AP Psychology Unit 3 Learning: Conditioning, Cognition, Motivation, and Emotion

Classical conditioning

A type of learning in which an organism forms an association between two stimuli, so a previously neutral stimulus comes to elicit a response because it predicts another stimulus.

Unconditioned stimulus (US)

A stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response (e.g., food, pain, a puff of air to the eye).

Unconditioned response (UR)

An unlearned, automatic response elicited by the unconditioned stimulus (e.g., salivation to food, blinking to an air puff).

Neutral stimulus (NS)

A stimulus that initially does not elicit the target response before conditioning (e.g., a bell before it predicts food).

Conditioned stimulus (CS)

A previously neutral stimulus that, after being paired with the US, becomes a learned predictor of the US and can elicit a response.

Conditioned response (CR)

A learned response to the conditioned stimulus (e.g., salivating to the bell after conditioning).

Acquisition

The initial phase of classical conditioning when the association between the CS and US is being formed, typically strongest when the CS reliably predicts and occurs shortly before the US.

Stimulus generalization

The tendency for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to also elicit the conditioned response.

Discrimination

The learned ability to distinguish between similar stimuli and respond only to the stimulus that predicts the US.

Extinction

The weakening of a conditioned response when the conditioned stimulus is repeatedly presented without the unconditioned stimulus; best understood as new learning that the CS no longer predicts the US.

Spontaneous recovery

The reappearance of an extinguished conditioned response after a rest period when the CS is presented again.

Higher-order (second-order) conditioning

Conditioning in which an established CS is paired with a new neutral stimulus, causing the new stimulus to become another CS that can elicit a response.

Conditioned taste aversion

A form of classical conditioning in which a taste becomes associated with nausea, often after a single pairing and even with a long delay between eating and illness.

Biological constraints

Evolutionary limits on conditioning that make some associations easier to learn than others (e.g., taste with nausea; certain cues with fear).

Operant conditioning

Learning in which behavior is shaped and maintained by its consequences; behaviors followed by reinforcement increase, and behaviors followed by punishment decrease.

Law of effect

Thorndike’s principle that behaviors followed by satisfying outcomes become more likely, while behaviors followed by unpleasant outcomes become less likely.

Positive reinforcement

Increasing a behavior by adding a desirable stimulus after the behavior (e.g., giving a treat for sitting).

Negative reinforcement

Increasing a behavior by removing an aversive stimulus after the behavior (e.g., buckling a seatbelt to stop a beeping sound).

Positive punishment

Decreasing a behavior by adding an aversive stimulus after the behavior (e.g., assigning extra chores after breaking curfew).

Negative punishment

Decreasing a behavior by removing a desirable stimulus after the behavior (e.g., taking away a phone for missing homework).

Shaping (successive approximations)

Reinforcing behaviors that increasingly resemble the desired behavior, gradually building complex behavior step-by-step.

Variable ratio (VR) schedule

A reinforcement schedule in which reinforcement occurs after an unpredictable number of responses; produces very high, steady responding (e.g., slot machines).

Observational learning

Learning that occurs by watching others (models), without requiring direct reinforcement or immediate performance during learning.

Vicarious reinforcement

In observational learning, increased likelihood of imitating a behavior after seeing someone else rewarded for it (and decreased imitation after seeing punishment).

Self-efficacy

Bandura’s term for a person’s belief in their ability to succeed at a specific task; influences persistence and effort (task-specific, not the same as self-esteem).