Psychology Chapter 6
cognitive conditioning
- S-O-R theorists believe this - our interpretation of the situation affects conditioning, meaning that conditioning is more than an automatic, mindless process.
discriminative stimulus ***
A discriminative stimulus is a type of stimulus that is used consistently to gain a specific response and that increases the possibility that the desired response will occur. For example, in an experiment where a rat is being taught to navigate a maze it is easiest to train the rat with a highly desirable treat (such as peanut butter) rather than a less desirable reward such as a piece of broccoli. stimulus that SIGNALS the presence of reinforcement Ex: when you snap your fingers at your dog so that he will come over to us, the dog will come over so we can pet him Ex: When your friend waves at you - it signals that your friend wants to chat with us; thus reinforcing you for responding to her wave.
What are the 3 phases of Pavlov's Classical Conditioning?
Acquisition, Extinction, Spontaneous Recovery Aquire Extra Spontaneity!!
What concepts are the same for both Classical conditioning and operant conditioning?
Acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, stimulus generalization, and stimulus discrimination. Ex:Researchers used food reinforcement to train pigeons to distinguish paintings by Monet and Picasso. this is stimulus discrimination bc the pigeons learned to tell the difference bt 2 different types of stimuli. Ex: the researchers also found that these pigeons displayed stimulus generalization. Following their operant conditioning, they distinguished paintings by impressionist artists whose styles were similar to Monet's.
"Extinction burst"
Alex's baby won't shut up, so he gives the baby a toy and the baby stops crying. If Alex went and bought some ear plugs and stopped giving the baby toys, the screaming behavior gradually extinguishes. In such cases like this, an "extinction burst" is often seen. that is, shortly after withdrawing the reinforcer the undesired behavior initially INCREASES in intensity (the baby screams louder).
operant
Behaviors produced by an animal to receive a reward are operants, because they "operate" on the environment to get what they want. Ex: The actual behavior of dropping a dollar into a soda machine is an operant; our reward is a refreshing drink.
Compare Operant and Classical Conditioning: Target behavior is = Reward is = Behavior primarily depends on =
Classical Conditioning: Target behavior is = elicited automatically (the UCR is an automatic response that doesn't require training) Reward is = provided unconditionally (the dog will get the meat powder regardless of how much it salivates) Behavior primarily depends on = Autonomic nervous system (changes in HR, breathing, sweating etc.) Operant Conditioning: Target behavior is = emitted voluntarily Reward is = dependent on behavior Behavior primarily depends on = skeletal muscles (operant conditioning learning involves changes in voluntary motor behavior)
shaping
Conditioning a target behavior by progressively reinforcing behaviors that come closer and closer to the target - We shape an animals response by initially reinforcing most or all responses that are close to the desired behavior, and then gradually decreasing the frequency of our reinforcement for the not-exactly-right behaviors over time. Ex: Skinner began his training of pigeons to play ping pong by reinforcing initial approximations to the desired response.
higher-order conditioning
Developing a conditioned response to a conditioned stimulus by virtue of its association with another conditioned stimulus - Ex: adding a "circle" while showing the metranome to the dog --> the dog knows that the metranome is associated with meat powder; so now he thinks that the circle must be too. There is an association between the 2 stimuli!
Latent inhibition
Difficulty in establishing classical conditioning to a conditioned stimulus we've repeatedly experienced alone, that is, without the unconditioned stimulus. The basic idea of latent inhibition is that it is often easier to learn something new than to unlearn something familiar. In particular, once you have learned to recognize something or associate it with something else, it is difficult to unlearn it if its meaning changes. It is often easier to make associations to something new than to reassign associations that have already been made to something familiar. The prior learning produces an interference effect. Examples of latent inhibition would include getting stuck in a rut, repeating known errors, or using an injured limb out of habit.
extinction
Gradual reduction and eventual elimination of the conditioned response after the conditioned stimulus is presented repeatedly without the unconditioned stimulus Ex: keep presenting a metronome to the dog (CS) WITHOUT the meat powder (UCS) --> the dog will eventually stop salivating and the metranome will shift back to being an ordinary neutral stimulus Ex: You see someone has a gun (but instead of tensing up) after 100 times and nothing happened you would no longer become tense - think: the conditioned response goes "extinct"
How can we apply operant conditioning to overcome procrastination?
