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intro to learning final > lesson 2 > Flashcards

lesson 2 Flashcards

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1
Q

why study animal learning

A

Humans are animals and share evolutionary history with other species.

Mental continuity: Suggests cognitive similarities across species.

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2
Q

Limitations of the Mental Continuity Argument

A

Difference between species:

Example: Mammals with different limb endings (e.g., humans vs. whales vs. horses).

Language: Possibly unique to humans (Hauser et al., 2002 suggest it’s a group of skills, some of which may be shared).

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3
Q

Behavior Evolution Misconception

A

Example: A chimp wearing an earring doesn’t imply jewelry evolved.

Why? Earrings are not genetically inherited.

Just because a behavior exists in multiple species doesn’t prove it evolved genetically

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4
Q

Tabula Rasa (Blank Slate)

A

If all behavior is learned, behavior cannot evolve.

“Tabula rasa” = we are born with no behaviors; everything is learned.

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5
Q

Genetics of Behavior

A

Behavior doesn’t fossilize – hard to study its evolution.

Artificial Selection = Humans control breeding to evolve traits faster.

Example: Dogs
Bred for specific traits (e.g., Pekingese, Terriers, Bernese Mountain Dog).

Shows physical traits can evolve quickly.

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6
Q

Tryon’s Rat Maze Experiment

A

Measured maze-learning ability.

“Maze-bright” rats = few errors
“Maze-dull” rats = many errors

Bred the brightest with each other, and dullest with each other for 8 generations.

Over time:

Bright rats improved & became more similar.

Dull rats got worse & also more similar.

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7
Q

Takeaways from Tryon’s Experiment

A

Behavior can be heritable.

Supports Darwin’s mental continuity argument.

Still some variation = Environment/experience also matters.

Nature vs. Nurture: Today, it’s widely accepted that both genes and environment interact.

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8
Q

Unlearned (Innate) Behaviors

A

Innate behavior: Genetically programmed, not learned.

Fixed Action Patterns (FAP):

Inborn sequences of behavior

Stereotyped, unchangeable, consistent between individuals

FAP vs. Reflex
Reflex: Simple, automatic response to stimulus.

FAP: More complex, but also automatic & not learned.

Examples of Reflexes in Humans
Yawning

Sneezing

Stretch reflex

Patellar (knee-jerk) reflex

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9
Q

Sign Stimulus / Releaser

A

External stimulus that triggers a reflex/FAP.

Example: Hammer hitting patellar tendon → leg kick

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10
Q

Interaction Between Innate Behavior and Learning

A

Reflexes/FAPs can be triggered by learned stimuli.

Example: Yawning can be triggered by seeing or hearing a yawn, or reading the word “yawn”.

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11
Q

Conditioned Reflexes

A

Learning can create new releasers for existing reflexes.

Pavlov’s Dogs Example:

Food → innate releaser for salivation.

Bell → becomes learned releaser after conditioning.

Salivation to bell = conditioned reflex.

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12
Q

What does it mean that “learning is an adaptation”?

A

Learning helps us adjust our behavior to better fit our environment, increasing our chances of survival by allowing us to prepare for future situations.

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13
Q

How is learning similar to natural selection?

A

Learning is like natural selection in that unsuccessful behaviors “die out,” but it happens within one lifetime, not over generations.

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14
Q

Why was it adaptive for Pavlov’s dog to salivate at the sound of a bell?

A

Because salivating prepares the body to eat. If a bell reliably signals food, salivating in response helps the dog eat faster, which is useful when food is scarce or competitive.

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15
Q

How does associative learning help us adapt?

A

It allows us to predict and prepare for future events based on past experiences, improving our responses to environmental challenges.

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16
Q

What are maladaptive behaviors?

A

Behaviors that are bad for us, like overeating or procrastinating, even though they may have had adaptive value in a different context.

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17
Q

Why do maladaptive behaviors still exist?

A

ecause learning and evolution are shaped by past environments, and sometimes our current environment is very different from the one we evolved in.

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18
Q

What is contrafreeloading?

A

When animals (including humans) choose to work for a reward even when the same reward is freely available.

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19
Q

Why might animals engage in contrafreeloading?

A

Possibly to learn more about their environment or because “free” things were rare or suspicious in their evolutionary history.

