Chapter 6 Flashcards by Talia Aguilar

What is Behaviorism?

The belief that psychology should concern itself with what people and other animals do and the circumstances in which they do it. without considering emotions, or thoughts

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what is stimulus response psychology?

the attempt to explain behavior in terms of how each stimulus triggers a response

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Concept Check: Why do behaviorists reject explanations in terms of thoughts?

Past events and current stimuli are responsible for thoughts and for that reason are the explanations behind behavior.

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Concept Check: How did Loeb explain why certain animals turn toward the light?

It’s a part of the stimulus response because partial sunlight causes muscle tension on one side of the body.

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What theory did Pavlov come up with?

Classical conditioning

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What are unconditioned reflexes?

Connections that automatically occur between a stimulus and a physical response ex. food and drooling in dogs

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What is classical conditioning?

Process by which an organism learns a new association between two stimuli- a neutral stimulus and one that naturally causes a response

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What is an unconditioned stimulus (UCS)?

something that already causes a response to occur

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What is an unconditioned response (UCR)?

what the unconditioned stimulus causes to happen

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What is a conditioned stimulus (CS)?

an event that over time can cause a learned response

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What is conditioned response (CR)?

the response that the conditioned stimulus caused as a result of repetition of the stimulus

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Concept Check: Someone shows you many photos on several colors of background. Whenever the background color is green, the photo is disgusting. After many repetitions you see a neutral photo on a green background , but you react with disgust anyway. Identify the CS, UCS, UCR, and CR.

CS- the green background
CR- disgust to seeing the green background
UCS- the gross photos
UCR- disgust when seeing just the green background

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What is acquisition in classical conditioning?

The process that establishes or strengthens a conditioned response

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What does extinction mean in terms of classical conditioning?

The decrease in a conditioned response in the absence of the conditioned stimulus

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What is spontaneous recovery in classical conditioning?

It is a temporary return of an extinguished response brought on by the return of the conditioned stimulus

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Concept check: in Pavlov’s experiment on conditioned salivation in response to a metronome, what produces extinction? what produces spontaneous recovery?

Bringing the conditioned stimulus without having it followed by the unconditioned stimulus will cause extinction to happen. To produce spontaneous recovery, bring back the conditioned stimulus with the unconditioned stimulus.

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Concept Check: In what way might the term “extinction” be misleading?

because the response does not actually disappear like species do but rather the response doesn’t happen for a period of time before it reappears once presented with the conditioned stimulus.

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What happens in stimulus generalization?

That is when a conditioned response becomes applied to similar stimuli. ex if the metronome changes slightly but the dogs still produce saliva.

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What diagnosed condition can stimulus generalization apply to?

PTSD

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What does discrimination refer to in classical conditioning?

It refers to the ability of being able to respond differently to stimuli that predict different outcomes. ex a baby shaking a rattle compared to a rattle from a rattlesnake

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Concept check: If classical conditioning depended entirely on presenting the CS and UCS at nearly the same time, what result should the experimenters have expected for group 2?

That if it depended on them being at nearly the same time than the rats in group two would have developed a strong response

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What is the blocking effect in classical conditioning?

It is when a previously established stimulus prevents an association from being formed with another stimulus

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How does drug tolerance relate to classical conditioning?

Because people usually have specific rituals for taking and getting drugs which causes a physical reaction that creates a higher tolerance to them

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Concept Check: When someone develops a tolerance to the effects of a drug injection, what is the CS, the UCS, the CR and the UCR?

CS- The routine for the injection
UCS- Entry of the drug to the brain
CR- body defense against the drug
UCR-body defense against the drug

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Concept Check: How did researchers measure drug tolerance in rats?

Demonstrated when rats would react to pain after they had been given morphine

TQ: Why did behaviorists reject the study of thoughts? A) They were only interested in the behavior of invertebres B) Since they vary too much based on the person C) They believed in mind- body dualism D) Events that led to thoughts are the real cause of behavior

TQ: Which of the following describes the approach of the earliest behaviorists such as Loeb? A) Stimulus response- psychology B) Mind- body dualism C) Psychoanalysis D) Structuralism

TQ: On the first trial of classical conditioning, the CS, UCS, and UCR is present, but the CR is not. Why? A) The CR emerges only after pairing with CS with the UCS B) The CR emerges only after paring the UCS with the UCR C) The experimenter begins presenting the CR on the second trial D) The CR emerges only during the extinction process

TQ: How does extinction differ from forgetting? A) Extinction is more complete and permanent B) Forgetting depends on changes of brain activity extinction does not C) Extinction depends on changes of brain activity forgetting does not D) Forgetting depends on the passage of time. Extinction depends on the specific experience

TQ: What produces spontaneous recovery? A) Generalization training followed by discrimination training B) An electrical shock in a new situation C) Extinction followed by delay D) Additional parings of CS with the UCS

