UNIT 3/4 Thread 2013

[darklight]

Hi guys,

Instead of starting a new topic each time I have a question, I decided to make a thread for us Unit 3/4ers! Feel free to post up any questions you have

Q1. I keep seeing the term "discriminative stimulus" around. What exactly does this mean (definition anyone?) and are we required to know it, as I cannot find it on the study design.

[Scooby]

Discriminative stimulus = stimulus in operant conditioning

[Limista]

Q1. I keep seeing the term "discriminative stimulus" around. What exactly does this mean (definition anyone?) and are we required to know it, as I cannot find it on the study design.

Wouldn't hurt & there's really not much to it anyway, as Scooby concisely pointed out above. I wouldn't go researching it in great detail, since it's not mentioned in the study design, but knowing what it means is enough.

[darklight]

 

Discriminative stimulus = stimulus in operant conditioning

Oh really, because in the VCAA sample exam (2011-2014) it said discriminative stimulus = antecedent condition...

Does observational learning = vicarious conditioning? Also I was doing a practice question which said observational learning does not always occur vicariously? Is this true/how else would it occur?

Thanks

[Scooby]

Oh really, because in the VCAA sample exam (2011-2014) it said discriminative stimulus = antecedent condition...

Does observational learning = vicarious conditioning? Also I was doing a practice question which said observational learning does not always occur vicariously? Is this true/how else would it occur?

Thanks

The antecedent stimulus/condition is another way of describing the stimulus, probably to throw off people who haven't heard of it. It's a bit less common but they used it in our exam last year

I don't know how observational learning could be anything but vicarious. The whole principle is that the learner observers a model's behaviour and then attempts to reproduce it. Obviously the motivation for learning the behaviour could be intrinsic and the reinforcement might not necessarily be from the environment (eg. self reinforcement), but yeah...

Did the answer for that question give any explanation?

[IvanJames]

If a classical conditioning experiment had taken place and someone wanted to study stimulus discrimination, what could that person do? (3 marks)

This question was in my SAC and I was wondering if the correct answer would be for the student to simply introduce other stimuli similar to the CS and seeing if the participant still responded to the similar stimuli?

Or would it be to pair the CS with the CR and introduce other stimuli without pairing it with the CR, so the participant knows to discriminate other stimuli?

If that makes sense?

Thanks!

[Scooby]

You don't "pair" the CS and CR. The CS invokes the CR. You pair two stimuli (eg. you pair the UCS and the NS), not a stimulus and a response

To test for stimulus discrimination you'd introduce to the learner a stimulus similar to the CS and check to see if the CR is observed. If it is, we may be dealing with a degree of stimulus generalisation. If not, the learner may be discriminating the CS from other stimuli. That isn't to say that another stimulus similar to the CS won't invoke the CR though - you might have not chosen an appropriate stimulus

[radl223]

Hey darklight,

In response to your question about observtional learning not occurring vicariously, the answer should be that it can also occur cognitively. For example, in the case of the Bobo doll experiments, vicarious learning can occur, but it can also be cognitive where children may have learnt how to hit the Bobo doll, but did not necessarily display or demonstrate the behaviour they learnt.

If you're not already, I would recommend reading the Oxford psychology textbook as this was stated in it  

[IvanJames]

You don't "pair" the CS and CR. The CS invokes the CR. You pair two stimuli (eg. you pair the UCS and the NS), not a stimulus and a response

To test for stimulus discrimination you'd introduce to the learner a stimulus similar to the CS and check to see if the CR is observed. If it is, we may be dealing with a degree of stimulus generalisation. If not, the learner may be discriminating the CS from other stimuli. That isn't to say that another stimulus similar to the CS won't invoke the CR though - you might have not chosen an appropriate stimulus

Yes, sorry I wasn't thinking when I wrote CR.

I meant pairing the CS with the UCS.

Thanks

[IvanJames]

Can someone explain to me the effects of having split brain surgery, specifically in regards to vision?
Also, what tests can be given to a split brain patient using a tachistoscope to study the effects of the surgery?

Thanks

[darklight]

Quick question: is the General Adaptation Syndrome in the study design or not? I know the strength and limitations have been removed, but is the whole thing out?

[IvanJames]

Can anyone tell me if there is any prominent differences between depression and major depression/major depressive disorder?
Apart from the fact that it is 'more serious', is there any particular differences?
My textbook (Macmillan) says MDD is characterised by 'one or more major depressive episodes', what do these episodes consist of in contrast to normal depression?

Thanks

[Scooby]

Can someone explain to me the effects of having split brain surgery, specifically in regards to vision?
Also, what tests can be given to a split brain patient using a tachistoscope to study the effects of the surgery?

Thanks

No effect on vision

You just have to know about Sperry and Gazaniga's research. You know, where they flashed images to the left and right visual fields and asked participants to identify the object both verbally and by touch. You need to be able to explain why those results were observed as well - how does severing the corpus callosum affect the transfer of information between the two hemispheres of the brain? You'll also have to recognise that the language centre (ie. Broca's and Wernicke's areas) is in the left hemisphere of most people when you're explaining Sperry's findings

[darklight]

Hey guys,

Is remembering your name an example of "episodic" or "semantic memory"? What would VCAA accept considering this was a question in VCAA 2003, although no answer was stated.

[IvanJames]

Can someone explain the difference between homeostasis and allostasis?