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20
Q

What does contrafreeloading tell us about learning?

A

There are limits to what animals can learn—if something doesn’t match their evolved expectations, they may not learn it well.

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21
Q

What is the win-stay/lose-shift strategy in learning?

A

A learning strategy where an animal continues a behavior that leads to a reward and changes when it stops working.

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22
Q

Do pigeons use the win-stay/lose-shift strategy in midsession reversal experiments?

A

No, pigeons tend to rely on timing rather than feedback, even when that leads to more mistakes.

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23
Q

Why might pigeons rely on timing rather than the better strategy?

A

Their cognitive systems might be wired to track time in such tasks, showing a constraint in learning.

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24
Q

What is ecological validity in experiments?

A

How well an experiment reflects the natural conditions of the animal’s environment.

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25
Why do researchers design less ecologically valid experiments?
To uncover the specific mechanisms and limits of cognition by challenging animals in unfamiliar ways.
26
What did Shettleworth's hamster study show about learning constraints?
Hamsters could learn to dig for food (natural behavior) but not wash their face for food, showing evolutionary preparedness affects learning ability.
27
What is evolutionary preparedness in learning?
The idea that animals are more easily able to learn behaviors that match those needed in their natural environment.
28
What type of conditioning was Shettleworth’s hamster digging experiment?
Operant conditioning – the hamster’s digging behavior caused a food reward.
29
Why don’t animals learn just anything, even if it could be helpful?
Constraints on learning help animals avoid wasting energy on unlikely or irrelevant associations in their natural environments.
30
What did the Cook & Mineka monkey study demonstrate?
Monkeys could learn fear of snakes from watching others, but not fear of flowers, showing a biological preparedness to learn some associations and not others.
31
what is obcervational learning
Learning by watching others and imitating their behavior.
32
in the monkey experient, why did only the Experimental group show fear of snakes?
Because of preparedness—monkeys are biologically predisposed to fear snakes, not flowers.
33
what is preparedness in learning?
The idea that some associations are learned more easily due to evolutionary survival value.
34
what is non-assocative learning
Learning that doesn’t involve connecting two things together, like habituation or sensitization.
35
what is habituation
Decreased response to a repeated, harmless stimulus.
36
what is spontaneous recovery in habituation
he return of a response after a stimulus is gone for a while and then returns.
37
what is dishabitation
When a new, intense stimulus makes you respond again to a previously habituated stimulus.
38
what is sensitization
Increased response to a repeated or intense stimulus.
39
what kind of stimuli usually cause sensitization
Intense or meaningful ones, like traumatic events.
40
What is associative learning?
learning by forming a connection between two events or stimuli
41
What is Pavlovian (classical) conditioning?
Learning where a stimulus predicts an outcome, causing a response
42
What is the purpose of a truly-random control in classical conditioning experiments?
To show that learning only happens when the stimulus reliably predicts the outcome.
43
What is sign tracking?
When animals treat a stimulus (like a light) that predicts a reward as if it is the reward.
44
What’s an example of sign tracking?
A pigeon pecks a light predicting food, even though the food comes from a different place.
45
What is operant conditioning?
Learning that involves forming associations between responses and their consequences.
46
What is the law of effect?
Behaviors followed by positive outcomes are more likely to be repeated, while those followed by negative outcomes are less likely to be repeated.
47
Who studied the law of effect using puzzle boxes and cats?
Edward Thorndike.
48
How did Thorndike’s cats demonstrate the law of effect?
They gradually learned to escape the puzzle box faster by repeating the action that led to escape.
49
What type of learning is trial-and-error learning an example of?
Operant conditioning.
50
What are the four types of operant conditioning scenarios?
1. Response → appetitive outcome 2. Response → aversive outcome 3. Response → omission of appetitive outcome 4. Response → prevents aversive outcome
51
What is positive reinforcement (reward learning)?
Adding a pleasant stimulus to increase behavior.
52
What is punishment in operant conditioning?
Adding an unpleasant stimulus to decrease behavior.
53
What is omission training?
(because the behavior causes the reinforcer to be omitted).
54
What is avoidance learning?
Performing a behavior to prevent an aversive outcome.
55
What is escape learning?