TQ: In some cases, a conditioned response does not resemble the unconditional response. What does this finding imply about classical conditioning? A) Conditioning occurs only if the CS predicts the UCS B) Conditioning is not a matter of transferring a response from the UCS to the CS C) Conditioning is independent of the connections in the brain D) Conditioning depends on having the CS and the UCS close together in time

TQ: When classical conditioning produces drug tolerance, what is the CS? A) The injection procedure B) The entry of the drug into the blood C) The "high" that the drug produces D) The body's defense against the drug

TQ: When classical conditioning produces a drug tolerance, what is the CR? A) The injection procedure B) The entry of the drug into the blood C) The "high" that the drug produces D) The body's defense against the drug

What is a learning curve?

A graph of the challenges in the course of learning

What is reinforcement?

it is giving a positive consequence to help ensure that the certain behavior happens again

What is operant/ instrumental conditioning?

It is when a behavior is changed by providing a reinforcer or a punishment to increase or decrease the response

What is the difference between operant and classical conditioning?

In operant conditioning the subject's behavior has an effect on the outcome. In the classical conditioning it does not

What is a visceral response?

It is a response of the internal organs

Is a visceral response more commonly associated with Classical or Operant conditioning?

Classical because it is out of the person's control or a natural reaction

What is a skeletal response?

Movements of muscles or voluntary movement

Is a skeletal response associated with Classical or operant conditioning?

Operant because it is under the person's control

Concept check: When a bell rings, an animal sits up on its hind legs and drools. Then it receives food. Is this an example of classical or operant conditioning? There is not enough info to know so what would you need to know to make a conclusion?

Need to find out if the bell always predicts the arrival of food (classical) or if the dog only receives food if it sits up (operant)

What is the disequilibrium principle?

Something that prevents an activity causes disequilibrium and something that allows the opportunity to return to that equilibrium is a reinforcer

Concept Check: According to the disequilibrium principle, how could you determine what would be reinforcing for someone?

To find how the person spends their time when they are free from obligations. Then find out what activities they have not had a chance to do. Those activities would be reinforcing.

What are primary reinforcers?

They are unconditioned reinforcers because they are things that we need like food, water, and sleep

What are secondary reinforcers?

They are conditioned reinforcers because they have association to other reinforcers like money because we could buy what we want or need

What is punishment?

It is something that can decrease the probability of a response

Concept check: What is paying a bill on time to avoid penalties an example of?

Negative reinforcement

Concept Check: What is your friends smiling at you when they see you coming an example of?

Positive reinforcement

Concept Check: What is you trip and fall because you were texting while walking an example of?

punishment

Concept Check: What is missing your basketball game because you were not ready on time an example of?

punishment

What is extinction in operant conditioning?

It happens if the action stops producing reinforcements, so you stop. ex you stop asking your roommate to go to dinner with you after a few consistent no's

What is stimulus generalization in operant conditioning?

It is when the new stimulus is more similar to the first reinforced stimulus the higher chances of it causing a similar response.

What is discrimination in operant conditioning?

It is if reinforcement occurs for responding to one stimulus and not another. ex waving to someone you think you know but it's not, so you learn to tell the difference between them

What is the discriminative stimulus in operant conditioning?

It is the stimulus that indicates which response is appropriate. ex the person you know wears the same shoes every day

What is stimulus control in operant conditioning?

It is when the stimulus has the ability to encourage a certain set of responses and discourage others

What is shaping in operant conditioning?

It is when with the help of reinforcements can establish a new response

What is chaining behaviors in operant conditioning?

It is when by reinforcing one behavior and providing an opportunity to engage in the next one ex learning to eat with utensils, then serving your own food, to making your own food

What is continuous reinforcement?

Providing a reinforcement for every correct response

What is intermittent/ partial reinforcement?

Reinforcement for some responses and not for others

What is a fixed ration schedule of reinforcement?

Getting a reinforcement for every fixed number of correct responses ex. getting paid by the bucket of blueberries picked

What is a variable ration schedule of reinforcement?

Reinforcement occurs after a variable number of correct responses ex gambling where it's never a guaranteed win after x amount of times

What is fixed-interval schedule of reinforcement?

It when a reinforcement is provided for the first response after a specific time interval ex waiting for a package to arrive at a certain time

What is a variable-interval schedule of reinforcement?

When reinforcement is available after a variable amount of time. ex bird watching or stargazing

What type of reinforcement causes the fastest rate of the response getting extinguished?

