Download Day 16 (Nov 15th, chapter 6).

Day 16
November-15-10
1:00 PM
Get mock exam from course content/PASS website under mock exams
Chapter 5
Use of drugs is based on biological, psychological, and socio-cultural influences
Reward center is in the mesolimbic system in the brain - differences in the reward system will make
some people more or less likely to get addicted
Chapter 6 - Learning
Main points:
Learning and habituation
Classical conditioning
Operant conditioning
Conditioning of complex behaviours (phobias)
Learning: A relatively permanent change in behaviour (or behavioural potential) due to experience
Behaviourism: Emphasizes the study of observable behaviour and the role of the environment as a
determinant of behaviour - not interested in the mind
Learning results in a change in your neurons - you're releasing a neurotransmitter called glutamate
which strengthens synaptic circuits to permanently encode information
Habituation: The simplest form of learning - appears in even the most basic animals - learning not to
respond to an unimportant event that occurs repeatedly, if it doesn't affect our survival
Classical conditioning
Mainly revolves around Pavlov's accidental (serendipitous) discovery
By observing dogs during the digestion process - trying to figure out the physiological processes involved
in digestion, Pavlov formulated his theory of classical conditioning
Pavlov would put meat powder inside the dog's mouth, and a tube would collect saliva in their mouth
The responses are innate, reflexive, and innate - blinking, fear, salivation, sexual arousal - they just
happen
Began experimenting with different cues to signal the arrival of the food - the bell or tone used would be
a conditioned cue that food was coming
Contingency - association between a stimulus and a response
Eventually, the dogs would salivate with just the bell - no food involved
Pavlov made a screen so the dogs wouldn't know food was coming - then added cues to signal the
arrival of food
Classical conditioning: The process by which a previously neutral stimulus acquires the capacity to elicit
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Classical conditioning: The process by which a previously neutral stimulus acquires the capacity to elicit
a response through association with a stimulus that already elicits a similar or related response
Unconditioned stimulus: The original, unlearned stimulus (food) - you will naturally respond to it
Unconditioned response: Original, unlearned response - the natural response to the UCS
Then a neutral stimulus is introduced alongside (paired with) the UCS - and it always has to come before
the UCS
Eventually, the neutral stimulus becomes associated with the UR
When it's so strong that JUST the neutral stimulus elicits a response, it becomes a CONDITIONED
stimulus alongside a CONDITIONED response
Only when the response (salivating) occurs without the unconditioned stimulus (food) does the
response become the CR - conditioned response
Unconditioned stimulus: A stimulus that elicits a reflexive response in the absence of learning
Conditioned stimulus: An initially neutral stimulus that comes to elicit a conditioned response after
being associated with an unconditioned stimulus
Unconditioned response: A reflexive response
Conditioned response:
The ability to recognize stimuli that predict the occurrence of an important event allows us to make the
appropriate response faster and more effectively
Stimuli that were previously unimportant acquire some of the properties of the important stimuli and
can now modify behaviour
Token economies: Use tokens instead of money to modify behaviour - used in prison, rehab, etc. - when
they perform a behaviour you want to encourage, give them a token, making it more likely for them to
repeat it
This is based on Thorndike's Law of Effect
Punishment: Withholding a reward - getting something aversive, either by removing a benefit or adding
something aversive
Maladaptive behaviour: Things you'll want to discourage
Acquisition: The beginning stages of learning - the point where you're still connecting the unconditioned
and neutral stimuli - a neutral stimulus is consistently followed by a UCS as it becomes a CS
- Affected by stimulus intensity and timing
- Intensity increases the likelihood or speed of an association - if you give only a very light stimulus
(very small shock) - it won't have much of a connection
- Timing is important - the stimulus has to occur before the unconditioned stimulus - the optimal
delay being 0.5 seconds, the maximum being 30 seconds
Extinction: The weakening and eventual disappearance of a learned response - it occurs when the CS is
given without the UCS - they'll learn not to respond anymore, because the cue no longer signals
anything
Spontaneous recovery: Forgetting that the CS is no longer associated with the UCS - they'll still respond
as if the UCS is coming
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as if the UCS is coming
Generalization and discrimination: Generalization: Occurrence of responding to a stimulus similar to the
discriminative stimulus (responding to all lights instead of just green lights, or being afraid of all dogs
instead of just the one that bit you)
Watson founded Behaviourism, and he believed that emotions could be conditioned as well
He conditioned Little Albert to be afraid of white rats by pairing them with a loud noise - Albert became
afraid of rats and eventually all furry objects
After being fired from his university, Watson went to work with Maxwell House (coffee) and created the
idea of slogans and branding
Advertising relies hugely on conditioning - using famous spokespeople for products, giving incentives for
buying certain things
Conditioned emotional responses: Phobias are an example of a conditioned emotional response - an
unreasonable fear of specific objects or situations, often learned through classical conditioning
Operant conditioning
Mainly revolves around Skinner
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