REVIEW Biology, Cognition, and Learning

Learning Objectives

279

Test Yourself by taking a moment to answer each of these Learning Objective Questions (repeated here from within the module). Research suggests that trying to answer these questions on your own will improve your long-term memory of the concepts (McDaniel et al., 2009).

Question

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ANSWER: Classical conditioning principles, we now know, are constrained by biological predispositions, so that learning some associations is easier than learning others. Learning is adaptive: Each species learns behaviors that aid its survival. Biological constraints also place limits on operant conditioning. Training that attempts to override biological constraints will probably not endure because animals will revert to predisposed patterns.

Question

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ANSWER: In classical conditioning, animals may learn when to expect a US and may be aware of the link between stimuli and responses. In operant conditioning, cognitive mapping and latent learning research demonstrate the importance of cognitive processes in learning. Other research shows that excessive rewards (driving extrinsic motivation) can undermine intrinsic motivation.

Question

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ANSWER: In observational learning, as we observe and imitate others we learn to anticipate a behavior's consequences because we experience vicarious reinforcement or vicarious punishment. In associative learning, we merely learn associations between different events. Our brain's frontal lobes have a demonstrated ability to mirror the activity of another's brain. Some psychologists believe mirror neurons enable this process. (Others argue it may be more due to the brain's distributed brain networks.) The same areas fire when we perform certain actions (such as responding to pain or moving our mouth to form words) as when we observe someone else performing those actions.

Question

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ANSWER: Children tend to imitate what a model does and says, whether the behavior being modeled is prosocial (positive, constructive, and helpful) or antisocial. If a model's actions and words are inconsistent, children may imitate the hypocrisy they observe.

Terms and Concepts to Remember

Test yourself on these terms.

Question

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Experience the Testing Effect

Test yourself repeatedly throughout your studies. This will not only help you figure out what you know and don’t know; the testing itself will help you learn and remember the information more effectively thanks to the testing effect.

Question 7.15

1. Garcia and Koelling's H+TQQnLYWc97WyOgjy5RSXrmOG9gCRiBlydcF2ocpaFGYiFp studies showed that conditioning can occur even when the unconditioned stimulus (US) does not immediately follow the neutral stimulus (NS).

Question 7.16

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ANSWER: This finding supports Darwin's principle that natural selection favors traits that aid survival.

Question 7.17

3. Evidence that cognitive processes play an important role in learning comes in part from studies in which rats running a maze develop fYNie+kRiECK1j5c1DH9mv+1suA= .

Question 7.18

4. Rats that explored a maze without any reward were later able to run the maze as well as other rats that had received food rewards for running the maze. The rats that had learned without reinforcement demonstrated 4k3qs+DaieQFi38aclm4GkJyHqo= .

Question 7.19

5. Children learn many social behaviors by imitating parents and other models. This type of learning is called K30U/RM9mxwNA1DCp8QrwuNWUlXe5R5jWCJsIw== .

Question 7.20

6. According to Bandura, we learn by watching models because we experience reinforcement or punishment 7GlVjxxx1qUJ0olkhm3YtA== .

Question 7.21

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Question 7.22

8. Some scientists believe that the brain has uPlw4J7VMhQcp595 neurons that enable empathy and imitation.

Question 7.23

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