Psych Exam 2 Flashcards

type of learning in which a neutral stimulus comes to elicit a response after being paired with a stimulus that naturally brings about that response

a relatively permanent change in behavior that is brought by experience

not always 1-1, there are factors other than learning like fatigue or lack of effort

the decrease in response to a stimulus that occurs after repeated presentations of the same stimulus

developed the framework for learning called classical conditioning

Conditioned a dog to salivate at the sound of a bell instead of the food

in the dog example, this is the bell

before conditioning, does not naturally bring about the response desired

a stimulus that naturally brings about a particular response without having been learned

the food

a natural innate response that occurs automatically and needs no training

the salvation

once-neutral stimulus that has been paired with an unconditioned stimulus to bring about a response formerly caused only by the unconditioned stimulus

conditioned stimulus brings about the conditioned response

occurs when a previously conditioned response decreases in frequency and eventually disappears

is the reemergence of an extinguished conditioned response after a period of time and with no further conditioning

is a process in which after a stimulus has been conditioned to produce a particular response, other stimuli that are similar to the original stimulus produce the same response

occurs if two stimuli are sufficiently distinct from each other such that one evokes a conditioned response but the other does not

when the taste of a particular food is associated with unpleasant symptoms such as nausea or vomiting

learning in which a voluntary response is strengthened or weakened, depending on the response's favorable or unfavorable consequences.

An organism's ability to learn to do something that rewards them over time.

Over time and through experience, the organism would make a direct connection between the stimulus and the response without any awareness that the connection existed.

which states that responses that lead to satisfying consequences are more likely to be repeated.

the process by which a stimulus increases the probability that a preceding behavior will be repeated

any stimulus that increases the probability that a preceding behavior will occur again

satisfies some biological need - food, warmth, pain relief

reinforce in association with a primary reinforcer (like money)

is a stimulus added to the environment that brings about an increase in a preceding response

refers to an unpleasant stimulus whose removal leads to an increase in the probability that a preceding response will be repeated in the future

refers to a stimulus that decreases the probability that a prior behavior will occur again

consists of the removal of something pleasant

weakens a response by applying an unpleasant stimulus

pattern of the frequency and timing of reinforcement that follow desired behavior

behavior that is reinforced every time it occurs

behavior that is reinforced some but not all of the time it occurs

the disappearance of the conditioned response

reinforcement given only after a specific number of responses

behaviors are reinforced after an average number of responses, but exactly when reinforcement will occur is unpredictable

provides reinforcement for a response only if a fixed time period has elapsed

the time between reinforcements varies around some average

is the process of teaching a complex behavior by rewarding closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior.

is a technique for increasing the frequency of desirable behaviors and decreasing the incidence of unwanted ones

goal "increase study time"

target behavior "to study at least 2 hours per day on weekdays"

focuses on how people think, uses internal thoughts and expectations of learners

a new behavior is learned but not demonstrated until some incentive is provided for displaying it (occurs without reinforcement)

a mental representation of spatial locations and directions

which is learning by watching the behavior of another person or model

behavior of models who are rewarded for a given behavior is more likely to be imitated than that of models who are punished for the behavior.

fire when we observe another person carrying out a behavior suggests that the capacity to imitate others may be innate.

learning through practice

learning style using the big picture

learning style do best when they first analyze the various components underlying an object

activation of the sense organs (physical response)

stimuli are interpreted (psychological response)

any passing source of physical energy that produces a response in a sense organ

study of the relationship between the actual physical aspects of a stimulus and our psychological experience of that stimulus

is the lowest intensity of a stimulus that an organism can detect

background stimulation that interferes with the perception of other stimuli (not just auditory stimuli)

the smallest level of added or reduced stimulation required to sense that a change in stimulation has occurred.

the difference threshold is the minimum change in stimulation required to detect the difference between two stimuli

a just noticeable difference is in constant proportion to the intensity of an initial stimulus (not constant amount)

an adjustment in sensory capacity after prolonged exposure to unchanging stimuli

due to the inability of the sensory nerve receptors to fire off messages to the brain indefinitely

the physical energy that stimulates the eye

a transparent protective window at the front of the eye (curved to bend and refract light)

a dark hole that opens depending on the amount of light in the environment, dimmer it is the more it opens

past the pupil, focuses light by changing its own thickness (accommodation)

is the part of the eye that converts the electromagnetic energy of light to electrical impulses for transmission to the brain.

is upside down after the lens

thin, cylindrical receptor cells in the retina that are highly sensitive to light

related to peripheral vision

cone-shaped, light-sensitive receptor cells in the retina that are responsible for sharp focus and color perception

in the fovea (particularly sensitive)

relate to color vision

ganglion cells collect and summarize visual information which is then moved out the back of the eyeball and sent to the brain through a bundle of ganglion axons called the optic nerve

the optic nerves from each eye meet at a point roughly between the two eyes called the optic chiasm

where the ultimate processing of visual images takes place here, the most complex kinds of processing occurs here

are specialized neurons that are activated only by visual stimuli having certain features, such as a particular shape or pattern

approximately 7% of men and .4% of women are color blind

suggests that there are three kinds of cones in the retina, each of which responds primarily to a specific range of wavelengths

activity in the retina continues even when you are no longer staring at the original picture

receptor cells are linked in pairs, working in opposition to each other

acts as a reverse megaphone

the process by which we identify the direction from which a sound is coming

movement of air molecules brought about by a source of vibration

a tube-like passage that leads to the eardrum

part of the ear that vibrates when sound waves hit it

portion of the ear that changes the sound vibrations into a form in which they can be transmitted to the brain

a coiled tube that looks something like a snail and is filled with liquid that vibrates in response to sound.

