Chapter 6a 6.1 Learning Flashcards
acquisition
The point in the learning process at which the neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus because of its link to the conditioned response.
classical conditioning
A form of learning in which animals or people make a connection between two stimuli that have occurred together, such that one predicts the other.
conditioned response
The response to a conditioned stimulus acquired through learning.
conditioned stimulus
A formerly neutral stimulus that now causes a response because of its link to an unconditioned stimulus.
discrimination
The learning process by which stimuli that are different from the conditioned stimulus fail to cause the same conditioned response.
extinction
The point in the learning process at which the conditioned stimulus no longer causes the conditioned response because it is no longer linked to the unconditioned stimulus.
generalization
The learning process by which stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus cause the same conditioned response.
higher-order conditioning
Classical conditioning that involves three or more stimuli.
learning
The process by which life experience causes change in the behavior or thinking of an organism.
neutral stimulus
A stimulus that causes no response at all.
spontaneous recovery
After a temporary period of inactivity, the return of a conditioned response that had become extinct.
unconditioned response
The automatic response to a stimulus that occurs naturally, without any need for learning.
unconditioned stimulus
A stimulus that causes a response automatically, without any need for learning.
vicarious conditioning
Conditioning that takes place via observation of others’ life experiences rather than one’s own.
