Psych Exam 2

Learning

Learning

Change in behavior or knowledge/skill that is due to experience

Non-associative learning

simple learning from repeated exposure to a stimulus

Classical/Pavlovian Conditioning

learning through forming associations between experiences

Unconditioned Stimulus

a stimulus that provokes an unconditioned response without previous conditioning (meat)

Unconditioned Response

an unlearned reaction to that occurs without conditioning, a reflex (salivating)

Conditioned Stimulus

a previously neutral stimulus that has acquired meaning through conditioning and the capacity to evoke a response (bell)

Conditioned Response

a learning reaction that occurs because of previous conditioning (salivating to a bell)

3 types of classical conditioning associations

Nostalgic childhood associations: smell of playdough or crayons, opening songs to childhood cartoons

Romantic associations: “our” song, cologne/perfume

Anxious associations: phobias are often a conditioned response

Contiguity (timing)

onset of CS a bit before UCS, ends with UCS

Novelty

newer stimuli lead to faster learning because no other associations

Biological Preparedness

prepared stimulus: taste aversion/learned fear

Extinction (classical conditioning)

with repeated presentation of only the CS without the UCS, eventually the CR will extinguish (ring bell continuously without meat, dog will stop drooling at the bell)

Spontaneous Recovery

when the CR rebounds after a time of no exposure to the CS

Discrimination

when learning becomes more specific (example: not all bells, ‘this’ bell means meat)

Generalization

when learned CR to one CS generalizes to other, similar CS objects (little Albert all white creatures)

Operant/instrumental Conditioning

learning controlled by consequences of a behavior

Reinforcement

occurs when the consequences of a behavior *increases an organism's tendency to respond the same way

Positive Reinforcement

response increases because getting a positive (eg give a reward or praise if kid makes bed)

presence of good thing- increases behavior

Negative Reinforcement

response increases because remove a negative (eg stop nagging if kid makes bed)

absence of bad- increases behavior

Punishment

occurs when the consequence of a behavior “decreases” tendency to make that response in the future

Positive Punishment

response decreases because get a negative (spank if bed is not make)

presence of bad thing- decreases behavior

Negative Punishment

response decreases because remove a positive (e take away cell phone if bed is not made)

absence of good- decreases behavior

Skinners reinforcement vs punishment

reinforcement generally preferable to punishment (especially positive punishment)

-Positive punishment may carry unintended consequences (eg associate punisher with fear and anxiety)

Shaping

the reinforcement of closer approximations of a behavior until you get the behavior you want. Initial learning of a behavior (puppy and slipper)

Chaining

reinforcing multiple previously learned behaviors into one behavioral sequence (chain), by reinforcing when the entire “chain” of previously learned behaviors are emitted in the right order

To build the chain- reinforce each behavior as it occurs (in order) then withhold reinforcement until two behaviors are done in the chain, then three, etc, until you build the full chain

Extinction (operant conditioning)

if a behavior was previously reinforced, then becomes unreinforced, behavior will extinguish after time

Over-justification Effect

if you reward a behavior that otherwise was inherently interesting or rewarding, can reduce interest in engaging in the behavior without reward

(Marker study- preschool children)

Implication

rewarding a child for playing the piano/reading can reduce his/her natural enjoyment of it

Resistance to extinction

when an unreinforced behavior continues to be emitted- often due to types of reinforcers or schedules used

Primary Reinforcers

events that are inherently reinforcing because they satisfy basic or biological needs

example: sweet tastes, social approval, loud noises, pain, etc

Secondary Reinforcers

events that acquire reinforcing qualities through association

example: money, grades, the ‘clicker’ for training animals, etc

Continuous reinforcement schedule

when every instance of the desired behavior is reinforced, good for the initial learning (housetraining a puppy)

Partial reinforcement schedule

when the desired behavior is reinforced only some of the time. Can be better for the long-term persistence of behavior

Variable Schedule

reinforcement occurs after an unpredictable number of responses- leading to the greatest resistance to extinction (gambling)

Superstitious Behavior

What happens in operant conditioning with random reinforcement schedule

Habituation

A decrease in behavioral response after repeated exposure to a stimulus

Sensitization

An increase in behavioral response after exposure to a stimulus

Dishabituation

increase in a response because of a change in something familiar

example: birds might stop singing when they detect a predator, the absence of birdsong alerts other animals of potential danger

Rudimentary Learning

inborn simple learning mechanism

Observational Learning

learning through imitation

Vicarious reinforcement and punishment

higher impact on learning when the other receives strong positive or negative consequences

(giving one kid an A for participating would increase imitation rather than thanking them)

Features lead to higher likelihood of observational learning

Vicarious reinforcement and punishment

evoke strong emotions (parents) and/or is liked or admired (celebrity)

Memory

the persistence of learning over time

Encoded

processed to form a memory

Stored

maintain encoded information over time

Retrieved

recover information from storage

Retrograde Amnesics

Problem with memory retrieval

Antegrade Amnesics

Problems with encoding and storage

What gets encoded?

happens automatically

highly emotional events

extremely vivid or unusual events

effortful (studying)

Shallow Processing

structural encoding, noticing physical features

Deep Processing

how do they apply to you or the world at large- you are linking it to other knowledge you already love