a structure that runs through the center of the cochlea, dividing it into an upper chamber and a lower chamber, covered with hair cells

when they are bent by the vibrations entering the cochlea, the cells send a neural message to the brain

translate to the pitch. low frequency is low pitch

distinguishes between loud and soft sounds

a person is acutely sensitive to sounds that others find tolerable

states that different areas of the basilar membrane are specialized to respond to different sound frequencies

the entire basilar membrane acts as a microphone, vibrating as a whole in response to a sound

responds more to music

responds more to speech

the use of sound waves and echoes to determine where objects are

in the nose to help us smell, they regenerate and are vulnerable to pollutants, and viruses

sense of taste

four basic stimulus qualities - sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and arguably umami

people who are highly sensitive to taste and those who are insensitive

a disease characterized by a constant, intense pain that is out of proportion to any injury

touch, pressure, temperature, and pain

defined as the presence of pain on most days or every day during the past 6 months

particular nerve receptors in the spinal cord lead to specific areas of the brain related to pain

a perceptual phenomenon in which the stimulation of one sensory system involuntarily leads a person to experience an additional sensory response in a different sensory system

a constructive process by which we go beyond the stimuli that are presented to us and attempt to construct a meaningful situation

important principles that are valid for visual and auditory stimuli - closure, proximity, similarity, and simplicity

perception is guided by higher-level knowledge, experience, expectations, and motivations

consists of the progression of recognizing and processing information from individual components of stimuli and moving to the perception of the whole

ability to view of the world in three dimensions and to perceive distance

certain cues that permit us to obtain a sense of depth and distance with just one eye

the recognition that physical objects are consistent and do not vary even though our sensory input about them changes

physical stimuli that consistently produce errors in perception

the initial process of recording information in a form usable to memory

maintenance of material saved in memory

material in memory has been located and brought into awareness to be useful

process by which we encode, store, and retrieve information

sensory memory, short-term memory, long-term memory

the initial, momentary storage of information that lasts only an instant

holds information for 15-25 seconds and stores it according to its meaning

a relatively permanent basis, although it may be difficult to retrieve

type of sensory memory that refers to the visual system

lasts less than a second

type of sensory memory that refers to the auditory system

lasts 2-3 seconds

unless information in a snapshot is moved to some other type of memory it is lost

a group of seperate pieces of information stored as a single unit in short-term memory (like phone numbers)

the repetition of information that has entered short-term memory

just repeating information over and over. less likely to be moved from short-term to long- term

information is considered and organized in some fashion

strategies for organizing information in a way that makes the information more likely to be remembered

the memory system that holds information temporarily while actively manipulating and rehearsing that information

apart of the working memory. involved in reasoning, decision making, and planning. integrates and coordinates information from three distinct subsystems

visual store (visual and spatial info), verbal store (holds and manipulates material relating to language), episodic buffer (contains info that represents events and occurrences)

items presented early in a list are remembered better

items presented later in a list are remembered best

memory for factual information: names, faces, dates (sometimes called explicit memory)

things

(also called nondeclarative memory or implicit memory): memory for skills and habits

how to do things

one division of declarative memory

general knowledge about facts of the world.

example: 2x2=4

one division of declarative memory

events that occur in a particular time, place, or context

example: where and how we learned 2x2=4

mental representations of clusters of interconnected information

activating one memory triggers the activation of related memories in a process known as spreading activation

the term for the physical memory trace in the brain that corresponds to a memory

produced by a complex of biochemical and neural processes

helps to consolidate memories

where memories are actually stored

involved with memories involving emotion

certain neural pathways become easily excited while a new response is being learned

memories become fixed and stable (takes time)

stimulates the brain and in turn improves memory in experimental settings

temporary inability to remember information one is certain one knows

not complete memory failure

a stimulus that allows us to recall more easily information that is in long-term memory

ex: word, emotion, sound

the specific piece of information must be retreived

when people are presented with a stimulus and asked whether they have been exposed to it previously or are asked to identify it from a list of alternatives.

emphasizes the degree to which new material is mentally analyzed

the greater the intensity of its intial processing, the more likely we are to remember it

refers to intentional or consious recollection of information

refers to memories of which people are not consiously aware but can affect subsequent performance and behavior

occurs when exposure to a word or concept (called the prime) later makes it easier to recall information related to the prime.

the phenomenon in which people have more difficulty recongizing and recalling faces of other races (can be explained by implicit memories

memories related to a specific, important, or surprising event that are so vivid they represent a virtual snapshot of the event

often inaccurate and don't remember everything

occurs when an individual has a memory for some material but cannot remember where they encountered it

memories are influenced by the meaning we give to events

organized bodies of information stored in memory that bias the way new information is interpreted, stored, and recalled

apparent recollections of events that are intially so shocking that the mind responds by pushing them into the unconscious

a person remembers information/events that did not happen or in an inaccurate way

when an innocent person, accused of a crime and interrogated extensively by the police, comes to believe and remember that they actually commited the crime

our recollections of our own life experiences

loss of information in memory through nonuse

not the complete reason for forgetting

information stored in memory disrupts the recall of other information sotred in memory

forgetting that occurs when a person has insufficient retrieval cues to rekindle information that is in memory

the prefrontal cortex of the brain manages access to information stored in memory, enhancing access to information we use most frequently and inhibiting access to conflicting information

information learned earlier disrupts recall of newer material

occurs when material that was learned later disrupts the retrieval of information that was learned earlier

a progressive brain disorder - begins as forgetfulness and ends as inability to speak and eventually death

only common memory disease

memory loss that occurs without other mental difficulties

quite rare, memory is lost for occurrences prior to a certain event

loss of memory occurs for events that follow an injury. information cannot be transferred from short to long term memory; unable to remember anything in long term before the injury.

a disease that afflicts long-term alcoholics