General Psych Chapter 5
Negative Punishment
An event, when removed, decreases the likelihood of a response occurring again.
Pavlovian Conditioning
Another name for classical conditioning; based on the name of the person who discovered it.
Positive Punishment
A consequence that, when presented, decreases the likelihood of a response occurring again.
Positive Reinforcement
A consequence that, when presented, increases the likelihood of a response occurring again.
Modeling
The tendency to imitate the behavior of significant others.
Successive Approximations
Behaviors that are progressively closer to a desired or target behavior.
Punishment
Consequences that decrease the likelihood of a response occurring again.
John B. Watson
Founded behaviorism; examined conditioned fear in a box known as "Little Albert".
Discrimination
Occurs when an organism is able to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and a similar stimulus.
Continuous Reinforcement
Occurs when every instance of a designated response is reinforced.
Premack Principle
Using a preferred behavior to reinforce a less preferred behavior.
Primary Reinforcement
Unlearned reinforcers which satisfy biological needs such as food, water, warmth, etc.
Ian Pavlov
Was the first to describe the process of classical conditioning.
Flooding
A behavioral fear-reduction technique based on principles of classical conditioning; fear-evoking stimuli (CSs) are presented continuously in the absence of actual harm so that fear responses (CRs) are extinguished.
Systematic Desensitation
A behavioral fear-reduction technique in which a hierarchy of fear evoking stimuli is presented while the person remains relaxed.
Counterconditioning
A fear-reducing technique in which pleasant stimuli are associated with fear-evoking stimuli so that the fear-evoking stimuli lose their aversive qualities.
Observational Learning
Learning that is influenced by observing others, who are called models; also called social learning.
Generalization
Occurs when a new stimulus produces a response that is similar to the one produced by the conditioned stimulus.
Fixed-interval Schedule
Reinforcement is given for the first correct response that occurs after a fixed amount of time has elapsed.
Variable-interval Schedule
Reinforcement is given for the first correct response that occurs after a variable amount of time has elapsed.
Secondary Reinforcer
Stimuli that acquire reinforcing qualities by being associated with primary reinforcers; also called conditioned reinforcers.
Extinction
The gradual weakening and disappearance of a conditioned response tendency.
Classical Conditioning
The most common name of a type of learning in which a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a response that was originally evoked by another stimulus.
Fixed-ratio Schedule
The number of responses required for reinforcement is fixed (1/n).
Variable-ratio Schedule
The number of responses required for reinforcement varies from trail to trial, but it will average out to 1/n over many trials.
Spontaneous Recovery
The reappearance of an extinguished response after a period of non exposure to the conditioned stimulus.
Vicarious Reinforcement
The strengthening of a response through observational learning.
Vicarious Punishment
The weakening of a response through observational learning.
Operant Conditioning
This term, introduced by Skinner, refers to learning in which voluntary responses come to be controlled by their consequences; also known as instrumental conditioning.
Shaping
A procedure for teaching complex behaviors that at first reinforces closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior.
Learning
A relatively durable change in behavior or knowledge that is due to experience.
Negative Reinforcement
An event that, when removed, increases the likelihood of a response occurring again.
Reinforcement
Consequences that increase the likelihood of a response occurring again.
Albert Bandura
Described and extensively investigated the process of observational or social learning.
B. F. Skinner
Elaborated on the learning process known as operant conditioning; investigated schedules of reinforcement.