Performing a behavior to stop an ongoing aversive outcome.
56
What is shaping in operant conditioning?
Gradually reinforcing closer approximations to the desired behavior.
57
How does shaping explain learning to play a piano scale?
Gradual reinforcement is given for hitting correct notes, then rhythm, then dynamics, etc.
58
What is autoshaping?
A form of learning where an animal automatically performs a behavior due to classical conditioning but appears operant.
59
What is sign-tracking in animals?
Approaching or interacting with a stimulus that signals an outcome.
60
What are the two key principles of association in learning?
Contiguity and contingency.
61
What is contiguity?
The closeness in time and space between two events, influencing the strength of their association.
62
What was the key finding of Williams (1999) with the Marking, Blocking, and Control rat groups?
A cue immediately after a behavior (Marking) helps form the behavior-outcome association; a cue before the reward (Blocking) interferes with operant learning.
63
What is contingency in learning?
The degree to which one event predicts another (e.g., behavior consistently followed by a reward).
64
What is extinction in operant and classical conditioning?
When a previously reinforced behavior or stimulus no longer leads to an outcome, leading to a decrease in the behavior or response.
65
What does stimulus salience refer to?
How noticeable or attention-grabbing a stimulus is, which affects learning.
66
How does the size or intensity of an outcome affect learning?
Larger or more intense outcomes generally lead to stronger learning.
67
A researcher finds that the offspring of rabbits that are very good at finding hidden carrots are also better at finding hidden carrots than offspring of “carrot-dull” rabbits. This suggests that Rabbits have an innate cognitive skill at finding hidden carrots Finding carrots is a fixed action pattern (FAP) Finding carrots is at least partly an inherited skill Rabbits don’t learn
Finding carrots is at least partly an inherited skill
68
A researcher is studying wing flapping in gulls, and finds that all gulls flap their wings in exactly the same way, and that once they start flapping they can’t stop until the movement is completed. This suggests that Wing flapping in gulls is learned by Pavlovian conditioning Wing flapping in gulls is learned by operant conditioning Wing flapping in gulls is innate Gulls cannot fly
Wing flapping in gulls is innate
69
Humans reflexively blink when something approaches their eyes. In this case, something approaching your eyes is a Releaser for the reflex of blinking Learned response Learned outcome A fixed action pattern (FAP)
Releaser for the reflex of blinking
70
Jimmy receives $10 a week in pocket money. He has learned that he can use this money to buy candy. His parents notice, however, that when they give him the money, he holds on to it and seems to like the money itself. This is an example of Operant conditioning Sign-tracking Autoshaping Habituation
Sign-tracking
71
What determines whether behaviors are selected by evolution?:
Behaviors are selected by evolution if they have survival value and are typically innate, not learned.
72
Can innate behaviors be modified? If so, how?
Yes, innate behaviors can be modified through experience. One example is habituation, where repeated exposure to a stimulus decreases the response.
73
What is the difference between evolution and learning in terms of adaptation?
Evolution allows adaptation across generations, while learning allows adaptation within an individual's lifetime.
74
What is instrumental conditioning?
A form of learning where animals increase behaviors that lead to positive outcomes and decrease those that lead to negative outcomes.
75
What does the law of effect state?
Behaviors are strengthened if they lead to good outcomes or prevent bad ones, and weakened if they lead to bad outcomes or prevent good ones.
76
What is reinforcement in instrumental conditioning?
einforcement means strengthening behavior—positive reinforcement adds good outcomes; negative reinforcement removes bad ones.
77
What is shaping in learning?
Shaping involves reinforcing successive approximations of a behavior, allowing new behaviors to develop without needing a teacher.
78
How does classical conditioning work?
Animals learn to respond to signals that predict important outcomes (O), helping them prepare for and interact with those outcomes.
79
What is sign tracking?
A tendency to approach signals for positive outcomes or absence of negative ones, and withdraw from signals for negative outcomes or absence of positive ones.
80
What is extinction in learning?
A decline in response when an outcome (O) no longer follows a signal or behavior; helps animals adapt to changes in their environment.
81
How do timing and magnitude affect conditioning?
Learning is most effective when the outcome (O) follows the signal or behavior quickly and is large or intense.
82
What is "preparedness" in learning?
An evolutionary predisposition to form certain associations more easily, such as associating taste with illness rather than shock.

intro to learning final (12 decks)

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