Continuous

What type of reinforcement has the lowest rates of extinguishment?

intermittent reinforcement ( ratio or interval schedules)

Concept check: What kind of schedule reinforcements is this an example of? Your boss gives you a bonus for every fifth customer that submits a positive review.

fixed ratio interval

Concept check: What kind of schedule reinforcements is this an example of? You find that fishing sometimes you catch a good fish and other times you don't, on an unpredictable basis.

variable ratio

Concept check: What kind of schedule reinforcements is this an example of? You are expecting an important email, but you don't know when, so you check every time you think about it.

variable interval

What is applied behavior analysis?

A psychologist removes unwanted behaviors and provides reinforcements for desired behaviors.

TQ: What did Thornlike mean by reinforcement? A) A connection between the CS and the UCS B) Something that the animal desires or enjoys C) An understanding between the response and outcome D) An event that stamps the previous response

TQ: How does operant conditioning differ from classical conditioning? A) Classical conditioning changes brain connections and operant does not. B) Classical conditioning provides rewards, and operant conditioning provides punishments C) Operant conditioning applies to visceral responses and classical conditioning does not. D) In operant conditioning, a response controls the probability of the outcome

TQ: What is meant by a "secondary" reinforcer? A) Something that is reinforcing only when primary reinforcers are unavailable B) Something that becomes reinforcing by association with primary reinforcers C) Something that reinforces the simplest responses D) Something that reinforces relatively complex responses

TQ: What procedure produces extinction in operant conditioning? A) Present the conditioned stimulus without the unconditioned stimulus B) Present the conditioned stimulus without the conditioned response C) Present a punishment after a new response D) Present no reinforcer after the previously reinforced response

TQ: Shaping a behavior for an experiment in operant conditioning begins with which of the following? A) Placing an animal into the proper position to make a response B) Reinforcing a simple approximation to the desired behavior C) Demonstrating a response for the individual to imitate D) Punishing all inappropriate responses

TQ: Which schedule of reinforcement describes the following: Whenever you buy 10 pizzas, you get the next one free. A) Fixed interval B) Fixed ratio C) Variable interval D) Variable ratio

TQ: Which of the following is an example of a variable- interval schedule? A) Checking stores in your neighborhood in hopes of seeing a help wanted sign B) Opening oysters in hopes of finding a pearl C) Buying ice cream at a place that offers a free one after every ten purchases D) Taking a test that is given in class once a week

TQ: Behavior modification is LEAST likely to use in which of these procedures? A) Positive reinforcement B) Shaping C) Changing D) Brain stimulation

What is the concept of preparedness?

The concept that evolution has prepared some species to learn some associations with more ease than others

What is conditioned taste aversion?

Association of a food with being or becoming sick

Concept Check: How does conditioned taste aversion differ from other kinds of learning?

The aversion begins after a delay in consuming the food, usually when the person starts to become or feels sick and animals are predisposed to associate a taste (especially unfamiliar ones) with illness

What is the sensitive period of learning?

The learning that occurs in the first year of life for species that use learning ex the first year of life is when babies start to grasp and understand the language(s) around them

Concept Check: How does birdsong differ from classical and operant conditioning?

Learning occurs when the learner made an incorrect response and in turn receives no apparent reinforcement. Also, most of the learning process occurs in the first year of life

What is the social-learning approach?

Learning about behaviors by observing others

Is social learning an example of classical or operant conditioning?

Operant conditioning

Concept Check: How would the idea of social learning impact the effects of media coverages of mass shootings?

Seeing violence or violent acts having the ability to cause more violent acts

What is vicarious reinforcement or vicarious punishment?

It is when you substitute someone else's experience for your own ex choosing classes based on what your friends in the grade above you experiences

Which one is more effective vicarious reinforcement or vicarious punishment?

Reinforcement because other people want to be successful not punished. ex the children in the study who were less likely to tell the truth about cheating after reading a book where the character got in trouble for doing so.

What is self- efficacy?

the belief of a person thinking about whether or not they would be able to perform the task successfully

TQ: What is special about conditioned taste aversions? A) Learning requires many repetitions and extinguishes easily B) Learning readily occurs despite a long delay between two events C) Learning fails to generalize from one taste to a similar taste D) Learning occurs only during a sensitive period early in life

TQ: Which of the following is most effective in establishing a conditioned taste aversion? A) illness B) electric shock C) imitation D) verbal expliation

TQ: What is special about birdsong learning? A) The conditioned stimulus must closely resemble the unconditioned stimulus B) The ability to learn continues to increase throughout life C) A bird learns to sing without any external reinforcer D) A bird must learn from its mother

TQ: What is meant by the social learning approach? A) Positive reinforcement for social learning behaviors B) Learning by imitation C) Using social stimulus as a reinforcer for some other behavior D) Teaching a large group of students at a time

TQ: Why are you more unlikely to copy an act that is too difficult for yourself? A) Vicarious punishment B) Lack of self-efficacy C) Improper CS-UCS interval D) Improper schedule for reinforcement