If you find yourself putting of a difficult task, think go behaviors you would typically do if given the chance - watching TV with friends, going out, etc. Then , reinforce yourself with these higher frequency behaviors
field studies
In field studies, researchers examine the relation between naturally occurring events and aggression in the real world. - field studies = strong in external validity (meaning they are highly relatable to the real world) but they are weak in internal validity (or the amount of cause and effect that can be made)
operant conditioning
Learning controlled by the consequences of the organisms's behavior -sometimes called "instrumental conditioning" bc the organisms response serves an instrumental function. the organism "gets something" out of the response, like food, sex, attention, or avoiding something unpleasant.
acquisition
Learning phase during which a conditioned response is established/ "Acquired" - when the CS and the UCS are paired over and over again the CR increases in strength! - time dependent: the closer in time the pairing of the UCS with the CS --> the faster learning occurs
Are the CR and the UCR typically the same?
No, the CR is fairly similar to the UCR, but it is rarely identical to it. Ex: dogs salivate less in response to the metronome (CS) than to the powder (UCS)
reinforcement
Outcome or consequence of a behavior that strengthens the probability of the behavior
positive reinforcement
PRESENTATION of a stimulus that strengthens the probability of the behavior Ex: giving a child chocolate when he picks up his toys
Conditioned Aversion
Pairing a neutral stimulus with an aversive stimulus --> makes that neutral stimulus become TERRIBLE Ex: Little Albert will playing with the cuddly rat and then they bang pots and pans --> the (once neutral) rat then started to become displeasurable as they banged pots and pans.
law of effect
Principle asserting that if a stimulus followed by a behavior results in a reward, the stimulus is more likely to give rise to the behavior in the future. Thorndike noticed that the more satisfaction that is gained from engaging in a particular behavior, the more likely that behavior is to be repeated. Conversely, those behaviors that result in a negative or unpleasant experience are likely to occur less frequently
stimulus generalization
Process by which conditioned stimuli similar, but not identical, to the original conditioned stimulus elicit a conditioned response - occurs along a generalization gradient: the more similar to the original CS the new CS is, the stronger the CR will be. - stimulus generalization is adaptive bc it allows us to transfer what we've learned to new things. Like borrowing our friends car once we've already learned to drive our own car. Ex: After developing a fear of the mouse, Little Albert also developed fear of small furry animals in general.
stimulus discrimination
Process by which organisms display a less pronounced conditioned response to conditioned stimuli that differ from the original conditioned stimulus -Ex: stimulus discrimination helps us understand why we can enjoy scary movies. Although we may be a little scared of a tornado plummeting through a small town, we would respond much more strongly if it were headed straight for our home. - learned to discriminate bt a televised stimulus and the real world version of it, and modify our response as a result. Ex: After eating a bad grilled cheese sandwich, you will not hate all types of sandwiches.
negative reinforcement **
REMOVAL of a stimulus that strengthens the probability of the behavior Ex: Ending a child's time out for bad behavior once he stops whining
Psychology has gradually transitioned from behaviorism to cognitivism. Explain what S-O-R Psychology means
S-O-R psychologists think that the link between the S and the R isn't mindless or automatic; instead the animals response to a stimulus depends on what this stimulus MEANS to it / how the animal interprets it. - Ex: give 2 friends mild criticism and one responds apologetically while the other gets defensive. The old, S-R psychology would say that the differing reactions were governed by the girls' "learning histories" - how each had been trained to react to criticism. - the S-O-R theorists, who believe cognition is central to explaining learning, would say that the differences in the reactions of the 2 girls are based on how they thought & Interpreted your criticism.
