Topic 4 (midterm 2)

Question 1

operant (instrumental) conditioning

Answer 1

learning that is controlled by the consequences of the organisms behavior

Question 2

reinforcement

Answer 2

process in which a behavior is strengthened by the immediate consequence that reliably follows its occurrence

Question 3

reinforcer

Answer 3

any event or stimulus that follows an operant response and increases or maintains its future probability

Question 4

escape behavior

Answer 4

when operant behavior increases by removing an ongoing event or stimulus. Ex. pressing a lever to stop an electric shock

Question 5

avoidance behavior

Answer 5

when operant behavior increases by preventing the onset of an event or stimulus. Ex. Pressing a lever to prevent the start of an electric shock

Question 6

discrete trial procedures

Answer 6

instrumental response produced once per trial. each trial ends with removal of animal from apparatus. (i.e. there is 1 trial, animal is removed from apparatus, there is a “reset”, and then there is another trial)

Question 7

free operant procedures

Answer 7

animal remains in apparatus and can make many responses. No intervention by examiner.

Question 8

cumulative record

Answer 8

based on old cumulative recorder device . slope specifies the rate if change in behavior for every unit of time.

Question 9

unconditional (primary) reinforcer

Answer 9

a reinforcer that acquired its properties as a function of species evolutionary history. (i.e. stimuli and events that have phylogenic importance)

Question 10

conditional (secondary) reinforcer

Answer 10

otherwise neutral stimuli or events that have acquired the ability to reinforce due to a contingent relationship with other, typically unconditioned, reinforcers.

Question 11

variables affecting reinforcement

Answer 11

immediacy, specific reinforcer used, task characteristics, contingency, contiguity

Question 12

motivating operations

Answer 12

establishing operations that make a stimulus more effective as a reinforcer at a particular time. (ex. deprivation)

Question 13

abolishing operations

Answer 13

make a stimulus less potent as a reinforcer at a particular time. (ex. satiation)

Question 14

schedule reinforcement

Answer 14

a rule describing the delivery of reinforcement. Different schedules produce unique schedule effects

Question 15

continuous reinforcement (CRF) schedule

Answer 15

behavior is reinforced each time it occurs.

Question 16

types of intermittent reinforcement schedule

Answer 16

fixed ratio, variable ratio schedule , fixed interval schedule, variable interval schedule

Question 17

Fixed ratio (FR)

Answer 17

behavior reinforced after a fixed number of times. generates post reinforcement pause (PRP)

Question 18

post reinforcement pause (PRP)

Answer 18

pausing typically increases with ratio size and reinforcer magnitude

Question 19

variable ratio schedule (VR)

Answer 19

the number of responses needed varies each time . ratio requirement varies around an average. 2 variations are random ratio and progressive ratio

Question 20

random ratio

Answer 20

schedule is controlled by a random number generator.

Question 21

progressive ratio

Answer 21

ratio requirement move from small to large

Question 22

fixed interval schedule (FI)

Answer 22

behavior is reinforced when it occurs after a given period of time

Question 23

variable interval schedule (VI)

Answer 23

the timing of the response needed varies each time. Interval varies around an average.

Question 24

Premack principle

Answer 24

in nature, different behaviors have different probabilities of occurring. e.g., eating is high probability and pressing a lever is low probability.
High probability can reinforce low probability but not vice versa.

Question 25

controlling stimulus (S)

Answer 25

a stimulus that changes the probability of an operant behavior.

Question 26

discriminative stimulus (S^D)

Answer 26

a stimulus or event that precedes an operant and sets the occasion for its reinforcement. (Ex. green light). present when a behavior is reinforced

Question 27

extinction stimulus (S^ delta)

Answer 27

a stimulus or event that precedes an operant and sets the occasion for its non-reinforcement. (ex. red light). present when a stimulus is not reinforced

Question 28

discrimination

Answer 28

the ability to differentiate between different stimuli and respond appropriately to each.

Question 29

stimulus control

Answer 29

a change in operant behavior that occurs when either discriminative stimulus or extinction stimulus is presented

Question 30

discriminative index

Answer 30

a measure of the stimulus control exerted by a discriminative stimulus or extinction stimulus

Question 31

generalization

Answer 31

the tendency to respond similarly to different but related stimuli or situations

Question 32

stimulus generalization

Answer 32

occurs when a learned response, initially associated with a specific stimulus, is also triggered by similar, but not identical, stimuli

Question 33

stimulus discrimination

Answer 33

distinguishing between a learned stimulus and similar stimuli.

Question 34

concept formation

Answer 34

process by which individuals organize information and experiences into mental categories or concepts, enabling them to understand the world and make sense of new information.

Question 35

the Stroop effect

Answer 35

phenomenon where it takes longer to name the color of a word when it doesn't match the color of the word. For example, it takes longer to say "red" when the word "red" is printed in blue ink.

Question 36

stimulus exemplar

Answer 36

stimuli that represent the range of relevant stimulus situations in which the response should occur after training.