chapter 6: What sort of learning does classical conditioning explain?
Little Albert
Watson and Rayner; conditioned an infant to react fearfully to white lab rat; presented with loud sound USC (loud sound) -> CS (rat) -> UCR (crying)
learning
a lasting change in behavior or mental processes that results from experience
mere exposure effect
a learned preference for stimuli to which we have been previously exposed
neutral stimulus
any stimulus that produces no conditioned response prior to learning; becomes conditioned stimulus
taste-aversion learning
biological tendency in which an organism learns, after a single experience, to avoid a food with a certain taste if eating it is followed by illness
stimulus discrimination
change in responses to one stimulus but not to stimuli that are similar
UCS-UCR
connection that involves no learning
acquisition
initial learning stage in classical conditioning during which the conditioned response comes to be elicited by the conditioned stimulus
coyote taste aversion
lamb burger toxins; coyotes stopped eating sheep; back away from them in same cage
habituation
learning not to respond to the repeated presentation of a stimulus
experimental neurosis
pattern of erratic behavior resulting from a demanding discrimination learning task, typically one that involves aversive stimuli
Ivan Pavlov
physiologist; studying digestive system, discovered classical conditioning with saliva
CS
previously neutral stimulus; comes to elicit conditioned response
spontaneous recovery
reappearance of an extinguished CR after a time delay
CR
response elicited by a previously neutral stimulus that has become associated with the UCR
UCR
response elicited by the UCS without prior learning
UCS
stimulus that elicits the UCR
counterconditioning
teaches patients to respond in a relaxed manner to the conditioned stimulus; deal with phobias well
extinction
weakening of a conditioned response in the absence of a UCS
explain acquisition
1. UCS -> UCR, CS -> no response 2. CS -> UCS -> UCR 3. CS -> CR UCR becomes CR, neutral stim. becomes CS
classical conditioning
form of behavioral learning in which a previously neutral stimulus acquires the power to elicit the same innate reflex produced by another stimulus
behavioral learning
forms of learning such as classical and operant conditioning that can be described in terms of stimuli and responses
taste aversion and chemotherapy
give patients odd foods before chemo to avoid them associating healthy, favorite foods with food poisoning and preventing taste aversion
stimulus generalization
giving CR to stimuli that are similar to the CS