140. BEHAVIORISM

• Habituation


  A decrease in the strength of an elicited behavior following repeated presentations of the eliciting stimulus
• Sensitization


  An increase in the strength of an elicited behavior following repeated presentations of the eliciting stimulus
• Both habituation and sensitization usually disappear when the stimulus is not presented for a period of time
• Sensitization generalizes to other stimuli
• Habituation tends to be more stimulus specific
• Even small changes in the stimulus may result in reappearance of the response
• Evolutionary (adaptive) significance of the stimulus


  • Currently irrelevant - habituate
  • Currently relevant - not habituate
  • Extremely relevant/dangerous - sensitized
• Intensity of the eliciting stimulus

  • Low-intensity (e.g., ticking of the clock) - habituation
  • High-intensity (e.g., exploding artillery shells) - sensitization
  • Intermediate intensity (e.g., shots fired in a shooting range) - initial period of sensitization followed by habituation
• Dishabituation


  Reappearance of habituated responses following the presentation of a seemingly irrelevant novel stimulus
• Opponent Process Theory of Emotion

  • An emotional event elicits two competing processes:
  • An a-process (or primary process) that is directly elicited by the event
  • A b-process (or opponent process) elicited by the a-process and serves to counteract the a-process
  • Slow to increase and slow to decrease
  • With repeated presentations of the emotional event, the b-process increases in both strength and duration
• Classical Conditioning


  A type of conditioned learning which occurs because of the subject's instinctive responses
• Respondent Conditioning


  • The acquisition of knowledge in responding to environmental signals
  • A type of learning that happens when stimuli naturally produce a response
• Unconditioned Stimulus (US)


  Stimulus that leads to an automatic response
• Unconditioned Response (UR)


  Automatic response to a stimulus
• Conditioned Stimulus (CS)


  Stimulus that can trigger a conditioned response
• Conditioned Response (CR)


  Learned response to a previously neutral stimulus
• In classical conditioning, a conditioned response depends on an unconditioned stimulus for its existence
• Unconditioned stimulus is referred to as a reinforcer
• Steps in Classical Conditioning

  1. To produce a CR, the CS and the US must be paired a number of times (conditioning trial)

  2. CS is first presented then the US

  3. Each time the US occurs, a UR occurs

  4. A CR is demonstrated when a response similar to UR is elicited even when CS is presented alone
• Pavlov believed that the CS comes to substitute for the US (stimulus substitute learning); thus, the UR and the CR are always the same kind of response
• However, the magnitude of CR is always less than the UR
• Later research suggests that Pavlov's contention that CRs are always a "mini-me" of URs is incorrect
• Excitatory Conditioning (CS+)


  Conditioning in which the NS is associated with the presentation of a US; results in eliciting a certain response
• Inhibitory Conditioning (CS-)


  Conditioning in which the NS is associated with the absence or removal of a US; the CS comes to inhibit the occurrence of a certain response
• Appetitive Conditioning


  US is an event that an organism will generally approach and seek out
• Aversive Conditioning


  • US is an event that an organism generally avoids
  • Occurs rapidly, especially when the aversive stimulus is quite strong
  • Close relationship between aversive conditioning and survival
• • Pavlov: shock to dog's paw and then received food, dog would begin to salivate in response to the shock
  • But, if applied to a different paw, would not salivate but react with discomfort
• Classical conditioning can transform a normally aversive stimulus into an appetitive stimulus
• Delay conditioning


  Often the best arrangement for conditioning especially if the ISI is relatively short
• Trace conditioning


  Can be almost as effective as delay conditioning if the trace interval is relatively short
• Simultaneous conditioning


  Usually results in poor conditioning (even if closest possible contiguity)
• Traditionally, simultaneous conditioning is considered the least effective procedure for conditioning of an excitatory response (BUT works still is is the NS is biologically relevant stimulus)
• Acquisition


  • Process of developing and strengthening a CR through repeated pairings of a NS with a US
  • Proceeds rapidly during early conditioning trials then gradually levels off
  • More intense USs produce stronger and more rapid conditioning than do less intense USs
  • More intense NSs result in stronger and more rapid conditioning than do less intense NSs
• Extinction


  • Repeated presentation of the CS in the absence of the US (procedure)
  • Process is the decrease in the strength of the CR
  • A response that has been extinguished can be reacquired rapidly when the CS/NS is again paired with the US
• Spontaneous Recovery


  • Reappearance of a CR when a period of extinction is followed by a rest period
  • Likely to happen when contexts are different
  • Does not last forever
  • Indicates that extinction is not unlearning but of learning something new (to inhibit the occurrence of the CR in the presence of the CS); SR as partial weakening of this inhibition
• Stimulus Generalization


  • Tendency for a CR to occur in the presence of a stimulus that is similar to the CS
  • The more similar the stimulus is to the original CS, the stronger the response
  • Explains how we can have a learned reaction to a situation that we never have experienced before
• Stimulus Discrimination


  • Tendency for a response to be elicited more by one stimulus than another
  • Useful means for determining the sensory capacities of an animal
  • Can be brought about in two ways: prolonged training and differential reinforcement
• Discrimination Training and Experimental Neurosis


  • An experimentally produced disorder in which animals exposed to unpredictable events develop neurotic-like symptoms
  • Maybe this is how some human neuroses developed → situations of extreme uncertainty
  • Dogs had different reactions, some anxious, some catatonic, some just fine → individual differences
• Compensatory Response Model


  • A CS that has been repeatedly associated with the primary response (a-process) to a US will eventually come to elicit a compensatory response (b-process)
  • Heroin → decreased BP
  • Heroin-related cues → increased BP
  • Conditioning eventually results in a CR that appears to be the opposite of the UR
  • If start occurring before the US is presented, will be even more effective in minimizing the disturbance produced by the US
• Drug Tolerance


  • Greater tolerance in settings with the CSs
  • External and internal CSs associated with the use of a drug cause CRs to counteract the drug before it is ingested, making it less effective
  • Amount ingested may not be a reliable gauge for how intoxicated you are
  • May become more intoxicated during drive home from the bar when you were in the bar