Source: Chapters 5–8, General Psychology (Ohio State University)
Difficulty: Introductory–Intermediate | Prerequisites: Chapters 1–4 notes (neuron basics, research methods)
Tags: learning, classical conditioning, operant conditioning, Pavlov, Skinner, reinforcement, punishment, memory, encoding, storage, retrieval, cognition, heuristics, intelligence, Piaget, Erikson, development, attachment, parenting styles
This block covers how we acquire new behaviours (Chapter 5), how we store and retrieve information (Chapter 6), how we think and solve problems (Chapter 7), and how we change across the lifespan (Chapter 8). Learning and memory are tightly linked: conditioning explains how associations form, and memory research explains where those associations live and why they sometimes fail. The development chapter pulls many earlier threads together, applying cognitive and social concepts to the arc from infancy through late adulthood. If you are behind, make sure you are comfortable with neuron basics from Chapter 2 before diving in.
We learn through association (classical and operant conditioning) and by watching others. Memory works in three stages: encoding, storage, and retrieval, across sensory, short-term, and long-term stores. Thinking relies on concepts, heuristics, and reasoning, all of which are subject to systematic biases. Human development unfolds through cognitive stages (Piaget), psychosocial stages (Erikson), and moral stages (Kohlberg), shaped by both biology and environment.
Learning
A relatively permanent change in behaviour or knowledge resulting from experience. Think of it as the brain updating itself based on what happens to you.
Classical conditioning
A type of learning in which a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a stimulus that naturally produces a response, so that the neutral stimulus eventually triggers the response on its own. Pavlov's dog experiments are the textbook example.
Unconditioned stimulus (US)
A stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response without any prior learning (e.g., food producing salivation).
Unconditioned response (UR)
The natural, unlearned reaction to the unconditioned stimulus (e.g., salivation to food).
Conditioned stimulus (CS)
A previously neutral stimulus that, after being paired with the US, comes to trigger a learned response (e.g., a bell after repeated bell-food pairings).
Conditioned response (CR)
The learned response to the conditioned stimulus (e.g., salivation to the bell alone).
Operant conditioning
A type of learning in which behaviour is shaped by its consequences: reinforcement increases the behaviour, punishment decreases it. Associated with B.F. Skinner.
Positive reinforcement
Adding something pleasant after a behaviour to increase that behaviour. In simple terms, a reward.
Negative reinforcement
Removing something unpleasant after a behaviour to increase that behaviour. Think of it as relief, not punishment.
Positive punishment
Adding something unpleasant after a behaviour to decrease it (e.g., extra chores for breaking curfew).
Negative punishment
Removing something pleasant after a behaviour to decrease it (e.g., losing phone privileges).
Shaping
Reinforcing successive approximations toward a target behaviour. You reward closer and closer attempts until the full behaviour appears.
Observational learning
Learning by watching and imitating others (Bandura). No direct reinforcement is needed for the observer.
Encoding
The process of getting information into memory. Deeper processing (connecting material to personal meaning) produces stronger encoding than shallow processing (noting surface features like font).
Storage
Maintaining encoded information over time.
Retrieval
Accessing stored information when you need it.
Sensory memory
A very brief store (fractions of a second to a few seconds) that holds a large amount of incoming sensory information before most of it fades.
Short-term memory (STM)
A limited-capacity store (~7 ± 2 items) that holds information for roughly 30 seconds without rehearsal.
Chunking
Grouping individual items into larger meaningful units to expand the effective capacity of short-term memory (e.g., remembering "USA-NBA-OSU" instead of nine separate letters).
Long-term memory (LTM)
A relatively permanent store with effectively unlimited capacity.
Semantic memory
Long-term memory for facts and general knowledge (e.g., knowing that Paris is the capital of France).
Episodic memory
Long-term memory for personal experiences and events (e.g., your first day at university).
Procedural memory
Long-term memory for skills and how to do things (e.g., riding a bicycle).
Serial position effect
The tendency to recall the first items (primacy effect) and last items (recency effect) in a list better than the middle items.