Who emphasizes "expectations in learning" more? S-R or S-O-R theorists?
S-O-R theorists believe that animals show classically conditioned reactions only when the CS reliably forecasts the UCS, meaning that they are building up expectations about what comes next. Ex: Dogs here the ticking metronome and they THINK "Ah I think some meat powder is on the way"
Skinner box
Small animal chamber constructed by Skinner to allow sustained periods of conditioning to be administered and behaviors to be recorded unsupervised -electronically records animal's activity
sensitization
Some cases of repeated exposure to stimuli don't lead to habituation but to Sensitization - that is, responding MORE STRONGLY over time. - Sensitization is most likely when a stimulus is dangerous, irritating, or both. Ex: trying to study but the person next to you is whispering loudly, the whispering just keeps getting more annoying to the point that you can't concentrate.
S-R psychology
Stimulus -Response Psychology -most of our complex behaviors reflect the progressive buildup of associations between stimuli and responses. Ex: the sight of a close friend and saying hello ; the smell of a delicious burger and reaching for it on our plate - S-R theorists believe that almost everything we do (driving a car, eating a sandwich) results from the gradual buildup of S-R bonds due to the law of effect.
renewal effect
Sudden reemergence of a conditioned response following extinction when an animal is returned to the environment in which the conditioned response was acquired. Ex: A girl hiking in woods experiences fear as she approaches the area where a poisonous snake once bit her. - the renewal effect may help to explain why people with phobias who have overcome their phobias often experience a reappearence of their scared symptoms just by returning to the environment in which they acquired their fears. "renewing your fears"
spontaneous recovery
Sudden reemergence of an extinct conditioned response after a DELAY in exposure to the conditioned stimulus.
two-process theory
This theory states that we need BOTH Classical and Operant conditioning to explain the persistence of anxiety disorders. -People acquire phobias by being classically conditioned, then they start to avoid the feared stimulus whenever they encounter it. Ex: person with dog phobia might cross the street when sees someone walking a dog; they experience a reduce in anxiety which negatively reinforces their fear. (negative reinforcement = removal of a stimulus in this case anxiety, that makes the behavior more likely)
learning style
an individual's preferred or optimal method of acquiring new information
unconditioned response (UCR)
automatic response to a non neutral stimulus that does not need to be learned Ex: salivation to meat powder
mirror neuron
cell in the prefrontal cortex that becomes activated when an animal performs an action or observes it being performed Ex: monkey watches other monkey reaching for an object, these mirror neurons become active - they are the same cells that would have become active had the monkey been performing the task himself
learning
change in an organism's behavior or thought as a result of experience
conditioned taste aversion
classical conditioning can lead us to develop avoidance reactions to the taste of food -contradicts classical conditioning in 3 ways: 1) Unlike classical conditioning pairings that take many many trials of pairing the CS with the UCS, conditioned taste aversion only takes one trial to develop 2) the time delay bt the CS and the UCS in conditioned taste aversions can be as long as 6-8 ours 3) Very specific - don't display much stimulus generalization (get sick from lasagna, but you will eat other pastas)
preparedness
evolutionary predisposition to learn some pairings of feared stimuli over others owing to their survival value
classical (Pavlovian) conditioning
form of learning in which animals come to respond to a previously neutral stimulus that had been paired with another stimulus that elicits an automatic response
insight
grasping the underlying nature of a problem Ex: After putting cat into box it eventually figures out how to escape by pulling lever; the time it takes the cat to escape each time decreases gradually, but there is never an "Aha" moment where the cat knows what to do. This shows that the cat does NOT learn by insight - had the cat possessed insight into the nature of the problem, the cat would have had an Aha moment.
