Chapter 5: Learning Classical conditioning: * The three stages of conditioning:     Stage 1: Before conditioning       -Unconditioned Response: behavior of interest       -Unconditioned Stimulus: event that “naturally” causes the behavior of interest       -Neutral Stimulus: event that does not “naturally” cause the behavior of interest     Stage 2: Conditioning       -Neutral stimulus is consistently presented many times with the unconditioned stimulus     Stage 3: After conditioning       -Over time, the behavior of interest appears as soon as the neutral stimulus is presented       -The unconditioned response became a conditioned response       -The neutral stimulus became the conditioned stimulus. * In stage 2, when is the presentation of the neutral stimulus most effective for rapid conditioning? -Neutral stimulus starts before, and overlaps, the presentation of the unconditioned stimulus. * After conditioning, will the conditioned stimulus cause the conditioned response forever? -Extinction: Over time, the conditioned stimulus loses its predictive value if it is not followed by the unconditioned stimulus.        -Reconditioning happens if the conditioned and unconditioned stimuli are presented together again.        -Spontaneous Recovery to the unconditioned stimulus happens after a rest period. * What type of information is important in predicting events? -Most plausible cause:         -We often associate sickness with what we ingested         -We often associate being hurt with external events -Familiarity: The more familiar a neutral stimulus, the more difficult it will be to make it a conditioned stimulus. -Similarity: Through the process of generalization, the more similar a neutral stimulus is to the conditioned stimulus, the more likely it is to become a conditioned stimulus itself. -Context: Through the process of discrimination, certain conditioned stimuli can lose their predictive powers in certain situations.