LEARNING
DEF: A RELATIVELY DURABLE CHANGE IN BEHAVIOR
OR KNOWLEDGE THAT IS DUE TO EXPERIENCE
CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
• DEF: a type of learning in which a stimulus acquires
the capacity to evoke a response that was
originally evoked by another stimulus
CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
• 1st described by Ivan Pavlov
• Studying role of saliva in digestion
• Stumbled onto “psychic reflexes”
TERMINOLOGY
• Unconditioned stimulus (UCS): a stimulus that evokes an
unconditioned response w/o previous conditioning
(meat powder)
• Unconditioned response (UCR): an unlearned reaction
to an unconditioned stimulus that occurs w/o previous
conditioning (salivation)
• Conditioned stimulus (CS): previously neutral stimulus that
has, through conditioning, acquired the capacity to
evoke a conditioned response (tone)
• Conditioned response (CR): a learned reaction to a
conditioned stimulus that occurs because of previous
conditioning (salivation w/tone)
CLASSICAL CONDITIONING
• “Psychic reflex” is a conditioned reflex
• Conditioned responses are elicited
• They are relatively automatic
CONDITIONED EMOTIONAL RESPONSES
•
•
•
•
Phobias
Everyday fears
Can evoke pleasant feelings
Used by advertisers
CONDITIONING AND PHYSIOLOGICAL
RESPONSES
• Immunosuppression
• Can elicit allergic reactions
• Drug tolerance
BASIC PROCESSES IN CLASSICAL
CONDITIONING: ACQUISTION
• Acquisition: initial stage of learning something
• Pavlov: acquisition of conditioned response
depends on stimulus contiguity—occur together in
time and space
• Simultaneous conditioning: CS and UCS begin and
end together
• Short-delayed conditioning: CS begins just before
the UCS and stops at the same time as the UCS
• Trace conditioning: CS begins and ends before UCS
is presented
BASIC PROCESSES: EXTINCTION
• DEF: the gradual weakening and disappearance of
a conditioned response tendency
• Occurs when CS is presented w/o the UCS
consistently
BASIC PROCESSES: SPONTANEOUS
RECOVERY
• DEF: the reappearance of an extinguished response
after a period of non-exposure to the CS
• Usually weaker than usual
• Renewal Effect: if a response is extinguished in a
different environment than acquired, the response
will reappear when returned to original environment
STIMULUS GENERALIZATION
• DEF: occurs when an organism that has learned a
response to a specific stimulus responds in the same
way to new stimuli that are similar to the original
stimulus
STIMULUS GENERALIZATION
•
•
•
•
Adaptive
Commonplace
“Little Albert” experiment w/ John B. Watson
Rule: the more similar new stimuli are to the original
CS, the greater the generalization
STIMULUS DISCRIMINATION
• DEF: occurs when an organism that has learned a
response to a specific stimulus does not respond in
the same way to new stimuli that are similar to the
original stimulus
STIMULUS DISCRIMINATION
• Adaptive
• Rule: the less similar new stimuli are to the original
CS, the greater the likelihood of discrimination
HIGHER-ORDER CONDITIONING
• Def: a conditioned stimulus functions as if it were an
unconditional stimulus
• New conditioned responses are built on the
foundation of already est. CRs