final exam study guide

any relatively durable change in behavior or knowledge that is due to experience

irrational fears of specific objects or situations

a neutral stimulus acquires the ability to evoke a response that was originally evoked by another stimulus.

a stimulus that evokes an unconditioned response without previous conditioning

an unlearned reaction to an unconditioned stimulus that occurs without previous conditioning

the gradual weakening and disappearance of conditioned response tendency

the reappearance of an extinguished response after a period of non-exposure

if a response is extinguished ina different environment than it was acquired, the extinguished response will reappear if the animal is returned to the original environment where acquisition took place

when an organism that has learned a response to a specific stimulus responds in the same way to a new stimuli that are similar to the original stimulus

occurs when an organism that has learned a response to a specific stimulus does not respond in the same way to a new stimuli that are similar to the original stimulus

in which a conditioned stimulus functions as if it were an unconditioned stimulus

a form of learning in which responses come to be controlled by their consequences

if a response in the presence of a stimulus leads to satisfying effects, the associated between the stimulus and the response is strengthened

occurs when an event following a response increases an organism's tendency to make that response

small enclosure in which an animal can make a specific response that is recorded while the consequences of the response are systematically controlled

to send forth

the circumstances or rules that determine whether responses lead to the presentation of reinforcers

this creates a graphic record of responding and reinforcement in a skinner box as a function of time.

events that are inherently reinforcing because they satisfy biological needs

events that acquire reinforcing qualities by being associated with primary reinforcers

consists of the reinforcement of closer and closer approximations of a desired response

occurs when an organism continues to make a response after delivery of the reinforcer has been terminated

cues that influence operant behavior by indicating the probable consequences of a response

determines which occurrences of a specific response result in the presentation of a reinforcer

occurs when every instance of a designated response is reinforced

occurs when a designated response is reinforced only some of the time

the reinforcer is given after a fixed number of non reinforced responses

the reinforcer is given after a variable number of non-reinforced responses

the reinforcer is given for the first response that occurs after a fixed time interval has elapsed

the reinforcer is given for the first response after a variable time interval has elapsed

occurs when a response is strengthened because it is followed by the presentation of a rewarding stimulus

occurs when a response is strengthened because it is followed by the removal of an unpleasant stimulus

an organism acquires a response that decreases or ends some aversive stimulation

an organism acquires a response that prevents some aversive stimulation from occurring

this occurs when an event following a response weakens the tendency to make that response

involves species-specific predispositions to be conditioned in certain ways and not others

learning that is not apparent from behavior when it first occurs

occurs when an organism's responding is influenced by the observation of others, who are called models.

a systematic approach to changing behavior through the application of the principles of conditioning

refers broadly to mental processes of thinking

this consists of symbols that convey meaning, plus rules for combining those symbols, that can be used to generate an infinite variety of messages

the smallest speech units in a language that can be distinguished perceptually

the smallest units of meaning in a language

the area of language concerned with understanding the meaning of words and word combinations

a system of rules that specify how words can be arranged into sentences

the process by which children map a word onto an underlying concept after only one exposure

this occurs when a child incorrectly uses a word to describe a wider set of objects or actions than it is mean to

this occurs when a child incorrectly uses a word to describe a narrower set of objects or actions than it is meant to

this consists mainly of content words and other less critical words are omitted

the average length of youngsters' spoken statements

these occur when grammatical rules are incorrectly generalized to irregular cases where they do not apply

the acquisition of two languages that use different speech sounds, vocabulary, and grammatical rules

the hypothesis that one's language determines the nature of one's thought

strands of DNA molecules that carry genetic information

a single cell formed by the union of a sperm and an egg

DNA segments that serve as the key functional units in hereditary transmission

two genes in a specific pair are the same

two genes in a specific pair are different

a gene that is expressed when paired genes are different

a gene that is masked when paired genes are different

a person's genetic makeup

the ways in which a person's genotype is manifested in observable characteristics

characteristics that are influenced by more than one pair of genes

researches asses hereditary influence by examining blood relatives to see how much they resemble one another on a specific trait

researchers asses hereditary influence by comparing the resemblance of identical twins and fraternal twins with respect to trait

emerge from one zygote that splits for unknown reasons

result when two eggs are fertilized simultaneously by different sperm cells, forming two separate zygotes

assess heredity influence by examining the resemblance between adopted children and both their biological and their adoptive parents

the process of determining the location and chemical sequence of specific genes on specific chromosomes