Cognition
The mental processes involved in acquiring, processing, and using knowledge, including thinking, reasoning, and problem-solving.
Heuristic
A mental shortcut that allows quick decisions but can lead to errors. Contrast with an algorithm, which is a step-by-step procedure guaranteed to produce a correct solution (but slower).
Confirmation bias
The tendency to search for, interpret, and remember information that confirms pre-existing beliefs while ignoring contradictory evidence.
Availability heuristic
Judging the likelihood of an event based on how easily examples come to mind. Vivid or recent events feel more common than they are.
Functional fixedness
The inability to see an object as useful for anything other than its typical purpose. This blocks creative problem-solving.
Validity
The degree to which a test measures what it claims to measure.
Reliability
The degree to which a test produces consistent results over time.
Normal distribution
A symmetrical bell-shaped curve in which most scores cluster near the mean and fewer scores appear at the extremes. IQ scores are a classic example.
Assimilation (Piaget)
Incorporating new information into an existing cognitive schema. A child who sees a zebra and calls it a "stripy horse" is assimilating.
Accommodation (Piaget)
Modifying an existing schema, or creating a new one, to fit new information. The child learns that zebras are a separate category from horses.
Object permanence
Understanding that objects continue to exist even when they are out of sight. Develops during Piaget's sensorimotor stage.
Conservation
Understanding that quantity remains the same despite changes in shape or appearance. Develops during the concrete operational stage.
Egocentrism
A child's difficulty taking another person's perspective, characteristic of Piaget's preoperational stage.
Secure attachment
An attachment style in which the child uses the caregiver as a safe base, shows distress when the caregiver leaves, and is comforted on return.
Authoritative parenting
A style combining warmth, responsiveness, and clear boundaries. Research consistently links it to the most positive child outcomes.
Before conditioning: US (food) → UR (salivation). The neutral stimulus (bell) produces no salivation.
During conditioning: NS (bell) is repeatedly paired with the US (food).
After conditioning: CS (bell) → CR (salivation). The bell alone now triggers salivation.
Real-life example: you flinch at the sound of a dentist drill (CS) because you associate it with pain (US).
Behaviour is shaped by what follows it.
Reinforcement (positive or negative) increases behaviour.
Punishment (positive or negative) decreases behaviour.
The "positive/negative" labels refer to adding or removing a stimulus, not to whether the experience is good or bad.
Information flows: sensory memory → short-term memory → (with rehearsal/encoding) long-term memory.
Levels of processing: shallow encoding (appearance) produces weaker memories than deep encoding (meaning).
Elaboration strengthens encoding by linking new information to things you already know.
Explicit (declarative): semantic (facts) and episodic (personal events). You can consciously recall these.
Implicit (non-declarative): procedural memory (skills), priming, and conditioned responses. These operate outside conscious awareness.
Algorithms are exhaustive but slow.
Heuristics are fast but error-prone.
Confirmation bias and the availability heuristic are the two biases most commonly tested at this level.
Functional fixedness limits creative solutions by locking you into conventional uses of objects.
Sensorimotor (0–2 years): learning through senses and actions; object permanence develops.
Preoperational (2–7 years): symbolic thinking emerges; limited by egocentrism and lack of conservation.
Concrete operational (7–11 years): logical thinking about concrete events; conservation is understood.
Formal operational (12+ years): abstract and hypothetical reasoning.
Erikson's psychosocial stages each present a central conflict:
Infancy: trust vs. mistrust.
Adolescence: identity vs. role confusion.
Late adulthood: integrity vs. despair.
Attachment (Bowlby, Ainsworth) shapes how children relate to others. Secure attachment is linked to healthier outcomes.
Authoritarian: high demand, low warmth ("Because I said so").
Authoritative: high demand, high warmth (sets rules but explains them).
Permissive: low demand, high warmth (few boundaries).
Neglectful: low demand, low warmth (disengaged).
Preconventional: moral reasoning based on consequences to the self (rewards and punishments).
Conventional: moral reasoning based on social approval and law.
