discrimination

The ability to distinguish between different stimuli and respond only to the conditioned stimulus.

Taste Aversion

A learned avoidance of a particular food after experiencing illness post-consumption.

Higher Order Conditioning

A process in which a previously conditioned stimulus is paired with a new stimulus to create a new conditioned response.

Latent Inhibition

The phenomenon in which prior exposure to a stimulus without reinforcement makes it harder to later condition that stimulus.

Renewal Effect

The recovery of a conditioned response when the organism is returned to the environment in which the original conditioning occurred.

Operant Conditioning

A method of learning that employs rewards and punishments for behavior.

Thorndike's Law of Effect

The principle that behaviors that produce positive outcomes are more likely to be repeated.

Reinforcement

In operant conditioning, any consequence that strengthens the desired response.

Punishment

In operant conditioning, any consequence that weakens the behavior it follows.

Partial Reinforcement

A conditioning schedule in which only some responses are reinforced.

Primary Reinforcer

An innately reinforcing stimulus, such as food or water.

Secondary Reinforcer

A stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer.

Shaping

The process of gradually training a behavior by rewarding successive approximations to the desired behavior.

Observational Learning

Learning that occurs through observing the behaviors of others.

Bobo Doll Experiment

A study demonstrating that children imitate aggressive behaviors modeled by adults.

Four Requirements of Learning

Attention, retention, reproduction, and motivation are essential components for effective learning.

Implicit Learning

Learning that occurs without the learner's awareness, often through observation.