Unit 3 - Learning Flashcards
Reinforcement
anything that when following a response increases the likelihood that the response will occur again
Learning
any relatively permanent change in behavior brought about by experience or practice
Maturation
change due to genetic blueprint/biology
Ivan Pavlov
- pioneered the empirical study on the basic principles of classical conditioning
- salivating dogs experiment
Reflex
an unlearned, involuntary response that is not under personal control or choice
Stimulus
any object, event, or experience that causes a response
Response
reaction of an organism
Classical Conditioning
learning to elicit an involuntary, reflex-like, response to a stimulus other than the original, natural stimulus that normally produces the response
UCS –> UCR
food –> salivation
NS + UCS –> UCR
metronome + food –> salivation
CS –> CR
metronome –> salivation
Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)
original, naturally occurring stimulus
Unconditioned Response (UCR)
automatic and involuntary response to the unconditioned stimulus
Neutral Stimulus (NS)
originally has no effect on response
Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
previously neutral stimulus; it is learned
Conditioned Response (CR)
learned response to conditioned stimulus
Acquisition
repeated pairing of NS and UCS; organism is in process of learning
CR vs UCR
CR is weaker than UCR because the UCR is the original and the CR is learned
Basic Principles About Classical Conditioning
- NS/CS comes before UCS
- CS and UCS come very close together in time
- NS paired with USC many times before conditioning can take place
- CS is distinctive stimulus; it stands out from other competing stimuli
Similar Sounds vs OG Sound in Classical Conditioning
- strength of response to similar stimuli is not as strong as to OG stimulus
- more similar the stimulus is to the OG stimulus, more similar the strength of response to OG stimulus
Stimulus Generalization
tendency to respond to a stimulus that is similar to the original CS
Stimulus Discrimination
occurs when an organism learns to respond to different stimuli in different ways
Extinction
CS no longer causes CR
Spontaneous Recovery
CR reappears when original CS returns, although response is weak and short-lived
High-Order Conditioning
Occurs when strong CS is paired with NS; strong CS plays part of UCS and NS becomes second CS
John B. Watson
- behaviorist
- little Albert experiment (baby trained to have phobia of rat by pairing it with loud/scary sound)
Conditioned Emotional Response (CER)
some of easiest forms of classical conditioning; life is full of them