Second-order conditioning

Second-order conditioning

In classical conditioning, second-order conditioning or higher-order conditioning is a form of learning in which a stimulus is first made meaningful or consequential for an organism through an initial step of learning, and then that stimulus is used as a basis for learning about some new stimulus. For example, an animal might first learn to associate a bell with food (first-order conditioning), but then learn to associate a light with the bell (second-order conditioning).

Third order conditioning can then follow with a further stimulus being added and the response elicited can be weak. Also known as shaping behavior. Often related to B. F. Skinner's studies with pigeons. Another example would be Skinner first conditioned a pigeon to walk up to a ball, then conditioning it to touch the ball with its beak. He would thus use a second-order to shape the animal's behavior. Often used with biological predispositions.

In Fear Conditioning

Karim Nader and Joseph LeDoux showed that in building an associative fear conditioning chain, such as CS2 --> CS1 --> US, extinction of freezing responses to the first-order stimulus (CS1) leads to responding impairments in CS2, but extinction of the second-order stimulus (CS2), does not have any effect on CS1.

They also examined the effect of activation (memory retrieval) on such an associative chain. Results demonstrated that protein synthesis inhibition after exposure to a single CS1 impairs responses to both CS1 and CS2, but protein synthesis inhibition after exposure to a single CS2, only disrupts CS2 and leaves CS1 freezing intact. Therefore, it is believed that when the first-order association is directly activated, it is placed into a labile state (as we would expect from reconsolidation research) which may have an impact on dependent associations. However, when the first-order association is only indirectly activated (through the associative chain), it appears that there is not sufficient stimulation to kick off cellular processes which would place it in a labile state, so it remains fixed. [Debiec, J., Doyere, V., Nader, K., LeDoux, J.E. (February 28, 2006). Directly reactivated, but not indirectly reactivated, memories undergo reconsolidation in the amygdala. PNAS, Volume 103, Number 9, 3428-3433.]

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Conditioning — 1) Exercise and practice to build the body up for either improved normal performance, as in physical therapy, or in preparation for sports performance. 2) A method of educating involving repetitive activities to influence behavior. * * * The… …   Medical dictionary

  • Classical conditioning — This dog was fitted with a cannula to measure the amount of salivation when presented with a certain stimulus, Pavlov Museum, 2005 Classical conditioning (also Pavlovian or respondent conditioning, Pavlovian reinforcement) is a form of… …   Wikipedia

  • Order Castles of the Third Reich — Directed by R.J. Adams Produced by Diane C. Adams …   Wikipedia

  • Conditioning (probability) — Beliefs depend on the available information. This idea is formalized in probability theory by conditioning. Conditional probabilities, conditional expectations and conditional distributions are treated on three levels: discrete probabilities,… …   Wikipedia

  • Chevrolet Camaro (second generation) — This article is about the second generation Chevrolet Camaro. For general Camaro information, see Chevrolet Camaro. Chevrolet Camaro (second generation) Manufacturer Chevrolet Division of General Motors …   Wikipedia

  • One Second After —   Author(s) William R. Forstchen …   Wikipedia

  • Motivation — For other uses, see Motivation (disambiguation). Timeline of theorists about student motivation Motivation is the driving force by which humans achieve their goals. Motivation is said to be intrinsic or extrinsic …   Wikipedia

  • List of education topics — This is a list of education topics. See also: Education, , and the List of basic education topics.: External link: [http://tools.wikimedia.de/ daniel/WikiSense/CategoryTree.php? wikilang=en wikifam=.wikipedia.org m=a art=on userlang=en… …   Wikipedia

  • Webots — Infobox Software name = Webots 5 latest release version = Webots 5.9.2 latest release date = June 19, 2008 developer = Cyberbotics Ltd. operating system = Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Mac OS X 10.4 and 10.5 (Universal binary), and… …   Wikipedia

  • Propaganda — This article is about the form of communication. For other uses, see Propaganda (disambiguation). French Military Propaganda postcard showing a caricature of Kaiser Wilhelm II biting the world (c. 1915) …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”