Content Category 7C: Attitude and behavior change

Learning is a relatively permanent change in behavior brought about by experience. There are a number of different types of learning, which include habituation as well as associative, observational, and social learning. 

Although people can learn new behaviors and change their attitudes, psychological, environmental, and biological factors influence whether those changes will be short-term or long-term. Understanding how people learn new behaviors and change their attitudes and the conditions that affect learning helps us understand behavior and our interactions with others. 

The content in this category covers learning and theories of attitude and behavior change. This includes the elaboration likelihood model and social cognitive theory.  

Topic Human Physiology
Associative Learning (PSY)*
  • Classical conditioning (PSY, BIO)
    • Neutral, conditioned, and unconditioned stimuli
    • Conditioned and unconditioned response
    • Processes: acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, generalization, discrimination
  • Operant conditioning (PSY, BIO)
    • Processes of shaping and extinction
    • Types of reinforcement: positive, negative, primary, conditional
    • Reinforcement schedules: fixed-ratio, variable-ratio, fixed-interval, variable-interval
    • Punishment
    • Escape and avoidance learning
  • Cognitive processes that affect associative learning
  • Biological factors that affect associative learning
    • Innate behaviors are developmentally fixed
    • Learned behaviors are modified based on experiences
    • Development of learned behaviors (PSY, BIO)
  • Ch. 8 The Central Nervous System, pp. 273-275