AP Psych 3.7-3.9

3.7 - Classical Conditioning

Behavioral psychology - A psychological perspective that focuses solely on observable behaviors, arguing that all behavior is learned through interactions with the environment, and emphasizes the role of stimuli and consequences in shaping actions

Classical Conditioning - A type of learning where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a naturally occurring stimulus, resulting in a learned response to the previously neutral stimulus, essentially creating a new association between stimuli through repeated pairings

Association - A mental connection or link formed between different concepts, events, or mental states, usually arising from past experiences, allowing one thing to trigger the thought of another

Unconditioned Stimulus - A stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response without any prior learning required, essentially eliciting a reflexive reaction; it's the starting point in classical conditioning where a stimulus already produces a predictable response without conditioning taking place

Unconditioned response - A natural, automatic reaction to a stimulus that occurs without any prior learning, essentially a reflexive response that happens instinctively to a specific stimulus, like salivating when presented with food; it is a key concept in classical conditioning

Conditioned Stimulus - A previously neutral stimulus that, through repeated pairing with an unconditioned stimulus, has become associated with a specific response, causing a learned reaction (conditioned response) to occur when presented alone

Conditioned Response - A learned behavior or reaction that occurs in response to a previously neutral stimulus (now called a conditioned stimulus) that has been repeatedly paired with a naturally occurring stimulus, essentially meaning it is a learned response developed through classical conditioning

Neutral Stimulus - A stimulus that initially produces no specific response in an organism, meaning it has no inherent meaning or association with a particular reaction until it is paired with another stimulus that does elicit a response

Acquisition - The initial stage of learning when a conditioned response is first established

Extinction - The gradual weakening and eventual disappearance of a learned behavior when the reinforcement for that behavior is no longer provided, meaning the conditioned response stops occurring when the conditioned stimulus is presented without the unconditioned stimulus; essentially, the behavior fades away due to lack of reward or consequence.

Spontaneous recovery - The reappearance of a previously extinguished conditioned response after a period of time has passed without exposure to the conditioned stimulus, essentially meaning a learned behavior that seemed to have disappeared can suddenly reappear without any apparent re-training process

Stimulus Discrimination - The ability of an organism to distinguish between similar stimuli and respond differently to each, essentially learning to react only to a specific stimulus while ignoring others that are nearly identical

Generalization - The tendency to respond in the same way to different but similar stimuli, meaning that a learned response to one stimulus can also be triggered by slightly different stimuli; essentially, applying a learned behavior to a wider range of situations than just the original learning context.

Higher-order conditioning - A classical conditioning process where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a conditioned stimulus, essentially creating a "second-level" conditioned response, meaning a stimulus that was previously neutral can now elicit a learned response by being paired with another conditioned stimulus that already produces a response

Counterconditioning - A behavioral therapy technique where a previously negative conditioned response to a stimulus is replaced with a positive one by pairing that stimulus with a pleasant experience, essentially "counteracting" the original negative association; it's a form of classical conditioning used to change unwanted behaviors by associating a stimulus with a positive response instead of a negative one

Aversive conditioning - A type of classical conditioning where an unwanted behavior is paired with a negative or unpleasant stimulus (an "aversive stimulus") to create an aversion to that behavior, ultimately discouraging its repetition; essentially, it's a learning process where a person associates a negative feeling with a specific action they want to stop doing.

Taste aversions - A learned avoidance of a specific food or taste due to a previous negative experience

One-Trial Conditioning - A type of learning where an organism acquires a conditioned response after experiencing a single pairing of a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus, essentially learning something completely from just one exposure

Biological Preparedness - The concept that organisms are naturally inclined to quickly learn associations between certain stimuli and responses, particularly those that are relevant to survival, due to their evolutionary history, essentially meaning they are "pre-wired" to fear or avoid specific threats like snakes or spiders more easily than other stimuli.

Habituation - A decrease in response to a stimulus after repeated exposure to it, essentially meaning that an organism becomes less responsive to a familiar stimulus over time, considered a basic form of learning where the response weakens with repeated presentation of the same stimulus.

3.8 - Operant Conditioning

Operant conditioning - A learning process where a behavior is modified by its consequences, meaning actions that are followed by positive reinforcement are more likely to be repeated, while behaviors followed by punishment are less likely to occur; essentially, learning through rewards and punishments, with the goal of increasing desired behaviors and decreasing undesirable ones.

Reinforcement - Any consequence that strengthens or increases the likelihood of a behavior occurring again, essentially meaning that a behavior is more likely to be repeated due to a positive outcome associated with it; it can be either positive (adding something pleasant) or negative (removing something unpleasant).

Punishment - Any consequence applied after a behavior that decreases the likelihood of that behavior occurring again, essentially acting as a deterrent to discourage an unwanted behavior

Law of Effect - The principle that behaviors followed by positive consequences are more likely to be repeated, while behaviors followed by negative consequences are less likely to be repeated; essentially stating that actions with satisfying outcomes become more likely to occur again in a similar situation.