3 basic types of memory

sensory memory

short term/working memory

long term memory

Sensory Memory

1/3rd of a second, sensory information persists in its original form (why flip books work)

Short term/working memory (and 2 key components)

limited capacity that can maintain unrehearsed material

-short storage duration-roughly 20 sec. Without rehearsal or engagement

-small capacity, (7 items, +/- 2)

important for problem solving

Long term memory

theoretically unlimited in capacity and unlimited in duration

organized

chunking

can create “chunks” of meaningful material to help us remember, then we can remember 7 or so chunks, each of which can contain more information

Semantic Networks

associations help explain how one idea might spur another idea

Declarative (explicit)

stuff you can talk about

Example: book-learning, facts, events, etc

organized in semantic networks

Semantic

memory for facts

Episodic

memory for specific events

Procedural (implicit)

stuff you can do, ways of responding

Motor Memory (riding a bike)

Habitual patterns of behavior

Associations formed by classical conditioning

Where is long term stored?

no single store for memories, but rather memory traces all over the cortex

Memory Distortion

we are highly suggestible

Beth Loftus study: car crash “collided vs smashed”

false memories can be implanted, because we are capable of vividly imagining events we are told about

Long term memory chart

Retrieval Cues

automatic or effortful

enhanced by cues encoded with memory

context dependent

external cues (location, odors, etc)

state dependent

internal cues (mood, drugs, etc)

Deja Vu

a confusion in memory caused by cues in a new situation that are strongly similar to cues in a past situation, gives a feeling that the new situation is “remembered”

Memory take away point

Much of what we “remember” are reconstructions rather than true reflections of what happened

Cognition

mental content and processes

includes: memory, representation, problem-solving, intelligence, language

How is information or knowledge coded?

analog/sensory

Propositional/symbolic

analog (sensory)

correspond to distinctive sensory features of the stimulus (example: visual, olfactory, etc)

propositional (symbolic)

non-sensory but meaningful, usually verbal concepts and knowledge

(fairness)

Prototype

best or idealized version of a concept

key features of a concept

exemplar

used to shape the prototype

shaped by culture

schema

group information about common concepts, situations, and roles

script

schemas that in addition also carry information about appropriate sequences of behavior

functional fixedness

when representation is too rigid, specifically when you only imagine one function for an object, it is an obstacle to problem solving

(candle, match, tacks example)

can only view it from one way

Mental set

in which the problem can only be solved in a habitual way

(3 jars example)

gets stuck into one way of thinking

Insight

correct solution often seems to appear in a sudden flash of insight

right hemisphere influence

intelligence

being a good problem solver

ability to reason and use knowledge to problem solve

IQ: who created it? How is it measured?

Alfred Binet

(mental age/chronological age) x 100 = IQ

IQ: what is it for?

To predict school performance

reflect thinking ability rather than pre-existing knowledge

IQ: flaws

culturally biased

Spearman

believed all intelligence derived from a single factor of mental ability- “g”- associated with speed of processing and with working memory

Cattel

2 types: fluid and crystalized intelligence

Fluid Intelligence

information processing in novel circumstances, ability to understand relationships between new things or problems (much like g)

drops after age of 20

Crystalized Intelligence

acquired knowledge and skills

continues to grow

Gardner

7-8 types of intellengence

Logic

Linguistic

Bodily kinesthetic

Intrapersonal

Spacial

Musical

interpersonal/social

8th- naturalistic

savant syndrome

a rare condition in which persons with various developmental disorders, including autistic disorder, have an amazing ability and talent

studied by gardner

reaction range

environmental influence on intelligence

genetically determined ranges on IQ

20 point range environment can increase/decrease IQ

Evidence (intelligence)

studies of adopted children

their biological parents (genetic relatives) and adoptive siblings (note genetically related, but shared environments). Children’s IQ significantly correlated with both (genetic parents and adoptive siblings) so clear role for some role of heritability AND clear role of environmental influence

Language

symbols that convey meaning (shared representation), plus rules for combining those symbols

All language is (4 things)

Symbolic: simpler than the objects they represent

Semantic: meaningful

Generative: limited symbols, limitless possibilities (alphabet or phonemes)

Structured: rule-bound (eg rules of grammar)

Sapir Whorf Hypothesis

language determines thoughts

differences in languages don’t determine thought, but can ‘nudge’ different types of thinking, helping to carry cultural differences in understanding and behavior

example: Finnish speakers

Dead Reckoning

process of calculating the current position of a moving object by using a previously determined position

Pormpuraaw and Guugu Yimithirr

Who else has language?

Prairie dogs

Almost all social species communicate emotional state. Many also communicate simple commands/requests, warnings, nouns, and even names. Many seem to be in constant ‘conversation’, and many have strong symbolic capacity

Phonemes

the basic sounds used in a language

english has about 40-45 (depending on dialect)

Where do phonemes come from?

evolutionary constraints of the vocal tract (humans can produce 100 different sounds)

Evolutionary constraints on phoneme choices: ease of production balanced against ease of perception (a,i,u)

categorical perception

we perceive the sounds of language as falling into their meaningful phonemic categories, even though we can sense differences in the acoustic stream (Hindi and Salish example)