What is a "token economy"?
highly successful application of operant conditioning, token economies are systems (often set up in mental hospitals) for reinforcing target behaviors and getting rid of bad ones. -makes use of primary & secondary reinforcers
conditioned stimulus (CS)
initially neutral stimulus that comes to elicit a response due to association with an unconditioned stimulus Ex: metranome Neutral ---> conditioned stimulus
primary reinforcer
item or outcome that naturally increases the target behavior
observational learning
learning by watching others - just like latent learning; we can learn by watching others without receiving reinforcement
latent learning
learning that's not directly observable Ex: You learn where the math building is as you pass it while walking to the chemistry building. -rats knew how to go through maze just as well as experienced maze runner rats just by first observing the maze on trolly cars (they made a cognitive map) -suggests that learning can occur without reinforcement - suggests that thinking in the form of cognitive maps plays a central role in at least some forms of learning!
cognitive map
mental representation of how a physical space is organized
secondary reinforcer
neutral object that becomes associated with a primary reinforcer
partial reinforcement
only occasional reinforcement of a behavior, resulting in slower extinction than if the behavior had been reinforced continuously Ex: giving a dog a treat every once in awhile after he performs a trick, will make him keep trying until he gets it!
punishment
outcome or consequence of a behavior that WEAKENS the probability of the behavior - If a punishment involves administering a stimulus then its positive (spanking to decrease bad behavior); if it involves taking away a stimulus than its negative (taking away privileges to decrease bad behavior) -immediate punishment works best
variable ratio schedule
pattern in which we provide reinforcement after a specific number of responses on average, with the number varying randomly -HIGHEST rates of responding variable = the reinforcement occurs on an irregular "variable" basis; dog never knows when he'll get treat so keeps trying! ratio = the animal is reinforced based on the number of RESPONSES it's emitted ; Dog gets a treat every 5 times he rolls over! Ex: this VR schedule is what keeps gamblers hooked bc a huge reinforcement can come at any time!
Fixed ratio schedule
pattern in which we provide reinforcement following a regular number of responses fixed = reinforcement occurs on a "fixed" basis; overtime dog sits he gets a treat ratio = the animal is reinforced based on the number of RESPONSES it's emitted ; Dog gets a treat every 5 times he rolls over! Ex: give a rat a pellet after it presses the lever in a Skinner box 15 times.
variable interval schedule
pattern in which we provide reinforcement for producing the response at least once during an average time interval, with the interval varying randomly variable = the reinforcement occurs on an irregular "variable" basis; dog never knows when he'll get treat so keeps trying! interval = the animal is reinforced based on the amount of TIME elapsed since the last reinforcement; dog gets a treat every 5 minutes
fixed interval schedule
pattern in which we provide reinforcement for producing the response at least once following a specified time interval fixed = reinforcement occurs on a "fixed" basis; overtime dog sits he gets a treat interval = the animal is reinforced based on the amount of TIME elapsed since the last reinforcement; dog gets a treat every 5 minutes
schedule of reinforcement
pattern of reinforcing a behavior - notice the interval ones have less response VARY FIXED (WHEN does reinforcement occur? ) RATIO INTERVAL ( HOW is it reinforced?)
habituation
process of responding less strongly over time to repeated stimuli Ex: chronic snorers are so accustomed to the sound of their own snoring that they no longer notice it Ex: you stop noticing the feeling of the shoes on your feet after putting them on
continuous reinforcement
reinforcing a behavior every time it occurs, resulting in faster learning but faster extinction than only occasional reinforcement Ex: the dog ALWAYS gets a treat
conditioned response (CR)
response previously associated with a non-neutral stimulus that is elicited by a neutral stimulus through conditioning Ex: salivation to metranome
fetishism
sexual attraction to nonliving things Ex: Male birds presented with object & female birds and mated many times. Eventually present the object and the male birds attempt to mate with it. They have been conditioned to develop a fetish.
unconditioned stimulus (UCS)
stimulus that elicits an automatic response Ex: meat powder
instinctive drift
tendency for animals to return to innate behaviors following repeated reinforcement Ex: raccoons wouldnt put coins in bank, instead they rubbed the coins together just like they inately do with their food
equipotentiality
the claim that we can classically condition all CSs equally well to all UCSs - a belief held by many behaviorists.