Postconventional: moral reasoning based on abstract ethical principles, even when those conflict with the law.
Classical conditioning explains why certain songs can trigger strong emotions years later: the song (CS) was paired with an emotionally charged event (US).
Understanding reinforcement schedules helps explain why social-media notifications are so compelling (variable-ratio schedule).
The serial position effect is useful study advice: the information in the middle of your study session is most at risk of being forgotten, so review it separately.
Piaget's stages inform how primary-school curricula are designed, moving from concrete manipulatives to abstract concepts as children develop.
Students frequently confuse negative reinforcement with punishment. Negative reinforcement increases behaviour by removing something aversive (e.g., taking paracetamol removes a headache, so you are more likely to take it next time). Punishment, whether positive or negative, decreases behaviour.
"Short-term memory" and "working memory" are often used interchangeably in introductory courses, but they are not identical. Working memory includes active manipulation of information, not just passive holding.
Students tend to think Piaget's stages have rigid age boundaries. The ages are approximations; individual variation is normal.
Kohlberg's stages are sometimes misread as "everyone reaches postconventional." Many adults remain at the conventional level, and that is not a pathology.
⚠️ Be able to identify US, UR, NS, CS, and CR in a novel scenario, not just Pavlov's dogs.
⚠️ Know the difference between positive and negative reinforcement, and between positive and negative punishment. Expect a table or matching question.
⚠️ Distinguish sensory, short-term, and long-term memory by capacity and duration.
⚠️ Know the three types of long-term memory (semantic, episodic, procedural) with an example of each.
⚠️ Be able to match Piaget's four stages to the correct age range and key milestone (object permanence, egocentrism, conservation, abstract reasoning).
⚠️ Know the four parenting styles and which one research links to the best outcomes (authoritative).
⚠️ Distinguish confirmation bias from availability heuristic.
In classical conditioning, the __________ is the learned response to the conditioned stimulus.
True or False: Negative reinforcement decreases behaviour.
Short-term memory can hold approximately __________ items.
The type of long-term memory that stores personal experiences is called __________ memory.
True or False: In Piaget's preoperational stage, children understand conservation.
Answers: 1. Conditioned response (CR). 2. False (it increases behaviour by removing something unpleasant). 3. 7 ± 2. 4. Episodic. 5. False (conservation develops in the concrete operational stage).
Q: A child is afraid of dogs after being bitten. Identify the US, UR, CS, and CR in this scenario.
A: US = the dog bite (naturally causes fear). UR = fear in response to the bite. CS = dogs in general (previously neutral, now associated with pain). CR = fear triggered by seeing any dog.
Q: A student earns extra credit for completing bonus assignments. Is this positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, positive punishment, or negative punishment?
A: Positive reinforcement. Something desirable (extra credit) is added, increasing the likelihood the student will complete bonus assignments again.
Q: Explain the difference between semantic and episodic memory, and give one example of each.
A: Semantic memory stores general facts and knowledge (e.g., knowing that water freezes at 0 °C). Episodic memory stores personal experiences tied to a specific time and place (e.g., remembering your 18th birthday party).
Q: A 4-year-old watches you pour water from a short, wide glass into a tall, narrow glass and insists the tall glass has more water. Which Piagetian concept does this illustrate?
A: The child lacks conservation, the understanding that quantity stays the same despite changes in shape or container. This is characteristic of the preoperational stage.
Q: According to Kohlberg, a person who refuses to steal medicine even though a loved one is dying, because "stealing is against the law," is reasoning at which level?
A: The conventional level, where moral judgements are based on social rules and laws.
Operant conditioning principles from Chapter 5 reappear in Chapter 13 (Therapies), where token economies and behaviour modification are used as treatments.
Memory encoding and retrieval from Chapter 6 connect to the cognitive biases discussed in Chapter 7 (e.g., the availability heuristic depends on what is easy to retrieve).
Piaget's and Erikson's developmental stages from Chapter 8 are referenced in Chapter 12 when discussing how early experiences contribute to psychological disorders.
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