Ap Psych Unit 6

Front 1

Learning

Back 1

a relatively permanent change in an organism's behavior due to experience.

Front 2

Habituation

Back 2

an organism's decreasing response to a stimulus with repeated exposure to it.

Front 3

Associative Learning

Back 3

learning that certain events occur together. The events may be two stimuli (classical conditioning) or a response and its consequence (operant conditioning).

Front 4

Classical Conditioning

Back 4

a type of learning in which one learns to link two or more stimuli and anticipate events.

Front 5

Behaviorism

Back 5

the view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes.

Hint 5

Many psychologists agree with (1) but not (2).

Front 6

Unconditioned Response (UR)

Back 6

in classical conditioning, the unlearned, naturally occurring response to the unconditioned stimulus (US).

Hint 6

EX: Salivation when food is in the mouth

Front 7

Unconditioned Stimulus (US)

Back 7

in classical conditioning, a stimulus that unconditionally - naturally and automatically - triggers a response.

Front 8

Conditioned Response (CR)

Back 8

in classical conditioning, the learned response to a previously neutral (but now conditioned) stimulus (CS).

Front 9

Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

Back 9

in classical conditioning, an originally irrelevant stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus, comes to trigger a conditioned response.

Front 10

Acquisition

Back 10

in classical conditioning, the initial stage, when one links a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus begins triggering the conditioned response. In operant, the strengthening of a reinforced response.

Front 11

Higher-order Conditioning

Back 11

a procedure in which the conditioned stimulus in one conditioning experience is paired with a new neutral stimulus, creating a second conditioned stimulus.

Hint 11

An animal that has learned a tone predicts food might learn a light predicts the tone and begin responding to the light alone.
(ALSO CALLED SECOND-ORDER CONDITIONING).

Front 12

Extinction

Back 12

the diminishing of a conditioned response.

Hint 12

Occurs in classical conditioning when a US does not follow a CS. Occurs in operant conditioning when a response is no longer reinforced.

Front 13

Spontaneous Recovery

Back 13

the reappearance, after a pause, of an extinguished conditioned response.

Front 14

Generalization

Back 14

the tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses.

Front 15

Discrimination

Back 15

in classical conditioning, the learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and stimuli that do not signal an unconditioned stimulus.

Front 16

Learned Helplessness

Back 16

the helplessness and passive resignation an animal or human learns when unable to avoid repeated aversive events.

Front 17

Respondent Behavior

Back 17

behavior that occurs as an automatic response to some stimulus.

Front 18

Operant Conditioning

Back 18

a type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher.

Front 19

Continuous reinforcement

Back 19

reinforcing the desired response every time it occurs.

Front 20

Partial (Intermittent) Reinforcement

Back 20

reinforcing a response only part of the time; results in slower acquisition of a response but much greater resistance to extinction than does continuous reinforcement.

Front 21

Fixed-Ratio Schedule

Back 21

in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specific number of responses.

Front 22

Variable-Ratio Schedule

Back 22

in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after an unpredictable number of responses.

Front 23

Fixed-Interval Schedule

Back 23

in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specific time has elapsed.

Front 24

Variable-Interval Schedule

Back 24

in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals.

Front 25

Punishment

Back 25

an event that decreases the behavior that it follows.

Front 26

Cognitive Map

Back 26

a mental representation of the layout of one's environment.

Hint 26

EX: after exploring a maze, rats act as if they have learned a cognitive map of it.

Front 27

Latent Learning

Back 27

learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it.

Front 28

Insight

Back 28

a sudden and often realization of the solution to a problem.

Front 29

Intrinsic Motivation

Back 29

a desire to perform a behavior effectively for its own sake.

Front 30

Extrinsic Motivation

Back 30

a desire to perform a behavior to receive promised rewards or avoid threatened punishment.

Front 31

Law of effect

Back 31

Thorndike's principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely, and that behaviors followed by unfavorable consequences become less likely.

Front 32

Operant Chamber

Back 32

in operant conditioning research, a chamber (Skinner Box) containing a bar or key that an animal can manipulate to obtain food or water reinforcer; attached devices record the animal's rate of bar pressing or key pecking.

Front 33

Shaping

Back 33

an operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior.

Front 34

Discriminative Stimulus

Back 34

in operant conditioning, a stimulus that elicits a response after association with reinforcement (in contrast to related stimuli not associated with reinforcement).

Front 35

Reinforcer

Back 35

in operant conditioning, any event that strengthens the behavior it follows.

Front 36

Positive Reinforcement

Back 36

increasing behaviors by presenting positive stimuli, such as food.

Hint 36

A positive reinforcer is any stimulus that, when presented after a response, strengthens the response.

Front 37

Negative Reinforcement

Back 37

increases behaviors by stopping or reducing negative stimuli, such as shock.

Hint 37

A negative reinforcer is any stimulus that, when removed after a response, strengthens the response. (NOT PUNISHMENT).

Front 38

Primary Reinforcer

Back 38

an innately reinforcer stimulus, such as one that satisfies a biological need.

Front 39

Conditioned Reinforcer

Back 39

a stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer.

Hint 39

Also called secondary reinforcer.

Front 40

Observational learning

Back 40

learning by observing others.

Hint 40

Also called social learning

Front 41

Mirror Neurons

Back 41

frontal love neurons that fire when performing certain actions or when observing another doing so. The brain's mirroring of another's action may enable imitation and empathy.

Front 42

Prosocial Behavior

Back 42

positive, constructive, helpful behavior.

Hint 42

The opposite of antisocial behavior.