Psychology Study Guide: Sensation, Learning, and Memory

To perceive depth and stability, our brains use various cues. Monocular depth cues (like linear perspective or texture gradient) work with one eye, while binocular depth cues require both eyes to provide depth information. Furthermore, object constancy allows us to perceive an object as having the same size, shape, or color even when it moves or the lighting changes.

In terms of touch, the gate control theory explains how pain is modulated. Signals travel via fast fibers or slow fibers, and various receptors detect pressure, temperature, and pain.

Learning: How Behavior is Shaped

Learning is generally categorized into three types: non-associative, associative, and observational.

Classical Conditioning (Associative)

Classical conditioning involves learning through association. An unconditioned stimulus (US) naturally triggers an unconditioned response (UR). Through repeated pairing, a neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS), which then elicits a conditioned response (CR).

• Stimulus generalization: Responding to stimuli that are similar to the CS (e.g., a dog salivating to a bell that sounds like the original bell).
• Stimulus discrimination: The ability to tell the difference between the CS and other stimuli.
• Extinction: The weakening of the CR when the CS is no longer paired with the US.
• Spontaneous recovery: The sudden reappearance of an extinguished response after a rest period.

Operant Conditioning (Associative)

Operant conditioning focuses on how consequences shape behavior. This is driven by reinforcement (to increase behavior) and punishment (to decrease behavior).

Reinforcers can be primary (biological, like food) or secondary (learned, like money or a token economy). Behavior can also be shaped through shaping, which involves reinforcing successive approximations of a desired behavior.

Reinforcement often follows specific schedules. For example, a variable ratio schedule provides reinforcement after an unpredictable number of responses, which is highly resistant to extinction.

Observational Learning

This occurs through modeling, where an individual learns by watching others. This process is often facilitated by mirror neurons in the brain.

Memory: Encoding, Storing, and Retrieving

Memory is not a single "drawer" in the brain; it is a complex process involving encoding (getting info in), consolidation (stabilizing the memory), storage (keeping it), and retrieval (getting it back out).

Types of Memory

Memory is divided into two main branches:

1. Explicit (Declarative) Memory: Conscious memories.
   • Episodic memory: Personal experiences and life events.
   • Semantic memory: Facts and general knowledge.
2. Implicit (Non-declarative) Memory: Unconscious memories.
   • Procedural memory: Skills and habits, like riding a bike.

The hippocampus is vital for forming new explicit memories, while the amygdala helps attach emotional significance to them.

Forgetting and Memory Strategies

Forgetting can happen through interference (where new or old info gets in the way) or amnesia (such as anterograde amnesia, the inability to form new memories, or retrograde amnesia, the loss of past memories).

Exam Tip: Distinguish between maintenance rehearsal (simple repetition to keep info in short-term memory) and elaborative rehearsal (connecting new info to existing knowledge to move it into long-term memory).

To improve memory, use these strategies:

• Chunking: Grouping individual pieces of info into larger, meaningful units.
• Mnemonics: Using memory aids like acronyms.
• Context-dependent memory: Using environmental cues to trigger retrieval.

Be aware that memory is reconstructive, not a video recording. This means we are susceptible to false memories, the misinformation effect, and even flashbulb memories (vivid, emotional memories of significant events) that may still be inaccurate.