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Chapter 6
Notes
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Know about classical conditioning and
Ivan Pavlov.
Classical conditioning: the repeated
pairing of an unconditioned stimulus
with a neutral stimulus to produce the
same behavior.
 UCS/US : an event that produces an
automatic or unlearned response
 UCR/UR : an automatic or unlearned
response that is preceded by a UCS
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Neutral stimulus (NS) : a stimulus
that does not elicit a response prior to
learning
 CS : an original neutral stimulus that
has been paired repeatedly with the
UCS to produce a conditioned
response
 CR : a response elicited by the
conditioned stimulus
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Pavlov’s experiment
What was the UCS?
 Meat powder
 What was the UCR?
 Salivation
 What was the NS?
 Bell
 What was the CS?
 Bell
 What was the CR?
 Salivation
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Know factors that may influence the
conditioning process.
Generalization: the tendency for a
conditioned response (behavior) to be
elicited by similar stimuli
 Discrimination: the ability to
distinguish between the CS and
similar stimuli that are not associated
with the UCS
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Second-order conditioning: a new neutral
stimulus is repeatedly paired with the
conditioned stimulus in order to elicit the
same conditioned response
Extinction: when the conditioned stimuli no
longer elicits the conditioned response after
repeated presentation of the CS without the
UCS
Reconditioning: a quick relearning of a
previously extinct CS-CR association
Spontaneous recovery: the recovery of a
previously extinguished response after a
passage of time
Know about the experiment involving “little
Albert”
John B. Watson wanted to condition
the emotion of fear in a human infant
 Conditioned 9-month old Albert to cry
at the sign of a white rat
 Used second-order conditioning to
generalize fear to white and fluffy
stimuli
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Understand how classical conditioning is
used for practical applications.
Treating phobias: flooding –
continuously exposing an individual to
the fear-evoking CS to eliminate the
CR (fear)
 Systematic desensitization – exposing
the patient to a series of
approximations to the anxietyproducing stimulus under relaxed
conditions until the anxiety reaction is
extinguished
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Counterconditioning: pairing fearevoking stimulus with a pleasant
stimulus to reverse the effects of the
phobia.
 Conditioned taste aversion – when
exposure to a noxious substance
causes sickness and results in the
individual associating the food with
the sickness, making him or her avoid
that food in the future
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Know about B.F. Skinner and operant
conditioning.
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Punishment: a stimulus that decreases the
strength of the exhibited behavior
Reinforcer: a stimulus that increases the
strength of the exhibited behavior
Primary reinforcers: any reinforcing stimuli
that satisfy a biological need
Secondary reinforcers: any previously
neutral stimuli that have gained
reinforcement value after being associated
with another reinforcer
Positive: the addition of a stimulus
 Negative: the removal of a stimulus
 Remember that all reinforcers (+ or -)
will encourage the repetition of a
behavior.
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Know the four basic types of partial
reinforcement schedules.
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Fixed-ratio: reinforcement is provided after
a set number of the correct responses are
performed
Variable-ratio: reinforcement is provided
after a varying number of correct behaviors
Fixed-interval: reinforcement is provided for
the first desired response after a set amount
of time has elapsed
Variable-interval: reinforcement is provided
after the first desired response after a
varying amount of time has elapsed.
Understand cognitive learning terms.
Learned helplessness: failure to
continue exerting effort for an
outcome because all previous
attempts have failed.
 Cognitive maps: mental
representations people rely on to
understand complex patterns.
 Latent learning: learning that may not
be displayed until a later time
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Know about Albert Bandura and
observational learning.
Observational learning: acquiring
knowledge by watching others
perform a task.
 Bandura: Bobo doll experiment
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