the reproductive success of an individual organism relative to the average reproductive success in the population

the sequence of age-related changed that occur as a person progresses from conception to death

extends from conception to birth, usually encompassing nine months of pregnancy

the first phase of prenatal development, the first 2 weeks after conception

a structure that allows oxygen and nutrients to pass into the fetus from the mother's bloodstream and bodily wastes to pass out the mother

the second stage of prenatal development, lasting from 2 weeks to the end of the 2nd month

the third stage of prenatal development, lasting from 2 months through birth

the age at which a baby can survive in the even of a premature birth

a collection of congenital problems associated with excessive alcohol use during pregnancy

refers to the progression of muscular coordination required for physical activities

the head-to-foot direction of motor development

the center-outward direction of motor development

development that reflects the gradual unfolding of one's genetic blueprint

typical age at which individuals display various behaviors and abilities

characteristic mood, activity level, and emotional reactivity

observing one group of participants repeatedly over time

when differences between age groups are due to the groups growing up in different time periods

the close, emotional bonds of affection that develop between infants and their caregivers

emotional distress seen in many infants when they are separated from people with whom they have formed an attachment

a developmental period during which characteristic patterns of behavior are exhibited and certain capacities become established

refers to transitions in youngsters' patterns of thinking, including reasoning, remembering, and problem solving

when a child recognizes that objects out of view continue to exist

the term for awareness that physical quantities remain constant in spite of changes in their shape or appearance

the tendency to focus on just one feature of a problem, neglecting other important aspects

inability to envision reversing an action

limited ability to share another person's viewpoint

the gap between what a learner can accomplish alone and what he or she can achieve with guidance from ore skilled partners

basic reasoning abilities, memory capacity, and speed of information processing

the ability to apply acquired knowledge and skills in problem solving

acquisition of the norms and behaviors expected of people in a particular society

proposes that it is useful to think of abnormal behavior as a disease

apparent causation and developmental history of an illness

study of the distribution of mental or physical disorders in a population

percentage of a population that exhibit a disorder during a specified time period

a class of disorders marked by feelings of excessive apprehension and anxiety

marked by a chronic, high level of anxiety that is not tied to any specific threat

marked by a persistent and irrational fear of an object of situation that presents no realistic danger

recurrent attacks of overwhelming anxiety that usually occur suddenly and unexpectedly

a fear of going out to public places

physical ailments that cannot be fully explained by organic conditions and are largely due to psychological factors

a history of diverse physical complaints that appear to be psychological in origin

a significant loss of physical function usually in a single organ system

a class of disorders in which people lose contact with portions of their consciousness or memory, resulting in disruptions in their sense of identity

a sudden memory loss for important personal information that is too extensive to be due to normal forgetting

people lose their memory for their entire lives along with their sense of personal identity

coexistance of one person of two or more largely complete and usually different personalities

a class of disorders marked by emotional disturbances of varied kinds that may spill over to disrupt physical, perceptual,social and thought processes

people show persistent feelings of sadness and despair

chronic depression

characterized by the experience of one or more manic episodes as well as periods of depression

when someone exhibit chronic but relatively mild symptoms of bipolar disturbance

a class of disorders marked by delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech and deterioration of adaptive behavior

false beliefs that are maintained even though they clearly are out of touch with reality

dominated by delusions of persecution

marked by striking motor disturbances

severe deterioration of adaptive behavior is seen

idiosyncratic mixtures of schizophrenic symptoms

the degree to which a relative of a patient displays highly critical or emotionally over-involved attitudes towards the patient

a class of disorders marked by extreme, inflexible personality traits that cause subjective distress or impaired social and occupational functioning

verbal interactions intended to enhance client's self-knowledge and thus promote healthy changes in personality and behavior

an insight therapy that emphasize the recovery of unconscious conflicts, motives, and defenses through techniques such as free association and transference

clients spontaneously express their thoughts and feelings exactly as they occur, with as little censorship as possible

the therapist interprets the symbolic meaning of the client's dreams

the therapist's attempts to explain the inner significance of the client's thoughts, feelings, memories, and behaviors

this occurs when clients unconsciously start relating to their therapist in ways that mimic critical relationships in their lives

a behavior therapy used to reduce phobic clients' anxiety responses through counterconditioning

behavior therapy in which an aversive stimulus is paired with a stimulus that elicits an undesirable response

specific strategies to crrect habitual thinking errors that underlie various types of disorders