Compare Classical and Operant Conditioning

Classical and Operant Conditioning have similarities along with differences. One thing they have in common is that they both are ways of changing one’s behavior. Both are also based on behavior and the environment.

They differ because Classical Conditioning is naturally occurring according to the stimulus, and operant conditioning is through voluntary behavior.
Kristine

Ways of learning

Punishment is the consequence that follows a operant response that decreases (or attempts to decrease) the likelihood of the response occurring again.

A Cognitive map is used to refer to one’s internal representation of the experienced world.

Latent Learning is a form of learning that occurs without obvious reinforcement to be applied later. When a person learns something in life, but the knowledge is not immediately expressed. It remains dormant and may not be available to consciousness until certain circumstances allow or require it to be expressed. An example demonstrating this is child observes parent setting kitchen table, but he does not perform this himself until about a year or so.
Kristine

Reinforcement

Reinforcement is to strengthen. Strengthening the stimulus strengthens or increases the probability of a specific response.

Positive reinforcement is adding something in order to increase a response. Adding a praise adds a chance of a child cleaning his room.

Negative reinforcement is taking something away to increase a response. Taking away teen’s cell phone to prevent distraction while studying for a test will affect their grade positively.

Primary and Conditioned Reinforcers

Primary Reinforcers are a stimulus that does not require pairing to function as a reinforcer and most likely observed this function through the evolution and its role in survival. Some examples are sleep, food, air, and water.

Conditioned Reinforcers is a stimulus or situation that has acquired its function as a reinforcer after pairing with a stimulus that functions as a reinforcer. Some examples are praise, rewards, and treats.

Immediate and Delayed Reinforcers
You have a test tomorrow
It’s late and you are tired so you decide to sleep
You decide to study tomorrow morning by waking up an hour earlier.
The next morning you decide to sleep in rather than study.
Immediate reinforcer is you sleeping
Delayed reinforcer is doing well on the test.
Immediate reinforcer is superior to delayed reinforce because it forms a stronger relationship with stimulus and response. Example- sleeping because you FEEL tired.
Kristine

Stimulus

Discrimininative stimulus does not force or produce but it only suggests what to do or not to do. By some things presence or absence influences the probability of certain behavioral response.
For example , some jokes you tell your priest may be different than jokes you would tell your best friend because of your past history of telling jokes to both kinds of people.
Kristine

Foreign languages

The memory is said to work better retaining information, such as a foreign language, taught before the age of 10. Children brought up speaking two languages will remember the language later in life longer than if taught later in life. The foreign language program should start at elementary school because not only will they retain the information better but also they will get more out of the language because they are spending more time on it.
Kristine Hernandez

Consider Wilson High School's social enviornment. How often does peer pressure play a role in the decisions that students make here?

Peer pressure plays an important role in schools. No matter how much we deny it everyone knows that at least once in school we have been tempted to do something by our peers. A perfectly well behaved student can be uninfluenced by the wrong crew. Most kids decide to fit in whether it is with their social group or in society. Therefore the feeling of embarrassment or awkwardness is not wanted. For example, a kid that is out late with friends who has a project due is influenced by his friends being told it is not important or that they are a “nerd”. Kids everywhere are influenced, at a younger age today. Girls in elementary school are influenced by needing to have the same hairstyle. If not they are “weird”.
Kristine Hernandez

Based on what you know about psychology and biology, do you believe that men and women can be perfectly equal in our society?

Yes, men and woman are equal in society; but there are some jobs such as construction workers and house maids that are designed for the individual roles. Yes men can be housemaids and yes woman can be contruction workers but as far as being hired men are typically hired faster for a construction company than women. Sexism in jobs is common.
Kristine Hernandez

Nature Vs. Nurture and the genes of humans Kristine Hernandez

Nature vs. Nurture
Nature - being born with certain traits
Nurture - developing character traits through experience

Genes/ DNA- are biochemical units of heredity that make up the chromosome; a segment of DNA capable of synthesising a protein

Evolutionary psychology explains traits such as memory perception of language. It is the study of evolution of behavior and mind using principles of natural selection. Natural selection means that even though there are a range of traits will most likely be passed on to the generations to come.
Sexuality/Gender.
Gender bias is a variable that scientists have to control within the experiment. Gender bias exists today in the workplace and every aspect of society.
Behavior genetics is the study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior.

Placticity and the Brain

Plasticity is the brain's ability to reorganize neural pathways based on experiences that occur.
The divided brain has two sides. The left hemisphere is the "dominant side" easiest to study also.
The right hemisphere is the "subordinate side". Speech is processed here.

Kristine Hernandez