Positive reinforcement - Iincreasing the likelihood of a behavior by adding a desirable stimulus or reward after the behavior occurs; essentially, it's a method to strengthen a behavior by giving something pleasant as a consequence.

Positive punishment - A method of behavior modification where an undesirable consequence is added to a behavior, aiming to decrease the likelihood of that behavior occurring again; essentially, it means adding something unpleasant to discourage a specific action.

Negative reinforcement - A process where a behavior is strengthened by removing an unpleasant or aversive stimulus, essentially meaning that a person is more likely to repeat a behavior if it leads to the removal of something they don't want; it encourages a desired behavior by taking away something negative.

Negative punishment - A behavior modification technique where a desirable stimulus is removed following an undesirable behavior, aiming to decrease the frequency of that behavior; essentially, taking something positive away to discourage a certain action.

Primary Reinforcer - A stimulus that naturally satisfies a basic biological need, like food, water, or sleep, and therefore reinforces a behavior without requiring prior learning or association with another stimulus; essentially, it is something that is inherently rewarding due to its ability to meet a fundamental survival need

Secondary Reinforcer - A stimulus that gains its reinforcing power by being associated with a primary reinforcer, meaning it becomes rewarding only after being paired with something naturally reinforcing like food or water; essentially, a learned reward that is not inherently satisfying on its own, but becomes valuable through association with a primary reinforcer.

Discrimination - The ability to distinguish between stimuli and respond only to the discriminative stimulus

Shaping - A behavioral modification technique where a desired behavior is gradually taught by reinforcing successive approximations of that behavior, meaning you reward behaviors that get progressively closer to the target behavior until the full desired action is achieved

Successive approximations - The process of reinforcing behaviors that gradually get closer to a desired target behavior, essentially rewarding steps that progressively approximate the final goal, often used in operant conditioning through a technique called "shaping

Instinctive Drift - The tendency for an animal that has been trained to perform a specific behavior to gradually revert back to its natural, instinctual behaviors, often interfering with the learned behavior, especially when the conditioned response starts to resemble a natural instinctual behavior pattern; essentially, the animal's natural instincts "drift" back in and disrupt the learned behavior.

Superstitious Behavior - A learned behavior that occurs when an action is accidentally reinforced, even if it has no causal relationship to the positive outcome, leading an individual to repeatedly perform that action believing it will bring about the desired result; essentially, a behavior that is maintained by a false perceived contingency between the action and the consequence, often due to random reinforcement.

Learned Helplessness - A psychological state where an individual, after repeated exposure to uncontrollable negative events, believes they are powerless to change their situation, even when opportunities to do so arise, leading to passivity and a sense of resignation; essentially, they have "learned" that they are helpless to control their environment, often associated with depression and low self-efficacy.

Schedules of reinforcement - A set of rules that determine how often a desired behavior will be reinforced

Continuous Reinforcement - A reinforcement schedule where a reward is given every single time a desired behavior is exhibited, essentially reinforcing the behavior each time it occurs; this method is typically used to quickly teach a new behavior.

Partial Reinforcement - A conditioning method where a desired behavior is only reinforced occasionally, meaning the response is not rewarded every time it occurs

Fixed Interval - A schedule of reinforcement in operant conditioning where a response is only reinforced after a specific, predetermined amount of time has passed, meaning the reward is given at consistent time intervals, regardless of how many responses are made during that time period

Variable Interval - A schedule of reinforcement in operant conditioning where a response is rewarded after an unpredictable amount of time has passed, meaning the time between reinforcements varies, resulting in a generally steady rate of behavior with consistent responding over time

Fixed Ratio - A schedule of reinforcement where a reward is given after a specific, consistent number of responses are made, meaning the required number of behaviors to receive reinforcement remains the same each time; essentially, it's a set ratio of responses to reward.

Variable Ratio - A reinforcement schedule where a behavior is rewarded after an unpredictable number of responses, leading to a high, steady rate of responding

3.9 - Social, Cognitive, & Neurological Factors in Learning

Social Learning Theory - The idea that people learn new behaviors primarily by observing and imitating others

Observational learning - The process of learning a new behavior by watching and imitating the actions of others, essentially learning through observation

Vicarious conditioning - A type of learning where an individual acquires a behavior or response by observing the consequences of another person's actions, essentially learning through watching others experience reinforcement or punishment, without directly experiencing it themselves

Modeling - The process of learning by observing and imitating the behaviors of another person

Insight Learning - A type of learning where a solution to a problem suddenly becomes clear, often without any obvious trial and error, signifying a sudden realization or understanding of the problem's solution

Latent Learning - The process of acquiring knowledge or information without any apparent reinforcement or motivation, meaning the learning is "hidden" until a later time when there is an incentive to demonstrate it

Cognitive maps - A mental representation of a physical space, like a building or neighborhood, that an individual creates in their mind, allowing them to navigate and understand the spatial relationships between different locations within that environment